Chapter 31. The Ugly
"Ugly pertains to the heart and mind, more so than what's outside."
|Naruto|
A big yawn left my mouth, but it was while I was sitting up and rubbing my eyes free of any traces of sleep that I noticed Sakura's low whimpers beside me.
"Please…" She murmured in her slumber, "I'll be more careful this time, so please…please forgive me…!"
A tear slipped out of her eye and ran down her cheek as she subconsciously reached out and grabbed my arm.
"Gomennasai…" She cried, hugging my arm tight, "Hontōni, gomennasai…"
It was when she sucked in a sharp breath that I decided to wake her up, as I felt like the nightmare had become too intense.
With a reasonable amount of force, I shook her arm and called her name, and Sakura's eyes fluttered open. Although glazed over from the still-forming tears, her gaze clearly conveyed sorrow as well as confusion when she looked up at me.
"Daijōbu." I whispered, gently stroking her cheek as she blinked, "You were having a nightmare, but it's over."
Once Sakura came to understand my words, her face scrunched up as if she was going to cry, but before I could open my mouth to ask her what was wrong, she tugged me down into a kiss.
Out of habit, I fed into it for the first few milliseconds before remembering that this was not the time for this. However, when I pulled back to speak, Sakura wrapped her arms around my neck and kept me from moving too far away.
"No, wait." She said, a desperate edge to her voice, "I need to feel you. Please."
My plan had been for the two us to sit up and talk about her nightmare and what had her so upset, but the way her voice wavered towards the end of her plea broke my conviction, and I decided we could talk after.
Sakura set the pace by slipping her hand into my shorts and grabbing my length, and it only took a few strokes before I sprang to life. I followed her lead and dipped my hand in between her thighs to rub small circles against her swelling nub, but Sakura quickly let me know that this wasn't the time for such slow, sensual foreplay, because she quickly yanked my hand away and pulled my shorts down.
"Inside…!" She ordered with a whine, "Now…!"
I wasted no time in climbing on top of her and bunching her grey t-shirt up to her chest before taking my length in hand and guiding it to her entrance. I slid in slowly and Sakura moaned as each inch of my member sank further and further into her. Once I was all the way inside, I looked down to find her droopy-eyed staring up at me expectantly.
"What do you want?" I asked as I gradually pulled back, setting myself up for a proper thrust.
Sakura grabbed my forearms and whimpered, "I don't want to think…"
With a grunt, I slammed into her and reveled in the feeling of her tightening around me. I began to sincerely pound her, lifting one of her legs onto my shoulder and rolling my hips with each thrust. After a certain grind against her, a grateful mewl left her mouth, and I repeated my actions to hear that same sound.
"Naruto…" Sakura panted as she dug her nails into my biceps, "You love me, right?"
"Of course." I growled, switching our position so that she was on her hands and knees, "Now stop thinking."
I licked two of my fingers and briefly thumbed her clit before moving up to my main destination and pressing two fingers into her asshole. She gasped at the double penetration, and I rammed her as I dragged my fingers against her anal walls.
She seemed to be on the verge of saying something else, but with all the sensations hitting her, it would've been a miracle had she managed to get out one coherent word. She groaned into the bed at my synchronized movements, and I felt her arousal pooling around my length still buried deep inside her.
I shut my eyes when I felt her clamp down, 'Fuck, I'm almost…'
Willing myself to hold out, I let the thought trail off as I dug my free hand into Sakura's hair and pulled her up.
"This is what you wanted, right?" I said through grit teeth, trying not to bust early, "To get your brains fucked out?"
"Yes—ahn!" She yelped with a nod, her back arching as she began to shake.
I flipped her back to her original position, laying her on her back while removing my fingers from her ass, and I gave her the last few thrusts she would need to reach her summit. After five harsh slams, her hips bucked, and she let out a long wail as she came.
Knowing that I was way past my limit, I sat up and moved to pull out before any accidents could occur, but Sakura grabbed my shoulders and pulled me back down on top of her. She didn't say anything, but the look in her eyes told me more than enough, and I kept our eye contact as I slowed my hips and spilled inside of her.
I groaned as I finished, and she whimpered at the feeling of being filled up. Just as the haze clouding my mind lifted and I began to wonder if such an impulsive action was okay, Sakura wiped under her eyes, letting me know that she was still somewhat unhappy.
"Sakura-chan?" I called her name uncertainly, not sure if I was now the reason for her distress.
She covered her face with her hands, "I…need a minute. Gomen."
I nodded and pulled my now-limp length out before watching as our combined fluids dripped out of her and onto the bed. While I wanted to grab a towel and prevent any mess from being made, I knew better than to leave a woman alone in bed after such a tender act.
I kissed Sakura's hands before laying back down beside her and wrapping her in a hug. She heaved in my grasp, and it was then that I realized she was crying, but rather than begin to ask why, I ran my fingers lightly down her spine and rubbed her arm reassuringly.
"I love you." I breathed against her skin, pressing a kiss to her shoulder, "I'll always love you."
She nestled further into my neck at the promise, and we laid like that for a while. Eventually the two of us rolled out of bed and I opted to shower before getting dressed.
When I got out, Sakura seemed to be back to normal, even jokingly tousling my wet hair as I passed by. I shook my head in her direction and she raised her hands to block the spray of water I sent in her direction while laughing.
"Arigato." She thanked me as she brushed her hair, "I love you."
I kissed her as I finished buttoning up my shirt and grinned.
|40 Minutes Later|
"Spare!" The automated voice announced as I returned to my seat.
"A strike next time, for sure." I said to Sakura as she passed me.
She shook her head and smiled before picking up a 14-pound ball and holding it to her chest. Once the pins had finished being reset, she lowered her hand and rolled the ball out at about half strength. My mouth fell open when she got a strike, and she patted my chest as she passed me.
"For sure." She fed my words back to me, laughing.
That lit a spark under my feet, and I quickly selected my next ball before stepping up to the line and watching the pins reset. Once I was clear to go, I took a deep breath and tossed the ball at 3/4th of my strength. All but one pin fell down and I groaned at the unfairness of the game as I grabbed another ball and knocked the last pin down.
When I turned to head back, I expected Sakura to be up and smirking at me, but instead found her still in her seat, her attention somewhere else. Following her gaze, I could see she was watching a family of four two aisles down.
A couple and their two children were setting up, and the daughter was happily chatting with her younger brother about something. The mother clapped her hands and the two kids turned to face her, standing up when she directed them to. The father shook his head as he was pulled to his feet by the mother, and the four of them took a selfie before starting their game.
Nothing about the family really stuck out to me, but a glance at Sakura told me that something about them had really touched her, seeing as how tears were now streaming down her face.
"Sakura-chan…" I touched her shoulder lightly.
She quickly turned to me and scrubbed her eyes, "Gomen, is it my turn?"
She stood up and wobbled over to the line. Grabbing her bowling ball, I watched as she weakly rolled it onto the alley, and it soon fell into the gutter.
"Maybe now you'll have a chance to catch up." Sakura joked with a wavering voice, grabbing another ball and trying again with a bit more strength.
On this try, she managed to knock down seven pins. As she returned to her seat, she excused herself to the bathroom and I nodded, watching her walk out of sight before tossing my ball and getting a strike.
"Of course." I muttered to myself as I sat back down, "Of course."
I took out my phone and glanced at the time: 5:25 p.m. Considering we were halfway through our game, it wouldn't be crazy to guess that it would only take twenty more minutes to finish up.
While the outline of the rest of the day had been a bowling game before heading off to the festival in Otafuku, I wasn't so sure we could continue considering Sakura's current emotional state. If I was an idiot, I would've seen this sudden turmoil as out of left field, but I knew better.
'She remembered something bad in her therapy session.' I thought to myself, crossing my arms.
After consoling Sakura in my apartment enough to the point where she could get up and get ready to go out, I spent my shower time thinking about what she could've been dreaming about. I wasn't too sure when I only had the words she'd said in her sleep, but after catching her stare at the family, I had a better idea now.
I knew that something had happened to her in Suna eleven years ago, but I'd never heard the full story. The only solid fact I had was that Sakura had left Konoha pregnant and returned without a baby.
Considering how dull and morose Sasuke was in the following months of their return, it was safe to say that the loss of the pregnancy hadn't been natural. Sakura also practically disappeared once coming back, and I wouldn't see her again until a full year later, but by then enough time had passed to the point where it had become inappropriate to ask for the details.
It was also around then that the three of us began spending a considerably less amount of time together, and while we had always been preoccupied with our various vigorous career choices, it became clear that wasn't the case when I learned Sakura was no longer practicing medicine.
The loud crack of a bowling ball hitting the floor jolted me out of my thoughts, and I looked to my left and found a group of teens cackling and messing around with a bunch of bowling balls.
Figuring that enough time had passed, I stood up and decided to search for Sakura. Buddha knew that the last time I'd left her alone in a public bathroom, I'd walked in seconds before she could overdose; I wasn't going to let that happen again.
I walked over to where the bathrooms were in the back, leaned against the wall next to the men's bathroom door, and waited. After about two minutes, the women's bathroom door opened and two young women came out. They spared me a quick glance before continuing to chat and walking away, and I made sure the coast was clear before I pressed the women's door open and stepped inside.
I locked the door behind me and quickly checked under each stall to make sure there were no strangers still in here. Once I was sure, I turned the corner to the sinks and found Sakura at the far end, teary-eyed and staring at herself in the mirror.
"Gomennasai." She apologized, turning to me as I drew nearer, "I'm wasting your time."
"You're not." I assured her once I reached her side and took her right hand in mine, "Daijōbu?"
"Yes," She looked down at our hands and nodded, then shook her head, "And no. I made…I made a big mistake in my life, Naruto, and I don't think I'll ever make up for it. Every time I think about it, I…I realize I don't deserve happiness."
I lifted her hand to my lips and kissed her knuckles, "So you don't want happiness?"
She gave me a hopeless look, "It's not about what I want, it's—"
"What," I cut her off, kissing the back of her hand now, "Do you want?"
"I…" She sniffled as tears rolled down her cheeks, "I want another child."
I nodded.
"I want to be married to a loving husband." Sakura continued, her voice cracking with each admission, "I want to come home to a house full of love. I want to go to sleep next to someone who cares about me, I want to wake up to the love of my life. I want so much…"
Her voice broke at the end of her list, and I continued to rub my thumb into the back of her hand as she cried and let out all her pent-up sadness. When she'd relieved herself enough and her crying had come to a close, she glanced up at me with a look I recognized as fear, and I became confused.
"What is it?" I questioned, not comfortable being looked at in such a manner.
She tucked some loose strands of hair behind her ear, "I said all that but I'm not sure, I mean, I don't know what your goals are and if you even want to…I might've overshared. We haven't even talked about marriage, much less kids, and I—"
I tilted Sakura's head up just before joining our lips, and she sighed into the kiss.
"I love you, you know that, right?" I said as I pulled back for some air, "Of course I want to get married and move in together, ya know. And if you really want another kid, I won't say no."
She shook her head, "I feel like you're just trying to keep me happy. What do you want?"
"You." I answered before pulling her into another kiss, "Everything I ever wanted, I've found it in you."
Sakura bit her lip, "Kami, Naruto, you're…"
"The best?" I finished for her with a raised eyebrow, laughing, "What can I say? It comes naturally. Now can we get back to our game? I have a feeling I can make an epic comeback, ya know."
She nudged me with her elbow as she took a deep breath, "Mm, I don't think so."
"Really?" I chuckled, throwing my arm around her neck as we walked towards the door, "Watch me."
As it turned out, I never did manage to tie the score. Sakura ended up beating me 276 to 206, and she wouldn't let me hear the end of it as we walked out to the car.
The ride to Otafuku was spent playing silly car games like I Spy and Who Am I, and I was relieved to find Sakura in a relatively bright mood. I parked the car at a small hotel on the edge of the city and booked us a room for the night just in case.
Thanks to the festival, the inn offered both of us complimentary yukatas and upon insisting, I managed to convince Sakura to change into them with me. The dressing process was fun, and after a few minutes of wandering hands and light touches, we were ready to go.
"Beautiful." I breathed as I looked over Sakura while we walked down the street and entered the main festival area.
Her cheeks flushed red, and she turned away from me, "Stop."
"I mean it." I said as I threw an arm around her and urged her to look back at me, "You're the perfect picture."
I leaned down to kiss her and heard a gasp from my right. The two of us turned to find a flustered Himawari holding hands with a spiky black-haired boy.
"Papa?" She tilted her head to one side, "And Sakura-obachan? What are you two doing here?"
|Karin|
Jūgo tilted his head towards the infirmary door, and I thanked him before pushing the door open and stepping inside.
My eyes immediately found Sasuke sitting up at the back, as well as Guren standing offensively close to him. Sasuke said something to her, and she chuckled before lifting her hands to his face and holding his cheeks.
Before she could do anything inappropriate, I revealed my presence by making my footsteps heavier as I approached them, and Guren quickly dropped her hands once we made eye contact. Sasuke turned to look, but when our eyes met there wasn't a flash of recognition or worry or…anything, really. He remained stone-faced even when I got close.
"Talk to you later?" Guren offered, stepping back to give me room to go to Sasuke's side.
Sasuke nodded, "Aa. See you, Guren."
Guren smiled but quickly returned her lips to a straight line before nodding at me and leaving the infirmary. I watched her shut the door before turning and giving Sasuke my undivided attention.
"…What?" Sasuke finally asked after a moment of staring.
I shook my head as I took a seat beside him, "Nothing."
"There was something in my eye."
"I didn't say anything."
"You don't have to." He continued, peering into my eyes, "I know how you get when you're upset."
I said nothing after that latter statement, recalling the reason for the still-present rift between us, and Sasuke must've recognized the irony in his words because he leaned back soon after.
"So, did you…did you get him?" I faltered, vomit rising in my throat as I asked him about his latest job.
He sighed, "No. I could've if I'd stayed a little longer though."
The sick feeling in my stomach lightened when I learned that he hadn't claimed another life, but it remained as I recognized that Sasuke regretted not completing his task.
"Who was he again?" I forced myself to continue, not wanting to start an argument about morality and senseless violence.
We'd had that discussion one too many times, and it always ended the same.
"Killer Bee, the younger brother of Kumogakure's mayor." Sasuke snorted, "He's also a rapper, something I learned when I tried to kill him."
"You're…laughing?" I questioned, confused by the sudden change in mood.
He lifted a hand to his head, still chuckling, "You just—you had to be there. He's something else, that Killer Bee. I probably would've died with him if Jugo didn't pull me back when he did."
I made a mental note to ask Suigetsu about the full details of Sasuke's encounter with Killer Bee before moving on to the most obvious question, "Well, isn't Pain going to be upset that you didn't get him?"
"I already told him." Sasuke swung his legs to the side, hissing as he got to his feet, "He said it couldn't be helped and was just thankful that I made it back. Surprisingly enough, he doesn't plan for me to try again. Said something about taking it as a sign and moving my focus elsewhere."
He held a hand to his chest as he stepped into his slippers and once they were properly on, looked at me, "Well?"
I tilted my head to let him know that I didn't understand what he was getting at, and he smiled.
"I didn't kill anyone. Shouldn't we be celebrating that?"
I blinked as I processed his words and once their meaning hit me, I turned and walked away.
"Misaki." He called, but I continued walking, "Misaki!"
I was forced to stop in my tracks when I felt Sasuke grab my arm, and he quickly spun me around.
"It was a bad joke." He apologized monotonously, "Gomen."
I opened my mouth to tell him that actively making fun of my beliefs and the moral codes that I stood by wasn't a joke, but ultimately, I decided against it. I couldn't keep doing this with him; it was tiring and honestly, I was sick of being the bigger person all the time, especially when he was so determined to act like a kid.
Instead, I chose to fire back at him with my own joke. In hindsight, maybe I should've just kept quiet.
"It's fine. Why don't you tell that joke to Guren? I'm sure she'll find it funny." I said as I recalled their earlier intimacy.
"Heh." Sasuke shook his head, "You can't be serious. The only reason why we're close is because she's under Orochimaru like Suigetsu and Jūgo."
"All the more reason for you to share the joke with her."
He placed a hand on my shoulder before lifting my chin up with the other, "If it weren't so ridiculous, I'd find it funny that you're jealous of a woman you know nothing about despite how close you are with Suigetsu."
My blood ran cold as he continued, "You think I don't know how much time you're spending with him? How close you two have gotten? It's not even like you're trying to hide it, seeing as how everybody knows."
"But," He leaned closer and spoke into my ear, lowering his voice, "What they don't know is you two's previous history, and even he doesn't know, right? After all, you're Misaki, not Karin."
I placed my hands on Sasuke's shoulders and tried to push him back, but he remained steadfast in his position and continued to whisper.
"And somehow, Suigetsu gets to have the nice side of you despite us doing the same thing." He rasped into my ear, his grip on my shoulder tightening, "Or are you gonna tell me that torturing people alive is better than killing them? Hm?"
"Toshiaki-kun, let go of me."
"And the real punchline," Sasuke chuckled, his nails digging into my skin, "Is the fact that once this is over, because it will come to an end, Suigetsu will be behind bars with the rest of them. He might even get the death penalty after all he's done."
"Sasuke-kun, stop." I whispered, trying but failing to push him back again as my eyes filled with tears.
"Just imagine him walking up the steps of the gallows, and as the is pulled over his neck, he spots you in the crowd. Do you think he'd waste his last words on you?"
I shoved Sasuke back with all the strength I had and sniffled as I rapidly failed to get rid of the images now circulating in my head. Sasuke, on the other hand, was rubbing his back after having hit a bed footboard particularly hard.
It was as I scrubbed my eyes of the tears now freely flowing that I could see him reaching out to me, and I pulled away before making a beeline for the door.
Once I was out of the infirmary, I didn't bother waiting for the elevator on the chance that Sasuke decided to follow me, and instead opted to enter the staircase and climb the two flights back to the room.
Of course, the universe had a weird way of working. As I turned the corner and came down the hall, I spotted Suigetsu standing in front of my door, poised to knock. I was too close to turn around and if I was being honest, I really didn't want to; he was just the person I wanted to see.
"Suigetsu…" I called out to him quietly.
He turned towards the sound of my voice and his eyebrows immediately furrowed together as he approached me, "Misaki-san? What's wrong?"
I didn't answer him, instead wrapping my arms around his upper back and burrowing my face into his chest. Even though I was supposed to be posing as Sasuke's wife and this was a somewhat compromising look, especially with all the rumors about us, I held on tighter. None of that mattered right now, all I wanted was to be near him.
Suigetsu could obviously tell that what had me upset wasn't something simple because instead of cracking a joke or pushing me away, he gently caressed my back and whispered for us to move to his room.
Three months of ago, I would've been appalled at the suggestion and refused. But that was back then, things had changed.
Sniffling, I lifted my head up from his chest and nodded, allowing him to lead me to his room. I didn't even realize we were there until he was jingling his keys in the lock and opening the door. He stepped aside to let me in first and I made myself comfortable sitting on the edge of his bed.
Suigetsu spoke to me as he shut the door, "I was actually coming to talk to you about something but before we get into that, what happened?"
I composed myself and cleared my throat before telling Suigetsu about Sasuke and I's most recent quarrel. For overt reasons, I omitted certain details but still made sure to drive home the point about Sasuke comparing himself to Suigetsu.
"He's got a point." Suigetsu shrugged as he sat down beside me, "I'm no better than him, but everyone knows that things between you two are one step from hell compared to how it is with me."
"But you're…!" I fumbled for the right words to describe him, describe our relationship.
I sighed when nothing came to mind and Suigetsu continued.
"And honestly, even I'm confused." He admitted, "Things were going great for you guys and then out of nowhere everything went to shit. What happened?"
Shouldn't it have been clear? After all, Sasuke was now open about his position as Pain's hitman, and I had spent many nights ranting to Suigetsu about my distaste for killing or any kind of unnecessary violence. Then again, maybe Suigetsu thought that Sasuke was no longer hiding it due to how bad things were between us.
Understanding that nothing would come from me silently speculating to myself, I turned to Suigetsu and began, "I…I know that Toshiaki-kun—"
"Killed Shojoji." Suigetsu interrupted me with a nod, "I know. I figured that was part of the reason why but, gomen Misaki-san, I still don't get it. He killed Shojoji for you; why would you hold that against him?"
I wanted to tell him that we had spoken enough times for him to not ask me something like that, but I couldn't. It wouldn't have been the truth anyway. I wasn't hurt that Sasuke had killed Shojoji, I had been hurt by his attempts to cover it up afterwards.
How could I put into words how painful Sasuke's manipulation had been? And the worst part was that it had worked; I had cast aside any red flags my mind had spotted in order to preserve things between us, and in the end had only made myself play the fool. But would Suigetsu understand that?
As kind as he was, I could already hear his response to my explanation.
"But I lied to you about killing Shojoji because I didn't want you to feel bad. How are his lies worse?"
'They're worse because I…' I didn't finish my thoughts as I revealed something about myself that I had been trying my hardest not to accept.
"I…I need to go." I said, standing up abruptly, "Gomen, we'll have to talk later."
"What?" Suigetsu didn't bother trying to disguise the confusion in his voice, "You just got here!"
"Gomen." I apologized over my shoulder as I opened his door, "Later, I promise."
I closed his door behind me and stepped out into the hallway only to find Guren leaning against the wall two doors down. We looked at each other and I offered her a cordial nod, half expecting one back. Instead, she gave me a long smirk before getting off the wall and heading further down the hall.
Deciding to deal with her later, I went back to my room and quickly unlocked it, hoping that Sasuke wouldn't be here. Thankfully, the universe was on my side this time around because the room was just as empty as I remembered.
I fell onto the bed and shut my eyes.
'I love Sasuke-kun.' I admitted to myself as I curled up into a ball.
The reason why his lies had hurt more than Suigetsu was because I loved Sasuke and considering how he had no problem turning my world upside down every five minutes, it was safe to say that he didn't love me. At least, not truly.
Sure, Sasuke might've cared for me due to our status as partners for the mission, but he had a wife who he was obviously still very emotionally attached to. No matter what we did now, we would eventually return to our lives in Konoha and shatter the fantasy, and because of this, even though it wasn't Sasuke's fault, I hated him.
Or at least, I wanted to hate him.
'I can't tell him.' I immediately thought as I accepted my feelings.
Sasuke would either flat out reject me or mistakenly return my confession. And by mistakenly, I meant that Sasuke would delude himself into believing these emotions we'd shared in the last few months were real, thereby causing him to falsely confess to me. I didn't want that, mainly because I wasn't sure if I could take any more heartache.
So what could I do? Well, first and foremost I would make sure to keep my feelings hidden. Sasuke and I's current relationship status was probably the most ideal for this, so if I could just trick him into thinking I hated him for two more months, I would soon be able to put all this behind us. And regarding Suigetsu, I'd take the same approach.
I wasn't so shameless as to lie and say that I had gotten closer to Suigetsu with pure intentions. True, I enjoyed the nights spent walking and chatting with him in the garden, but had Suigetsu ever suggested we do something else in that time, I wouldn't have said no.
Thankfully, he'd never taken the first step and our relationship remained somewhat inappropriate without any concrete infidelity.
As hurtful as Sasuke's words were, they had reminded me of my true mission. Everyone involved with Akatsuki was to be apprehended and indicted on their wrongdoings. Accessory alone would grant Suigetsu fifteen years behind bars, but torture? Like Sasuke said, he was seriously at risk for the death penalty.
It was the correct judgement, of course. After all, he had gravely injured and caused irreversible harm to countless individuals. Still, the imagery Sasuke had painted in my mind stabbed needles through my heart, but the more I thought about it, the more inevitable it seemed.
Wouldn't it be cruel to suddenly stop talking to Suigetsu despite knowing what fate awaited him in the future? I owed it to him to at least make his last few months happy, right?
'Blessed Buddha,' I prayed, 'Please guide me to the right path and may I do the least harm.'
When I finished, I straightened up and stretched my arms before glancing at the clock and finding the time to be 6:54 p.m. Just as I decided to shower and freshen up before heading to bed early, a knock came at the door.
I prepared myself for Sasuke and opened it, only to find a frowning Konan.
'Wait, frowning?' I did a double take as I greeted her, "Joō-sama? How may I help you?"
"What…?" She lifted a hand to her head and winced, "What happened to me?"
|Sakura|
"How about that one?" Naruto asked, raising his arm to the stuffed animals hanging up on the booth.
I followed his hand to find him pointing to a medium-sized fox plushy.
"Yeah." I nodded my head as I forced a small smile, "I'll take it if you can get it."
Naruto raised an eyebrow, "When you say it like that, it sounds like you're doubting me, ya know."
I didn't say anything, not trusting my voice in the moment, and I waved a hand for him to continue. Naruto lifted the rifle and lined it up with his eye before pulling the trigger. The bullet hit the target a bit left of the center, and he cursed before handing the booth man another small bill.
"Ossan*! One more time!" Naruto roared as the man set up the game again, "This time for sure."
The man laughed and nodded his head, "Sure, sure. Try as many times as you like if you've got the money."
While Naruto tried and failed to hit the middle of the bullseye, I found myself receding into my thoughts. Although Naruto had done his best to try and assure me that we were fine, I couldn't help but think about our exchange with Himawari just shy of an hour ago.
"H-Hima!" Naruto stuttered, going to scratch the back of his head, "What a surprise, running into you hear, ya know! How's the festival treating you?"
Himawari's eyes lingered on her father's arm around my shoulders before eventually drifting up and meeting my own gaze, "Fine…we've been through most of the booths, we're just waiting for it to get dark so we can see the fireworks."
"They're probably going to look amazing, ne?" I spoke up, hoping to engage Himawari in a conversation and prevent her from analyzing us any further.
"Right…" Himawari's eyebrows furrowed together as her eyes shined with recognition, and I knew we had been caught.
"Who's your friend?" I asked, deciding to go on the offensive as I eyed their joined hands, "You two must be pretty close to go to a festival all by yourselves."
Her face reddened and she immediately dropped the boy's hand before turning to her father, "No, well, I mean—!"
The spiky black-haired boy held his hands to his side and lowered his head in front of Naruto, "My name is Norimaki Ehou, sir! It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance!"
"H-How do you do?" Naruto replied, taken aback by the boy's rigid greeting, "Please raise your head, you're making me nervous, ya know."
Ehou immediately straightened up and revealed that his cheeks were also somewhat red. One glance at Naruto told me that he had yet to connect the dots, and with a quick internal sigh, I moved to make the situation completely clear to him.
"If anything, he's the one that should be nervous." I started, ignoring Himawari's pointed pleading look, "He's meeting his girlfriend's dad for the first time."
"Girlfriend?" Naruto repeated, raising an eyebrow as he looked between the two teens, "Wait, huh? Himawari, this is your boyfriend?"
Caught between a rock and a hard place, I watched Himawari's face as she accepted her defeat and subtly nodded her head. I couldn't quite place Naruto's expression, but I could tell he was anything but happy with the news.
Taking his daughter's hand, he turned to Ehou and I, "Give us a moment, we'll be right back."
I nodded and watched a brooding Naruto tug a sullen Himawari around the corner and out of earshot. When it became clear that Naruto and Himawari's chat wouldn't be over in five minutes, I turned to Ehou.
"So, how long have you two been dating?"
It turned out that Himawari and Ehou had confessed their feelings to each other almost a year ago, but now that her parents were separated, Himawari used the shaky situation to go on dates with him. All the times Himawari had told her mother she'd be hanging out with friends was now being called into question, and Naruto had released her after warning her of the joint lecture she'd be receiving once he spoke to Hinata.
I'd asked Naruto if Himawari had brought up anything about seeing the two of us together but he maintained that she knew nothing and that if she'd noticed something, she would've pointed it out, but I wasn't so sure.
Women were more meticulous with their findings, and unlike men, they hardly ever gave away their trump card unless it was at the most opportune moment.
My stomach still churned at the thought of us being discovered, but the fear of being exposed called me back to another problem I would have to face. Although I hadn't seen or heard from him in months, Sasuke and I were still technically together and if I wanted to move forward with Naruto, that would have to be rectified.
However, there was no doubt in my mind that tracking Sasuke down in order to serve him the papers would be next to impossible unless I met with Itachi, and his brother was sure to try and change my mind once I told him what I was seeking Sasuke out for.
Slapping my cheeks, I shook my head, 'Who cares what he says? Sasuke-kun and I are done.'
And for the most part, that was true. Wherever Sasuke was, I could almost guarantee there wasn't a single explanation that could cover his absence and lack of communication with me, and even then, it wasn't as if things between us had been pitch perfect before.
I'd spent the last eleven years of my life in a constant state of distress, and I wouldn't lose anymore. I couldn't.
Besides, after our talk earlier today, I had other things to preoccupy my imagination. Instead of dwelling on my mistake, I had become somewhat enamored with the idea about what our baby would look like. Their green eyes with Naruto's blond hair or my pink hair with Naruto's blue eyes, or maybe even red hair from Naruto's recessive genes.
Well, I was honestly putting the cart before the horse. Even my asking Naruto to cum inside me had been a spontaneous decision made due to my fluctuating emotions, and I had quickly fixed it by having him stop us at a pharmacy and picking up some NorLevo. The last thing I needed was a pregnancy when I was still trying to get myself sorted out.
No, first came marriage, and I couldn't deny that the thought of walking down to the pavilion with Naruto at my side made my heart flutter.
'Uzumaki Sakura…' I mused to myself, a smile dancing on my lips, 'It fits.'
"Sakura-chan, look!" Naruto exclaimed triumphantly, waving the plushy in my face, "I got it!"
"And it only took him 5000 ryo!" The booth man added, receiving a subsequent scowl from Naruto.
Shaking my head, I laughed and took the plushy from him, "Arigato."
He grinned mischievously as he snaked a hand around my waist, "I know another way you can thank me…"
I rolled my eyes before taking his head in my hands and pulling him in for a light kiss. Or, well, what was supposed to be a light kiss. Naruto ran his tongue over mine and I hummed as I ran my tongue over the lower row of his teeth.
'Maybe we can head back to the hotel.' I began to think as my hands slipped from Naruto's head to his shoulders, 'The fireworks won't start for another half hour. That should be enough time to—'
"Well ain't this a cute couple?" A familiar Suna accent called from our side.
'Ugh, how many times is this gonna happen?' I wondered before quietly sighing and turning to Sasori, "How can I help you, Sasori?"
He was wearing a green yukata with a yellow sash and had a hay stick hanging out of the side of his mouth. In his left hand was a sizeable hyotan gourd and in his right was a red and white fan that read "Dawn*."
Upon closer inspection, I could see a slight tint of red on his cheeks and quickly surmised that he'd been drinking.
"Ouch." He sarcastically hissed, even shutting his eyes to further his point, "Careful, Sakura-san. Anyone hearin' that would think I was yer enemy instead of yer friend."
"They wouldn't be off the mark." I muttered as Naruto stepped forward.
"What do you want, Sasori?" Naruto asked, crossing his arms in an effort to intimidate him.
It worked for a second, but quickly backfired as Sasori sloppily chuckled before lifting his fan to his mouth, "If it ain't Naruto-san! How's it been, buddy? Ain't heard from ya in a while!"
Naruto shook his head before turning around and taking my hand, "Let's go, Sakura-chan. He's just gonna waste our time, ya know."
I nodded and followed Naruto's lead, turning to go. It was just as I took my first step that Sasori hiccupped and grabbed the back of my yukata.
"Hey, hey, where ya goin'?" He asked as he hiccupped again, "Let me come with!"
"What?" Naruto's annoyance was clear as he looked back, "What are you even saying?"
Sasori smirked, "Yer goin' ta do the business, right? Let me join."
Now it was my turn to get agitated, "…What?"
"Come on, ya both have been goin' at it for months, right? It's gotta be borin' at this point. Let me join, I promise I'll spice it up. What do ya say, Naruto-san?"
I squeezed Naruto's hand, warning him not to answer that question; not that I didn't trust him to decline the offer, but because I wanted to hear what else Sasori had to say.
"We both know Sakura-chan's got a lot of…stamina, if ya know what I mean." Sasori snickered, muffling it with his fan, "How 'bout I take the first two rounds and you step in after? Or do ya want Naruto-san first, hm Sakura-chan? Ya would, right? After all, ya let him fuck you when ya were—"
That was all Sasori managed to get out before I tightened my left hand into a fist and punched him in the chest. He choked on a gasp as he stumbled back and crashed into the gun booth. Struggling to breath, he placed a hand on his chest and stared at me with wide eyes as I approached.
"Next time you see either of us and think to say something, don't." I said as I grabbed him by the shoulder of one of his sleeves, lifting him to his feet, "Understand?"
He remained bug-eyed and tried but failed to say something coherent. Instead, all he could do was continue to stare and wheeze as he opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water. Satisfied, I released him, and he fell back against the booth.
I turned back to a stunned but also proud-looking Naruto who happily took my hand in his and spun me around, "You're amazing."
"What can I say? It comes naturally." I replied, echoing his own response from earlier in the day.
Naruto's eyes shined with recognition, and I did my best to calm the butterflies in my stomach after he shot me a certain look. Only Kami knew what he had in store for me when we eventually got back to the hotel, and imagining the various possibilities made my toes curl.
"Oi! I found him!" A silver-grey haired man called over his should as he pushed past me and reached Sasori's side, "Yeesh, Scorpion, what happened to you?"
A man with long blond hair joined them, and I couldn't help but note how similar his hairstyle was to Ino's. He helped Sasori stand up straight before supporting him by throwing one of Sasori's arms over his shoulder, and I held my breath as Sasori shakily lifted his free hand and pointed at me.
The two men turned to me, and their eyes slightly widened, letting me know that they knew of me, but before anyone could make a move or say anything, all my thoughts were destroyed by the unmistakable voice that spoke from behind me.
"If you've found him then we should be heading out. What's the hold up?" The owner of the voice questioned as he reached my side.
We brushed shoulders and it was then that I got to see him. Although he was wearing a white kitsune mask with green designs, I could see that he clearly had spiky, shoulder length blond hair. We stared at each other for what seemed like forever before he eventually apologized.
"…Gomen." He said, almost begrudgingly, before continuing to Sasori and the rest, "What's wrong with him?"
"I don't know, he was just sitting here gasping for breath when we…"
I tuned out their answer and lifted a hand to my thumping heart.
A glance at Naruto told me that I wasn't alone in my recognition of the voice, and I couldn't help but ask, "Is that…?"
I trailed off as Naruto shook his head and after taking one last look at the long blonde-haired man, I faced forward and resumed Naruto and I's trek up the street.
Sasuke was supposed to be…somewhere else. The odds of me running into him were low, and on the off chance that I did, I couldn't have met him in Otafuku of all places. Besides, if it was him, he would've said something to me.
That couldn't have been him, right? Right?
*Ossan means "old man" in Japanese, it's kinda disrespectful so don't go using it like that! Use "Oji-san" instead!
*Akatsuki means dawn😉
|Sasuke|
'Sakura. She's here.'
"Wait, so you're telling me that bitch is the reason why you almost died?!" Hidan burst out laughing just as Orochimaru concluded his checkup of Sasori, "Hontōni?!"
"It ain't that funny." Sasori grumbled, readjusting his robes after having been cleared, "The woman's hidin' the strength of an ox."
"Yeah, no doubt about it if you're on your ass struggling to breathe after one punch." Deidara snickered, dapping Hidan up as he finished mocking Sasori.
The two laughed again and Sasori just shook his head, "Fuck both of ya."
"But what even led up to her punching you like that?" Zetsu asked, wanting to know the full story, "I know you got dumped but it didn't seem like things ended on terrible terms, so what changed?"
"I…said some stuff I shouldn't've and…" Sasori sighed, "Fuck, I gotta go apologize."
"You'll have to do that on your own time." I cut in, crossing my arms and standing up, "Pain's waiting for us at the Hideyoshi district, and I'm sure he'll be less than impressed if we take any longer to get there so let's go."
"Hai, hai, Lieutenant." Hidan saluted me before resuming his walk, "Whatever you say."
I gave him a pointed look, although it was more towards the others than him, and they all smirked in understanding as they followed behind him. Making sure that I was the last of the train, I used my solitude at the back for a chance to get myself together.
'How stupid can you be?' I scolded myself, clutching the sides of my robes into my fists, 'So what if she's here? Do you have any right to be with her after everything you've done, everything you're doing? If Karin can't stand you now, what makes you think Sakura will be any kinder?'
With that admonishment in mind, I felt myself cool down and focus on the task at hand. Pain had a task for me and if everything went according to plan, by the end of tonight the whole world would have their eyes on Japan's police.
The five of us reached the bar relatively quickly and found Kakuzu outside waiting for us. His mouth was drawn into a firm line, letting the others know that a happy or joking attitude was to be dropped from this point forward.
Once inside, we were led upstairs to a well-decorated conference room, and it became apparent that this place was more a high-class brothel than a bar. Scantily clad women rushed past us just before we could open the door, and I cleared my throat as a warning when I saw that some of the guys had no reservations about staring.
There was no sign of Karin which worried me to some extent but knowing that she was with Konan helped to put my mind at ease, as it meant that she was relatively safe.
"Boss, they're here." Kakuzu announced as he slid open the meeting door, stepping aside and allowing all of us to enter.
Seated around the table were a bunch of new faces, but I recognized Pain and Commissioner General Watanabe at the forefront. Next to them was another man with a long ponytail that ran down his back, a diamond-shaped inking on his chin, and the letters "IV" tattooed under his left eye.
"Toshiaki." Pain signaled for me to come closer, and I obliged, "You've seen Watanabe-san before, but this man right here is Jigen. He and his association will be working closely with us moving forward."
I nodded my acknowledgement of the man and he offered me a small smile, "Pain speaks highly of your abilities. Hopefully I won't be disappointed tonight."
After playing his words over in my mind, I gave him a quick look before taking a seat beside Kakuzu. How much did Pain trust him? Did he know what I was supposed to do tonight? With these questions in mind, I looked across the table and introduced myself to the new individuals.
I got all their names on a one-to-one basis but learned that collectively they were called Kara. Once the introductions were through, Pain, Watanabe, and Jigen resumed their previous business-oriented chats, and I did my best not to zone out.
After what seemed like forever, Pain stood up and announced that a break was in order. He, Jigen, and Watanabe left for the bathroom leaving Kara and Akatsuki with each other. Some continued to converse while others went out to stretch their legs, and I took note of how a smiling Deidara slinked out of the room after a smirking Delta.
I was certain that Deidara had no idea of Pain's plan for me, but his less-than-subtle pursual of Delta made Kisame's suggestion moments later less out of place.
"I'm already tired of this meeting." Kisame yawned, folding his hands behind his head, "Think I'll go find Konan-sama and spend the rest of the night next to her."
"Oo, let me come with!" Zetsu laughed, standing up to follow Kisame.
"What?" Deepa exclaimed with a pout, "You're leaving? Don't! I'll be so bored."
"Come with us." Zetsu encouraged, and I met Kisame's eyes as things began to fall into place, "Hanging out with Joō-sama will be ten times better than whatever this is."
Deepa laughed as he stood up, "If you say so!"
Kisame turned to Hidan and the rest, "And you all? You plan on staying or coming with us?"
"I'm not trying to sit in front of Konan for an hour. But…" Hidan grinned impishly, "I might take a page from Deidara's book and go get some."
"From where?" Victor grumpily questioned.
Hidan indicated the surrounding area, "You forgetting where we are, old man? And thanks to Toshiaki we own this place, so the pussy pays for itself."
"Hm, Kakuzu?" Hidan nudged him, "What do you say? Think you can still get it up after all these years?"
Kakuzu shook his head, "It's none of your business whether I can or can't. Besides, how would you check? You want us to sleep with the same woman?"
"Fuck no." Hidan made a face before smiling naughtily, "I'm a bit of control freak so I don't like to share. We'll have a contest; whoever pulls the most orgasms from a woman wins."
"What the hell?" Deepa snorted, "How would you know if someone's telling the truth?"
"I don't need to lie about making a woman cum." Hidan triumphantly declared, "I guarantee you I'll get her to squeal six times."
Kakuzu snorted, "Then there's no point in having this contest because you've already lost."
"Talk is cheap, we're in a whorehouse so find a whore and prove it." Hidan taunted him, "Or are you afraid you'll have a heart attack mid nut?"
"You're on." Kakuzu gave in to his jeering, poking him in his chest, "And when I win, you have to call me master for a month."
"Deal. And when I win, you have to call me daddy." Hidan smirked.
Sasori groaned, "Idiots, both of ya."
Hidan threw his arm around him and yanked him up, "Who says you're not coming with us? You need a lay more than anybody, especially after getting bitched by that Sakura chick."
Although Sasori initially protested, he gave in after a few moments spent thinking about it, and Hidan slapped him hard on the back.
"What about you, big guy?" Hidan questioned, turning to Boro, "You got any pent-up energy you need to release?"
Boro cracked his neck and joined them by the door, looking slightly amused, "I do, but the women in this place look fragile; I might need two to satisfy me."
Hidan whistled, "Clear the room boys, we got a stud here!"
As the others laughed, Zetsu turned to me, "Toshiaki-san? What are you gonna do?"
I shook my head, "I'm sure our bosses would be upset if they came back to an empty room, so I'm gonna hang back."
"As will I." Koji quietly agreed with a nod.
Orochimaru chuckled, "I haven't had carnal desires in years and that won't change tonight. I'll be staying back as well."
I flashed him a look of recognition and the lines around his mouth crinkled as he smiled.
Amado stood up and grabbed a light and a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, "I'm also staying, I just need a smoke."
"Don't know why ya bothered askin' Toshiaki." Sasori said to Zetsu, "His wife's in the buildin'."
"Marriage doesn't mean shit, just ask Sakura." Hidan snickered, jostling Sasori, "If you change your mind Toshiaki, go ahead. Our lips are sealed."
I shook my head and sighed, "Thanks for the concern."
With that final exchange, the group cleared out from the room leaving just me, Orochimaru, and Koji at table. Amado returned moments later smelling like tobacco, and the four of us sat in silence.
"Sorry we took so long guys! There was—!" Watanabe cut himself off after opening the door and stepping back into the room, "Where is everybody?"
"Enjoying the night." I replied dryly, standing up and stretching, "We'll be here to tell everyone what they missed."
Pain chuckled, "Apologies, Jigen. It would seem my men have managed to corrupt your people."
"No need to apologize." Jigen waved a hand, "My group has always done what they wanted."
Jigen shut the door behind them and the three went back to their seats at the head of the table before resuming their talks. I took my time strolling around the room and getting to the water dispense in the corner, and from there I sipped water from a small cup and observed them.
While Pain and Jigen were actively discussing profits and predictable interferences, Watanabe remained slouched in his seat, barely paying attention.
'You fool.' I thought to myself as Orochimaru held up two fingers behind his back, 'I can't even pity you.'
I came up behind Orochimaru and placed a hand on his shoulder, and he handed me a 1ml syringe fit with a needle. My eyes met Koji's as I took the needle from him, and he subtly nodded confirming my previous suspicions about Jigen being aware of Pain's plot for tonight.
As I rounded the table and reached Watanabe, Koji abruptly stood up, gathering everyone's attention. It was in that instance that I followed Orochimaru's previous advice from in the day and jabbed the needle into Watanabe's neck before subsequently emptying its contents.
"Wh-What?" Watanabe stuttered as he turned and pulled away from me, falling out of his seat.
He crawled helplessly on the floor, and I noted how quickly Orochimaru's drug had gone to work, making sure to keep it in the back of my mind for later.
"Why are you doing this?" Watanabe asked as I lifted him up and turned him over, "We had a deal!"
"Gomennasai, Watanabe-san." Pain apologized, standing up and adjusting his yukata, "But your death will prove to be more beneficial than your life."
At this, Watanabe's eyes widened, "Death? No, no, no."
Jigen clicked his tongue, "Tch. Don't beg when you know what outcome will be, it's unbecoming of a man."
"Please," Watanabe continued, ignoring Jigen's advice, "I helped publicize that news about the raid, right? I got the people talking, didn't I? I can still be useful to you!"
"Be glad, after tonight, every move we wake will be so much easier." Pain guaranteed him before turning to me, "Toshiaki."
I nodded and wrapped my left arm around Watanabe's neck before placing my right hand behind his neck. Watanabe reached up to try and pry my arms down, but his hands were so limp that it became clear the effort was nothing short of symbolic.
With a quick inhale, I tightened the muscles in my left arm, squeezed, and began to count.
'One, two, three…'
"Please…!" Watanabe rasped, "I'll do anything…!"
'Six, seven, eight…'
"I'm begging…" Watanabe trailed off as his hands slipped from my arms and he effectively lost consciousness.
'Ten, eleven, twelve.' I ended the countdown definitively, slowly laying Watanabe on the floor and turning to Pain, "He's out."
"Good, and still breathing?" Pain wanted to confirm, "Well done, Toshiaki. Impeccable as always."
I held my hands behind my back and received the compliment with silence.
"I see he's immune to flattery." Jigen nodded his head approvingly, "Pain, perhaps you'll let me borrow him from time to time. I could use someone with such a level head on their shoulders."
Pain chuckled, taking out his phone and texting someone, "We'll have to see, I don't think I can spare such a viable asset for the time being."
Orochimaru reached us by now and placed a light hand on my shoulder before kneeling next to Watanabe. I couldn't place the intentions of his touch but set that aside for another time. He held two fingers to Watanabe's carotid artery and shut his eyes.
"How long will he be out for?" Koji questioned as Orochimaru drew his hand back and straightened up.
"Long enough to set up his death." Amado answered, puffing on a newly lit cigarette, "How do you wanna go about this?"
He directed this question towards Orochimaru who brought out a small Ziploc bag of crystallized powder before shrugging his shoulders, "It's as simple as making him overdose in his sleep and considering the potency of this drug in comparison to Watanabe's health habits, I'd be surprised if he didn't start foaming at the mouth after two milligrams."
"Fair enough." Amado nodded before blowing out another line of smoke, "Koji, lift him up."
"That won't be necessary." Pain raised a hand, stopping Koji from picking up the blacked-out Watanabe, "Kisame needs his exercise from time to time."
As if on cue, the door slid open and I turned to find an oddly focused Kisame entering the room. He made a point to look me in the eyes as he approached, and I wondered what he could be trying to warn me about as he threw Watanabe over his shoulder.
"So the story is that he overdosed in a brothel?" Amado surmised, "Do you think the public will buy it?"
"I have contacts that will spread supporting rumors once the story breaks." Pain assured him, "As soon as word gets out, the police in Japan will be finished."
"Still," Amado rubbed his chin, uncertain, "At least place a whore beside him. That way it'll seem like he was strung out and having a fun time with the broad when he suddenly kicked the bucket."
Orochimaru spoke up in agreement, "It would be more plausible."
"Fine." Pain conceded, "Kisame, after you—"
"Why not let Toshiaki handle it?" Jigen interrupted, looking at me with eyes I couldn't read, "She'll need to be subdued and drugged as well, right? Or are you confident in Kisame's ability to incapacitate?"
Pain looked to Kisame to defend himself and Kisame glanced at me before responding, "I can do it."
"You don't sound sure." Koji mused.
"Just send Toshiaki." Jigen insisted, "Have him book a girl, entice her, then knock her out when her guard is down. You can do it, right *Handsome?"
In all my years of service to the police, despite the numerous shoot outs and confrontations I had been involved in, I had never even harmed so much as a female criminal. Yet here I was, for the sake of the mission, about to snuff out an innocent woman and hand her over to her death.
"Yes." I answered gravely, "It won't be a problem."
Smirking, Jigen sat back down and crossed his arms, "Excellent. Well, you'd better get her before Watanabe wakes up and makes this plan much more difficult to complete."
Nodding, I turned and exited the room, walking so briskly I didn't even see Karin waiting out in the hall until it was too late.
"Toshiaki-kun, wait." She called, grabbing my arm and stopping me in my tracks, "Are you really going to do it?"
Despite the brown contacts over her eyes, her expression radiated true concern, and true fear. In that moment, all I wanted to do was wrap my arms around her and cry. I wanted to beg for her forgiveness, explain that this wasn't part of the plan, that killing people had never been a part of the plan, but the longer we stared at each other, the more her gaze changed.
I watched as fear turned into distrust which turned into contempt. There was no doubt in my mind that if I attempted to touch Karin now, I would either be met with a slap or have her roughly pull away from me.
So instead, I placed a cage over my heart and tugged my arm out of Karin's grasp.
"Of course I am." I answered as I played up my heartless persona, "Didn't you hear what they said? It'll make his death more convincing."
"And besides," I curled my lips into a smirk, "She's just a whore."
The look on Karin's face nearly broke me, but I forced myself to double down, and she shrank with every added word, "Probably an orphan or a girl without any options to end up in a place like this. No one will even miss her."
"But I was…" Karin quietly began before weakly nodding, "No, I see…"
Seeing as how her demeanor was considerably smaller than when we'd first started speaking, I took it as a sign that I had convinced her of my willingness to do the crime and turned away.
"Toshiaki-kun," She faintly called my name, preventing me from going any further, "Will you…Can you make it quick? Don't let her suffer."
I opened my mouth to haughtily reply that I didn't take pleasure in torturing people, but I wasn't sure I could get my voice to cooperate the way I wanted to. Stretching my arms, I nodded and continued downstairs.
After talking with *Mama, I crossed my arms and tapped my fingers as I waited on the girl she would send me.
"*K-Konbanwa," A somewhat younger woman with plum-colored hair approached me from my left, "Toshiaki-san, right?"
I nodded my head, still unable to speak, and she smiled lightly before bowing her head, "My name is Ran and I will be in your care for the night. Please treat me well."
While I knew she couldn't possibly have guessed what was in store for her, my heart panged at the request.
"Would you like to shower first?" She questioned, "We can head to the baths and—"
"No." I cut her off, my voice hoarse, "No, there's no need."
Nodding, her cheeks turned a shade of red and she gently took my hand in hers, "Gomen. I'm still kind of new to this so…anyway, please follow me."
I let her lead me to the back where a plethora of sounds were coming from the occupied rooms around us. Her ears reddened and she tucked her head into chest a bit as we moved down the hall and towards an open door on the right.
Once we were inside, Ran shut the door behind me and turned to me with a bashful look. She sat me down on the bed before stepping in front of me and dropping her robes, and then softly asked what I wanted to do first.
I should've felt something being in the presence of a beautiful naked woman, but when Ran came closer and palmed my crotch, it was clear that she hadn't drawn a reaction from me. Her eyes widened and she began to panic, kneeling down to take my length in her hands and manually start me up, but I stopped her.
"Get on the bed." I ordered her, and she timidly obeyed, laying on her back and spreading her legs.
It was as I pressed down on her thighs and tried to keep her legs open that I recalled something Killer Bee had said to me towards the end of our scuffle.
"You said you were gonna kill me, oh~! But the look in your eyes ain't that cold! Don't know what you're doing here~! You're not a killer, you have so much fear!"
Shaking my head free of his words, I lowered my face to her warmth and buried my tongue into her heat. She jolted in place as she stifled a yelp, and I tightened my hold on her legs.
"Toshiaki-san…" She called lightly, "You don't have to—"
"I want to." I murmured as I pushed my middle finger inside her, "Tonight is all about you."
*Toshi in Toshiaki can be written as 俊 meaning "handsome"
*Mama or really Mama-san is a term used for woman in charge of all female workers in a brothel
*Konbanwa means good evening in Japanese
A/N: A lot going on in my life but I've been sitting on this chapter for a while now and I didn't want to let two weeks go by with nothing. Hopefully my situation will be sorted out by this weekend. Love you guys (ɔ◔‿◔)ɔ