Chapter 28: Ukiyo Pt. 2

"Can one ever find pleasure in the truth?"

|Karin|

Once the room door locked behind me, I held a hand to my head and shut my eyes.

'This can't be real.' I thought to myself as I went over the past couple hours, 'There's no way any of this is real.'

Kisame had called me out of my room to meet with Pain and presumably see Konan. I had fully expected to be taken to the underground laboratory and find Konan in her room-turned-cell, only for Kisame to take me upstairs to Pain's office, but it wasn't until Kisame knocked on the door and Pain called for us to come in that everything really went sideways.

To my shock, Konan and Pain stood in the center of the office, slow dancing to low music that floated throughout the room.

"Misaki-san!" Konan exclaimed as she dropped Pain's hands and ran over to me, "It's so good to see you!"

She spun me around as she hugged me, and I patted her back in confusion before looking up at Pain. He too had a smile on his face, and it wasn't one filled with ill-intent or meant to intimidate. No, just like Konan, he seemed to be genuinely happy.

As Konan released me and went over to give Kisame a hug, I gave him a look. Kisame remained neutral as he accepted Konan's show of affection, and Konan soon returned to Pain's side. Kisame strolled over to the radio and lowered the volume as Pain called for my attention.

"I know you've been worried about Konan since you're return but she was going through some sensitive treatment so you couldn't visit her." Pain explained as he approached me, "As you can see, it worked, so I'm happy to tell you that you've been relieved of your status as Konan's caretaker."

"What?" I looked from Konan to Pain and back to Konan, "I don't—"

"Arigato, Misaki." Pain clasped his hands on my shoulders and looked into my eyes, "You were such a big help, but I'm sure you'd prefer it if you could spend your time with Toshiaki."

Konan came over to us and joined Pain in touching my shoulder, "Hontōni, Misaki-san. It must've been hard spending so much time away from him, ne? Gomennasai, but at least I'm all better now. You don't have to worry about me anymore!"

I stepped away from the both of them and looked back at Kisame before taking three long blinks, and when the scene before me remained the same, I shook my head, "I…What is happening right now?"

"We just told you—" Konan began but I interrupted her.

"She's all better?" I looked at Pain as I spoke, "Last time I saw her she tried to kill herself and I'm supposed to believe she was magically cured of all her issues?"

Konan winced at my word choice before pressing a hand to her head and Pain quickly held her to his chest before looking at me with that signature death glare of his. He nodded his head at Kisame and Kisame gently took Konan from him before heading for the door.

"Nagato?" Konan called his name uncertainly, looking over her shoulder as the two walked by.

"I'll be with you soon." Pain assured her, giving her a soft smile, a stark contrast to the expression he'd just shot me.

As soon as the door closed, Pain's smile fell off his face and he turned to me with a thin line for a mouth.

"For Toshiaki's wife, you sure are a special kind of obtuse." Pain insulted me as he went around his desk and sat in his chair, "You don't know how to read a room?"

I ignored his abuse and crossed my arms, "Gomen, was everything I saw just now an act? If I had known that then I would have—"

"No, it wasn't an act." Pain cut me off, sighing, "Maybe it was wrong of me to call you obtuse; unsophisticated might've been a better term. In any case, Konan's obviously not her normal self and that's due to the treatment she received."

"Which was?"

Pain pursed his lips, "None of your business. All you need to know is that it resulted in her mood being permanently lifted to a happy one."

"How is that possible?" I immediately questioned once he'd finished speaking.

He let out another exasperated sigh, "Through science and trial and error. Her mood will stay uplifted so long as no unpleasant memories or events are discussed in her presence, which was why you mentioning her suicide as soon as you saw her was a particularly foolish move. I thought you were supposed to be more sensitive to that kind of thing."

I nodded, accepting how it had been a bit stupid to just blurt out one of Konan's darkest moments after seeing her for the first time in weeks, but I would save my apologies for after I learned more Konan's treatment and the effect it seemingly had on her.

"So…what?" I clapped my hands together, "She just stays happy forever? She's not allowed to be sad or angry or anything else?"

Pain nodded his head, and I furrowed my eyebrows, "Then she isn't cured. She's just living in a fake world, a fantasy. And seeing as how she started faltering from the one thing I said, it won't be long before someone bursts her bubble, and everything comes crashing down."

"That won't happen." Pain disagreed.

"How do you know?" I immediately challenged him, "You can't control everything she hears, and you certainly can't control everything people say. This isn't the way, Oyabun."

"…And what is?" He said after a pause, staring at me intently, "Chaining her to a bed 24/7 until she miraculously gets better?"

"You—"

"Or letting her out and just hoping that you don't wake up to her dead body beside you or in the bath one morning?" He continued, standing up and coming around the table, "Tell me, Misaki, which of those sounds better than what I've managed to get right now?"

"None of them, but—"

"She's finally, finally able to stand on her own two feet, able to be alone for extended periods of time and not have to be resuscitated or patched up because she attempted to take her life and you want me to undo her treatment because you think it's…fake?" Pain towered over me as he brought his argument to a close, "Well, let me tell you something: reality is a very terrible place. If her illusion is the only thing keeping her happy, then I will make sure her illusion is unbreakable. Do you understand?"

Sensing that he wasn't looking to discuss the subject any further, I nodded my head and Pain stepped back.

"I'm sorry for the insults I hurled at you earlier." He apologized as he straightened his vest, "I'm…very passionate about this topic."

"I understand." I assured him, not wanting to give him any reasons to turn on me, "I also want what's best for Konan, but as you said, the other options aren't very viable."

He nodded in agreement and motioned for us to head to the door, "I never even planned on having this discussion. The reason why I called you here was because Konan said she wanted to go for a walk in the garden with you."

"I better go for that walk then."

Pain led me to the two's shared room and there we found Konan on the sofa fiddling with a paper crane. At the sight of us, she hugged us again and Pain reminded her about her walk in the gardens before she happily tugged me out of the room and outside.

During our walk, I tried to get anything I could out of Konan. Once we were alone, I asked her outright if she was okay and if she was pretending, urging her to drop the act now that we were alone, but this route proved to be incorrect as she began to furrow her brows and ask why I was acting so strange.

I had half a mind to ask her the same thing but kept the rebuttal to myself and instead opted to ask about her treatment. The most I could get out of her without upsetting her was that Orochimaru had personally checked up on her in the early days of her regimen.

I thanked her for the information and made sure to impress upon her how important it was that she kept my questions a secret and it took a bit of convincing, but she promised me she wouldn't tell anyone about my inquiries. That was another thing I didn't like about this new attitude of Konan's.

Her cheery nature had reduced her to a sort of childlike state which I couldn't get used to no matter how much I tried. Where was the intellectual older woman I had grown close to over the weeks?

After concluding our walk and returning Konan to her room, I searched the grounds for Orochimaru, only to learn that he'd gone into the city to pay a visit to one of his old medical friends.

"Karin?" Sasuke's voice brought me back to the present and I turned around and saw him on the couch.

I didn't allow him to get up, instead falling on top of him and burying my head into his chest with a sigh.

"Daijōbu?" He ran a hand down my back, "What happened?"

"Nothing and everything." I murmured as I inhaled his scent, "Pain did something to Konan and I'm not exactly sure what it was but she's happy now."

Sasuke raised an intrigued eyebrow, "And that's a bad thing?"

I flicked him in the forehead before sitting up, "Unnaturally happy. I can't explain it, but she shouldn't be that happy when you consider what she recently went through."

"Hm." He hummed as his eyes fluttered shut once more, "Well, take your investigations slow, he might be happy now, but any sloppy digging can lead to him turning on you quicker than you can blink."

I nodded and Sasuke let out a contented sigh before shifting under me and getting comfy, but before he could go back to sleep, I asked him about the job he'd set out to do so early in the morning.

"Like I said before, not much to talk about." Sasuke answered with a yawn, "With how big Akatsuki is, it's no surprise that they would be in the business of loaning out money, and some people won't pay up without a punch to the face."

"Okay well what about the chain you have?" I questioned, recalling the golden Cuban link I'd found in his jacket pocket, "Was that like a down payment or a peace offering or something?"

His eyes remained shut as he rolled his head to one side, "…Chain? I don't have any chain."

"Yes, you do?" I tapped his face lightly, urging him to open his eyes and look at me, "It fell out of your pocket when I was hanging your jacket up. You got it from one of the debtors, right? That's why it had some blood on it?"

I gave him a moment to fully wake up, and after he'd rubbed his sleep-ladden eyes and sat up, he shook his head, "Karin, I don't know what you're talking about. I don't have any chain."

My stomach began to sink as the negative alternatives I had pushed out of my mind began to remind me of their existence.

|Sasuke|

"Sasuke-kun, please don't lie to me." Karin said as she stood up from the sofa, heading over to my jacket hanging behind the door, "The chain is right…"

Her words trailed of as she reached into my pocket and found nothing, and I silently commended myself for having hidden it away as soon as I got out of the shower. As Karin thoroughly searched my other pockets, I attempted to reinforce the notion that the chain didn't exist.

"Karin, maybe you're mixing it up with something else?" I offered another explanation, clearing my throat, "I don't have a chain; I don't even wear jewelry, you know this."

She shook out my jacket as I finished my words and turned to me, "Where did you put it?"

"Karin—"

She hung the jacket back up and glared, "Sasuke-kun, I swear to Buddha and the six realms that if you don't show me that chain and tell me how you got it…"

The threat was firm and resolute, but I decided to continue playing dumb. I had gotten rid of the central piece of evidence: the chain. All that was left was to convince her that it didn't exist, and that could be achieved by me so long as I stood my ground.

"Listen to me." I stood up, reaching out to her, "I have no idea what the chain you're talking about looks like, and I can't tell you where I got it from because I don't have it. Look, this might be a case of déjà vu and—"

"Don't try to gaslight me." She shook her head as I approached her, "I know what I saw, and I know what I felt! It was in my hand, and I put it back because I thought I could trust you to tell me the truth. I should've just held on to it."

She tried to pull away from me as I touched her shoulders, but I held firm and forced her to look me in the eyes, "Karin, there is no chain."

"Swear to me." Her eyebrows furrowed as I stared into her contact-covered irises, "Right now."

"I swear." I didn't hesitate to agree with her demands and pulled her into a hug as I repeated the oath, "I swear I have no chain."

Karin's hands weakly snaked around my neck, and I felt her body shiver like she was crying. I ran a gentle hand up and down her back as I urged her not to cry.

"It's okay." I told her in a quiet voice, "People get things confused all the time, I'm sure this was just one of those—"

A hard shove from Karin cut me off and sent me stumbling backwards, and I fell back a decent distance before regaining my footing. When I looked up, Karin was swiping at her tear-filled eyes and looking at me with an expression of utter defeat.

"You…are such a liar." She sniffled as she shook her head, crossing her arms, "Even after everything we spoke about in Ame, even after what we did yesterday, you're still so…Buddha be merciful."

She turned toward the door, and I quickly went over to it and pressed my hand against it to stop her from leaving, "Karin, wait. I'm not lying."

"Sasuke-kun, move." She wouldn't meet my eyes as she tearfully answered, "I can't be with someone if I can't believe a word out of their mouth."

A pang of pain shot through my heart at the devastating statement, but nevertheless I persisted in my attempts to deceive her and tugged her away from the door and towards the bed.

"Well, why can't you believe me?" I questioned, turning the focus to her as the two of us sat side by side on the bed, "I'm telling you the truth and you're ready to drop me because you think you saw a chain that I'm telling you I don't have?"

She gave me a look before wiping away her tears again and attempted to stand up, "This is a waste of time, you're never going to tell me anything."

"Wait." I grabbed her back down and held her to me so that she was somewhat sitting on my lap, "Do you not see how unreasonable you're being? I'm telling you I don't have a chain and have no idea what you're talking about, and you're ready to drop me for it!"

"Because you're lying!" She turned to me with a sudden fury, her eyes widening with rage, "You're lying to me over a stupid chain even after we slept together, and if you can lie about something like this, Buddha knows whether you've ever told me the truth."

I sighed as I rested my head against her shoulder, "How many times do I have to tell you I'm not lying?"

"You can say it as many times as you like." She shifted in my grasp, "I don't believe you. I'm not even sure if I can trust anything that comes out of your mouth anymore."

'This is going nowhere.' I thought to myself, becoming exasperated at the stalemate we had been locked in.

Of all the directions I had imagined this conversation going in, the possibility of her trust in me being called into question had never crossed my mind. Although I had been hoping I wouldn't have had to rely on it, there was only one way I was going to be able to end this back-and-forth, so with an internal sigh, I put it into effect.

"I love you." I murmured as I raised my head from her shoulder to her neck, "Do you believe that?"

She kept quiet and I began to plant a line of kisses from her neck to her jaw, "I love you, Karin."

"Stop." She pressed a hand to my chest, tilting her head away.

"It hurts me to hear that you don't believe me." I continued to kiss along her jaw and at the corner of her mouth, "You're the only woman I've ever been able to completely open up to and you're saying you can't trust my words? You don't get to do that."

I slipped my hand under her shirt as I spoke and pushed her bra up before pinching one of her nipples in between my fingers. A quiet whimper escaped her, and I lifted my head to look her in the eyes.

"I-I know what you're trying to do." She bit her lip as I massaged her breast, "I'm not stupid…"

"I never said you were." I shook my head as I slid my other hand onto her thigh and tugged her legs apart, "You're the smartest woman I know."

I palmed her core through her jeans as I spoke, and Karin's mouth fell open as a moan tumbled from her mouth.

"Sasuke-ku—!" I sealed her lips with my own, flicking my tongue over hers as I continued to massage both her front and her chest, rubbing her nipple with my middle finger as I groped her.

"I love you, Karin." I said against her mouth as I pulled back for air, "I would never lie to you. I would never hurt you. You know this."

I didn't give her a chance to respond, unzipping her jeans and pushing my fingers past her panties and against her slick lower lips. She groaned into my mouth as I rubbed my fingers against her slit, and I panted as she broke our kiss.

"A-Are you really—?" She cut herself off as tugged her clit, "R-Really not lying…?"

"I'm not." I assured her as I pressed my thumb down on her swelling bud, "I would never."

As she eventually succumbed to the pleasure I was bringing her, I managed to get her off my lap and onto the bed before bringing her to her peak with my tongue and fingers. I turned down her offers for reciprocation because I hadn't even grown hard despite how vocal she had been.

Sure, I had succeeded in distracting her from the Cuban link, but my methods were without a doubt questionable, not to mention that if Karin somehow did find out the truth after this, there would be no way to win back her trust.

I tried to shove those thoughts to the back of my mind as I brushed my fingers down Karin's spine, and she hummed quietly.

"Orochimaru gave me some meds." She softly began, and I looked down at her to show that I was listening, "For my…problem."

I nodded as I continued to gently stroke her back, and she nuzzled her head into my chest, "He said I should see some results in a week so hopefully by then we'll…we'll be able to go all the way."

"…That's great." I cleared my throat, hoping she wouldn't read too deeply into the pause.

I should've been proud, or at least content that I had successfully managed to trick her into believe me, but all I felt right now was self-loathing. I was ruining a good thing with an unnecessary lie.

'This is how it was with Sakura.' I thought to myself as I sat up, 'You said you'd do things differently.'

"Sasuke-kun?" Karin sat up alongside me, her voice tinted with concern, "Is something wrong?"

"I…" I turned to her and met her worried expression, with flecks of fear spread out amongst her features.

This was my chance to tell her the truth, before any more time went by, and she spent any longer believing me and doubting herself more. I had to come clean.

'But it's too late.' My conscience told me, 'You've already done the damage, telling her now would completely destroy your relationship. You shouldn't have lied in the first place.'

Karin's cool hand pressed my cheek brought me back to the present and I shook my head before standing up and heading over to the drawer with the chain. After lifting my clothes out and taking the chain in my hand, I turned to Karin and bowed.

"You were right about everything." I forced all of the words out of my mouth in one single stream before I could change my mind again, "I killed Shojoji with Suigetsu and Jūgo and took this chain from him once we were finished. That's why Kakuzu and Hidan are moving all of the excess funds to the casino in Otafuku; it was Shojoji's, but I took over all his assets for the Akatsuki."

I paused for Karin to say something but when no words followed, I continued my confessional.

"Pain didn't send me to do it either. I was the one who asked him for permission after last night. The more I thought about what he did to you, the angrier I felt. You said it way back then: I had a terrible attitude for someone who's wife got raped. I fixed that today."

The room was sharp with silence, so I took the chance to lift my head up and look at her, and to say she was shocked would've been an understatement. I handed her the Cuban link before getting on my knees in front of her and watched as she inspected the necklace.

"You lied to me." She finally said, and I nodded, "You made me think it wasn't real, made me think I was crazy and tried to make me feel guilty by saying I was hurting you."

"I know. I know and I'm sorry." I apologized, "I thought it would've been best if you didn't know, but I realized that I didn't want to be with you and have to lie to you all the time. I care about you, and I trust you. And I want you to trust me too."

Karin's face was alarmingly neutral as she regarded me, "You lied to my face for five minutes straight and then you touched me and told me you loved me."

"Gomen." I whispered before bowing again, "Gomennasai."

She stood up and I got out of her way before turning and following her with my eyes, "Karin?"

"Don't call my name." Her voice was oddly tender as she pulled on her jacket and stepped into her shoes, "Don't ever call my name again."

I got up and opened my mouth to say something, but she cut me off with a raised hand.

"From now until the end of the mission, you are nothing to me." She informed me as she placed her hand on the doorknob, "Play your role and I'll play mine. Anything outside of that will be ignored."

I swallowed hard as she opened the door, "Karin, gomen. I…I really do love you."

She stiffened right before closing the door and shook her head, "I hate you."

|Sarada|

Although Chōchō and Shikadai were in the midst of their stupid albeit heated back and forths, I couldn't stop my eyes from flying back to Chōchō's closet every chance I got. It remained still and undisturbed, despite the two people inside, and I was seriously beginning to doubt if Wasabi was still keeping track of the time.

'It's been more than seven minutes now.' I started to get up, 'Maybe I should—'

A Radar ringtone managed to cut through my thoughts and the obnoxiously loud music playing, and Wasabi jumped up from her spot beside Namida and went over to the closet. She yanked it open with her cat grin and the entire room turned to look as Inojin and Mitsuki stepped out. Instead of frowns or glares, both of them wore unreadable expressions and that only made me more afraid of what could've occurred between them.

"You guys have fun in there?" Tsuru whistled jokingly to the laughs of some of those in the room.

Mitsuki shook his head and Inojin locked his hands behind his neck before going for the door, announcing, "I'm gonna use the bathroom."

Inojin didn't even look at me as he walked past, and the room door promptly shut behind him. Mitsuki came over to me before I could dwell on the blatant cold shoulder I'd just been dealt, and he reached for my hand as he took a seat beside me.

I held him tightly before looking him in the eyes and searched his gaze for any hint of anger or annoyance, anything that would give me a clue as to what might've been said or done in that closet.

'Do you know?' I wondered as I continued to look into his eyes, 'Did Inojin tell you that he's the one I cheated on you with?'

"Relax, Sarada." Sumire chuckled from atop Chōchō's bed, swiping through her phone, "Mitsuki wouldn't cheat on you in those seven minutes. He wouldn't cheat on you at all, ne Mitsuki?"

"Of course not." Mitsuki looked up and gave her a small smile, "Something like that is beneath me."

Something about his response made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, 'He knows.'

"I knew it." Sumire chuckled again.

I hadn't told Sumire or Chōchō about what had occurred between Inojin and I, and in all honesty, I wasn't planning on telling them anytime soon because I feared their criticism. Their lack of knowledge about our situation made this even more difficult because now their teasing comments were putting me in compromising positions.

Before I could call Mitsuki's attention back to me and continue my silent attempts to interrogate him, Tsuru cleared her throat and motioned for Iwabe to lower the music.

"Alright! Next in the closet is everyone's favorite duo: Sarada and Boruto!" Tsuru announced.

At this, I smacked my forehead and Shikadai took a break from his discussion with Chōchō to laugh, "Chōchō, you might need a new closet door after those two get in there."

"Sarada, please." Chōchō turned to me, "No fighting in my closet, okay?"

I threw up my hands in disbelief before being ushered to my feet by Mitsuki, "What are you—?"

"If I can do it, you can do it." Mitsuki smiled chillingly and nodded for me to go ahead, "It's just seven minutes."

With much reluctance, I went over to Chōchō's closet and exchanged looks with Boruto as the two of us stepped inside.

"Okay! Timer starts…now!" Wasabi exclaimed as she shut the door.

Not a second later, the music was back to its full volume, and I plopped down on the closet floor. Boruto joined me soon after and a shoe box fell on his head, prompting us both to burst out laughing.

Once our laughter had died down, I turned him and tried to start a conversation, "So, how's life?"

Boruto snorted, "Really? That's all you got?"

I punched in him the arm, "Well it's not like we really hang out much these days so what else am I supposed to say?"

"True, true." He rubbed his chin, "But that's mostly your fault, ya know."

"My fault?" My eyes widened at the accusation, "It most certainly is not! You're too busy playing videogames to hang out with me!"

"Oh yeah? Well, you're too busy with Mitsuki to hang out with me!" Boruto shot back, "But, really, you're too busy with Mitsuki to hang out with anyone."

"T-That's not true…" I faltered as I tried to recall the last time I'd gone out with my friends, "I mean, I came to Chōchō's today, didn't I?"

"But Mitsuki's here too."

"That's because they told me to call him!"

Boruto clicked his tongue, "Excuses, excuses."

I bit the inside of my mouth and looked down at my hands, "He's my boyfriend and I…I love him. Is it wrong to wanna be with the person you love?"

He shook his head, "No but…spare some time for the rest of us, ya know."

"Aa." I nodded, "I will."

I tapped my fingers on my arm before looking back up at him, "What about you?"

"What about me?" Boruto repeated and I cleared my throat.

"Is there anyone in the picture for you?"

"Nah." Boruto immediately waved a hand, "No one like that. At least for now."

"Oh." Another pause before I spoke again, "Why not?"

Boruto crossed his arms and ran his hand across the carpet in front of us, "I talked to Tou-san today about the divorce and he made me realize that relationships are a lot harder than I thought, ya know. And I don't…I don't wanna get into one, fall in love, and have it all fall apart. That shit would fuck me up."

"Hm." I nodded as I recognized his train of thinking from a previous discussion we'd had, "That's the same reason you broke up with me in middle school, right? You were afraid of things going wrong and us never being friends again."

Boruto nodded and I touched his knee gently, encouraging him to look me in the eyes, "Boruto, you can't keep stopping good things because you're afraid of what might happen. You have to try."

His light blue orbs shined as he looked up, "I know but…I don't even know where to start."

"How about Tsubaki?" I suggested, "Or any other girl you hooked up with?"

He gave me a look and I quickly raised my hands, "I'm being serious! I know you said you don't have to date someone to have sex with them but since you've already crossed one line with them, why not cross another?"

"It's not that simple." He pinched the bridge of his nose, "Those girls…I can't see myself with any of them like that."

"Why?" I questioned, curious about why none of his previous hookup partners could be viable girlfriends, "Was the sex…bad?"

"No, no, no." Boruto quickly shook his head, "The sex was nice but it's always been nice, y'know? And to be honest I'm kinda…kinda getting bored of hookups. It'd be nice to be with one person and build but I can't see myself with anyone except…"

He trailed off and I shuffled closer, curiosity peaked, "Except? Come on, tell me! Is it someone I know? I can put in a good word for you."

"Oh yeah, you definitely know her." Boruto snickered, turning away from me, "But don't bother trying to put in a good word, ya know. She's smart but too much of an airhead to read what's right in front of her."

I leaned back and tried to think of a girl that matched his description, "Namida?"

"Nope." He shook his head.

"Wasabi?" I tried again.

"Not even close."

My eyebrows furrowed as I wondered who this girl could be, and Boruto tapped my nose before pushing my head back.

"Like I said, don't worry about it, ya know." He told me as he shut his eyes and laid down on the floor, "She's taken right now so I can't make a move anytime soon."

This additional piece of information confused me even further and I wondered aloud if I really knew this girl.

Boruto chuckled almost sadly, "You know her, for sure."

The door opened just as I was about to press him for further details and Wasabi let out an exaggerated gasp.

"Oh wow! The two of them managed to play nice!" Wasabi giggled.

I raised an eyebrow at the bubbliness of her laughter as Boruto and I stepped out of the closet, but I didn't have to look too far for an explanation as I soon spotted some bottles of Chōchō's liquor mix on her table.

Mitsuki offered me a sip from his own red SOLO cup as I returned to his side, but I shook my head.

"No, you have to try it." He insisted, "It's ten times better than what you guys brought to the party."

Upon his persisting, I decided to take one gulp of the drink and immediately coughed at the potency of the alcohol.

"This is what you call better?" I hacked as I handed the cup back to him, patting my chest.

Mitsuki laughed as he nodded, "Before it was juice. Now it's actually liquor."

I shook my head before excusing myself from the room, "I need some fresh air."

Mitsuki offered to come outside with me, but I assured him that I would only be gone for a moment before heading out of Chōchō's room and downstairs. I went to her kitchen and got myself a glass of water which I immediately drank and refilled.

As I sipped my second glass, I made my way over to Chōchō's patio and stepped out before making sure to shut the screen door behind me. I pressed down on my eyes as I leaned against the wooden railing and sighed. Mitsuki hadn't been lying when he said the drink was now actually liquor; I could feel my eyes growing heavier by the second.

I thought about shoving a finger into my mouth and forcing myself to throw up what I had drank but seeing as how I was already starting to feel its effects, I figured there was no point in upsetting my stomach any further.

"Daijōbu?"

I jumped at the voice and quickly spun around only to find Inojin sitting in the corner of the patio. He had his head in his hands and looked up at me somewhat tiredly, but I didn't miss the way his lips twitched at my reaction.

I sighed, "You've gotta stop doing that."

"Doing what?" He shot back as he stood up and stretched, the concerned tone in his voice replaced with hostility.

I crossed my arms as I looked out at Chōchō's backyard, "…Scaring me."

Inojin said nothing and joined me in leaning against the railing. The two of us stared out into the greenish woods in silence and I took the chance to glance at him.

The bags under his eyes had seriously lightened, and his face looked fuller and healthier. That could only be for one reason, but I had to be sure.

"You…haven't had shabu in a while, right?" I started quietly, afraid he might suddenly lash out if I spoke too loudly, "Have you given up on it?"

Inojin chuckled, "Didn't have much of a choice. Father knows, thanks to you."

"Thanks to me?" I raised an eyebrow, "I didn't tell him. Why would I—?"

"If you didn't then forget it." Inojin cut me off, holding a hand to his head and exhaling heavily, "Just forget it."

I bit my lip and decided to change the subject, "What happened with you and Mitsuki in the closet?"

Inojin scoffed, "Of course that's what you're really here for. Was something supposed to happen? We just…talked."

"About what?" I questioned, inadvertently letting some of my fear bleed into my voice, "Please. I…I need to know."

Although Mitsuki had forgiven me for cheating, I hadn't told him that I'd cheated with Inojin, and if Inojin had somehow let that slip in the seven minutes they had been confined together…

Inojin examined me before placing a gentle hand on my head, "Mitsuki doesn't know about us, if that's what you're worried about."

I let out a sigh of relief before reaching for his shoulder, "Arigato."

"If he did, I'm sure he would've punched me in my face as soon as that door shut." Inojin straightened up, removing his hand from his head as he stretched, "At least, that's what I would've done."

I held a hand to my chest, "Inojin, I—"

"It's getting late." He cut me off, heading for the door, "Father told me to be home before 9 so I'm gonna head out. Say goodbye to everyone for me."

Inojin bumped right into Mitsuki and Mitsuki stepped back, allowing Inojin to head back into the house before joining me on the patio. Mitsuki gave me a kiss on the cheek before joining me in leaning over the railing, and when I looked back one last time, I found Inojin staring at us with a look of pure anguish on his face.

I started to turn around fully but Inojin shook his head before heading further into the house and out of sight.

"Something wrong?" Mitsuki asked me, grabbing my shoulder lightly and turning me to him.

With a heavy heart, I shook my head and reached out to him for a hug, "I just want the people I love to be happy."

Mitsuki kissed my forehead before pulling me into a hug, "Don't we all?"

|Sakura|

'I don't deserve this.' I thought to myself as Naruto's fingers slid along my entrance, 'I don't deserve him.'

"Ugh, can't you hold the waterworks back for at least one night?" She complained, leaning against the bathroom door, "For Kami's sake, he's trying to eat you out and you're still doing this stupid self-pity act."

'It's not an a-act.' I squirmed when I felt a kiss get planted on my lower back, 'He's doing all this for me and I'm not even sure if I love him.'

"Oh Kami." She groaned, "You've told him you love him like eight times already. I think it's safe to say that you're in love."

'No, no…' I shook my head and grabbed at the sheets when Naruto grabbed my ass and spread it apart, and I shivered as the cold air hit my back door, 'Most of those were during sex, or after. I need to tell him when I'm thinking straight…!'

My thoughts disappeared for a moment as his tongue pressed against my hole and pushed in. The sensation of his tongue circling around inside of me turned my brain off, and all I could do was moan at the satisfying feeling.

"N-Naruto…" I stuttered as his fingers resumed their motions against my heat while he continued to tongue my ass, "I-I…oh Kami—"

His thumb wiggled my clit at the same rate as his tongue moved around in my hole and I whimpered as I pressed my hands to my face in order to ground myself against the tingles running throughout my body.

I could feel the wetness from my core flowing down my legs and to my back door, and as something began to tighten within me, I tried to sit up.

"Naruto, wait." I said to him as I grabbed his head, "This isn't…we shouldn't…"

I trailed off, unable to find the correct words to convey what I was trying to say. This isn't right? We shouldn't be doing this? No, we'd long since crossed the boundaries of right and wrong. What this was wasn't a matter of preserving our moral high ground, this was my attempt to cow out because of what I was feeling from this unconventional way of sex.

To be honest, it was my first time ever doing anything with my ass. As silly as it sounded, I felt…vulnerable, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to open this door.

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto groaned as he lifted his head from my ass to my core, "Do you know how many nights I've dreamed of eating a nice ass?"

"I—" I cut myself off as he flattened his tongue against my heat and licked up, "Oh…!"

"Do you know how many times I've stared at your ass during sex and thought about pounding it until it's red?" He moaned into me, and I felt his fingers prod at my hole, "I held myself back, ya know. I didn't want to scare you when we had just started."

Two of his fingers began to push into me and I sucked in a sharp breath, "Naruto—"

"But now we have a safe word." He gave my clit a firm suck as my butt stretched around his fingers, "And you know what to do if it ever feels like too much."

I winced at the forced expansion of my insides, as the new method of penetration bordered on pleasure as well as pain.

"I-I've never done this before…" I mumbled, and he spread his fingers inside my ass, drawing a low moan from me, "Naruto, I'm…I'm scared…"

"Daijōbu, Sakura-chan." He murmured into my center, continuing to lap at me as his fingers intruded further than I would've ever thought possible, "I'll take care of you."

He began to pump his two fingers inside my tight ass and with a bit of encouraging sucks at my clit, my hole loosened up enough for his fingers to move back and forth freely. The way my insides twitched at the unfamiliar stimulation made me shudder and I groaned as he added a third finger. They spread me even more than I could handle, and a burning sensation made the experimental pleasure begin to dip into more pain.

I quickly informed Naruto of the change and he brought his three fingers back together, giving me two more short pumps before drawing his fingers out completely. The sudden transition from overwhelming fullness to astounding emptiness drew a gasp from me and I lifted my head up just enough to give him a confused hum.

"Don't worry, it's not over yet." Naruto smiled as he stood up and went into my bathroom.

I propped myself up with my arms and kept my eyes on the door as he searched for something, and he let out a triumphant "ah ha!" before returning to the room with a tube of coconut oil in his hand. I recognized the moisturizing lube as something I had bought on sale a few years back, and as my eyes drifted to his rock-hard member standing proud, I realized what he had gotten the tube for.

"No." I immediately shook my head, beginning to get up from my laid-back position on the back, "No way."

"Sakura-chan, look at me." Naruto said, placing the lube on the bed and grabbing my shoulder, "Look, I'll take things nice and slow—"

I shook my head again, "No, I—I can't. I won't. I'm…I'm done. At least for today."

He released my shoulder and sighed before nodding his head, "Alright, I get it. Maybe another time."

He picked the lube up from where he had placed it and moved to return it to the bathroom.

She appeared at the edge of the bed and laughed, "Yeah, you're right. You definitely don't love him."

'Why?' I shot her a questioning look, 'Because I don't wanna do anal?'

"No, because he has no problem catering to your desires, and you clearly can't cater to his." She clicked her tongue disapprovingly, "Then again, not like you need to. You heard his declaration of love; you've got him wrapped around your finger. Be as selfish as you want."

I bit my lip as Naruto entered the bathroom, and I shut my eyes before calling him back, "Naruto, wait."

He turned in the doorway with what would've been an unreadable expression if it weren't for the glint of hope that shined in his eyes.

With a silent sigh, I continued, "I'm just…I'm afraid. Like I said, I've never done this before."

"I get that." He nodded, returning to my side, and lifting his hand to my cheek, "But I promise to be slow, and I promise to be gentle."

I gave him a pointed look, "Well, it's not like that's really your style."

Naruto chuckled before pressing the lube into my hand, "True, true, but I wouldn't lie to you, ya know. If I say I'm going to be slow, I'll be slow."

I nodded and looked down at the lube, "So, what now?"

"If you'd be so kind," He motioned to his length, "I'd like you to get me ready."

I opened the tube and squeezed a sizeable amount of oil onto his shaft before closing it and setting it aside. As I thoroughly spread the oil around his length, I was reminded of how big Naruto actually was, and when he encouraged me to lie back and pressed his tip to my hole, I began to get second thoughts.

"I'm putting it in." He whispered as he pushed forward, "Tell me when it's too much."

His tip slipped in without much difficulty but getting the full length in was going to be the tricky part. As soon as a fraction of his member pushed past my rim, the burning sensation I'd felt with three fingers returned but tenfold. I grabbed Naruto's shoulders and dug my nails into them as I hissed and called his name, and he stopped.

"Is it that painful?" He questioned, concern etched on his face, "We can stop."

I looked down between us to see that he was only a fifth of the way in, and although I didn't want to, Her judgmental words from before spurned my next statement, "No, I'll be fine. Just…forget taking it slow, just shove it in there."

"Sakura-chan, no." Naruto straightened up and began pulling out, "Shoving it in would be…don't force yourself for me, ya know. We'll try again another day."

I hooked a leg around his waist to keep him from moving any further away from me, "No, I-I want to. Hontōni, I want to know how all of it would feel inside me."

He pursed his lips, "Okay, but we have to go slowly."

"Naruto—"

"I mean it." He interrupted me, his tone sounding like he couldn't be dissuaded, "It's hurting because you're tense, if I just shove myself in there, you could tear something, ya know."

I did know that, but I'd been trying to put on a brave front in order to convince him that I was accepting of all his kinks. I let out a silent sigh of relief as I nodded my head and agreed with him.

Naruto led his tip back to me and squeezed some more lube onto his length and my hole, and this time it felt as though it was slipping in with less of a struggle than before. That burning sensation still remained though, and I let out deep breaths as Naruto continued to push forward.

"Daijōbu, daijōbu…" He murmured as he rested his hand just beside my head and willed himself forward, "Try to relax. Touch yourself, maybe it'll make this easier."

With shaky hands, I dipped between my legs and ran my fingers between my drenched lower lips. I was surprised to find that despite how painful this was, I was clearly very turned on, and when I circled my fingers around my neglected nub, I felt a zap like a bolt of lightning shoot through me.

The electrifying feeling was short lived as Naruto's stinging length continued to split me open, and I shut my eyes and writhed underneath him.

'Fuck, I can't…!' I thought to myself, tears surging to my eyes as he dug deeper into my flesh, 'Kami, it hurts! It hurts so much!'

"Suck it up!" She snapped from the bathroom, "If you can't give him your love, the least you could do is be a good fuck!"

I shook my head and failed to choke back a sob as Naruto's bush brushed against my core, 'I can't! I just can't!'

"Gomen, gomen, gomen." Naruto pressed his forehead to mine as he swiped his thumb under my eyes, wiping away at my tears, "But you did it, ya know. I'm all the way inside you, Sakura-chan."

I sniffled and a strangled moan escaped me as Naruto began to pull back. Instantly, I burst into tears and begged him not to move, wrapping my arms around his back and holding him to me tightly. I thought nothing could beat the pain I experienced in the entering stage, but the pulling out stage proved to be even more painful.

Naruto peppered kisses around my face as he remained still and I continued to cry, unable to endure any longer. Through my teary eyes, I could see Naruto was looking down at me with absolute adoration, and I continued to cry for more than just the pain.

Even with how bratty I was being, he could still look at me like I was the rarest gem in the world.

"This probably isn't the time for this," He began in a low voice, kissing my face again, "But you look so beautiful when you cry, you know that? Your eyes get all glassy and shiny, it's…it's amazing, ya know."

His hips stuttered as he straightened up and I scratched down his abs, shaking my head at the sting. The pain had managed to calm down a bit, but it was still sharp enough to bring more tears to my eyes as he moved around.

"N-Naruto, what are you—?" I cut myself off as he began to pull back.

When I looked at him, his eyes were blown wide with desire, and he placed his hand on my abdomen before slowly pushing back in. I reached for his wrist as I groaned against the motion and he…he laughed.

He continued to laugh as he repeated the torturous slow, painful pumps, and I pressed my arm against my eyes and grit my teeth.

"W-Why?" I whimpered as he pulled back further than before, only to resume going back in, "You s-said you'd be gentle…hngh, Naruto…"

"I was gentle." He whispered, taking my other hand and lifting it to his lips, pressing kisses to my palm, "But I remembered something, and I want you to remember it too."

I moaned as he snapped his hips forward, and in my sniveling state, I was slow to realize that for the most part, the pain had subsided and all that was left was the feeling of being filled to the brink and the beginnings of pleasure.

"Remember that day we went to the movies?" Naruto said into my hand, slamming into me again, "When I told you everything I wanted to do to you? Do you remember what I said?"

"I—" A moan took up the rest of my words as my hands grew weak.

Naruto pressed one final kiss to my hand before setting it down and lowering himself back on top of me with a groan. His next thrust was particularly sharp, hitting a spot in my ass that had my body arching, and I felt a splash of wetness shoot out of me and onto him.

He smiled before licking away the dried tears under my eyes, "I said I wanted to break you, Sakura-chan. I wanted to be the reason you breathe, and the reason you cry, ya know. This is my chance."

His fingers jabbed into my soaking entrance as he rammed his length into me at the same time and my head lolled to the side. The tightening of my stomach was damn near agonizing, and I quickly shook my head as I attempted to reach up Naruto's back.

"Naruto, n-no more…please…!" I wailed as he slammed into me again, "Anymore and I-I'll…!"

Naruto nipped at my jaw and laughed, "You know what to say, but I know you won't."

Another slam had me choking on a moan.

"You know why you won't say it, Sakura-chan?" Naruto questioned as he thrusted into me, "Because you like the pain, ya know."

I couldn't even offer a rebuttal as a whine was forced from my throat due to his hard ramming.

"It's unbearable at first but once you get some time to adjust, you get addicted to it." He continued to explain as I felt my lower ends clenching around him, "You like the bite, ya know. You like the sting, how it feels good after a while. Kami, I love you for that."

I grabbed at the sheets around me as he pulsed within me, "Fuck, Sakura-chan, you're – so – perfect!"

He rammed into me with each word and went still at the last one, his member twitching inside me as he shot his load into me, but he wasn't finished. He continued to fuck his cum into me and with one last joint thrust into both my ass and my heat, the tension in my stomach snapped and my eyes rolled to the back of my head as my vision went white.

A/N: What I'm working on still isn't ready! Also, had a friend look over this chapter and the next and he was not happy. Oof, hopefully you guys will be?(ɔ◔‿◔)ɔ