Sasuke stood shirtless in the cool night air, sweat glistening on his skin as he activated his Chidori. The once-brilliant lightning now rippled with pitch-black energy, illuminating the clearing around him with an eerie glow that seemed to swallow the very light it produced. He grinned, satisfied with his progress. Black Lightning—a technique so rare it felt like a badge of honor. This would make him stronger, more capable of challenging Itachi. Just as Sasuke prepared to push his limits further, a sudden voice interrupted him, smooth and laced with mockery.
"You're the Uchiha boy. The—" The speaker hesitated, as if considering her next words carefully. Finally, she continued, a hint of amusement in her dark eyes. "The whore."
Sasuke stumbled backward, startled. He turned quickly, his sharingan flaring to life, locking onto the source of the voice. Standing before him was a striking woman with long, straight blonde hair that shimmered under the moonlight. It was pulled into a tight braid along her back. Her dark eyes bore into him, accentuated by her painted red lips that curled into an amused smile. She wore a short-sleeved black and purple blouse adorned with faint cloud designs, and her posture was still, almost feline in its grace.
"I'm not a whore!" he snapped. Sasuke's cheeks flushed red with indignation. Who the hell did this woman think she was?
"You do not trade your body for services?" The woman tilted her head in a distinctly cat-like manner, her golden hair catching the light as she smirked. The innocence in her voice belied the intimacy of her line of questioning.
"That's different!" Sasuke shouted, his voice rising defensively.
She chuckled softly, a sound both condescending and intoxicating. "Oh? Do explain the difference, child."
"I'll do whatever it takes to achieve my goal," he bit out, his voice cold and resolute. Sasuke scowled, crossing his arms.
"Relax," she said, her foreign accent thick but melodious. The woman raised her pale hands in mock surrender, her dark eyes gleaming with amusement. "I'm mostly kidding. You are a fast learner, Uchiha. I saw you conjure black lightning just now. Impressive." Sasuke's lips twitched into a faint smirk at the unexpected compliment.
But then she continued, her tone shifting back to one of taunting curiosity. "So, what stops you from simply leaving after you get what you want? After all, you've been here, what, one week? You're well on your way to mastering our secret techniques. Yes? Surely you have only yet bedded three or four women."
"I haven't been with anybody," Sasuke interrupted sharply, his face burning with embarrassment.
The woman frowned, a look of genuine confusion crossing her face. "Anybody?" She sounded almost disbelieving. Then, her lips curled into a teasing smile. "My sweet lowlander child, why do you do this thing to yourself?"
Sasuke met her gaze, his sharingan swirling as he memorized every detail of her face. Her angular features, the way her lips curled into that infuriating grin, her piercing dark eyes—he committed them all to memory. He forced himself to look away, muttering, "Believe it or not, I'm not really sure what I'm doing."
"It is obvious you do not know what it is that you do. Such a young face, so far from home." The woman laughed, a soft, rich sound that made Sasuke's stomach churn.
"I'm not much younger than you," Sasuke muttered, his tone defensive as he crossed his arms.
She leaned in slightly, her dark eyes sparkling with amusement. "No, but I am more… experienced," she replied, her voice dripping with an almost playful condescension. Her smirk widened. "I am not a whore like you, Sasuke Uchiha. But…" she paused for effect, her grin turning almost predatory, "if you ever want someone to show you the village, I could be your guide."
Sasuke stared at her, his mouth opening and closing as if to retort, but no words came. She turned on her heel, her long blonde hair swishing behind her as she walked away into the darkness, leaving Sasuke standing there, unsure whether he was more irritated or intrigued. That grin of hers lingered in his mind long after she disappeared.
—
The next night, Yugito led Sasuke through the winding paths of the Cloud Village, her pace steady. Her gait was effortlessly graceful, her hips swayed with a feline sashay—Sasuke forced himself to dam that stream of consciousness.
The quiet hum of the village life beneath them provided a strange sort of solace. Sasuke found himself studying her out of the corner of his eye. He tried not to be so obvious as before. She was older—just three years, but her maturity made that gap feel much wider. Yugito carried herself with a self-assurance that Sasuke envied. It was the kind of confidence that didn't waver, even in silence.
For a moment, they simply walked, their footsteps in sync. Sasuke finally broke the silence. "What was your childhood like?" His tone was light, curious.
"Let us not ruin a wonderful night with such talk," she said softly, her words measured. Yugito's dark eyes grew impossibly darker, like twin voids that threatened to swallow the world.
"Wonderful night, then? I'm honored, Nii-san." Sasuke arched a brow, his mouth twisting into a smirk.
"Yugito, if you please." She rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed with his formality.
"I please," he answered. Sasuke's smirk widened.
Yugito made a sharp tsk sound with her lips, her gaze lingering on him for a moment longer than usual. "Tell me of your childhood, if you would ask of mine own."
"Thought you said you didn't want to talk about things that would ruin the night." Sasuke's expression faltered, his voice hollow, his amusement dimming.
"I—" she began, then stopped herself. She flinched, just slightly. It was the first crack in her otherwise perfect composure, and Sasuke noted it immediately. She glanced at the moonlight reflecting off the polished rocks around them. "I must say, Sasuke, you surprise me."
They continued walking until the mountain path opened into a cliffside overlook. Below them, the Cloud Village stretched out in all its glory, its lights twinkling like fireflies in the dark. They sat at the edge, their legs dangling off the cliff. For a long moment, neither spoke.
Then Yugito broke the silence with a sigh. "The Raikage wants me to seduce you, Sasuke." Her voice was quiet, but the bluntness of her words sliced through the stillness. She didn't meet his eyes as she said it.
"Is that all this is?" His voice was sharp, edged with an emotion he didn't fully understand. Anger? Disappointment? Sasuke stilled in anticipation of her answer, his entire body tense.
Yugito sat turned away for a moment, or an hour. She finally turned to look at him, her expression unreadable. "The Raikage is not openly refused, Sasuke." She didn't call him child anymore. The gravity in her voice made it clear this was no simple jest. "But I would not insult your intelligence by lying to you. This… in a way, is my refusal."
"What did you tell him?" Sasuke studied her, trying to gauge her intentions.
"That I would do what was required. But I came here to tell you the truth. You should know what his plans are." She smiled faintly, but it didn't reach her eyes. She whispered, "He worries that you refuse his offerings out of a desire to delay your fulfillment of the bargain."
"It's not that." Sasuke shook his head, his black hair falling into his face.
Yugito nodded knowingly. "I know. You worry. You lack experience, Sasuke." Her smile turned teasing, though there was an undercurrent of sincerity beneath it. "You are not cut out to be a whore, Sasuke."
When she said his name, his chest tightened. It wasn't the words that stung—it was the way she said them. The way she saw through him. Like she knew him better than he knew himself. He looked away, his voice quieter than before. "I don't know what to do."
Her smile softened, losing its edge. "For now, you will train. You will master the forbidden jutsu of my village. Then, you will do as you must." Her tone was casual, but her eyes remained locked on him, unflinching.
After a moment, she added, "The reason they wanted me to bear your child is that I am a Jinchuriki. The Two Tails." She spoke the words bluntly, without any trace of shame or hesitation. He thought he detected a glimmer of… something in her inscrutable eyes. "A hard life, you see."
Sasuke nodded, his sharingan reflecting the faint glow of the moonlight. "I see," he said quietly. "Better than you think."
For the first time that night, Yugito seemed genuinely at a loss for words. Neither pressed the other further, and they sat together in silence, the weight of unspoken words–or, rather, words that needn't be spoken aloud–settling between them.