Always watching you 14

Shizune shivered in the cold water. The days were beautiful and warm in this gorgeous city but the nights were cold and silent, and while one was sitting in the water in a submerged, abandoned shrine it was downright freezing!

Kakashi to, was cold but he didn't show it at all. He watched the poor female ninja tread water and tremble, her teeth chattering. He really wished he had a jacket to offer her.

"Wanna borrow my shorts to keep you warm." He joked but was silenced with a glare that was colder than the waters.
"No? Well can I borrow your bikini top? I'm really cold to." Okay maybe he shouldn't have gone that one step further. Her glare was icy and the slap of her hand across his face stung like he was hit with a slab of ice. But the perverted ninja just chuckled as he rubbed his cheek.

After a moment of silence her anger had calmed and their eyes remained focused on the moon as it became higher in the sky.

"Kakashi…Do you think one day we could come here again, for a real holiday not a mission?" She quietly asked as she swam to the corner of the building and sat on the pile of rubble they had found earlier that day. Kakashi was shocked by the question.
What was she asking exactly?
To go away together?
TO GET MARRIED?!

He was quickly by her side, back facing her so he could conceal his red face as he took a seat. "O-Of course! That would be really great…"

"Of course we should invite Naruto, Sakura and Sai. Hinata would love this place to and maybe Shikamaru, Tsunade and definitely Iruka…we should stop there or the whole village would join us huh." Shizune giggled as she imagined the fun they would all have.

Kakashi's red face dropped to one of pure disappointment. She could have said a group trip from the start instead of getting his hopes up. And why did she mention Iruka?! The kids he understood and Tsunade was family to her but a grown man of their age?! SERIOUSLY?! If she had a thing for him Kakashi would have to beat the teacher to a pulp!

He felt her lean against his back in search for warmth and the thoughts melted from his mind. "You really love our village don't you?" He said as he looked back up at the moon. Shizune watched the water ripples as she smiled.
"Of course. It is my home. I was so happy when Tsunade became hokage because for once we weren't moving from town to town. All I ever wanted was to live at home surrounded by my friends. Don't you feel a special connection with every person back home?!"

"Yeah. I do." Kakashi thought of his students, of his comrades, of his friends and of the town's people. Each one he had a different connection with. Naruto was a particularly strong bond. To Kakashi he was a student, a team mate, a friend and a son. And Iruka….. Since her comment a moment ago was now a love rival. Yep he was going to punch his lights out when they got home.

He began thinking of every bond he held with every person of the village and happiness overtook every emotion he had felt earlier. He never expected such simple thoughts to warm a heart so completely. Was this why Shizune was always so dedicated? Is this why she did more than the usual Hokage assistant?

And then his thoughts returned to her. What was his bond with her before the mission? He could think of everyone else's so clearly but when it came to her his thoughts were hazy. And even now what were they? So many words filled his head from friends to team mates to comrades and yet words like lovers were filled with endless questions, as that surely was not the case.

"What are we?" He whispered. He did not expect Shizune to hear.
"What do you mean Kakashi?" He turned and looked at her with quizzical eyes, still deep in thought.
"What is our bond? Our connection?"

Shizune hid her blush again but it was gone when she began to think. What was their bond?
Stalker and Stalkee?
Play thing and player?
Cat and mouse?
Everything she considered was not a bond at all. She desperately wished she knew. But they were closer now, closer than before the mission and closer then when they first kissed. That kiss seemed a lifetime ago now. She touched her lips as she recalled that kiss. But the pain that came after it also came back to her memory. The fact he did not love her.

"Friends. We are close friends. More than team mates but not more than good friends." Kakashi was saddened by her words but at the same time relived there was a bond at all. He was beginning to wonder. Maybe if he told her the truth, told her how he felt despite her rejection, perhaps their bond would be more? Would maybe grow? Or would it be lost. At the moment this definition was a safe zone one he both liked and hated. One he could live with but didn't want to.

Kakashi sat more alert suddenly and took Shizune's hand in his, kissing it gently. Shizune's heart skipped a beat as she felt his lips behind that mask. Warmth crept from her hand, up her arm and to her heart.

"It's okay my dear. The moon has nearly reached the highest point like the old man said. We will shake off this curse." He spoke as he twisted his body and took her in his arms, hugging her tightly as he kissed her forehead.

Shizune did not have to act down trodden; she really was heartbroken that he had kissed her hand as a cover. Obviously someone had appeared on the scene and they had to ready themselves for the battle ahead.

Kakashi tried to contain a smirk, yes he had sensed someone's presence however it was a fair distance away and would not hear or see them yet. He just needed an excuse to take her in his arms, to pretend their bond was something more. He took in the moment, the feel of her wet skin against his and when he kissed her forehead again his lips tingled and his breath felt like it was stolen from his lungs. He wished they were not trying to look scared, he wanted to kiss her neck and shoulder…her lips…but somehow a couple making out did not come across as terrified for their lives.

He sighed before pulling her closer so his mouth was near her ear "there is a man and the beast near the roof. Are you ready?" he whispered

Shizune nodded. And both began to swim to the centre of the shrine. It was hard for both to concentrate because the higher the moon got the more the shrine beneath them glowed. Both paused as they looked down and finally Shizune smiled.

"Dear! The coral reflects the moon light! It's beautiful." She said as she looked back into his eyes. Kakashi smiled to as he agreed and for the first time they were both honest with each other and themselves. For the first time they looked into each other's eyes and felt connected.

A rock dropped to the water below and the mission flooded back to their minds as sadness overwhelmed them. Kakashi looked up but whoever had caused the rock to fall was now well hidden.

"Are you ready?" he asked. Shizune nodded and watched as his fingers took hold of his mask. "Could you….close your eyes. Please." His words were not an act. Shizune realised no one had seen his face since he was very little. His eyes almost pleaded and although she knew she could say no and he would still carry out the mission she could not do it. Not if it cost her, his trust. She smiled and nodded, closing her eyes shut and waiting.

Kakashi inwardly sighed. No one had seen his face since his father's death and the bad guy that spied on them wouldn't see it from this distance, but he could not risk her seeing it. It could unlock a box he never wished to open, not yet. He slid down his mask and his lips were greeted with the icy wind. He looked at her face as she patiently waited, her skin was as white and smooth as porcelain in the glow of the coral, and her eye lashes long and thick. He wished he could kiss her for real. But surely the bad guy would attack before that happens.

He leaned in closer, slowly his mouth getting closer to hers, centimetre by centimetre. It was agonizing, waiting for the attack but he sensed no movement. His heart was pounding despite his desperate attempt to keep it at a steady pace for battle, and it felt like it was trying to climb out his throat. Would they wait till after the kiss?!

Shizune trembled not because of the water or the cold but because she could sense Kakashi's presence getting closer to her. She squeezed her eyes shut to avoid the temptation to peek and her stomach felt full of butterflies. This was for the mission! FOR THE MISSION! Yet despite the amount of times that pounded through her head she could not calm herself, could not calm the furious blushing, and could not calm her heart or stomach.

Both inhaled, heart skipping a beat as the skin of their lips just brushed each other's….

It took all Kakashi's will power to pull away, pushing Shizune away from him as the sound of a large animal came bounding down the walls. He covered his face with his mask again as the animal came to land between them, right where they were treading water. There was silence as both ninja waited, prepared with kunai.

Kakashi tried to focus but the briefest of touch between their lips threw his mind and emotions into overdrive. He bit his lip to stop the sensation that was burnt into it but it wouldn't work. All he could think about was that moment.

Shizune was much the same. She cursed herself silently for feeling this way when they didn't even kiss! Their lips barely touched! But tears gathered at the corner of her eyes and she again cursed herself for realising how much disappointment she felt, how badly she wished it was more. This was a mission not a fairy tale! She furiously rubbed her lips as she tried to focus, trying to gain her thinking back and forget about what nearly was a kiss she spent nights dreaming of. But all she really wanted to do was cry in frustration.

With both ninja confused and with emotions running high they both worried, wondering if it was even possible to finish their plan….to set of their trap. AT this moment all they could think of was that brief sensation.

A/N: oh wow sorry about how long its taken to update. my life has gotten very busy recently and it wasn't until someone reminded me it was 2014 and about time i update that i realized how long its been! sorry all for keeping you waiting. if i take to long again just send me a reminder because i get side tracted with life too easily :D hope you enjoyed this chapter. action chapter up next!