Arabella

“Sasuke?”

Your whisper was distinct in the empty house filled until now only with your warm presence. A presence Sasuke could not deceive himself anymore by saying he didn’t miss it. In more ways than just a singular one.

The dim lights struggling to penetrate the closed curtains due to the treacherously icy night could bring the only source of light illuminating your beautiful features and the soft glint in your eyes when you saw your lover.

“I’m home.”

With dainty footsteps, you helped him undress his full-length travelling cloak, placing it on the hanger by the door. You chuckled, glancing up at his tired features, the glint in his eyes hidden in the shadow of the corridor the house provided.

“You are.”

You let out a small gasp when you turned around, only to be stopped when his head leant until it rested on your bare shoulders — the nightgown being just a tank top with shallow straps, bare legs above the knee were under some loose shorts. Your arm lifted, palm touching his hair a little too long now, on the side.

“Rough mission?”

His head tilted slightly into your neck, inhaling your comforting scent as it left only a shiver down your body. Sasuke might be innocent, and that makes you feel bad, because even his short touches can make your mind spin.

Only he wasn't this time, and you noticed when his lips grazed across your neck before leaving a gentle kiss here. His arms come in front of you, over your belly, as he pushes you slowly against him. You gulped, closing your eyes as one of your hands comes over his, the other still touching half of his face.

You glance up, and you finally see the look in his eyes. He whispered, glancing once for your lips, a subtle invitation he hardly tried to give.

“Are you tired?”

You smiled at his question; that means something else. That means you allow him to show you how much he missed you when words fail him. And how could you refuse such a rare opportunity?

“It’s because of what I said last time?” His lips touched your skin, travelling lower from behind your flushed ears to your neck and below. Sasuke didn’t confirm it directly, but you know nothing is left unnoticed by him; being observant is in his nature.

“You were wrong.”

You turned around to face him, placing both of your hands on his chest, fingers playfully tugging the tight blouse. One of his hands came now on your waist, the other cupped your cheek.

“I was?”

These were the only words you managed to say before he claimed your lips. He guided you, slow at first, then as the kiss became more passionate, more intense, asking permission when you kissed him back with the same necessity for him to slip his tongue in your mouth. He urged you back until you hit the closer edge of the sofa in the evening room.

Just then, he lets you breathe, but his touches become firm, unyielding. You leant on the small surface, giving him an erotic sight that only made him want to take you right here and there—with hardened nubs behind your top, a strap falling on your shoulder, shorts rising up, and a flushed face only he could cause.

“Sasuke…”

With a swift motion, he turned you around and bent your body as he leant over your ass, feeling exactly for how much Sasuke missed you. One hand came to touch every inch he could, letting a shiver down your spine as his finger traveled the path from the back of your neck to your curves before he palmed your ass, squeezing it slowly.

When you moaned, Sasuke looked at you, his hand coming to grip your chin to make it still for his mouth to take yours. You arched your back, and that only makes Sasuke let himself grind against you, thanking you with a sweet groan against your lips that even he couldn't stop. His hand slipped under your top, taking your breast in his palm while he kissed you.

“I-I want you…” You helped him, struggling to take your shorts off, and he straightened himself, placing his hands over yours as he bent down to let them fall. You cursed under your breath as you tried to lift your legs and drag the shorts away. His mouth twitches, but it soon falls when he sees your aroused expression, hands placed on the sofa with your exposed ass to his dark eyes.

Your eyes widen when he parts your cheeks, hissing at the wetness around when his fingers are rubbing slowly around your needy clit.

“Nghh—Sasuke, please—“

Sasuke gave you a short glance, his breath flattering. Sasuke gathered your wetness from your clit, between your folds, before slipping one finger inside your pussy. He groaned at how wet you are already, another finger followed to stretch you more, curling them inside. His other hand quickly begins to unzip his pants, allowing you hardly a second to catch a glimpse of his flushed, hard dick, throbbing hot in the palm of his hand, with precum already falling from his tip. He stroked himself with it as his fingers pumped inside your pussy, tensing his biceps the more he exerted pressure, so more embarrassing squelching sounds to fill the room.

He towered over your back, whispering against your lips while you felt his tip teasing between your folds before he found your trembling entrance, leaving you panting.

“[Name]…”

“Yes—Y-yes! I want to feel you now, Sasuke—“

His mouth parted at the same time as yours when he slipped inside, his pretty dick filling you more and more, watching it stretch into a wide O shape to accommodate its girth. Sasuke closed his eyes, fighting to not focus on your tight walls around him before he started moving.

“Oh my—“ It didn’t take long until he started pounding deeper, harsher, quickening his pace when the primal side of him finally took over. One hand stays on your waist to hold you steady, while the other moves in front of you, arms across your chest, with his grunts overwhelming your ears.

“You feel so…good.”

You whine at his words, rare from a non-talker, biting your lip as his dick makes a mess of you, trying to meet his punishing thrusts.

“More. I need more, b-baby—”

He hissed when you squeezed around him. He grabbed both of your hands behind your back, then laid his over them while his thrust shook you until your legs quivered. You didn’t have a choice but to take him. Not that you didn’t want it, feeling yourself on the brink already. And it almost seemed like he knew it. But that's true, Sasuke knows your body enough to predict when it will collapse with ecstasy. Only if he gave you a little help—

“Come with me.”

His arm comes in front of you, fingers moving fast around your swollen clit. Sasuke didn’t leave your dewy eyes, listening to how you chanted his name over and over again; he kissed you at the same time when your moans turned to cries and your body started convulsing under him until your orgasm hit you, warming all of him. Hoarse sounds left his lips at every heavy-hitting thrust that followed, hips slapping against your ass mercilessly. His muscles flexed until he halted inside you, letting his cum fill your pussy. Your hand comes behind his head in an instant, feeling high off orgasm, and now, you are the one begging for his lips as he tries to reciprocate.

His tired body leans over you only for a moment. Then, Sasuke slowly slipped from you, creampie dribbling out your pussy, some of the mixed cum glistening between your thighs. He helped you move on your weak legs until you turned around, embracing him tightly in your arms.

Sasuke’s hands come on both sides of your thighs until your legs are wrapped around his waist, followed by one of his arms lifting yours to let it rest over his shoulders. Your exhausted smile tormented his heart more than ever. He kissed your forehead as he started walking to the bathroom. A much-needed bath he would make sure to take care of, especially after you respond to him so well.

“I see someone really missed me.”

Not only like this. Never only like this.

“…Yes.” The rest followed in a hushed tone that you think you imagined it. “More than you know.”

A/N: The title came randomly at me and I didn’t knew it had some connections with Sasuke. I was wrong. xD In the context of the popular Persona video game-series, a "crooked" or corrupted Persona (often referred to as a Shadow) is a psychological manifestation of a person's suppressed emotions or dark desires.

It was colder than it should have been for autumn. The perfect season for the short, delicate purple perennials that bloom around this time. There were dozens of them, but none seemed dangerous. Neither you nor Kakashi noticed the creamy-yellow pollen bursting from them, leaving a heavily scented trail behind the path you had just walked.

Soon enough, you felt as if something had widened your blood vessels, improving blood flow. The rush came out of nowhere, and it had nothing to do with chakra. Maybe your body was adjusting to the forest’s conditions?

Your nose scrunched, your steps feeling heavier.

“Something’s wrong.”

“Hm? Based on what exactly?”

“On my intuition.” You could hear his skeptical thoughts. “I swear. It’s... Forget it. Can you just trust me?”

“Of course. What’s the purpose without trust between shinobi?”

“Fuck you…” Your words faded as something else caught your attention.

The yōkai tree that looked like an ordinary tree made you step closer to it, hands on your knees as you leaned toward it.

“Wow, this actually looks cool.”

Kakashi grabbed your arm sharply at the same moment the plant moved slowly toward you, slowly as if it were hiding its urgency.

You glared at him as he dragged you along behind him. Kakashi looked completely unfazed as he spoke, his hand leaving your skin.

“If you want to be drained of blood, I’ll let you go.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Vampiric tree. It’s said to bleed like a living creature. They usually grow on former battlefields.”

You raised an eyebrow as you followed him, murmuring to yourself.

“And why are they here?”

Kakashi shrugged. He looked around the vast wilderness. The unnatural layers of canopy blocked out most of the sunlight, casting the forest floor into a permanent, gloomy shadow.

The undergrowth was incredibly dense, making navigation difficult and concealing potential threats. He spoke while trying to choose the most reliable path.

“That’s why your intuition tells you something’s wrong?”

You shook your head. His teasing tone irritated you enough to maintain your annoyed expression.

You looked ahead before him, analyzing the path he had chosen as both of you lowered your heads beneath the massive plants, until you spotted one you recognized from its characteristics. A Keyaki? A deciduous tree native to Japan, with a vase-shaped crown and intensely serrated leaves. In a forest like this, you weren’t sure it was much different from barbed wire if it made impact with little skin.

“Kakashi.”

He slowed his pace until you moved in front of him, cutting away the serrated leaves with the kunai that was rested next to your knees, before they could brush against his body. When you turned to glance up at him, Kakashi’s eyes lingered across your face.

“Move away. It has thorns. Don’t touch it.”

He held your gaze for a second, and it left you dizzy, momentarily unaware of where you were until you turned around and continued walking ahead of him. Kakashi murmured something in response, but you ignored it.

“Mhm. Thank you.”

At least he isn’t Mr. Perfect, you thought.

Still, your focus wasn’t here—not on him, not even on yourself. It felt as though it had drifted somewhere else entirely. Something was happening, but what? Was this how you felt as a child during those exams? No, this was completely different. This was unexplored territory.

You glanced up, jumping onto a tree as you followed Kakashi, barely looking back at whatever little creature had just let out a growl, hidden closer to both of you. You didn’t want to know.

You weren’t far from the other side. Shouldn’t the destination be closer?

In fact, the problem was that you were only in the middle of the forest.

🍃

Being an ANBU member was not as validating as it seemed, despite being handpicked by the village head, chosen for your individual capabilities and specialized kills. There were apparently no true ranks within the ANBU either, only divisions. Kakashi's and yours was Team Ro. Well, before that, the two of you had a brief stint in Root—the worse one. You suspected that's why you were assigned to this mission specifically. Having served in both worlds, the mission didn't seem too dangerous, nor too easy.

The decision to remain in ANBU was because it was an elite tactical squad operating under the direct command of the Hokage. Not because you liked the Hokage or anything. You couldn't stand him. Still, after Orochimaru's infiltration during the Chunin Exams, no one wanted to let all of it go to waste without reinforcing the village's safety. That's why both of you needed to find one of his hideouts, to gather more intel. Once inside this massive forest spanning a 10-kilometer radius, Orochimaru had shed his disguise, blended into the dense, perilous wilderness, and infiltrated the kids' exam. One of them was now literally cursed because of it.

Another reason you remained on this team was because Kakashi was its captain. Annoying as it sounded to admit out loud, he was a good ninja with far more experience in the shinobi world. Respectable, right? Yet, Kakashi managed to get under your skin in more ways than one. First, every time he spoke, he manages to always irritated you somehow. And the other... you weren't particularly proud of. To admit something like this? You will probably need a very hard drug to do it so.

Coming back, you knew you should head northwest of Konoha. That was where other comrades had found traces suggesting one of Orochimaru's hideouts might be located, roughly 300 to 500 kilometers away, approximately a two-to-three-day journey on foot for a standard shinobi, somewhere near his possible base in the Land of Grass.

As you tried to gather your thoughts, mapping the route and sensing your geographical position, you could feel your mind blurring, barely finishing a sentence, let alone formulating a plan. What the hell is happening? Should you take break? Since when do you need a break? For what? Walking 1 day and a half? Impossible. It was more concering when the shadow that just appeared before you was noticed only as it passed by, not beforehand as it should have been. You watched the next movements as though time had slowed, seeing a hand place an explosive tag on a tree. Kakashi had disappeared long ago, and you…only now, you reacted.

You exhaled, trying to regain some semblance of control, hands pressed against the ground, one knee striking the earth. Your reflexes still responded, tilting your head instantly once—a shuriken flew past. Twice—the second shuriken followed as you vanished from the spot again. How many they are?

From his concealed position, Kakashi analyzed the situation, counting five shadows so far. They wore dark robes, their faces hidden beneath hoods that obscured nearly everything. Five? Wasn't the Sound Five team eliminated during the Chunin Exams? Or were they Orochimaru's clones, meant to throw you into confusion? More importantly, where were you? He hadn't sensed your chakra nearby the way he had expected after the surprise attack.

Kakashi was certain they were getting closer to the source, that they were on the right trail. Otherwise, this ambush wouldn't exist. He quickly glanced toward the sudden noise, tracking the movements around him until he saw the scene unfolding before him—or rather, beneath him, since he was perched in a tree.

Two shadows farther back. One shadow closer, on the adjacent branch, moving toward you horizontally. Two more on another parallel branch.

The shock Kakashi felt came when, unexpectedly, one of the figures in the rear hurled a sickle, splintering the hardwood so violently that the branch cracked nearly in half. The chain attached to it wrapped around the branch above you, enough to throw you off balance. One of the shadows bend enough for your leg to be touched by a kunai, but you retreat. He watched as your hands—almost as if they were trembling, because otherwise he couldn't explain it—moved far too slowly for a shinobi toward the twin chakra-infused sickles secured in the straps across your back. By the time your hands reached behind your head and your fingers curled around them, it was already too late. His Sharingan did not lie.

The shadows nearly collided. One second they were attacking you, the next you had vanished completely, one of the figures forcing the already unstable branch until it plunged into the void below.

Kakashi looked down at you, noticing your dilated pupils, probably from the adrenaline. He couldn't say anything yet. No. They needed to leave. He didn't know if he could take all of them down without knowing what they were capable of, and with you in this condition, the risk was far too great. Kakashi couldn't ignore the unexplicable fear he felt when you saw you there. Not even know, when he glance at you once in a while as your face was hidden in his chest for a reason he doesn't understand.

🍃

It’s bad. It’s really bad.

Kakashi jumped over the furthest three he found, loosening his grip around you when one of your legs hit the massive branch. You pressed one hand against the wood, bending your body slightly as you tried to catch your breath.

“How is it possible you didn’t deflect that?”

You could only manage a small scowl, too disturbed for anything else. Your ears started ringing like the whole forest was infected with a whistle genjutsu, carrying disturbing high-frequency notes meant to disorient the enemy’s senses. Or just a really bad bird song.

“Shut up—“

You hissed at the sudden uneasy feeling in your body, scrunching your eyebrows as you bent down, hair falling toward the distant ground that promised a completely unwelcome fall from this height. Just a fleeting movement and Kakashi’s hand found your arm again, stabilizing you in a second. Something was wrong. With you.

“What’s happening?”

At the lack of an answer, only the sound of your heavy breathing, Kakashi guided your arm over his shoulder as his own came behind your body, supporting your back as he took you down with him, jumping on the ground. He placed you down as gently as he could, but he felt the way you had gripped his clothes until now, your form now resting against the enormous tree.

“Are you hurt?” He looked over the small cut from the kunai, staining your training pants with blood. “Here?”

It’s really just a scratch. The tension in your shoulder muscles was more painful from the hit you had taken. But Kakashi had already ripped the fabric of your pants, his hand moving swiftly to locate the medical kit in his pack until his fingers found it.

Your eyes widened when his mask was lowered to his chin, his teeth tearing through the bandage and pulling off a long strip—enough to wrap around the wound one, two, tree more times — after he poured disinfectant over it. His fingers were warm as they brushed against your bare leg. He inspected the injury while you gasped at his touch, and he glanced at you, assuming it was because of the—pain?

“Kakashi, stop—It’s not—”

Kakashi pressed the back of his palm against your forehead, feeling the elevated heat of your skin.

He had never seen you like this. Kakashi had witnessed your wounded expression only once before, during an ANBU mission at the very beginning, and it had been nothing like this.

“What is it? Was their weapon poisoned?”

No, for fuck’s sake! You had felt this sensation simmering inside you even before the ambush, but your tongue refused to cooperate long enough to form coherent words. Your only focus was to breathe and breathe—

“No!”

“But what?”

“Hell, it’s so fucking embarrassing.”

He was so close that it made your heart pound wildly.

“What? What is it embarrassing? You need to tell me."

You moved away as much as possible, which was hardly at all. Your head resting against the tree trunk, your hands disturbing the earth beneath you from where you sat.

"I’m fucking… I’m fucking aroused, Kakashi! Okay? God, I wanna die. From all the goddamn things—to be here with…no, fuck!”

Kakashi’s hands stopped in an instant; his whole body froze as you continued rambling. You swipe the sweat over your face, leaning more on the three behind you, your body twitching against the ground.

“It’s like I took 3 bottles of aphrodisiac. It’s similar! I tried before, okay? I’m sure it is—“

You hissed as your thighs suffocated the heat between your legs, where the problem is. His shocked expression makes you feel he is taken aback, mostly disgusted by the way your mind is fragile. Unaware that Kakashi was indeed taken aback because it was the last thing he expected to hear from your mouth.

This is not good. He shouldn’t be here. No, you shouldn’t be here in the middle of the forest. Kakashi glanced around; the Copy Ninja seemed like he was going to pieces. Never thought about you like this. He never speaks with you about things like this. Yes, he heard you talk vaguely over a glass or two of sake about some hook-up with some jōnin from other villages with different rank names he doesn't remember now. Rating the experience, complaining, or praising based on their skills or—but it wasn’t his business. Not his place to talk about his own personal experiences and indulge in a conversation.

Still, he is also a liar.

He was younger that time, struggling with hormones a person could have, feeling guilty enough to have such a depraved thought about his comrade, no matter the gender. But he shut down that door inside his head pretty fast, not indulging in any filthy fantasies, repriming his urges in general, especially towards you.

His attention comes back to you, aware again and aware of your lack of air.

“We might not be the closest, but I trust you, okay?” What— “I trust you enough to not die here so pathetically from this fucking jutsu—or what the hell is this! I need to—Fuck!”

His eyes widen when you start putting your shirt over your head while his own turn so quickly in shame.

“[Name]—“ He looked around, feeling so stuck his own heart was leaping so hard.

“I really need to do something—please, leave me alone for a second. I don't—"

"No," Kakashi wet his lips. You shouldn’t be alone here. “You shouldn’t be alone. It’s dangerous and—“

“Kakashi, I need to touch myself like right now. Can’t you understand?”

His own breath was enough when his own mind betrayed him.

“Do you want me to help you with that?"

Am I hearing things?

“W-What? Why…why should I let you? It's clear you feel disgusted, and I’ll never force—"

“I’m not. I’m not disgusted.” He’s not at all. You don’t know what you’re talking about. That’s not the problem. “We need to resolve this fast, to get out away from this.” But you’re not conscious of consenting to such things, and he feels so damn guilty. “I’ll stay here. I’m not going to look—“

“Are you insane? I could ever—Oh! Fucking hell—I will, fuck—“

Kakashi's eyes lingered on the way your own hands try to give some sort of comfort by letting faint touches fall on your body. He catches himself, glancing back at you.

"Can you help me do a barrier ninjutsu?"

You tried to understand the meaning behind his inquiry, but all you could feel was fear. You swallowed harshly when Kakashi's hands grabbed yours, trying to ground you more in the present as his dark grey eyes messed with your mind.

"What…what are you saying?"

"Focus on me, please. We need to limit access here. Now."

More specifically, the seal will manipulate a specific point of space. The realization freaked you out even more.

"To trap me in a void here? With you? No—"

Kakashi let out a deep breath.

"[Name], trust me. Please."

The invisible sphere that seals away any opening has the possibility of being destroyed; however, doing so would require a tremendous amount of effort.

Kakashi moved your elbows into the position of starting basic hand seals as a first step.

"You remembered, right? What I showed you?"

You eventually nodded, listening to him. As both of you complete the hand signs, you struggle to channel a steady stream of chakra to your hands and touch the group. Kakashi put his hand over yours, transferring his chakra outwards, weaving an invisible barrier mesh across the perimeter of the area. He made a final hand sign, a mental command to seal the deal. The problem is, your chakra is already destabilized, and it will clear very quickly, so that remains for Kakashi to use almost all this chakra to maintain both of you here, as he was more plausible to remain conscious to concentrate.

“F-Fucking hell.” You start unzipping your pants, hands trembling in need.

“[Name],” Kakashi moistened his lips, catching only a glimpse of your panties. “Breathe. I’ll turn around.” You struggled to let out a laugh, not a hint of amusement in it. Your hand comes right between your thighs, struggling against the tight little space, not patient enough to undress yourself completely. You hissed at the first touch with your pulsating clit, not even teasing with light touches, circling around but pressing to feel more, your arousal already soaking a big spot on your underwear. Hell, they are not even your best panties. You spread your folds before trying to focus on a satisfactory rhythm, but it was so torturous—your blood burning and pumping in your veins, feeling jittery all over your body. Your foot pressing into the ground harshly, seeing your own legs with a diplopic vision. Your half-lidded eyes were open, seeing Kakashi’s back as you glance down at the pumping veins on his arms, hands — placed on the ground, hidden under that fucking attractive black blouse he usually wears in missions, tightening against his toned body.

He tried to literally ground himself, almost like he could’ve let him gather a high concentration of his lightning chakra, breaking the ground under him. The squelching sounds of your pussy drive Kakashi mad, feeling like an intruder, like he shouldn’t be here. His eyes closed as he heard your moans, blaming the universe for not even having the possibility to use Kamui since his chakra is needed here. You cursed under your breath, letting your hand from between your legs fall to the side, mirroring the other one as you breathed out agonizingly. “Turn around.” He flinched, his head shifting imperceptibly. “Please, Kakashi. H-Help me.” Kakashi took his time, looking in front of him before slowly, torturously turning around. Your eyes eat him alive, forcing him to look at you and see how dishevelled you are right now, with your top long gone and your breasts straining to slip off that bra, luring one to bite the skin above, to suck it, to worship it. He sizes you up, but how couldn’t he? When do you look so devilishly beautiful? “Will you f-fucking help me?” Your hand comes around your breast, squeezing it for any form of relief as he follows the motion before he drags himself closer to you. “[Name], there’s no going back from…this.” He let you take his hand to come touch your breast, placing your own on top of his. “I only want you to feel good.” He swallowed hard at your taunting tone. “Yeah?” He palmed your breast slowly, his mouth parted as he watched how you let out sweet notes of pleasure. “Then make me feel good, Kakashi.” You lifted as much as you could to be closer to him, looking up at him as your eyes fell on his lips and then on his cautious eyes. “Kiss me.” Fuck. He couldn’t even speak or even try to stop you when his brain was intoxicating enough to lower his head at the same time you move, feeling your soft, dry lips against his for the first time. Kakashi’s knees dragged against the ground as he draw closer, inclining his body to tower over you. One hand squeezed your breast, the other coming behind your head, deepening the kiss. Your teeth grazed his lower lip before tugging it, and it only made him more aroused, gripping your hair slightly just for you to moan against his swollen lips. He gave you a short glance before kissing you again, feeling your shuttering breath, his tongue slip inside your mouth.  Kakashi kissed you gently, carefully, but it wasn’t gentleness you wanted, not now, not after all this time, and as you knotted your fists in his shirt, you pull him harder against you. He groaned against your mouth, not interrupting for even a second. Slowly, cautiously, he draws a path over your shivering body, letting his fingers brush against your bra straps, letting them fall over your shoulder. Going further between your breasts, down to your belly, squeezing, caressing the heat of your skin on your waist as your hands come over his shoulders, giving him no chance to breathe.

You whined, biting your own lips as you started panting, no longer capable of kissing back because his hand came to touch your thighs, between them, hovering, and then shortly above your waistline. It was too little space for his liking, but he still felt hesitant to continue.

“Should I take them off?” You nodded exasperatedly, your hands coming on both sides of your body, leaning over the three as you saw him taking your pants off, gentle in his movements while he looked up at you. When you part your legs, he felt ashamed for looking shortly after at how soaked you are, at how erotic you look right now, giving him your trust for him to take care of you in such a vulnerable state.

He comes to his previous position, a hand cupping your jaw, and he starts kissing you again when you desperately, insistently search for him. Kakashi was devastated by how you moaned every time he touched you, felt you, or tasted you.

On the other hand, you felt terribly lightheaded, feeling a tingling sensation down your spine while your body was so exhaustingly needy for any relief you’re not sure what could help you, and the way Kakashi kissed you didn’t help either. He didn’t kiss you like it was the first time. He kissed you like he’s been waiting for a long time for this exact moment. And you know that was impossible, but how can you explain the way he watched you right now? Like everything you say, directly or not, it’s a mental note for him to take care of. Or how his mouth parted, sighing sharply when his fingers came slipping past your waistline, coming to feel the radiant heat against them. The first touches of his fingertips make your hips twitch. “F-Fuck…” “Feels good?” His moves were fast and quick, knowing there’s no way to torture you by the way you are soaked. You hummed in agreement, eyebrows scrunching, eyes shut off to focus on his touch. You breath out, barely conscious of your words when you looked down at how his hand between your legs, fingers moving in circles around your clit. “I can’t believe you’re touching me when I’m like this. Why did it happened this way—“ Your own moan cut you off, eyes opening wide.  ‘Why did it happen this way?’ You’re intoxicated. You don’t know what you’re talking about. Kakashi put a hand over your hips to immobilise you, knowing you are already closer to orgasm. “God, you’re damn annoying. You never looked at me before—” You wanted him to look? He swallowed down the aggravating feeling in his chest, closing the distance as his face was inches apart, lips brushing. “Shh.” “You don’t believe me—you think I’m a fucking liar—” He cupped your cheeks to stop you.  “I believe you.” He doesn’t. He can’t. “Focus on me, [Name].” Your breath catches, opening your mouth in an ‘O.’. “Mhm. Like this. Let go.” His fingers dragged your orgasm over your clit until your muffled screams against his chest, his head lowering down toward your neck. Your heavy breath against his sensitive spot, your tight grip against his arm muscle, the scent of your arousal glistening now visible on his finger as he just slowly start slipping in and out of your pussy, testing your entrance—everything drives Kakashi madder. “Mhmm—” you whimpered, feeling him stretching your insides so fast by how soaked you were that he needed to add another one. “Please...” You gasped when he hit that tight, sweet spot, making you involuntary spasm in his embrace, lifting your head until he glanced down to see your fucked-up, but very beautiful gaze. Kakashi swallowed, his own breathing betrayed him, telling you directly how affected he is. “Put your hands like this.” His arm comes behind you, taking you closer until your own weak ones come over his shoulders, his head promoted next to your neck, nipping the skin there between your lovely sounds that you gave him. “Fuck, Kakashi—” you moaned as his rhythm turned faster, the end of his palm giving you friction against your clit at every flapping sound made by his deeper, ruthless fingering. “It feels…I can’t—I can’t explain!” He licked his lips, breathing out. “Tell me.” He turned his head to whisper against your ear. “Tell me how it feels.” “I never…Oh, f—” Your eyes roll into your head, feeling a tension in your bones starting to build. His arm gripped yours tighter, his fingers didn’t stop pumping inside. “I feel...like a—p-pressure down there!” “Mmm. You do?” He straightened himself, letting you fall back gradually onto the tree, knees rising slightly as legs parted for him more. His thumb came to add another stimulation over your clit, and his rhythm faltered for a moment when he glanced at you and then at your belly. Kakashi knows what you mean. Yet, it seems you don’t. “Kakashi, w-what—”

He puts his other hand over your belly, near your waistline, adding a pressure you didn’t know you needed. Or you don’t. You didn’t know what you were feeling, a mix of fear and need for something you didn’t experience; the overwhelming sensations made your head numb, wanting release again as soon as possible. Your name falls from his lips, trying to open your half-lidded eyes to be here with him. “I’ll make you feel good like I promised.” When he crunched down, enough for you to understand what he would do, only giving you a quick look, your hands were too late to stop him, instead gripping his hair when Kakashi started eating you out. One of your palms comes to rest over one of his, pressing on your belly. “Fuck, fuck, fuck—”

Kakashi pulled back to pant for air, avoiding your gaze to don’t let it stuck with him forever. He grunted and his tongue flicked faster, his forearms flexing as he held your trembling thights down. He licked your pussy with broad, slow strokes first before beginning to devour you once he felt yout clit swlling against his tongue. With his vigorous, repetitive thrust, his tongue lapping and sucking over your clit, and the added pressure you already felt before all this, your thighs come in an instant around his head, trapping him here as you scream. It felt surreal, like you were high on drugs, and not on the ones you were already on while a colorless, fluid come all over his mouth. You didn’t realize at first, seeing stars behind your eyelids, now shut completely. Only the way he was cleaning you up, lapping all the juices of your squirt and orgasm, made you conscious again, tugging his hair with the faint trail of power you had.  Your hand fell from his hair, your fingers brushing over his face, his cheek, as you were completely perplexed by Kakashi, his mouth, his chin—all soaked.  But his eyes, God, his eyes were so fucking entrancing, like the only person in this world that he could desire right now is you. Did you just…? No…you never did. But it was the best, intense orgasm you had. Your senses were so clouded, still so clouded, that you felt if he wasn’t here with you from beginning, you wouldn’t know what to do.  His mouth parted when one of your fingers grazed his lips, and you felt your pussy clenching when he swirled his tongue around it, taking your hand to sit still as he sucked now on two of your fingers.  He is so fucking good.  Your eyes glanced slowly, seeing how tight his combat pants were in the middle.

Kakashi sensed the way you feel, like a subtle hint a cat might attack him by the manacing, predatory gaze in her, either because she likes him or because she doesn’t. And right now, it’s definitely not the second option. A jolt of electricity runs down your spine, like your chakra that kept both of you hidden (long gone before your first orgasm) was now only supplied by him when hou over him, knees resting on both sides to sit on his lap. His hands come quickly to rest on your waist. “[Name]—” You cupped both of his cheeks, your mouth finding his, shutting him off, barely letting him breathe between your kisses. “How…d-do you feel?” He hissed when you grind right against his leaking tip, propping his shorts. The fact is, Kakashi felt himself ashamed for indulging so much previously in how beautiful you reacted to him that now he has a bad conscience.  “Better.” “Then we should—” “Now I want to make you feel good.” Your tongue slips inside his mouth again, making his terrible life more struggling by how your naked body grinds on him and your other hand comes under his skin to touch everywhere you can. You stopped the kiss, letting others, wet and hot, fall down his neck. “You don’t need to. I only want you to feel capable enough to…”  Kakashi’s words fall off his mouth when you start lowering yourself more and more until you play with his pants, your body bending, ass rising in the air. Hell, thank God you are protected, only seen by him. But the thought it’s not not for too long make him more alerted. Kakashi doesn’t have infinite chakra, and he would really need to preserve it. What if the ambush happens again after you both want to leave and— “But I want to. Can I?” He glanced down at you, seeing more clearly your intoxicated gaze and your rushed, desperate movements, like that cursed pollen didn’t even get completely absorbed into your body but to be eliminated. His hips buckled when your fingertips move around his bare waistline, giving him a soft peck here. “Can I, Kakashi?” He’s completely done. You’ll definitely hate him, won’t you? Still, he tried again to stop you. “I’d…rather make you feel good.” His hand came on your shoulder when you nuzzled your face here, feeling the urge to escape the prison of your seductive spells. “I want to feel you inside my mouth, please. I need it.” Kakashi’s eyes widen, more aroused by the way you speak and look at him, playing with the edge of his trousers.

He didn’t realize he nodded.  Kakashi didn’t even hear the rustle of the leaves swirling in the wind, his knees scraping the ground, or his pants’ zipper being dragged down—only an agitating, ringing sound in his ears, his grey eyes totally bewitched by you. Kakashi groaned at the same time you moaned when you licked the wet spot with his precum imprinted over the shorts, taking his dick in your hand. He’s still surprised he didn’t cum yet after he ate you previously. Kakashi will definitely not forget that image of you getting off his face, letting him swallow every drop. He was too focused on making you release the toxins from your blood, too focused to make you scream. And now? He feels pathetic in your hands. All control vanished from him as he let you free him of his shorts; the faint coldness of the air barely touched his dick before you warmed it up already, swirling your tongue over his tip. “Ah…” His deep voice was all you could hear and want to hear, and his taste was all you wanted to eat right now, to taste him on your lips as you kiss his dick from the bottom to the top until you couldn’t wait to take him in your mouth.

You hummed inch by inch, letting it still inside your throat to make him weak a little before slipping away. You stroke him as you watch him unravel. “God, I wish you were like this instead of me.” Kakashi closed his eyes, breathing heavily. You whisper before coming to take him in your mouth again. “To see you more like this.” He throbbed in your mouth as you sucked him on and on without stopping, making his hand come to rest on your head and sending vibrations down his veins when you moan— saliva slipped down your chin from the sloppy deepthroat you start to give him. He tugged your hair at the feeling, only spurring you to choke on him again. Making you more lightheaded than you already were. When Kakashi glances down to make eye contact with you, you come to your senses for a moment by the look he gives you, realizing your position. “Y-Yes? Would you like me to lose composure like that for you?” Is he teasing me? He is as aroused as me? No. It might be from my intoxication. It sure is. Damn, you want him so fucking bad. All of him. You glanced away, focusing on making him cum, but Kakashi didn’t have any intent to do so, trying only to offer you what you wanted with his body, not like he wasn’t feeling extremely pleased by the fact you were just kneeling between his legs with his dick in your mouth. He is despicable, isn’t he? As he tried to provide you more pleasure, touching your breast, your back, your face—his whole body stuck him in place, incapable of doing more when you didn’t relent, sucking the life out of him until he filled your mouth deep enough to make your throat bulge and your wall tightness to grip his tip enough that he was sure he would cum now if he didn’t stop. “[Name], please—stop. I’ll—” He tugged your hair a little, not to hurt, but to try to signal he might cum; his other hand came to cup your face, but Kakashi was completely finished when you glanced up at him one more time before his cum spilled inside your throat, your mouth working to swallow all he gave you.

Kakashi’s face was so intimate you felt your chest pumping violently, and not because of the sex. You’re not sure who was more desperate to lap the other’s cum by the way you clean him off, licking his balls and kissing his dick one more time before you came to kiss him, coming over him.  Kakashi hugs your form, glitching a little when you sit over him by how overwhelmed he is by the way you behave. He can handle you. Of course he can. But you lost precious time to make him cum when he was the one supposed to take care of you. You don’t realize any of this right now, and his guilt only accentuates every time he has a second to breathe. Not that you let him. You take his hands to come over your ass, letting him squeeze it, your breast touching his lean chest as you eat each other out. You stopped only to breath against his lips. “Strip your clothes off.” His amused glint was here by how demanding you sounded, yet Kakashi was also…afraid. Still afraid. You are both naked. In the middle of the forest. His chakra is at his limit. And the next step will literally dig his grave further. But how could he tell you? He let his shirt fall over, and by the way you looked at him, Kakashi’s breath rested in his throat for a second by your words.  “You’re so beautiful.” Did you really mean all you told him until now? Since when do you feel about him like this? Or will you react the same with other men in this condition? He feels agitated just by the thought of some asshole having the chance to see you so open.  His bad luck comes from the fact his mask couldn’t save him both times today. You thought you imagined it when you saw his face flustered. But he didn’t when he saw yours. Kakashi comes to hug you again, squeezing your ass before lifting you more over his lower abdomen as his head comes next to yours. “You’re more beautiful, believe me.” He didn’t realize he only riled you by the way his fingers caressed your back. “Very beautiful and alluring.” Or by the way his hoarse voice whispered praises in your ear.

Kakashi only hoped you’d come to your senses until he heard your voice. “Kakashi… Please, I need you to…” He brushed his lips over yours, pleading with his eyes for you to not say it. “To what?” You kissed him slowly, sensually, nipping his bottom lip between your teeth. You lowered yourself on him, feeling his dick twitch at the movement. “To feel me.” He looked in another direction, trying to blink away the desire you light inside of him. “Are you sure? Do you want to...” Your hands come over him, your forehead rests against him as you try to make him look at you. “Don’t make me humiliate myself more, Kakashi. Fuck me, please—” His eyes widen at your words, feeling the urge to wipe them off with his lips pressing against yours. “[Name], you’ll hate me if—” “I’m the one taking advantage!”

He swallowed, shaking his head, yet his grip tightened on your thighs as you moved slowly.  “You’re not in your right mind—“ No. This is worse. He looked at your desperate, lustful yet hurt expression and felt a pang in his chest. You lowered your head over his shoulder as you mumbled. “S-So you don’t want to…”

His hand comes to take your face in his hands, pecking your lips.  “I do.” He let his lips leave his love marks against your skin, showing his care. “I’ll do it.” Not even a condom in his useless backpack could be found. Not like he would ever think to bring one in a mission with you. That thought was completely nonexistent before. Your legs trembled as you felt his hand come under your body, taking his dick as he started sliding his tip between your folds. He circled at your entrance, his eyes only glancing up at you or at your lips. He whispered, not sure where to look first to gather his answer. “Can I?” “Yes. Do what you want. Inside me, please—“ His dick started entering you, and Kakashi’s lungs had no air left at the feeling, still he focus was on all your faces.  “F-Fuck.” You’re so wet, yet his girth makes you struggle from this position. He grasps you tight, whispering encouraging, sweet nonsense in your ears. “I’m here. I’m here.” You whined, breathing hard as you clamped down his dick, feeling your legs tremble little by little. Kakashi felt at the brink of death when he felt your tight walls giving a warmth he was not sure he could resist. Or resist against it.  “Please, relax. It’s going to hurt if you don’t—”

You head rested against his, both foreheads covered with little drops of sweat. “I don’t care.” You take him all in in that moment, making your head fall back and him groaning at the addictive feeling. “Take me.” How could he not respond to that?

He raised his hips, hitting exactly where you want him to. “Oh God—“ Your legs burn so sweet as you ride his dick. “Y-Yes, yes—Like that.” His dick feels so good inside you. You tremble in need, filling his ear with your cries. And Kakashi was not better. “I need more. Baby, p-please.” Baby? His heart can’t take too much of this. Kakashi’s arm rested high on your back, now his hand come around your neck. “Don’t move.” He lowered you on the ground, slipping slowly in the process. He looked over your face, assessing how aware you are.  “Kakashi, I swear to God—“

There’s no point of stopping now. “Spread your legs for me. Can you do that?” You almost bite your lip, your cheeks flushed instantly as your closed legs now start spreading for Kakashi. He is sure he shouldn’t be allowed to deserve this. Your arms over your chest were quickly set aside by him before one rested on his elbows. “I’m sure you’ll hate me.” “I can’t hate you—“ He stopped you with his dick coming back inside you, not yet used to the incredible feeling. Kakashi can see you better now, and he’s not sure if it’s a bad thing or not. For his blood pressure sure is. He starts feeding you more, thrusting inside as he watches you cry for him. You want to feel him forever. You’re sure. And it’s not because of the toxins. You already felt you sweat at least half of it out. Kakashi’s gaze followed how you bite your lip, by how deep he is inside you, tears threaten to fall on your cheeks, and they do when he moves faster, his body so close you almost seem fused together. You felt his warm breath against your face, your lashes fluttering when you felt his lips on your cheeks, kissing the tears away. “Here?” “Mhm!” His hand comes to find a way between your bodies, letting your skin breathe only for a singular purpose. You nod frantically when he starts grazing your swollen clit, helping you reach closer to your orgasm. And truly you didn’t need long. Soon enough, air left your lungs at every harsh, deep thrust until he started going faster, nodding frantically at him. “I’m going to cum again— Kakashi, please!” He claimed your lips. “Do it. You can do it.” He whispered against them. “I need you too, sweetheart.” “Oh God—Mhmmm! You feel so good. So fucking good. Do I feel good for you?” “Y-Yes.” Like heaven. “So good.”

You’re so damn talkative. Who would’ve thought? You want to literally rewind his brain forever? You came all over his dick, crying against his chest, your orgasm only triggering him way too close to resist the temptation. And when your legs trap him and he realizes that’s really a dangerous zone he will force himself out if necessary. He gripped one of them to lower it down, and you begged against his lips so sweetly. “Baby, no. I’m on the—“ You could be. That’s not a problem. That’s a thing he should speak when you’re in your right mind. If this were ever to happen again. Kakashi hopes it will. It will crush him if not. He realized he doesn’t want anyone else. In any way. He begged you back, his eyes compelling you as his dick was punishing (pleasuring) your insides. You’re not sure. “Please, listen to me.” He places both of your hands above your head with his on top of it, shutting you off with his lips and his harsh, deep pounding. Your eyes roll in the back of your head, your legs completely falling from your waist. He thrusts one more time, pressing his lips against yours before he slips off your pussy at the same time his mouth leaves yours. Kakashi didn’t let your eyes fall off him as he stroked himself between your legs until you could feel some of his warm release between your thighs. He groaned so much at his cum didn’t stop spurring that you’re sure you never heard something so attractive. You didn’t have time to have a small, tiny intrusive thought as reality finally start setting in when he came back, pestering your face with soft kisses as he took you from the ground, your body placed vertically on his lap.  “You’re feeling okay?” His lower, deeper voice, like a cradle song. “Tell me, [Name].” Kakashi left a kiss on your forehead.  “Mhm, mhm.” He turned his body to search for a vest, his backpack with his sleeping bag, or anything to hide both of your bodies in. You murmured, exhausted. “Do you like me, Kakashi?” He paused his wandering hands over the ground, completely taken aback.  You’ll probably not remember his answer. That’s his hope. But he didn’t look at you when he said it. “I do.” You murmured against his chest one more time before your body slowly let you fall asleep in less than a minute. “Your heart beats so fast.” He sighed, tugging you against him so you wouldn’t get cold, or…for other reasons too. Kakashi mumbled, resting his head on yours.  “You should hear yours.” A flicker of chakra was all he felt inside of him, sensing the barrier exposing your presence at the same time the pieces of clothing were thrown on both of you, vanishing instantly.  🍃 In a simple, hidden cave that served as a subterranean room used to rest, stash scrolls, or hide from tracking ninjas, you stayed unconscious until now. You flinched as you woke up, aware of how stiff your body felt. A blush spread across your cheek as you felt your bare body, warmed under Kakashi’s blanket—which he’d probably use for his missions. You struggled so much to get dressed that it felt like it took an hour, using whatever clothes were still wearable—that is, pants and a top. Your underwear was hanging on a wire, stuck deep into the rock so it wouldn’t fall. Thoughtful of him? Yes. Embarrassing for you? Yes.

What did you do? A sigh escaped your mouth as you managed to come outside the hideout, making Kakashi glance briefly from where he was patrolling until now while you slowly came to sit next to the small fire, close enough to where you had rested. You avoided his eyes, and he knew it. “How do you feel?” You put your elbows on your knees, raising yourself slightly into a more comfortable position. For the first time, you looked at him, forcing a smile that was still genuine. “Surprisingly, I feel much better than I did before the mission. You took care of me,” you added, your voice lowered a tone. “...Thank you.”

Kakashi hummed, not mentioning the fact that helping someone shouldn’t be praised for having common sense. You moved a stick through the ashes that spelled the end of the fire, as if you wanted to fill the silence around you with anything that could make it bearable. His way-too-early question surprised you, making you stiffen. “Did you mean what you said?” You groaned while both your palms tried to hide your face, too red to blame on the fire. “Can we not speak about it? It was humiliating.” He answered shortly, much like your response. “Did I make you feel bad?” “No.” “Good.” He shared a faint smile with you. Then, you bit your lip in distress, wondering if you should risk it. After all, you could play dumb, minimizing all of your big, so fucking obvious, confessions. You were drugged, right? But you were not a liar. “...Yes. I meant it.” You glanced in another direction, your chin resting on your hand. Your eyes wandered mindlessly despite your spiraling thoughts and the heart that threatened to escape your constricted ribs. “Quite surprising.” You looked at him, confused. Kakashi slipped his hand into your backpack, and you only now noticed he had been handling it. He threw you a bottle of water, and you caught it smoothly, taking a much-needed sip to relieve your dehydrated mouth. A flashback of you screaming his name flooded your mind, but you swallowed down the intrusive image with another gulp. “How so?” His tone was amused, dissipating the tension in the icy air the night provided. “You were not exactly the friendliest person before. I usually catch it quickly when someone is interested.” You placed your hands on either side of your body, leaning back as you snorted, a mirthful glint in your eyes. “I’m sorry that the perceptive Kakashi Hatake himself didn’t uncover my feelings. You’re not so easy to read either, by the way.” He breathed out a laugh, not retorting for once. Kakashi wasn’t the only one curious about what had happened, about what you had both said. You started carefully. “How were you not affected by the pollen?” He took part of his mask between his fingers, tapping it back against his face. “I made some changes to it. It’s now enchanted with a material that blocks toxins in the air.” “That’s cheating.” “Don’t tell anyone.”

The corner of your mouth twitched, suppressing a smile. Yet how could he have been so affected? Did you remember it wrong? The way he touched you, tasted you, and fucked you? More like... made love to you? Spoke so intimately, so sweetly to you? You caught yourself speaking, and this time Kakashi was visibly tense. His eyes suddenly became very interested in the ground beneath him. “Did you also mean what you said?” His answer came after a minute. “...In a way.” Oh. He glanced at you then, seeing how you had switched places from how you had been before your question—you weren’t here with him anymore. And shinobi were skilled enough to anticipate when a threat lay ahead. A fight, maybe. For him, the discussion had already been difficult enough. He wasn’t prepared for more than this. Although, when you spoke again, he felt caged between his own walls. What used to be a familiar feeling had now slowly transformed into something he wasn’t as comfortable with as before. “So it was only sexual?” Kakashi realized by the trembling tone in your voice that you had understood him in the worst way possible. “No, [Name].” His eyes widened, distressed, as he saw half your face, a tear tracing your cheek. “Don’t...” You turned away, and he had the urge to rise to his feet. He did. It was too late to step back. You only saw his shadow approaching. He crouched down, and slowly, hesitantly, his hand settled over yours, and you fought the urge not to pull away. “That’s not what... I meant.” You wiped the tears away with the back of your hand. “Yeah, sure. Whatever you say.” Kakashi sighed, and it only made you feel worse, like a parent trying to make a child understand something simple. Not knowing how conflicted Kakashi was, how he needed to detach himself from his own discomfort to speak openly about things he didn’t understand yet. “It’s... I didn’t consider this before. It was surprising for me.” “Okay.” He sat down beside you now, taking your hand in his and playing with your fingers, turning the little ring you used to twirl whenever anxiety got the best of you, now using it himself to distract from the intrusive thoughts that surfaced whenever it came to his own vulnerability. Being honest was all he had to offer for now. At least, that’s what he thought. “I wasn’t unaffected like you think. Not only in the way of having you like this.” You furrowed your brows, tilting your head but still not looking at him. “So you meant the other parts or not?” You both spoke so vaguely that if anyone else listened, they wouldn’t understand a thing. “...Yes.” You scoffed, letting out a harsh breath. “I don’t know what to believe.” He didn’t know either. “I understand,” Kakashi admitted eventually. “I never... tried before.” “What? A relationship?” You looked back, your eyes meeting for a second. Fuck, wrong move. Your gaze lingered on his expression, one you hadn’t seen before. He nodded, and you found yourself turning until you faced him fully, both of you sitting on the ground. “I can’t say I’m much different. You know what assholes I’ve met before. But... you’re not that kind of asshole.” His warm chuckle made your heart leap. Only now did you realize how close he was, close enough to hear his slow breathing and to crave his warmth again without being so hot and bothered. “God, if you say this to anyone else, I swear—” He shook his head, cutting you off. “Don’t worry. I’ll never do something like that.” You whispered, searching for him without realizing it. For that part of him you needed now. “I get the feeling you wouldn’t.” When he met your eyes, Kakashi regretted it, forced to weigh your words. How could you see him for what he was? It unsettled him. He needed to do something. Good or bad, he didn’t know. “I don’t want to raise your hopes for nothing.” You studied his face. His words sounded like a rejection, but his tone and expression didn’t match them. You tried something else. “Okay. I get it. You’re allergic to feelings.” He chuckled. “I guess I am. But...”

You tilted your head instantly. “But?” “I’m not sure. I felt something once and never found it again until... you.” You gulped. “What does that mean, Kakashi? Do you want me to be your...” No. That wasn’t the appropriate question. He should be the one. Kakashi interrupts you. “Do you want to be my... cure?” “Yes.”

Your heart has a mind of its own, otherwise you couldn’t explain how or when you leaned closer to Kakashi, softly pecking his lips. He was just as startled as you.

Only for a moment. Kakashi glanced shortly at your lips, then at your eyes one more time before he leaned in back, his lips meeting yours, licking his way into your mouth. The tip of your tongue brushed against his. Just the wet press of his mouth and the quick faltering of his breath make your fingers tighten at his neck, a dizzy drop is present in your stomach every time he comes back for more. A shuddering breath escaped him. When his eyes opened, his innocent gaze was almost gone, swallowed entirely by his pupils. His voice was hoarse, finally feeling at peace for showing without guilt how much he feels for you. “Kakashi, we really shouldn’t—”

“One more time.”

Kakashi pressed his lips against yours, unwilling to wait another second. His tongue writhed deeper, tangling around yours, tasting greedily more and more of you. When he pulled away, both of you looked wrecked by it—cheeks flushed, lips swollen, eyes glistening.

You licked your lips, not daring to see things yet, breaking the spell. When your mouth twitches, failing to stop a smile forming, Kakashi finds his heart violently pumping inside of him, taking your hands in his, glancing away. But you’re sure now of what you see and feel, and his subtle smile didn’t go unnoticed.

At least the tension in his body finally left after the two of you coming to a discussion.

Aware now of your surroundings, you glanced around the darkness spreading around the forest. The small fire is long gone; probably need to make another one until tomorrow. You looked back at Kakashi. You slept until now; he really needs a break from taking care of you all day.  “Come on, let’s switch. I’ll stay awake until morning.”

His answer is coming shortly.

“No, don’t worry.”

Your threatening tone wasn’t missed. “Kakashi.” He didn’t respond, not until he saw the concern between your eyebrows, the unspoken pleading words all over your face. And of course, now he can openly see the lovely glint inside of them. For him. Only for him. “Then, we stay together.” You nodded reluctantly. But not long after, as your fingers carefully play with his soft, silver hair as his head rested on your lap, Kakashi fell asleep. One of the few times in his life, he felt safe enough to be vulnerable, to trust someone.

Shizune was stunned at his resolution. Why is the Hokage going on this mission? His responsibilities—

“Shizune. Close the door after you leave.”

She blinked twice, following Kakashi’s figure as he exit the Hokage’s room.

***

Kakashi felt agitated, and muffled voices flood his mind towards a not-so-nice place in his mind. Guilty. He’s feeling guilty for assigning you to this mission. Maybe if he weren’t so damn absent sometimes at his job, doing his duty, this wouldn’t happen. Still, he knows you are more capable than his doubts crushed his little hope. The thought of you being in any kind of hurt stirred Kakashi’s soul in a way he didn’t like. At all. Maybe he made an impulse decision to leave his post, but he didn’t care enough about the consequences, Tsunade’s scolding, or really — anything. You must be alive.

Kakashi didn’t think before he ran out of time and he felt like a fool, a weak man.

His breath started turning normal only when the back door of the abandoned depot fell with a rough sound on the ground due to the force of his leg. Kakashi’s gaze falls instantly onto your face.

You wore an evil smile plastered on your face before he made a quite desperate introduction. Your legs pushed in the enemy’s chest tied with chakra tightly around a cement pillar, back leaned into them as your head now turned toward the sudden sound.

“…Kakashi?”

When he heard the back up comed right behind him, Kakashi felt pressed to not be around people in such a fragile state or mind he was in. The confused expression on the shinobi’s face only accentuated more when all they saw in a second was the Hokage being on your side, taking your hand in his while the other one rose slowly until spiraling now the two swirl, distorting both of your form as you move between dimensions.

You yelped, feeling your legs dropping like you were just jumping on a black block along many others in…What is this place?

“Kakashi, where the hell are we?” You looked around, hands still in his until it landed on him. Your gaze focused on his activated Sharingan. “This is…Kamui?” He nodded, clearing your questions. Then, your focus was on how his chest rose up and down as he looked at you. Your eyes widen at the realization. “Did you think I was dead?”

His black eyes returned, seeing in them a hint of fear that answered your beliefs. You looked down at his hands and he did the same, unclasping them almost embarrassed.

Huh, Hokage himself embarrassed. What a sight.

“I’m kinda touched now, honored even. But…is this okay? For you to come here?” When he looked at the deep scar left on your cheek, dried drops of blood still uncleaned, you spoke again, leaving a chuckle out of your mouth. “A badass tattoo, right?”

You froze at first, surprised by Kakashi’s action as he lifted his hand slowly, his fingers brushing around the wound as his eyes saddened. Your heart trembled.

Maybe having the courage to finally confess your feelings to a troubled, aloof man before this mission wasn’t a bad choice.

“My apologies for acting on an impulse, not a proudful move for a ninja.”

You smiled, adding to his misery.

“Hokage.”

“Even worse.” He glanced at you, his eyes lingering on your smile before returning to his previous gesture, his thumb grazed your cheek. “But I realized I shouldn’t risk the chance more after already failing you once.”

Your cheeks blushed, struggling to voice your disapproval.

“Don’t say that. It wasn’t your fault. I will be upset to know Kakashi actually thinks I’m not capable enough to go on a B rank mission.”

He sighed, lowering his head as he tried to hid himself. When you raised yourself a bit, resting against his, Kakashi’s eyes locked on yours.

“But maybe I want a little apology from the Hokage.”

“And what that might be?”

Your eyes glinted, followed by glancing at his lips before looking back into his eyes. He did the same, feeling the air leaving his lungs, filling them back with a suffocating warm one. Your hand came behind his head at the same time he leaned into you, claiming your lips. By the way he taste, you smile against his mouth by the sudden thought that you’ll let him kiss you in every dimension if he will want to. And he surely does now.

🍃Itachi

The frightened man had a maniacal smile on his face, despite his hands trembling at the sides. From above, Itachi’s legs jumped from the rails to the floor, catching his attention.

Itachi’s eyebrows lifted slightly when the man took the headband off his head and put it on his eyes, covering them for a second as proof.

The man laughed, way too sure of himself.

“You’re not fucking scaring me anymore, Uchiha people. What can you do now?” Itachi lifted his head, watching around the place to see one or two shinobi circling this man, watching his every move. “Those cursed eyes of yours are not a secret anymore, scums. She struggled a bit at first,” He breathed out a laugh “but nothing a bitch can’t endure after, am I right fellows?”

Itachi’s eyes widened. He looked quickly at every corner on the second floor, for every shadow, every glimpse of your presence. She’s not here.

His muscles tensed when the man spoke again.

“Oh? Feels like you know her.” He stepped back as Itachi approached until his back hit the wall. “Don’t worry. I don’t think she died yet, loverboy.”

Itachi was too fast for a mere enemy like the one in front of him, his hand stopped before reaching the headband as the three large spiraling curves rotated like a pinwheel in his eyes. The paralysis touched the man’s legs first, crushing him to his knees with palms on the ground for any kind of support.

Itachi was already gone while the man screamed in fear enough to be heard in the whole building, seeming like an intro for what’s next when he finds you after feeling your flickering chakra.

He flinched at the sight of the ripped sections of your clothes where bruises could be seen openly, and perhaps more of them under the robes that wrapped over your arms and legs, trapping and preventing you from performing any jutsu. Your head was dropping to the ground, hair covering your face.

In a flash, he was near you. His hands trembled, yet the knife cutting quicker remained sharp. He tried calling your name, but you failed to respond. At first, you sensed as if you were in a dream, and you didn't dismiss it, given that you found yourself pleading for him to find you sooner between the rounds of torture. That was until your spinning head start clearing enough to recall where you are, letting a gasp leaving your dehydrated mouth.

“Itachi?”

Itachi’s breath flattered after hearing your voice, hoarse from the dryness. He continued untying you until you fell into him and he caught you.

“You’re alive.”

You nodded weakly, but Itachi said that to himself mostly. Needing to voice it out so he knows it's real. His hand came under your head and you looked at him then with your eyes half lidded from exhaustion. Itachi’s onyx eyes were soft, not leaving yours while he lifted you into his arms.

“I…I didn’t tell them, Itachi. I didn’t tell them anything to compromise us.”

He didn’t trust his voice to don’t sound so weak, but you must know.

“I know, I didn’t doubt you. Never did.”

A faint hint of a smile appeared on your face as you closed your eyes and curled against his chest even more.

Itachi’s heartbeat surely wasn’t normal for a controlled shinobi like him.

🍃Naruto

Naruto waits for you to meet his fist bump, grinning as you do the same.

“Let’s crush them, [Name]!”

Only you didn’t.

Above the massive pit, made by the rough blow Naruto’s body endured, you ran fast, trying to look from every angle at what might be the best opening to distract the enemy. Your chakra was concealed, the area looked empty except you, him, and the spiky orange-haired man with numerous piercings along his body.

However, Naruto's grunting voice after another painful hit to the ground drew your attention, unaware that a wooden puppet hand large enough to grasp your body could lift you off the ground. Only one of your palms pressed with great force against it, and your body fought it with all its might, only to be firmly squeezed inside more.

“Fuck!”

Just as Naruto was about to focus his power to combat Pain, he looked alarmed in the direction your voice came from. Sasori, the puppet master, gave Pain the upper hand now.

“[Name]!!”

“Naruto, don’t fucking mind me! Fight, fight—“

Red bubble waves enveloped his entire body, his eyes turned fiercely. He didn’t speak loudly, only for his spirit inside of him to hear.

— Kurama!

— Yes. I see. Focus on your breath, Naruto.

His chest rose and fell, struggling to center himself after hearing how painful, yet contained sounds keep leaving your mouth.

— Search for an opening. Don’t let them fool you. If you’d act on impulse, she’ll get hurt. Both of you.

Something inside of him stirred, a fuel hot enough to burn the whole world if it’s needed for how much he felt. But Kurama is right, they will not back off.

Pain didn't give him any breathing room, striking him every second after Naruto dodged every kick. Pain observed Naruto's reaction to the imprisoned girl through Rinnegan eyes. He was correct: she is significant enough to make him win this conflict. Naruto will be the last one standing in his path till he succeeds in his mission.

Naruto’s Sage Mode activated, his toads fused with their user’s shoulder, gathering natural energy for them to use before they jumped in Pain direction as he raised his arm at the same time blocking direct acces to his body, yet buying enough time for Naruto to send one of their close in your direction — ready to strike in the couple of seconds Pain’s abtility can reactivate again.

Meanwhile, while Naruto’s clone come to you, you tried to bend your remaining arm abnormally only to groan in anger at the failure for not reaching the pockets where your weapon hide. You tilted your head, teeth clashing around the button to unclasp it until it was ripped off, dragging the chain out and throwing it until your hand caught it mid air, then shoving the chisel weapon infused with chakra forcefully into the puppet’s wooden arms. It instantly broke and your body nearly fell to the ground.

Until it didn’t.

Naruto’s clone caught you instantly, going straight to a more secure area despite everything around you being destroyed. He put you on your legs as your hands touched both of Naruto’s cheeks.

“Naruto! Pain! Pain is still here!”

The clone’s face flushed, nodding as he smiled.

“I know, I know! I’m here too!” Your eyes widen. Of course, Naruto’s favourite jutsu. Clone jutsu. “I just wanted to bring you somewhere safe!”

You smiled, then gave him a peck on his cheek.

“Go kick their ass, leaf hero!”

Naruto gasped at the touch, letting his finger touch the place as it was only his imagination. He was at a loss for words, only a nod while his smile widens could be the only response you get until he vanished.

🍃Madara

Madara’s ninjatō, a straight short sword modified with a serrated blade, splashed the last man’s blood in one move. Madara watched as the probably lifeless body joined the rest of them in the pool of blood that had been just a floor in the Senju residence.

Speaking about the devil, Madara’s eyes darkened when he saw his old friend's frightened expression.

“Madara!?” Madara almost grunted a laugh. Hashirama is acting like he always does. “Madara, what’s the meaning of all of this?”

“Don’t play fool with me, Hashirama.” As Hashirama stepped into the room, watching the gore scene in front of him with a distressed gaze, he made Madara to step back in the middle of the room as his hand start squeezing around the hilt of the sword.

“I’m not playing anything, Madara!”

It was even more amusing that Hashirama’s voice was angry. A rare event.

“Don’t dare raise your voice at me, Hashirama. Don’t you fucking dare!” Madara raised his sword towards Hashirama's chest when Hashirama came too close and the other looked down at the pointed sword, then up at Madara like he’s finally going insane.

Madara chuckled, his tone mocking. “Do you think you’re much better, eh? Staying on that fucking throne along with your wife as others' loved ones are taken away.” At that, Hashirama widened his eyes. “Oh? Don’t tell me you didn’t know about the little parasites in your own village? You gave them this intel, Hashirama. I don’t fucking care what your intention is to make my wife's name known, but I’m gonna kill them all until I find the one who found her.”

Hashirama’s face turned pale, the wheels in his mind were spinning aimlessly thinking about any moment he might slip up on such a personal thing about his dear friend. Madara grabbed him by the collar, their faces inches apart.

“I-I swear I didn’t know anything, Ma—“

“No? Weren’t you the one that want to make a world of true, lasting peace? That’s how you do it, Hashirama? Not knowing about your own fucking people—“

“Put the sword down.”

Another voice appeared behind Madara, and the tip of the weapon pierced the side of his neck. Madara looked over his shoulder to see his friend’s brother, Tobirama. As one would suspect, he is here. Madara tilted his head, his eyes locked on Hashirama again.

“Find my fucking wife. Now.”

***

This is how things are in our pathetic world. Find the source of your own misery because that’s what others told you he is. Strip him until he is useless, powerless. Until a black void start forming inside of him and they will solely blame him. How about blaming the human race itself?

You reffrain yourself for not taking revenge. To be better. To avoid running in circles, to try understand everyone’s anguish. But what about yours? Your pain? When is it your damn turn? When will they stop and consider yours? The discrimination based only on your fucking existance?

Madara’s thoughts stopped when he reach the door. And his inner monologue turned into nothing as his mind clearing at the sight of you. A small hope for humanity builded inside of him when he saw you alive. He sized you up in an instant for any sign of marks, only seeing the painfully position you were in, tied and trapped in a cylindrical object made of metal pipes.

“[Name].”

You gasp against the bandage around your mouth, your voice muffled. You couldn’t see him, but his presence radiated enough to know he would be closer soon. You didn’t flinch when his sword cut the metal handle in half, not where the chains around it dropped roughly to the floor, not where his sword was dropped as the sound reverberating three times until it settled.

Madara embraced you in his arms, his hand trembled until it reached your mouth, then your eyes, and let the weakened light in the room making you furrow your eyebrows in distress after staying in the dark. For how long? You didn’t know.

“Madara! I knew it was a matter of time, my love.”

“Did they hurt you?”

You put your hand over his cheek as your eyes glistening at the sight of him.

“They tried at first, but I kicked them when they landed a touch on me. They decided then to lock me up to bait you.”

You chuckled, but Madara wasn’t having it. He sighed heavily, his head now against yours.

“I apologize for my own incompetence in not keeping you safe. Nobody should know about your existence besides me and I’m a despicable bastard—“

“Madara.” You clasp his cheeks in your hands, urging him to look at you. “I knew what I’d get myself into from the beginning. I don’t and will never regret my decision to be beside you, do you understand?” He didn’t respond, just watching you intensely. “I said, do you understand, my love?”

He didn’t let his gaze drop even for a second like he wanted to believe it, to believe your words. A side note was taken in his mind.

“Then I’ll try not to don’t leave your side for too long like I did before. To not lose sight of you ever again.”

You nodded in approval, and your smile widened. Maybe it’s a lucky day that he actually listened. Or maybe he just said because you’re body is too weak, too wounded. Still, it's worth it to play a little longer.

“Can we go home now?”

He raised you from the ground in bridal style and you clasped your hands around his shoulder, bringing your face to his level. You gave him a kiss, and one of his eyelids closed as he neared the front door. He returned your curious glance with the other one, which lingered on his entire physique.

“Whose blood is this, Madara?!”

“Irrelevant. Preserve your energy.”

🍃Shisui

He should’ve known. He should’ve known until now that Root’s motto applies exactly as they say. The unseen ones, conditioned since joining to be slaves under the leader they follow, even if it means sacrificing themselves or committing morally questionable acts. Why is he shocked?

Shisui himself was trained from an early age to suppress his inner will, to be a detached operative. And this team he was in will stop at nothing to maintain the village's prosperity. Not many talks, no. They aren’t allowed. If Itachi wasn’t his friend first before being an ANBU member too, it would’ve been too late to save you.

Despite the atrocities Danzo can ask his followers to do and no one knows about them, he really suppresses himself this time. Choosing his own people for experiments. Not harsh training, no discipline lessons. Experiments. And you are not the only one. He already had some doubts, collecting evidence about his leader, Danzo, that he was a piece of shit. But now? He’s gonna kill him. He needs to. After having the guts to take you behind his back? Impossible.

Otagakura, the Village Hidden in the Sound. A small, powerful village that claimed the skilled ninja would find their purpose in life. Guided by no other person than Orochimaru. That disgusting snake Shisui interacted as little as possible in his life.

Now, he wrapped his hand in protective bandages, his teeth clenching the tape tightly. He seemed present, but his mind was elsewhere. He sensed Itachi when he came up behind him, but he didn't look in his direction.

"Are you certain you want to go alone?"

Shisui glanced at him briefly, then took his vest on while putting his kunai set in his pockets, then on his hands, and finally bending down to put the rest in his pants.

"Why? Do you want Konoha to have two traitors in case I get caught?" Itachi didn't answer, instead looking at his friend who was about to leave as soon as possible in the middle of the night. "The location, Itachi. Do you have it?" Their eyes met, and Itachi seemed to hesitate, but immediately after, his hand rose, handing Shisui a note. "I owe you one."

And he left.

Jumping from branch to branch among the trees perfectly positioned for a medium jump, Shisui quickly glanced over the note.

Even Itachi’s writing is exquisite.

Reaching the land wasn’t so bad. He could walk this path any time you want if you told him it’s a life or death situation. For you only, more precisely. But Shisui thought something was off.

Those are the damn guards?! A freak look like with a grandma type of back, a ribboned girl, and a way too tired for his age boy. This can’t be. These are kids!

He took them one by one. A shadow clone jutsu and a forced sleep genjutu can do wonders.

It was too easy from the start. At your painful grunts, Shisui felt his heart stabbed at the same time. He followed your voice (a very rare time he doesn’t want to hear it) until it reached a corner of the wall. Shisui tilted his head slightly, assessing the area. Two guards are in front of the door. He breathed out only once to calm himself, trying to silence your sounds so as not to don’t attract any more surprises. His Mangekyō Sharingan was now on, so he went around the corner to face the guards.

Not a sound escaped from their mouths, they didn’t have the time. The genjutsu worked instantly. In an instand he was inches apart. Gathering the name of Shisui of the Body Flicker wasn’t for nothing. Nor that he did care about this. He only cares about its usage.

“Shhh.” He whispered near their ears as their eyes fell into the realms of sweet dreams. Not really. They don’t deserve his kind soul right now. As he grabbed them to not make a sound as they reached the ground, he took the keys from the pocket of one of their pants.

His hands trembled slightly on the handle when it unlocked slowly as the man in front of you was too out of it to hear it. His attention was solely on speaking the same thing over and over again as current traveled in your body from the machine. “Again.” Shisui doesn’t even wanna know what could be the resolution from this.

Your breath was heavy, barely awake. Probably the multiple cuts around your body were from the punishment for misbehaving. He knows you. He knows you put up a hell of a fight until you reach this state. When you lifted your head, your eyes locked on Shisui instantly, but you quickly averted your gaze to the man in front of you.

His eyebrows furrowed in annoyance as he saw the wicked smile plastered on your face.

“What’s so funny, bitch? You already became a mad dog—“ As his hand grabbed the knife from the table near him, Shisui’s fist crushed it, making the knife fall on the ground with a loud sound. A first groan was followed by a scream when Shisui shoved him into the near wall by the strike his leg pushed in the middle of the man’s back, making him bend abnormally.

“That’s not how you speak with a lady, dear fellow.” The man’s body fell on his back, barely rising until he fell once again on his knees when Shisui approached.

“I didn’t know! I didn’t know who she was! I was assigned with—“

Shisui choked him, lifting the man this way mid-air as the man struggled to breathe. “Oh, did you? Were you also assigned to wound every inch of her body?” He pushed the man against the wall until his head was hit harsh enough that it.

“I’m sorry. I’ll do anything—“

The man was stunned on the spot, placed under a genjutsu that unfortunately spared his life, but he would’ve wished it hadn't. Lucky for him, Shisui avoided killing as much as possible. Only the root is the problem for him.

Shisui was in a flesh next to you as he knelt, carefully not to touch you when the blood still sputtered from the open wounds. Did you really have to be almost naked? Did they really have to strip your dignity away too?

“Shisui—“

He swallowed hard, letting your arms drop over his shoulder.

“Yes, baby. I’m right here. I’m so sorry. So sorry.”

You shake your head with the last drops of your power left as you try to muffle your hiss when every touch of him now feels painful.

“No, no. Please, Shisui. I trusted that you would come for me.”

Tears fell without intending to, eyes barely open as he tried his best to embrace your body sideways into his lap, one hand behind your back, the other under your legs.

“Shisui! There are more! In every room—“

“I know, [Name]. I know. I’m gonna take care of them too.”

Shisui’s head tilted against yours as he let out a heavy breath, gathering all his courage to start to leave this cursed room, even if his eyes sting.

“We are gonna get you home now, [Name].” He spoke as he moved gently to avoid causing any more harm. “And we are gonna treat these wounds very carefully, okay?” Shisui caressed your forehead with his lips. “Then we are gonna sleep until the night will vanish every pain you endure for nothing and I will be here like I’m supposed to do as long as you want me to.”

🍃Genma

Genma knocked on the door. His knuckles brushed it lightly at first, as if unsure, followed by a firmer contact the second time. His hand remained in mid-air as the door opened, revealing Tsunade. She rested against the door frame, her hands now folded.

“Eh? What our special jonin is doing here I wonder?”

Genma's mouth twitched, causing the toothpick to raise lazily. He just greeted her, offering little explanation. He wasn't that type of man anyway.

“Tsunade.”

She sighed, then turned her body, allowing him to get inside the house.

“Make it quick.”

Genma nodded, replying as he went straight to your room.

“Yes, ma’am.”

He knows your house by the book. Of course he does. He's been battling imaginary demons since he was a kid, basically every day, seeking to become a great shinobi.

Jokes aside, he couldn't say no when you told him you were scared of the dark. Tears streamed down your cheeks, staying near your windows, facing his as you call him, begging him in the middle of the night when no one can hear you, only him.

Both of your parents were absent, leaving the house empty, even on holidays. Even on Shōgatsu. You eventually shared the same trauma. Only the crow that sat on the fence with a caw indicating their existence, provided news on their lives.

Once again, he knocked at your door. Not because you will not let him.

“Come in?” Your eyes lit up as you watched him close the door and come inside. “Genma…”

He smiled, sizing you up for a short assessment, his eyes lingered on the big pad in the middle of your thigh, above your knee.

“Rough mission, huh?”

Your lips pressed in a thin line, embarrassed by the failure happened in the last mission.

“It wasn’t that bad. They are exaggerating.”

Genma hummed, taking his eyes off you, then to your wound. “Did they?” He knelt beside the bed, his hand closer to your leg.

“Genma, don’t—“

He looked at you, his hands freezing for a second at your words.

“You don’t want me to touch you?”

He waited for you answear and you gave in like you always do. Fuck. You know how it will go.

“No. I mean yes, I want. God, I don’t mind!”

He snorted and let his fingertips brush around the wound, causing goosebumps in return. You unconsciously bit your lip as your muscles contracted as his hands caressed every inch of your skin, as if to warm you up.

“Relax.” He gave you a side glance, then he started squeezing here and here on your legs. “You should go to hot springs, our onsen. Some massages too. Don’t let your muscle atrophy.“

You gulped, not trusting your words enough to answer. You simply nodded, your cheeks reddened.

He lifts the pad slowly, making you hiss even for the light move. The wound was deeper than he thought, making his stomach drop for a second. He put it back as his eyes didn’t stayed on yours anymore.

“Don’t. You weren’t even there, Genma.”

“Maybe I’ve should be.”

“It’s not your fault I get hurt, that’s insane. It's mine. I wasn’t capable of facing all of them—“

“Shh.” Genma leaned his head on the bed next to your body like he was ready to sleep, making you freeze. “Quit tripping, [Name].”

“What are you doing? Don’t tell me you’ll stay like this? At least come… n-next to me?”

His eyes open, a teasing glint in them after hearing your stutter. But he didn’t say anything, only letting you squirm a little bit.

His fingers brushed against your leg in circles while his eyes were closed.

Genma stayed like this until both of you fell asleep. Or that’s how you taught until the morning came and you were covered by a blanket, all alone.

As you get older, Genma stopped sleeping here.

Still, something has shifted between you two that you can't put your finger on, but you can feel something it's about to happen very soon.

Sasuke 🍃

Orochimaru was sitting on a chair, his legs resting over the armrest and his body slightly inclined. He was watching with that predatory gaze Sasuke usually ignored. Sasuke positioned himself far away from him, not particularly wishing to interact after the encounter with the others.

“Amusing day, wasn’t it?”

Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes, his hands resting on his knees.

“You would probably be pleased to hear that I handled the back-up while you were occupied.”

Sasuke slowly opened his eyes, throwing him a brief glance.

“Back-up?”

Orochimaru chuckled, supporting his fist on his leg while his cheek leaned into it. “Kabuto was a little upset that I didn’t assist him first, so I merely activated the traps around the hide-out.” He twirled a strand of his hair around his fingers. “Offff…this place is compromised now.”

“I asked who the back-up was.”

Orochimaru raised his eyebrows at his host body’s insistence, teasing him for it.

“Oh? Curious, aren’t we? I truly can’t recall her name. She wasn’t from Team 7, if that’s what you’re interested in, my Sasuke.”

Bullshit. Orochimaru knows perfectly well who that person is. He has been following Sasuke long enough to know that you were in his life too.

From where he was sitting, Sasuke gripped the wood beneath him. He shouldn’t show any kind of emotion in front of the snake. Sasuke looked directly into the Orochimaru’s glinting eyes, his voice neutral.

“Did you killed her?”

Orochimaru rose from his chair, coming closer the way he always liked to do, invading Sasuke’s personal space.

“Who knows?”

He paused before starting to walk out the room like nothing happened.

“We’re switching places first thing in the morning.”

“Anything you want, dear Sasuke.”

Sasuke didn’t realize he was holding his breath until he disappeared like a shadow.

***

His state of mind was crushing.

Sasuke was supposed to stay in this fucking place until morning. Not like anyone would dare to interrupt his sleep until then. But precisely because of that, Sasuke’s presence would not be missed.

But his mind should be in the right place by now. Not even the last encounter destabilized him that much. He made his priorities clear from the start and everyone around him dismissed them like they always do in that village, protecting the illusion of peace while letting the souls to rot from a young age. Not that they blamed him now or that they would have understood him in the first place.

Not everyone is like that. Another voice annoyed his mind.

You weren’t, and he can’t fucking forget that. Always bothering him with questions about him. How he is. How he fucking feels. If you could help with anything to avenge his pain, only for him not to come here. You always insisted on coming to talk to him alone. You never tried to grab the attention of others just so he would be perceived, to be open and vulnerable.

The wall of his so-called room—if he could even refer to it as one—cracked under his fist.

One more time to leave it behind. One more weakness he would allow.

The night enveloped the forest completely, making it difficult for a normal sight to spot a wounded woman. His Sharingan activated from the start, tracing every path from above the trees until it landed on you. You were far away from him, more precisely in the middle of the forest, halfway to the village. You probably struggled until reaching this point.

He felt a surge of anger at the thought of someone finding you here. The shinobi world is clearly not lacking in atrocious people, predators like the one he lives with every day. But most of all, Sasuke felt guilt when he appeared beside you, assessing how you didn’t even register him when he picked you up, probably due to pain and exhaustion. Only a small grunt left your lips.

Sasuke wasn’t the one who hurt you. It was clear from the beginning that if anyone—if you—tried to approach the hell of the place he was in, victims would fall on the side that crossed his path. His ties were meant to be cut completely so he could avoid scenarios like this.

But how could he? Crush what was left of his soul as if it never existed while seeing you now, barely breathing?

Sasuke searched for a spot concealed enough not to draw attention. The fire he lit afterward was small, barely helpful, if not for the moon illuminating the two of you.

He felt dazed, trapped in a nightmare as he cleaned the wounds, applying medicine shortly after until your body was patched. If he was lucky enough, maybe you wouldn’t wake until he took you back.

A part of him wanted to hear your voice, maybe for the last time. Or to see the way you looked at him as if he wasn’t wrong for every decision he made, because that was the only thing he knew. But he hated himself for this. For allowing this, as if he deserved a piece of your attention. He shouldn’t crave it.

Especially in the state you were in.

Two whole hours passed and Sasuke couldn’t bring himself to leave until he was sure you were alive. He couldn’t live with this. The fire in front of him, now mostly ashes with faint sparks flickering, was the only thing Sasuke could focus on so he wouldn’t lose his mind.

Your breathing faltered for a moment and he looked at you instantly, feeling his entire body tense as your closed eyes struggled to open. The first thing you saw was the stone ceiling covered in dark shadows.

Sasuke couldn’t stop his eyes from widening when yours did the same.

“Sasuke?” You coughed afterward, trying to push yourself up on your arm while his hands twitched at his sides, restraining himself from doing anything. You looked at him again, but he turned his gaze away. “You’re really here.”

His voice was so low you thought you were imagining it.

“Can you walk?”

His question made you more aware of your body, making you feel exactly why he was asking in the first place. You remembered now. Despite avoiding every trap Orochimaru had set, the last one did serious damage, activating another one immediately after so you barely had time to escape before your legs gave out.

“I suppose?” you murmured mostly to yourself as you lowered your head, your cheeks flushing instantly when you noticed the carefully placed bandages around your body, causing Sasuke to freeze even more than he already was. “Thank you.”

He didn’t respond. Of course he didn’t. Probably wanting to leave this place as soon as possible, yet he was still here. Why?

“Sasuke—” you hissed as you tried to sit up more.

“You don’t look like it. I’ll carry you until we’re close to the village.” He moved from his spot, only to remain frozen on his feet when your sudden laughter reached him.

“Should I feel honored? By the special treatment, I mean.” There was malice in your voice and he felt the urge to snap back, but you didn’t stop. “Why didn’t you let me die, Sasuke? Why bother?”

The last thing he wanted right now was to talk about what he had just done.

“It doesn’t matter. Let’s go.”

“Leave me here. Someone will probably find me by morning. A bad person or a good one. Who knows?”

His voice was visibly irritated.

“Stop being difficult. I don’t have time to waste on this.”

Sasuke knelt, thinking it would be easier to carry you, until he realized how close you were. He lifted his head and both of your minds stopped working for a second.

“Sasuke…”

He lowered his head, sighing.

“If you don’t come with me now, I won’t have enough time.”

In that moment, his onyx eyes with that usually blank expression that lacked any warmth, weren’t that prominent. It made you to nod as you tried to lift your arms just as he reached for you. He hesitated for a second until his firm hands lifted you from the ground, yours wrapping around his shoulders while your head rested against his chest.

His heartbeat made tears flow down your cheeks, which you tried desperately not to let be seen. Only when you were closer, when both of you knew it was time to go, did you speak again.

“Please, Sasuke… Is there anything we can do? I—I don’t want to lose you.”

You didn’t. The pure part of him was still here, preserved, fueled by the dear ones in his life that he had to repress, otherwise he would never be strong enough to accomplish his path.

He saw the tearful, pained expression when he looked down at you, and his gaze showed anything but indifference.

Not far from Konoha, even catching the sunrise, Sasuke lowered you to the ground before leaving, responding much later to what you said so you wouldn’t say anything else.

“I’m sorry.”

Obito 🍃

Kakuzu looked at your body tied from head to toe, admiring his work and considering whether it made sense to report that they had captured a shinobi or if he could sell parts of your body. While Deidara and Sasori were busy with the enemies from Konoha, Hidan had a small capture that he was very proud of. Far too proud.

“What, sweetheart? Do you want to tell me something?”

His voice was mocking, seeing how you struggled on the cold floor and how your expression was visibly frustrated. Hidan crouched to be on your level, then he peeled off the scotch against your mouth.

You spat in his face. “Fuck off!”

He stood up, and with his weak temperament, his foot pushed against your leg.

“Watch your dirty mouth, girl. Don’t make me show you what the power of a true God is.”

“God? Don’t make me laugh—“

Hidan’s expression darkened. He intended to move impulsively, but the sharp weapon pressed against his throat made him stop.

“I suggest you don’t take any step closer if you don’t want to die.”

Hidan blinked, unsure of who the person behind the low voice was, until he tilted his head and saw the orange-masked man.

“Tobi?! Do you want me to kill you too—“

Tobi chuckled, adjusting his voice into his usual pinched one.

“Hey, hey. Let’s not kill eachother! We are a team, aren’t we?”

Hidan turned around, his eyes furrowed as he looked down at you and then back at Tobi. He threw himself against Tobi, only to be hit hard enough against the wall that he grunted in pain. Obito’s Kamui was indeed sufficient for him to disappear and appear next second to take you in his arms from the ground.

Hidan yelled just before Obito wanted to leave.

“Did the boss know what you fucking doing? Since then do we care about a random bitch—“

Something in Tobi’s eyes changed, making Hidan feel fear for the first time for the harmless, goofy individual Tobi appeared most of the time.

“Don’t worry, Hidan! Our leader already knows that you acted on your own without following orders! But he decided to spare your life, hihi! What a merciless person he is! For now.”

Obito disappeared with Hidan’s prize, making him raise his hand in the air frustrated, looking over his shoulder at a bored Kakuzu, uninterested in Hidan’s tantrum since the potential win had vanished from his sight.

“What the fuck was that, man?! I’m the only sane person in this fucking team??”

***

Your body trembled in the man’s arms, unsure what to do with yourself since he appeared to…save you? Or worse, being a psychopath like all of them are and wanting to torture you alone and—

“Are you hurt, lady?”

He let you down carefully as his hands started untying every knot made until your body was free. After that, you crawled as far as possible from him until you reached a corner inside the room.

“A-are you going to kill me? Who are you? Why do you have two voices?”

Tobi waved both of his hands dramatically as he spoke.

“To kill you? No! Tobi don’t act cruelly towards ladies! He will never!”

You pointed a finger at him, your body shivering.

“I don’t believe you! Why do you speak like this?! What is this place?”

Behind the mask, Obito’s face was barely contained. His heartbeat was violent against his ribs since he saw you on the ground wounded. Why are you here? Why does the universe hate him so much to bring you here way too soon? He can’t believe you are here. You are really here. Yet, you are so scared of him that he feel dying inside.

“You don’t need to know, [Name]. But I promise you will know soon. This is all for you.”

Obito spoke normally and your brain short-circuited. I know this voice. Why do you know this voice? Why is it familiar? From where do I know this voice?

Your voice was rushed, feeling more and more panicked.

“H-how do you know my name?”

When Obito locked his softened eyes on you, yours widen in shock. You don’t know how or when, but the words left your mouth without thinking.

“Obito? Obito is that you? N-no, I’m insanse. No, it can’t be possible be true—“

But it was too late, Obito already told you too much. It was impossible to let his plan be ruined even…even if it’s you. His heart broke once more when he placed you under the genjutsu to alterate your memories, putting you to sleep at the same time.

“I can’t stand it anymore, Kakashi.” He watched you, a flicker of tension could be seen between his scrunched eyebrows. “Please tell me I’m not insane. Please tell me all of these, all of what you did for me was not because I’m just a friend. Because I don’t. I don’t see you like one, Kakashi! I don’t see you like that for a while—“

As your confession started, Kakashi could feel just like a small knock turning gradually bigger, rougher against the walls inside of him until it broke so hard, so hard that the realization made him act impulsively, along with his throbbing heart. The urge was so bad that he even cut you off, your sincere words by his soft lips claiming yours in a passionate kiss so desperate, so intense that a tear painted your flushed cheeks. You barely caught your breath, stealed again by his response.

“You’re not. You’re not insane, [Name]. I apologize for my cowardice. I don’t deserve to trouble your kind soul.”

You cupped his cheeks, hands touching his mask as you spoke with a serious, yet gentle voice

“You deserve so much more. And I’m here to prove it if you let me.”

That doesn’t mean it will not be hard to do so, otherwise he wouldn’t nod in conformation too late, mostly because the fear of losing you is much bigger than his own flaws.

🍃 Itachi

Itachi’s priorities over the years didn’t led him to see the truth about what he really feels about you until late. At first, you were a member of the team along with Shisui. Despite not being in the Uchiha clan like he was, with a kind and altruistic personality, it wasn’t hard for him to get closer to you.

Actually, Itachi was curious (sometimes amused) by your constant desire to push his buttons. You weren’t part of a clan, you didn’t receive special, spectacular abilities like his Sharingan. It all came from insecurities that you didn’t belong here, at least not near a person like him that everyone knows. And it really enraged you how he was calm every damn time.

“Tell me, Uchiha. When you’ll show the world your real face, huh? Hidden by that pretty smile of yours that’s it clearly a mask?”

He was flattered by the compliment that you didn’t realize until after finishing speaking about your frustration. Itachi’s eyes flickered with surprise, a hint of a smile struggled to don’t appear, but you could see it. Immediately feeling your cheeks flush, you dismissed his presence with a wave of your hand, ready to vanish from the earth for actually saying out loud that he is pretty.

It wasn’t even clear that the bond deepened when the mission all of you were sent on, he found himself wanting to help you get out of the poisoned mind that fed you lies. Itachi was an observer most of the time so he didn’t miss how hard you trained yourself outside of the academy’s mandatory training. So, when the time comes, when the mission was successful and everyone did their best, Itachi knelt beside you.

With swollen eyes and a stuttering voice, you spoke with your head bowed.

“I failed again. Why? Why did they put me with you? Or him?” Shisui raised his hands in surrender, taking himself out of the equation in his own smooth way. “For what? To slow you down? To be a burden—“

Itachi put his hands gently on your head, his genuine words along with a serious expression made you freeze on the spot.

“You are not a burden and never were, [Name]. For all it costs, you prove yourself worthy every day for fighting your old self to be better and that’s all that matters. You are strong since I’ve met you and I’m glad I did.”

You couldn’t take your eyes from him, absorbing his words like a mantra. You hated that time to admit, but you really admired him. Still do. Wiping the tears away with your back hand, a chuckle managed to slip past your mouth.

“You and your ways of speaking.” A tease glinted in your eyes. “I’ll be stronger enough when I’ve managed to crush you in a fight, Uchiha.”

Itachi’s little smile widened, taking your hand to help you stand on your feet. “I’ll wait for that day.”

After that, your extra training now sometimes includes him too. With fights, with tears, with a will of living stronger to move mountains to be acknowledged.

Despite his loyality for Konoha, after many years of fighting for his village along with you, Itachi was pushed from behind to face what he feels since that part of him was untouched methodically, perhaps intentionally like he couldn’t think about himself first once in his life. And he could’ve help him with that? No one than his old, most important friend in his life. Shisui.

Travelling in mission wore you that night enough to admit you're tired, enough to sleep near the fire that warmed your body and soul. Enough to not hear a sound in your profound sleep.

Shisui was first to speak, indirectly how he liked it.

“She really did prove herself. That fierce attitude now helping in actual fights, huh.”

Itachi nodded, confirming what he anticipated.

“Indeed. She seems at peace with her soul.”

“But are you, dear Itachi? At peace with your soul like she is?”

Stunned by the sudden question of his camarade, he asked.

“I’m not sure I follow what you want to say.”

Shisui leaned his head back, arms under it while he was against the wooden wall in a comfortable position. The big smile on his face screamed trouble. “I’m sure you do, my friend. You’re fast with this kind of thing. Are you not?” Shisui gestured with his head to you, to your sleepy form, now with Itachi’s coat over your body.

Caught off guard by his friend, Itachi felt his cheek warmer, and this time the fire wasn’t the only reason.

“It’s not my place to trouble her with my personal feelings.“

Shisui was fast to counteract.

“Yeah? So I assume you won’t mind if I join the party? Making a little place in her world?” That was a new feeling gathered inside of Itachi’s soul. A feeling of doubt, of bitterness at the thought of seeing you with someone else. “Or I don’t know, maybe I can give Genma a free pass since I’m not the only one interested. You know, he asked me before about her.”

Itachi felt agitated for a second, showing for the first time a really intense expression on his face that only made Shisui chuckle.

“See? I told you. Better hurry up, Itachi.” He winked at him, sighing as tiredess envoled him too, closing his eyes.

Only Itachi couldn’t sleep that night, finally thinking about what’s most precious in his life besides his family. It took all of his courage, more than he ever had in fights to speak out loud about difficult things he wasn’t used to.

After graduation, having the real title of jonin, Itachi waited you near the door of the Academy. Controlled as he was, a shrewd mind could see the tremble of his hand, tighting against the akaibata flower, a red rose that symbolizes love in the village.

“Oh? You waited for me, Itachi? Such an honor for me to be waited by one of the best jonin from all times.” The big, teasing smile on your face faded as you saw the serious expression of your dear Itachi. You blinked, a rush of panic travelled in your bones.

“What happened? Don’t tell me they assigned you to another village.”

Itachi adjusted his voice while his hands slowly started being visible, not hidden beside his back. You were startled by the flower in his hands, looking back and forth from it to his face, trying to understand the situation.

Why did he choose specifically that flower? Can’t it be that…? No, definitely no. After all, it's Itachi.

“F-for me? Please, I should be the one thanking you—“

He stopped you, something he rarely does.

“I want to congratulate you.” It was bizarre for Itachi to avoid your gaze, making your own soul tremble, searching for answers. “And confess about something important to me. I must say I don’t pressure you for an immediate answer, perhaps taking your time to—“

“D-do you have feelings for me?”

Both of you freeze like a stone, like a paralysis jutsu stopped even the greatest genjutsu of Itachi that could bypass a weak ability like that. Still, he was the first to break the ice, to say something for the moment to not pass because it shouldn’t.

He nodded slowly, too slowly comparing about how fast his heart beat is. It took a couple of excruciating moments for you to fall all over him, in his arms. He raised them, shocked by the sudden reaction as your head leaned against his chest, tightening your grip around his back.

“It sure takes you a while.” You sniffled, adding your own confession. “I do too. I have feelings for you for a long time.”

Itachi managed to embrace you with the same intensity, putting his chin over your head as he murmured. “I’m glad to hear that.”

🍃 Naruto

Naruto had a burning, lively desire since he was young to have a name in the shinobi world and always craved human connections. Brainwashed by the people’s bad mouths, you were cautious at first to speak with him. Not that he was a loud, exhuberant kid that was in contrast to your reserved, yet upfront person. But because he was a constant reminder that despite everything he’ve been through, he managed to find enough confidence in himself that you lacked at that age.

Still, your person had an imprint in his mind because you were one of the few people who actually took his side.

The first time was when some random, uneducated kids tried to make a fool out of Naruto in the woods of Konoha. One of the pathetic brats spoke with a bitter tone, pointing a finger down at Naruto who was currently on the ground, pushed by them. How annoying. Three versus one and they call themself better.

Hiding behind a tree after your morning walk to the academy since it was interrupted by the sudden voices, you felt an unknown anger bubbling inside your chest.

“Hah! Not so strong of a genin, am I right? After all, a monster like you shouldn’t dare to want to be near the likes of us. A weakling dumbass, that’s all is about you!

You saw the determination in Naruto’s eyes, the fire behind them that was hard to maintain. He yelled, fighting with all his might.

“Shut up, assholes! I’ll kick your ass so hard when I become a Hokage! Just wait and—“

You move the same time the boy wanted to drag Naruto by his collar, gripping as hard as you can the disgusting hand of him to stop the moment. All of them were surprised at the same time you surprised yourself too. But here you are, too late to stop your action and not finishing it.

“Stop it!” The boy dragged his hand forcefully from your grip, unbalancing you for a second. “Leave him alone! You are the pathetic, stupid ones to fight him where he’s all alone!”

Your breath was heavy, chest rising up and down as you didn’t dare look past your shoulder, at a surprised Naruto with his mouth open. Are you in his class, right? He remembered you now.

Their voices melted together in insults, a fuel enough for the boy to try push you down too, yet Naruto was fast enough to catch you with his arms, supporting your back. That only enraged them even more, but their arrogance was enough for them to think that their time was more important than dealing with your kind of people.

“Freaks!”

And that was the insult you proudly carry on all these years for standing up for your new friend.

Naruto take his hands off you immediately after they were gone, scratching his head shyly. “S-sorry, sorry!” He spoke too fast for you to manake to answer yet. “Kuso!! Damn assholes! They’ll believe it soon how weak they are! I promise!”

You chuckled, shutting Naruto’s rambling at the beautiful laugh you heard. “I’m sure you’ll do!” His cheeks warmed, feeling so hot that one would believe it's Kurama’s fault.

He stuttered, unused to another person besides Iruka speaking normally. Naruto avoided looking in your eyes.

“T-thank you….?”

“Name].”

“Right! [Name].” Naruto chuckled, offering his big smile that he rarely offered to anyone when he was a child. “I’ll sure remember you! My new friend!”

And he did. He remembered you every time.

Always speaking with you in school, always invading your personal space to see what you are doing. If you want to eat with him, if you want to fight with him. All of this filled your soul with so much warm along the years that when he became a future leader, one of the strongest shinobi in Konoha, you were the most proud of him.

Hero of the Leaf.

You’ll never forget how every person before judged him, didn’t trust him, didn’t acknowledge him, but now praises him, pushing him with multiple hands in the air. You looked at him with so much love, tears wetting your cheeks.

Of course, he was quick to see, stumbling between people to come to you. He cupped your cheeks with both hands, looking agitated on all of your face as he spoke.

“[Name]! What’s wrong?? Tell me! Do I need to beat someone? Who! Say a name!”

You put your hand over his wrists, smiling so hard with tears in your eyes that you couldn’t be stopped. “No, dumbass! I’m just…feeling happy that people finally see you! See you for what you are, Naruto!”

Naruto gasped at that, feeling affected more than he was before. You were here from the beginning, right? He saw in a fraction of a second a flashback with old memories that culminated in this point, enough for his mind to tell him indirectly something he wasn’t aware of. Enough for his instincts to interfere, lowering his gaze to your lips for a second, making easy for you to see the answer you hoped for.

You pressed your lips against him, making Naruto have his eyes wide open at the feeling of your soft lips, until he himself start putting all his love into it.

None of you were aware of your surroundings and only when the cheers of others filled your ears, forced by the shyness, you stop kissing eachother. Both of you chuckled, returning to hug each other instead, so hard you aren't sure whose heart beat faster.

🍃 Shikamaru

As smart as he is, Shikamaru will be slow to realize he actually might like you. It’s true, you caught his eye for the first time when he spoke with you. In a debate.

Chosen by the fresh colleagues to be the one to organize the entire class with things like assigning projects based on strong or weak flaws of each one of them. Gather the project afterwards from anyone. Deliver new test announcements or any mundane tasks he needed to do. He wasn’t happy at all with the position and you can see it by the lazy expression he always had when speaking to all of you.

“Our sensei decides that it's time to see how good our teamwork is outside of missions. This time, they want us to work together on a project of our choice from Konoha’s history. But I suggest them to take the choice instead of us. They know our strength better than us.”

“I disagree.” The silence filled the room and you felt yourself warming for the sudden attention. Adjusting your voice, you looked straight in his Shikamaru direction, which just raised an eyebrow. “I-I think we are the one who knows our strengths better. Sure, they can help us and guide us, but we should have the free will to choose what we want to learn and write about.”

He spoke after assimilating your words like he always does. Thinking before speaking.

“We are too young to see our potential as they do.” Seeing the embarrassment on your face, he added. “Still, what are you suggesting?”

You gulped, feeling your throat tight since you could hear the muffled voices around you. It was fast for Shikamaru to catch that you are now insecure, so his eyes try to calm you in his own way, lacking any hint of judgment.

“Maybe a test?“ Everyone groaned and he felt the urge to do so, but he didn’t. “L-like to speak about ourselves? And what we think we are the best at and what little information we have that we want to dig deeper?”

The tension in the big room dissipates after Shikamaru spoke once again. “We can do that.” Finally, your breath out. Still, he continued no longer after. “But you’ll be the one speaking with them.”

“B-but you are—“

“Who said I should be the only one?”

With that, you and Shikamaru made a pair. Not like you were his assistant or anything like you thought you would be. Instead, Shikamaru treated you highly from the start, seeing the potential in you almost as much as a teacher with more experience would see in someone.

From that time, you get closer to Shikamaru without intending to. Putting up a fight when he sometimes forgets to do his own damn task, putting all the work on your shoulders. Or when he didn’t wanna fight against his opponent in the chunin exams. You still remember how hard you gripped both of your hands, pleading for his lazy ass to win.

But the real deal was when a wave of realization of what you meant to him hit Shikamaru harder when his sensei died. You didn’t leave his side, not for a second.

Cuffed in his own room, the depression swallowed him for the first time in his life. In that moment, Shikamaru watched the ceiling for hours, lost in painful memories, remembering his father’s words.

Out of nowhere, a powerful sound invaded the silence in his room. Coming from the window next to his bed. A rock? No, it wasn’t that bad. A tree branch? More plausible.

He dragged his legs out of the bed, slowly coming to see what happened. His eyes widened when he saw you, in front of his house, waving your hand in a desperate manner. Just before you put a hand near your mouth to shout, he opened the door.

“Hey!!”

“Shhh! What are you doing here? It’s late!” He whispered, scolding you. It’s dangerous for a girl like you to be on the streets right now.

“Then come outside, damn it!” You faked a shiver, trying to get a reaction out of him. “I’m scared all alone here…without my boy friend to protect me.”

Shikamaru scoffed. Yeah, right. You do a better job of protecting yourself than he can. But, of course, he closed the window after it, coming in a rush on his tiptoes so as not to don’t wake up his parents. His father will probably be disappointed to have a girl outside right now also that waited for him in this cold weather. At that thought, he took a jacket from the hanger near the exit door.

You were all smiles when he came, looking at a confused Shikamaru who walked with hurried steps until he was in front of you.

“What’s up with you? Do you know what the clock—“ You took his breath away, surprising him with the first affection you showed him. You hugged him. “What—“

“Shh. You’ll wake your parents, right?” You looked up, too close for him to think of a comeback. Then, you turned your head, cheeks against his chest. For sure you’ll catch him for how hard his heart was struggling to breathe. But you didn’t give him much time to be embarrassed, you made him compliant. “I wanted to know how you feel. I was scared, you know? I wanted to be here.”

He gulped, but he hugged you back. Troublesome girl. “I know you are here.”

At that, you gasped, taking a step back. “Is that a complain I hear?”

He waved his hand, panicking. “No, no! Damn.” He sighed, turning his head in another direction. “You know what I mean.”

Your mouth twitched, but it vanished when he was now the one catching you by surprise with that serious gaze he had. You didn’t know, maybe he didn’t know either that his pupils now filled with gratitude, mixed with a fondness that definetly excelled platonic feeling toward someone else.

“Come. I’ll walk you home.”

He put the jacket from his arms around your shoulder, pushing your back slightly to move forward. The night helped you not to don’t show you how flustered you were, concealing your reaction with your usual teasing.

“Oh? What an honor…Who would’ve thought Shikamaru is not an indolent brat every minute of his life…”

“Shut up. Not even I’m that bad of an asshole.”

Regardless of all of this time with you, seeing you grown later in a beautiful, strong woman — Shikamaru took his time. And it became annoying, so annoying that you find yourself doubting you're imagining the chemistry you two had.

This stopped when you fought. The biggest of them. You were outside with him, training. Alone. He was just watching, too comfortable to bother and join, having much “pleasure” to irritate you.

“And how do you know, huh? How do you know I will not win?”

You spoke between rough breaths, turning around in a swift pirouette for a perfect strike of kunai, sticking the pieces of wood arranged in opposite directions.

“I didn’t say you will not win. Don’t put words in my mouth, [Name]. I’m just saying I rather stick with the other plan—“

His closed eyes now wide open when you cut him off. “Because I’m weak. Say it.” You came close to him, anger in your voice. “Don’t hide around the corner, Shikamaru. I know how you think. I know what bullshit you think about—“

“I don’t wanna risk losing you for fuck sake! Can you stop being so loud at the first hour in the morning? It’s already hard enough to be alive this soon in the m—“

“W-what?”

Shikamaru stopped speaking, realizing he said too much. Too much for his own good. Risking now something more important than just being mad at him. At least he was used to it. He didn’t say nothing until you insisted.

“Since when are you so concerned about my well-being?”

He cursed under his breath, not believing what you are saying.

“What do you mean by that, [Name]?”

He raised on his feet, coming closer in front of you. Outside or not, the air ran thick, feeling like his shadows stilled you in place. Not enough for your mouth to stop speaking nonsense. Nonsense for him. For you, it was just voicing out your insecurities for a long time.

“I don’t know, Shikamaru. Sometimes I feel I’m not so important in your life like you are in mine.”

Shikamaru watched dumbfounded how your eyes were now red, how your breath was heavier comparable with a rough training.

“Are you insane?” Fuck. That was a mistake. His immediate reaction when you turned around with a painful expression was to grab you, to not leave him. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t think.”

“Surprising for the mastermind not to think before speaking. Should I believe that?”

He felt an urgency he never felt before, as if he didn’t do something, say something, a distance would force both of you apart, maybe even unbreakable in the future.

“You don’t really know what I think.” At that, you stopped your impulses to run from him, furrowing your eyebrows. He sighed, letting go of your arms after seeing you listening to what he had to say. “I don’t see you weak. Never did. I think about you having a strong spirit with an impressive strength that definitely is much better than I can do.” He spoke again, not letting you contradict him. “I never doubt you. I was surprised to hear you talk so small about yourself and that to be surely my fault. I-I’m sorry.”

“Shikamaru…”

His hands twitched at the sides, sweating. “And…I care about you. In ways I didn’t think it was right to say. That I have a right to say.”

A heartbeat. Two heartbeats.

“A-are you saying what I think you are saying?”

He nodded. Now is the time. The time that everything will change after he will probably be refused—

“Asshole.” Ouch, deserved. He lowered his head just for a second, before raising it in an instant when he heard your laugh, landing a small punch in his arm. “And here I was preparing myself to wait decades until you will confess to me.”

“W-what?”

“I feel the same, Shikamaru. I was sure you already know since I don’t know…you are a genius and all that. But I see you’re not so sharp as you think you are.”

Shikamaru blushed in an instant, avoiding your gaze until he couldn’t do it anymore. “Right…” He could see you are waiting for something, or maybe gather the courage to not be a coward like this. But for once, the coward wasn’t him. “Can I kiss you?” The flushed cheeks gave your features a new light, accentuating your prettiness.

When you nod, Shikamaru lowers his head at the same time you raise yours for both of you to meet in the middle, in a much-needed kiss. A slow kiss that gradually turned hungrier, barely stopping yourself from continuing to touch each other.

Your happy laugh was enough for Shikamaru to give a real, honest smile too in return.

🍃 Sasuke

It will be a disaster. It will be a disaster for Sasuke to figure out the reason why he can’t stop himself from being near you and that will definitely happen in a long, long time.

Not even in the same team, Sasuke had his first interaction with you pretty late. He barely spoke with his team, forced to do so more accurately. That eventually became a blessing ij his life since they managed to bring out of him at least a bit of how little Sasuke was before. He didn’t bother interacting with other people, especially with the ones that didn’t stand out and at the same time initiating a conversation with him, not the other way around. Or that’s what it seemed until he met you.

On the other hand, you weren’t different than the other girls regarding one thing. He caught your eye. After all, you were a little girl seeing a pretty boy; a reserved one enough to seem like a misterous invidual from a young age.

But precisely for that reason, you differentiate yourself from the others. Asking the real question. Why is he so closed? Mysterious? What happened to him? Hearing the truth about his clan, you feel guilty to even see him in a light like that — to be attracted by the horrible reason he was the way he is. So you try to distance yourself from him, not having even a desire to speak with him only when necessary.

And surprisingly, that was at the chunin exams. After his fight.

It wasn’t so much time left until it was your turn. Hidden among all the people ready to fight to prove their worth, you were struggling to breathe. Prove what worth? Yeah, you passed all the tests after learning hard in order to don’t dare disappointing your parents again — the same parents who always had higher standards for you, rarely satisfied with any winning in your life.

But you didn’t dare complain once to them. To others? Hell no. Others have it much worse. Especially the boy that you didn’t hear near you, too much in your mind to see a confused Sasuke that didn’t know what the fuck happened here.

He looked around, looking for any threats until you felt his presence. You yelped, turning around and widening your eyes for such embarassing moment to happen. The first words you spoke surprised even him.

“What are you doing here?”

You turned around, rubbing your eyes for any sign of weakness. He spoke after a second too long, contemplating whether he should leave.

“Something happened?”

You shake your head and Sasuke thought it was a bit disrespectful not to don’t look at him as you speak, not how it was used to when speaking with others, especially girls. Maybe that’s what was the only reason why he spoke in a sharp tone. Not like he cared too much.

“No. It’s fine. Everything is fine.”

“Then?”

You looked at him of why he continue this pathetic conversation, feeling a bit exasperated.

“Ahm, then? Then nothing. Just don’t want to fight just to lose and dissapoint my family like I always do.”

And here you are. Complaining for the first time about your family to the wrong person. The worse option of all of them.

“Then don’t.”

You looked in disbelief at him, biting your tongue to don’t react to his arrogant tone that he seemed to have. Instead, you brush it off, snorting.

“Easy to say.”

Do you hear yourself? At least you have a family that is here to watch you. He knows how it feels to compare to someone else. He did that too in that past with his b—

“You don’t need to prove to anything to anyone.”

You blinked, swallowing your breath and letting it out slowly.

“Maybe you are right.”

He vanished after your first conversation. The conversation before anything.

You winned that fight. You are not sure if he was one of the reason. And especially, you weren’t even aware that after your fight, Sasuke was one of the few that actually felt something. His mouth twitched at the final blow you landed on your oppenent, seeing you cheerful, yet repressed smile. Like you couldn’t let yourself feel proud about your own achievement.

Not longer before he decided to leave Konoha, his decision influenced by the curse inside of him, driving him along with the fueling revange burning inside of him — he tried to get stronger on his own. He really tried to take another path after seeing how his rival start surpassing him.

Training in the crimson sunset, spreading a warm tinge around the big field was in discrepancy with what Sasuke felt in his soul. Maybe by the loneliness he felt in that moment, the vulnerability to be outside in such a missarable state of mind, made his attention to focus from his inner turmoil to the scene in front of him.

No far from here, he saw you.

Another faded question in the back of his mind existed. Not that he believe in superstitions like “nothing happens because of a coincidence” because it couldn’t be a coincidence what hell he was put through. The question was: Why he meet you again? Like the last time that for some unknown reason when he was oscillating mentally between insanity and clarity, you were there.

Meanwhile you, training for all it’s worth, once again you didn’t hear the presence coming closer until he made himself heard.

“Wrong position. You should use your good feet to land a powerful, not weak bow.”

You froze, ground glued to your swollen soles. That voice. You couldn’t lie, but you don’t think is there a possibility to don’t know from where is it from. From whom.

Weak bow. Sasuke didn’t say it as an insult, more like an advice he wasn’t think he should be the one to do so. But he already watched you for some time it seemed wrong to dissapear.

“T-thank you.”

He stepped closer, despite feeling the urge to don’t stay for long. He changed the subject, creating once more a start of a conversation he wasn’t really capable of. Or that’s what he thought about himself.

“It’s too dangerous to be outside at this hour.”

You sighed, coming near him only to sit down on the ground, catching your breath. After sipping for a bottle, making Sasuke involuntary wait for your answer, you responded.

“The sun is still up so I should be too.”

Sasuke scoffed, finding himself coming closer. He wasn’t stupid, he could see that anytime you can, you are avoiding his eyes. Too shy around him? Can’t be. You didn’t act like the rest to be perceived by him like that. More like the lack of confidence. Even if that was further from the true, otherwise your heart inside chest will not be so agitated.

“Fight with me.”

Sasuke wanted to slap himself for speaking. What is wrong with him? What could be the reason to even want that? (He doesn’t, you are not a match for him. It’s the truth.) The answer to his silent question was that now you looked at him and he could saw you more openly.

“W-what?”

“Up.”

You panicked, feeling flustered more than before. “No way—I could never fight you, I’ll be no match—“

He turned around, going straight to the middle of the training spot as he voiced with his back at you.

“Don’t be that weak.”

Your jaw tightened. Who does he think he was? The hint of a smile on Sasuke’s face when he heard steps from behind was unfortunately unseen by you.

After an embarassing short time, you crunched down your knees in front of him. Of course you lost. He didn’t use at least his chidori. Sasuke landed his hand and that time he couldn’t surpress his smirk when you take it with an annoyance scrawelled all over your face.

After the fight or what exactly was that, you challenged him. Now both of you resting on some random rocks around the area.

“You feel better about yourself now?”

He scoffed, giving you a side glance enough to make your heart stop for a second. But his unusual soft tone was more puzzling than that.

“Not at all.”

The silence set place harder than before. Not that you weren’t used to it or to feel uncomfortable by it. It was for that his now tilted head towards nothing in particular that seemed troubled enough to allow yourself to say something, yet fearful to don’t overstep.

“Thank you. For…that time. I think it helped much more that I was thinking in that moment. I won—“

“I know. I saw.” Sasuke locked his eyes on you, sending a tingling sensation in all of your body before he turned his head again. He wondered alone before asking. “What did your parents said?”

At your chuckle, a beautiful one, Sasuke unconsciously thought — he looked at you again.

“I think you already know.”

That’s unfortunate. They should appreciate you more like you do. You are their child, aren’t you? But he didn’t say anything, not even a congratulations since it wasn’t a thing he will say. Not knowing how.

“I saw your fight too.” You fidget for a second and Sasuke lowered his gaze to look on your fingers playing together before you raised your hand to face him. “I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one you heard this too or if it’s irrelevant, but you were impressive.”

He felt his cheeks warmer out of the sudden, not like you weren’t speaking the truth that you weren’t the only one telling him that. That emotion didn’t last long, changed drastically after what you added. “One of the best in our village.”

Because he is the second, not the first. You barely hear the murmured “Not enough” because he raised on his feet at the same time.

He tilted his head, looking down at you. “Come with me.”

Somehow, you sensed a bond of trust forming, concluding that night that make you follow him as Sasuke walked you home.

Still, that wasn’t the only thing you sensed that night. As you waved at him a goodbye, you watched him dissapered into the night with a pang in your chest, like you are not sure you’ll see him tomorrow again.

And it was truth, soon after dropping you off, he told Sakura he is gonna leave and he don’t want to be followed.

Come with me. You think if his question could’ve been in another life speaking about you following him on the rough path he chosen, will be any help. Probably not.

All the next years you knew about his wereabouts were painful to hear. You couldn’t know what to trust or what no. Did you really know him? Did he really did what everybody say he did? Did a person or more than one influenced him into being an unstable, bad person? It didn’t feel right to think about it.

But here, inside of you, a very small part existed that screamed hope.

Nobody can imagine what you felt when in the middle of the war, a presence suddeny catched everyone attention. For the first time, you weren’t the only one catched by surprise by his presence.

Everything stopped for you, maybe for him too — when he looked over his shoulder, having the first eye contact with you only, mantaining long enough to don’t be seen unintentional just before Naruto interfered.

But your moment vanished for days untill the war stopped, not having another one with him besides the little, rare ones when you felt his rinnegan eyes watching you from afar.

Well, that doesn’t mean you weren’t one of the few people to come see him in the hospital first.

The knock on the door was faint, almost shy. Not a sound could be heard from inside, yet you breath out once before you slide the door.

He wouldn’t think you will be here to see him, couldn’t anticipate it even if he will wanted to. Sasuke followed your slow moves until you reach his bed, asking him almost in a whisper.

“Can I sit?”

He didn’t trust his voice, he could only nod at your soft question.

“H-how are you feeling?”

Sasuke couldn’t stop looking at you. Couldn’t understand why you have that curious, concerned sight glintening in your eyes. He didn’t deserve any gentless. You were used from others to be dissapointed in you, but how about you? Why you aren’t at him now?

“Why are you here?”

His hoarse voice startled you. A roughness in it due to the lack of speaking to anyone until now. You fliched by his question, feeling the urge to leave that only deepened his guilt, but you didn’t.

“Do you want me to leave?”

He sighed, tilting his head as he murmured, fearful to speak too high.

“It doesn’t matter. You shouldn’t be here.”

You dragged the chair closer, catching his attention.

“Who said that? If you don’t tell me straight up, I might be too slow to understand.”

Not a hint of defiance can be seen in your gaze. He broke eye contact once again, stubbornly hiding himself.

Sasuke couldn’t lie. When he thought about you, rarely since his priority didn’t allow him more than once in a couple of months to lose his time with disruptive thoughts that could slow down his goal — only good things he remembered.

You didn’t judge him. Never. Not loudly at least. You didn’t insist on invading his space. You didn’t pressure him to choose the right path. Not even one of all the things he felt angry about in the past, even if those things also saved him. Still, it’s like you made space for him in your little, troubled world in own way — for him to join if he wants to that was starting to feel constrained mostly by himself to choose, not to be chosen by someone.

Sasuke didn’t realize he spoke out loud.

“I don’t want you to leave.”

“Y-you don’t?”

His eyes widen, head turning sharply towards you. The flush of your cheeks makes him almost choke on emotions. Fuck.

You bowed your head, hiding your face as you said in a whisper.

“I’m happy to hear that.” When you raised it back with a glinting gaze that transmits anything but indifference, Sasuke was now the one flustered. “And I’m glad you are alive.”

He gulped his feelings down, feeling still unworthy of them. “You will disappoint your parents for staying beside a person like me.”

“Someone told me before that I don’t need to prove anything to anyone. I took that by heart.”

Sasuke’s heart throbbed after so much time he was sure he imagined at first, to be capable of feeling such a new, conflicting emotion.

You swallowed, straightening your back a little as he slowly released your hands, spreading his leg wider to give you space. When you began to grind against him, mouth parted, Kakashi realized he had found a new obsession.

“Mhm, go on. You look so beautiful grinding on my thigh like that.”

He lifted your shirt, caressing your breast and squeezing it gently to heighten your arousal. You couldn’t bear it, sliding aside your loose shorts along with your panties so that you could be directly skin to skin.

Kakashi groaned at the filthy gesture, lifting your leg to help you while his fingers pinched your nipple, twirling it with maddening playfulness.

Even though you were just as needy as him, the two of you differed in shame—you were far more shy. And yet, the fascination in his eyes, the way he grew harder himself, seeing your desperate need for him to fill you, only drove you to grind faster, pressing your clit harder and harder, until the shocking realization came that you might actually climax this way.

And you did. You leaned your head back, moaning as your release soaked his thigh, running down the sides until it stained the sheets beneath.

What you felt next was his mouth, mask tossed aside so he could capture your lips immediately. One hand pressing into your back while the other gripped your waist, bending you downward until he came over you.

Well, at least Kakashi had found yet another way to torment you a little before giving you everything you craved, and more.

🍃Itachi

You were at a gathering of Konoha’s administration, though far less professional than usual. In the Hokage’s office, Kakashi was speaking casually about the future funds.

Asuma twirled the toothpick in his mouth, clicking his tongue.

“Well, it seems impossible for the money to cover both the reconstructions and the defense weapons stock supply.”

You chuckled, taking a glass of non-alcoholic passionfruit cocktail since it was still quite early while Tsunade responded.

“I told you I can double it.” Her smug expression appeared as she gesticulated with her hand, not really looking anywhere in particular.

You sat on Itachi’s lap, his head resting lazily against the table as he observed the discussion. He looked detached, but his eyes glimmered faintly with amusement. He gazed at you and offered a faint smile, placing a hand gently over your waist.

The conversation…more gossip than anything continued, while Itachi’s leg slowly began to feel numb. He said nothing, of course, simply shifting a little to get more comfortable.

You stilled, your mouth parting, letting out a low, barely audible gasp.

Itachi blinked twice, not understanding at first if something was wrong. But since you didn’t say anything, neither did he, perhaps assuming it was nothing. Still, your fidgeting was a little more intense than before.

“[Name]?”

“Hm?”

You didn’t turn back, instead gulping down the rest of the juice from your cup, trying desperately to stop yourself from blushing so hard that someone might notice.

When Itachi tilted his head, his eyebrows lifted slightly. And when you cast him a short, embarrassed glance, he thought understood.

Had you felt aroused when you pressed against him accidentally?

He didn’t say a word about it the entire day. On the contrary, he behaved even sweeter than usual, making you question whether you’d lost your mind or whether that teasing glimmer in his eyes had really been there.

It was only in the evening, once you had returned home, that he began to play more openly with you.

He sat on the couch, picking up a book from the nightstand more out of habit than intent. Still, it was a ritual of yours. He patted his thigh, looking at you.

“Shall we read?”

His mouth twitched when you blushed furiously, furrowing your brows in annoyance.

“So you did do it intentionally all day!”

He smiled with his eyes closed, responding softly. “I’m sorry, my love. It was entertaining.” Then he opened his eyes, the expression fading into something far less readable. Innocent, or not? With him, it was hard to tell. “So… shall we?”

🍃Madara

You were at a gathering with him, while he spoke with some arrogant men about his future plans. Bored, you walked over to him.

Madara gave you a fleeting glance before shifting his leg to make space for you and smoothly raising his arm as you sat on his knee. He placed his hand on your waist to steady you as he continued his conversation.

Unbothered, you picked grapes one by one, eating them and even bringing one to his lips, but he signaled that he didn’t want any while immersed in conversation with Zetsu. After you finished, you leaned forward slightly, pressing the last grape down on the table, pressing between your thighs in the process. You stilled a second too long before straightening again, deliberately avoiding Madara’s sidelong glance.

For the following minutes, with your gaze cast aside, forcing yourself not to blush, Madara could feel your familiar warmth on his thigh even through his clothes. His mouth twitched faintly, but he said nothing about it. After a while, he decided to conclude the discussion, since it had already gone on too long for his taste.

“Let’s finish this another day. Zetsu, take care of it. I wish to be alone with my wife.”

Zetsu gave you a look before leaving, to which you replied with an arrogant one of your own, nearly rolling your eyes.

When they had gone, Madara turned his gaze to you, gripping your chin lightly.

“Such a minx you are sometimes.”

You bit your lip, your eyes showing embarrassment as you shook your head.

“I didn’t do anything.”

Sometimes you hated how much you craved him; it was difficult to defy him now, at least with words, when you were nothing but putty in his hands. He lowered his other hand—the one not on your chin—onto your thighs and further down, caressing your skin as he inched closer between your legs, his disheveled black hair tickling you, his voice making your lips tremble and your ear burn red.

“But your body did. As it always does. It responds to me.”

You let out a small gasp when he cupped your heat, leaning your head over his shoulder as his hand on your chin tightened slightly, smirking at your loyalty.

“Only to you.”

🍃Obito

While you were reading, you let out a sigh and lifted your gaze toward Obito, leaning your head against the bedframe.

Obito raised his head from his phone, one arm also propped on the headboard, and gave you a short smile.

“What is it, baby?”

You pouted, moving closer to him as he raised his arm to embrace you.

“Sleepy.”

You placed yourself over him, curling your head against his chest, and Obito closed his phone.

“Yeah? So early?”

You nodded with your eyes shut as he caressed your hair, sliding it gently behind your ear. Then you opened them, lifted your gaze, catching his lips in a brief, sweet kiss.

His smile widened, cupping both your cheeks and kissing you again, more lovingly. With Obito it was always difficult to control it not to degenerate, but honestly you were too tired to even take into consideration for it to go further. Still, your arms went around his shoulders as you straddled him, knees parted, each on one side of his legs while he held your cheek in one hand and the other rested on your back.

“So sweet you are.”

“Obito…”

Your dragging, sleepy voice made Obito chuckle as he pulled you higher on him, placing his thigh between your legs as he murmured against your lips.

“What? I didn’t do anything?”

You felt his smile on your lips before he kissed you again, not even a minute passing before he raised his thigh slightly, making you gasp. His hands went to your ass, guiding you almost innocently to grind on him.

“Mhmm, such a good girl for me. Even if you’re so so tired…”

Your whines were a lullaby for Obito right then, loving to make you grind for your own pleasure as he took his time to admire your trembling legs and the way your pulsating pussy pressed against his bare thigh, warming him with your little desire.

🍃Naruto

On a rainy day like this, when the somber Konoha kept you sheltered indoors, you and Naruto were watching some silly movie he had picked, cuddling beneath the soft blanket.

His affectionate side would sometimes take you by surprise—and no, not when he kissed you every ten minutes, nor when he held you so tightly as though you might vanish. More so when the tender, innocent kisses began to shift into something far more heated.

He nestled his head against your neck, leaving wet traces of kisses. Only a moan urged him to rise and turn, coming over you.

You chuckled as his blond hair tickled your face. His voice cracked slightly as he lifted his head, his hands braced beside yours.

“Hah, I’m sorry, baby.” He laughed softly himself, shifting his leg by accident between your thighs. You gasped, and Naruto’s eyes widened, not quite comprehending what had just happened.

Shame flooded your cheeks, while Naruto glanced from his leg to you and back again more than once.

“Don’t tell me…” Naruto pressed his thigh more firmly, drawing another moan from you. He smirked, realizing it. Only for him to start grinding his thigh more insistently against your …. “Y-yeah, grind on my thigh, baby. Soak it, mhm—”

He was utterly consumed by you, by every reaction you gave him. Embarrassed, you brought your hands over your eyes, making him laugh again as he leaned in, brushing them away with his face before kissing across your entire face in turn.

“Naruto, it’s so embarrassing—”

“Nuh-uh. It’s so hot!”

Your whine at his words only drove him further, as you began to ride his thigh yourself, hips bucking up and down.

“Mhmm…just like that, baby.”

🍃Shikamaru

Leaning on the bed’s edge with his back against the headboard, Shikamaru was tired after many undone tasks from today. One hand over his eyes, sighing.

When you came out of the shower, he moved his hand aside a little so one eye could see you walk into the room.

He was more interested that you wore black satin lingerie instead of your usual pajamas, and it fit you in all the right places, flowing over your body.

You had a dangerous smile on your face when you sat on him, the dress rising your thighs, which Shikamaru had already grabbed on both sides.

“What’s with you dressing up like that?”

Despite his composed voice, his red cheeks and dazed eyes gave him away.

“Am I hearing you complain?”

You leaned in, hands on the headrest, framing his head. Your lips were centimeters away.

“Complain that my girlfriend dressed up like this for me and is on top of me too? Please, I’m not that stupid, baby.”

His little smile matched yours. Shikamaru isn’t exactly proactive, however, he won’t pass up such chances. Moreover, he pushes the boundaries of his power.

Wearing shorts, his leg that moved between your thighs made direct contact with your underwear of the same color, making you gasp in the process.

“Hm? Interesting.”

“Shikamaru—”

He took your hands from beside him and placed them on his legs, making you bend your ass more and get into a better position to rub yourself, his dick harder by the minute.

You look hot as hell.

Although embarrassed to rub yourself like that, his words seemed to annoy and arouse you at the same time, making you eager to make him give in.

“How about you let yourself go like that? Maybe you can convince me to fuck you the way you want.”

Asshole.

🍃Sasuke

After one of Sasuke’s arduous missions, you decided to surprise him a little. Though you were dizzy with emotions—this being something entirely new for you—you slipped on white stockings that reached only to your knees, ending in small ribbons and held by a delicate band around your waist, covered by a short skirt. Above, you wore a bra, hidden partially beneath a loosely buttoned shirt.

You felt your heart pounding violently as you heard Sasuke emerge from the bath.

You turned around, biting your lip in anxious anticipation of his reaction, your hands held to your chest, almost tempted to hide, while Sasuke lifted his head toward you.

He gave you a fleeting glance, blinking twice before looking again. The towel slipped slightly from his head, barely held in his hand. His ears rang as he forced himself to control his body reaction, though his eyes betrayed him, sliding slowly over each prominent curve of yours, accentuated by lingerie that tried to remain hidden.

“[Name]?”

You weren’t sure what he was asking, and he himself likely didn’t know what he wanted to say, but you tried to speak, gulping before you did.

“I wanted to… I mean, I know how exhausted you come back after missions… and this one was especially harsh, so I thought maybe… Sorry if this is stupid and—”

You turned slightly to the side, fidgeting beneath his intense stare. Sasuke felt his breath leave him at how beautiful you looked, the blush on your cheeks giving you such innocence he had a desperate urge to destroy.

But he, too, felt his own cheeks redden as he tried to speak, looking away for a moment, embarrassed.

“You didn’t have to…”

When you didn’t answer, he glanced back, seeing the flicker of sadness in your expression, and felt the impulse to step forward. Fuck. He was already painfully hard.

He came behind you, caressing your arm until he touched your palm and fingers slowly while nuzzling his spiky hair into your shoulder, his warm breath grazing your neck as he placed a faint kiss there, making your knees buckle. You gasped, clutching his hand tightly at the sensation.

You could hardly breathe as you felt his gaze upon your back, goosebumps rising along your skin as his fingers traced gently downward, reaching halfway over your ass before returning up again. You were already wet from his mere teasing touches.

He took your hand and guided you to follow him as he sat down on the bed, looking up at you while you carefully lowered yourself onto his lap, your legs between his thighs as his hand supported your back.

You thought you might die if he didn’t say something soon, but Sasuke took his time, studying how you sat on him, the bra accentuating the curve of your breasts—the very ones he was eager to bite, to squeeze, held within the fabric you had chosen with such care for him.

His gaze traveled down to the fine white lace that highlighted your legs, which he adored, imagining them covered in his marks from another day when he had missed you too much.

And beneath the skirt? He felt his cock twitch, almost disgusted at himself for such a pathetic reaction—just thinking of your soaked panties and how he would tug them higher, pressing against your folds meaningfully.

But when his eyes fell upon your vulnerable expression, they softened. Tilting your chin, he guided your lips to his, brushing against them.

“You look perfect.”

His mouth twitched when he felt your pulse throbbing against his thigh. Not because he wasn’t still timid, not because he didn’t surrender yet entirely to his primal instincts, but because your blushing face spurred him on. Slowly, he placed his hand on your ass, grinding you further against him, and your little sounds were intoxicating. Urging him to slip beneath your skirt, he cupped your ass in his palm, squeezing it.

His mouth parted faintly as his gaze met your lovely, desiring eyes while you listen to him, grinding on his thight. Even if he found this somewhat unusual, he accepted it as something natural? That you would be so aroused. Yet he knew he would not leave you like this for long; he preferred to touch your pussy with his fingers—or, especially, with his tongue.

He kissed you teasingly, short and frequent, as you moaned against his lips, your arousal overwhelming you.

“Sasuke…”

“Mhmm. Go on, a bit more for me.” It was almost fascinating to watch you struggle, though he would spare you soon enough. “Thank you.”

“Itachi, c-can you fuck me, please?”

He was nuzzling into your neck, sending shivers down your spine while he left soft, warm kisses.

“Didn’t I satisfy you this morning, dear [Name]?”

You almost whined when he stopped touching you, instead just looking at your flustered, shy face.

“Y-yes, but—” As you hid your face from shame, Itachi let out a soft, brief laugh, touching your thighs and caressing you before gently pulling you toward the edge of the bed. Burying his head between your thighs and starting to kiss them slowly had become a ritual for him. How long would she last this time?

After torturing you with slow, precise touches that made you cum too many times, you begged him to spare you.

“Itachi, p-please, my love—I can’t anymore!”

He murmured against your skin, caressing your whole body and making it arch impossibly before he found your lips. You chased his hips, struggling to find his painfully hard cock as he kept pleasuring you, placing it at your entrance. Itachi smiled at your eagerness as he slowly pushed inside. Moaning as he finally, finally fucked you, you locked your legs around him, urging him deeper and making him groan.

“Mhmm, I love it—I love it! Fuck! I’ll let you warm me every day if you want, I-Itachi!”

Composed as he was, your words affected him deeply, making him push deeper inside you as he felt himself closer to the edge far too soon than he wanted.

You’re something else like that.

🍃 Madara

Madara would let you ride him until you physically couldn’t anymore, finding pleasure in watching you that desperate.

Fucking back onto his dick, you couldn’t fight the strangled noises that poured out from your mouth. “You’re so fucking b-big, Madara.” You gasped, barely able to hold yourself upright from the force of your tremble, sliding back and forth in a way that had both of you panting for more.

Madara was restraining himself pretty well, dragging his cigarette from his lips as he watched you use his body, smirking at your praise.

“My wife likes to use my dick that much, huh?”

Sensing your struggle, he fucked up into you, meeting your thrusts in the middle and sliding in even deeper, making you shake and moan hard as he caught you before falling, his hand wrapping around your throat to steady you.

“Scream for me, pretty woman.”

🍃 Shikamaru

Shikamaru would probably let you ride him too, enjoying the show even while his cheeks flushed from being so desired.

Still, sometimes you pushed his limits. Enough to make him snap, dragging you between his draining tasks as the Hokage’s right hand—into his office, or any room nearby, even a storage one he hoped no one used.

Your hands were on the wall, helping you keep balance while Shikamaru pounded into your pussy with deep, hard strokes. With one hand holding your chin and cheeks, not too tightly, he whispered into your ear.

“My baby’s so needy? So fucking needy she couldn’t wait until I came home?”

🍃 Obito

Obito would be completely at your mercy—even if his cock was about to break if you didn’t stop sucking him eventually.

But how could he stop such a glorious sight? You, kneeling and devouring him, sucking him off again and again like it was the only thing you needed. Still, his cock was painfully swollen, and he hadn’t even fucked you yet.

“B-baby, don’t you want me t-to fuck your sweet pussy?”

Slurping around his cock, you looked up at him under your lashes, making Obito let out a whimper and throw his head back. You stopped, playing with his cock and kissing it, licking him slowly.

“You gonna breed me, baby? Make me all swollen and dripping with you? Only you?”

Damn it, Obito fucking lost it at that. He gently took your hands off him, and the next second, you were in bed, with him already between your thighs. His gaze was so intense it made your heart tremble, afraid of how hard he’d fuck you now. But you already knew what would happen when you teased him enough—deep, slow thrusts until the bed nearly broke, and you were left with at least two loads inside.

🍃 Naruto

Naruto would be clueless like always when it came to anything about your body. But after a while, he swore on his life he’d learn everything about it just to make you happy. Even if sometimes he asked dumb questions that didn’t make any sense. “Ahm… Been thinking since morning. If you’re ovulating, you’ll stop making babies if… we fuck?”

Naruto was more than happy to eat you out as a warm-up, even begging you to ride his face until he couldn’t breathe, his head locked between your thighs.

“Not enough, not enough—!” As your moans spilled into the air, grinding on his face, Naruto looked up at you with a feral glint in his eyes. That look alone made your heart skip—your mouth falling open, your whole body blabbering for his cock.

Wanting nothing more than to be inside your soul, Naruto had you pinned completely, sometimes with your legs over his shoulders or wrapped around his waist while he fucked you deep and fast. His back was covered in scratches—ones he secretly loved admiring after, even if he blushed thinking about what he’d done.

“F-fuck, baby! You r-really are the perfect girl for me—Mhmm!” Naruto’s hoarse, slightly desperate voice made you spiral closer to the edge every time he spoke, accentuated by his hard, deep thrusts. “And the b-best pussy ever.”

🍃 Sasuke

Sasuke wouldn’t even be aware of it. Especially since he initiates almost every time. And especially since you don’t really know how to do it, so you’re scared to embarrass yourself (you wouldn’t—he’d be hard in a minute if you even tried).

Until now, you only tried to show him through more affection. Like burying yourself in his soul. And the only reaction you got (pretty cute) was a blushing Sasuke. But things didn’t stay that way for long. Annoyed he couldn’t read your intent, you started acting petty, your irritation rising drastically. At first, he only gave you a side-glance or raised eyebrow—aware of your hormonal cycles since he monitors them to understand you better. Until you became too irrational for him to decipher anymore.

After a rough day, you welcomed him with one of your passive-aggressive remarks that made him vanish, acting impulsively until he was right behind you. Your breath halted and your pulse ticked the moment you felt the warm air from his mouth against your ear.

“Why are you acting like that?” His voice was contained, restrained from snapping the way you’d spoken to him these past days. “Are you mad at me?”

You swallowed hard, a shiver running down your spine as you closed your eyes, his presence intoxicating everything around you, the heat of his body touching you so faintly it made you ache for more. Sasuke widened his eyes slightly at the realization—watching you bite your lip to avoid admitting, watching your trembling legs, the way you avoided his dark gaze. You want him, don’t you?

His voice was mocking, yet soft. His hands finally touched you more, still far too slow for what you needed right now.

“Poor little thing. All this time you’ve just wanted me to fuck you?”

You gasped at his words, redness spreading across your cheeks as he started undressing you quickly, leaving you naked.

“Sasuke…” He kissed you from top to bottom, reaching your shoulder and kissing it gently just to make you hiss, marking you. He tilted your chin, chasing your lips as you moaned, pushing your ass back against his clothed cock, making him groan. “Fuck me, Sasuke—”

You were so wet you didn’t care about anything else—only his greedy hands, touching and squeezing every inch of you as he nuzzled into your neck.

“Should I? After the attitude you gave me all week?”

Seeing you so desperate for him, Sasuke only wanted to talk more for some reason. Maybe to get back at you for not saying it sooner, because if you had, he would’ve already fucked you several times by now. Or maybe simply because he adored the way his hands felt on your tempting bod, driving him mad. Especially when you beg.

“Please, baby—Please, Sasuke!”

He hummed at your plea, undoing his belt in the process and not making you wait much longer before slipping inside—slow, but deep. Even though you were dripping, already prepared with two fingers, you still clenched impossibly tight, making it hard for him to last.

“Relax, [Name]. Fucking hell—”

You started bouncing on his cock, unable to listen—loving it too much, moaning his name. Sasuke groaned at the sight, chasing your hips and fucking you deeper, rougher, if that’s what you desperately wanted. Still, he really needed to fuck you again because you made him cum way too soon. Now you needed to cum at least twice, looking only at him.

No one else should see this side of you. Nor his.

fluff here

He was seated near the low table with one knee raised, a scroll open beside him and his cloak folded over the back of a chair. He had returned from a short journey two days ago, which meant the house still carried that strange, private relief of him being there. His sandals were by the door, his sword was propped where it always stood, within reach but not in the way, there was an extra cup beside the kettle again, and one of his shirts had been left drying near the veranda.

Small proofs, ordinary ones. The kind you had once learnt not to take for granted.

"I'm home," you called, stepping into the genkan. Your voice almost managed it, and that is what made Sasuke look at you properly.

His gaze scanned over you in a single, measured sweep, taking in the set of your shoulders, the tightness around your mouth, the way your fingers held the strap of your bag as though letting go of it would require more strength than keeping it there. You had worn that face before. Not often, but enough that he recognised it. It was the face you wore when the day had taken more from you than you wanted to admit, when you were trying to cross the threshold without dragging the ache in behind you.

"Hm," he answered.

That simple response should not have been comforting. Somehow, it was.

You slipped off your sandals, slower than usual, and bent to straighten them by the door. The motion nearly undid you. A long day could do that; hold you upright through every duty, every conversation, every expectation, then try to break you over something as small as lining up your shoes at your own door.

You took too long. Behind you, Sasuke closed the scroll, the faint clap of paper settling into itself carrying through the room.

"I'm fine," you answered before he could ask.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at you.

You winced. "That was…too fast, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

A laugh left you, thin and worn around the edges. "I'm just tired. It's nothing dramatic."

Sasuke stood. There was no alarm in it, no rush, no grand display of concern. He simply crossed the room and came to stand in front of you, close enough that the warmth of his body reached through the evening chill still clinging to your clothes. You could smell rain on the air outside, sesame from the kitchen, the faint trace of smoke and clean fabric that always seemed to linger on him after travel.

He held out his hand. "Give me your bag."

"I can carry a bag, Sasuke."

"I know."

You squinted at him then. He did not move. There was no pity in his face, no impatience either. Only the familiar, infuriating certainty that made resistance feel more exhausting than surrender.

Your fingers loosened. The strap slid from your shoulder into his hand, and the absence of its weight was immediate. The ache in your neck shifted, your skin prickled where the fabric had been digging into you. You hated that something so small helped so much.

Sasuke set the bag down near the wall, out of the walkway, then reached past you to close the door fully. The latch clicked into place, the evening air was shut outside, the smell of the house gathered around you again, warmer now, rice and tea and the faint, dry sweetness of old wood.

Home, sealed against the world.

Sasuke glanced down at your hands.

You curled them into your sleeves. "Don't."

"I didn't say anything," he replied.

"You were about to."

His mouth shifted, almost a smile. "You're guessing."

"I live with you. I have advanced warning systems now."

Sasuke only hummed in response, the almost-smile disappearing quickly, but you saw it. You always saw it.

He turned towards the kitchen. “Sit down.”

“I should wash up first.”

“You can do that after.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“You haven’t eaten.”

“That isn't what I said.”

“No, but it matters.”

You stared at his back as he moved away, one sleeve pinned empty at his side, his remaining hand already reaching for the bowls. Years ago, you might have argued more. Years ago, he might have made the whole thing sharper than it needed to be, concern hidden too well beneath irritation. Both of you had learnt different forms of gentleness since then. Not perfect ones, but real enough.

You made it as far as the low table before lowering yourself onto the cushion. The relief of sitting down hit your body all at once. Your legs ached, your shoulders throbbed from where your bag had dragged at them all day, the muscles in your jaw loosened only when you realised you had been clenching them. For a moment, all you could do was close your eyes and let the house hold the parts of you that you could no longer keep upright alone.

In the kitchen, Sasuke moved with the solemn concentration of a man performing a task that had once been unfamiliar but now mattered because it belonged to someone he loved. He had never become fussy about food. He did not decorate bowls or worry over presentation, but he had learnt what you could manage after bad days—rice soft enough to be easy, broth warmed through, greens with sesame, tea poured fresh once he realised the first pot had gone bitter.

You heard the lid lift from the pot.

Steam breathed into the room carrying ginger and spring onion with it. A spoon clinked against ceramic, water ran briefly, the kettle was moved off the heat with a dull little scrape. These were ordinary sounds but they landed in your lap with careful hands.

You rested your forehead against your folded arms on the table. 

The house settled around you.

Beyond the open inner doors, the garden shifted in the evening breeze. Maple leaves near the veranda brushed together, their shadows moving across the floor in broken pieces. Water ticked from the bamboo spout into the stone basin, patient and unhurried. The sound filled the spaces where words might have gone.

That was the part that made your throat ache—the not-asking.

Sasuke brought the food over in two trips because he refused help and had become remarkably skilled at making refusal look efficient. First, a bowl appeared in front of you, steam curling against your face. Then tea, pale and hot, set near your hand. Then came water, because he had noticed that you always forgot it when you were tired.

Finally, he sat beside you instead of across from you, close enough that his knee touched yours beneath the table. The contact was deliberate.

You lifted your head.

The broth in front of you smelt of ginger and spring onion, simple and savoury, with a warmth that touched your face before you even lifted the spoon. Sasuke took his own chopsticks and looked down at his food instead of watching you too closely.

"Eat first," he started, and your eyes burned at once, "then decide if you want to talk."

Other people would have meant well and asked too much, too soon.

What happened? Who upset you? Why didn't you tell me? Are you alright?

Sasuke did not turn your exhaustion into a report you had to deliver before anyone cared for you. He put food in front of you, he sat close enough for his knee to rest against yours under the table, he gave you the choice of words later, when they no longer sat beneath your ribs like something sharp trying to break free.

You stared down at the bowl until the steam blurred.

"Sasuke."

"Hm?"

"You don't have to do this."

For a moment, he said nothing. Then, without looking up, he replied, "You came home tired."

That was his whole explanation, as if it were obvious, as if that alone answered everything.

A shaky breath slipped out of you. You reached for the spoon, mostly to give your hands something to do. The ceramic felt warm against your fingers. The first mouthful burned a little, but not badly, then the broth settled through you with an almost embarrassing kindness. Your body, treacherous thing, remembered all at once that you had asked it to survive on stubbornness and half a mango since morning.

Sasuke noticed the moment you took a second bite and said nothing. That, too, felt like mercy.

For a while, the two of you ate in the low amber glow of the room. The windows reflected your home back at you, your table, the bowls, the kettle, Sasuke beside you in dark clothes with his hair falling loose around his face. Older now than the boy who had once treated tenderness like a trap. Reserved, still, and sharp in the bones of him, always, but here, in this house, with his knee pressed against yours and his hand near your cup, he offered something steadier than reassurance.

You ate half the bowl before your appetite faltered.

Sasuke's gaze flicked towards you.

"I'm eating," you said defensively.

"I didn't speak."

"You were thinking loudly."

"You're avoiding the vegetables."

"I'm emotionally wounded," you told him, spoon hovering over the bowl. "I shouldn't be held accountable for vegetables right now."

His mouth softened at the corner. "Eat them."

"You are so strict."

"You like them."

"I like them when I'm not being perceived by the vegetable police."

This time, the sound he made almost became a laugh. It started low in his chest, brief and rough, then vanished before it could incriminate him. It helped more than you expected.

You picked up the greens and ate them with exaggerated dignity. "There. Honour restored."

"Hm."

"Do not 'hm' me after I obeyed your vegetable command."

"You're talking more," Sasuke observed.

You looked down at the broth.

So you were. Not much, not about the day you had, not about the ache itself, but enough that the room no longer felt like it was balancing on the thin edge of pretending. Enough that your voice had begun to sound like it belonged to you again.

Sasuke reached for the teapot and refilled your cup. His hand moved with familiar precision. Lamplight caught along his knuckles, over old scars and lean tendons, over the strength you knew so well. Tea streamed into the cup, fragrant and golden, and you watched the surface tremble as he set it down near your hand.

You thought, suddenly and painfully, of how many times he had returned to empty rooms before this house became yours together. How many years he had spent moving through the world with only duty for company, believing distance could keep the people he loved safe.

Yet here he was, home before you. Warming food, refilling your cup, not leaving.

Something must have shifted in your face, because Sasuke set the teapot down and turned towards you fully.

"What is it?" he asked. Gentle, for him. Careful in the way he offered it.

You swallowed. "Nothing."

His expression flattened at once.

You tried again. "Not nothing. I just—" 

Words gathered behind your teeth, tangled, failed. Sasuke waited.

That was another thing he had learnt, or maybe it had always been in him, that patience, once he stopped using silence as a wall and learnt how to make it shelter instead. He did not rush to fill the space. He did not rescue you from needing to speak, but he also did not punish you for struggling either.

You rubbed your eyes with the heel of your hand. "I just— I tried really hard today."

His eyes remained fixed on your face.

"I know that sounds stupid," you added quickly.

"It doesn't."

"It does," you argued, your voice thinning despite your best efforts. "I didn't do anything extraordinary. I just…got through it, and by the end I felt like even that was too much."

Your voice cracked on the last word and you hated it. Hated how your body betrayed you here, in the one place safe enough for it to happen. Your throat tightened, your fingers curled around the spoon until the edge of it pressed into your palm. 

Sasuke shifted closer. He did not touch you immediately, he knew better than to assume. Instead, he let his knee press more firmly against yours against the table, a question offered in the language of old trust. You answered by leaning into him.

His arm came around you after that, careful and solid. He drew you against his side, not tightly enough to trap you, but firmly enough that you no longer had to hold yourself together by force. His shirt felt warm beneath your cheek. You could feel the slow rise of his breath, the steady line of his body beside yours, the place where his hand settled against your shoulder with deliberate care.

You turned your face into him.

"I'm sorry," you whispered.

His arm tightened around you. "For what?"

"For coming home like this…"

The air seemed to hold its breath for a moment, then Sasuke lowered his face until his cheek rested against the top of your head.

"You came home," he replied. "That's the important part."

It should have been simple, and perhaps it was simple, perhaps that was why is reached you so cleanly. You cried then, not prettily, not neatly, not in any way that made sense. Just tears that came hot and sudden, pressed into the dark fabric of his shirt. Sasuke held you through it without flinching. He did not tell you it was fine, he knew better than most that some hurts do not shrink just because someone wished they would.

His hand moved once over your back, slow from shoulder to spine, awkward only because he was being careful.

The garden clicked and rustled beyond the open doors, bamboo knocked lightly against stone. Somewhere deeper in the village, a dog barked twice, then settled. The kettle gave up its last thread of steam beside the hearth and the world went on with its ordinary little sounds, but it no longer felt as if you had to keep it turning by force.

"I don't want to talk about all of it," you murmured eventually, your voice muffled against his shirt.

"Then don't."

"I might tomorrow…"

"Okay."

"Or not."

"That's okay, too."

You let out a shaky breath. "What if it comes out badly?"

"Then it comes out badly."

A small, wet laugh escaped you. "That isn't comforting."

"It's true."

"Your bedside manner hasn't improved much."

"You're not in bed."

You lifted your head just enough to glare at him. Sasuke looked entirely unrepentant. 

The glare failed almost immediately. You were too tired, and he sat too close, his arm still solid around you, his warmth seeping through the fabric between you. Something about the dry line of his mouth loosened the pressure behind your ribs until the heaviness no longer felt impossible to carry.

"I hate when you're funny by accident," you muttered.

"I'm not."

"Yeah, that's why it's by accident."

His eyes gentled, only slightly. Enough to make you want to cry again for an entirely different reason.

Sasuke reached for your cup and placed it into your hands. His fingers brushed yours as he did, warm from the bowl, calloused from years of steel and travel. "Drink."

"You're taking care of me like this is a mission," you said, wrapping both hands around the cup.

"It is."

"What's the objective?"

Sasuke looked at you for a long moment. The years had changed the answer he might once have given. A younger Sasuke would have looked away, he might have hidden everything important inside irritation or silence and trusted you to infer what he could not say. The man before you still did not offer tenderness carelessly, but he had learnt that withholding the trust did not always protect anyone. Sometimes it only made the house colder.

"You," he replied at last.

Your heart did something foolish in your chest.

"You can't just say that," you whispered in horror.

"I did."

"Yes, and now I have to survive it!"

"Hm."

You laughed again, small but real, and drank the tea because he was watching and because the heat of it helped. It slid down your throat, sweetened faintly with honey you knew he only kept because you liked it, and settled into your chest like a warm hand pressed there.

After dinner, Sasuke cleared the table before you could stand. You made one weak attempt to protest and he ignored it with the calm authority he used when facing gods, monsters, and Naruto Uzumaki's worst ideas, and therefore had no intention of losing to your guilt over dirty bowls. He rinsed each dish with efficient care, one-handed and unbothered by it, while you retreated to the engawa with the blanket he had left folded nearby.

The night air had cooled as summer had begun to loosen its hold on the village, leaving the dark mild at the edges. Lantern-light glowed through the paper screens behind you, turning the verands honey-gold at your back. The garden lay silvered under the moon, every leaf and stone familiar because the two of you had placed them there over time.

A home did not arrive whole, it gathered itself around you.

A mug chosen from a market stall. A plant kept alive through three summers. The sword stand by the door. His cloak folded over the same chair whenever he came back from a journey. Your sandals beside his in the genkan.

You pulled the blanket around your shoulders. The fabric still held a little warmth from the house, and the hem brushed your bare ankles as you tucked your feet beneath you. Sasuke came out after a few minutes and sat down beside you.

For a while, neither of you spoke.

He looked out over the garden while you looked at him. There were still absences in him, there always would be. Long journeys, old grief, the missing arm. The things he had done, the things he had survived, the pauses he carried not because they were empty, but because some memories did not belong in the middle of an ordinary night.

There was also this.

His shoulder beside yours, his cup cooling inside, his home no longer waiting empty, his presence offered without demand.

You leaned against him. Sasuke adjusted at once, letting your head settle against his shoulder. After a moment, his hand found yours beneath the blanket and his fingers thread through yours with care, slow enough that you could refuse, certain enough that you did not need to. His thumb rested against the inside of your wrist where your pulse still beat too fast from crying.

"I'm glad you were here," you whispered after a while.

He looked down at where your hands were joined under the fabric. 

"So am I."

He said it softly enough that only you and the garden heard. You closed your eyes.

For a while, that was all the comfort you needed; the cool night air on your face, the warm blanket over your knees, the steady weight of him beside you, and the knowledge that you did not always have to be easy to love in order to be loved well.

Eventually, your body began to give in. Your head grew heavier against his shoulder, the day loosened its grip, not gone but father away now, pushed beyond the gate where it could wait until morning. 

Sasuke shifted.

You made a small, protesting sound and curled your fingers more tightly around his.

"I'm not leaving," he murmured.

Your eyes opened half-way. "Promise?"

His thumb moved once over your skin. "I'm here."

For Sasuke, that was a promise. You believed him.

When sleep started to pull at you again you felt him turn slightly towards you as he pulled his hand out of yours for a moment. Two fingers touched your forehead, light as memory, gentle as the kind of love he had once been afraid to keep.

"Rest."

You let yourself sink a little further into the warmth of him, into the house you had made together, into the safety of the village settling around you for the night.