Tags/Warnings: Set in Edo period of Japan; Brothels; Implied/Referenced Underage Sex; Prostitution; NaruSasu kinda switch later on; Plot-heavy; Angst with a Happy Ending; Implied Orochimaru/Uchiha Sasuke; Alternate Universe - Historical
Mini Glossary
1. Shamisen: a three-stringed Japanese musical instrument.
2. Bachi: a wooden tool to pluck a shamisen's string (almost like a guitar's pick).
3. Awase/Awase kimono: kimono worn during autumn/winter/spring (October to May).
4. Yuujo: regular prostitute/courtesan.
5. Oiran: highest-ranked prostitute/courtesan.
6. Dono: Japanese honorific equal to "Master" or "Milord".
7. Sama: Japanese honorific which is almost similar to Dono, but much more formal and reserved for even higher ranks.
8. Kinagashi: the most casual style of kimono for men.
9. Haori: the 'jacket' worn over kinagashi to make the outfit more formal.
10. Etsumi-rou (悦巳楼): the name of Sasuke's fictitious brothel. Etsumi (悦巳/delight) consists of "悦" for delight, joy, pleasure "巳" for snake. Rou (楼/tower) is a suffix for Japanese brothels back then afaik. I intend for Etsumi-rou to mean Tower of Delight.
11. Yatagarasu/'Three-Legged Crow': legendary raven from East Asian mythology.
12. Shimokobai: a Japanese sweet.
13. Yoshiwara: real-life red-light district in Edo (now Tokyo).
Author's Note: I'm trying to make this fic as historically accurate as possible (my main reference is J.E. De Becker's The Nightless City). However, I'm not a historian/Japanese culture expert and a lot of literature are more focused on information centred around female prostitutes rather than male ones. So, I still need to bend some facts to suit the storyline and just generally make writing easier. But if you wanna know more about the ukiyo (pleasure-seeking lifestyle of the Edo period) topic historically, I absolutely encourage you to read books about the Yoshiwara district, Oiran/Yuujo/Kagema (not Geisha!), etc. I'm just an SNS whore who wanted to see my bois in this setting and this is the result~
Winter had just begun but Sasuke could already tell that it was going to be one of the coldest winters of the decade. Even inside the windowless small room, he felt his fingers tremble slightly as he twisted the peg of his shamisen. He ignored the cold, plucking the string again with the bachi he held on his right hand and twisted the peg further with his left. Satisfied with the sound produced, he was about to tune the next string when a knock came through his door.
"Come in," he said, eyes still trained on his shamisen.
The door slid open and a woman appeared. Her dark, short hair was styled meticulously into a small nape chignon adorned with a single comb and hairpin.
"Sasuke, you have a patron waiting in Lotus."
Sasuke looked at the woman oddly. "Who is it? Didn't I decline Gato's proposal the other day?"
"It's not Gato. He, uh... he's a first-timer."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow at that. "What's his name? I don't recall agreeing to any negotiation for tonight."
"You didn't. But he came with Lady Tsunade's old friend just now and she recommended you," she explained.
"Must be someone of a high rank, then." The remark came much more bitter than Sasuke had intended, making the woman wince.
"...Maybe you can talk to him and politely refuse?" She shrugged.
Sasuke was quiet for a while, frowning hard before answering, "Even if it's the emperor himself, Lady Tsunade would never recommend me without my consent."
The woman shrugged helplessly. "I don't know what she's thinking."
The room was filled with silence before Sasuke finally took a deep breath and hummed in understanding. He then stood up and placed his shamisen in the corner of the room.
"Nevermind. I'll touch up my face paint and be there in ten minutes. I'll go there on my own, so you may leave now. Thank you, Shizune." Sasuke acknowledged her with a nod, earning him one in return before the woman slid the door closed.
Once Shizune disappeared, Sasuke sat down in front of his mirror, a boxed paper lantern placed beside it. From the mirror, he could see his neatly swept-back hair and complex face paint were still intact (probably the only good thing that came out of the cold weather is his face paint's longevity), but he noticed that his lips needed a retouch.
He pulled out a small paint container and a brush from inside his cosmetic box and started working on his lips. When he deemed his painted lips presentable enough, he put the appliances back where they belonged and finished the look with a colourful awase kimono set, his signature headpiece, and a thick sash around his narrow waist. The bow was tied in front as usual to enable patrons to disrobe him much easier. And just like what he'd done every single night since he started this work, he methodically drank a cup of yellow liquid on his table—Ginseng root-infused water to make sure he could perform well even through numerous undesirable nights.
The fire in the lantern was finally extinguished before he exited the room.
Sasuke's room was located inside the yuujo residence, so he needed to walk through numerous halls just to get to the Lotus Room inside the house of assignation. The hallways in the residence were relatively quiet. But once he entered the house of assignation area, he could see patrons, yuujos, and brothel servants bustling around the hallways. Customers and workers that knew him bowed in acknowledgement, to which he returned in courtesy. He was stopped twice on his way by two patrons trying to set an appointment informally with him—to which he simply said to refer to Tsunade instead, as usual.
Overall it was a much busier scene compared to other nights, Sasuke noted. Merchants, warriors, artisans, noblemen and a handful of noblewomen must have come here trying to escape the cold winter by seeking the body heat of yuujos. Why they didn't seek it from their spouse was not a question many people pondered.
When Sasuke finally arrived in front of the Lotus Room, he proceeded to sit on his knees and adjusted the flaps of his kimono before he knocked on the door softly.
"Y-yeah?" The voice came immediately from behind the door.
Sasuke didn't miss the obvious waver in the tone but thought no more of it. "Your oiran has arrived, Dono."
"Oh. Uh… right. Come in."
Sasuke slid the door open, revealing a middle-sized room with a choppy, blonde-haired man standing awkwardly near the small, round window. From the way Tsunade skipped all introductory protocols for first-timers and called Sasuke right away, he would have thought that the man who booked him must've been at least a member of the royal family. But the man in front of him looked like a commoner at best with a grey kinagashi that looked as if he had worn it all of his life. He was tanned and seemed like he had a solid build, though—if the broad shoulders and the silhouette of muscled biceps were any indications. So maybe a low-ranked warrior?
Holding a scoff, Sasuke slowly bowed to the customer before him, one palm covering the other on the tatami in front of him. "Welcome to Etsumi-rou, Dono." He then straightened back up and looked at the man in the eye. "It's a pleasure to meet you. From here on out, you may refer me as Yatagarasu."
The man's eyebrows were raised in amusement. "The Three-legged Crow? That's one hell of a cool name."
Sasuke was a bit surprised at the unusual remark and the crass language, but refused to let it show and only chose to say, "That's very kind of you to say." He finally stood up and entered the room, closing the door behind him. "How would you like me to refer you, Dono?"
"Um. Naruto's fine, I think."
"Naruto-Dono it is, then."
He observed this Naruto person again and even though the man seemed to be more assured than when Sasuke opened the door just now, he was still fidgeting slightly.
Sasuke sighed internally. This was gonna be a long night.
"Well, I see that the servants have brought you some refreshments." Sasuke eyed a low table near the door where a bottle of sake and an assortment of Japanese traditional sweets were served. They looked untouched except for one small empty plate in the middle.
"Oh!" Naruto eyed the table too and grinned. "Yeah, they served those just before you entered! The shimokobai tastes awesome, by the way. It was the best one I've tasted in my whole life." He turned to Sasuke again, an apologetic smile adorned his face. "Sorry I started without you."
The comment had Sasuke taken aback. "What are you apologizing for? They brought these for you."
"I just thought maybe you'd want some too? We could kinda share, y'know."
Sasuke stared at the man. He couldn't figure out if the guy's an idiot for wanting to share such expensive treats or if he was just too nice for his own good. Other patrons didn't usually share—not that they had a reason to, because a session in Etsumi meant they shall own everything their heart desires so long as the sun hadn't risen.
"I have eaten, so don't worry about me. But you're right. We do own one the best shimokobais in town." Sasuke sat on one of the floor cushions around the table and patted the one next to him. "Come sit with me?"
Naruto made his way gingerly to the table and sat as instructed. From up close, Sasuke could see his face much clearer. Despite the poor initial impression of the man's style, Sasuke couldn't deny that his face actually looked pretty decent. He had strong facial features that should have made him look intimidating. But he actually looked boyish and approachable because of those round, really clear blue eyes that Sasuke couldn't seem to stop staring at.
Naruto still looked pretty nervous, though, so Sasuke decided to start with the alcohol. He grabbed the sake bottle and poured it into its cup. "Here," he said as he handed the cup to Naruto.
"Thanks, man." Naruto accepted the cup and drank it in one shot. He grimaced. "Wow, that's pretty strong."
"It is for a reason." Sasuke poured into the cup again. "It helps our customers relax."
Despite not seeming like the brightest bulb, Naruto didn't miss the slight jab directed at him. The man scratched his cheek roughly, looking troubled. "Sorry for making this awkward. I actually frequented brothels a lot because of my teacher's work. But uhh… I've never tried their service before. I just don't know what to expect."
Sasuke took the time to process Naruto's words. Other brothels were usually an easier choice for people like Naruto because due to Etsumi's exclusivity, first-time bookings were usually much more complex. Patrons needed to undergo a background check, interview, and price bargain before they could finally meet the yuujo of their choice. Oirans of Sasuke's level had the authority to decline offers. Even when approved, it would usually take a couple of 'empty meetings' (as the meetings only involve little to no physical contact) for the patrons to finally have sex with their oiran. Shizune did say that Naruto came with Tsunade's old friend, though, which explained why he could bypass all that.
Sasuke couldn't decide if he was annoyed or intrigued by that. Nevertheless, he trusted Tsunade's judgement and would like to see what she was planning to do by recommending him to this peculiar fellow.
"No need to worry," Sasuke said after a while. "Just do it like you would with a lover."
Naruto didn't reply. Instead, he placed his sake cup on the table and stared at the assortment of sweets blankly.
Looking at Naruto's demeanour, a thought suddenly crossed Sasuke's mind. It was right there at the tip of his tongue, but he quickly decided not to entertain it as it didn't seem proper to ask. Instead, he traced his finger at the rim of the sake bottle and tried to switch the topic. "So I heard that you came here with an old friend of Lady Tsunade."
Naruto visibly relaxed with the new topic and smiled at Sasuke, blue eyes gleaming in the dimly lit room. "Yeah. The teacher I told you about? It was him."
"I see. You did say his work involves frequenting brothels a lot. Is he a travelling merchant? An investor of ours, perhaps?"
"Well, no. He's neither."
"I see. Mind telling me his name, then? It might ring a bell."
"His name's Jiraiya. Ya ever heard of him?"
"I'm afraid not. What exactly does he do, then?"
Naruto scratched his cheek nervously. "Well, he… writes?"
"So he's a poet? I enjoy poetry."
"Uhh… not exactly. Well, he writes about… human bodies."
When Sasuke didn't seem to understand what Naruto was getting at, the blonde added, "About human bodies and when those bodies are—" his hands were flailing weirdly in an attempt to visualize his thought. "—together."
Sasuke blinked. "You mean he's an erotic writer?"
The blonde coughed awkwardly. "Yeah, I think that's the best way to describe it. That's why he visited brothels a lot. For inspiration, he said." He then added in a much, much smaller voice, "and I'm his assistant... or kinda."
Sasuke's eyebrows shot up at the belated confession. "Really? For a second there I thought—" and he quickly shut his mouth.
"...you thought what?"
Truth to be told, this particular thought had been in Sasuke's mind for a while since he saw Naruto just now. And if his guess was right, then it'd be his first time having this kind of patron. He didn't think it was proper to raise the subject. But since Naruto asked…
"With all due respect, Dono." He paused, unsure of how to phrase it at first. In the end, he opted to just blurt out, "Are you perhaps a virgin?"
Naruto didn't actually have to answer because his reddened cheeks were telling enough. He slowly slumped over the table and covered his face with both of his palms, a muffled groan escaped from between his fingers.
"Was it that obvious?" Naruto whimpered.
Sasuke wanted to laugh, but he felt like he could give this man a break and lied, "I'm just good at reading people. Or so I was told."
"Heh, you must've thought it weird for me to be Jiraiya-sensei's assistant even though I have no experience in sex," Naruto snickered.
"Who knows. The mind of a virgin might be more surprising than a whore's," Sasuke replied with a smirk.
Naruto let out a warm, hearty laugh. Now that his 'secret' was revealed, he seemed to be much more at ease. "Ha! You wouldn't say that if you knew that I only helped manage his money and all those administrative shits. I take zero credit for any of the nasty stuff written in his books." Then as if he remembered something important, he suddenly looked panicked and quickly backtracked on the statement. "But I don't mean all sex-related stuff is nasty! I mean, uh, your work involves sex too and it must not be easy serving many different people with different personalities. A lot of them must be assholes, too!" Naruto looked flustered. "Wait, that's not what I'm trying to say. What I mean is… I'm just not that comfortable with sex. I don't mean to call his or your job nasty."
Naruto was looking at him with such worry on his face, possibly afraid that he'd offended Sasuke by commenting on his profession. But honestly, even if Naruto thought negatively about his job, Sasuke couldn't care less. He'd received words and actions far worse than that.
But still… having someone just try so hard to be so considerate about his feelings like this was… very refreshing.
Sasuke couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face, so he covered it with his kimono sleeve before replying, "No need to worry. No offence taken."
Naruto looked relieved at that. "Oh, good... was a bit worried there that you might be."
"But you are right in that most of my patrons are assholes." He wasn't usually this blunt in front of a patron, a new one at that. However, something about this guy just made him want to loosen up a bit. "Are you one too, then?"
"Nah, I'm the gentleman-est guy you'll ever meet!"
"That is not even a word."
"Well, it is now 'cause I said so!"
"You are insufferable."
Naruto grinned. "Now say that again without smiling."
Sasuke didn't realize that he dropped his hands to his lap, making his expression unguarded. So he quickly covered his mouth with his kimono sleeve again and asked haughtily, "what does that have to do with anything, pray tell?"
Naruto chuckled lightly. "Now I get why Tsunade said I seem like someone who could make you less grumpy. You are terribly grumpy."
Sasuke held back a glare. That did sound like something Tsunade would say. "You're disappointed to be paired with me, then?" He teased instead.
"No, I think you're interesting," the blonde said while smiling. "I mean, we've only met for what—less than half an hour? But I enjoy talking to you so far."
From his experience, his patrons would usually say those things to flirt and accelerate the night. But this man in front of him said it in a very genuine and straightforward way that Sasuke could do nothing but agree with the statement. He wasn't usually this talkative on a first meeting with patrons either. If he dared to say it, Sasuke almost forgot that he was at work.
Naruto reached out for a jelly-like dessert on the table and showed it to Sasuke. "By the way, you want this one?"
Sasuke shook his head.
Naruto munched the dessert and it was gone in a few seconds. "Fun fact, Jiraiya-sensei is actually my godfather too. My dad worked in a bookshop Jiraiya-sensei once owned. And when my parents died, the old man took me, raised me, and brought me with him on his travels."
He was the same as I, then.
Sasuke ignored the dull pain in his chest to return his focus on Naruto and lamely added, "I'm sorry to hear that."
Naruto shook his head. "It's okay. They both died when I was still a baby so I don't even remember their faces." He then looked at Sasuke in the eye and smiled sheepishly. "I feel like I talk about myself too much, though. Now's your turn. I want to hear more about you."
Sasuke was quiet for a while, gears turning in his head.
He never really shared much about himself with any of his patrons. Or to anyone, really. His patrons usually either preferred to get down to business or talk about themselves. Be it about their tiring marriage life, boasting successful negotiation with a business partner, their anger towards a rival/subordinate/higher up, or gossip from the military.
So when someone wanted him to share something about himself like this, he didn't know what to say. He wasn't even sure he wanted to say anything at all.
"My life only revolves around this place, Dono," Sasuke said, plastering a fake smile he often used whenever he wanted to politely refuse something from his patrons. "So I'm afraid I do not have anything interesting to tell you about."
"Meh, that's bullshit," Naruto said while reaching for another sweet. This time it was a warabimochi. Some of the roasted soy flour that covered it peppered the table as Naruto brought the sweet to him. He didn't seem to notice. "Let's start with your name. I think it's hella awesome. Yatagarasu. How did you come up with that? Or was it the brothel's idea?"
Sasuke suddenly felt a cold dread run up his back at that particular question.
"I…"
"is it 'cause you like crows?"
Sasuke looked down at his own hands on his lap and took a deep breath. When he was finally able to look back up at those pair of curious blue eyes, he could only shrug and came up with "Um, yes... I guess…"
"Really? Me too!" Naruto, who ended up not eating the warabimochi in his hand, exclaimed cheerfully. "You see, I used to hate them when I was a kid 'cause they looked creepy, y'know. But one day I fed this one crow and it always came back every few days to give me stuff like small stones and even coins! It wouldn't leave me alone until we left town to travel. I named the little guy Yatagarasu because of the legend. That's why I was surprised to hear your name." Then Naruto's face dropped as if he remembered something. "Damn. Here I go again talking about myself even though I said I wanted to hear more about you. Sorry. You said you like crows too? Did you feed one and get followed all the time too?"
Naruto turned to Sasuke for an answer, but his smile dropped when he saw Sasuke's face. His voice was quieter when he said, "Hey... you okay? You're glaring at me so hard I thought your eyeballs might pop off."
Sasuke didn't realize his change of demeanour and snapped himself out of it. He quickly massaged his temple. "Pardon me, Dono. I was… thinking about something else, I guess."
"Oh… it's fine, really. You don't need to tell me if you don't feel like it." Naruto smiled reassuringly.
Sasuke could only stare at this peculiar, blonde erotic-writer assistant stupidly. He wasn't sure what the deal with this person was, but Sasuke felt like he was almost about to lay out his entire life story for this man to hear.
That was not okay. That wasn't how this night was supposed to turn out.
"...Naruto-Dono."
Naruto, who was about to eat the warabimochi in his hand, stopped and turned to Sasuke. "Hm?"
The room was silent as they went on staring at each other.
Naruto started to fidget again as Sasuke said nothing back to him for a while. He looked confused, unable to figure out what Sasuke was thinking. When it seemed like he couldn't take the silence anymore, Naruto spoke up. "Did I say something wrong? I'm sorry if I do."
Sasuke shook his head and placed his palm on Naruto's bicep in a feather-like touch before sliding it down to his hand, holding it gently. With eyes still trained on Naruto's, he asked, "I don't usually offer this during the first meeting, but I wouldn't mind teaching you a little bit about sex if you're interested. I really enjoyed chatting with you. But I'm sure Lady Tsunade and Jiraiya didn't introduce me to you just for us to have an idle chat."
Naruto's brows furrowed. "There's nothing wrong with idle chat."
"If you frequented brothels a lot as you claimed, Dono, you should've known by now that Etsumi is the most expensive brothel in Yoshiwara right now." Sasuke's voice was now calm and collected. "Wouldn't it be a waste of money to book a session here and leave empty-handed?"
"Well, Jiraiya-sensei was actually the one who paid for all these. Guess he wanted someone to pop my cherry so I wouldn't have to disturb him doing, uh, whatever it is he's doing right now." Naruto tried to slowly pull at his wrist but failed. "It's not like I'm gonna disturb him anyway. I've never had trouble staying at the inn when he's on his hunt."
Sasuke cocked an eyebrow. "When you said to pop your cherry, does that mean you need to get fucked or do you need to fuck me? Or do you want to try one after the other?"
Naruto gaped and instantly turned beet red, redder than he had been that night. "Wha—I, can we… uh, can we just not talk about it? Let's just forget about it right now."
"What are you so scared of?"
Between a moment of hesitation, Naruto held Sasuke's eyes before he swept his gaze to Sasuke's red lips and to the length of Sasuke's exposed neck. He noticed a small, black mark on Sasuke's left shoulder—a tattoo, perhaps—but then he looked away to the table full of sweets and coughed. "Maybe we should just finish these sweets and call it a night, yeah?"
Sasuke studied Naruto intently but the other still refused to look him in the eye. So Sasuke eyed the table too, then the warabimochi in Naruto's hand.
After another moment of silence, Sasuke hummed and said, "You know what? You're right. Let's just finish the sweets."
Naruto visibly relaxed before Sasuke pulled the blonde's wrist closer and opened his lips just enough to let his tongue taste the exterior of the warabimochi. "I'll start with this one."
Sasuke heard Naruto sucked in a harsh breath and tried to pull his hand back in panic. But Sasuke just grabbed Naruto's wrist tighter.
Sasuke opened his lips wider and twisted his tongue to push the whole sweet in his mouth. His soft lips and wet tongue made contact with Naruto's rough thumb and forefinger.
When the whole warabimochi was finally transferred into Sasuke's mouth, he slowly chewed and swallowed. Sasuke peeked behind his lashes and saw Naruto's face actually went redder.
Sasuke bit back a smirk. "Don't move. Some of the soy flour dusted your fingers."
This time he gripped Naruto's wrist with both of his hands and stuck his tongue out to lick the soy flour off Naruto's fingers. He ran his tongue eagerly between them, on its tips, and across Naruto's palm. He then slowly closed his eyes, dragged his lips to the tip of Naruto's forefinger, pushed it inside his mouth, and sucked hard.
"Fuck," cursed Naruto.
Sasuke did the same to Naruto's thumb before nibbling further on its tip to savour the nutty taste of the flour. He pulled the thumb out of his mouth with a pop and Naruto's wrist was finally released. A string of saliva followed Sasuke's lips before it broke.
Sasuke gazed back up and there Naruto was, flustered beyond belief. His clear blue eyes darkened and his mouth slightly opened. His free hand held the fabric of his kinagashi so that it hovered over his lap, which Sasuke assumed was an attempt at hiding his growing erection. Sasuke couldn't hide his smirk any longer.
To take things further was an obvious option. But Sasuke was never the chaser.
So he calmed his expression down before standing up. He took his time straightening his kimono before turning to look at Naruto. "I am not one to force myself on my patrons. So if you believe that we should end our night here, then end our night here we shall. If you wish, we may continue this another time, provided that Lady Tsunade recommended me to you again."
But not if I can force her to stop doing so without my consent, Sasuke wanted to add but opted not to.
"It hadn't been long, but I sincerely thank you for your time, Dono," Sasuke continued with a serene smile. "I'll call the servants and request them to retrieve the rest of the sweets and sake if you're finished with it. You can stay here until the sun rises and go to the teahouse to get the bill for the refreshments. I won't charge you for anything else."
Sasuke then bowed deeply before walking towards the door, waiting for the inevitable to happen.
But nothing happened.
Sasuke slowed down his movement to the point that he could hear the friction his bare feet made against the tatami's straws. But no matter how slow he walked, nothing happened. Naruto didn't say anything.
Sasuke was ready to exit the room. Still no words from his patron. Nothing.
He glared hard at the door for a while before turning back around to face Naruto.
The blonde was still sitting there pathetically, unmoving with his erection still hidden underneath the kinagashi he held in one of his palms. He stared stubbornly back at Sasuke. "What? I thought you're leaving," he barked bitterly, so unlike the charming, goofy fellow he talked to a few moments ago.
Sasuke narrowed his gaze, couldn't stop himself from retorting back at the blonde's frustrated tone, "I am, but look at you. You're hard."
"Gee, thanks. I didn't know that," he replied with an eye roll.
Sasuke crossed his arms, expression haughty and challenging. "What are you planning to do with it?"
"As you said, I can calm myself down until the servants arrive."
"You're in a brothel."
"So?"
"What do you mean, so? People fuck. That's what they do in a brothel when they're as erect as a pagoda like you."
Despite still seeming frustrated, Naruto chuckled at the analogy. "Okay, you might be grumpy and arrogant, but that was still funny."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow in annoyance. "Stop deflecting the topic."
"Aren't you gonna leave?"
Sasuke uncrossed his arms and started to walk back to Naruto. He was now looming right in front of the blonde, blocking the light from his face. "And leave you like this?"
Naruto looked up, one eyebrow raised. "Didn't you say you're not one to force yourself on your patrons?"
"Have I forced you to do something you don't approve of? Or do you think I will?"
Naruto didn't say anything back but just glared suspiciously at Sasuke until the oiran sat back down on his heels in front of Naruto, back straight with palms crossing on his lap. Deep, intense charcoal eyes met ocean blues.
"Even a blind person can tell that you're beyond sexually frustrated. But you're so adamant on not acting on it." Sasuke then continued with a whisper, "I don't understand. What are you so scared of?"
This time Naruto took his time to reply. "I just don't think I need your help," he stubbornly replied.
"I'm just doing my job. Trust me, I wouldn't want to be here if Lady Tsunade didn't want me to."
The blonde frowned at that. "Yea that made it even worse."
Sasuke scoffed. "You knew how this works."
"...I know."
Sasuke studied Naruto once more, trying to figure out if there's something else the blonde had problems with that he preferred not to disclose. An idea suddenly crossed his mind that made Sasuke pitied the man instantly. Sasuke tried to make his expression neutral as he reassuringly said, "It's nothing to be ashamed of. I've had several patrons like you, coming to see if they can be cured. Some were successful but some weren't. I won't judge you if you can't keep it up."
"Wait, what?" Naruto looked offended. "Hold on a sec. Were you implying that I'm impotent?"
Sasuke blinked. "You aren't?"
"No, my body's fine! Look, I…" Naruto stared at the tatami beneath them, his blush was not as apparent as before but not completely gone. "It's not like that. And it's not like I think you're unattractive either," he said as he gazed at Sasuke's exposed pale skin and the tattoo on his shoulder. "Though you are grumpy and arrogant," Naruto whispered and pouted.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "What did you say just now?"
Naruto sighed. "I, well this is embarrassing to say, but I just want my first time to be special. I want to do it with someone I love and—"
"And you don't want to waste it away by putting your dick inside a whore's anus, am I right?"
Naruto winced hard at that. "That's not what I meant."
Sasuke snickered. "I'm just kidding."
"But I'm serious. That's not what I meant. It's not because of what you do," Naruto persisted, his face was openly concerned. "Look, after seeing how Jiraiya-sensei failed his love life all this time, I just don't think it's a path I wanna follow. It's lonely to always be with someone physically but have your heart somewhere else, no? I know it might sound stupid but I feel like there's someone out there waiting for me. Like… a soulmate, you know?"
"It's okay, I get it."
Sasuke lied. He didn't get it. In fact, Sasuke bit back the urge to laugh out loud at such foolish fantasy. He thought that these ideals only existed in tales, legends, fictions—that no sane man of Naruto's age (assuming that he's a young adult like himself) would ever come up with such fantasy—but here he was.
Even so, Sasuke didn't have the heart to break this man's naive ideals. He could tell that the blonde really believed what he was saying. He didn't know how he knew, but he just did. Naruto didn't seem like someone who could tell a good lie. Sasuke only spent less than an hour with the man and he knew that this person was the type to wear his heart on his sleeve.
Shit, now he felt bad for teasing him before.
Sasuke sighed before saying, "I apologize if I didn't consider your feelings before, then. I understand where you come from now," partly, he internally added.
"Bet you thought it's kinda stupid though, huh?"
Yes. "No."
"Well, that's alright." Naruto sighed. "Even I question sometimes if I'd ever meet someone like that. With how frequent me and Jiraiya-sensei travel, it'll be hard to get in touch with someone for long."
"Everyone is entitled to their own belief," Sasuke said flatly. "I was only curious why one would waste an opportunity like this. Especially when your godfather is paying for everything."
"I mean, it's not like it's a complete waste." The blonde shrugged. "As you said, I just tasted the best shimokobai in town. And I get to talk to you, even though you were being a jerk a few times during the night. And I can't believe you still haven't told me about that cool name of yours."
Sasuke completely ignored that last comment and instead said, "You should thank me that the refreshments are the only things I'll put in the bill. Even empty meetings like this cost money, you know."
"Heh. You're not used to rejection, huh?"
"I guess I am too used to people forcing themselves on me. So this is new."
Sasuke didn't mean for it to sound bitter at all as he was merely stating something normal he's been dealing with daily for years. But seeing how those blue eyes widened in shock at his statement which then morphed into a deeply pained look, made his stomach clench hard. He suddenly felt wrong and embarrassed, and he didn't even know exactly why. It's been a long time since he felt this way about himself.
"Don't look at me like that," Sasuke said harshly while blocking Naruto's gaze with his palm, but Naruto caught Sasuke's wrist and pulled the man's hand away to look him in the eyes.
Sasuke just stared back, at first not knowing what to do. They both stared for what felt like an eternity until Sasuke felt Naruto rubbed his palm soothingly, and Sasuke couldn't help his body from gravitating forward slowly. Naruto looked somewhat surprised at first but gained his composure in an instant. His one hand was still holding Sasuke's as he moved forward slowly too. Sasuke observed his every move, wondering what Naruto was about to do.
The blonde tilted his face, then Sasuke felt a soft peck on his cheek. It was so fleeting that it felt nothing but slightly ticklish. But it felt comforting somehow. And if that's what Naruto was going for with the kiss, then he clearly succeeded.
The feeling was gone when Naruto moved backwards, eyes searching for Sasuke's response.
"Do you…" the blonde started but stopped himself. Sasuke waited for him to finish and when Naruto got the cue, he continued, "Do you… enjoy it? This job, I mean."
Sasuke was no longer surprised by the man's comments and inquiries. He felt like it was best to expect the unexpected with him. He also didn't have the energy left to fake his answer. So he simply said, "this place is my home. And I have some unfinished business here to attend to."
Naruto just slowly nodded, even though it seemed like he didn't completely understand what Sasuke was saying.
"Also... I don't particularly like crows. My brother did." Sasuke said while pulling his hand gently from Naruto's grasp. He then smiled tiredly at Naruto. "He treated a wounded one back when we were kids. Like you, he was then gifted with many shiny items and was followed continuously everywhere."
"Oh? That—" Naruto sounded like he was about to come up with a follow-up question, but Sasuke cut it short.
"I think we are finished for the night, don't you think, Dono?" He said it in such an assertive tone that it came off more like an order.
Naruto was left with his own thoughts at Sasuke's abrupt and obvious attempt to call it a night. He then turned at the assortment of sweets left on the table. "Well uh… the night is still young. Maybe we can chat while we finish those up?" He shrugged.
"I appreciate the offer, but I'd have to refuse." Sasuke stood up and adjusted the flap of his kimono. "Nevertheless, please do enjoy them. They're brought for you, after all."
Naruto looked up at the figure looming before him. "Then... can we meet again?"
Sasuke didn't smile anymore. He could only simply reply, "you can refer to Lady Tsunade."
"Alright. I'll do that," Naruto replied with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. He looked… like he wasn't satisfied with Sasuke's answer. Like he wasn't done yet. But he said nothing further nor did anything further, so Sasuke bowed deeply once again, bid him farewell, and left the room.
Other than returning the bows and hellos from customers and workers he met in the hallways, Sasuke didn't waste any more time going back to his room. Once he was inside, he quickly stripped and wore a dark green kinagashi. He folded his previously worn kimono neatly and tucked it inside his drawer. He then made a beeline towards his private bathroom to remove all of his headpieces, washed himself and cleaned his face paint.
Once he was clean, he rolled out his futon on the tatami floor and covered himself with a blanket.
The nauseating feeling he had since he left the Lotus Room was still there and it prevented him from sleeping. Sasuke rustled underneath the blanket a few times and forced his eyes close, but sleep still didn't visit him. He didn't know how long it had been until he heard a knock on his door. He ignored it once, but then he heard the door opened.
Feeling in a bad mood, Sasuke stood up and approached the figure, ready to lash out at whoever dared to disturb his sleep. As he walked closer, he grew even angrier as the lights in the hallway highlighted the person's face.
Once he was close enough, he pushed the figure into the empty hallway harshly. "Do that once again, Kabuto, and I'll wrap your neck with my shamisen strings so hard you passed out."
The guy with the round glasses and a combination of grey kinagashi and purple haori just smiled back, "Good to see you too, Sasuke."
"What do you want?" Sasuke hissed. "I'm trying to sleep here. I'm done for the night."
"You sure? Because Orochimaru-sama just came back and wanted you in his quarter immediately." Kabuto's creepy smile dropped and turned into a scowl as he delivered the news.
Sasuke's eyes went wide in surprise. "Didn't he say he'll come back next week?"
Kabuto just shrugged lazily. "Who knows. Maybe he missed your loose hole."
Sasuke glared at the older man. "If you want to switch with me, all you need is to ask. I know you've been dying to serve him again after all this time. I'd be more than happy to."
"You know he doesn't touch his expired toys. Except you, that is."
Sasuke cringed hard. He wanted to get back at Kabuto for that, but he couldn't really negate the statement. So he just ignored the man and walked fast to Orochimaru's quarter right away. The faster he faced Orochimaru, the faster it ended. Sasuke didn't even retouch his face paint nor cover himself with more proper wear. He'd learn from experience that Orochimaru didn't need all that.
Orochimaru's quarter was still inside the residence area, so it didn't take long for Sasuke to arrive at his destination with Kabuto in tow. Sasuke knocked on the door before announcing his arrival, "It's Sasuke," he said before adding as an afterthought, "and Kabuto."
It took a while before a soft yet eerie voice was heard through the door. "Kabuto, you may go back to your room," the voice said. Then with a much smoother tone, "As for Sasuke, do come in."
Kabuto wordlessly disappeared into the hallway, leaving Sasuke alone. He mentally prepared himself before slowly opening the door in front of him. He was greeted with the largest room in the brothel, with an interior full of gold, red, and black. No matter how many times Sasuke had been in this room, he couldn't get used to the striking colours. Each furniture, ornament, and display probably cost thrice Sasuke's monthly salary, especially the western-style king bed which replaced the ordinary futon that usually decorated other rooms in the brothel.
Sitting on top of the bed while leaning his head on the massive headboard was a man with a loosely-tied, white kinagashi made from silk. His waist-length hair was silky smooth and dark. Some of its locks framed the man's slender face and fell loosely to his pale chest. His eyes glinted yellow under the harsh light of the room, studying Sasuke intently as a predator would to a prey. A small smile adorned his youthful face, even though Sasuke knew the man was much, much older than he looked.
"Ah, Sasuke…" the man rolled the syllables with his tongue slowly, making it sounded almost like a snake hissing. "It's been what? Almost half a year since I saw you?" Orochimaru propped his right arm on top of a pillow beside him and rested his head on his palm. His left hand beckoned Sasuke to come near. When Sasuke didn't move at first, he added, "Why so shy all of a sudden? You were much fiercer when you were younger."
Sasuke switched to his oiran mode and asked the man with a sweet tone. "How have you been, Orochimaru-sama?" He bowed deeply before taking practised steps forward and stopped beside the bed.
"Oh, I'm fine. Finer now that I'm back home. Kyoto is a pretty town and my brothels there are starting to get popular with the locals, but the town bored me out quickly. I am much happier here in Edo with you," the older man said without dropping his smile, eyes scanning Sasuke up and down. He then gestured to his wardrobe. "Speaking of Kyoto, see that small package over there on top of my drawer? Beside my bonsai tree? Will you fetch that for me, Love?"
Sasuke did as he said and quickly came back to the bed.
"What are you doing? Come here and sit beside me," Orochimaru patted the spot next to him on the bed.
Sasuke fought the urge to leave the room before climbing onto the bed and situated himself beside Orochimaru. "Here you go, Orochimaru-sama," Sasuke said while handing over the package.
"No no no." Orochimaru shook his head. "This is for you," he pointed at the package. "A special present from Kyoto for you. When I saw it at a store there, I immediately thought that it would be the perfect present for you," his smile grew even larger, white teeth slightly showing.
"Thank you for your kindness, Orochimaru-sama. But I'm not sure if I should receive this. You've given me lots of presents already," Sasuke replied, having a bad feeling about this present. The last time he received presents from Orochimaru, it was no present at all.
Orochimaru placed one hand on the back of Sasuke's neck and massaged it lightly. "It's a bit rude to refuse a present, don't you think? Why don't you open it first? I'm sure you'll like it."
After contemplating it for a few seconds, Sasuke finally tore the outer wrap carefully, revealing a velvet red box with a gold ribbon securing it. He untied the ribbon and slowly opened the box. What he saw then was a rolled-up black fabric inside. If he recalled correctly, he had received a similar gift from one of his patrons who is a foreign diplomat. Sasuke eyed the object in confusion. "With all due respect, Orochimaru-sama... is this a tie those foreigners usually wear?"
Orochimaru laughed so hard that it echoed inside the room. Once he calmed down, he gently pulled Sasuke's head towards him and kissed his temple. "No, silly dear. It looks similar, is it? But no, it's not a tie. I'll show you how to use it. Face that way," he instructed while gesturing one of the walls.
Sasuke reluctantly adjusted his sitting position to face the wall in question and heard rustles of fabric. With no notice at all, his eyes were suddenly covered by what he assumed was the black fabric and Sasuke gasped in surprise as Orochimaru quickly manoeuvred him so that he laid completely flat on the bed beneath the older man.
"This is what they call a blindfold, Love." Sasuke heard Orochimaru whisper in his ear. He could feel Orochimaru's tongue licking his earlobe, making him shudder. "Now let's take this present to a test, shall we?"
Then Sasuke felt something soft but dry touching his lips. Orochimaru's lips, he thought. And he laid there for what felt like an eternity, receiving all of Orochimaru's advances before they were gone and were replaced by a hard, warm, and slightly sticky object poking his bottom lip.
"Open your pretty lips, Sasuke." Sasuke heard Orochimaru say from above him. Instead, he instantly knew what it was and kept his lips close. But then he received a hard slap on his left cheek, and when he shouted in surprise, the object entered his mouth with force.
One good thing about wearing a blindfold is that Sasuke could secretly close his eyes beneath it. Orochimaru usually wanted Sasuke to see everything they were doing and scolded him whenever Sasuke closed his eyes.
But with this blindfold, he could forget who he was with and what he was doing. He could imagine himself sitting inside a dimly lit room, chatting his day away and exchanging banters with a certain peculiar, blonde erotic-writer assistant.
It was just a job, he said to himself. It was just a job.
To be continued.
A/N: Even while doing my background research, I still found it difficult to distinguish Oiran, Tayuu, and Yuujo. So I'll draw the line that this story takes place in the middle of the 18th century and therefore, in Edo (now Tokyo), the term oiran has replaced tayuu. Also, Naruto and Sasuke are both 20 at the start of this story (equivalent to their age in The Last).
This fic has been sitting in my draft for 2 years and I was so adamant about finishing it first before uploading. But after uploading my latest fic, I realized that doing things impulsively might be better. Otherwise, I'll spend too much time researching a story's background than writing it. Anyways, let me know what you think of the beginning so far!