What a haunting thing it was to wake up to a world of nothing but great heat and light, almost inaudible breathing. His skin felt stuck to the rough sheets of the hospital bed, and when his left hand lifted to peel it off of him, it was then that Sasuke realized he was … sweating.

Obviously. Humans sweat when they're hot.

But … still, it was a bit strange. To half of him, at least. To the other half, it was completely normal and barely anything to think about except for why, exactly, there was such an enormous heat that made sweat roll down his back.

But thankfully –

"Good. You're here."

The hellish part of him connected the dots pretty quickly.

Somewhere to his right, Neji huffed and gave a small step forward. He didn't see it, but he heard it. How normal … and not normal, at the same time. But that wasn't the focus of Neji's visit, and Sasuke turned his chin in the demon's general direction, ears trained on his breathing. It was so clear and sharp; it was like he still had his immaculate hearing from before. But one brush at the curve of his small ears told him that was impossible.

"So you're human now." There was a wash of air blown over his face, causing Sasuke to crane his neck back. "And blind, as well."

"Aren't you observant." His hand came to rest on his chest, where he felt every beat of his heart. His heart. God, so that's what they feel like. "But you're right. As of now, the Devil is gone."

"The world must be overjoyed," Neji droned.

"But not for long."

There was a small shift of clothing. "… What are you proposing?"

"I shouldn't have to spell it out to you." Sasuke leaned back and rested his hands on the mattress. "I want you to do it. Take my role."

"As the Devil."

"Naturally."

"Me."

"I'm sure I told you about my hatred of repeating myself."

A long sigh left Neji. "Aren't there more capable demons? I've only been around for a month."

A vile and human emotion rose up in his chest, and he snapped, "Why are you making this so difficult? Yes or no?"

"Because I'm not too keen on being the epitome of evil." The heat lowered half a degree as Sasuke listened to light footsteps plodding away from the bed. "Find someone else."

Irritated, Sasuke thought for a moment, wondering if he should do just that. But the rest of the demons were dolts – at least Neji, no matter how new he was, had a head on his shoulders. Sasuke didn't just pick his successor randomly. He thought it out, and he had wondered if Neji would reject the proposition. He supposed it made sense, somehow. He was related to Hinata, after all.

And because of that, Sasuke also had an idea of how to win him over.

"Hiashi Hyuuga is a very cruel man." No sound. No rise or fall in heat. Pure, quiet focus. "He's done both you and Hinata wrong, hasn't he? And how satisfying it would be when you are the one that ultimately drags his soul down into the pits of Hell." The twist of a smirk trembled against his lips when a low blow escaped Neji. "But you're not interested, so I'll ask one of my millions of minions –"

"I know what you're doing," Neji muttered.

Sasuke gave a prideful grin. "And it's working."

And Neji did not need to say another word, for Sasuke knew he was right.

Chapter 29

Seeing is Overrated. At Least I Can Kiss You Now

She was supposed to come pick him up from the hospital, but he didn't have the patience for that.

So he left.

The man just recently blinded, but also has been blind all his life, left – with only a cane to guide him home. The nurse had been kind enough to lead him to the front, and despite his pride, he agreed to follow her. But once he heard those doors swoosh open and felt a blast of cold hit his face, he knew this was a terrible idea.

Shit! he cursed to himself, yanking his coat close to him, bumps rising all over his body. I thought humans were better at taking the cold! How the hell was I alright with this all my life!?

Shivering, teeth chattering together, Sasuke trudged down the sidewalk, cane swinging somewhat wildly in front of him. For the most part, it was all muscle memory, and there were millions of his human memories that reminded him that this was just a part of his daily life. But the other part of him, the one that remembered how to see, was a bit disturbed at the idea that he could bump into anything if he weren't careful.

His cane hit the curb of the street, and his heart dropped into his stomach.

Fuck!

But – wait – that was normal.

God, he sighed to himself, chill out.

So he tried, and he waited as cars zoomed past him. When a robotic voice told him it was fine to walk, he crossed and nearly tripped over the curb on the other side of the road.

Shit!

Maybe … he should have waited for Hinata.

…

But, eventually, he got to that porch.

His hand was on the handle. It didn't budge, and he recalled that – of course it wasn't. He wasn't that other Sasuke anymore who could unlock doors or hop through windows with great skill. So he fell into human customs and knocked.

Weird.

But also not.

And that in itself was weird, but he was getting used to it.

"S-Sorry." The door clicked, and he listened with a held breath as it creaked open. "I wasn't expecting anyone to –" She stopped, gasping. "S-Sasuke."

He barrelled in, dropping his cane and lurching his hands forward, trying to find something that was her. His right hand brushed her shoulder, and he grabbed it and slid it down to her hand. Bare. Soft. Small.

… Painless.

"I-I –" Emotion – he had to dig deep into his head to find the name to it: overwhelming relief – got caught in his vocal cords, and he choked. "I'm not hurting you."

The door slammed shut behind him, and then he was being encased in warmth. Subtle, human warmth. His pulse sang in his ears when he felt her head beneath his chin, her nose brushing against the skin of his neck. No burning. No danger. She was sobbing, but … he knew it was because she was glad. Happy tears, they called it. An oxymoron, his Devil side reminded him, but he couldn't care less at the moment.

His hands found her shoulders and pulled her back just enough. Fingers trailed her neck, then ran against the slope of her jaw, the hills of her warm and wet cheeks. He traced her eyelids and the arch of her brows and her smooth, hornless forehead. And when he touched her, traced her, remembered her, he saw that face painted in that world of nothing. The bright, white eyes. The small nose and big smile. The sweep of her bangs and the flutter of her long lashes. The human half of him that couldn't imagine ever seeing such a sight was caught aghast, and then it hummed, thrilled, against his chest.

"Sasuke." Her whisper fanned over his chin when a warm hand cupped his jaw. "That's you – both of you, right?"

And then he felt happiness – that feeling Hinata talked so strongly and passionately about. It was so … nice. Good. Amazing. Warm like her skin. Soft like her voice. It made him feel safe and comfortable and alive, and he never – ever – wanted it to go away.

"It's me," he told her. "All of me."

And then he kissed her.

…

In the back of his mind, Sasuke counted the seconds.

The longest kiss he's ever had with her in his hot, Devil form was four seconds, and then she had to pull away and immediately dip her mouth in cold water.

But this one – he would not let her leave.

And maybe she understood that when he tugged lightly at her lip with his smooth teeth, for she didn't attempt to pull away. In fact, her fingers had somehow snuck into his hair as she pulled him closer.

God, it was nice.

Every inch of him was singing. His heart thrummed on his tongue, and when she opened her mouth to get an ounce of oxygen, he snaked it into her to see if she could feel how his pulse was flying.

"S-Sas –" She pulled away, and he followed that sweet mouth, frowning – "uke."

And though he was perfectly fine being blind in order to be with her, he did wish to be able to see for just one second, if only to see her face. Red lips. Dim eyes. Pink ears.

Well … at least he had his imagination.

…

Thirty-three seconds.

And after she seemed to find her breath, he pulled back in to try and see if they could break that record.

And for once, both sides of him were completely and utterly pleased.

Chapter 29 - End