Chapter 2: Magic Words
[Naruto]
I've been back for less than three days and I'm already facing down my biggest problem in Konoha.
Let me paint you a picture: A gorgeous woman is sitting on my lap and whispering in my ear the filthiest shit I've heard in a while - things that would make Jiraiya blush if he were still walking this earth - and I can't even enjoy it.
Because of her.
Can't a man catch a break?
I wanted one night to enjoy myself after being gone for three-and-a-half years. ONE night.
Three years and six months. That's a long time. Sure, it was amazing to live and train with other shinobi in the different villages, but there wasn't a day that Konoha wasn't on my mind.
Konoha is home - it's where I was born and where I'll be buried.
God-willing, it'll be where I die.
To say it was difficult leaving the village, leaving everyone behind to rebuild our village, is an understatement. I didn't even have time to mourn our fallen. But our lives are bigger than our own wants, and becoming Hokage is bigger than just Konoha.
My time away from Konoha - my dedication to the other villages - has been my way of proving to myself and everyone else that we need to see each other as our own. Sure, we come from different villages, with our own history and culture, but we're still one and the same.
I don't regret a second of it.
But shit it's good to be home.
I slept like a log for the first two days, and it was just today that I finally felt human enough to take a look around town.
Things have changed, for sure. On the outside, Konoha is barely recognizable. But the feeling is still the same. The friendly, smiling faces, and the down-to-earth approach to life.
After I gave myself a quick tour, I tracked down Shikamaru - he and I had kept in touch with sporadic letters, which turned into sporadic emails once Konoha upgraded its infrastructure.
It was a beautiful moment to see his dead-ass face again.
We hugged. We got a little dust in our eyes in the process, and maybe held onto each other a little longer than either of us would like to admit, but it was all good.
Apparently Kiba just returned from a mission too and was whining at Shikamaru to try out a relatively new bar that's been getting a lot of attention lately. I get it, shinobi like to blow off steam when they return from a mission. Every mission can be your last, so it's always a celebration when it isn't, and that kind of gratitude towards life never gets old.
Unfortunately for Kiba, none of the other guys are around so he was stuck with Shikamaru, Mr. he-who-does-not-party.
Naturally, Shikamaru would rather eat dirt than go to these kinds of places, but he apparently owed Kiba a "birthday wish" - whatever the hell that is - and Kiba was apparently "cashing it in" - however the hell that works.
Shikamaru's nothing if not a man of honor, I guess.
He invited me to join and I accepted, that simple. A night out sounded like fun to me, and I was itching to see how Konoha's nightlife has evolved. When I left, I wasn't even legal. Now that I'm back, I'm rearing to experience Konoha at its fullest.
Besides, I was game for a relaxing night before diving into the politics and heavier stuff of Konoha. I have a meeting scheduled with Kakashi first thing on Monday in his office at the Hokage tower and from that point on, it'll be business. I have a feeling it just gets busier from here.
Until then, I'm a free man, and I'm gonna milk this weekend for all it's worth.
Enter in Suki, a woman with curves that fit just right in my hands and the confidence to show 'em off however she wants. You gotta respect a woman like that.
Especially when she's spent the night whispering all the ways she wants me to disrespect her.
Her white top leaves little to the imagination. No complaints from me. She's also not looking for anything serious and neither am I. She's from out of town - visiting family, though she brought two of her girlfriends along with her. Her mandate this weekend is to have fun. What happens in Konoha stays in Konoha.
Best of all, she has absolutely no clue who I am. She's a civilian from a civilian city, and she doesn't keep up with the shinobi news.
It's a breath of fresh air, dealing with someone who isn't here to trade on my name in some way. The entire mission was based on my identity - I couldn't go anywhere without some kind of title or announcement being laid out before me. At first, it was exciting to be recognized wherever I went.
It got old, quick.
Mix in some paparazzi, people who always have some kind of hidden agenda, others who only want to be around you because you're famous, and unrelenting mothers who keep trying to introduce me to their daughters, and the thought of being anonymous becomes very appealing.
Tonight should have been everything I wanted on a casual night out. The music's banging, the vibe is right, and a beautiful woman has been sitting on my lap bouncing and grinding to the music - on me - for the past hour. She knows I'm at least somewhat interested - she's sitting on the proof - and she's just waiting for me to say something, anything, that can be taken as a green light to get out of here.
But Sakura had to show up tonight.
I knew I'd have to run into her at some point, but I didn't think it would be this soon.
She's changed over the four years. Her hair's gotten longer and is as pink as I remember. Her green eyes are huge and were vibrating with annoyance at me, though I wouldn't have expected anything different from her. Her curves have filled out too, though she seems smaller and shorter than before.
She still looks like the delicate, sweet princess that she's not. Full of contradictions.
She's a mystery, one that I gave up trying to solve years ago. She's unsolvable.
All the same, the second I saw her standing there, memories came flooding back to me. For a moment, I felt like the same kid I was before the war. Full of ambition where love was concerned, with dreams of settling down with a beautiful wife - someone who would love me and call me her own, and with beautiful children of our own. We'd live happily forever, yada yada yada.
Sometimes life doesn't go the way you planned. People aren't what you hope for or who you thought they'd be. And life really is a complicated as the adults say.
Anyway, I digress.
It's Friday night, and I was having fun with the guys. Then the three women showed up at our table and the night got better. I didn't set out planning to get laid tonight, but with Suki giving me some black and whitesignals, who am I to say no?
So it was bad enough to run into Sakura. But then she had to join us at the table too.
It was clear as day that Suki wanted nothing to do with her - hell, neither did I. But now that I've seen her, I can't un-see her. My awareness of her has burned into my mind, and it's been hanging over my head all night like a dark cloud.
How irritating.
I've been trying to ignore her all night and it's worked for most part. Afterall, Suki is entertaining - she's nice, and pretty fun to be around. She's also hot as hell.
But when Sakura left the table - six drinks in and probably drunk out of her mind - my eyes followed her.
She didn't have a care in the world, heading over to the dance floor and throwing her head back, moving her body to the music. Even in the dim light, I could see her movements, graceful and smooth.
She seems more sure of herself. More confident.
I know the exact moment she finally disappeared into the crowd of people on the dance floor. When she left my line of sight, it was like pulling my head out of a vat of water. Air came rushing into my lungs, and sound and color returned more vivid than before.
Her presence still drowns me.
My mind keeps telling me to avoid her. My eyes, on the other hand, won't stop scanning the dark crowds to see where she went. Not out of any interest, really, but probably more out of habit. I used to watch over her, a lot, but that's neither here nor there.
Besides, times have changed. She can take care of herself. Anyone who's trained for the last six years under Tsunade can take care of herself.
But she's been gone for almost an hour now, and I can't help but think of all the creepy bastards who treat a bar like their own debauched playground. One look at Sakura - sweet, fresh and full of soft curves - and they'd try to devour her whole.
A tinge of unrest trickles into my chest but I forcefully push it away.
Now I'm irritated at myself. It's been almost four years. I don't know her anymore. Besides, I told myself before coming back that I'd steer clear of her. We've both moved on, I'm sure.
I know I'm distracted, and I can tell Suki is getting annoyed. I don't blame her. I feel kind of guilty about it.
Shaking my head slightly, I turn my attention back to her, trying to see if I can get ourselves back on track. It's time to call it a night, and if she'll have me, she's welcome to come along.
I open my mouth, but the words "let's go somewhere quieter" catch in my throat. Frowning, I try again, but this time my mouth won't even open. The hell?
Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I see a flash of light pink.
On instinct, my eyes zero in on the target. Yep, that's her, still dancing, apparently, and -
What the fuck. She's holding onto an arm, and there's a fucking man's body attached to that arm.
Sakura looks a little more sober than an hour ago, which is probably a good thing. But my mood darkens as the male figure towers over her. He's not that tall - probably around my height. But she looks tiny and breakable next to him.
She's leading the way, holding his hand and leaning his arm over her shoulder as he trails closely behind her. As they get to an open space, she pulls him close until his chest bumps against the back of her head. Tipping her head back to look at him, she laughs.
My eyes trace the back of her head and down her back until they land on her ass, which she's now grinding slowly in small circles against his crotch. His other hand moves lightly over her hip, guiding her to grind harder against him. And she fucking obliges.
My heart is pounding but I can't tear my eyes off them. Her.
She then turns around and smiles up at him, pushing her breasts up against his torso as they continue moving together, staring at each other like they want to rip each other's clothes off. They're so close to each other I couldn't throw a kunai between them even if I tried.
My fingers spasm by my side but I force my hand still.
She's probably forgotten I was even here tonight.
"Ooh, looks like Sakura's going to get laid tonight." Ino's voice cuts through the air, breaking me from my thoughts.
My jaw clicks shut. I didn't realize it was open.
I turn to Ino, fighting the sudden urge to break a table or a few chairs.
"What's that?" I keep my voice steady. Light, even. It's only been a couple seconds since Sakura returned to the dance floor, and nobody seems to have noticed my reaction. Not even Suki.
"I wonder when she even met him." Ino continues thoughtfully, oblivious to the tension in my shoulders.
She squints harder. "Wow, he's good looking. What do you think, Shika?"
Shikamaru looks over to where we're both staring, and seems unimpressed. "Does it really matter? What she wants to do is her business."
Exactly. Her business, not mine. I need to focus on what's in front of me right now. The warm, willing body in front of me, who's just waiting to say yes. And who'll maybe scream it for me later.
Ino clicks her tongue in disapproval. "Shika, you're heartless. You don't think they look good together?"
The blood is roaring in my ears. I shouldn't care, but I can't not listen for Shikamaru's response.
Shikamaru shrugs his shoulders. "They're okay, I guess."
Ino gives up. "Well, I think they're hot together. And Sakura needs some good, steamy sex. It's been way too long."
"How do you even know that?" Shikamaru asks, eyebrows raised.
I can't stop the sudden images of Sakura naked in bed. Images I don't want to see - or that's what I'm telling myself anyway. Damn it all to hell. My mind is spiraling and I need to get a hold of myself.
"She hasn't slept with anyone since she and Jiro broke up two months ago." Ino explains patiently, as if explaining that the sky is blue to a child.
She continues, lost in thought. "This is perfect. It's been long enough so it's not a true rebound…"
"Sakura was dating someone?" Shika asks, completely lost.
Ino rolls her eyes at him in exasperation. "How are you even in the Intelligence Unit? They were together for like over half a year."
Half a year? My mind automatically files away his name. Jiro.
Suddenly a thought slices through me, unwelcome. What the fuck other guys have there been?
"Well even if it is a rebound, this is still a good thing. " Ino mulls over. "She's been so uptight lately, but it's nothing a good hard pounding can't -"
That's it. I've had enough of this place. And she's not my fucking business .
I drag my attention back to Suki. It's now or never.
My resolve loosens my tongue and the magic words come to me as I whisper them into Suki's ear. Suki's eyes darken and she smiles, licks her lip, and nods slowly.
She gets off my lap, and I follow.
As we walk past the couple on the dance floor, I look straight ahead at the entrance, ignoring her . This isn't my business. She isn't my business.
But as I head towards the door, out of the corner of my eye, I swear she freezes for a moment and looks straight at me.
I clench my jaw, pull Suki closer to me, and step out into the cool night air.