Time Can't Heal Scars

"Ow, ow, ow!" The ginger-haired man tensed up as her hands forced his tissue back together. "Come on, I know you can be a little gentler than that, Konan!" Depending on which one you asked, the negotiating had either gone very well or catastrophically failed. Although his wounds were deep and abundant, they paled in comparison to her piercing glare. The young man motioned to speak, but she effectively silenced him.

"Yahiko, you reckless imbecile!" He clinched his teeth and felt her anger and frustration drown him. Her hands shook, unable to continue healing. By no means had she been the best medic out there, but someone had to put these two back together. "How can you just sit there and almost get yourself killed? What favor can you do the world if you're dead?" There was a hoarseness forming in her words.

The battered man's eyes took on a hint of shock and he turned away in a moment of shame. Konan never really spoke to him like that before. A moment of silence coated the room: Konan relaxed her tension and Yahiko reflected deeply upon what she'd said. In his mind, there had been no other choice.

Yahiko smirked, changing the atmosphere. "Aww, come on now." She couldn't help curling her lips up at his wide grin he wore so well. "I know you enjoy putting your hands on my manly proportions!" With an enthused attempt to swoon her, he gave his best flex pose. Unfortunately, Konan wasn't so easy to win over, despite her chuckle of amusement.

Jutting her hand to his wounded chest, he eyes and mouth jolted in response. "Oops! I guess I do enjoy this!" Yahiko tried his best to maintain his pose without crying. It wasn't long after she was putting the final touches on him. "Just quit pushing yourself so far. We both know you're trying a bit too hard for everyone." As she searched for words, her eyes saddened. "You will always have us to share the burden. Why can't you let us protect you for once?"

Yahiko turned away as once again, a somber quiet blanketed the room. This time, he wasn't searching for an answer. No, more like avoided it. In his mind, he already knew the role he had to play. He was merely a support to a bigger bridge. After giving the room a quick scan, subtle memories flashed into his head, seeing the 'hop in' cards. It's not like they really needed to use them anymore, but the two of them naturally had flipped them over. "Ah!-" Yahiko practically gritted his teeth to the gums as a sharp pain ran up his left arm. It was far too late to convince her he was fine.

"It's by far the worst wound you received in a long time. Yahiko, I wouldn't doubt it if you fractured it completely!" The stubborn man rolled his eyes, feeling the weight of his teammate's concern crushing him. "It'll be months before I allow you to remove the bandages! Is that clear?"

It was as if her eyes would even permit another solution. Yahiko let out an extended sigh. Why did they have to be so beautiful anyways? At that moment, Yahiko couldn't help but feel the tenderness of her touch and fought to control his heart rate. His eyes couldn't help but gaze upon her beauty as an atmosphere of lust filled his lungs. "Hellooo? What are you starting at?" A subtle blush came across their faces as his brain raced for a legitimate response.

"Ugh, your…breast?" Her eyes twitched as her tenderness became the touch of death itself. Yahiko screamed in pain as she wrenched his arm, face flushed in embarrassment.

"You really enjoy pain that much don't you, pervert! I'll make sure to break you're other arm if you try anything." She shook her head with a hint of authority. "Your wounds will never heal at the rate you're pushing it!"

Yahiko berated himself mentally. Damn Jiraiya-sensei and his addictive persona. I never actually believed she could be so …vocalized. And of all the things I could have said… All the ginger-haired man could think to do was give her an apologetic grin. "Don't worry about it, really! Time heals everything, right?"

Konan wasn't subtle about tightening her grip as she returned a smile. "Except scars, that is! The more severe the wounds, the bigger the scars get. Time only reminds you of how you got them." Yahiko lowered his head in defeat. Konan was surprised herself that she had an outburst like that. She casually fiddled with the flower in her hair to calm her mind.

After the minor episode, Konan began wrapping bandages around the pervert. While she had reasons to harm him, compassion was in her nature. Making sure to save the bad arm for last, Konan began wrapping his core. As she leaned in to make it easier, she couldn't help but notice how impressively toned it was. Suddenly, her heart pumped harder. She moved onto the right arm, carefully noting the power he had. Konan could feel a sweat clamoring her to make it last.

This is crazy, get a grip of yourself! Konan centered her attention to her head. He's clearly ruined the atmosphere too many times. Justifying this to her body seemed to be a more difficult task. Yahiko stared as she slowly became more timid and her touch became smoother than silk. As the final wraps of bandage gently crept over his left arm, she seemed to slow to a halt.

"Konan?" To her, it was more shocking than a tailed beast cursing her name. As she jumped, Yahiko's arm was smacked. On his face was a momentary grimace, yet on hers' was now desire. To his surprise, no words followed. He felt her hand cusp his arms as her beautiful eyes came to his. Yahiko was paralyzed, and for once, he didn't know what to do. With closed eyes, their mouths finally locked and hearts poured into one another. Already, an eternity of peace surrounded them: The world's chaos melted by their burning passion. For it was in that moment, they knew exactly what they truly meant to each other.

Yahiko released his lips to let Konan catch her breath. Neither one averted their eyes when they reopened. A radiant aura filled the room. Just this one time, he was prepared to break his rule and go on the offensive. Yahiko wrapped his arms around her and sealed her lips for another eternity.

-End-

A/N

This was a complete challenge to myself. I don't know exactly why I chose this scene, but the context given by the manga was just not good enough to me. There was a lot left to interpretation. So, go ahead and flame me for this, as Romance is my absolute worst category. Also, I didn't want it to go any further than kissing, as if you remember, Nagato was just outside the door, smiling. Awkward.