Hello, here is chapter 2. Enjoy!
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The Haruno house was something to behold. Pure white siding covered what looked like five stories. Balconies protruded from eight glass doors, which Sasuke disliked for protection reasons. But at least the house was well hidden by pine trees that had to be hundreds of years old.
The three Anbu stood silently at the end of a long walkway.
"Remember, the masks remain on. Always." Sasuke stated.
"Hai." Neji Huugya replied.
"So lame. Like his daughters will be ruined by the sight of us." Shisui grumbled, but he secured his mask regardless of his complaints.
They walked silently to the large front door, Sasuke rapped lightly several times. The door was swung open by a pretty, middle aged woman. Her dark red hair flowed widely as she smiled at them.
"Please come in. My husband has been expecting you. He is in the den." She led them to a large office just to the side of the entry way. She gracefully motioned them into the room, then she shut the dark wood door.
The three males turned their attention to the large desk, where Kizashi Haruno sat reading over a stack of papers.
"Thank you for coming gentlemen, I'll get to the point. I need you three to protect me and my family for the next two weeks, until this deal of mine is complete. I do not fully trust the man I'm doing business with," He handed Sasuke a folder, "In there you'll find his photo as well as his… shall we call them henchmen. I've tried to make my house as safe as possible and it's highly unlikely that this man even knows where we live, but I've dismissed every member of my household staff, much to my wife's chagrin." He chuckled softly, then moved to the window behind the desk.
"I worry mainly for my daughters. They would be easy targets if this deal goes south. You are to protect them at all costs. They must not leave this property unless you are present. You will be with them constantly, through their lessons and meals. I've set up a room for each of you, one in each wing of the house close to my daughters' rooms."
He turned slowly to them. His dark green eyes missed nothing, they were oddly sharp for a civilian. "My girls are very important. They are pure and innocent. They must not waste their time on silly crushes, so you will at no point remove your masks around them. Do I make myself clear?"
"We understand sir. And I guarantee my team will follow orders." Sasuke calmly replied. His deep voice left no room for doubt.
"Excellent. Kohnona shinobi have always been top notch. Yes, indeed." Mr. Haruno moved to the door, "Come, I'll show you around."
They toured the house, the three shinobi taking in each detail, every entry and exit way. They arrived at a large open room that had three doors opened to long hallways.
Mr. Haruno pointed to the far left one, announcing that as the master suite.
"The door to the right leads to three bedrooms. One for one of you, one is my oldest daughters and the third is my youngest's room. This door here leads to the twins' room. There is a spare down there for the second of you gentlemen."
"And your fifth daughter's quadrotors are where, sir?" Sasuke asked.
"She has a room in the attic, clear across the house. I'd like the strongest of you three to stay with her. You'll understand why when you see her room."
The four made their way across the large home, the silence was odd, Sasuke thought with five girls here it would be nonstop noise.
It took them exactly three minutes to reach a dark red door. Mr. Haruno opened it to reveal s stair case. They climbed the creaking stairs to the top. Sasuke was glad for the mask when they reached the room, he felt he was unable to hide his surprise.
The room was enormous. Dark wood floors lead to very light gray walls. The dark furniture looked expensive in a rustic way. A king bed covered in soft, white fabric was placed against the center wall. Sasuke doubted it could be called a wall though, he fully understood Mr. Haruno's concern now. The whole west side of the room was glass, one huge window-wall. And Sasuke counted four sky lights.
A desk was stationed in front of the windows, a full book case filled the gap of wall at the top pf the stairs.
There was a door that led to a large bathroom on the east side of the room. That room too, had a sky light and a large glass wall to the south next to the tub. The room was undeniably beautiful, but would clearly be a problem if an enemy attacked.
"When we first moved here this whole space was a disaster. My cherry blossom did all this herself." The pride in his voice was obvious.
"I will make certain that nothing happens to her or her hard work in this room." Sasuke promised.
Mr. Haruno smiled broadly. "Fantastic. Now, let's go meet the girls."
They made their way to a set of double doors. Mr. Haruno pushed them open. The four men walked into a large library. Five desks were placed facing floor to ceiling windows.
"Ladies, please come meet the Kohnona Shinobi."
Simultaneously four heads turned from the work at their desks. They each stood and moved with practiced poise to stand side by side facing Sasukes' team.
"This little one is Hanan, she just turned six. These two are my twins, Akiko and Akane, they are thirteen. This is my eldest, Karin."
"Gentlemen." Karin spoke in an almost purr. She adjusted her black glasses in a way Sasuke immediately disliked.
Each girl looked similar. They all had dark red hair, much like their mothers, the youngest had much lighter hair though. Their eyes were their mothers as well, all various shades of red.
The twins turned to each other and giggled a 'hello'. The eldest, Karin, continued to eye the men. The youngest stepped forward to bow with as much grace as her stubby legs could muster.
"Thank you for coming." She spoke softly.
"You are very welcome." Shisui said. This received more giggles from the twins.
The three males passed uneasy glances to each other through their masks. They knew those giggles. Naruto had dubbed them 'fan girl giggles'.
"Where is your sister?" Mr. Haruno asked firmly.
The giggles ceased, the twins and Karin turned smug.
"She went out, daddy." Akane said.
"Into the forest." Akiko added.
Karin rolled her eyes, she mumbled "Where she belongs." Which received more giggles and a glare from the youngest sister.
"She promised not to leave our land, daddy." Hanan said, "She told me to tell you not to worry."
"Hmm." Mr. Haruno growled. "She better be here before dinner." He turned to leave. "I suggest everyone get ready. Dinner is in half an hour."
Forty-five minutes later the Haruno's were seated at a long table in the dining room. The girls were all seated by age on one side of the table. All but one. The second eldest daughter was still absent.
"That girl." Mr. Haruno mumbled, but the three shinobi that were seated in a row across the girls detected warmth in his voice.
"Too bad you three can't join us eating now." Karin said.
"Yeah, too bad." The twins coursed in unison.
"They are payed to not remove the masks, girls. You know how your father is." Mebuki Haruno said around a large glass of wine. "They can eat as soon as we are finished."
The meal commenced with the girls chatting loudly about one thing or another. The youngest hardly spoke while Karin only made snide comments. Sasuke was oddly sickened by this. His parents wanted him to choose a bride amongst these idiots. None met his standards.
The dinner was interrupted when the double oak doors sung open. The three Shinobi tensed, until the youngest girl jumped up and ran to the cloaked figure.
"You're here! I missed you!" Hanan yelled happily. The cloaked person gave off a musical laugh, then reached up to pull her hood down.
Sasuke was stunned. Clearly this was the missing daughter, but she looked nothing like her sisters. She was gorgeous. Her pink hair fell out to her shoulder blades, her bright green eyes seemed to shine and the smile she was giving her youngest sister was unrivaled by any he'd ever seen.
"I see I'm a little late, please forgive me. The snow was falling heavier than I expected." To exaggerate her point, she shook her snow covered cloak off. She was dressed in form fitting black pants with a tight black top and a red jacket. Ninja gear, Sasuke noted, though he detected no Chakra in her system.
She moved to the remaining seat at the table, her green eyes carefully took in Sasuke's team.
"You, gentlemen, must be our glorified babysitters. I'm Sakura." She glanced at her sisters. "The other Haruno girl."
The three Shinobi nodded to her. Sasuke chose not to speak, lest his voice betray him. He could tell she was different than her sisters. Throughout the meal she sat silently, listening to the twin's blabber on. She held herself still, totally tensed when Karin made her remarks.
"So, Sakura, what have you been up to out there in the wilderness?" Mrs. Haruno said a little too loudly, she was presently pouring her third glass of wine.
"Well clearly I've been meeting up with someone." Sakura replied.
Her sisters stopped eating. Sasuke would never admit it out loud, but his whole body tensed with jealousy.
"A future husband!" Mrs. Haruno shouted excitedly. "Thank heaven! When is he going to propose?"
"It may be a while, mother. He doesn't work much, or at all actually. But you'll love his place. Really… earthy. It's a decent size cave, all things considered. He is pretty top notch for his kind. I believe the political term is a Hobo."
The three younger girls burst out laughing. Karin roller her dark eyes.
Mrs. Haruno was not amused. She glared at Sakura. "Fine. Make jokes. But as a mother of five girls, I worry about marrying you all off. So just keep joking Sakura, and hope your jokes will land you a husband."
"Sakura doesn't need a husband, besides, what man would be good enough?" Mr. Haruno smiled broadly. His wife downed the rest of her wine.
When dinner was finished Karin stood first, loudly pushing her chair back. The twins followed.
"Ladies, please come clear your dishes." Their mother called.
"What!" they spun around.
"We never do that!" Akane shrieked.
"That's what servants are for." Karin hissed out.
"Mother, I'll see to it." Sakura spoke up. She gave her sisters a look that dared them to say more. The three quickly left. Their mother stood, claiming she would finish her wine in her study. Mr. Haruno had made himself scarce after thanking Sakura.
"I'll get your meals; I think you've waited long enough." Sakura spoke to the three males.
"I'll clear the dishes Saka!" Hanan announced proudly.
"Thank you." Sakura beamed at her little sister then moved to the kitchen.
Shisui surprised them all when he stood and began helping the youngest Haruno. The little girl stared wide eyed.
"A lady shouldn't have to do all the work alone." He told Hanan. The young girl blushed, managing to mumble out a 'Thank you, sir'. Being raised properly, Sasuke and Neji stood too, helping with the task. Sasuke placed the last cup on the silver cart when Sakura came back to the dining room. She paused to survey the scene.
"They helped me, Saka! They told me a lady needs help sometimes." Hanan said, she glanced shyly at her sister for approval.
"Ah, yes." Sakura smiled. "I told you there were real gentlemen out there." Giving her sister a wink. She pushed another cart with food to the table. She carefully placed the meals down.
"Enjoy. When you're finished… well you can commence with your babysitting I guess." Sakura laughed softly, giving them all an apologetic smile. She held out her hand to her youngest sister, who happily skipped over, latching on.
They left, talking about going to the library. Shisui was proud that he waited until the doors closed before he let out a whistle. He whipped his Anbu mask off.
"Damn. That girl is FINE!" He wiggled his eye brows at his teammates.
"Must you be vulgar?" Neji asked as he removed his mask.
"Don't deny you didn't check her out. "Shisui laughed when a small blushed graced the tips of Neji's ears.
"Don't worry I won't tell Ten Ten." Neji glared, but turned to his meal without speaking.
"Little cousin. Imagine how thrilled the family would be if you brought that piece home!" Sasuke glared at Shishu.
"You will not speak in such terms about her, got it?" His voice was angry enough that both other Shinobi stopped to look at their captain. They eyed each other, then turned back to their meals. Shisui decided he'd tease his cousin later.
Their meal passed quickly, once they were cleaned up they made their way to the library, masks in place they pushed open the doors. The soft giggles ceased immediately. The twins were huddled over a magazine. Karin was seated in the only soft arm chair, one leg draped over the side. Sakura had perched herself in a tall window sill, while Hanan was leaning against the wall below Sakura.
"So, any of you single?" Karin purred, but even with their masks on she seemed to have chosen Sasuke. She eyed him over her glasses.
"Would it matter if they were? You know they can't remove the masks. Back off Karin." Sakura saved the three males from having to respond.
"What the hell are you two laughing about?" Karin snapped at the twins.
"Nothing Karin." Akiko stuck her tongue out at the elder girl. But they continued to giggle.
"Seriously, dumb and dumber, you two had better shut up." Karin snapped. The girls stopped, they quickly glanced towards Sakura who was immersed in her large book.
"We were only discussing what their voices sound like." Akiko pouted.
"Remember that man that came to fix the roof, he had the nicest voice ever!" Akane swooned.
Karin's smile turned devious, she lifted herself from the chair, she moved up to Sasuke, giving him her best smile.
"They have a point. Tell me, what's your name?" Sasuke's entire body was tense. This girl was bold; he'd give her credit but she reeked of mistrust. He was about to tell her to move when Sakura spoke up.
"They cannot speak to us either. So the three of you can stop this nonsense."
"But they talked before!" Akiko stated.
"And what was your reaction?" Sakura gave them a knowing look. The twins blushed. "That's what I thought. Father told them not to speak after that." Her voice rang with an authority that her other sisters clearly respected. The three moved back to their activities. The men glanced to Sakura, she winked, while Hanan giggled up at Sakura.
Sasuke caught those deep green eyes through the small slits in his mask. His heart pounded, but he gave her a curt nod in thanks.
An hour later, Sakura announced that it was bedtime when she noticed Hanan nodding off over her book. She scooped the youngest Haruno up and carried her to her room. The twins headed to theirs, while Karin hung back.
"So which one of you is coming to my corridors?" She had eyes glued to Sasuke. Said man motioned Neji, who silently stepped forward and headed after Sakura and Hanan. Shisui took his signal to follow the twins. Then Sasuke made an obvious turn towards the wing where Sakura's room was.
He smirked when he heard Karin's irritated sigh. As Sasuke waited at the bottom of the stairs to Sakura's room, he realized that there wasn't a room on this wing with for him.
Both Neji and Shisui had their own rooms near their charges. Sasuke's mind rapidly processed all the possibilities. And just as his blood began to warm at certain thoughts, Sakura came down the hall.
"Sorry that took so long. Hanan couldn't stop talking about the 'strong ninja's here to protect us'." She laughed softly. "Shall we?" Sakura moved gracefully up the stairs. At the top she paused, slowly she turned to Sasuke.
"I'm sorry that your teammates get their own room. This couch is all that's here." She pointed to the overstuffed couch that was against the wall of the stairs.
"Hn. I've slept on far worse." He placed his pack against a giant book shelf next to the couch then stiffly sat down.
"I'll just be a bit, then you are welcome to use the bathroom." She smiled when he nodded. He watched her walk away, then chided himself. She couldn't be very old. She moved, spoke and physically looked like a woman, but Sasuke doubted she was anywhere near his age.
When she emerged from the bathroom, she was dressed in a white, silk night gown, that reached just above her knees. Her small, dainty toes curled on the cold wood floor. The dress had a deep scoop which revealed her full, perfect breasts as soft half-moons. The fabric was just barely thick enough to not be see-through.
Sakura made a gestor with her arms across her flat stomach that indicated she was uncomfortable. "You're free to use the bathroom." She barely whispered.
Mildly ashamed that he'd made her uneasy, he moved into the large bathroom to splash cold water on his face. When he emerged the room was dark, save for the moonlight streaming through the windows. Sakura had made up the couch for him with silk sheets, large pillows and an expensive quilt.
"Hope it's ok." Sakura said as she watched Sasuke eye the couch.
"Hn." He nodded to her.
"Will you sleep with your mask on?"
"Hai." Sasuke smoothly moved onto the couch.
"Sorry." Sasuke swiftly looked at her. She was beautiful. Her pink hair tumbled down her right shoulder, her emerald eyes were large and somehow innocent.
"It's better this way." He said. Her green eyes turned uncertain, but she didn't press the matter.
Sakura rested quietly for a while before she asked softly, "Can you tell me your name?" The room was still as she waited.
"Sasuke."
"Hmm. Sasuke." The male tried to ignore the way his body warmed when she tried out his name.
"Good night, Sasuke."
Shit. His body heated up ten-fold at her whisper. "Good night…. Sakura."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Thank you for reading. Please review, much appreciated.