A/N: Done for a fic request at my journal.
A Poisonous Sort of Love
She never knew why she let him into her home, let him into her bed. She thought she was smarter than that. She thought she had more loyalty than that. But it never seemed like a betrayal when he smiled. It never seemed like treason when she had his name on her lips. She didn't know why.
He was a traitor, cut and dry, black and white. You couldn't word it any other way. And she was the assistant to the Hokage, anyone would think she was trading secrets with him, betraying the village. But they never spoke of such things. Their meetings always started tersely, they exchanged insults, they sometimes exchanged blows. But somehow they always ended by making love.
He wasn't often still there the next day, he'd leave her alone, return to whatever duty he had been doing before. She didn't know if his master knew what they did, she knew her's knew well enough. But she never said a thing, looking conveniently the other way with a wry smile. Either way she was always scared. Scared of getting caught. Scared of being discovered. Scared of losing him. That most of all.
So when he came to her bloody, came to her hurt, she didn't hesitate to hide him. To protect him. The sound ninja at her door were followed closely by those from the leaf, both parties pursuing a different target. They could hold out… together.
When Tsunade came by the apartment a day later, she stepped gingerly about the floor, avoiding the blood and bits of flesh still strewn about. She had quarantined the area after the poisonous cloud had been spotted, and it had just now dissipated. There were no survivors. But she couldn't help but cry when she saw her assistant's lifeless body propped against the wall with the head of Orochimaru's right hand man cradled gently in her lap. Shizune and Kabuto were smiling.