The SEAL'S Kiss
Celestia193's Author's Note: Okay, I'm warning you now that we're going to be a little cruel, but I assure you that none of the good guys are dying this chapter. They just…end up with…well, it's not easy to see bad guys with loud music and flashing lights everywhere, okay?
Chapter 11
The clothes had made it just in the nick of time. Sasuke had made sure to order them specifically in the sizes that would fit his team, his charge, as well as both Neji and Itachi, who were tagging along. And though he didn't feel the need to frighten Hinata over it, he made sure to tell the rest of his team, as well as Itachi, just why he was picking out the clothes.
It's also why he'd made sure to pick out the perfect pair of blue jeans, lavender t-shirt, and matching blue leather jacket for Hinata, with the same woven Kevlar lining as the other pieces, of course. Kevlar here, Kevlar there, Kevlar every-fucking-where he could put it. He was NOT letting anyone end up hurt on his watch.
He was wearing his own bulletproof clothes today, as well as an extra, concealable vest underneath, just in case. All he had to do now was wait for Hinata to finish up her work for the day, and then he'd hand over the bag of clothes for her, and they'd be off to meet his team, his brother, her cousin, and Ino.
Hinata smiles as she shuts off her computer for the day and walks over to him. "You know you don't need to look so tense over clubbing." He was watching her like a hawk and while she knew it was part of his job, she still felt a little guilty about it. Sasuke was constantly on guard because of her.
Glancing over at Hinata, Sasuke sighs, before shaking his head, and relaxing just a smidge. "Sorry, but if I wasn't tense, I wouldn't be doing my job properly. And yes, I know, I need to relax more. But relaxing comes only when the two of us are alone, or when I know you're safe." Preferably, both at the same time.
"I know." She kisses his cheek and rests her head under his chin. "I'm just kinda hoping you aren't planning to wrap us all in bubbles wrap or something." Goodness only knows what Sasuke had come up with.
"More like a full suit of armor." He rolls his eyes and leans his cheek against her hair. "Bubble wrap wouldn't protect anyone, least of all, you." It's not like he was worried that she was going to trip down the stairs or something. "But I did get your clothes for you." He nudges the bag on the other side of the couch. "I think you'll like them."
She smiles at him, taking the bag. "We can stop at my place then and get changed there before grabbing the others." Hinata had been mostly teasing him about the bubble wrap thing. Sasuke was exasperatingly and charmingly overprotective.
"Alright." Sasuke was fine with that. The White House was on the way to the club, and they could meet up with Itachi, Neji, and Sai there, probably Naruto as well, before dragging Sakura away from Hanabi and going to meet Ino. Sasuke liked a clear series of events. Because then he could better adapt when something inevitably went wrong.
"Alright." She smiles and heads out to the parking lot with him. "You can text them while I drive." Hinata gets into the car and fastens her seat belt.
"On it." Sasuke slides in next to her, fingers already at work as he secures himself in the car. He shoots off his team text first, before pulling up his brother's number.
Heading out with Hinata now, be home by quarter after six, at club for seven, meet us with Neji and Sai. Probably be out til 11. Wear what I got you. ~ Sasuke
Hinata glances at the text with more than a little amusement. "Ready?" He was always so specific. While that of course went with the job, she also suspected that was just a natural quirk of Sasuke's.
"Yes." Sasuke places his phone in his lap for easy access, his eyes darting around to do a quick check before they leave. Everything looked just fine. Then, he smirks slightly. "Remember to make the most of tonight, I don't go clubbing often."
She leans over slightly and kisses him. "Believe me, I will." He'd most likely be wearing something practical to the club this evening, but that was alright. Maybe, she could get him in some leather pants another time. "I know that you don't really want to go clubbing because you think it's a risk, but I appreciate that you're coming anyway." She smiles at him. "It means a lot to me."
Sighing, Sasuke shakes his head, before returning Hinata's kiss. It was something he'd been slowly getting used to over the last week and a half, and he found that he rather liked the taste of vanilla, more than he thought he would, anyway. "Yes, I know."
But he saw that look on her face, and he can't help smirking at her transparency. "But you'll have to try another time, if you want me in leather pants." It used to be that it took Naruto, Sakura, AND Sai to get him into pants like that. So he was used to getting those looks that told him just how much they liked staring at his ass.
"I didn't say anything about leather pants." Her face flushes scarlet at being caught. "When did you become a mind reader?"
Sasuke snorts with laughter, amused by the red flush of Hinata's face. "You aren't as subtle as you think you are. And I've seen the look you shoot my ass before. Getting me into leather was the end goal of those looks too."
Her blush only grows darker. "That's a bit arrogant." It might be true, but it was conceited. "I might just have been looking at your shoes or something."
Right, because Sasuke was going to believe that. "I'm not oblivious, and I'm not a imbecile when it comes to math and angles." He was a sniper, he had to know measurements better than anyone. Including angles. "Besides, you wouldn't be blushing so hard if it was just my shoes."
"Since the topic of your hindquarters keeps coming up so much, maybe I should discipline you for being so vain when I'm not driving." She blushes and starts the car, before she drives them towards her house. "By spanking you."
Spanking him? The things that came out of Hinata's mouth were truly beginning to amuse him. She almost sounded serious about that. "Best not to let yourself fall to delusions. You could never do it, and we both know it."
Delusions?! She'd show him delusions! "You're lucky that I"m driving right now or else I would prove you wrong!" Hmpf!
"Of course you would." Well, she wanted him to be less tense, and teasing her was the perfect way to relieve some tension. It worked even better for stress relief than teasing Naruto. "And just how do you plan on getting the drop on someone like me?"
"I figure that there are two possibilities." She nods at him as she focuses on the road. "Either you'll be a good Uchiha and will indulge me just to see if I'd actually do it OR I'll get you when you least expect it." It was as simple as that.
Well, that could be an interesting game. "I should warn you, I'm always on guard." She should know that, considering Sasuke's work ethic. "So prepare for disappointment."
She shakes her head. "If there is one thing about my family that you will learn, that we're all perfectionists." Sooner or later, she would manage it. "So you're the one that would be disappointed. Not me."
"Hn." His smirk returns as he listens to the foolish conviction in her voice. "We'll see about that." But if she though that he was your average opponent, then she definitely had another thing coming.
Arriving at the nightclub itself was fairly simple. To most of the world, or at least to most of this part of D.C., Sasuke and Hinata would just look like another couple, off to party for the evening with their friends.
What most didn't see was the concealed weapons on half of their group as they were granted entry inside. Of course, there were plenty of other people there, many of whom Sasuke, unfortunately, didn't know. But entry was still restricted somewhat, and the owners were being careful, at Sasuke's request, to screen who was coming in and going out, as well as making sure that the bartenders were monitoring who was drinking, and how much. The last thing that they needed was for someone to get hammered, and try to pull something with military personnel present.
That said, Sasuke had made sure to impress upon his team that none of them were getting drunk tonight, and that if any of them tried, he would make sure to make their hangovers complete and utter hell as punishment. They were on guard duty, even when it felt like they were off-duty. And they all had to remember that.
Keeping all of the in mind, Sasuke escorts Hinata inside, his arm wrapped firmly around her waist as he let himself relax a little. "I don't understand why Naruto and Sakura like clubs so much…" He found them loud and obnoxious for the most part, and full of too many drunk people that he had to stop from hitting on him.
"I like them sometimes." She smiles at him. "It's fun to dance, but it can be a little loud." And dealing with frisky drunks wasn't always fun.
"A little loud, and a little crowded." Though Sasuke could smell several different kinds of alcohol, and not all of them were beer. Good. "But I think I can deal with a few drunk idiots, if the bartenders screw up." Because were bartenders infallible? Nope. Then again, not everyone was supposed to aspire to a superhuman level of excellence. "You're going to make me dance, aren't you?"
"Possibly." She looks up at him and laughs softly. Though there was always Option B. "I doubt you'd agree to the to the alternative."
"Do I want to know what the alternative is?" Knowing Hinata, and what she'd been going on about in the car earlier, Sasuke was expecting to hear something…rather kinky. That, or just straight up embarrassing.
She smiles at him and wraps her arms around his neck. "We could always find a nice secluded corner to slink off into." The more secluded the better. "And make out like a pair of teenagers."
Oh, well now that was more tempting than Sasuke wanted to admit. But he did still have his brother, her cousin, and her friend to look out for. It wouldn't really be fair to make the rest of his team keep an eye on the whole club alone. "…Maybe later. And somewhere where no one is going to walk in on us."
"Alright. Dancing it is." She smiles as she tugs on his hand slightly, trying to gently nudge him to the floor with her.
"Tch, if you can call this dancing." It was all just a bunch of grinding and dirty dancing, as far as he could tell. There was no style, no finesse to it at all. "Calling this dancing is like calling ping pong, tennis."
Hinata laughs at him. "Such a perfectionist. There are many forms of dance and not all of them are elegant." She wraps her arms around his neck, once she had him on the dance floor. "Some are just an excuse to get close to someone."
"And you need an excuse to get close to me?" He wraps his arms around her waist, pulling her a few inches closer. It felt nice to have her so close, even if every few seconds, his eyes wandered, taking in a new corner of the club, just to make sure that security didn't overlook anything.
"Mhm." She sways to the music with him. "I"m glad that you're relaxing at least a little. It's not good to always be so tense." Though she understood it was for his job.
"Well, you're a hard person not to relax around." She always put him off his guard easier than he'd like to admit. "Plus, my team is here, so I don't have to keep watch all by myself." Sasuke turns them around a little, taking in a new corner of the room, before returning his attention to Hinata.
"I'm glad." Hinata smiles and relaxes as she rests her head on his shoulder. "I like it this way best."
"Then enjoy it, I don't relax in public often." At least, not anymore. While on shore leave was one thing, with her to watch, it was another story entirely. She also had a habit of making him say things that…maybe he shouldn't. "There's a lot of things that I don't do often in public."
She tilts her head at that. "Is that your way of saying that you're into exhibitionism?" Hinata knew that wasn't what he meant, but it was fun to tease him.
He shoots her a flat semi-glare. "There's also a lot of things that I don't SPEAK of in public." Least of all to his new…tentative girlfriend? Whatever. "But no, not really…not by choice."
Hinata smiles and kisses him. "You're so cute when you sulk." The bluenette knew that he hated it when she compared him to a wet cat when he was fuming, but it was true. Though she was almost there. She just needed to distract him a little more.
He grumbles into the kiss for a moment. "Would you stop calling me cute?" He was not cute, not at all, no matter what Itachi and their parents said. "And I do not sulk." Honestly, Sasuke was a SEAL, not some toddler on the playground. Sulking was beneath him.
"Yes, you do." She giggles at him. "Though this time, you have a reason to. Because, I win." She spanks him. "I told you that I would do it." Her eyes dance with mischief.
There's a twitch of the eye, before a smirk crawls onto Sasuke's face. "It seems that I underestimated you." She was more determined than he'd given her credit for. He leans in close to her ear, one of his hands firm on her wrist. "Someone is being a very naughty little kitten."
Hinata blushes at his closeness and his words. "I told you that I was going to do it." He just hadn't believed her. "Now, you'll know to take me more seriously."
"Hn." Sasuke smirks at her audacity. It was a bit out of character, but it suited her. She was growing bolder. "Then I'll take your warnings more seriously in the future." His eyes dart around, taking note of Naruto and Sakura staring at the two of them, and Itachi similarly smirking at the sight as he carries on with Neji. "And I suggest that you take mine seriously. I WILL pay you back when you least expect it. You'll never see it coming."
"I'll keep that in mind." She squeaks, not sure whether she should be terrified or excited. "Though you asked for that one."
"And you're asking for a lot more." Well, Sasuke was definitely getting aroused by the sassiness of his charge. "But ask for it later, because I'm not doing that sort of thing in public." He did have boundaries, after all. He wasn't Naruto, who was willing to jump his lovers anytime, anywhere.
Hinata blushes and dances with him more. "Good to know." Even if she had been open to that sort of thing, she was the president's daughter. Just dancing and kissing was more than enough for the tabloids to salivate over.
Neji looks across the room, shaking his head amusedly at the sight of his cousin, dancing so closely with her bodyguard. "I'm not entirely sure why, but those two seem to think that we don't already know about them." Preposterous. He would be a very poor politician if he missed such obvious things.
"Well I do call him my foolish little brother for a good reason." Itachi watches them in similar amusement. "We should probably humor them and pretend we don't know for awhile longer, though." Best not to give his brother any excuse to get cold feet.
"Yes…perhaps in that arena, however…" Neji scrutinizes the soft, though obviously deceiving clubbing clothes that Itachi had insisted he wear. "His choice in clothing is…interesting. Will you tell me now why you insisted that I wear what Sasuke chose?" Not that he had any issues with the outfit, the dark jeans and matching shirt and jacket, done in black, blue, and with hints of purple, were very stylish, of course. But he doubted that there was a benign reason for Itachi's brother picking out his wardrobe for the evening.
He didn't want to alarm Neji, but Itachi also didn't want to lie to him. "He takes his job very seriously." Which wasn't without good reason considering he got it by thwarting an assassination attempt. "They're all bulletproof."
"…Are you serious?" Neji wasn't sure whether to call that sort of strategy genius, or whether to be alarmed at the fact that Sasuke seemed to believe that it was a definite possibility that they would be attacked in a place like this. It was borderline paranoia!
"I'm serious." Itachi nods. "Well it's better safe than sorry, I suppose." Though the methods might been excessive by his standards, he knew better than to argue with them.
"Of course." Neji saw the logic, but still, it made him a little uneasy. "Should I also assume that the new additions to my cousin's wardrobe are a similar kind of protection?"
Well there was no point in lying. Neji was more than intelligent enough to figure it out. "Yes, they are." It wouldn't make much sense to give them bulletproof clothing, but not Hinata.
Of course, why had he even entertained the thought of thinking differently. These were far from ordinary bodyguards. "Well, then shall we push our luck with the dance floor?" Neji puts down the glass that had once contained some rather good whiskey, expensive too. "After all, we're not the ones who are required to stay sober. Or on alert."
"That sounds like a fine idea to me." Itachi smirks as he takes Neji's hand in his own. "We may as well take advantage of our good circumstance."
With the couples on the dance-floor, and Sai looking after Ino, Naruto smiles at Sakura as he keeps a watchful eye on the room, a glass of rum in his hand. "See anything that we should be worried about?" He didn't seriously expect anyone to give them any trouble here, since only their parents and the staff knew they were coming tonight, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Something that Sasuke would pound into his head again, if he forgot.
"Well potentially concerning." Sakura glances at Hinata and Sasuke. "They are getting pretty close over there." It was strange to see Sasuke dancing with someone who wasn't one of them. Their relationship was over, but he'd never really dated afterward. "I mean she seems nice, but she is the president's daughter."
"Yeah, but he seems to like her." Naruto just hoped that he liked her enough to actually hang on to her. But to reassure his lover, Naruto kisses her cheek, wrapping an arm around her waist. "I know that it feels weird to not have him with us, but he looks happy." Well… "As happy as the Bastard IS on a good day."
She nods and leans back into him. "That's true." Well it was bound to happen eventually. "I guess he wasn't going to stay single forever."
"Yeah…and you gotta admit, they look good together." Naruto missed Sasuke, and he knew that Sakura and Sai did as well, but the important thing was that their friend was happy. And preferably…not borderline homicidal because of his possessiveness issues. "Come on, let's go dance. Everything's calm, and since we're supposed to be the sober one, I need to MOVE!"
"You never change." Sakura laughs as she drags him to the dance floor. "But alright. Let's see what you can do, Blondie."
Naruto grins. Oh yeah, this was going to be a good night. Well, once they managed to pry Hinata's friend off Sai and go home.
Four, maybe this time, that would be enough, coupled with the busy, public atmosphere. One for each target, and one to take care of any pesky bodyguards that decided to get in the way. And Fu could see them, the four bodyguards, milling about, close to the targets, and keeping a watchful eye on the other patrons.
Smuggling weapons inside had been exceedingly difficult, but not even security could know all ways to sneak a weapon inside. And Fu made sure that their presence went as unnoticed as possible. "Keep to the shadows. Keep the targets in your sight." They needed to make sure that Hinata and Neji Hyuga, and Itachi Uchiha breathed their last this night. They would never see the sky again.
Gozu nods. "Got it." His voice was so quiet, that it barely qualified as a whisper. Though he was sure his teammate heard him nonetheless.
His elder brother, Mezu, tightens the silencer on his own concealed weapon. "I have the Uchiha." His eyes were drifting back and forth over the form of the senator, dancing there in the center with his boyfriend, or so the tabloids liked to claim. Whether it was true or not mattered little, they would both die tonight. "If I have a clear shot at the representative, I will shoot twice." Only the first shot would go unnoticed, so it would be best to strike all at once. But if circumstances dictated otherwise, they had each doubled up on targets, just to be sure.
"Understood." It was now or never. "Danzo will be pleased. Try to spare Sai if possible." While their employer was willing to sacrifice his grandson's life for the greater cause, there as no reason to kill the boy needlessly.
"Good." Torune makes a single small gesture with his hand, indicating for the rest of the team to spread throughout the room. His target was the girl, Hinata. And he knew that, given the chance, it would be best to take out the younger Uchiha at the same time. With the elder brother dead, the younger would likely retaliate. This was to ensure that the latter did not happen.
The rest of the team spreads throughout the room, meticulously placing the three targets within their sights. The dancing bodies made it difficult to get a clean shot, and the plan was NOT to turn this into a slaughter. The dancing lights shine on and off the four assassins in the room, half concealed at the edges of the crowd.
Fu's hand rises, and four guns aim as one.
Near the edge of the crowd, Sasuke pulls Hinata back towards the booth that their team had staked out, one with a clear view of the entire room. He'd honestly had enough of nearly being stampeded by the eager dancers. "I still can't believe that you convinced me to do this." He shakes his head. "Honestly, it's like you get a kick out of-" A sharp pain rockets through his back as something tiny and hard, and extremely fast rams into his upper back. That was definitely going to leave a bruise. "DOWN!"
Sakura hears the call over the sounds of the music, her hand already pulling her Glock from its holster at the sound of Sasuke's voice. "Everyone down!" Someone was shooting, and they had to protect their targets, as well as whatever civilians they could. Her eyes race around, looking for the shooter. Shooters? How many were there?
Hinata immediately gets down. Was someone shooting?! What was going on? Suddenly, her heart was pounding in her chest in terror as a bullet goes whizzing past her face.
Sasuke's gun rises to just below his left eye as he takes in the sight of Sai covering Ino, and Naruto and Sakura already on top of his brother and Hinata's cousin. It looked like Itachi had taken a bullet to the shoulder, by the way he was holding it. But no blood, good. That meant that the bulletproof clothing was holding up. "Hinata, I need you to do everything I say, when I say it, is that clear?" The other patrons were already racing around in a panic, and he had an assassin, or assassins to find. "Get under the table, and stay there. Cover yourself with your jacket and don't come out unless you hear my voice."
She nods and quickly darts under the table. Hinata had never been so scared in her life, but she was going to have to trust Sasuke's judgment on this one.
Dark eyes dart around the room, before locking on to a hostile-looking patron. Sasuke takes a step away from the table, and then another, putting himself firmly between the figure and Hinata. He saw as three other guns were raised, all pointing in different directions. Multiple shooters. They had multiple shooters in the club. FUCK! And the damn lighting made it impossible to see properly.
It took half a second for shots to start being fired, and Sasuke was desperately trying to get a clear shot at one of the shooters. It seemed like when the initial plan failed, these shooters had decided to blitz the place. That would amount to a lot of civilian casualties, and already, he could smell blood as patrons race for the door, some of them severely injured. It was complete and utter chaos as Sasuke took his first shot, nailing the approaching shooter in the chest.
Torune falls to the ground, clutching his chest. While Sasuke was distracted though, Mezu slams into him from behind. "Bulletproof clothes, huh?" He smirks. "Probably should have seen that coming, but it won't save you."
Damn it! How had he not seen or heard the man coming!? Well, the music and screams in the club, and the flashing lights that screwed with his sniper's vision, of course. But still, he should have been prepared for this. Prepared for having to wrestle one of the assassins across the ground. "I suppose asking you won't tell me who's behind all this!?" He aims a punch at the man's nose, his other hand reaching for one of his black, single edged, serrated Navy-issue combat knives. He'd hidden six of them on his body, just in case.
"Good guess." Mezu smirks as he wrestles with Sasuke. The two of them grappling in the chaos. "You're a tough son of a bitch, but you aren't walking out of here alive!"
"Maybe, but Hinata will be!" Sasuke slashes upwards with his knife, upending the assassin on top of him and flipping them over, his gun nearly within reach.
While his brother was busy dealing with the bodyguard, Gozu came at Hinata underneath the table. He he'd seen her dive down there. Smart, but not smart enough. "Bulletproof clothes don't save you from a head shot." Well he had a point there, but Hinata had an advantage. He had to fire off the shot at an awkward angle.
So she did the first thing that came to her mind. Granted, she wasn't proud of it, but SMACK! She slams her heel into his crotch region making him back up, dropping his weapon as his hands reflexively reach for the afflicted area. That allowed Sai the opportunity to take a shot. His gun fired a bullet straight into the other man's head. Killing him instantly as Hinata quickly grabs his gun and fires off a shot at the man grappling with Sasuke.
Her aim wasn't the best. She missed, but it distracted him long enough that for a moment, he pauses trying to figure out where the shot was coming from. And that moment was all Sasuke needed to make an effective counter-attack.
Rolling off his opponent, Sasuke snatches up his gun, putting a bullet square between Mezu's eyes. It was over in an instant, and Sasuke swerves back, placing himself inches in front of Hinata. No one was getting close to her a second time. Two dead, that left at least one more, if not two or more. "Naruto!"
"Working on it!" Naruto practically snarls out as he fires off a shot in to the heart of one of the other would be assassins. "There's another one lurking around, I think!" That was three down and probably one to go. Blood was already beginning to gush forth from the wounds, coating his shoes. He'd have to be careful not to slip, if a sneaky son of a bitch tried to come at him.
Fu snarls in the darkness, this mission yet another failure. Maybe… He had a shot, he could at least take out the senator. Danzo would be very displeased if he returned with yet another failure, and he likely wouldn't survive that displeasure. Best to do what he could here, and maybe…he might just make it out alive.
He lifted his gun…and took the shot. Right at the side of Itachi's head. And thanks to the Hyuga…he had just about missed.
"ITACHI!" Neji's voice echoes through the club as the senator cries out in pain, before slumping into his arms.
Green eyes widening, Sakura's hands move on reflex, tracing back the path of the bullet, and firing off all of her rounds into the darkness, before reloading faster than anyone could blink, and emptying another clip. Then she heard the body drop. All was quiet, save for Neji's frantic mutterings.
"Oh God!" Hinata stares in horror as she realizes Sasuke's brother had been shot. "Itachi!"
"ITACHI!" Sasuke's heart was beating a mile a minute at seeing his brother's collapsed form in Neji's arms.
Sakura is on her knees in an instant while Naruto calls for an ambulance, or several. Her fingers flit over Itachi, moving his hair as she examines the wound. "Shallow gunshot wound to the head, targeting the temporal lobe." Right above his ear. "Cranium appears cracked, but not shattered. Heavy bleeding, and he's in need of surgery." Normally, she could get it out herself, but she hadn't brought her medical kit along, since she hadn't expected to need it tonight. And when she notes Sasuke's expression of utter terror, she hardens her own expression. "Leaves, Sasuke. Remember our promise."
Their promise? …Right…to keep a level head, no matter the situation, to stay focused and with a clear goal, no matter one's own personal feelings about it. The promise they'd made under the leaves of a huge maple tree, not far from the academy. They'd made it right after graduation. Sasuke grits his teeth. "Will he be alright?"
"If we get him to the hospital quickly, yes, he should be." For now, she was doing what she could to stop the bleeding, applying pressure to the surrounding veins and arteries, without pushing the bullet in any deeper. "He'll need a while to recover, but if nothing else, an Uchiha is a survivor."