A/N: I do not own any Sailor Moon characters.

ASSASSIN'S LOVE

CHAPTER SEVEN - OUR FIRST MET

Mamoru walked out of the guest room in Minako's house. He and Ami had just treated Makoto, who was badly injured because of an earlier incident at the restaurant. All eyes were on him, except for Minako's. She didn't dare to look at the doctor's face. She just stayed silent in the living room, her clothes still covered with Makoto's blood. Usagi had wanted to help her change, but she refused.

"How is she?" Haruka asked worriedly.

Mamoru sighed. "The wound on her shoulder is bleeding again. And her head was bleeding badly," he explained. His eyes looked at Minako. "I can't promise anything, but she has been stable until now," he informed the others.

Minako closed her eyes, trying to digest the information Mamoru had given her.

"Ami and I will monitor her situation these few days," Mamoru added.

Rei's violet eyes looked at Minako. "I think we deserve an explanation from you, Minako," Rei said.

Usagi looked at Rei nervously. "Rei, please give her some time to explain."

Rei turned to Usagi. "She hid something from us! It's just one assassin who found Makoto. What if there are a few of them looking for that woman?" Rei yelled.

Minako didn't say a word. She just stood up and walked to her room. All eyes were on her. Then a few seconds later, she was back in the living room. She placed one piece of the picture where Makoto had wrapped her arm around Minako's shoulder. All of them gasped at seeing the picture.

The blonde woman took a deep breath before finally saying something to her friends. "First of all, this picture was taken years ago when I was an undercover agent in one assassination organization," Minako started her explanation.

Her eyes searched for Rei's violet ones.

"To answer your question, yes, I lied to her that she had a dog tag necklace with her when I found her," she paused and sighed before continued. "But it was the necklace she gave me years ago. Her name is Kino Makoto." With Minako's confession, it made sense to her friends why Minako insisted on keeping Makoto.

"Kino Makoto, the legendary assassin," Haruka said silently, but it could be heard by everyone in the living room.

"Assassin?" Usagi yelled in surprise.

Minako's eyes started to fill with tears. She wrapped her body with her own hands. She could feel those memories still fresh in her mind. "Yes, she was an assassin. I was her junior, and she had trained me personally for a few months. I thought I wouldn't fall in love with her, but it just happened," she paused, the memories flashing back in her mind. "We had trained together for weeks or months, and it just happened. We hid our relationship from people around us, and people didn't know about it because I was trained directly under her. We were always together. I was madly in love with her until I couldn't choose between my job and my love. But I had chosen my job, which was to kill the head of the organization."

Minako closed her eyes, remembering her past. Tears fell from her eyes. The pain of her past hurt her.

-

Minako walked behind the group of new recruits. They had just arrived at this place a few minutes ago. Her eyes examined the place. It was huge, and many people were doing their jobs. Then, the group stopped at what was called "the Training Arena".

In there, people were having their own training. Some were in the gym, some in the shooting area. There was even a swimming pool and a field for football. The group stopped at the boxing area where people were cheering loudly around the boxing ring.

In the middle of the boxing ring, a man and a woman were fighting. It caught Minako's attention. She couldn't stop herself from staring at the brunette woman.

"That's Kino Makoto," the man next to Minako said loudly for the others to hear.

Kino Makoto, the legendary assassin. She had killed a few dirty politicians around the world. Minako knew her by name but had never seen her face before.

Makoto swung her right foot in the air and hit the man's face. The tough man stumbled to the floor. He wiped off the blood from the corner of his mouth and stood up again. He looked angrily at the brunette.

"Dirty woman," he said in an angry tone.

Makoto had a smirk on her face. She didn't say anything, but she was ready.

"Heyahhh!!" the man yelled and pushed Makoto against the wall with his muscular body.

Makoto groaned as she struggled to free herself from the man's grip. She used her knee to kick the man in his left waist a few times.

"Hah!" Her opponent groaned in pain but did not release the woman from his grip.

The brunette woman used her free hand to elbow the man's back hard. The hit made the man lose his grip on the woman. Makoto took advantage by kicking his face again, making the man stumble backwards. The tall woman spun her body in the air and landed a final flying kick on her opponent's face.

The man fell to the floor with a loud thud. The crowd joined the referee in counting to three while Makoto took heavy breaths, still in ready mode. Loud cheers filled the room as the referee announced Makoto as the winner.

"Kino Makoto! Kino Makoto!" the room chanted.

Makoto raised both her hands proudly, but no smile appeared on her face. She looked at the crowd and froze when her eyes met the beautiful blue eyes staring at her.

Minako's eyes widened and immediately darted away when she caught Makoto staring at her. The room was too loud for her. Minako stared at the floor to avoid eye contact with the winner. She didn't even realize that the said woman was finally standing in front of her. She saw a pair of feet with slippers appear in front of her.

"Oh my God! Kino Makoto!" the man next to Minako squealed in excitement.

Minako's blue eyes slowly looked up. From long and toned legs, to the green shorts and exposed torso, which was only covered by a black sports bra. The sweating top, and finally the face of an amazing woman. She gulped hard. Her blue eyes found the emerald one, who was looking down at her. She was tall, and it amazed Minako.

"New recruit?" she asked, still without a smile on her face, as she wiped the sweat from her face and neck with a hand towel.

Minako nodded sheepishly. She could hear only this woman and her own heartbeat, even with the crowd still loud in the background.

Finally, a smirk appeared on Makoto's face. "Good," she said with a nod. "I hope to see you again," she said with a small smile.

Her smile had made Minako blush harder, and she didn't even know why.

Makoto bent slightly so that her eyes were even. "I like the ribbons on your head," she winked at Minako before walking past the blonde and the crowd.

Minako's face turned deep crimson from Makoto's comment. "Was she flirting with me?" Minako asked herself.

-

Minako leaned against the wall. Her eyes examined her surroundings. There was no sight of her enemies. She got her gun ready next to her face. She was wearing a helmet and bulletproof armor to protect her body. Her blue eyes scanned the area from behind the wall. She saw a man hiding behind the doorframe.

She brought her gun and pointed it at the man's helmet. "Sorry, man," she whispered before releasing the shot in his direction. Her first shot hit him in the head, causing him to fall to the floor.

The blonde-haired woman smirked proudly at herself. She then moved forward, her eyes scanning the surroundings wildly. She heard a sound from behind. She turned around and pointed her gun in that direction, but she saw no one.

She took caution and walked to another wall to hide herself. She saw two men teaming up to find her. Without wasting much time, she swung her gun at one of them, hitting his shoulder. The man fell to the floor and groaned in pain.

"Damn!" he cursed.

Minako changed her position to the other wall. Only then did she notice that there were not only two men looking for her but also about five or six men surrounding her. She looked around and saw that there was no way to escape except by killing all her enemies.

Her enemies started shooting at the wall she was hiding behind.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" she cursed angrily. She knew she had no other choice now. She pointed her gun at her enemies and shot randomly. "Arghhhhhhh!!" she shouted while firing at her enemies. When her gun was out of bullets, she looked up at her enemies who were pointing their guns at her. "Ah, shoot!"

There was a hand that gripped her armor and pulled her behind the wall again. "Are you trying to kill yourself?" the woman scolded Minako.

Minako looked up to see Makoto was wearing an orange shirt just like hers under her bulletproof armor. She didn't know that Makoto had joined the battle. When they had a short briefing earlier, there were no signs of her. But now she was in front of her, in the same team as Minako.

"Stop staring," Makoto hissed at the smaller woman.

Minako was blushing hard behind the helmet because Makoto had caught her staring. She was lucky that Makoto wouldn't see her blush.

Makoto handed her another gun. "They have five more people," Makoto told the blonde. Minako just nodded. "I will get their attention," she explained the plan. Their eyes met. "I need you to shoot them when they're shooting at me."

Minako didn't like the idea. "You're a better shooter than me. Why don't I get their attention instead?" Minako asked her senior.

Makoto smiled at Minako. This woman hardly smiled when she was around the organization, but this was the second time Minako had witnessed the smile on her face. "I need you to be alive and win this battle," she said with a wink.

This woman really made Minako lose her words. Before Minako could think straight, Makoto left her and ran to the other wall.

"Come on!" Makoto screamed while shooting at her enemies. Three of them were hit by her bullets, while the other two men shot in her direction.

Minako brought the gun in front of her and stepped out from her hiding spot. The two men who were shooting Makoto were caught off guard when Minako shot them both on their helmets. They didn't expect to have two people behind the wall.

When both men fell to the floor and groaned in pain, Minako's eyes went wide when she saw Makoto on the floor. She immediately knelt next to the woman's body and took off her helmet. "Miss Kino… are you okay?" she asked worriedly. She helped Makoto take off her helmet.

Makoto coughed in pain. "Damn! They shot me many times," she said, obviously in pain caused by chalk bullets. Her eyes found Minako's. "Anyway, congratulations," she said.

Minako couldn't help but smile at this woman who had sacrificed her life to let her win the battle. "Thanks to you," she said sheepishly as she helped the other woman sit.

"Miss Kino, are you okay?" the guy from the other team asked. "Sorry, I shot you many times," he apologized to his senior.

Makoto shook her head. "You're doing great, but yeah, it hurt like hell," she said before taking her gun and shooting at her junior.

"Ouch!"

"Yeah, like that." She rolled her eyes, which was cute for Minako.

"Sorry," he apologized for the last time before leaving Makoto and Minako alone.

Minako helped Makoto stand. Makoto wrapped her arm around the smaller woman. "Thank you," Makoto whispered to Minako.

Minako blushed lightly. She wrapped her arm around Makoto's waist and helped her walk out of the building.

"Are you okay, Makoto?" Nephrite asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Makoto sighed. "They were just too excited to shoot me," she said, rolling her eyes and releasing herself from Minako.

Nephrite smiled at the brunette. His eyes darted to the woman next to Makoto. "Oh, congratulations on winning this battle, Aino," he said, smiling at Minako.

Minako smiled back at Nephrite. "Thank you," she replied. In her mind, she was wondering about their relationship because they seemed close, calling Makoto by her name. Minako cursed herself silently. Why would she care about who this man was to Makoto? But damn, she couldn't stop herself from wondering.

As they parted, Makoto looked curiously at Minako, who was deep in thought. "Minako?"

Minako jumped slightly and found Makoto staring down at her. "Yes?"

Makoto smiled. She thought about something. "I have a place where I need to heal my body," she told Minako. "Do you want to come with me?" she asked. "Just you and me."

Minako blushed lightly at Makoto's invitation. "Can I go with you?" she asked, wondering about the rules.

Makoto put her finger on her chin and acted as if she was thinking. "From what I remember, we seniors can choose anyone we want to be our apprentices," she explained to Minako. "I told Kunzite that I chose you to be my apprentice."

Minako hasn't heard about this before. "But why?"

"We seniors have to find our apprentices and teach them closely for future missions," Makoto continued explaining to Minako.

Minako darted her eyes away from Makoto's. "But why did you choose me?" she asked.

The taller woman smiled at that question. "Because I like you," she whispered without hiding her true feelings. "C'mon, I need a good shower for my aching body," Makoto said as she walked to her motorcycle.

She hopped onto the green motorcycle with grace. Minako couldn't stop herself from staring at the woman who never stopped amazing her in everything she did. Makoto started the engine and got ready for her trip.

Makoto patted the empty seat behind her. "Hop on," she said to Minako, waiting for the blonde to take her up on the offer.

Minako walked closer to Makoto and nodded. A smile on Makoto's face told her how happy she was that her offer was accepted. Makoto helped Minako put on the helmet and tied it gently. Emerald eyes couldn't stop stealing chances to view Minako's face this close.

"Too tight?" she asked, and Minako shook her head. Fortunately, she was wearing a helmet, so Makoto couldn't see her blushing. The smaller woman hopped onto the motorcycle.

Makoto wore her own helmet and arched her head slightly to look at the woman behind her. She took Minako's hands gently and brought them to wrap around her waist.

"Ready?" Makoto asked, waiting for an answer from Minako.

Minako leaned closer and wrapped her arms comfortably around Makoto's waist. Her chest rubbed against Makoto's back, and she could hear a soft gasp escape from Makoto's mouth. Minako couldn't help but grin at the intimate touch between them. "Yes," Minako answered, placing her chin on Makoto's shoulder.

Makoto smiled to herself behind the helmet. She loved this feeling with Minako. It was warm and tender. Since she laid eyes on this woman, she couldn't stop thinking about her. She hoped to get an answer to these feelings soon.

With Minako's answer, she started her motorcycle and left the scene.

-

Makoto stopped her motorcycle next to the beautiful waterfall after a bumpy fifteen-minute journey. A small gasp escaped Minako's mouth when she saw the view in front of her.

"Wow! Beautiful!" Minako squealed as she jumped off the motorcycle and took off her helmet.

The taller woman smiled and parked her motorcycle carefully. She took off her helmet and placed it on her motorcycle. Her eyes watched Minako standing still in front of her, with her back to Makoto.

The blonde woman couldn't believe what she was seeing with her own eyes. She hadn't seen waterfalls in years. She had been training hard to get into this organization and barely had a chance to see the world outside the closed door.

Before she couldn't get enough of feeling awe at the view, she heard Makoto's angelic laugh from her right. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped when she saw that the brunette was naked, testing the water with her long left leg.

"Good," Makoto said before she walked into the water. Once she was in the water completely, she turned around to look at her junior. Minako darted her eyes immediately when Makoto caught her staring. She had her eyes on the ground with her face blushed badly. Makoto couldn't help but think how cute this woman was when she was blushing. "Come on, Minako. Cold water is good for healing your aching body," she said with a smile on her face.

"But..." Minako lost her words while she was still struggling to brush off the image of her senior naked in front of her. Her beautiful senior.

"Get in! This is an order!" Makoto ordered Minako.

Minako, who knew she had to obey Makoto's order, looked at Makoto, who was waiting for her answer. "Can you look away?" she asked sheepishly.

Makoto blinked her eyes. "Oh, yeah," she started to blush too. After a few minutes facing away from Minako, she could feel the water moving behind her. "Done?" she asked.

"It's freezing," Minako said in a shaky voice.

Makoto turned around to face Minako. When she noticed how close they were standing in the water, her face flushed and her body shook. Minako looked so beautiful up close. She had never felt attracted to anyone before. But with Minako, her heart beat faster.

Minako's blue eyes gazed into the emerald ones. Those beautiful eyes had made her heart beat loudly against her chest. Her eyes closed, and Makoto did the same. Both women leaned closer, but Minako's eyes snapped open when she remembered her job.

"Sorry..." Minako apologized to Makoto, who had finally opened her eyes.

Makoto pulled her body away from Minako and nodded. "I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have taken advantage of you," Makoto said with a bitter smile on her face. Minako was about to say something but Makoto cut her off. "I'm done with my bath. I'll wait for you at the motorcycle," she said before turning away from the smaller woman.

Minako, still stunned by what had just happened between her and Makoto, cursed herself in silence. "Urgh!" she groaned in frustration.