Hi. Me again. I'm pumped because this story is finally 'M' rated! And you know what that means! Yup, it's porn! Seriously, though, I'm a first time smut writer so just... lower you expectations a little.

Please comment, review, ect. You all know the drill! Kisses!

Every movement; every twitch was a burning fever dream. The slightest movement was pain. Then ache. Then heavy. And it all faded to the boiling haze. When droplets of water hit Sasuke's face it brought on euphoria. He was so hot the water might have turned to steam as it touched his skin. A damp cloth pressed on his forehead and a cool arm slid under his head to lift him ever so slightly.

The touch of something hard on his lips, and a chide. "Drink."

He almost choked at the first mouthful. The water felt sore going down his throat, but it felt good and cool in his mouth.

"There you are." He was laid back down. He quickly passed out.

Kirika wrung the wet cloth over Sasuke's face before placing it over his forehead. She lifted his head off the futon and pressed a cup of water to his mouth. "Drink."

He gagged when she tipped the cup forward, but drank none the less.

He passed out, still propped up in her arms. She'd bandaged the near entirety of his chest, and his shoulder. She diagnosed organ damage, broken bones, burn wounds, and severe exhaustion. He was healing, and he wasn't nearly as bad as when Kirika first brought him to the base but he was, however, still running a fever.

Kirika laid him back down and rubbed her face with her palms, more from tiredness than distress. She hadn't had much sleep since Sasuke's fight. "What am I doing?" When her right arm slid to her side, the left one went to rub the curse mark on her neck. Sasuke had lost his.

"Itachi just had to die and screw me over, didn't he?"

Sasuke's brow twitched and the occasional limb gave a slight jolt. Her eye's locked on him every time he moved, and her stomach tightened.

Kirika stood suddenly, she had to get out, just for a minute.

Out in the hallway, she leaned with her back on the wall, hunched over, and covered her eyes with her hands.

Now she knew she would not, could not, kill him. Not after all the training, and all the teasing, and all the stories. Not after the chunin exams and the hospital visits. Not after the comfort he gave her after her mother died. Not after leaving Konoha. Not after three years of plotting and running from base to base. Those memories that Sasuke embodied were too precious. The only things precious to her.

Kirika slid down to the floor. Her head tilted back on the wall. On the other side Sasuke was sleeping. Kirika was glad to be in a base with no other people; she left Kabuto behind before she met Itachi. She wanted no witnesses to her emotions. The many, many emotions: anger, resent, hurt, relief, envy.

"Why?" She hissed, fingers clawing at her curse mark. She took out her pocket watch and flipped open the face to her family portrait. Orochimaru's kind smile mocked her. "Why didn't you tell me? Why did you let me grieve!?"

Now she knew her father was not gone. She could revive him with her curse mark.

Kirika stabbed the wall with a kunai. "Damn it!" Her eyes were dry; her teeth ground in frustration. No tears threatened to escape.

She could. But she wouldn't.

The next time Sasuke woke up he was much more coherent. The pain had dulled and his fever broke, but the grog stayed and he felt weak.

His head turned to the side, mouth parted slightly, eyes calm and carefully probing. "Itachi?"

"He's dead."

Sasuke sat up slouching.

"Lay back down." Kirika put one arm around his back, and the other pressed gently on his chest to guide him back down. "You were too reckless. Were you hoping you'd both die?"

"He's dead..." Sasuke rubbed his eyes with his palms. "He's dead..." He breathed a laugh. "Aren't you going to congratulate me?"

"You have some nerve."

"It's good to see you too." A satisfied smile spread danced on his lips. "Are you going to torture me?" He was bandaged. If she went to the trouble of healing him she wasn't likely to kill him.

"Doubt it."

His head turned centre. "That's good."

"How do you feel?"

Sasuke smiled "I've never been better."

She eyed him.

Sitting up again, Sasuke let out a breath and looked back at her. "Kirika, I never wanted to hurt you."

To his surprise, her expression was more amused than angred. "You didn't seem to care. To be honest though, at this point neither do I." She touched her neck, fingers rubbing her curse mark. "You're curse mark's gone."

Sasuke's hand wandered thoughtfully to his neck. "I wanted to help you."

"You wanted what was best for yourself. Get off your high-fucking-horse." It didn't sound vindictive. She spoke matter-of-factly, with a hint of humour, even.

She was done. Sasuke felt a twinge of annoyance, because he was too. "You not still mad at me over Orochimaru."

She shrugged. "Well, what can I say? Power is fun. I like my new position of leadership. He taught me not mourn, father would understand. I'm mad because you're a hypocrite. I don't like being cheated."

Cheated? Sasuke chuckled sarcastically. "You are such a crazy hateful bitch." He looked at her, still grinning and shook his head. "Why do I love such a crazy hateful bitch?"

He grunted in surprise, eyes widened at the shock and ache of his wounds. Kirika was on top of him, her knees on his chest and her hands at his throat. Her grip was like steel. She laughed and squeezed with all the frustration she felt. At him for his attitude, for the pain he caused her, for taking what was hers, for the feelings he evoked. And at her father for all the pain he could have spared her from. She laughed. "I guess you're just unlucky!"

Sasuke struggled under her, he clawed at her wrists and fingers. His legs kicked out.

"Oh, come on. You just killed Itachi Uchiha." She leant down so her face hovered above his, her hair fell around his head. "So you're a bit banged up, you can do better than that!" She leaned down, and dashed him into a kiss the way a vicious wave dashes a cliff. Sasuke gripped her wrists. She bit, again and again, tearing at his lips. The rich, coppery taste of hemoglobin exploded on her tongue.

Sasuke forced one hand under her knees on his chest, and and then between them to grip her stomach. His fingers hooked into her flesh and twisted. Kirika coughed out in her surprise. Her wrists were pulled off Sasuke's neck by the hand still gripping them.

When she fell her shoulder crashed onto Sasuke's stomach. He turned his head to the side and spat out a wad of blood, gasped quickly, and glared up at her. "You wanna play rough, you crazy bitch?" His hand tightened and twisted the flesh of her stomach as far as he could. Kirika gasped. He grabbed the back of her head with his other hand and pushed it back down. Their teeth hit against each other, and before their kiss escalated, he pulled her hair; forcing her head to the side as her Kusinagi blade flew from her mouth. It embedded in the wall to their right.

"You're tricky. But I know you." Sasuke let out a laugh and sat up. Kirika fell down onto his lap. Her legs, folded on his chest when she was strangling him, fell out on either side of him. Sasuke inhailed, when Kirika slid she ground against him. The whole situation he found oddly arousing. His hand was still in her hair.

Sasuke felt her fingers curl around his wrist at her stomach. She could feel him hardening between her spread legs. "You're a sick bastard." She was grinning wildly; madly. With the slow turn of her head they were face to face. "And you're as fucked up as I am if this is what get's you up."

"Shut up." He wretched the hand on her stomach free of her grip. It fell on the small of her back and he pushed her down so she ground further down on him. It took her aback, she inhaled quickly. Sasuke was full of surprises, he pushed her down again and yanked her hair back once more, his eyes fixated on the pure white skin of her neck. How it bobbing each time he forced her down. His head dipped slowly, he dragged his tongue over the vein before sinking his teeth into the flesh.

"Guh!"

His head flew back and spun. She head-butted him. Her teeth were on his neck before re-oriented himself. She shoved him back down, biting and sucking feverously. His arms flew up and were dashed back down by hers; she was still grinding against him. She sure likes to go for the throat.

Then she paused with a lazy breath, her hand slid down his pants to cup his manhood. She chuckled against his neck, freed him of his pants gently and gave a few soft strokes. Then she squeezed. Hard.

Sasuke grit his teeth with the sharp intake of breath. "Kirika, I've had enough of your nonsense." Sasuke's arm pulled up, back to her hair and yanked. Their eyes met, Sasuke's sharingan swirled to life.

Kirika froze, he flipped her over, onto her back. "B-bastard!" A paralysis justu.

"Bitch." Sasuke ripped open her yukata and clamped one hand around her neck, squeezing as hard as she had. "Is this what you like!?" He snarled, tossed her leg aside and thrust into her.

"Aah!" Kirika gasped, or tried to, but with Sasuke's firm grip on her throat she managed only a wheeze. Wide eyed, her mouth fell open—the only part of her capable of motion.

Where Kirika tried to gasp in surprise, Sasuke shut his eyes at the overwhelming heat and tightness around him. He pulled out almost all the way to snap his hips and rebury himself to the hilt. The gasp escaping Kirika's lips sent an excited shiver down his spine. He pressed his free hand onto her chest, partly to balance, mostly to take her left breast in hand. Then he began to move, thrusting his hips, egged on by every tremble and shutter of Kirika's body below him. He wondered vaguely if Kirika was finding any pleasure in this.

The vice like grip on Kirika's neck loosened ever so slightly and Sasuke's clutch on her breast tightened. Her trembling vision, clouded by near-asphyxiation, but Kirika could feel Sasuke watched him costly the whole time. She could feel herself pulsating around him.

When Sasuke's grip tightened on her neck Kirika's vision went black for a moment. Sasuke threw his head back as he spilt inside her. He groaned and lowered his forehead to rest on her sternum. When his hand slipped from her throat she gasped in; desperate for more air than her lungs could hold, then cried out as she climaxed.

Sasuke panted, Kirika coughed. He pulled out of her slowly and rolled over next to her.

When he regained his bearings he sat up and drank in the sight of Kirika splayed out next to him. His eyes wandered over the angry red print his hand left on her neck; her shaking breasts on her still-heaving chest, the left of which was also red; her bear, shapely hips still splayed open. He rested a hand on her hip, tracing gentle patterns on her pale skin. He marvelled at how red and pronounced marks were on the pure white tone of her flesh.

Kirika mumbled something.

"What?"

Her voice was a cracking rasp. "I'm still paralyzed."

"I know." His fingertips swirled around her nipple and he felt her shutter beneath them. "I like you better this way."

"Oh? You're becoming a nice little danger to society."

Sasuke's fingers ghosted over the red marks on her neck; over the vein. Red wasn't the only colour to mark her. There were the pronounced, grey scars that he refused to trace with his fingers. Not the more faded random cut and puncture marks scattered here and there: the two neat, perfect straight lines left from scalpels, running vertically up the centre of her sternum and horizontally across her lower stomach. Looking at those leftover marks from experimentation and his own red angry clouds on her skin, he felt a twinge of guilt. "Did I hurt you?"

Kirika let out a quick, almost laughing breath. "No."

When his fingers trailed to her cheek she licked the tip, took it into her mouth and sucked. A pang of arousal returned and he tried not to imagine how those lips would feel... somewhere else. Sasuke sighed. "Loving you is awful."

She traced the length of his finger with her tongue as he withdrew if from her mouth. She licked the inner edges of her lips and looked at him with calm eyes. "Really?" Even in such a vulnerable position, her eyes pierced through his very being.

He loved those terrible eyes. "Sometimes."

Kirika looked to her side. "Feeling's mutual."

Sasuke paused. His sharingan faded and Kirika felt control returning to her body. When Sasuke cupped her face and touched his forehead to hers, Kirika covered his hands with hers. This was the Kirika he loved, with her gentle wit and playful seriousness.

She squeezed his hands. "But we're going to have to keep that a secret."

"...I know." He whispered, eyes shut.

Kirika rolled off Sasuke, both spent and panting.

"What was that?" Kirika breathed

"What?"

"What were you doing?"

He gave her a queer look. "Making love to you?"

"Is that what you call it? Why so slow?"

He quirked an eyebrow.

She sat up. "Why didn't you do it like last time?"

Sasuke breathed and shook his head. "You want me to force myself into you?"

"Yes. Why else would I take matters into my own hands? I don't want you to make love to me. I want you to fuck me. Maybe do the choking again, too. That was fun."

Sasuke let out a laughing breath and rubbed his eyes. "You know, at the time, I was trying to hurt you."

"Next time you should try harder."

She stood and made her way to the connected bathroom.

"I can't decide whether you're a sadist or masochist."

"Depends on the situation. Don't pretend you don't like it." The door shut. He heard the shower running.

Kirika's voice woke him up. Sasuke didn't remember dosing off, but she was wearing a white under kimono and her hair was still wet.

He rolled over. "What?"

"I take it those wounds are feeling alright. No bleeding?"

"No."

"I'll take a look in a bit. Stay in bed."

"And where are you going?"

"Down the hall. Maybe outside."

Sasuke touched his bandaged chest. It felt fine, like he was never injured. "Kirika, how long have I been down here?"

"Two weeks."

"Two weeks? How am I so healthy in such a short amount of time?"

"I tested a lot of experimental drugs on you. About a year ago I developed an amazing cellular regenerative vaccine, but I had a few variations and other substances."

He shot her a glare. "Of course you did."

She chuckled. "Haven't seen that defiant look in a while." She grinned playfully. "I missed it."

He'd never admit he missed her teasing, too. "Any... side effects I should know about?"

"If I told you that you'd think you had them all."

Another thought crossed his mind. "What happened to Itachi's body?"

"It's here. I haven't dissected it yet... Did you want to watch?"

He paused, it was tempting. "...No."

She shrugged. "Suit yourself." And looked back before leaving the room. "Try to sleep."

Kirika crushed the herbs into a paste.

Above her workspace in the laboratory she left a desk lamp on for the white snake to sunbathe.

What she wanted to do was dissect Itachi's head, and the only thing keeping her from doing that was Sasuke. He needed healing and that was the pressing matter. She mused over whether it was pressing enough to take it easy in bed.

It was not.

"He's well enough to get the better of me with that sharingan." She mumbled

That was what spiked her interest. She'd almost forgotten how powerful it was. Since Sasuke caught her in a paralysis jutsu she simply could not break, dissecting Itachi was all she could think about.

She collected the paste and new bandages. The snake hissed when she neared the door. She looked back at it, eyes dancing.

Kirika held out her arm, to which the snake slithered. She held it up to her face. "You just gave me an idea."

When Sasuke woke up, Kirika was kneeling against the wall opposite him. Her head was lowered, the shadows covered her eyes. A bowl of old bandage of was beside her.

He sat up. "Did you change my bandages?"

She didn't answer.

"Kirika."

"She can't hear you."

Sasuke's eyes shot to the man in the mask leaning against the other wall. Before he turned his gaze Sasuke noted the drooping glazed eyes and blank expression on Kirika's face. Genjutsu.

"Don't worry about her." The man said. "She's only sleeping, so let's you and I talk."

That man... the idiot with the blond Akatsuki...

"We've met once before, as enemies. But don't worry about Deidara. I'm no longer your foe. I'm here to tell you something important."

Sasuke had been able to use his sharingan on Kirika. And his wounds felt fine when he moved. The man in front of him was obviously proficient in genjustu powerful enough to stun Kirika. He'd also observed Sasuke fighting his teammate. They were in close quarters, and Sasuke knew Oto bases. However, the man had Kirika hostage, and even if he just left her here sitting there in such a restricted area she was sure to be caught in the crossfire.

The man cocked his head. "Not interested, I see. Maybe you'll pay attention if I say it like this: It's about Itachi Uchiha."