Bestial

AN: Show me some love, for I bring you a long chapter! Yay. And action. Everyone likes a little bit of action, right? REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!

::blablabla:: Inner Sakura

mmmmm scene break

Chapter Three


I glanced quickly around the street from the alley I was hiding in, then made a beeline for the flower shop. I slammed the door shut, put three different locking jutsus on it, and took a deep breath.

“INO, TELL ME YOU’RE HERE!” I hope that she hadn't left for her mission yet.

“DO YOU THINK YOU COULD NOT YELL IN MY EAR FOREHEAD GIRL?!” That came directly in my face. Ouch.

“Oh, hey Ino, I didn’t see you there.” Heh heh. But I can’t say that she didn’t deserve it. I had to take all the back ways here from our apartment, using scent-covering jutsus the whole way. I was tired and panicked and cranky. Hiding from Kiba and Naruto will do that to you.

She rolled her eyes at me. “Clearly. Where’s the fire?”

Hm…how to ask about this. “Have you matured yet?”

“WHAT?! Oh! Yeah, I did. But I’m still unclaimed…sort of…”

“And you didn’t tell me?! Ino-pig!”

“We thought Kakashi would tell you, since he can sense it!”

“Well he did, but not until Kiba and Naruto started beating each other up! We? Who’s we?!”

“Oh…we…it’s just me, Hinata, Tenten, and Kurenai. Kurenai told us.”

“I was the last one?!” I really, really hated being last.

“No! No, Tenten and Hinata haven’t matured yet. At least, I don’t think they have. It’s hard to tell with Hinata, she hides in the hospital and she’s so elusive, you know?”

“How can you sort of be unclaimed?”

“Well…um…I’m unmarked. Yeah…he’s waiting for something, I don’t know what, oh would you look at the time, gotta run--mission you know! Bye Sakura!” In a breathless rush of words, Ino, that dumb blonde, did three unlocking jutsus as she spoke and ran out the door, successfully avoiding me.

“Wait dammit! Who is it?!” Sigh. I didn’t learn a damn thing. Oh, she is going to be in so much trouble when she gets back. I’m dying her hair blue in her sleep! I guess I’ll go talk to Tenten or Hinata. Today was going to be a very long day. I poked my head out of the doorway and glanced around, then sped off to the training grounds that Tenten favors.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Hm…no sign of Tenten here. I closed my eyes and tried to sense any chakra. I didn’t really pick up anything that felt recent. Her favored grounds were peaceful and quiet except for the burbling brook that was off to my left. I lay back on the grass in a spot of sun and relaxed. This situation was just so tense. I was afraid they’d pounce on me. Well, I was more afraid of Kiba and Naruto. I really couldn’t see Kakashi entering in the game. He probably thought I was too young. Thirty-four really does scream confirmed bachelor.

Honestly, though, I really wasn’t interested in being with any of the four guys, attractive as they may be. It took me years to recover from Sasuke’s cruel trampling of my love and his neglect. I’d just as soon not repeat the experience. I was glad that I never saw him, that they kept him away on missions—that he wanted to be away on missions. He was colder and more emotionless than ever. I wondered what he was going to do about rebuilding his clan, but then pushed it out of my mind. It wasn’t my concern, and I certainly didn’t want the job. I wasn’t broken and scarred, not really anymore. But now I was more cautious of who I chose to become entangled with.

I heard a footstep near my head, felt cooler, and opened my eyes. Shino looked down at me from behind dark glasses, blocking the sun. His jacket collar covered his mouth, and his hood covered his hair and forehead. I sighed.

“Why do you cover everything up?”

“Why do you wear short skirts? Every time I see you your uniform gets more revealing.” Oh now that was a bit much!

“I don’t reveal as much as Ino!”

“True, but you’re not totally modest either.”

I harrumphed and crossed my arms over my chest.

“Stop towering over me and sit down.” At least he complied with that. I’ll be grateful for small favors. We sat in silence. My eyes slid close again.

“I cover up because it make undercover missions easier. Nobody really knows what I look like except that I have dark hair. My…talents…make me best suited for reconnaissance missions. Thus I have adapted my uniform to those ends.”

“Assassination as well,” I murmured. He had good offensive skills, that was certain, but it was obvious that the Aburame clan preferred to keep their abilities as secret as possible.

He paused. “Yes, I make a good assassin as well.”

The warmth of the sun made me lethargic. So did the sound of the stream and the birds around us. Oh yeah, this was primo naptime. I flipped over onto my stomach and pillowed my head on my crossed arms. My long pink hair was on my back, soaking up the warmth of the sun. I was ready to purr in contentment. No wonder reptiles like to sun themselves. Then I felt fingers gently stroking through my hair. Perfect. I hummed in appreciation, unwilling to face the reality of what was actually happening. As far as I was concerned, the sunlight had developed a physical body. It was really relaxing. I remembered seeing Shino’s hands on other occasions—his hands were slim, but not feminine, with long fingers. His hands were good for delicate work—wiring bugs and other microscopic spy goodies. I slowly sank into the cool darkness of sleep with the sun as my blanket and Shino’s fingers in my hair.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

I slowly surfaced from the murky depths of sleep, feeling warm and limpid. I opened my eyes and saw that the sun was setting. The afternoon had frittered away while I slept, and I was curled on my side against a gently moving rock, using it as a pillow. No, not a rock—the thought drifted through my groggy mind—Shino. I tensed and tried to sit up, but his arm around my waist held me down. I craned my neck up to look at his face. He had loosened his hood so that it was acting as a cushion between his head and the ground, and it didn’t cover his head any longer. He had cut his hair—it was no longer long, thick and spiky. It was shorter, but still spiked out from his head in all directions. I think I liked it shorter. I wanted to touch it, to see if it was as stiff as it looked, to see if he put anything in it. I raised my hand to touch it, but he took hold of my wrist and brought my hand to his cheek. It was smooth, and pale from lack of exposure to the sun. Or maybe the Aburames were pale anyway, like the Hyuuga clan. I stroked his cheek with the back of my fingers, unwilling to break the silence or the delicate atmosphere around us. Maybe, with time, if I got to know him…I always did have a thing for tall, silent, and brooding. I pulled my hand away, but he caught it again, and gave my wrist a kiss, right on the thin and sensitive skin, and flicked it with his tongue. My breath caught—I hadn’t realized exactly how sensitive it was there. Smoothly, quickly he rolled onto his side and turned me onto my back, then leaned down and kissed me. His jacket was unzipped enough so that I saw his entire face—except for the ever-present sunglasses, of course.

He had marvelously sculpted lips, not too full, but not too thin. They were…perfect. He did have a pointed rather than a rounded or squared chin, but it worked with his defined cheekbones. He had the face of a model for one of those expensive designers that Ino and I drool over in our spare time.

His kiss was soft, gentle—completely unlike the ones I had received from Naruto and Kiba earlier today. Was it only today? It felt like it had been weeks—at least a month. It was like rich, dark, melted chocolate—unbelievably decadent and irresistible. I parted my mouth for him, wanting more, and his tongue slowly came into play with mine. It was slow, and unrushed. We had all the time in the world to just enjoy each other’s mouth. It was hot, and I felt a wave of desire run up through my veins from my pelvis to my brain, focusing on my mouth. He nibbled on my lower lip and sucked it into his mouth. His free hand—the arm he wasn’t leaning on—stroked hair back from my face and went down my neck, leaving goosebumps in its wake. But I knew we had to stop, and as I pulled back, so did he.

“I have to go home.” He was silent, then he nodded and smoothly rose to his feet, then gave me a hand to pull me up.

“I’ll walk you home,” his baritone voice said. I had never noticed how deep it was before. It reminded me of his kiss, of the bittersweet chocolate I was now hungry for. Thank god for our chocolate stash in our apartment.

“That’s not necessary, I can take care of myself.” I don’t mind some courtesies—men opening the door for me, letting me enter a room in front of them—but I am a kunoichi, I am more than capable of protecting myself on the walk home.

He inclined his head in acknowledgement. “Until tomorrow, then.” He faded into the shadows and I stood staring at the stars for a bit, wishing for yesterday. Then I shook myself out of my funk and went home, feeling his chakra at my back the whole way, knowing he was following me. At least he was subtle about it—no matter how much I doubled back and turned around and hid, I was not able to find him.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Will Sakura’s resolve weaken? Will she decide to get involved with one of the guys after all? Where is Tenten? Will Sakura find out more about maturity the next chapter? Stay tuned for next week’s chapter!

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