Content Warning: This chapter contains some violence and depictions of suggestive behavior.
Chapter Ten
Naruto attacked the knots of worry in Hinata's shoulders as she reclined back into him on the luxurious loveseat in the VIP lounge of the Red Kitsune. The room itself was plush with dim lighting and warm wooden paneling. The room's furniture was of foreign design, lovingly shaped from wood and upholstered in soft, red padding. The whole place was meant to put you at ease. Too bad we couldn't be here under different circumstances. He discretely expanded his senses as he sought to provide Hinata comfort.
First, there had been the expected collection of gang enforcers escorting them to the secluded room. Had it not been for Hinata reminding him to keep his cool, he might have blown the whole operation by squaring off against the bruisers. While clearly trained to fight, none of them gave any chakra signature worth noting. Just remember, you're not supposed to be using chakra except if your cover is blown. For Naruto, the directive left him feeling naked among a pack of wolves.
On the way in, the scent of heavy incense had been masking quite liberal use of seductively sweet Fatal Lust in some of the other rooms. Then there had been ungodly moans, shouts, and other sounds of passion that hinted as to what was happening in the other lounges. Nightclub or drug-fueled love hotel? The place made his skin crawl almost as badly as the three gang enforcers that had met them just inside the door. As Naruto kneaded away at muscle knots, he wondered how sanitary the couch was.
Beneath his fingers, Hinata quaked almost imperceptibly. While outwardly she was relaxed, her breathing was deep, meditative – trying to pour oil to calm a troubled ocean. Even without linking his chakra with hers, turbulence was palpable. She leaned back not in arousal but in exhaustion. The act of becoming a human being, becoming the mask of someone you weren't, was among the most taxing things for poor Hinata.
The door opened, and Temari and Shikamaru scurried inside. Temari's costume was almost seasonally brief as Hinata own outfit. Unlike Temari, Hinata wore her hair in a long ponytail, she wore red and black striped thigh-length stockings, and she wore a red long-sleeved cropped top that exposed her well-toned midriff.
"So, good times?" Hinata asked as she sat up from Naruto's embrace.
"Memorable," Temari licked her lips gently as she sat on a couch across from them and patted a spot next to her, "Coming, Anaconda?" Shikamaru said nothing as he followed her and took a seat. Temari rather casually kicked off her high-heels and rested her feet across Skikamaru's lap. Temari smiled, as if giving an unspoken command, and Shikamaru began massaging her feet – a slight grimace formed over the boy's face.
"Enjoying the privileges of royalty, your highness?" Naruto asked.
"Men are a wonderful think, King Cobra," she snickered, "I think every girl should own one; don't you agree, Black Mamba?"
"They can be quite enjoyable," Hinata traced a finger along the bottom of Naruto's chin, "if properly trained." Even in costume, Hinata was still stunning. Stunning and seductive. Too bad we're not on down time.
The door opened again, this time admitting two large men Naruto recognized as the bouncers from in front and a smaller man with a thin beard, short black hair, and fashionable features. He dressed in good-quality, but undistinguished, black robes.
"Ah, Tarantula, welcome," Hinata greeted warmly. "It's been so long!"
"Indeed," the man spoke in a deep, throaty voice. Naruto thumbed back through his mental files on the known members of the Venom Scorpions. Tarantula, actually, Hikaru Sato, was a genin who washed out of the Shinobi Corps after a string of failed missions at age sixteen. He'd been in and out of jail most of his adult life and had a rap sheet that stretched from here to Suna. "What happened to King Snake?" the man asked, face twitching uncomfortably.
"Dead," Hinata said nonchalant with the same effort to say what she had for lunch.
"How?" Tarantula twitched from the unexpected surprise. According to the man's file, he had developed some neurologic injury to his face after a particularly nasty drug deal – the long scar running vertically in front of his left ear hinted the story had some merit.
"He displeased me," Hinata replied, uninterested.
"You killed your husband?" Tarantula's twitch intensified, and blood began dripping from the corners of his right eye.
"He became a liability; this business makes no room for sentimentality, Tarantula. You know if someone fucks up, we die."
The twitch ceased, but bloody tears continued to run from Tarantula's right eye as he grabbed a handkerchief. "A liability how?" he inquired.
"He started dipping into the product," Hinata replied, amused, "while it made him most satisfying in the bedroom," she paused to smirk at a fake memory of religious level passion, "he became and addict, and addicts have a reputation. I couldn't have him as my partner, so I terminated our relationship."
An unsettled look worked into Tarantula's face. Naruto took the opportunity to sniff the air, noting the heavy scent of cheap aftershave and cologne trying to mask the sickly-sweet smell of Fatal Lust emanating from the man. Tarantula, himself, was a user. Judging by the red crystalline crust at the corners of his mouth, and the bloodshot eyes, Naruto would guess a pretty hardcore user. Ten thousand yen a gram, that's no small habit to feed. "And who the hell is he?" Tarantula pointed to Naruto.
"My new associate," a devilish look crossed Hinata as she leisurely rubbed her body back over Naruto. "He keeps my body safe, and my bed warm. And I don't have to worry about him becoming a user." She paused to stare down at the bulge forming in Naruto's pants, "His lust is more than enough."
"Fascinating," Tarantula replied, "and your fishing buddies?"
"Anaconda," she gestured toward Shikamaru, still massaging Temari's feet. "And the Queen of Poppies."
The mention of Temari's alias caused the muscles in the right side of the man's face to constrict violently, "The… Queen of Poppies…."
"The one and only," Temari giggled.
"Prove it!" The man demanded indignantly.
"I have a have fifty metric tons of these," Temari reached between her breasts to extract a brilliant red flower. The Sunan Poppy flower was luscious as a ripe strawberry, seductively red. "And they have the means to move it," Temari gestured toward Hinata and himself. "So, what do ya say? Let's talk business."
From across the room, Naruto detected the soft, sweet fragrance of the flower in its natural state. You smell that, Kyuubi?
"Yeah, smells like your late-night fantasies of Hinata!" Kurama laughed with throaty growl.
Kyuubi!
"Don't act innocent to me; you have no secrets from me!"
It's not like that!
"You mean you don't desire to mate with her and act out all the fantastical things you read that one time you snuck a peak in your grandfather's books?
You saw that!? Naruto almost flinched at Nine-Tails' revelation. Thankfully, he brushed it off as a cough.
"You're my jinchuriki, both of you have no secrets to me," Naruto heard Kurama's grin, "To be fair, she's just as interested as you are," he laughed.
She is? Naruto couldn't say he was entirely surprised.
"Do you think that dream of her tying you down and having her wicked way with you was just a dream?" Kurama laughed in a low rumble, "What she has planned is every bit as salacious as what your mother and father did when they made you!" Nine-tails continued to thunder, "Do you think her rubbing against you and saying your lust was stronger than some drug was an act? If she didn't want you, she wouldn't be sitting here in your arms!"
The pleasant thought of Hinata wanting him invaded Naruto, making his lips spread into an involuntary grin. "No deal, Mamaba," Tarantula's words killed the smile on Naruto's face.
"Why the hell not?" Naruto complained, feeling Hinata sit up from him and his excitement fading.
"You lost King Snake, your once ace in the hole; you've got no muscle left!" Tarantula chided.
"I'm all the muscle she needs!" Naruto pointed his thumb toward himself, "Who do you think killed King Snake?" Naruto grinned, channeling just a slight bit of Kurama's chakra. Tarantula was aghast. "Oh yeah," Naruto spoke arrogantly, "snapped the bitch in half like a pencil." Naruto leered at the gang enforcers with Tarantula. "I'll take on any of your guys, or all of them at once; then, you're gonna need muscle."
"You!" Tarantula scoffed, "Listen, goldilocks, it takes more than being a scrawny pipsqueak on the arm of a big-breasted broad to impress the Venom Scorpions."
"Keep up with the smart mouth," Naruto grinned, "and my foot will be nine-tenths of the way up your ass; use a calculator if you need to run the numbers." Tarantula was challenging him, and letting it go unanswered meant blowing their one chance.
"Yuuto," Tarantula turned to the enforcer on his right, a tall man with a bald head and obsidian eyes. "Show this fool why people fear the Venom Scorpions!"
"Before he does," Hinata spoke up, "Care to wager? King Cobra wins, we make a deal. You win, we pound salt."
"Fair," Tarantula said as the big guy named Yuuto took off his jacket and tie.
Naruto rose from the couch, taking off his jacket and unbuttoned and removed his shirt, leaving him bare-chested. Yuuto was not moved as Naruto sized the man up.
"Hey, got a private wager," Temari reached into her purse, "I got ten-thousand yen that says King Cobra will kick his ass!" She waved the bill. Unbelieveable! Really, Temari!?
"Yuuto kills anyone who crosses him," Tarantula replied.
Temari extracted another series of bills, "Then let's make it fifty-thousand!"
"More lap dance money for me," Tarantula grinned.
"Really! That's all I'm worth to you!" Naruto shouted.
"It's all I could fit in my purse," Temari shrugged.
Naruto moved to start the fight, but he felt Hinata's cold hand on his back. "Don't…" he turned to stare at her, "… beat him so badly we can't get a rematch," she whispered.
"Believe it!" Naruto winked. Naruto walked up to his opponent extending a hand, "Care to shake on it?"
As he answered, Yuuto seized Naruto's wrist in a vice grip and twisted like an alligator in a death-roll. "GAAAHH!" Naruto groaned as his arm jerked violently. The big man stepped into him, body-checking Naruto full-force with his weight.
The impact stunned Naruto like hitting a brick wall. Before he could react, an elbow flew into his face, hitting like a lead pipe. One fist, then another, and finally a third strike rammed Naruto in the face. Even before he hit the ground on his knees, Naruto felt blood pooling in the hot bruises forming on his face. Asshole! A solid kick to the solar-plexus doubled Naruto to his side.
"Looks like he wasn't so tough, after all." the large mean huffed as he turned with his back to Naruto. Big mistake turning your back on an opponent, asshole!
Naruto smiled through bloody lips as he brought his hands together, straightening the index and middle fingers. Naruto rolled up and to his knees, and jammed up and forward with the full force of his body. "A THOUSAND YEARS OF DEATH, ASSHOLE!" Yuuto clenched his rear-end in agony, flying into Tarantula and the other enforcer. Naruto leapt to his feet and grabbed his opponent by the back of his collar, tugged the man back toward him, and raked a tiger-claw hand strike across his face.
"AAAAHHH!" Yuuto screamed as Naruto clawed flesh from the man's face. Naruto didn't give him time to recover; he drove an uppercut into the man's chin, sending the man's head backwards. Time for the money shot! Naruto rammed a forward kick into the man's balls, "AIEYAH!" all the air emptied from the man's lungs as he doubled forward over his assaulted testicles. And the big finish! Naruto brought his leg down and spun backwards through a flying reverse-roundhouse kick that jerked the man's violently to the left. The man crumbled to the ground like a limp sack of rice and did not get back up.
The coppery taste of blood-filled Naruto's mouth, and he spat a bloody wad of saliva on his defeated opponent. "So, let's talk business?" he shrugged with a blood-stained smile.
"Hey, where's my fifty thousand?" Temari's sass cut the air.
"Ow-ow!" Naruto squirmed as Hinata watch Sakura clean the giant welts on his face. The private clinic the KIB kept glowed bright in the otherwise darkened building.
"If you held still," Sakura chided, "This wouldn't hurt so much!"
"I somehow doubt that!" Naruto whined.
Sakura turned to Hinata, "Dare I ask the details of how he got so badly beat up?"
"Heh," Naruto laughed, "You should see the other guy! OUCH!" Sakura moved to put antiseptic on Naruto's hand where he'd torn the skin on his knuckles.
"Sorry, Sakura," Hinata shook her head, "that is classified. All I can tell you is Naruto came out the better of the two."
Sakura scrutinized the battered and bruised face before her, as did Hinata. Naruto had a black eye in his right eye, both his cheeks were badly swollen and red, and he had a nasty gash over his left eyebrow. "Let me guess, another deal that didn't go smooth?" Sakura asked.
"You know we can't answer that," Naruto said nasally as Sakura shoved cotton up his nose to stall the flow of blood. Momentarily her hands glowed aquamarine as she held them over the bridge of his nose. I seriously wish I was better at that. Hinata had some medical training, but she was a child fingerpainting compared to Sakura performing a masterstroke.
"You don't have to," Sakura placed a butterfly closure on the gash, "just tell me we did good tonight," Sakura said hopefully.
"We did," Hinata said. Tarantula had agreed to the deal in three weeks. The true prizes, Venom and Scorpion, would be present for such a large deal. Hopefully, it would be the big chance to take them down and put an end to Fatal Lust. Until then, they'd still watch Tarantula and the Red Kitsune, watching for other malignant tumors needing to be excised. Leave nothing behind to start this crisis again.
"Was there any mention of Sasuke?" Sakura's eyes lit up.
"I wish," Hinata sighed, "I had something to go on," she shook her head. "Our cover story was that he was dead," Hinata caught the sight of tears forming at Sakura's eyes. "Sakura, I didn't mean…" she stumbled, "I don't for a minute thing he's dead; it was just a cover!"
"I know," Sakura sobbed, "I know he's still alive!" The apprentice medical-nin wiped away tears. "I just… I miss him!"
"Sakura," Naruto took her by the wrist, "we're going to find him! Believe it!" he smiled.
"Thanks," Sakura composed herself, "You two should get some rest." Sakura turned to Hinata, "He should ice tonight and tomorrow, and the swelling should go down. If it doesn't get better by morning or if he starts bleeding again, well, you know where to find me."
"Got it," Hinata nodded. Just the act of nodding made Hinata's head hang heavily. Between the late night at the club, the stress of the deal, and wearing an altered personality all night; Hinata had burned herself out thoroughly.
The walk back to the apartment was thankfully uneventful in the dark of the night. To the night patrol, they were just a few carousing teenagers returning home after a late night in the red-light district. While the apartment was not her plush room at the Hyūga Compound, it was at least a safe place to rest her head and recover from the events of the night. While she doubted anyone had followed them, they'd taken great pains to ensure they weren't followed from the club or KIB headquarters. It was almost 0235 by the time they arrived.
As they entered the building, Hinata saw a package alert on her mailbox, and she quickly retrieved the package, addressed to Kenji – Naruto's alter ego. "You want to open it?" she asked as they entered the small studio apartment.
"You can open it," he shook his head, "I'm going to rinse off quickly.
"What if it is something private?" Hinata asked.
"Ha!" Naruto began to remove his jacket and shirt, "how private could it be?" Naruto stepped behind the screen and started the water. Hinata meanwhile went to the kitchen for scissors and cut open the tape holding the small package together. The box opened, revealing a small rectangular package wrapped in brown paper with a note from Jiraiya:
Dear Naruto,
Use the knowledge inside wisely and safely. Make your girl happy!
Love Always,
Grandpa
Inside the wrapping was a paperbound book: Make Out Tactics. Hinata knew better than to open the legendary Sannin's book, but there was something curious about having it in hand. Until now, all things relationships were filtered through Mom, Aunt Kushina, Sakura, Tenten, and Ino. Deep down, she wondered what Naruto's needs might be, and this might be her one chance to get a male perspective discretely. This is Jiraiya's perspective. Do you really think it could tell you anything not perverted?
The clink of the shower curtain rings reminded her that she had maybe a few minutes as Naruto stepped into the shower. Hinata reluctantly opened the book and scanned. Much of it was fluff, a thinly veiled account of his attempts at winning over Tsunade, but some of it contained actual insight. I would never have guessed men like having that done to them! Hinata scanned furiously, finding helpful pointers about the do's and don'ts of certain positions, the importance testing a table for its ability to support a partner before using it for spontaneous passion, and the perils of sex on the beach and in the shower.
Much to her surprise, the book wasn't simply a pure male empowerment perspective, either. Several long sections included clear input from a woman's perspective. My god, Tsunade helped write this! Despite being age-inappropriate for young readers, the book was hardly trash. Hinata could actually stomach this, and she felt like there was much to learn.
"Hinata, what are you reading…" Naruto's voice froze her in place. Oh god!
The room began spinning from the embarrassment of Naruto, wearing only a towel and dripping wet, catching her in the act of reading such a lewd work of literature. The book slipped from her grip, and she began to fall forward.
She regained consciousness in Naruto's arms, "Hinata, say something!"
"S-s-something," Hinata stammered, feeling the heavenly sensation of being pressed against Naruto's chest mix with the embarrassment of being dressed in the gawdy outfit she'd worn to the club. I look like a complete prostitute and my boyfriend just caught me reading his lewd book. If only Mother and Father could see me now!
"Just take it easy," he steadied her upright. As Naruto held her up, he stared in her eyes with his bright sapphires, "I hope Grandpa's book wasn't too shocking; I'd hate to tell him he caused some kind of mass fainting spell."
"No, it's fine, I just," he throat closed.
"It's okay," Naruto chuckled, "I thought the stuff was kinda lame," he shook his head, "at least until recently." His brilliant smile warmed her head to toe.
"I-I think I'll rinse off real quick," Hinata found her footing and turned. As she reached the privacy screen, she paused, "You know the book's contents?" she said, not turning to look at him.
"Helped him write it," Naruto said, "Is-is that a problem? I'm sorry if it offends you!" his voice turned anxious.
"No, no," she protested, "It's just umm…" Hinata searched for a delicate way to ask, finding none, she just asked, "is what's described on page one-seventy-eight a real thing?"
"That," Naruto voice strained, "is a good question. I don't know." His voice dropped, "Maybe we should try it sometime!" he said too cheerful for the obscene act depicted.
"Maybe," she felt fire in her belly and warmth throughout her body as she stepped behind the screen and undressed. Not tonight, but soon! The hot shower eased the tension in her, making her exhaustion all the more palpable as she exited, threw on fresh underwear, and pulled her long green sleep shirt over her body.
Stepping past the screen, she caught sight of Naurto in black boxers that teased her with all she could see and what little she couldn't. Curiously, he wore a familiar piece of jewelry around his neck. "Tsunade's necklace?" Hinata asked, surprised.
"It belonged to the First Hokage. I guess she gave it to Grandpa to give to me," he held the aquamarine gem between his fingers. "It feels strange wearing it."
"Why?" she approached.
"It is the necklace of a Hokage," Naruto said.
"Someday," Hinata stood in front of him, running her hand along his cheek. "It will belong to you for reasons other than being a gift, my future Hokage."
Naruto eyed her," Thanks for always believing in me, babe! Thanks for being you!" Naruto's kiss weakened her knees until they both sat on the bed. Naruto broke from her to cut the lights, and he returned to her embrace just as fast. He held her through the night.
Shikamaru laid back sleepless on the mat sprawled out on the floor. He decided to do the gentlemanly thing and give Temari the bed. By the time they'd gotten to the apartment from the club and the end of mission debriefing, it was almost 0200. Despite the success of the mission, Shikamaru's mind refused to let him go tonight.
Countless variables about what could go wrong, about leads to follow up, and preparations that needed to be made swirled in a maelstrom. And that is before you put her into the mix.
Shikamaru turned an eye toward Temari. After knowing her for over three years, he was still lost at what to make of her. She was the puzzle that refused to be solved, a piece of music that was always at the tip of his tongue, and she was a constellation hiding amid a brilliant starry night sky. Troublesome woman, even when you're dreaming.
Shikamaru liked her for sure. For all her over-bearing and sass, she could be oddly pleasant to be around. She was like the mismatched pair of socks he'd worn during the Chunin exams, unusual but strangely comforting. You think she doesn't feel the same way? She still wears that same sweater you gifted her. She came seeking you out for help with a birthday gift. She made you massage her feet. "Okay, bad example," Shikamaru whispered to himself. He turned to stare at the shivering mass of blankets on the bed and smirked quietly in the dark. He turned back to face the ceiling and closed his eyes.
"Sh-Shi-Shikamaru…" Temari's voice shook, uncharacteristic for the Sunan warrior.
"Temari?" Shikamaru's heart jumped at the sound of her in distress. "Is- is something wrong?"
A long, prideful moment passed, but finally, Temari spoke, "Cold! I'm so cold!"
Really?! Shikamaru huffed as he stretched out. As he did, the air in the cramped apartment attacked his exposed arms. The room was quite chilly. Ah dammit! He stared at the positively ancient radiator that heated the room. In the older part of the complex, the room had yet to be updated, and the radiator failed multiple times throughout the season. Against better judgement, Shikamaru left the warm cocoon of blankets and got up, determining that the main radiator had crapped out. "Dammit," he huffed. The building maintenance office wouldn't open until 0700.
"Temari," he turned to stare at her huddled mass, "I'll give you my blanket." Yeah, and freeze your own ass off all night!
"Shikamaru…" he heard the reluctance in her tone, "… join me." Temari pulled back the blanket slightly, fearful of letting more cold in.
"You want me to what?!"
"I'm not exactly happy about it, either!" she yelped. "Now get your lazy ass in here! I'm freezing.
"Troublesome woman!" he sighed. Despite his misgivings, he slid between the covers. Dressed in only a pair of boy shorts and a baggy t-shirt, Temari radiated a field of cold that made Shikamaru's toes curl despite his fleece pajama pants. Temari's cold hands found purchase on his chest and her legs wrapped around him, stealing warmth from him. "GAH!"
"Crybaby!" she teased, running her hands up and down him. "What's a matter, you never kept a woman warm before?"
"NO!" Shikamaru squealed in hysterics, trying to push back the girl's frigid limps, "You're like cuddling with a frozen turkey!"
Her cold hands slapped him on the back, and she gripped him tightly, and she began laughing. "So, that's what you do on your family's land when I'm not around!"
"Troublesome woman!"
"But you love me just the same!" She continued laughing, burying her face in his chest.
The words froze Shikamaru. She had displayed physical affection, she'd even displayed an occasional emotional interest, but she'd never thrown around the "L" word. "Temari?" his heart began climbing in his chest.
"Yeah?" she stared up at him with her teal eyes, glowing magically in the ambient light. His heart threatened to rip free from his ribcage.
"W-what am I to you?"
"Hmmm… what would you like me to be?" she traced her hand along his spine, pulsing electricity through the length of him.
"That's not fair," his voice cracked in protest.
"You're too cute when you do that," she laughed, "boyfriend."
Shikamaru swallowed a huge gulp of air as his eyes shot wide open, "Boyfriend!?"
"I'd say paramour, but that would require me to be having an affair!" she laughed. "Do you want me as your girlfriend?"
Without prompting, his arm wrapped around her, tracing up and down her back. No material line; she's not wearing a bra! The revelation made his heart thunder in his throat. "If said yes," he said taut, "would you make out with me?" His uncharacteristic boldness surprised even him. "I-I," he choked, "I'm sorry, this is awkward!"
"This is awkward for me, too!" she brought her mouth to his, and the temperature in the bed rose several degrees everywhere she touched him.
Breaking from the hot, penetrating kiss, Shikamaru spoke, "I'm sorry to make this awkward!"
"Not you, silly, it's this," she guided his hand along her back, "I'm not used to wearing pajamas; in the desert, I usually sleep nude."
Her predatory grin suggested she was telling the truth and using it to turn him on. It's working damn well. The emotional armor he'd fashioned for such an occasion melted like wax. He wanted her. Teenage lust he barely knew he had bubbled to the surface, and soon he was scanning her neck with his lips and tongue as one hand planted under her butt, massaging and squeezing. His other hand slithered up and down along her stomach, slowly working its way higher and higher. As his hand rubbed her breast for the first time, his mouth reached her right ear, sucking at her lower earlobe, nibbling playfully.
"Shikamaru," she moaned breathlessly, pushing him back slightly to his side.
As he rolled off, his hand withdrew from the soft, squishy mound. "Sorry," he knew better than force the issue.
"You have to watch out for that ear, fiend!" Temari taunted him, staring with mischief.
"Why?"
"It'd be the equivalent of me doing this," her hand snatched him by the manhood. Initial fear of pain faded as she squeezed gently, playfully. Her soft, mocking laughter began.
"What's so funny?"
"Your mother and I are so proud of you right now!" she giggled.
"Jackass!"
"Crybaby!"
"Bookworm!"
"Brunette!"
At the last insult, she let go of him, feigning hurt. Soon, her look became amused, and she groped him again, "I'll have to punish you for that last one!" She again pressed her mouth to him and invaded his space. My troublesome woman; I love you!
Author's notes: Hello everyone, I hope you are well, and thank you for reading. I am posting this slightly early as it's my birthday this weekend. I promised my wife and inspiration I'd spend time with her. I'd like to thank her for suggesting some of the more interesting dialog between the characters. I'll see you all next week at the normal time on Saturday. Until then, stay healthy, stay safe, and stay classy!
-Adam