#76 – Fetish

So the day finally arrived. The day when Mardi Gras and Valentine's Day would be celebrated together, in a huge masquerade ball. A huge waste of money, that is, Neji thought bitterly. Money that could be invested in new training facilities, more weapons, tracking the Akatsuki... But noooo, thanks to Ino and Tenten, and a very drunk Tsunade, the village would host a useless ball. So be it. The only good thing about it was that he was not going. The ANBU captain was still recovering from his last mission, but not even perfect health would make him attend the party.

Sipping his green tea, Neji opened a book on counter intelligence techniques. Just as he flipped the first page, someone knocked lightly on his door.

"Neji-nii-san? May I come in?" Hinata spoke.

"Of course." He closed the book and waited as she entered his bedroom, fully clad for the ball. Her costume was a lilac fairy, with matching mask.

She looked surprised. "What are you doing in your clan robes? Don't tell me you're not going to the ball."

She got only a stern look in response.

"Come on, nii-san! It will be fun! Besides, I took the liberty of choosing a costume for you."

He sighed. "I know you mean well, but I won't take part in this absurd."

She grabbed his hand. "At least, come and take a look at the costume I chose."

Before he could say anything, she dragged him through the corridors towards her dressing room. "Ta-daaa!"

Neji blinked. Blinked. Stared at the costume in disbelief. "Hinata-sama... This is a low blow." Of all the possible costumes, she had to choose his favorite super hero ever. He shook his head – defeated. Now he would have to go to that stupid ball, because he would never, ever, not in a million years, pass the chance of being Batman for a few hours. Hinata giggled at his reaction. "You can go ahead. I need a few minutes to get ready." She nodded and left, searching for Hanabi.

After he finished dressing, he put a small Henge on his eyes – he would rather die than be spotted in the ball, and his eyes were one of his most identifiable features. Neji looked at the mirror – despite himself, he felt awesome wearing Batman's suit. He considered staying home in his suit, but that would be really embarrassing. Shrugging, he left the Hyuuga compound towards the ball.

As soon as he got there, his senses were assaulted by a multitude of colors, noises, and scents. He could recognize most of the people, even with masks and disguises – it wasn't for nothing that he was the best ANBU captain in generations. Some costumes were elegant, like Shikamaru's – tuxedo, top hat, cape and white mask. Others were exotic, like Kurenai's peacock dress – although she looked very beautiful with it. But some were downright ridiculous – Naruto (who else?) was dressed as a ramen bowl (!), while Lee put a bright blue spandex jumpsuit and a feathered unrecognizable mask. Neji was glad he hid his identity so well. Being seen there, dressed as Batman (as awesome as it was), would tarnish his pristine reputation for life.

Not wanting to look at that zoo any longer, Neji retreated to the bar. He was about to order a drink when the corner of his eye caught a black vinyl blur in the middle of the crowd. It can't be... His heart skipped a beat, and then beated furiously inside his ribcage. All his thoughts redirected to finding the black blur, and all else was forgotten. He couldn't use his Byakugan – it would expose him too much. He would have to look for the blur the good old way – actually searching for it.

At first, it was frustrating, because the blur always seemed to be on his peripherical vision, but whenever he looked at it, it vanished like thin air. Slowly, however, the frustration gave place to excitement. The mystery, the hunt, the chase were so very alluring. He hoped beyond hope that the blur would be-

And there it was, disappearing behind some door. Neji didn't even think – he followed the blur, finding himself in a dimly lit hallway. The blur was nowhere to be seen; with a heavy door behind him and everybody distracted with the music, he thought it would be safe to use his Byakugan to search for the blur. He silently activated his bloodline limit... and the blur was really gone. Cursing, he turned around to leave, his black cape floating dramatically – and almost had a heart attack when the blur was right in front of him, blocking the access to the door. Skin tight black vinyl suit with white stitches, black cowl with pointy ears, knee high stiletto boots, red lipstick and blue eyes. He forgot how to breathe. Right there, his wickedest dream, his deepest, strongest, most secret fetish came true – The Catwoman. In the back of his mind, he recognized her, noticing that the woman, too, had disguised her eyes, for they were originally bright green, not blue. But he was only faintly aware of this. All he could see was that sexy villain goddess within his reach. Her smirk held him paralyzed, unable to do anything but gape openly at her, eyes filled with desire. Without any warning, she tried to run past him. In a reflex, he grabbed her shoulders, but instead of stopping her, it made him fall with his back to the ground. With a graceful maneuver, she straddled his chest and looked deep into his eyes.

"You're catnip to a girl like me. Handsome, dazed, and to die for. " Her voice brought his eyes back to her and ignited something in him. Regardless of her true identity, Neji could only see the Catwoman, so real, so close, so hot. His eyes noticed something in the ceiling; she followed his gaze, and saw a dried mistletoe, obviously forgotten since last Christmas. She smirked again.

Unable to form coherent thoughts, he said the first thing that came to his mind. "You know, mistletoe can be deadly if you eat it."

At that, she lowered her head, so their noses were almost touching. When she moved, a few strands of pink hair could be seen under her cowl – he paid them no mind. "But a kiss can be even deadlier if you mean it." To his great surprise – and utmost delight – she lowered her head even more and slowly, seductively, slid her tongue from his chin to his mouth and finally to the tip of his mask's nose. He involuntarily licked his lips, savouring her, trying to make the moment last. He tried to raise his head and kiss her, but found himself paralyzed by her mere presence.

"Meowth". She whispered against his lips, caressing his face with her faux nails. And, just like that, the Catwoman disappeared in a whirl of cherry blossom petals.

After a fitful sleep, full of very improper dreams about her, Neji got up from his bed. Only to realize that he was scheduled for a physical with no one other than a pink-haired, bright green-eyed medic later that day. Of course, he thought, heading to the bathroom to take an ice cold shower.

A/N: Batman and Catwoman are so hot together *_* I shamelessly stole the scene from Batman Returns (I watched its debut - yes, I'm that old!). By the way, Michelle Pfeiffer is the best Catwoman ever! And yay - 25% done!