A/N: Okay, I seriously loooove this couple!! OMG! I just can't get enough of it :-) so I decided since this site is lacking in the couple, I'd write some more :-D cuz if anyone out there is just like me, they'll be refreshing the page (for this specific couple) for hours on end, and it's always nice to see a story all the sudden pop up since it never happens often :-D So yep :-) …….. I have this other SuiKa one shot all ready to post (edited too ;-)) but I don't wanna post it until the characters actually come out in Shippuden cuz then I'll get more readers and stuff… I like reviews. :-( well, I like writing for myself more, but reviews DO help. And.... It'll be a PARTY!!! :-) anyway… this probably sucks but I hope you like it anyway
Warning: Spoilers from manga, as in the LATEST manga chapter… that is all ;-)
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto's characters (I would say I don't own Naruto but that IS a character –laughs at own dumb joke–)
Enjoy!!!
Love-Hate
She watched as Suigetsu was flung back once again by Kisame's sword, but Karin knew that he wasn't exactly the giving-up type. . . He had already jumped back up again, despite his dangerous injuries, and attacked.
The redhead had never liked him. First of all, who the hell grew white hair when they were only about seventeen years old?! Well, Karin realized Kabuto had white hair, too. . . but she didn't really like that dumb-ass either.
Secondly, Suigetsu was just annoying. What had she ever done to get on his nerves? Well, there had been that one incident in the past. . . but still. . .
And last of all, he was always in the way when she wanted to flirt with Sasuke! Of course, Sasuke had gone to rescue Suigetsu first, but that's just because the Mist ninja was at a closer base than she was.
All in all, she simply hated that bastard. He had never given her any reason to trust him, and so now she wouldn't have any debts to pay back to him. Even as she watched him get killed by an Akatsuki member, Karin wouldn't care.
Kisame didn't really wish to fight, so he wouldn't hurt the rest of Team Hebi unless challenged. And Juugo wasn't going to help—he didn't want to hurt anyone. That left Suigetsu all on his own. . . he was dead the moment he started this fight, Karin thought to herself, extremely amused. Finally! Now I'll just have to get rid of Juugo and it will just be me and Sasuke. . .
Suigetsu hit the ground with a hard thump. . . at Karin's feet. He was far from using his ability to transform into water since he was dehydrated and exhausted. . . Plus, he was all out of Chakra. . . so at that point he could really only use his sword.
"Serves you right for disobeying Sasuke-kun's orders, asshole," Karin remarked. She was even tempted to kick him, but that would just be rude.
Suigetsu sat up as he attempted to stand. "Just leave me alone, Karin." He wasn't in the least grinning, not at all.
Karin grimaced at his tone of voice, which brought painful memories up to the surface. Enough, she yelled at herself. I don't care about him anymore!
Kisame laughed. "You're all grown up, Suigetsu. You have your own team to back you up now. . . but they don't seem very reliable."
Suigetsu charged in rage. "Shut up!"
The Akatsuki member raised his sword again yet this time he had ripped off some of the bandaging. Suigetsu, lacking the strength to bring his own sword to his defense in time, was slashed straight across the chest, and he fell backwards, eyes closed and blood oozing through his clothes and all over his skin. This time, he did not move a muscle. This time, he was out cold.
Karin smirked. I hope he's dead. . .
Before moving to finish his opponent off, Kisame glanced at the shuddering Juugo and smiling Karin. "Don't you two care?" he asked in confusion.
Juugo said nothing while Karin shook her head.
"Heh, well, then I guess there's no need to litter the earth with his corpse," Kisame stated, holding his Samehada up high. The inevitable blow to Suigetsu's body would definitely kill him.
'So you don't love me anymore?'
Karin froze at the memory.
'You promised. . .'
"No, wait! Stop!" she ordered Kisame.
Kisame grinned and, for a moment, paused his killing blow. "Ah, so you do care. . . but you think that'll stop me?"
'I hate you.'
He returned to raising his sword, but before he had a chance to land it on Suigetsu, Karin stepped in, grabbed her teammate's body, and ran as Juugo followed wordlessly behind her. She'd never moved so fast in her life.
"So you don't love me anymore?" Suigetsu had asked her long ago.
Karin laughed. "Sasuke's way hotter than you if you haven't noticed." She could feel the mood drop from sad to devastated, and instantly the redhead regretted her words.
"Oh, okay then. . ." Suigetsu had responded, whispering in order to hide his upset voice.
"Karin," Juugo broke into her thoughts. "I think we're far enough away from Kisame now. . ."
Karin nodded in understanding, and they stopped running deeper into the forest. Sasuke would be wondering where they were. . . if he actually defeated Itachi all on his own.
She laid Suigetsu down on a soft patch of grass before realizing her hands were wet with his blood. . . and not only her hands, so was her chest from when she picked him up and her back from carrying him. But none of that mattered.
All that mattered was Suigetsu's waning life. His face was far too pale. . . he had lost a lot of blood.
Remotely she sensed Juugo kneeling down beside Suigetsu, next to her. "I can't believe I almost let him die just because of. . ." Karin's voice broke, and she just couldn't continue.
"Because of what?" Juugo urged.
"Because of. . . Because of. . ." She couldn't say it. . . she could only remember. . .
The night was growing late, so Karin decided to make one last trip to Suigetsu. . . and where he was kept in that laboratory. She had to tell him—it just wouldn't be right to keep the secret from him. And he deserved her confession since she had broken the promise.
Karin sighed as she reached the door to the laboratory. After a moment's hesitation, she strode in, apology setting the mood in the chamber.
"Hey, Karin," came Suigetsu's voice from the tank, filled with water. "How's it going?"
Of course, he wouldn't realize that I've done something wrong to him, Karin realized. He was always so oblivious to things like that. . . Despite her need to explain what she had done wrong, the redhead just couldn't bring herself to it. Suigetsu was too happy all the time, and too. . . cheerful. . . It would be a sad night for him. . .
"What's wrong?" the former Mist ninja asked, finally sensing Karin's dilemna. "You're not as talkative tonight. . ."
Karin sighed and pulled up an empty chair. "Suigetsu. . ." she began.
"Yeah. . .?"
"You've heard about Sasuke, right?" she said, pretending to change the subject.
But still Suigetsu, almost at once, understood. "Oh. Yeah, I've heard about him."
Silence engulfed the already quiet room. Karin couldn't bear the awkwardness that came with it, but then again couldn't find the words to break it.
Thankfully, Suigetsu had something to say. "Go on. I'm listening."
"Oh, my god, I can hardly feel his pulse," Karin shrieked after feeling around Suigetsu's neck. Her eyes had filled with some type of misty liquid, and she couldn't see very well anymore.
"Karin, calm down," Juugo said as he coolly attended Suigetsu's serious wounds. He had even been able to ask the animals to bring him herbs, which would help the nearly fatal injury to heal more quickly. After that, he had simply wrapped up the wounds with one of their cloaks.
Karin was beginning to grow frantic. "It's not helping! He's dying. . ."
"Calm down," Juugo repeated. He remembered learning from somewhere that it was best for medics to give simple tasks out to those who couldn't bear to watch someone die. . . "Karin, go get some water for him to drink," he ordered, only hoping it would help compose her. . . Not to mention, he was getting a little worked up himself after staring at so much blood.
Karin nodded, and, taking several of Suigetsu's water bottles with her, she quickly ran in the direction of a water source.
Soon she was there, and, as she watched the clear crystal water flow into the nearly empty bottle, memories overtook her, once more. It was all her fault. . . Suigetsu's huge injuries, all her fault. . . she shouldn't have let the damn past intrude on what was right and what was wrong. . .
"Go on. I'm listening."
"Well. . . Sasuke was from the Leaf Village, and came to Orochimaru of his own free will," Karin explained reluctantly. "He's actually very hot—"
"Stop."
"What do you—"
Suigetsu's anger was almost palpable. "I told you to stop. Don't say anymore!"
"But—" Karin didn't understand how he knew. . . she had hardly even said anything!
"You said just the night before that—"
"Suigetsu, I'm sorry!" she screamed before regaining her composure. "I'm sorry for loving Sasuke. . . that's all there is to it."
A sigh came from the aquarium. "This really is happening, isn't it? You really are saying the truth. . . after all these years?"
Karin gasped as she realized the water was overflowing the bottle, and she raced back to where she had left Suigetsu and Juugo.
When she finally returned, she silently handed the bottle back to Juugo and could only hope he knew what to do. . . The truth was that Karin really had no idea on how to heal Suigetsu. She was too flustered and confused. Her memories were too close to the surface.
Juugo had somehow forced an unconscious Suigetsu to drink the water.
Duh! Of course, he was dehydrated! How come I couldn't figure out Suigetsu needed water to begin with? Karin scolded herself. She was finally beginning to calm down after noticing the color returning to their fallen comrade's face. She sat down next to Suigetsu and felt his forehead.
"He has a very bad fever," she said, worry starting to get to her again.
"I know," Juugo responded in an unbelievably stable voice. "He's been shivering for quite a while."
Karin forced her rising tears back down. "Will he be okay?"
Juugo shrugged.
The red-haired Kunoichi quickly removed her cloak from her body, and placed it over Suigetsu. I hope that keeps him warm, she thought.
"You really are saying the truth. . . after all these years?"
Karin nodded her apology.
"So you don't love me anymore?" he asked, his voice clear of all emotion.
Once again, Karin nodded. "Sasuke's way hotter than you if you haven't noticed." The words obviously broke his cheery self completely. . . I shouldn't have said that, Karin told herself. Oh well, it was too late to take it back.
"Oh, okay then. . ." he responded in a whisper. But Karin could still here the sorrow in his voice.
She stood up and put the chair back where she had found it. As she was about to leave, she stopped, knowing Suigetsu would get one last word in.
"You promised. . ." he reminded.
He was right. Karin had promised to love him and no one else forever. And Suigetsu had promised the same. She would've looked back, but the movement sounded too exhausting. There was too much already to bear. "I'm sorry," she repeated. Then she opened the door to leave.
"You're never coming back, are you?" Suigetsu tried to stop her again.
She hesitated. "No, I'd rather not come back."
Just as the door was open only a small crack before it closed, Suigetsu said one last thing. It was clear, there was no way she could've missed it or heard it wrong. . .
"I'm sorry!" Karin suddenly screamed at Suigetsu's unconscious body.
She felt Juugo's eyes staring into the back of her head, but he had said nothing.
Karin angrily wiped away her tears, streaming down her face. "I wish I could take it all back now. . . I was dumb back then, Suigetsu. . . I was dumb . . . I'm sorry. . ."
Juugo drew closer. "I'm sure he forgives you for whatever you did," he tried to comfort.
Karin's glanced around, realizing it was almost dark. She had been lost in though for so long, she hadn't even noticed the abrupt change of time. "No, he doesn't forgive me! He hates me!" she argued.
"You mean, you don't hate him?" Juugo asked. He was confused, usually it was Karin, who was brutally punching or kicking Suigetsu. . .
"Of course I don't hate him. . . I never have hated him. . . he hates me!" Karin explained loudly.
Juugo frowned in disbelief. But he nodded anyway. "Maybe he just thinks you do hate him. Maybe you should tell him you don't hate him when he wakes up. . ."
Karin gasped. "He'll wake up? Really?"
Juugo regretted his unwise choice of words. "Um. . . sorry. I meant if he wakes up. . ."
The teenage girl glanced back at Suigetsu.
"I hate you," Suigetsu finished just as the door closed.
Karin gasped before tears came to her eyes. He hated her. . .? Really? She burst back into the room, and tried to tell him she had changed her mind. She really loved him, not Sasuke! She repeated apologies over and over again.
But it seemed as though she was simply talking to a normal tank full of water as silent as a stone wall.
He was ignoring her. He really did hate her. They were over.
"What in the world happened?" came a cold and even an angry voice from behind.
Karin and Juugo glanced back immediately to see Sasuke, standing with an angry frown on his face. Neither answered him, for they were at loss to what to say.
"Answer me!" he nearly yelled. After another moment of silence, he stalked over to Suigetsu's body, and knelt down. With a frown on his face, the raven-haired Uchiha examined Suigetsu's injuries and stifled a sigh of anger. "He's dying. . ."
Karin froze. "Wh-what. . .? But. . . Sasuke, he can't be dying. . . he. . ."
"How did he get injured?" Sasuke demanded.
"Kisame's sword," Juugo answered when Karin didn't reply. He continued to explain exactly what had happened to Suigetsu and why.
Sasuke glared. "You mean, you two didn't lift a finger to help?"
Juugo shook his head. "I apologize. . . I was scared to fight. I realize I was wrong now though. . ."
Karin burst into tears so quickly that it took Sasuke a moment to realize what had happened. "Sasuke! We should have all defeated Kisame. Then this wouldn't have happened!"
Sasuke glared. "Do you think you really needed me to defeat Kisame? The three of you could have defeated him, just as well as you could have if I was there."
"But Suigetsu was the one who started to fight!" Karin argued. "Even when you ordered us not to!" Suddenly she regretted blaming the whole thing on Suigetsu. . . Karin really needed to discard of her habit of insulting the Mist ninja.
"I couldn't care less about that," Sasuke stated coldly. "If Suigetsu was actually awake, I'd be angry at him too. But he isn't awake, so I can't really yell at him, now can I?"He paused to leave an effect, but still continued before Karin could argue. "The point is that all of you were supposed to work together. Not sit around and watch Suigetsu get killed."
"But—"
"I don't care how much you hated each other. There is no way that either of you can refuse to help the other when they're dying without becoming evil, Karin. And this team isn't meant to be evil."
Karin was about to argue back when she noticed Suigetsu stir. "Suigetsu. . ." she whispered, and moved closer to him. Juugo and Sasuke also glanced in his direction.
Suigetsu's eyes opened slowly. He quickly tried to sit up when Sasuke stopped him halfway through.
"Suigetsu, rest," the Uchiha ordered.
"But where's Kisame?" the Mist ninja asked. "I—"
"He's not here. You need to rest, Suigetsu." Sasuke forced the silver-haired teenager to lay back down.
It didn't take much to make Suigetsu rest, Karin realized. He must be in a lot of pain. . .
"What happened?" Suigetsu was mostly asking Sasuke, even though the Uchiha had not even been present at the fight.
Juugo decided to explain again since Sasuke did not know all the details and Karin was too shaken up to think right. Throughout Juugo's words, Suigetsu's eyes kept glancing at Karin, who realized that he was surprised at how she rescued him from the final blow.
"Wh-why?" he asked after Juugo was done.
Karin stared at the ground. The question was obviously directed at her. "I. . . uh. . . I . . ." She stumbled over her own words, unable to come up with a reason. "Suigetsu, do you hate me?" the girl burst out, breathing heavily. "Do you really really hate me?"
Suigetsu shook his head, and winced at the pain, which came with it. "No. . . why would I hate you?"
Did he not remember? How could that lazy ass not remember the memory that she could never forget? "You said you hated me! How can you not remember, you damn asshole?!"
"Karin, stop!" Sasuke said. Suigetsu was too weak for insults like that.
"But, Sasuke, I—"
"Please, just let him rest, Karin," said Sasuke.
Karin glanced down at Suigetsu, who had closed his eyes, succumbing to exhaustion. She frantically reached for his pulse, but Sasuke grabbed her hand.
"He's fine," the Uchiha reassured. "Just let him rest."
Karin nodded and soon Sasuke said they should all sleep. Suigetsu would be fine—the Mist ninja had gotten lucky. Karin declared she would take the first watch, and as Juugo began to sleep, she felt Sasuke's hand touch her shoulder. He had sat down next to her.
"Sasuke-kun?" she asked. What does he want now? More scolding?
"He doesn't hate you," Sasuke explained.
Hmph. He thinks he knows everything.
"He told me once, you know," the Uchiha continued. "When we were going to get you from the South Base. He told me everything."
Yeah, right. . . Suigetsu wouldn't just say all that, would he?
"Suigetsu was just really angry, and needed to let it all out." Sasuke noticed Karin's disbelieving expression. "You can ask him if you want, next time he wakes up. Just don't yell."
Karin didn't say anything, didn't even glance at the Uchiha.
"I'll take the first watch," he said. "You should go to sleep."
Karin stood up. "Fine, whatever," she responded quietly then found a place to sleep. But she just couldn't close her eyes. . . Suigetsu could be in danger from his wounds. . . what if. . . what if he died?
Karin rolled over in her sleeping bag, so she could see Suigetsu clearly. And at the sight of him, she was asleep in only seconds.
Karin woke up, and instantly glanced at Suigetsu, who was now wide-awake.
"Sasuke, I can't rest forever!" he teased. "Give me a break. . . I want to get up and move around. . ."
Sasuke folded his arms. "It's your own fault for fighting Kisame when I asked you not to."
"Nah, you asked Karin not to fight Kisame. I remember clearly," Suigetsu argued cheerfully.
Karin sat up, concerned. "Are you okay?"
"Oh, you're awake." Suigetsu meant to be nice, but Karin heard it the wrong way, and tears welled up in her eyes. "What's wrong, bitch?" Suigetsu teased. "Is it because I actually live?"
Karin quickly glared at him for even suggesting such an assumption. "Of course not! Don't you ever get that close to dying again, you hear me?!"
"Um. . . yeah, okay," Suigetsu answered warily. "Why are you so worried about me all the sudden?"
"Are you really that dumb, Suigetsu?! I love you!" Karin's hands flew to her mouth in an instant. Oops, I didn't mean to say that. . .
Everyone began staring at her. Juugo had been startled out of his sleep by her yelling, and Suigetsu, to say the least, was surprised. Even Sasuke was looking at her.
"Stop joking around, Four Eyes," Suigetsu said. "We all know you just looove Sasuke."
Well, she made it this far—no point in going back now. "No, I'm not joking, I really do still love you. . . I'm sorry for everything. . ."
"Oh," Suigetsu said, his grin fading.
Juugo had decided that since the yelling had stopped, maybe he could fall back asleep. And Sasuke had sat down to make a fire.
Karin stood up, and sat close to Suigetsu, who had also sat up, despite the pain. "Do you hate me, Suigetsu?"
"Hell no!" he answered quickly. "Is it because of. . . that one day?"
Karin nodded slowly, afraid of his answer.
"Oh, so that's why you always insulted me and punched me so much," Suigetsu realized aloud. "Hehe. . . but nah, I don't hate you. . . not yet anyway."
Karin gasped. "Really?"
"Yep, really, really," he teased.
The redhead jumped into his arms and hugged him. Thank God, he doesn't hate me. . . I was so upset with myself. . .
"Ouch, bitch, that hurts, get off me!" Suigetsu joked yet still in pain.
Oh well, Karin thought, still hugging him. He'll heal, we'll make up, it'll be okay. . . After all. . . .
That was just the way Team Hebi rolled.
A/N: FIIIIIIIIINALly done. Btw, I wrote this on December 26th, 7:30 P.M. Pacific time (BEFORE I had a copy of the next manga chatper ;-) so there :-P lol) it was fun:-D I love that couple…. Though when I went back and read it, I was like "WOW! SINCE WHEN DO I WRITE IN KARIN'S POV" x-( lol… oh well… I guess that's just the way it works :-( I get a story idea, and don't realize how strange I am acting until I'm done :-P lol. Well, I hope you liked it :-) …. Even though everyone was like… OOC -laughs nervously-
Btw, I am NOT abandoning Broken Bonds for dumb Naruto oneshots. I just wanted to update a really really good chapter in Broken Bonds next time, and …. Well… it was Christmas, and I felt like trying SuiKa out, and…. Yeah…. I didn't update on Wednesday like I always do. But there WILL be an update on Broken Bonds next week :-)
Well, see ya later:-D