an extra long chapter to make up for last night's short post. i always love to hear what you think of it! -cp (edit: fixed the end, I like it better now.)

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"He's dead." Kisame had whispered, and Hinata had just smiled sadly and whispered back, "I know, but I have to try." tears threatened to fall from her eyes, "He'd do it for me."

That was two years ago. Hinata was sweaty and panting. It hurt. "Kisame..." she gasped. He pulled back, smiling that smile of his, "You told me not to go easy on you." She snarled, she wanted to wipe that crazy grin off his face but he was just so strong. "You bastard..."

She dodged his next blow and spun on her heel, bringing the flat of her hand around to connect with his side, lancing a thread of chakra into his muscles. He grunted and jumped away. She'd told him not to hold back, she'd never get any better that way. What she didn't tell him was that she was. She knew the worst he would do to her was scrape away a patch of flesh and steal her energy, she could kill him in a single blow if she connected in the right place...which was close to anywhere beween his collarbones and pelvis. So rather than use her full force attack, she sent a single, silk-fine thread slicing through muscle tissue to remind him he'd been hit. With his strength and naturaly quick healing he was back up to almost a hundred percent by morning. Luckily he was also particularly dence, otherwise he'd have figured out that she was holding out on him and insist that she hit him full force, and then things could go very poorly.

Ninja work was rare for them now. Mostly he got a job as temp help at what ever farm or factory was in the area they were staying while she would offer to help with gardening, medicine, or chores among the local house-wives. It was seldom that they got to show off thier true forte, and even rarer that they got to train in a real training field. So when the opportunity arose they rarely hesitated to jump at the chance.

He came at her from behind. He was fond of doing that ever since he had cracked the code of the byakugan's weakness, but she had him figured out too. She could find him wherever he was simply by the feel of his chakra. He put out a pulse so strong that weaker nins were often paralized by simply being near him, and he wasn't even aware of it. She feigned ignorance until he was nearly on her, then at the last second she darted to the side.

Spinning she latched onto his arm and used his own momentem to throw him to the ground. The look on his face as he flew by her was one of pure shock. Without wasting a second she was crouching over him, one knee on his chest, palm glowing faintly blue at his throat, Samehada kicked out of reach to the side. His eyes were still as wide as dinner plates. This was a first for them, he had always come out as the victor, and here she had him pinned. Helpless at her mercy. Well, not helpless she thought, as the chakra sheath around her hand flickered. She was panting, heart pounding against her chest, sweat and blood pouring into her eyes, while he was barely breathing hard.

She faltered slightly, hand touching his skin. The electricity that passed between them had nothing to do with her jutsu. She just stared at him for some minutes, still strugling for air, as he eyed her in growing confusion. "Uh, Hinata?" He stammered, "You can get off me now."

"OH!" She blinked and scrambled to stand up. "I'm really sorry!" Her face was burning and she turned away, pretending to straighten her clothes. "S'all right" She heard the cheerful reply from behind her and the scuffing sound as her partner stood up and brushed himself off. She touched her face, it still felt hot, but she didn't think the blush would be too obvious in the darkened ring. She turned to face him.

He was smiling. "Good game, Hi na ta." He purposely drew out the sylables of her name to see if he could get that blush to darken any. Hmm. Nothing. Maybe he should have added a 'chan' at the end. Oh well. Ever since he had figured out her shyness about guys it had been like a game to him to see just how red he could get her. The best he'd ever gotten was coral but he was hoping to aspire to cherry, or even one day...lobster. There was one sure fire way to make her blush, that was how he'd gotten coral, but he only used it once, and he'd never do it again. It was Naruto.

He had teased her innocently about talking in her sleep, about what she had said, then about Naruto. She had turned bright pink, and he had snickered internaly delighting in his new game, but then the tears had come. She never made a sound, she just excused herself and sat, facing away from him, with tears pouring down her face like water. She wasn't mad at him, because he'd seen what she was like when she was mad, she just missed the boy so much.

He had surprised her by putting a big hand on her shoulder and offering her a look of comfort. Everyone loses someone. She had looked at him in shock with wide, red eyes for a moment before gathering the loose folds of his hooded cloak in one hand. When she had burried her face in his chest he had just wrapped his arms around her and let her pour her tears into him. It was the life of a ninja, he'd cried more than once over someone who had died, but he had never told anyone. He had done his mourning in silence, and alone. It was never known that the great and brutal Hoshigake Kisame had cried in secret, but he had. Every ninja that ever was had.

"It's stupid, you know?" She'd said, face still hidden against him, "I hardly even knew him. He didn't know I existed. But I miss him. I miss him so much... I... I can't..." she had shuddered into silence then, shoulders shaking quietly as the tears came again.

She had fallen asleep in his arms that night, and never again since.

She hissed and jerked away. "Stoppit." Kisame made a small scoffing noise and put her chin in a vice like grip. "Stop being such a baby, Hinata-chan." He threw it in there, casual like, and was secretly pleased with the dark pink that edged into her cheeks. "There's a nasty scrape right here, and you don't want a scar on your face, do you?" She grummbled something "What was that?" She blushed harder and mumbled slightly louder, he feigned innocence "I'm sorry, Hinata...chaaaan. Come again?" "I SAID: It doesn't really matter any ways!" Bingo. Apple, a new record. "There!" he said as he pasted the flesh-colored patch over the freshly salved wound, "That wasn't so bad, huh?"

He was reluctant to take his hand away from her face. She was so soft, and yet so dangerous at the same time. He knew she had been holding back today, and every time they trained. He wasn't stupid. She always hurt him just enough to remind him that she had hit him, but never enough to truely wound. He treated each internal scar like a demerit. A pain that ment he wasn't fast enough. A scar inside him from her.

His face was dipping down towards hers before he was aware of what he was doing. He was pleasently surprised when his lips touched hers, the barest brush, like silk. He was shocked when she didn't pull away. She tasted like salt and blood, and green tea. She tasted like Itachi.