Tobi dropped the kunoichi on the floor without remorse. She rolled with a groan until she landed in front of his leader's boots, unable from the beating that he had given her earlier to do more than bleed onto the cold floor in retaliation. Pein looked up with an unconcerned look at his subordinate, waiting for an explanation for the interruption.
"She hurt sempai," Tobi accused flatly. "Since we have no medical personnel here at the moment, I was hoping we could make her repair the damage done to sempai's arm. He won't be able to function well with one arm for long." Itachi had been recently deployed on a mission per Leader's orders, the only one left who knew any of the healing jutsus. Konan had been AWOL since her and Pein had broken up nearly a year ago. The leaf kunoichi was Tobi's best bet at getting his beloved sempai's arm healed so Deidara could get back to his former self and beating Tobi over the head with it.
"Who is she?" Pein's boot had not-so-gently flipped the body of the kunoichi over to view her bloodied visage. Her bangs mostly fell across the gash on her forehead, sticking to the coagulated laceration that bisected her brow. Her tanned skin made Tobi think that she wasn't actually from Konoha originally, but the Leaf hitai-ate that she adorned proved him otherwise.
"Leaf-nin," Tobi answered him vaguely as his leader continued to inspect the female before him curiously. Pein cocked his head to the side and stared a bit longer before responding. Leaning over, he crouched down and brushed the caked blood away from her eyes. Tobi didn't need to explain to Leader-sama why they had come back from reconnaissance early. The blood and soot covering his red and black robes spoke for itself.
"Take her to my chambers. She will need her strength back in order to heal Deidara."
Tobi bowed graciously to his leader. "Yes, Leader-sama," he quickly grabbed the limp kunoichi off the floor and bowed again as he backed out of the door. "Thank you."
(O) (O) (O) (O)
Pein found it hard to concentrate on world domination when he thought of a woman occupying his bed once more. The absence of a woman, Konan in particular, left him bereft of companionship which he had longed for even with the blue haired beauty at his side. Konan had always kept him at arm's length, emotionally reticent and painfully stoic. Any intimacy they had together seemed to evaporate instantly. The thought of any female in his life seemed to stir another bout of internal turmoil about why he had longed for a carnal, emotional and satisfying relationship with a woman to begin with, since his relationship with Konan had been less than satisfying. He was relieved when she left, but he still felt the hollow sting of being lonesome without someone at his side.
Pein's eyes followed a trickle of water as it made its down ward path against the cold window. The storm was picking up, a direct correlation to the tumultuous feelings surging through him as he stood with his arms behind his back as he stared thoughtfully out of the large bay window. He loved watching storms churn from his lofty position in his tower. It was where he felt most at ease, besides his bedroom down the hall. A streak of lightning quickly snapped across the darkened sky, splitting it with a white light that flooded the valley below in a fleeting moment of shadows and muted colors. There was something about a raging storm that made him feel normal, like he was not the only part of nature that couldn't control an angry impulse.
The urge to check on the leaf-nin grew too much for him to hesitate at the window any longer. He took his strides down the hall with great care, wondering what state he would find the injured kunoichi. Perhaps Tobi had accidently killed her and he would just have to dispose of another body come morning. Tobi had been awfully cross with her for injuring his beloved sempai. It was a wonder that Tobi was able to rationally think to keep her in order for her to heal Deidara in the first place.
He eased the door to his chambers open carefully, on his guard in case Tobi hadn't hit her as hard as he had suspected. She sat in the middle of his bed holding her head, sitting up around a pool of covers, blood either trickling down the back of her hand from her head or there from a wound he had not assessed when he had first seen her. Startled, she dropped her hands and moved to brace herself instinctively like a scared animal. Pein had to resist the urge to sit beside her on the bed and comfort her. Instead, he merely walked in like the figment that he was, commanding power and authority in the air around him. He crossed the room like royalty to the large window to resume once more the storm watching that had preoccupied his time earlier.
He spied the kunoichi in his perfect peripheral vision, still backing up on the bed until she bumped into the headboard. Confused and scared, Pein was unable to offer her the comfort that he somehow wanted to be able to give her.
"I won't kill you," was the best he could offer. "I need you to fix one of my men you nearly killed earlier today. I can guarantee your safety until that task is complete." He finally graced her with a full out stare in her direction, which seemed to catch the traumatized girl off-guard.
She still remained silent, that scared animal look still gracing her fine features. Pein noticed her uncommonly thick eyelashes when she fluttered her eyes open and shut as if trying to ground herself or comprehend what he had said. She was quite lovely, despite the fact that she was covered in a fair amount blood and soot.
"After you get better of course," he added. He found himself wanting to smile at her to ease some of the tension. His expression remained neutral, however. "Wash up," he pointed to the bathroom down a small hall to the right. "I will find you something suitable to wear for bed in the meantime. Then I can treat some of the nastier wounds that my men gave you earlier."
Pein noted the weapon's pouch that Tobi had taken off of her along with a rather large scroll occupying the corner by his bookcase. He waited until she slipped wordlessly in to the bathroom before rummaging through the contents with child-like curiosity. He found himself admiring the razor sharp edges of all of the shinny weapons that lay stacked neatly in the standard issue weapon's pouch. The scroll that she carried was another matter entirely. No doubt only by blood-contract could the exotic parchment be opened.
He left the weapons with a small smirk on his face and hunted down some clean clothes for her to change into. He slipped them silently onto the chair in the bathroom, restraining himself from making his presence known and scaring her further. He was almost certain she stilled in the shower, anyways, regardless of his stealth.
When she emerged, Pein had just finished changing the sheets of his bed. He detested sleeping in a bed full of blood or dirt. It also served to occupy his time while the leaf-nin finished washing up.
"Sit," he commanded, ordering her to the edge of the bed where his medical supplies were laid out. He secretly was grateful that her hair was no longer in those ridiculous buns at the side of her head. He was able to see the dark wet locks, framing her face and roped in wet curls all down her back. The lack of soot over her flesh made her appear less tan, but even so, Pein found it hard not to call her striking in appearance. Konan seemed a pale, wilted flower in compared to the brilliant bursting pedals of the bright-eyed woman before him.
"Do you have a name?" Pein asked as he took a washcloth and pressed it to the cut that still oozed blood above her brow.
"I supposed I have." She meant no disrespect in her tone. Her eyebrows furrowed in frustration before she pinned him with a searching look. "Do I know you?"
Pein continued to dab at the gash in her head which was starting to look more like a deep bruise with a cut overlaying it. She was going to need stitches. He inwardly frowned.
"I am Pein, Leader of the Akasuki," he explained without expression. "With a head wound like this it is no surprise that your memory has lapsed." He dabbed at her head with a dry clothe before readying a needle and thread. To her credit, she didn't even wince when he started the first stitch.
"Who," she began with a hard swallow. "Who did I hurt?" Her lively brown eyes pierced his and he took a moment to drink in all of the flecks of color shimmering below the surface before he continued with another stitch.
"Deidara," he answered with a neutral tone. "I assume you injured Tobi as well, but since he is more concerned about his partner, we will just concentrate on healing one person at a time."
She nodded once he had finished, trying with sad eyes to comprehend the situation that she was in with slow, even breaths.
"I will have someone bring up something for you to eat, then I suggest you get some rest. Your healing talents will be required in the morning."
She nodded again with comprehension, and as Pein turned to get off the bed, her hand over his caught him a bit off-guard.
"Thank you," she spoke with deep gratitude. Pein nodded curtly before exiting his bedroom.
(O) (O) (O) (O)
"Tobi, if you insist on bleeding all over my floor, please at least have the decency to clean it up afterwards." Pein was in no mood for his underling's antics as he entered the kitchen in search of hydration for his parched throat.
Tobi stared at him, most likely blinking in surprise as Pein fished a few ice cubes out of the freezer before heading over to the sink. After filling a glass and drinking in long swigs from it, he leaned against counter and motioned with grandeur to the imported tile, now mottled with red streaks and splotches of blood.
Tobi shut the refrigerator door in order to inspect himself a bit more thoroughly for damage. He began by checking the backs of his hands, followed by his palms, then down his arms until he patted down his torso. Finding no wound there, he patted further down his legs to the source of the problem and winced upon finding it.
"Sorry, Leader-sama," Tobi lowered his head with shame, "Tobi will clean up his mess. He promises."
Although Pein had always found it odd that he referred to himself in such a manor, he waved off the petulant bout with his hand. "No doubt you are searching for the aloe. I will see to Deidara's dressings. Go shower, I will likewise patch your leg as soon as I have attended to him."
Tobi nodded, most likely stunned by Pein's words. Though Pein usually did not concern himself with their personal wounds, the lack of personnel to fix them was beginning to be a problem and personally seeing to their medical needs was becoming more critical as missions became more dangerous. Pein drained his glass of water as Tobi skittishly took off down the hall, not bothering to question his leader in the matter. Rummaging through the refrigerator, he grabbed the bottle of aloe and the smaller bottle of lavender oil and headed off to Deidara's room.
Deidara's arm looked almost unrecognizable as it looked more like ground up sausage hanging on to bone than anything else. Tobi had done an exceptional job of blocking off arteries so that Deidara wouldn't bleed to death as well as knocking out the blond with a sleeping jutsu to numb the pain.
After addressing all of his wounds as best he could, Pein turned to do the same to Tobi, whose injury was deeper than Pein had suspected. Tobi, ever the faithful partner, only had concern for his sempai.
"Will she be able to heal him, Leader-sama?" Tobi's timid voice was heard as he glanced over at the bomb-user's sleeping form with worry. Pein pulled the last stitch through without looking up at his underling.
"Tomorrow, Tobi." He tied the end knot and clipped the line of the sutures. "Don't forget to clean up the blood in the kitchen."
"Yes, Leader-sama." Tobi soberly replied, "Thank you."
Covered in blood, Pein snaked his way back upstairs to his room, looking forward to a hot shower before crashing for the night. He kept his eyes on the sleeping form in his bed as he made his way to the bathroom. He watched the red swirls of water circle the drain as he let his body soak in the hottest shower he could stand. Eyeing the kunoichi as he dressed, he realized that he was neither willing to give up his bed nor able to give a valid excuse for crawling into bed beside the strange leaf-nin.
Every day it was the same routine. She would wake up in the morning, eat a large breakfast, then head down to Deidara's room and give an intense healing session to him before passing out for the rest of the day. Taking her limp body back to his bed to recuperate became his favorite part of this routine. By the end of the week, Deidara's arm was whole and he was able to form clay with his palms again. Tobi was ecstatic over his progress, jumping up and down with unbridled mirth when Deidara had managed to hit him over the head with it for the first time.
Every night, Pein thought that he was going crazy. For some reason, it seemed the kunoichi that occupied his bed inched closer to him in his sleep. She tempted him with her feminine scent and the allure of soft, clean flesh gliding over his palms once again. He had a million reasons why she should stay in his bed and another million why she shouldn't. He couldn't bring himself to either justify or dismiss her staying in his private quarters.
With the end of the week came the fact that he no longer required her services in patching up Deidara's arm or Tobi's leg. He should kill her, bury her quietly in his backyard, and dismiss any further thought on keeping her with him just for the sake a warm body keeping him company during the long, lonely nights.
She was gaining her strength, and by the end of the month she was sparring with Tobi, who seemed too grateful to her for fixing his sempai's arm to hold a grudge. He would watch her train in the court yard from his position in the tower, letting his eyes wonder over her lithe form as her deadly skills proved to him once again how she was almost able to best one of his own elite men. Later she would entertain him with witty conversation over dinner and hold him captive to her attention in his own house.
When she straddled his hips one night and pressed her lips slowly over his, he should have snapped her neck right then and be done with her. He should have let go of his obsession with her from the beginning with a little blunt trauma to her spinal cord. Instead, he let his untimely demise be the fact that she still had no memory of who she was before she came into his life. When and if that time came, he knew that she was going to have to make a choice. He was willing to take the risk, because now, he held her in his arms, another part of him that completed that missing space inside him like nothing else did. He should kill her, he knew, because ultimately, she would be his infinite undoing.
A/N: I expect no one to be reading this except for the person that I wrote it for, since there aren't many Pein/Tenten fics out there. But if by chance you have, I appreciate it.