A/N: OMG!!! IT'S BEEN SO LONG FAITHFUL VIEWERS!!! GOMENASAI, SUMIMASEN, ALL OF IT!!! *Slaps hand* Shame on me for forgetting all of you readers!!! Thought I blew you off, huh? Lol Now that, that's out of the way, let me explain about the lovely story I have summoned up the strength to upload for you committed readers today (newbies welcome). I know how much most of you absolutely despise Jir/Tsu pairings....but that's kinda where my fanfic is heading- for now- not going to change this story pairing from Oro/Tsu to Jir/Tsu. I have a whole story plot thought out and I planned alot of things in advance, trust me, this will be going back to Orochimaru and Tsunade fluff fairly soon. Sorry for torturing you Oro/Tsu lovers, but this is what I thought was appropriate, so if you no likey then you're free to leave, if not, sit back and enjoy the chappy. I'll be updating again hopefully before Christmas, that's around the time when I first started this fanfic last year. Anyways, going off track, lol just enjoy the chapter everyone and again my deepest apologies for my absence. Happy reading!
Shizune sighed happily as she made her way towards the fifth's office. 'She's been working so hard today. It's the least I could do by giving her this...'
It was Tsunade's favorite sake, Hichimura's peach flavored sake. Though her assistant was well aware of the Hokage's intoxication the other night at the bar, Shizune knew that the only reason why her mistress was so vulnerable to getting drunk was because she thought nobody would stop her. Usually the Godaime was a responsible drinker, but this was the first time in years Shizune had seen Tsunade so hammered. Too drunk to even walk in a straight line or keep her food in her stomach for that matter.
'The last time she drank like that was probably five, no ten years ago. What on earth is happening with my mistress?'
The present she got for her was completely inappropriate to the situation at hand, but she felt that Tsunade really deserved it. The elders worked her harder than they've ever done since her five years of being Hokage. And their Godaime was definitely not a working type of person, but to have achieved so much today, her efforts had not gone unnoticed and infact, she was being rewarded for it.
Reaching the door, Shizune knocked briefly onto it with an ear to ear smile.
"Lady Tsunade?!"
No response. Puzzled, she knocked on the door again with a bit more determination, gripping the bottle of sake tightly in her hand. "Tsunade?!!! Are you in there?" When she still didn't get a response, the slightly impatient assistant dove for the doorknob and opened the door. To her surprise, the blonde haired Godaime wasn't in her office, the chair to her desk empty.
'...I really want to believe that she only went to put her son to bed...I really wanna believe she only went to the bathroom. But something's telling me both of those things aren't possible...'
Shizune felt like a mother to a grown woman, twice her age by the way, who couldn't get the concept of work and demand. Tsunade was seizing every opportunity to piss off her assistant and Shizune wasn't going to sit around idly and say nothing.
'This is out of control. She has a job. Wasn't she just talking with the elder's earlier today about how she wanted vacation? I can see why she isn't getting it...'
A vein near her eye was throbbing wildly with agitation as the black haired woman walked leisurely towards her Godaime's desk. Either Tsunade magically came back or in five minutes the peach sake was going to be Shizune's for the keeping. Attracted towards the bouquet of roses, she walked up to them, gingerly touching some of the petals, dark eyes scanning the surprisingly visible top of the wooden desk.
'She never keeps this desk clean....and where the hell did these come from? They're gorgeous.'
Disturbed, suspicious almost at the odd happenings with her mistress, Shizune had decided to leave and search for Tsunade. She placed the bottle of sake reluctantly on her desk and right when she was about to leave, saw a card. Temptation wouldn't let her leave it alone and against every imaginable punishment if Tsunade found out she was snooping around in places she wasn't supposed to be in, picked up the card and opened it.
With each line she read, her eyes had widened marginally until they were the size of grapefruits. Mouth agape in utter shock, Shizune had began to realize that this was a major part of the puzzle she's been trying to piece together concerning Tsunade and the toad sage, Jiraiya.
'Oh...my...God...no way...'
Shizune thought it was only her imagination yesterday when she saw lipstick on Jiraiya's lips and not on Tsunade's. What was also disturbing her some was the fact that everytime the two Sannin were together, flirting always seemed to be top priority. For goodness sakes, just the other night at the bar Jiraiya couldn't keep his eyes off of the skimpily dressed Tsunade and was blatantly more interested in talking with her than her assistant. It wasn't anything new that Jiraiya was attracted physically toward the voluptuous blonde, but what wasn't new was his mental attraction towards her.
'It's all in this card....he just proclaimed his love for her...Tsunade, I know you need a father figure in your son's life. I wouldn't blame you one bit if you started dating him...it's not just for you, but for your son...'
For the very first time, in a very long time, Shizune had finally understood, if only a little, about her mistress. Being a single mother didn't sound easy, but it seemed like Tsunade was finally taking care of it.
'And she has someone who loves her. I can only hope this satiates her vulgarity for a while. I guess I won't look for her, since I already know where she is...'
She couldn't believe she was doing this. No, this was insane. Some unknown force had unwillingly dragged her helpless form from behind her Hokage desk and ushered her all the way through the large Hokage mansion to her bedroom where she showered and redressed, put on the kind of makeup she only used for nightly outings, in other words, night caps. She hated herself, but she couldn't find the heart to stop whatever had her knocking on this man's door at one o'clock in the morning.
'Sanosuke's asleep. Ton-Ton's been put down for his rest as well. Shizune's preoccupied, I hope she doesn't find out where I am, God forbid...I finished some paperwork. Yeah, I deserve this...'
Tsunade read the card around the same time she was finishing up some paperwork, just before she tucked her son in for bed. She never would have thought that the perverted son of a bitch could actually come up with something as sappy as a love letter. But more shockingly, she would have never guessed that Jiraiya had all those feelings stored up inside of him. He was ready for anything at any given moment. This wasn't a game to him- he really loved her.
-Flashback-
"Mommy, i'm tired," complained the little boy as he dragged himself into his mother's office.
"Baby, Shizune'll just have to put you into bed tonight. Mommy's busy-"
"I don't want Shizune! I want you, mommy!!!," Sanosuke demanded tearily, whining as he did so.
The blonde haired Godaime loved motherhood and hated it. Being a mother was just one of those things she was glad she waited for. A heavy sigh escaped her lips while placing down an important document to cast her weary amber eyes towards her son who was rubbing his eye, his favorite super hero blanket in his fist where it dragged onto the floor. She shook her head. How many times had she scolded her son about dragging his blankets around on the floors?
Moving back her seat so that her breasts were no longer sitting upon the desk itself, she gestured towards her lap and Sanosuke obeyed silently. She watched sympathetically as he yawned, honey irises half open. Sanosuke was a heavy sleeper and once he started snoring, that was the end of his day. He slept ten times better than his mother; Tsunade was envious of course.
Once her son climbed onto her lap, his mother wrapped warm, nurturing arms around him while allowing his black haired head to rest upon her bosom.
"Sweetheart, I thought you said you were a big boy? You don't mind if mommy still tucks you in?"
Sanosuke languidly shook his head, relishing in the radiating warmth his mother provided, the subtle scent of blossoms alluring him into fantasy land. He had no one else but his mother. She would have to teach him how to be a man, guide him through rocky relationships and one day would receive the gift of becoming a grandmother. But that wouldn't be for a while. For now, Tsunade was content with dealing with today and not having to worry about tomorrow.
Caressing his hair, she gently shook her head as her eyes fell onto the large bouquet of roses infront of her in a vase, the card Jiraiya had warned her about sitting beside it. She waited long enough, hasn't she? She's went through enough torture today with having to look at the white envelope while trying half heartedly to concentrate on her work, hasn't she? Yes. Right now wouldn't be so bad.
"You smell pretty mommy..."
"Thank you, sweetheart." Tsunade smiled, distracted for a brief second as she leaned down to kiss the top of his head.
Fixing his blanket around his small form, she brought her son closer, could feel his deep, even breaths against her sensitive skin. Yup, he was asleep alright. Mother's instinct. Tsunade's attention fully back to the card, she didn't hesitate to reach across her desk to retrieve, taking the card from it's envelope. Eyes going wide, she was almost sure that her son had to have felt her heart beating from her chest. On the front of the card was a beautiful, picturesque red rose which looked very similar to the roses he had given her. In fancy, elegant cursive read the words: "Thinking of You", right in the middle. That definitely brought a smile to her face.
If Jiraiya was "thinking of her", then there was no telling how much he loved her. A flush at her cheeks, in anticipation she slowly opened the card, feeling her heart thumping even more wildly than before. The moment she had opened the card, it was nothing but words, nearly the entire card was full to the brim of his nimble, masculine handwriting. The only thing going through her mind was that he must have waited a long time to really tell her his feelings and everything was right here, in this very card:
"First and foremost, Tsunade, let me start by saying that I love you. I've loved you for God knows how long, and really I mean this. From the first day I saw you, I knew you had to be the one. Tsunade, what i'm trying to say is that i've been there for you from the beginning, even if you've never bothered to notice and all i'm asking for is a chance. I want to protect you, I want to be father-figure to your son, even if he isn't mine. But most importantly, I just want to love you. You've been lonely and cranky and just a downright bitch, but what I think you lack in life is passion. I want to show you how much I love you, Tsunade. You're beautiful. You're so beautiful, hime, and beauty like yours doesn't come around often. No other blonde can compete with you, and your eyes shine like ambers i've yet to see in my life. You're sexy and command attention when you walk into a room. I find myself sometimes wanting to tame that tigress within you, but I have learned many years ago that I couldn't. You're confidence is what draws me towards you. You're quick to argue back, you're temper is like a wildfire- you're fierce, and dare I say it like the pervert I am, but I can truly say that I like that quality in you. But despite all of those negative setbacks, you're a good woman and deserve better. That's why i'm here. Please, come see me tonight if you can, only then can I explain my love for you more clearly. -Jiraiya."
He had used up both sides of the inside of the card to write all of this. Tsunade was wide eyed and flustered, trying her hardest to keep her mouth from gaping. It was the funniest thing for the amber eyed kunoichi; she was joyous, but reluctant; touched, yet remorseful. Why couldn't he tell her this before? Men and their fragile egos, she concluded in agitation, shaking her head. Never had she received a love letter so long, but most importantly, so sweet. Jiraiya pointed out what he liked, the things most men wouldn't like, but he turned it into appraisal. He liked everything about her, her faults and her strengths.
What was she going to do? Would she stand him up? But the letter was so heart felt, like he spent forever just deciding on what to write inside the card. He put his entire heart into his love letter, she couldn't possibly ignore his affections. Anyway, it wasn't like Orochimaru had the time in any day to spend hours on deciding what to write in a romantic love letter to her. Sadly, to the Hokage, all it seemed like he was good for was sex. But their physical bond was what drew her so close to the snake Sannin, closer than she could ever imagine with the womanizing Jiraiya. Orochimaru's sex was phenomenal, so good it left her begging for more, which was his strategy. She loved Orochimaru...right? Of course she did. Or...could it be his sex?
Absolutely not! Tsunade couldn't believe she was thinking so rationally. It wasn't like her to decipher her and Orochimaru's relationship so deeply. She didn't want to see past their sexual bond, seeing as there wasn't much to see. But he got her pregnant, that had to mean something, right? He named their son for crying out loud, it's what he wanted his entire life. He told her he loved her, he had promised that their relationship would progress into something more, marriage an option both had considered one time.
His promise had been in the making for years and nothing had changed. She wasn't going to wait much longer if he thought sex was what was going to keep them together, which it actually was dare she admit it. Tsunade, at an early point in their relationship, had considered running away with him and their son. She would become his wife and rule alongside him as the first Kage couple. Both who would be considered runaways from the Konohagakure. But those thoughts didn't last long. Once the Leaf village had carved her face onto the stone wall alongside the rest of the previous Hokages, she knew, somewhere deep in her heart, that this was where she belonged. She was the nurturer of the village and provided prosperity and safety for the villagers, her home. Running away was no longer in her mind. It wasn't an option.
Now here she was, stressed, lonely, and utterly sex deprived, as cranky as a five year old, arguing mentally with what she should do in response to Jiraiya's love letter. Her son stirred suddenly in her lap, muttering under his breath as he turned his head into the crevice of her breasts. "...Daddy..." Tsunade frowned down at him, tears quickly building up behind her eyes. It's been like this for a while, her son muttering the name in his sleep since he was old enough to talk. She wished she could show him his father, really she did. But that was a huge risk, and with a mouth as big as his, Sanosuke would put her entire job as Hokage into jeopardy if he even so much as breathed a word of seeing his father around his elders, especially hers.
Then she thought back to Jiraiya's letter, explaining how he wanted to be Sanosuke's father-figure, in Tsunade's opinion more than just a god father. That's what she needed the most in her life at this point. A man who was willing to not only love her, but her son like he was his own. Jiraiya would sacrifice everything he had to just to save their lives. Even at the cost of his own life. Yes, that was a true man. And a man was definitely something she needed right now. When the Hokage grew desperate, there was no telling what she would do.
"...I have to see him. It's not an option."
It had been well over half a minute since she rang the doorbell, apprehension already rising within her nervous body. She was thinking about leaving when she began to hear noises come from inside the apartment. Her nerves were getting the best of her as she felt her heart racing a million miles per minute inside her chest, frantically wiped her sweaty palms against the sides of her short mini dress, concealed partly with her favorite green jacket. In the few moments it took Jiraiya to open the door, Tsunade was a nervous wreck, worrying about the amount of cleavage she exposed, whether she used enough perfume, if she should have kept her waist long mane in their regular pigtails rather than let her hair down freely. It was too little too late once she heard him undoing the locks to the door from inside the apartment.
'Oh gods, please let this be right. I hope so...'
Jiraiya appeared, his entire body language a groggy mess, looking like he had just woken up from a twelve hour sleep. Then again, she had to remember, he was an old man and old perverts knew when to go to bed. Tsunade bit down on her lip, lost for words when her auburns fell upon the fantastic build he called a body, in nothing but a white tanktop and some pajama bottoms. With one look at the contours of his rippling muscles, those rock hard abs and toned biceps, inch upon heavenly inch of his ripped, masculine body, she instantly concluded the Sannin had to be a god; a god of sexiness. Thinking of him like that had her body reacting like nothing she had felt before, feeling like jello before his lethargic gaze.
"Tsunade?...," Jiraiya grumbled sleepily, rubbing his eye. "Wha...what are you doing here so late? It's one o'clock in the morning..."
'Yeah, I was wondering the same thing.'
Gulping silently, the amber eyed Hokage descended her irises down at the ground. "I...I read it...the card, that is."
Jiraiya's spell of slumber was gradually lifting as he started to pay attention to the finer details of her abrupt visit, like the way she demurely hid her eyes or the way her silken hair cascaded beautifully over her shoulder like liquid gold.
'She's lovely. Is that eyeshadow? Did she really get all dolled up for me?'
"You did, did you?...," he replied distantly, preoccupied with staring at her beauty.
Nodding, the Godaime furtively lifted her eyes, meeting his eyes in a brief glance before looking away again, embarrassed. Why on earth was he making her feel like this? No man had ever subdued her to such levels, calming the flamboyant tigress within her. She hated it, but at the moment, she was too shocked to even dare to hate it. It was all so new to her. Orochimaru merely spurred the anger within her; Jiraiya calmed it.
"Yes..."
"You know every word I wrote is real, right? I didn't pay anyone to help me, none of that."
"Of course, I understand."
The awkward moment continued to get even more awkward as the toad sage became fully awake, standing as still as he could infront of the nervous blonde. It was mortifying to say the least to have to write such a sappy love letter, especially to a woman who never bought any words from love sick men. She despised the act of affection, one time he remembered when they were teenagers, her saying that it was pathetic child's play. If a man wanted to really say his feelings for a woman, he might as well show her. It would save time and effort. Ironically, she quoted this infront of not only Jiraiya, but Orochimaru. Why the two hadn't proclaimed their feelings sooner, to this day she'd never know.
Tsunade, in an attempt to overcome her shyness, found courage within herself while slowly looking back into his eyes. They were soft and tranquil, her cold body was immediately warmed from such a stare. Jiriaya was too cute, she concluded mentally.
"I...I cried. I cried as I got ready to come see you. I had to redo my makeup three times just because I couldn't stop crying..."
Tears had subconsciously fell from her eyes, the blonde refusing to blink her ambers. "No one has ever written me something like that, Jiraiya. I get the feeling you really do love me..."
"Tsunade, I do-"
"I waited for love, Jiraiya!!! I waited for half my life and now you choose to tell me how you feel?!!! You're just like him!!!...Just like that bastard..."
"Like who?! Tsunade, what in the hell-"
Shaking her head fiercely, she shut her eyes tight as her lips wobbled, face etched with pain. It was a mistake coming, she had told herself a million times while walking here. She was only making a fool of herself, thinking that she could actually love him, letting herself love him, allowing his hands to touch her and his lips to dominate her reluctant ones. Not again, she wouldn't let it happen again. She couldn't- she wouldn't let another man guilt her into loving him.
"I can't!!!!" Turning around, whipping her long mane through the night air, she strode away, ignoring his pleas and apologizing.
"Tsunade!!! Wait, come back!!!-"
"No!!!! How could I be so foolish?!!!! You're no different than him!!! I never want to see you again, you bastard!!!"
Jiraiya, unable to reason with her, couldn't let the woman he loved so dearly walk away, in tears no less. His love was too strong now to ignore and he couldn't just let her get away so easily. He rushed after her through the brisk, chilly air in his thin pajama bottoms and tanktop. The Sannin would walk through ten feet of snow if he had to, just to see her beautiful face again. Whatever it took, he'd do it just to see her, to hold her. He knew she loved him too. As if men had fragile ego's, women had even fragiler ones; denying and acting like they didn't even want what they so desperately yearned for. And what Tsunade yearned for was love and love was with him.
"Wait!!!!! Tsunade!!!! Please, don't go!!!"
"Watch me!!!!," she screamed over her shoulder. Her puffy eyes widened when she saw that he wasn't there and that's when it hit her. About to stop her walking altogether, she was too late and stomped right into his trap. Jiraiya was right infront of her, Tsunade snapping her head around to look up at him in shock.
"Don't run away from someone who wants to love you. I was a coward for waiting so long, but you know I didn't mean to. You're the only woman I want to be with, Tsunade-"
"Lies!!!!! You perverted old fucker, i'm not falling for it!!! You may have tricked me before, but not this time!!!!"
Shaking his head sadly, he concluded that he had no other choice to persuade her but force. In spite of her super human strength which could wind him back into the hospital in two seconds flat, Jiraiya went against it all and engulfed her against him in a tight embrace. He didn't expect though for her to put up such a fight.
Screaming at the top of her lungs, tears streaming heavily down her flushed cheeks, she gripped his arms and attempted to free herself from his hold. Kicking and screaming, twisting her body fiercely in her entrapment, Tsunade was making the toad sage's embrace very difficult to keep up. Jiraiya was literally holding down a writhing lioness. It was harder than it looked, mind you.
"LET GO OF ME!!! UNHAND ME, YOU BASTARD!!!"
"NOT UNTIL YOU UNDERSTAND!!!!"
"WHAT?!!! THAT YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A LYING, GOOD FOR NOTHING-"
Abruptly, not even seeing it coming, her lips were being crushed against his, her yelling getting lost into incoherent muffles against his mouth. Tsunade, deep in her heart had wanted to kiss him, his dominance in competition with her fierceness. Her curvy form writhed even violently in his hold, denying his affections with every fiber in her being. Jiraiya wasn't having it as he pulled her closer, determined to win over the blonde with his undying passion. It was inevitable, but when the Hokage got desperate, she went to any lengths it took to win her side of the fight. Even if it meant getting a little dirty.
Out of nowhere, her hand came flying until it landed with an ear splitting slap against his cheek, successfully ending their lip lock. Gasping loudly, her amber eyes glared up at the inflicted toad sage, satisfied that she had stopped him. If she didn't slap him, she didn't know what would have happened. Sex, definitely, but she wouldn't let him win so easily. He upset her after all.
"DON'T YOU DARE DO THAT AGAIN, YOU HEAR ME?!!! AND GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF ME!!!"
His cheek in throbbing pain, it spurred the ambition inside of him, more determined than ever to make the amber eyed kunoichi his. No matter what it took, he'd have her. She was playing hard to get, he could tell.
"NOT UNTIL YOU UNDERSTAND, TSUNADE!!! I LOV-"
"STOP IT!!! NO YOU DON'T!!! OR ELSE YOU WOULDN'T BE HOLDING ME CAPTIVE!!!"
"THIS IS THE ONLY WAY I CAN SHOW YOU-"
"I CAN SEE WHY YOU'VE NEVER HAD ANY LONG TERM RELATIONSHIPS, YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A COWARD!!! IF YOU CAN'T SHOW THOSE GIRLS YOU FUCK AROUND WITH THAT YOU LOVE THEM, WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU CAN SHOW ME?!!!"
"BY DOING THIS!!!"
Again, the white haired Sannin attempted to subdue her with another kiss. Tsunade, seeing it this time, without second thought focused her chakra at her hands and forced his arms effortlessly from around her, running in the opposite direction in which she was heading towards. Jiraiya chased her, his eyes full of marvel at the busty kunoichi. Only Tsunade could run like it was a marathon in six inch stilettos. It was basically a cat and mouse game they were playing now, him of course the cat and she the insolent, denying mouse.
"TSUNADE!!!! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!!!!"
"AWAY FROM YOU!!!!"
Tsunade was horribly stumbling over her high heels, tears blinding her vision as the cold air whipped against her bare legs, through her long hair. Her chest was heaving hiccuped sobs as she tried to calm down her thumping heart. At this point of her mistake in seeing him, if he so much as touched her again, he was going to really get a fist in his face and she meant it. The third time she stumbled, he had caught up with her, this time not being as gentle as he's been before.
Grabbing her arm, Jiraiya spun her around until she collided hard into his chest, not even giving her a chance to gasp as he claimed her lips in another determined kiss. He could taste the salt of her tears upon her lush lips, wishing with all his might that they would stop their onslaught down her face. Tsunade moaned unhappily, hands grabbing the front of his shirt.
"Stop!!!! I don't-!!!," she shouted when she ripped her lips away from his only to have him recapture them harshly.
She tried her damned best to get away from him, using her super natural strength to shove him away, the toad sage stumbling back until they were a good eight feet away. Amazingly, unhindered at her attempts to get him away, Jiraiya walked back towards her, snatching her body like a rag doll before forcing her into another kiss. Tsunade did it again, this time using double the strength. Watching triumphantly when he fell onto the ground, the feeling was almost instantly washed away when she saw him slowly help himself up, inching closer to her until he wrapped his arms around her once more, enduring her punches to his chest as he leaned down to kiss her. She didn't understand. Why was he so determined? He had more ambition than Naruto ever could and that was a scary thing.
How come he wouldn't give up? Why did he have to be so kind, so sweet and handsome and romantic? 'And strong...and sexy...'
"Let me go!!!!! No, Jiraiya!!!!!," she sobbed, shaking her head fiercely as he pressed his lips against hers.
Her tears were pouring like minature waterfalls down her face, lips flushed deeper than the actual lipstick she had on. Both her mental and physical strength were quickly being sapped away with every attempt he used to get her to accept his affections. Her body, which was already exhausted from staying up all night last night and having to work all day today, was sadly crumbling in his arms. The only thing she could do to deny him was by turning her head away so he wouldn't kiss her.
"Hime, stop, don't fight anymore," he whispered tenderly, her methods of avoiding his kisses failing miserably as he began kissing up her throat.
Tsunade moaned helplessly, closing her eyes as she tried her best not to fall victim to his wooing. Both physically and mentally exausted, she couldn't do anything to stop him. What was a blonde to do?
"Please, leave me alone, Jiraiya...I can't-"
"Why are you acting like this? What's making you change your mind? This is what you wanted, aren't I right? You want someone to love you-"
"How dare you?!!! You don't know a single damn thing about me, Jiraiya!!!!"
Upset, the spiky haired Sannin stopped his kisses to her ear and pulled away to look down at her. Pitiful. This wasn't his doing. No, someone else was making her weak and teary, not him. He wouldn't think of causing her these tears and all of this denial as if there was someone else in her life whom she loved more than him, besides her son. Jiraiya couldn't pinpoint as to who it actually was that had reduced this fiery blonde into a train wreck of tears and emotions.
This was absolutely ridiculous. He was here to help her, not make everything worse. Frowning deeply down at her tear stained face, he gently used a thumb and dried them away only to have the paths in which he dried to become flooded once more with her salt water rivers. Tsunade couldn't stop him, she didn't want to. Her ambers could only glare up at him, her throat emitting low growls of anger. Jiraiya didn't have the heart to scold her, only comfort her. As the woman he loved, he couldn't stand around idle as she cried herself to death or worse, hate him for the rest of her life. He was going to fix everything, right here and now.
"I don't know a single thing about you, she says. She wants me to leave her alone, she says. Woman, you just have to let a man take charge once in a while. Hokage or not, if you want to make something last with the opposite sex, sometimes you gotta let them take care of things even if you resent it with all your being."
Tsunade was being talked to like a child. She despised being talked to like a child. No more. "Fucker, i'd pick your words carefully if I were you-"
"Or what?," he challenged. On the outside, Jiraiya was as confident as a cocky teenager, but inside he was terrified out of his wits of what she might do to him. Standing up to this woman was just about the bravest thing he's done in his life. Smirking, he leaned down to her growling face, dark eyes twinkling with mischief in the night.
"Tsunade, you cease to amaze me, you know that? Threaten me all you want, beat me up all you want, i'm still gonna come back to you. With one broken leg or two, hell maybe all my limbs might end up broken, i'm still coming after you whether you like it or not. You know why?"
"Because you're a dirty old man who doesn't know when to keep his hands off of women who can kick his ass without having to lift so much as a fist?," Tsunade lashed sharply, narrowing her eyes up at him.
The toad sage emitted a hearty chuckle, his broad body rumbling from such a strong laugh. She silently gasped as the sensation rolled onto her body, immediately aching for more, more from this godsend of a man. Quickly, she grasped a hold of her desires before they got out of control, keeping everything intact so that he wouldn't suspect that his charm really was settling in with the stubborn kunoichi.
"No, hime. I'll always come after you, i'll always protect you, i'll always be there for you and i'll always care for Sanosuke as if he were my own. It's because...I love you, Tsunade."
It was the funniest thing. Here Tsunade was, knowing all along that Jiraiya's pursuits and wooing were all driven by his love for her, yet hearing him actually say it and not having to read it in a letter or experience it with one of his kisses, it felt amazing. It shocked her, but what she didn't expect to feel was all her bottled up desires and emotions for him to pour out all at once. She wanted to say it too, she wanted to show him, she wanted to love him. Tsunade felt like an absolute fool for having to put up such a fight against the man that she loved. Surely he wouldn't let her live any of it down, her fits of denial and whatnot.
"I love you. Until you say that you love me too, I won't give up on you."
Jiraiya saw her entire facial expression change almost instantly from the facade of a terrible scowl and growling to shuddering breaths and widened eyes. Maybe she was finally giving in, he hoped deep in his heart. This woman had changed his entire life. He couldn't sleep right, eat right. These were the exact same symptoms she had described to him last night on her balcony. It wasn't stress and she definitely wasn't pregnant again. Tsunade was in love just like him.
"Tsunade...this feeling you're feeling, is it the same as mine? You can't sleep, you can't eat? You can't think straight either? Everytime you think about someone else, it all falls back to the one person you're trying to give a break?"
Rooted in her spot, the blonde haired Sannin didn't reply, could only blink her confused auburns up at the handsome alabaster haired Sannin.
"...It's love. We're in love. Even in twelve inch heels, you still can't run away from love, Tsunade. Especially when the person you're in love with loves you just like that, only ten times more."
Tsunade slowly shook her head again and again in a last resort to deny any of her feelings for him. She didn't know how she had started denying him, she didn't know why she was. But she felt like an idiot, a heartless bitch who was turning down one of the best men to have ever come into her life and probably the last. Yet here she was turning him down when both of them knew how badly she wanted him, his love.
'Gods, i'm horrible...'
"So I have to ask you, Tsunade..."
Taking a gentle hold of her chin, he lifted her head until her glassy ambers were staring into his dark ones. His expression weary but determined, he searched her face for a good few moments from her cheeks wet with tears to her lips wobbling with emotion back to her beautiful eyes that looked about as helpless as a newborn baby.
"...Do you love me?"
"Yes," Tsunade replied without thinking.
"So why deny me? You know no matter what you decide, i'm still going to be there for you. But if you really want my opinion on this, I want us to be together. It would benefit not only us, but Sanosuke. You need a father for your son, Tsunade. You can't do it alone-"
"I've done it alone for five motherfuckin' years!!!! What makes you think you can suddenly step up and be more than a god father for my son?!!!," Tsunade fumed, eyes ablaze once more with enragement as she swatted his hand off of her chin.
"You have no idea how hard it is to raise a child!!!! But I did it and I still do it- alone!!! You heard right!!! For five motherfuckin' years, without any help from any man!!! Combine that with a baby's daddy who won't step up and support his own son!!! You have absolutely no clue how hard it is!!! I don't need any goddamn help!!! Not from you and not from anybody!!!-"
"Woman, when will you stop this ridiculous facade?!!!-"
"WHAT FACADE?!!! DO YOU THINK I'D LIE ABOUT THIS?!!! I'M TELLING YOU THAT I DON'T NEED ANOTHER MAN IN MY LIFE THAT WANTS TO GUILT ME INTO LOVING THEM!!! FORGET ABOUT MY SON RIGHT NOW, WHAT YOU REALLY NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO IS ME!!!"
"I'M GUILTING YOU?!!! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND?!!!-"
"WAKE THE FUCK UP, JIRAIYA!!! IT'S ONE O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING AND YOU'RE OUT HERE IN YOUR PAJAMAS, PUTTING YOUR HANDS ON ME, TRYING TO GUILT ME INTO LOVING YOU!!!-"
"HOW CAN I GUILT YOU IF YOU ALREADY LOVE ME, TSUNADE?!!!"
All fell silent as she came at a loss for words. Her breathing was heavy and erratic, Tsunade upset and pissed that the man she couldn't seem to get any ground on was now telling her what she needed and what she didn't in her life. No person alive had the stupidity to even throw words like that towards her, save her parents and her now deceased sensei. But from Jiraiya? He was just asking for his funeral to be prepared ahead of time. Her eyes stared daggers at the man she both loved and hated. She just couldn't believe she let their relationship get this far when she promised herself she'd never fall for any of his wooing or any of his nonsense. But like a dumb blonde, she had done so without fully seeing it and now that their relationship was shedding some light, she had finally realized just how stupid she really was.
'I must be missing Orochimaru...otherwise I wouldn't have never let Jiraiya do this to me. He's kissed me more times than I let Orochimaru, he's showed he loved me...more times than Orochimaru ever could...Jiraiya, why?...'
"Why?...Why won't you just...Jiraiya..."
Tsunade was slowly falling apart once more infront of his eyes, clenching her eyes in a desperate attempt to hold back another wave of tears, face scrunching into the most hurt he's ever seen her portray. Gods did he hate seeing her like this. It made him feel as if it was all his fault, which it was, and that he had failed not only as a friend but a pursuer of her love; to heal her pain.
"You love me, Tsunade. Don't deny it. It's okay. I promise you'll never have to cry again. I'll see to it not a single tear comes out of those pretty eyes anymore..." He enveloped her in an embrace, astonished that she didn't push him away this time but instead, accepting his comfort as her arms wrapped around him.
"I love him, Jiraiya...," she whispered into his toned chest, clenching the back his shirt tightly with manicured fists.
The white haired Sannin averted his eyes down at the top of her blonde haired head. It was a gut feeling, but he was almost positive of what she was about to say. He's been afraid of this, of everything she's been through, of having to confront her about it. He knew it was bound to happen one day.
'She couldn't expect it to be a secret for long.'
If she was going to be his woman, he had to deal with her issues, but he would never have guessed in a million years that her issues concerned one of their former shinobi teammates.
"Who?," he mumbled, pain etched deep within his eyes.
"...I have to let you know...please don't tell anyone, I beg of you-"
"I think I got a feeling who it is."
Abruptly, Tsunade snapped her head up as shock instantly took over her puffy eyes. "Y-you know?..." Jiraiya solemnly nodded, closing his eyes with a frown.
"Tsunade, the only reason why I never scolded you for it, the only reason why I never hunted that deceiving bastard down myself was because I knew somewhere within that evil masquerade was someone who was making you content, satisfied. He's Sanosuke's father...isn't he?"
Blushing a million shades of red, the Godaime turned her eyes away from his, embarassment preventing her from defending herself. "Yes. I let him touch me...he didn't rape me."
Jiraiya sighed heavily, shaking his head to rid his mind of all the drama that was unfolding before his very ears. As if his life couldn't get any more complicated.
"...I take it he used to make you happy...but now he's the one making you cry all the time, isn't it? He's made you this way. Whenever you're all cranky and whatnot, you both aren't together, right? But when he is around, you're like a bear who's eaten all the honey she could eat. You're satiated. Even Shizune's noticed. It's like when you're happy, she's happy and that's how I know."
She kept her mouth shut, her heart racing at a million miles per hour. She couldn't believe she was actually talking about this to someone. It was almost a relief, having to keep it a secret for so many years. Tsunade wanted to tell him everything now. It was okay to talk with Jiraiya, she should have known from the start. Otherwise, she wouldn't be feeling this emotional, like there's been a ton of weight lifted from her shoulders from keeping it hidden for so long.
"You've kept this a secret...but for how long has this been going on? Before he impregnated you?"
Tsunade kept her eyes away from him, afraid to see his reaction. For the first time in her life besides her overcoming of her lifelong fear of blood, she was actually scared. How on earth was she going to tell the man who's loved her for nearly his entire life that she was in love and having trysts with their former Sannin companion?
"...Our first time was when he got me pregnant. He named our son...but we've still been having trysts...for five years now."
Jiraiya kept back his anger, refrained from slapping the woman senseless as jealousy started to set in. Orochimaru was the one fulfilling her sexual needs this entire time while Jiraiya was the one who was pursuing her, following her around like a lost puppy just to have a taste of what his rival was already getting? It was absurd. The toad sage inwardly seethed while on the outside, he just shook his head. He was surprised he wasn't yelling at her by now, seeing as she was the only one he could ever really get angry at.
'And for five years?...When I see that bastard I swear i'll kill him...'
"That's a pretty long time. I bet it was eating up all your sanity having to keep something like that a secret. Now I understand why you were so reluctant towards my affections...So tell me...are you in love with him?"
Her amber irises finally looked back up at him, glassy and shaking with hurt. Jiraiya looked so upset, she never meant to make him like this. Why was it so hard to just let him love her? She didn't understand, or probably she didn't want to understand.
"Yes...He loves me too-"
"Tsunade, you should know this bastard by now. He manipulates for the sheer fun of it. How do you know that he's not manipulating you?..."
The blonde was quickly developing into tears, hiding her face into his chest. He could feel her tears streaming from her eyes and soaking into his shirt, the material as damp as spilling an entire pitcher of water on it. Damn did he have alot of work ahead of him if this was going to be his woman. The first thing that had to be fixed were those tears of hers. It was eating him alive having to watch her cry. He didn't know how he was going to stop it, but he would try.
"Tsunade, how could you just let someone like that do this to you? He's been filling your mind with lies and it's all becoming too much for you to handle. He can't support Sanosuke because that would mean for everyone to find out he's this kid's father and then what? You'll be known as a traitor...but you've dug yourself too deep and now you can't get out. It's either Orochimaru or nothing at all, right?"
Every last word he said was true and it was just a little too scary to have someone repeat the same things she's been thinking in her mind for all these years. She didn't want it to be true, but it was. Orochimaru had really been the one who's lowered her to no less than a helpless kitten. Tsunade wanted her life back. Before she ever let the traitorous snake of a man manipulate her into sleeping with him. She wanted to feel how it was to be courageous again, proud to be Hokage, proud to be herself. It was pretty hard to be her old self when she was harboring guilt, backstabbing her entire village by loving the one man that could be Konoha's entire downfall and harboring weakness, having to raise the child made by that same man.
"I wish I didn't love him so much or else I could have went on with my life," Tsunade whispered quietly, moving her wet face against his shirt to dry away the tears.
"...Well, I guess i'm gonna have to be the one to help you with that, aren't I?"
"Huh?" Lifting her head, she gazed into confident dark eyes, a smirk as big as his heart upon his handsome face. The blonde was getting that feeling again, the sensations that always seemed to happen whenever she was near him, her heart feeling as if it was being carried on the highest of clouds.
"Accept my affections and in no time, you'll never even know what hit you. Orochimaru'll just have to give up. I'll make you want me just like I want you, Tsunade."
Where had all this confidence come from? Tsunade had never encountered such a tenacious man, one who was determined to win her over so badly. He'd probably die just to get if only a piece of her love. If he loved her that badly then why was she the only one who was acting like she didn't?
Her cheeks started to flush again, eyes going wide with amazement. She was speechless, what in the hell was she supposed to say? Jiraiya slowly wrapped his arms tighter around her, Tsunade letting out an inaudible gasp. Warm. That was the feeling she was experiencing at that very moment; in her body and in her heart. Was his charm really setting in? At that point in their argument, part confessions, part hugging session, she could really care less. Jiraiya straight out felt right. That's all that mattered to her at the moment.
"Jiraiya...," Tsunade muttered softly, pressing her ear against his chest to hear his heart. It was strong and wild, like a stallion; this man was truly the pride of the male species.
"What?"
"...You really do love me?"
"Aww, come on woman. Don't make me say it again," Jiraiya laughed. "I love you. I really do, Tsunade. We can be together and you'll always be happy. Though you're such an abrasive lass, I think we can make it work. I promise...i'll never break your heart."
For a long while they remained in eachothers embrace, Tsunade not saying a word as she self contemplated on the entire ordeal, fighting with her mind. It was a simple mental argument, whether to let Jiraiya love her or not. The decision was pretty obvious, but then again came the other obstacle in her argument- Orochimaru. She never considered how their relationship would turn out. Would she be able to love him the same? Tsunade feared by letting herself love Jiriaya, that she wouldn't be able to give the same love to the other Sannin who was indeed her lover.
'What do I do?...I can't just let Jiraiya down like this, but then again I can't betray Orochimaru. This has to be the most toughest thing i've ever had to decide on...'
"Tsunade...I...i'd like it if you could...have a night cap with me...would that be alright? You don't even have to have a drink, we can just have tea or coffee, whatever you want-"
"Do you have Hichimura peach flavored sake?"
Lifting her head up, she immediately saw the smirk at his lips and the perverted gleam that always seemed to accompany that smirk. Normally, whatever he did that would get on her nerves was actually turning her on for some odd reason or another. She couldn't explain it. Just with that look of his alone made her want to tear off all his clothes and fuck him on the very ground they were standing on.
"Your favorite...," he remarked evily.
"Well? Do you have it or not?"
"If I said no would you still be willing to waltz your gorgeous self into my apartment?"
"I don't think so."
With the widest smirk she's ever seen, Jiraiya said without an ounce of truth, "Then I have it."
Tsunade was no fool and she knew lying when she saw it. With that big ass smirk and those perverted ass eyes of his, she knew without a doubt that this Sannin was lying straight to her face. If he wanted to get into her panties, he would have to do alot more than that.
"Are you lying?," quipped the blonde haired kunoichi, raising a brow.
"Would I ever? Peach, raspberry, whatever flavor you want, I got it."
In man language that meant, "I only have a cheap ass bottle of wine, but you can pretend that it's sake while I make blatant suggestions to go to my bedroom where it's more comfortable." Yeah, like Tsunade was really that dumb to fall for that trick. Too many men had tried that with her when she was younger, perverts just like Jiraiya asking her out, offering to let her stay the night which in other words meant they just wanted a free fuck. Jiraiya was hinting, very tenaciously may she add, that he too wanted a free fuck.
Not saying that Tsunade was a prostitute, but if a man wanted to take her home with them and do explicit things to her, they had to have some sort of compensation, her favorite was money. A woman as extravagant as herself wasn't about to let her body become a priceless item to whoever she chose, in which explained why before her trysts with Orochimaru she rarely got laid at all. The only man she ever let take off her panties-for free- besides Dan, was Orochimaru. No way in hell she was about to let this man who called himself a sage get some free pussy. Not on her life. No matter how much she loved him. He'd have to earn her ecstasy or at least pay for it.
"You got money?"
"Oh, so now you want me to treat you like a whore?"
"No...but since you say it like that, maybe I should just go back home-"
"No, wait....How much are we talking?"
Raising an eyebrow at the tenacious pervert, the Godaime said with slight bewilderment, "You're willing...to pay me...to...be with you?"
"You're a woman who comes around once in a lifetime, hime...i'd be a fool to let you go now...now that I finally have you at last. I'd give up my research just to be with you, Tsunade. If only for tonight..."
Casting her amber eyes down, all the medical kunoichi could do was stare at her feet while the man whom badly wanted her aching body was holding her close, awaiting an answer from her. It was now or never. Was she really going to stoop this low and allow him- Jiraiya, the king of perverts; the master of lechery; the hugest sex fanatic that ever walked the earth- to spend the night with her?
'That's what I was originally planning to do when I knocked on his door...shit, I don't know...but I need it so bad...Orochimaru and I haven't fucked in God knows how long...'
And so she decided, if not a surprising decision, in her prospective, a very wise one.
"You cease to amaze me, Jiraiya. You always knew how to make me change my mind."
"So...it's a yes?," he asked hopefully.
Tsunade sighed deeply, refraining a giggle as she gazed back up into his eyes. Yes, it was now or never. Life was too short anyways. "You know...that letter you wrote was pretty damn sweet. Infact, I told myself i'd come and see you even if i'd regret it."
Jiraiya was waiting, hoping with all his heart that she would accept his offer. That he could finally do to her what he'd been meaning to do for the time he's known her- nearly all his life.
"Well?"
She couldn't stop the small smile that tugged at her lips, making her face brighten tenfold from the inevitable grin. Never had she looked more lovely, more beautiful. Tsunade almost looked happy. That made the toad sage happy.
"...Sure, why not?"
Overjoyed with her decision, Jiraiya could barely contain his happiness as he let out an enthralled laugh, the deep bellows of his laughter rolling onto her body, Tsunade feeling it through her ears to the bottoms of her feet, reaching her right where it mattered the most. Her heart. Dark eyes gleaming with the most cutest look she's ever seen, he abruptly lifted her off of her feet, holding her bridal style, cradling her close to his chest. Tsunade squealed from such an impulsive act, Jiraiya lifting his head up high with a triumphant smile upon his face.
"I FINALLY GOT HER!!!! YOU THOUGHT I WOULDN'T, BUT I DID OLD MAN!!! SHE'S ALL MINE!!!!"
His proclamation was loud enough to wake up the entire village, but luckily for them, only one person had the courage to open his window and tell the joyous Sannin to quiet down. They'd be in a whole mess of trouble if the whole village decided to give them a piece of their mind.
"HEY, WE GET IT BUDDY!!!! NOW WOULD YOU SHUT THE HELL UP?!!! NORMAL PEOPLE ARE TRYIN' TO SLEEP!!!"
Tsunade had never felt more embarrassed in her life, but never at the same time had she felt so overwhelmed with love and some other emotion she couldn't quite put her finger on. Something she hadn't felt since she herself was a young girl. Without a trouble in the world. Happiness.
A giggle had succeeded in escaping her refrained state of mind, a pink blush tinting her cheeks. Lifting her ambers, all she could do was stare at him, relish in his handsome face, that undeniable aura of his that just screamed sexy. His white hair was defying his years, not a single silver strand on his head and you would never guess he was in his fifties. She wondered if his age had left other things unhindered as well.
Feeling a heavy gaze upon him, Jiraiya looked down with a smile that infected his Godaime almost instantly, Tsunade's lips curving wider. Now that he finally had her, the poor old man didn't know what on earth to do with the exotic beauty. But one thing was for sure. She wasn't going to be going home tonight, he guaranteed that.
"Hime...words can't describe...-"
Out of nowhere, she lifted a finger and pressed it gently against his lips, auburn irises kindling with mischief.
"Don't talk, just show me."
The toad sage quickly caught on, desires for the busty blonde too much for him to contain any further. His smile evolving into a smirk, he pressed his lips harder against her slender finger, kissing it. In that one action alone, Tsunade felt herself near the point of sheer insanity. She needed him. Badly.
"And for the record...I have not a drop of that Hichimura sake in my house..."
A/N: Wow. Okay, well you can kinda guess where this is going to be heading. Yup, lemony goodness and it's all in the next chapter! Please review, I would appreciate it very much and thanks for reading!