(A/N: Yeah, not much to say. I'll probably be taking a break from this for a month or so and I thought I'd be nice and put this out.)

Disclaimer: Not associated with Naruto, S&W, or Magnum Research/IMI.

Chapter Eight

A mass of wild brown hair groaned and tried to fight off the obnoxious rays of sunlight. Tan hands griped a blanket and pulled it over sleeping eyes. Finally the sun disappeared and Iruka released a satisfied sigh. His momentary bliss broke as a fly buzzed by his ear, repeatedly hitting him and tickling the sleep out of him. Large hands flew into the arm, uprooting the blanket and coming in contact with something fleshy and warm.

His eyes snapped open as he grasped the "fly" in his palm, rolling his thumb over small knuckles. A soft groan confirmed his suspicions and pulling off the blanket-that really happened to be a trench coat-he gazed into the sleeping face of Anko. Her head buried in his pillows with a sheet wrapped around her, and he briefly wondered how he had ended up on the floor. He released her hand when she sighed in her sleep and tucked her arm beneath the pillow, curling into the fetal position.

Iruka's vision snapped to the clock and he was slightly taken back by the time. For the first time in ages he had slept past twelve! He cleared his throat and swallowed some excess spit, grimacing at the taste of his morning breath. The young man stretched with a pleased moan and pushed himself into a sitting position. He folded his knees to his chest and rested his elbows a top the boney joints, not quite sure what to do or even if he wanted to do anything. His attention drifted to the TV noticing it was still on and that the remote had been abandoned near his feet. Disinterestedly, he grabbed the remote and started tossing it into the air, still musing over the idea of getting up.

"No…don't…stop…"

He looked toward Anko, and jumped when the remote landed on his head with a loud CLACK. Aw, how cute, he thought, she's dreaming.

She thrashed violently under the sheet for a second. "Go…away!"

It dawned on him that she was having a nightmare or rather a day terror, not a dream. He inched closer to her and gently took hold of her shoulders, crap she was burning up! Even through the cotton of the shirt she was like a ball of fire. "Anko, hey, it's okay," he whispered reassuringly and carefully stroked her hair.

Her breathing intensified for a second before finally calming. "Iruka," she moaned airily and his breath hitched. "Don't…me…here…no…tell." Pale hands reached out and long fingers raked at nothing, before falling limply off the side of the couch.

"Shh, it's okay Anko, it's just a bad dream." And without knowing what he was doing, he leaned in and pressed his lips against her forehead in a gentle kiss. It would have been fine, if at that precise moment she hadn't opened her eyes. He stared into the smoky orbs of his neighbor with lips still on her and his stomach sank. Pulling away instantly, he crawled back as far as he could; bumping into the TV stand before realizing sleep clouded her eyes.

"Ir…uka, come back." She reached out for him with a lost expression and he cautiously returned to the side of the couch, eyeing her warily. "Always…so, alone," she sighed snagging his shirt and pulling him close to her, snuggling into his neck with a groan typical of restless sleep.

Iruka's heart hammered against his ribs, threatening to explode and a tiny bead of sweat rolled down his brow. He inhaled deeply, the scent of perfume and cigarette smoke raping his senses. "I know, no one likes to be alone."

"…Scared…Iru…ka."

"Nonsense," he rasped quietly, not wanting to wake her but still promoting her sleep induced conversation. "You don't need to be scared, you're strong. I've only known you a few weeks, but shit, you're strong." He laughed. "Hell, you could kick my ass if you wanted to."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, her eyes now closed. "…He…try…kill…me."

That got his attention. "What? Who?"

"…Orochi…sex…money." She grimaced and if possible, cuddled even closer into his neck. "Don't…I not…"

"Anko, are you serious?" Um, are you serious Iruka? his conscious asked. You do know she's asleep, right? And she's having a bad dream. But, no, he wasn't going to listen to reason and proceeded to push his luck further. "Is someone trying to hurt you? Anko?"

Her eyes flew open and this time there was no mistaking it…she was awake. "Mornin' sunshine." The color slowly drained from his face. "Is there something you wanted or do you always cuddle with your guests?"

"Ah, what are you talking about?!" He quickly retched out of her grip. "You were cuddling with me!"

Propping up on an elbow, she eyed him doubtfully. "In your dreams Scarface."

His jaw dropped. "Hey! You leave my cosmetic shortfalls out of this!"

The purple haired maiden rolled onto her back, laughing. "Holy shit! You are too easy!" she exclaimed through laughter. She caught her breath and dramatically wiped a tear from her eye. "You're going to have a freakin' heart attack by the time you're forty, you know that?"

"Yes, you've informed me of this before." They shared a comfortable silence before he finally got the gall to ask, "So, you have any dreams? You started talking in your sleep."

She sat up and stretched long arms over her head with grunt. "Oh really? Did I say anything interesting?" Tossing the sheet from her legs, she stood with a hand on her hip as she waited his response.

He scratched his scar. "Um, actually…yes, you did."

She offered him only mock amusement before declaring, "Well, I gotta go to the little girl's room, hold that thought for me okay?" And she sashayed past him, throwing him a wink as she slipped into the room.

Once again ignoring her innuendo, he moved to gather the sheet when she was out of sight. As he flipped the thin cotton out something fell onto the floor and caught his attention. Quickly folding the worn bed sheet, he set it down and reached to pick up an article of clothing…which so conveniently happened to be an orange skirt. Color rose to his cheeks as he held the miniskirt at eye level, oh lord why did she do this to him? Nimble hands folded the garment and set it on the cushion in an attempt to have it "out of the way" so to speak. Just as he turned off the television, a gentle knock sounded from his door. A frown carved a line across his features, the only one who ever bothered to visit was Anko and at the present minute she was using his facility.

Looking through the peephole his frown only deepened. "Can I help you?" he asked, opening the door to a young man with odd grey hair and glasses.

"Good afternoon, sorry to bother you but, may I come in for a second?" the visitor asked politely with a well rehearsed smile.

Iruka's brown eyes narrowed, something didn't seem right with this guy and then he noticed a rather unusual bulge on the side of his pants. "Um, what's this about again?" the teacher asked, crossing his arms and trying his best not to make it to obvious he was staring. Is that, is that what I think it is?

"That's why I wanted to come in and explain a few things with you." The grey haired teen shifted, and revealed more than he was aware of to the trained eye of the teacher.

Fuck, it is. Why the hell is this guy carrying a gun? Iruka glanced over his shoulder. Hopefully this kid isn't packing too heavy a caliber, but shit…mine's under the cushion…and Anko… Anko, just the thought of her brought about a primal male instinct, one he hadn't felt in so long…the need to protect her at all costs. His attention drew back to the guest. "Uh, I don't think so."

Silver eyebrows drew together in a knot, unhappy with the current hospitality; none of the other tenants had been this difficult. "Fine then, my name is Kabuto Yakushi and my boss has sent me to track down Ms. Anko Mitarashi. She left work early without permission."

"Seems a bit drastic to be knocking on people's doors, doesn't it?"

Kabuto cleared his throat, growing more and more annoyed with this guy's commonsense. "Ms. Mitarashi is a prized asset of our…company and she had several prior engagements that she failed to meet."

"So fire her, obviously she's a lousy worker." He glanced over his shoulder again, and tried to calculate the time it would take to reach his gun if this guy pulled anything funny.

He pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "While I'm not at liberty to discuss the nature of Ms. Mitarashi's issues, I can assure you she cannot be fired." A smile that made Iruka uneasy curved the boy's lips. "However, I noticed you are her closest neighbor and getting straight to the chase, have you seen her recently?" He flicked a picture of her and showed it to the now, bemused teacher.

Iruka grasped the picture between his fingers and stared at it. He didn't recognize Anko at all…and why was she wearing a bikini? "You know," he started, handing the picture back, "I've only seen her once, when I first moved in and that was about a month ago. She came across as a night owl and I try to avoid being up at all hours."

"I see," Kabuto answered completely unconvinced as he tucked the Polaroid into his breast pocket. "Well, I'll stop wasting your time." Iruka was about to shut the door. "Wait, if you happen to see her before we find her, give her this." He handed the other man a business card. "Let her know Orochimaru is most unhappy."

Brown eyes stared at the card, his mind unable to process that this kid was a bouncer, a scrawny teenager was a b-o-u-n-c-e-r, a freaking bouncer. What the hell did he bounce? Kittens? He smirked at the thought before asking, "How am I supposed to know if you found her?"

There was that disconcerting smile again. "Oh trust me, you'll know. Have a nice day."

Iruka closed the door with an uneasy feeling brewing in the pit of his stomach as he tightly held the young man's card. He tossed the cardstock onto the ataman and dropped to a knee in front of the sofa, pulling a large caliber handgun from under the cushion; he had hid it there last night when Anko wasn't looking. Clicking the release, the magazine slid out to reveal thirteen ready to go fifty caliber rounds and Iruka grimly thought back to Anko's wimpy twenty-two. Slamming the magazine back, he slipped the Desert Eagle under the cushion and went to find his neighbor; it was time to give her a lesson on proper fire power.

***

Kabuto sat on a bench near that skank's apartment building and idly played with his phone, mulling over the best way to break the news to his boss about their current situation. He had made those two buffoons wait at her apartment, explaining that he had better things to do than be graced by their presence. It wasn't a complete lie as he was currently on a roll in blackjack. After winning a few more rounds against his cell phone he finally gave in and dialed his boss. There was an answer almost immediately.

"Ah, Kabuto, just the person I was looking forward to hearing from. I expect some good news." Orochimaru's light voice floated over the mouthpiece.

The young man in question cleared his throat, unsure how to word it. "Well, not exactly…it seems she beat us to it." There was a lengthy pause on the other end and Kabuto opened his mouth to speak again, but quickly shut it finding he had nothing else to say. Should have had one of those idiots break the news to him instead, he thought grimly.

"So where is she?"

"We don't know sir, but we did go around her building and ask if anyone had seen her."

"And let me guess, no one has?"

"Well, I think her next door neighbor may know more than he lets on…but I'm not sure. I left those two morons at her apartment just incase she returns. They'll call me if she shows up."

"You had better hope she does or I'll hold you personally accountable. Damnit! That little whore has made me look bad for the last time. Rough her up a bit and then bring her to me, alive…I want to finish the job personally."

"Yes, Orochimaru." The line went dead and Kabuto snapped his phone shut with a scowl. That bitch was definitely going to get it, even if he didn't get the pleasure of ending it…she was going to suffer.

He grinned as a bus pulled to a screeching stop in front of the bench, its door opening as he stood and stepped toward it. Oh yeah, he would be sure to make her pain last…nice and slow. Taking a seat near the front, he watched the building move away from the dirty window, anticipating the minute he got his hands around her neck. And when he exited the bus at some unknown destination, he found he was still grinning.

***

"And this," Iruka explained holding up an impressive gun, "is a Smith and Wesson Model 29 .44 Magnum, in other words the Dirty Harry gun. It's a double action revolver and holds up to six rounds." He opened the chamber, showing his companion the empty slots. "She's empty for right now, but--you're bored aren't you?"

"Huh? What? Oh, no...this is so interesting. We've gone through like," her eyes drifted to a large assortment of firearms laying on the bed, "eight different guns. I thought you said you didn't have a collection? You even have marksmanship awards." She playfully elbowed him. "Who would've thought sweet little Iruka was a gun fanatic. Hmm, it's kind of a turn on."

The teacher promptly blushed and scratched the back of his neck. "Ah, well, you know how it is." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, she's got enough power to take out a polar bear with the right aim, but be warned the recoil is a bitch. She can fire either the standard .44 Magnum Cartridge or .44 Special. Um, right now I think I only have the standard. Is that okay?"

"Why are you asking me?" She examined an old photo of Iruka proudly posing in front of a first place trophy, a stupid smile plastered on his young face and a shotgun slung over his shoulder. "How old were you in this picture? You don't have that scar here." She ran her pinky nail over the glossy paper.

His blush deepened and stammered for a response. "Well, uh-you, had asked for something with a little more…bang, I thought…"

Anko set the picture down. "Whoa, wait…are you saying, what I think you're saying?" He nodded so embarrassed he couldn't look at her. "Not that that's not cool and all, but why would you just hand over something like this?"

"I have enough?" It came out as more of a question to himself, not wanting to tell her the truth.

"But, this one is so much cooler than the other ones."

A twinkle flashed in his eye. "No, believe it or not I got another handgun that out does this one. Want to see her? She's the most beautiful handgun in the world."

She didn't get a chance to answer as he rushed out of the room in excitement. "Jeez, this is like show and tell here," she huffed.

"Look." He shoved a more modern looking handgun under her nose. "This is my baby, Maria. Isn't she beautiful?"

His expectant smile was almost too much for Anko to bear. "Um, yeah…it's great."

"Here, hold her." The young man pushed the gun into her hand.

Humoring him, she turned the stainless steel weapon over in her hand not sure what else to do. "It's nice," she said handing it back to him.

He nodded, eager to tell her more. "This is my Mark nineteen Desert Eagle action express, she's a semi-automatic, firing thirteen .50 caliber rounds. That puts the magnum to shit any day of the week, not to mention she doesn't have as bad a recoil." He finally caught on to her hints. "Heheh, sorry…I get a little excited when it comes to Maria."

"And all of your other ones. Jeez, are you preparing for World War III or rise of the zombies?"

He set the gun down, taking extra precaution in doing so. "Actually, I have more. These are just the handguns. Did you want to see my entire collection?"

Her jaw dropped. "You have more? My lord, when did you buy all of these? You're like what, twenty-six, seven?"

Damnit, why wouldn't his blush go away? "Uh, well they were my father's, he was in the military and had an affinity for guns. Guess it rubbed off on me. Anyway, when he died I inherited them." Iruka smiled. "All nine handguns, three shotguns, four rifles and a couple assault rifles."

Anko appeared impressed with the young man and picked up the .44 from earlier. "Are you sure I can use it?" she asked bashfully. "I've never even fired a gun, I just sort of procured the other one."

"There's an indoor shooting range a few blocks away, we could go there maybe over the weekend and practice. That is…if you wanted to."

"Are you asking me out on a date?" A wicked smiled curved the length of her mouth and she leaned closer to him with half-lidded eyes.

"No-no! It's nothing like that! I-I-"

She held a finger to his lips, silencing him. "Remember that heart attack I keep mentioning?" He nodded. "Good, now calm down. It's okay if you want to take me on a date, I'm flattered." And she gave him a small peck on the cheek, way too amused with the color of his face not to chuckle. "Now, I'm bored with gun talk. How about something to eat?"

(A/N: A closing note, Desert Eagles rock my socks, they are so damn sexy...go, look them up and if you're not in awe then there's something wrong with you .) hehe, just kidding...but seriously, they're a damn sexy piece of metal.)