Thin Lines and The Shinobi Who Walk Them

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I'll try to update as regular as I can. Hope you enjoy this chapter. Also I'm trying to keep the relationship between Naruto and Hinata as real as I can, or how I'd picture it to be. No worries I will not go into any actual Het smut.


Warnings for Chapter Two: Language


Chapter Two

‘Kiss him,’ the order penetrated Neji’s brain setting off an alarm. The woman couldn’t be serious! The request was sound and made perfect sense. Even after quickly realizing this, he was still stunned at her boldness. If the woman was so certain of the jinchuriki’s ability then why set him up to fail? Even if they were both willing to do so, Naruto had never kissed a male before. There was no way the guy could do it in front of an audience the first time. Neji knew he should be happy that it would disqualify the blonde but the method was a little underhanded.


‘Fine, if that’s what the old hag wants!’ Naruto was so going to rub this into his face later. It was easy to center his attention on the raven male standing stiffly next to him. He had plenty of practice blocking the one woman out. If she wanted to witness a kiss, this he could do.


Neji was waiting to hear the other male bail out. Even he felt strange about the request and wouldn’t fault him for not going through with it. Movement from his left had him turning to face the blonde. He naturally assumed that the other male was going to accept defeat.


Perfect, Naruto couldn’t have planned it better himself. As soon as he shifted to face his soon to be partner and fake boyfriend, Neji turned his head to the side to look at him. Without waiting for an invitation he leaned forward and noticed the silver eyes go wide as his fingers caught the defiant chin. Having hit a growth spurt in the last year he passed the other male by two inches. There was nothing Neji could do as he captured the closed mouth in a soft kiss.


His first reaction was to grab the arm keeping his face immobile. As his fingers wrapped around Naruto’s elbow those firm lips came crashing forward. From the loud gasps in the room, he wasn’t the only one shocked by the bold move. Neji closed his eyes as the pressure brushed across his mouth for the second time.


Naruto couldn’t believe how soft and warm his lips were. Still unresponsive but being as he was Naruto Uzumaki, he didn’t give up. He brushed over the stiff mouth one last time to find it softening. The tension in Neji’s jaw finally relaxed and the fingers loosened on his elbow. Sensing an opportunity, he decided to get a taste of the Hyuga genius.


The quick sensation of moist heat had Neji parting his mouth in awe. Instinct had him tilting his head slightly to allow better access in the hopes that the touch hadn’t been a fluke. Another quick lash of the heated muscle had him opening eagerly. He wasn’t disappointed as the blonde took the cue instantly. His mind didn’t stop to think about who he was allowing to kiss him or that they were both being disloyal to Hinata.


Naruto heard the moan erupt from his own throat and knew he couldn’t blame it on someone else. The texture of Neji’s tongue clashed with his, willing him to play. Heat flooded his veins, he was lost. There was no pause as the kiss deepened or any objection when his hand found its way into the thick strands at his teammate’s neck. It urged them both to close the distance between their bodies.


Hot! That was the only thought to enter his mind as the jinchuriki took control over the kiss. The body pressed against his was radiating intense heat and it was affecting him. Not to mention the way the skilled tongue was dominating his own, forcing him to submit. A shiver bordering between fear and excitement ran along his spine. By the Gods, he was feeling it down to his toes. A whimper of arousal escaped his parted lips when Naruto’s free hand grabbed him around the waist and stopped him from thinking about escape.


Delicious, that was how the Hyuga tasted. Naruto could hear their Hokage clearing her throat but the woman was ignored. As soon as the sound registered it was dismissed as an unwanted intrusion. A second later his focus was back on the man in his embrace. Persuasive fingers were running up his spine, burning a path through the thin material. If the kiss didn’t already have him aroused, that would have done it. The caress sent tremors through his stomach, ebbing to center in his groin. There was no way his precious team leader could have doubt about his boasts of not being homophobic now.


This was true; Neji felt the proof as he moved his hips, grinding along the other male. It was there in the very noticeable hardness pressing into his stomach. Lust so painful it had him clenching his fingers into the corded muscles just below Naruto’s shoulder blade. The grip in his hair tightened and he was sure the blonde was trying to devour him.


“ENOUGH!!” Tsunade slammed a hand down on the desk, causing the wood to split and crack. It had the needed effect; both males instantly parted and put several feet between them. Clearing her throat she leaned back into her seat. “Thank you. Now that we have cleared up that issue, let’s go over a few last minute details. Shizune will bring you your traveling funds before this evening and she’ll bring it to Neji-kun. Pack only what you absolutely need and remember no weapons. Our report stated that there are guards posted at the docks and we don’t need you kicked out before you can even enter. Other than that, you are to leave at dawn. You are dismissed.”


“Hai, Hokage-sama,” Neji bowed slightly keeping his eyes on the floor. To say he was distraught was an understatement. His body was still flaring with desire and his lips were tingling from the kiss. With a straight face even Gaara would have been proud of he turned and made his way to the door.


Tsunade wasn’t shocked when Naruto didn’t even speak but quickly exited after his teammate. That had gone a lot different than she’d planned. At most she’d suspected Uzumaki to plant a quick chaste kiss on the other male. That boy was definitely the top ninja for surprising people.


“Wow,” Shizune stared at the closed door before speaking again. “That was rather strange. I think we should have been charged admission.”


Tsunade had to agree on that. The two had definitely been getting into it. It was easy to fake some emotions but desire wasn’t one of them. “I think I need a drink.”


“Wait Neji-kun,” Naruto kept in step with the fleeing male. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to say but he felt the need to talk. The air between them was already growing awkward.


He couldn’t think! Neji hated it. His mind was still practically mush from a single kiss. He didn’t know what to say as the blonde kept in step with him all the way outside. Even the cool breeze didn’t help his flushed skin. Why had the jinchuriki affected him so strongly?


“Stop dammit!” Naruto didn’t care that his sudden outburst might draw unwanted attention. It must have worked because Neji stopped in his tracks and turned to glare at him. It wasn’t the look he was hoping for but it was enough. “Why are you so pissed? We wouldn’t have had to do that if you would have just taken my word in the first place. I told you I was going on this mission, so that was partly your fault.”


“Don’t you dare blame that on me,” Neji clenched his fists seeing that they were drawing a crowd. Lowering his voice he narrowed his eyes at his new teammate. “She said a kiss, not for you to try and drown me. Next time don’t go so overboard, do you always have to overdo things?”


“Sorry,” that had stung. He hadn’t thought he was overdoing it. Okay, so maybe he had a tad but at the time Neji hadn’t exactly resisted. “Look I’m sorry, I might have went too far. I don’t want you angry at me. It won’t be good for us to start the mission out on bad terms, we need to get along.”


“Fine, not like it’s that big of a deal.” If he wanted to discuss big deals he’d bring up the arousal the blonde had been sporting. The hairs on his neck stood on end as heat rushed to his face. This wasn’t good; he had to get a hold on himself.


“Good, I’m going to go home and get ready. I’ll see you in the morning.” Naruto was happy that they appeared to be on friendly terms again. The last thing he wanted was Neji disliking him.


“We’ll meet at the front gate and don’t oversleep.” Neji hoped he hadn’t adapted Hatake’s love of tardiness. Somehow he knew that sleep would be hard to find tonight. How the hell was he going to handle this assignment? He’d been a fool to accuse Naruto of not being able to but in the end he was now certain he was the one that should stay behind. Weeks of pretending the blonde shinobi was his lover, how was he going to manage?


Three changes of clothes, a brush, personal items, clean underwear and a light blanket. What else was he missing? Naruto rummaged through his pack for the second time for the night. Excitement had him too wound up to sleep and he still needed to inform Hinata that he was leaving in the morning. She should be here any minute now and he wanted to be done before she arrived. It was a good thing this mission was top secret or she’d insist on asking about it.


His stomach pitched thinking of what he’d say to her. How he’d been accepted for the mission by kissing her cousin. He had kissed her cousin and had enjoyed it and it made the sentiment with her pale in comparison. Whenever he kissed her it was pleasant and soft but that’s where it ended. It took actual foreplay with stimulating touching to get him aroused. Never before had a kiss left him shaking or throbbing with need.


“Naruto-kun,” the timid knocking was accompanied by her low voice.


“Come in Hinata-chan,” he zipped the pack shut and told himself he’d go through it again in the morning. His girlfriend entered and immediately walked over to him. Guilt flushed his neck as she leaned forward, waiting for their usual kiss.


Hinata smiled as he placed the chaste kiss on the corner of her mouth. As soon as he moved away she noticed the pack. “When are you leaving?”


“At dawn, I had the final meeting with Hokage-sama this evening.” The headband was already sitting on his dresser; it would have to remain behind. His outward appearance had to change some or the plan wouldn’t work. “I’m not sure when I’ll be back, could be weeks or even months.”


“I see,” she sat on the edge of the bed as he started looking through his belongings. Naruto-kun looked excited this evening, different from the way he’d been yesterday. She assumed that her cousin would also be going since she’d heard him announce to her father that he’d be gone for some time. If the two were together then she wouldn’t have to worry about his safety.


“Are you staying tonight or heading home?” he knew she usually stayed the night if the opportunity allowed it. He couldn’t stay up too late or he’d be dead tired tomorrow.


“I’d like to stay,” she wanted to spend some time with him before he left. It was already dark and she knew he’d need to get some sleep. “Do you think we could, um since you’ll be gone for a while?”


“Huh?” The shirt fell from his hand seeing how she had gone to fidgeting with her fingers. Months of paying attention, he knew what she was asking for. If they started now he’d still be able to get some sleep. “Sure, if you want to.”



Neji rolled over for the tenth time in under five minutes. Dawn was only a few hours away and he still couldn’t fall asleep. He blamed it on that stupid jinchuriki. And his damn cousin! They both resided in the main household now and her room was two down from his. It meant he could hear when she left and returned. His mind didn’t fail to notice that she’d left some hours ago and had yet to return.


It meant she was spending the night with HIM! Not that he could blame the girl, it was her boyfriend and they would be gone for an uncertain amount of time. Understanding didn’t mean he had to like it. What the hell did Naruto see in the girl?


In his opinion she was probably just as boring as Tenten and couldn’t possibly know how to please a man. He wouldn’t be shocked if she was too scared to touch a cock. How could Naruto say that he would okay with the mission? Did the man even understand what displaying affection meant? Every time the couple came around they were the only couple that kept their hands to themselves. Lee and Sakura were always kissing, Shikamaru had eight hands when that sand nin came around and the most he’d seen Naruto do was hold hands. Choji showed more passion towards his chips than the two showed each other.


No matter how desperate he got he wouldn’t put himself in a relationship he didn’t want. Neji knew what he wanted but finding it was harder than most would believe. He’d known for years he didn’t want someone weaker than himself. At the time he’d found the particular desire odd but it had made perfect sense the night he’d been with Lee. His old teammate had still been weaker than him at the time and that was probably why something had been missing. At most he felt a close affection for the clueless fool.


There were only a few males that resembled what he desired and he was about to enter a mission with one. The others were straight from what he could tell. Kiba was close to his strength and was indeed swinging the fence but hadn’t shown him any kind of sign of being interested. If he wanted a relationship he’d probably have to look elsewhere for it. That idea was probably best, he had a feeling that his dear uncle wouldn’t approve of his choices. Not that he gave a damn anymore.


All the thoughts of a relationship made his bed feel empty and weren’t going to help lull him to sleep. At this rate dawn will have come and gone before he dozed. Today was going to be hell and he’d make sure to take it out on the root of his problem. There was no way he was going to manage a travelling mood now. With a kick of impatience the cover was shoved towards the edge of the mattress. “Dammit.”




Next chapter: Two teams depart and Gaara's outlook on the situation.