I wanted to save this chapter till today in celebration of Canada Day! Yeah, totally that and not just that I was running behind schedule.
See disclaimers in chapter 1.
Enjoy
He remembered being rather happy on the trip back to Kiri, despite the general cloud that hung over the group. He didn't care that the idiot Daimyo was going to be hacked off because his desired plaything was in several pieces. Since She had nominally let the prisoner escape and was in a mandated state of disgrace she was shunned by her fellows. He took advantage of her isolation to spend most of the voyage in her company. They didn't talk much and she was still holding strictly to her no-touching-on-the-mission policy but it was rather nice just to encroach on her personal space and let the anticipation build.
Unfortunately, though not totally unpredictably he had to admit to himself now, the Daimyo was four kinds of pissed off when he was informed of the outcome of the mission and looking for a vent for his anger. The weedy little prick turned purple with rage and nearly fell over himself as he paced the Mizukage's reception hall and bellowed. After much posturing and several threats toward Kisame and the team leader he was brought up short by a pretty red-headed girl. She appeared to be some sort of attendant to the Mizukage and wielded considerable power and a good brain under all that hair as she managed to diffuse the situation quickly and quietly. She suggested that everyone involved be given menial duties for a certain time as punishment.
The Daimyo, who must have realized that he would be unable to actually lock-up or demote any of the ninja without revealing what exactly he wanted with the missing-nin, capitulated to the idea. Kisame knew better than to try to force an answer as to why the deeply unusual request for a live capture had been issued at all. He took the abuse without comment and the punishment with a slight frown and found himself assigned to a border patrol under the severely grouchy Ao.
Since the foolish Daimyo couldn't take his anger out on the senior nins he rounded on the least defensible member of the group. She was picked as the scapegoat of the entire incident and not even the clever red-head could totally dissuaded the Daimyo from demanding a demotion. After all, she had failed to guard the prisoner, an almost unforgivable offense amongst hunter-nin even if everyone ninja in the room understood that the failure had been intentional. A ninja could not simply act under their own reconnaissance like that and expect to get off scot-free, not in Kiri.
Though it seemed grossly unfair to him, she had after all merely been acting in the general best interest of the nation, politicians and rulers be damned, the Daimyo wanted his symbolic victory. She, being easier to spare than Ao and less unsettling looking than him was broken down to regular jonin status and packed off on a routine, long-term diplomatic mission to one of the neighboring island groups. The posting was to last for at least one year, more if she didn't behave herself and was to start immediately. She was given only enough time to pack a bag.
Unfairness aside, Kisame remembered being more pissed off that he would not get any opportunities to continue what they had started under that tree. He had been, despite outward appearances, a fairly normal eighteen year old male with all the usual hormonal issues. Refusing to give up without a fight he followed her and her pair of chunin escorts back to a pretty, well kept house in a quiet neighborhood.
A woman who looked like a slightly older, gentler version of Her appeared at the door, blanching in horror at the cadre of ninja escorts. Her strong, plump hands fitfully twisted the pale green cloth she had been holding as she invited everyone in with a low bow. They all crammed into the small front room and waited uncomfortably. She and the other woman quickly disappeared into the back of the house and began to bicker quietly. Kisame craned his neck to look down the short hall, catching momentary glimpses of Her tossing various items of clothing into a bag while the woman, she could not be her mother she looked no more than ten or eleven years older, fretted.
"What have you done now? Why can't you just keep your head down and do as you're told? I love you, you know that. What will I do if you…? I couldn't bear it. Do you like making me frantic? I promised mom and dad I would take care of you, Kenji and me. Are we doing a bad job, is that why you get into so much trouble?"
The other woman must be Her sister then, he vaguely rermembered Zabuza mentionining that her parents were dead on some mission years back. The woman and her husband, Kenji apparently, must have taken her in.
She stopped her sister, pulling the older woman into a fierce hug. He couldn't make out everything she said in an urgent, soft voice.
"orry…love you and Ken…just going away…won't even miss me."
Then she kissed her sister's soft, tear streaked cheek and headed for the door. The chunins looked uncomfortable with the obvious display of affection and nearly stumbled over each other trying to get out the door. Kisame, however, remained, examining both herand her sister. The older one obviously wasn't a ninja. Her physique was soft and round and generous but he saw a similar stubbornness in her eyes as she glared at him defiantly. She wiped at her eyes and set her mouth, refusing to cry in front of a stranger. She glared at him too, telling him with her eyes that his intrusion into a private moment was less than welcome. He smirked arrogantly and leaned against a wall, letting her know that he wasn't going anywhere. Angrily she turned her back on him and hugged her sister tightly.
"Tell Kenji I'm sorry for the trouble. I'll send you a letter when I get there and you'll still get half my pay."
Disentangling herself after several minutes she turned back to him and motioned toward the door. Moving slowly he let her herd him outside. The drizzle of the morning was turning into a warm summer rain. The chunins were huddled a short distance away under a neighbor's overhanging roof, waiting. She stood for a moment in the open doorway and then pulled on a hood and began to walk towards the pair. Seeing his opening he hooked an arm around her waist and twisted, redirecting her forward momentum into a sort of spin into his chest. Using hermomentary confusion to his advantage he hauled her up the six inches he needed to clamp his mouth over hers.
She didn't struggle as much as he thought she would, nor did she go all pliant the way women always did in novels. She responded almost immediately, thrusting her chin forward and opening her lips against his. He followed suit, pressing hard into her. Their tongues touched and then wrapped around each other, tangling in a confused sort of passion. His teeth nicked first his tongue and then hers causing a bright red flash of pain and then a warm, rich maroon lust as her blood trickled over his soft palate. He opened his jaw wider, wanting more contact, deeper. She responded. Her smaller, rounder teeth grated on his; a loud sound like stones striking each other reverberated through his head. He disengaged and tried to shake his ears free of it, not wanting to be distracted. But she had slid out of his grip like sand through a fist.
She was about a foot away from him, at the edge of the street, looking up with narrowed, considering eyes and puffy bright lips. After a moment her eyes turned up at the corners and a wry smile spread over the left half of her face. Her voice had taken on that raspy character he was coming to love.
"I'll see you when I see you."
And then she was gone, walking quickly up the street toward the Administrative center, forcing the shocked chunins to scamper after her like a pair of startled rats. He looked defiantly at the sister still standing at her door. Her frown was worried but not shocked. He leered at her but she only rolled her eyes and shook her head. He thought he saw a slightly indulgent smile begin to crack her façade as she closed the door though.
Another chapter out, hurray! I will try to be more consistent with the updates but this week hit me like a ton of bricks. As always, let me know what you though and thanks for reading.
