Tenten2020 Week.

The Boneyard
Cut from Between the Devil and the Deep. Merman!Neji, Pirate!Tenten

They suspected he could call for help in the water – and that is what they wanted him to do. They bound his hands behind his back and tied them to his tail. He was helpless.

They kept him weak by keeping him out of the water – only coming down occasionally to throw a bucket of something stale and disgusting on him. The giant of a man had just left when he heard the lightest footfall down the stairs.

Someone bit off a swift curse.

"You really have gotten yourself into a bind, now, haven't you?"

He turned to glare at whoever had come to mock him, but it wasn't one of the crew. She knelt and carefully moved his hair from his face, frowning at his injury.

"They got you good," she murmured, reaching into the pouch strapped to her leg.

What are you doing," he tried to jerk his head away.

"There are sharks in these waters," she carefully put something soothing on his forehead. "If they scent your blood, they won't hesitate to come after you.

"Who are you," he glared. "And if you haven't noticed, I'm not in the water."

"You will be soon enough," she gave a small smile, still concentrating on her work. "As soon as you hit the water, go deep. As deep as you can. You'll be safer that way. No matter what you hear or see, stay deep. Follow the line of caverns north, and don't surface for five or six leagues."

"Why should I listen to you, pirate?" he sneered. "You can tell your captain," he raised his voice, "that I have no intention of- mpbht!"

Her arms wrapped around him, capturing his lips in a kiss. His indignation flickered, died, and flared into something else, as he retaliated by kissing her back.

She smirked against his mouth and pulled his hair, baring his neck and eliciting a positively wanton groan from him.

"I am a pirate," her breath whispered against his ear. "But I'm also a friend."

The snap of the rope was quick, and he found his tail was free.

"Work your wrists," she bent to rework the rope draping it loosely around his tail and up to his wrists. "If they check you, it will appear your bonds are still in place." She explained. "Pull this," she slid an end of the ropes into his hand, "and they'll come undone."

"Who are you?" he met and held her gaze.

"I told you," she put her knife away. "A friend. Remember what I said. As soon as you get in the water go deep, go north, and stay under."

"What about you?" he eyed her with a combination of trepidation and concern.

"I'll be long gone," she assured him. "Don't worry about me. This isn't the first ship I've sabotaged."

Something clicked for him.

"You," he breathed. "You're the one sinking the ships."

"I'm one of the ones sinking ships," she corrected him. "You know what to do?"

"Go deep, go north, stay under," he repeated.

"Right," she gave a satisfied smile. "Until next time."

With that she was gone. Not two minutes after she disappeared, he heard the sounds of commotion above him.

It was about time for the next watch to come through when the ship lurched peculiarly. Distantly, he heard the words "Fire!" being screamed, just as the sight of something bright began to burn on the other end of the hull. Instinctively he turned his head away when the explosion hit, leaving a gaping hole in the bottom of the boat. He undid his bindings quickly, waited until the water had flooded in enough that he could escape, fighting the rush of the water, swimming powerfully to get out.

As soon as he cleared the vacuum made by the ship, he darted downward, as fast as he could manage it. The second explosion rocked the water just as he reached the shelter of the trench – and would have been concussive in force had he stayed nearer the surface. Following her instructions, he swam as fast as he could toward the north.

It wasn't until he surfaced seven leagues later that he remembered she had said "Until next time. "

Something coiled low and deep in his belly at that thought, as the explosion smeared the dark of the sky with smoke and fire.

"Until next time," he murmured, and slipped back into the sea.