They Are Just the Cleaners

Chapter 4: Assignments
-------------------------


They sat there for a few moments in silence, just staring at the blank white of the projector screen. This was something neither of them expected, but it wasn't an unwelcome opportunity. They all knew that to be called on for this type of an assignment was a once in a life time chance and all of their hard work through the academy had finally paid off. Finally, with a low creaking, the "villain" arm chair turned to face the anxious table of rookies; slowly revealing the mysterious male, whose voice with which they have become familiar. Unfortunately for them, the man in the chair remained anonymous. He was shrouded in the shadows as the light from the projector only managed to illuminate the tips of his wild grey hair. Even with the adjustment of their night vision they could only make out a small part of his face. His left eye scanned the table of eager faces while his right was well hidden by a sizeable chunk of hair that flopped past his forehead. His nose and mouth were even more difficult to see as not only was it dark in the room but the way the light hit the top corner of his chair, an extra shadow was cast across the bottom of his face.


"Well" he drawled, "It's time to get to the specifics. You will all split into several pairs with the task of infiltration and the collection of information. Some of you will be put out into the field while others will remain hidden working from an undisclosed location that will be known as ‘headquarters’. Though those in the field will know of headquarters, they will not know of the location. As FBI agents I expect you to understand the extreme need for secrecy involved in this case. Actually you will all be privy to only the smallest amount of information that I feel is necessary, but understand that you nine, myself, and my three assistants will have the only information that pertains to your particular assignment. Do not discuss this will anyone else, including fellow agents who are not present in this room. In fact, try not to discuss this case with anyone in this room aside from your partner and the team stationed at headquarters. You will all need to be proficient in maintaining several covers and identities as well as have the ability to keep secrets. As I have stated before, there is believed to be a leak in the FBI. Outside this room you trust no one else." He paused for a moment to let the seriousness of his words sink in. He did not want to lose anymore agents and he did not want to lose the chance to finally bring down Otogakure. The organization could not stand to get more powerful and it was only a matter of time before they developed into a truly unstoppable force. He knew that he had to end the progression now.


"First I will tell you the things that you all need to know and then we will break of into our specific teams. Be forewarned that you all will most likely cross each other's paths later on and it is expected that you treat each other as strangers. I know this is implied, but it needs to be emphasized. These people are extremely diligent and hyper aware. If they notice one spark of recognition, this entire operation could be compromised. I hope you all were able to remember you and your fellow teammates' code names. If or when you all communicate with one another, I need you to use those names. They protect your true identity as well as your cover identity. Everyone will also know who is on what team. When you encounter one another later on, make sure that the other's partner is not far behind. If one is without their teammate and it is not known where the other is in any way, immediately inform us at headquarters and we will take care of the rest. Once you are in pairs you will come with either me or those three to receive your specific duties," he said gesturing to the three men who stood stiffly along the wall.


Naruto and Kiba both tried their best to suppress the surprise at not noticing the other men before. Both only slightly succeeded, with rapid blinking and a slight jolt of the head. Neji resisted the urge to shake his head at the two young agents' lack of awareness. If they were the best of the best, then they were in some serious trouble. Of course he himself was included in this group so what did that say about him? He decided not to dwell on the conundrum, figuring it would either confuse him or infuriate him.


"The first pair will be The Chef and Doc." The blonde woman looked over to the large man, whose hands were currently under the table trying to discreetly pry open another bag of chips, and nodded. He gave her a small grin in return. "The next pair will be The Fang and The Fox." Both young men turned to face each other with equally feral and excited grins; this was going to be awesome! "Next will be Lady Mace and The Beast." Tenten smiled demurely as Lee turned to give her a thumbs up and a broad sparkling grin. "And lastly the headquarters team: The Brain, Mind's Eye, and Midnight Assassin—"


"I work alone." Gaara stated in a glacial tone.

"Be that as it may…" Kakashi gestured with his hand as he trailed off, conveying the sentiment: ‘Suck it up, big boy’

The red head looked irritated while Neji managed to keep on an impassive mask. Shikamaru shifted his head slightly, turning to rest on his other cheek allowing the drool to escape the corner of his open mouth as he expelled a soft snore. He let out a snort, waking himself up and dragged his face up from its comfortable perch on the table. He raised an eyebrow at the shocked and confused faces pointed in his direction.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


The two men sat in the idle limousine and stared at each other in comfortable silence waiting for the last arrival. Suddenly the door wrenched open violently, rocking the limo slightly from side to side. The dark haired young man poked in his head, soon followed by his body, as he slid in to the cabin and sat on the empty leather seat running along the right side of the interior. He turned to his left and nodded at his long haired father-in-law. He then turned a disgusted scowl, which was easily returned, to the man in the seat directly across from him.


"What is it now?" he questioned. The iciness of his tone dropped the temperature a few degrees in the confined space while the tension rose to near insufferable.


There was a slight jostling of the vehicle when the driver popped open the trunk and tossed the raven's luggage in with his companions'. With one last bounce the trunk was closed and the driver returned to his seat. As the engine started and the car began to move from the large property, the men continued their conversation.


"We have another job." Kabuto answer succinctly. If there was one thing he hated most in the world, it would be the impassive asshole that sat directly across from him. Unfortunately for him, their boss felt differently. Sasuke was quickly becoming the favorite, Kabuto wasn't jealous or anything; he just couldn't understand what was so great about the man. Begrudgingly, he had to admit that Sasuke was very good at what he did. But his efficient skill ensured that the two had to meet quite frequently.


"Who is it?"


Kabuto picked up the two large envelopes sitting next to him on the seat. One was manila while the other was red. Orochimaru's eyes widened when he noticed the red envelope but he fought to keep his nerves in check.


An outstretched pale hand grasped for the envelopes and placed the red one on to his lap while he focused his attention on tearing open the manila one.


"Takahara, Yoshio." Kabuto began while Sasuke pulled the papers out and studied them.


"Isn't he the one that owns all those docks in Hawaii and Japan?" Orochimaru interjected, turning a worried gaze from the red envelope to pin the pony-tailed man with a confused one. "I thought we already dealt with him?"


"Yeah, he owns the important ones." He began offhandedly, "And he proved to be a little more… difficult." He looked up at the spiky haired youth as he stuffed the papers back in to the envelope after he finished reading over the information. "He just needs a little more convincing…"


"So this isn't a full assassination. This is to be a 'conversation'." Sasuke clarified as he looked into the reflective surface of the spherical frames.


"Until we can find another solution; yes. We need him alive, but he doesn't need to be fully functional to be considered living." He concluded with a smirk, the fringe from his white bangs, poking into his eye.


"Hn. If that's the case, I want to take a more traditional approach."


"So you want to go to Piranha's?"


"He has the stuff that is the most effective when the situation calls for persuasion."
"You're a sadistic asshole, you know that?"


Sasuke shrugged and turned to look out the window. After a few moments of silence he spoke up once again. "Are all three of us truly necessary for this trip?"


At that question the long haired raven's eyes shot to the red envelope and his heart jumped into his throat.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


"Another thing I wanted to point out, if you had not noticed by name alone, you all have something in common: a Japanese heritage. As you have probably figured out, this is not a fluke, everyone in Otogakure is either from Japan or has Japanese lineage. We noticed that they prefer to keep it that way and we had hoped your background would give you an advantage. And lastly, all of your information…"(1)


-Click-


Naruto and the rest of the rookies watched in wonder as the screen rapidly flashed through several screens containing information on each member in the room. Naruto even recognized his school yearbook pictures. All of them. All of his pictures, ranging from kindergarten to senior year, flashed by rapidly. He also saw flashes of his parents and aunt. When the loud quick whirring of the projector stopped, the screen went blank.


Kakashi bent over the laptop and pressed a button. There was a tiny snapping noise and a small memory stick was ejected. He held the hard plastic in between his index finger and thumb vertically. It was very thin and a little over an inch long.


"All of your information is now stored on this. It can be found no where else. Not the DMV, not at the hall of records, not at your schools, not with the police, and not even in the FBI database. Everything about you is in here. Nara…"


He glanced at the boy who was currently leaning on his right elbow which was propped up casually on the table. His head was securely cradled in his right hand. His lazy dark eyes focused on the speaker at the mention of his name.


"You will now be the keeper of this stick" he stated casually as he slid the stick across the table to the left hand that lay flat on the table top. With a slight lift of his fingers, Shikamaru caught the small valuable piece of technology and curled it into his palm.


"You now hold everyone's life in your hands", the silver haired man quipped with amusement.


After he let out a long exacerbated sigh and breathed a small "Troublesome", the young genius brought his closed hand under the table and proceeded to return his head to its new favorite spot: the table's surface.


Kakashi raised an eyebrow at the young man's lack of enthusiasm but made no comment as he turned his attention back to the rest of the table. "Now it's time to separate and get your specific assignments. Agent Shiranui"


A man with chin length auburn hair, though the front was slightly longer than the back, as it was almost brushing his shoulders, and deep brown eyes stepped forward. He spat the toothpick he was chewing out of his mouth and motioned for Ino and Chouji to follow him out of the dark room.


"Agent Namiashi"


Next was a man with spiky light chestnut locks and brown eyes. His honeyed skin was marred by a large scar that ran across the left side of his otherwise handsome face. He walked up to Lee and Tenten and whispered for them to follow him and they too left through the door.


"Agent Gekkou"


The final man was slightly paler than the other two. He had bags and dark rings under his dark eyes and his dark brown hair fell in ragged chucks around his chin while a small patch fell limply in between his eyes. He stepped forward and coughed lightly into his hand. After popping a Halls ™ he tapped the dozing Shikamaru on the shoulder. The rest in his team needed no prompting and followed him out the door.


"And now for you two", Kakashi said turning to the two remaining people in the room, "come with me."


Glittering blue eyes met twinkling brown in sheer and utter excitement.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


"Are all three of us truly necessary for this trip?"


He looked back and forth between Sasuke and Kabuto as the question hung in the air. His heart rate sped up and his breath came out in short pants. The near golden eyes darted back in forth in the vehicle and he began planning escape routes, that is, until he realized that he actually did have a reason for going on this trip as well.


"I have some cargo to pick up." He stated in a cool voice, totally betraying his inner turmoil.


Both men grunted in understanding and the limo was quiet again. A sigh interrupted the once settled silence. "I hope this trip doesn't take as long as the last one, I have a lot of work to take care of. I barely had time to test any of my new experiments and I wanted to see if we were truly able make that anthrax hybrid undetectable."


"And you call me a sadistic asshole…" Sasuke mumbled under his breath.


"Speaking of 'barely had time', why does my daughter think we returned last night when we arrived two nights ago?” Orochimaru started, pinning his son in law with a suspicious glare, “Where were you Sasuke?"


Kabuto, who had also turned to stare out the window, whipped his head around to the young man who didn't flinch at the question of his whereabouts.


"What I do in my own free time is none of your business. Don't even begin to lie to me by feigning concern for your daughter because we both know the truth concerning that. But for all you know I could have been planning something just for her that needs to be kept secret." He turned and stared straight into the hazel eyes. The golden flecks that once danced in amusement now jumped with anxiousness. "But all us of in here know how to keep secrets, don't we, Dad?"


Unfortunately for Orochimaru, that wasn't a question. That was a threat. It was a threat that was recognized and understood. It was a threat to reveal something that he did not want out in the open, though the rational part of his brain was not foolish enough to believe that no one knew of his secret in the first place.


"Well I hope you get her something nice, she's been feeling rather down lately." He excused lamely as he looked straight ahead, through the glass partition, and settled on the back of driver's head.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


"Considering both your expertise, we felt that you two would be the best paring for dealing with your particular target", the brunet explained, handing two large white envelopes to both Ino and Chouji. They looked at each other and proceeded to open their envelopes as they twisted around another corner. Agent Shiranui, Genma, took them a little further until he stopped in front of a grey door. He turned to the two young scientists as they studied their papers intently, "You will need to have that memorized and destroyed by tonight; tomorrow starts your part of the mission." The fledgling agents nodded curtly as they kept their eyes trained on the information before them.


He turned away as he focused his attention on patting down his pockets. With a muttered "Eureka!" he pulled out a key ring with several keys dangling on it. He sifted through the keys until he found the small golden one he was looking for. He shoved the key into the small round metal knob, pushed forward, and walked in. His hands felt around on the wall near the door until he found the light switches.


The lights flickered on and the two rookies' pair of eyes focused on the revealed room before them. They stepped inside and appreciatively eyed the fully functional laboratory. It contained any and every piece of equipment that either of them would ever need. It had everything from tubes and beakers to microscopes to a centrifuge to a thermal conductivity apparatus.


"This will be your lab which you will definitely need while on this mission. It has everything we think is necessary for you to be able to work properly and effectively. If there is anything else you need, let me know and you will have it immediately.


"Wow" Ino mouthed as she lightly ran her fingers along the cool metal desktop.


"I am here not only to act as your liaison, but I am also here to assist you in any way. I do know my way around a lab." Agent Shiranui leaned back into the doorframe when he realized that his words were beginning to fall on deaf ears. He watched as the two traversed the lab taking in the equipment admiringly. Deciding to draw their attention, he smirked and cleared his throat, effectively breaking each from their dreamlike state.


"We can come back here a little later; we have one more place to go."


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


They went down what felt like their millionth flight of stairs. Both clutching the open large white envelopes in their hands they were ready to start their assignments. They finally stopped their journey once they landed on the last stair of a particularly dusty, creaking wooden flight of stairs.


Ok… They did not expect this. Not fully able to come up with what would be expected in the dark dank basement like surroundings outside of a horror movie, they should have seen anything but this. What kind of staircase led to a brick wall?


Agent Namiashi, Raidou, headed over to the far right corner and waved his hand, beckoning the younger agents closer. As they neared he took a step forward and disappeared. The two brunettes looked at each other and quickly advanced to the dark corner. When they reached the spot the auburn haired male disappeared into, they realized that there was a small opening where the walls should have met. Quickly glancing at each other one more time, they stepped forward into the small niche. A few feet in they found Raidou leaning against the wall, left foot propped up against the brick and arms crossed. He was leaning next to a wooden door, eyeing them expectantly. Once the two stepped close enough he pushed himself forward and turned toward door. After he fished a metal key connected to a small link chain out of his pocket on shoved it into the brass keyhole of the door, he turned to the two confused brown eyed youths.


"Welcome to the Dungeon" he greeted, smirking as he pulled the door open. The squeaking and groaning from the rusty hinges echoed in the small space of the hidden hallway.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


After a tense silent ride which felt like an eternity, they finally reached their destination. They drove up the smooth pavement of the driveway to the large home made of brick and light grey stained wood. They pulled to a stop in front of the columned entrance and Kabuto broke the silence, though he never moved his gaze from the window.


"Don't take a long time, get in there and get what you need. I don't want to stay in this fucking car forever. The quicker we get to the airport the quicker we can deal with Takahara and the quicker I can come back here and finish my research."


Sasuke refused to even dignify the white haired man with a response as his pale hand reached for the handle and pushed open the door.


"I'm serious Sasuke" the spectacled man called out, turning to lean toward the open door to make sure the dark eyed man heard him. He received a slam of the car door in his face as a response. "Bitch" he murmured, leaning back huffily in his seat crossing his arms.


A small amused smile formed on the older man's face as he watched the scene before him. His eyes shot to the red envelope and he gulped. Out of his peripheral vision he noticed the younger man return his attention the world outside the tinted window. Slowly he edged himself over, sliding a slightly trembling hand forward. He had to see the contents of the envelope, he just had to know if they knew, and he had to know if he was in trouble.


"Don't even think about it." Kabuto chided, never moving from his spot, "You know the only one who sees that is him and Sasuke; even I don't know who the target is. Besides you know he will not open it until we have completed this mission, so if that does concern you, you don't have to worry about it until this is over."


Though his remarks were meant to be comforting, he couldn't quell the unsettled feeling in his gut.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


They all stepped into the dank darkness of the room, though the younger two did so rather tentatively. There was the sound of hands clapping twice and light soon flooded the room. At the sight of the revealed impressively large room, both rookies' mouths fell open as they took in the expansive space before them. After a few moments of stunned awe, the female was able to gather some of her wits and spoke first.


"This room has a clapper?" she questioned while greedily taking in the sight. Ok, so it wasn't the most relevant question she could come up with but that was the only thought her mouth was willing to voice on it’s own as her brain persistently suggested she shout "Holy fricken jebus!" instead.


"No" the spiky haired man smirked as he stepped away from the light switch on the wall, "I just thought it would be a funny thing to do." He walked past the two still forms that remained firmly planted in the doorway. "You know, feel free to come inside," he stated calmly, his smirk widening.


"O-oh, right" the young woman stuttered. She took a few steps forward, leaving behind her companion; who was still standing in an awed stupor in the doorway.


What was so engaging about the room beyond it's massive size, was what it contained. The room itself was probably the size of an airplane hanger, in fact Tenten was sure she would be able to find a small helicopter if she ventured back far enough. What impressed both the young brunettes wasn't the size as much as it was the contents of the room. In front of them stood rows upon rows of racks containing of various types of weapons. All types of guns, oozies, bazookas, and hand held missile launchers. Mounted on the walls and various display tables were various swords, knives, throwing stars, nunchucka, staffs and other weapons used for close hand to hand combat.


She walked up to table containing juttes and rungus and ran light touches over the inviting wood and steel.


"YOSH!" came the excited exclamation from behind her, effectively startling her causing her to jerk forward. Her hand roughly knocked several items to the floor.
The young male failed to notice as he bounced past her, eyes gleaming in unadulterated delight. "Oh, Lady Mace, we should be honored to have privileged access to such an expansive selection of weaponry!” he stated cheerfully, bounding over to a table full of nunchucks.


As she finished picking up and rearranging the dropped weapons she shot a light scowl to the young man but couldn't manage to keep the mild irritation on her face. She too was just as excited so she couldn't blame him.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


After knocking on the door for the fourth time, resorting to that action after repeatedly ringing the ineffective doorbell, Sasuke was ready to burn the damn thing down. Before he could reach in to his pocket for his trusty lighter the door swung open revealing amused lavender eyes.


"What? No honey I'm home?" said the man, about the same height as Sasuke, clad in a white fluffy towel while drying his light silver blue tinted hair.


The brunet rolled his eyes; he said that every time he came over. "I thought you were going to get that blue shit out of your hair." He said eyeing the pale blue color of the former naturally platinum blond locks.


The man in question just shrugged as he ran his fingers through his shoulder length mane. "I got most of it out. I actually think it looks kind of cool this way. A little unusual… like your wife's." The smirk that was forming on his pale face immediately disappeared once he noticed the intense glare directed his way.


"I don't have time for your bull shit Suigetsu." he huffed.


Pushing past the slightly older male, Sasuke made his way deeper into the home. They passed through the impressive home that had an unusual amount of aquariums all around the house. They reached a hallway where the wall was not made of dry wall, insulation, and wood framing, but glass and water. As he made his way to the room at the far end of the hall, the lilac eyed male was right on his heels. A lone Bronze Whaler shark swam back and forth along the glass predatorily.


"Aw baby, don't be like that," came the mocking yet apologetic reply as Suigetsu wiggled his way in front of Sasuke and leaned on the closed door. He followed up with a sharp toothy grin. His were slightly pointed due to a teeth grinding issue during his sleep, a problem he had since he was young.


The brunet relaxed only slightly and rolled his eyes, earning him a smirk in return. "I need something from you." he growled as he pushed past the smirking fair haired male reaching for the doorknob.


"Anything" he purred, dropping his voice to a husky timbre, as he rolled his hand along Sasuke's chest up to his strong shoulders and then down his sides.


Sasuke grabbed his arm, whipped him around, and slammed him into the glass wall of the dim hallway. A small gasp escaped his throat as his back hit the hard surface. The warm blue glow from the tank made the hall smolder with the sensuous light. The looming shadow of the circling shark added to the heighten sense of anticipation.


"God…" he exhaled "You know I like it when you play rough." He brought up his unconfined arm and ran his hand down Sasuke's chest to the hard abs covered in black silk, down to the black wool pants to his palm his slowly growing erection. "Mmm, didn't get enough the other night?"


Sasuke snatched the wandering hand away from his body and pinned that arm to the wall as well. He leaned in impossibly close to the slightly shorter male, covering him with his warm body. "Suigetsu, not now." He breathed in a low husky tone into the frisky blond's ear. His warm breath caressed the outer shell making the trapped man shudder in anticipation. "The assholes are waiting for me in the car."


"So?" Suigetsu retorted, managing not to whine like he wanted to. With his arms still pinned against the wall by his biceps, he bent his elbow, snuck his right hand out and ran it down the front of the raven's pants to cup his now half hard erection. "Let me taste you…" he murmured as he craned his head forward to lick and nip at the long smooth milky column exposed to him. "I'll make it quick," he whispered seductively while he applied pressure with his hand rubbing slowly against the black slacks that covered the one body part he currently desired, "and you know I'll make it good for you…" he finished by blowing his warm breath over the cooling wet trail along the paler man's neck. His tongue ran along the jaw line until he brought stopped at a pale ear, his breath ghosting over the shell. His pink tongue darted out from between plump pale lips to trace the outer rim all the way down to soft lobe. His tongue played gently with the tender flesh for a moment until he pulled the soft flesh in between his teeth and bit delicately. He let go with one last lick and moved closer. His warm breath tickled the pale skin, causing a ripple of involuntary goose bumps. "Will you let me?" He whispered into the raven's ear before tasting the lobe one last time and returning his attention back to the ivory column of flesh below his jaw line.


"Fuck…" Sasuke ground out as the hand on his cock increased its pressure and speed, sending jolts of pleasure through his aroused system. His grip tightened temporarily on the toned arms before he let go completely, his hands now finding hasty purchase in the soft icy blue hair. He pulled on the locks roughly until their faces were a mere millimeter apart. "Hurry up" he breathed into the flush face, washing it with warm breath. He took a step back as he pushed Suigetsu's head down, forcing him to kneel.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


They walked through several underground tunnels, taking constant twists and turns and doubling back on various occasions but there was no doubt in his mind that his three companions could easily find their way out if asked.


They finally reached the end of one of the tunnels which stopped at a white handle-less door. Each male stared impassively at the entryway.


"Unlock for entry" the oldest agent called out in a calm voice. Suddenly a panel on the wall at the side of the door slid up to reveal a small screen and keypad.
"Identification please" came the automated request.


The older raven crouched slightly so that his face was level with the screen. There was a series of beeping noises before a thin red horizontal line ran up and down his face three times, scanning his features.


"Gekkou, Hayate" he spoke coolly as he brought nimble fingers up to punch in a code on the keypad.


The panel door shut once again, blending into the blank surrounding wall. After about five seconds a series of locks unlatching sounded and echoed in the narrow hallway. Soon the handle-less door rumbled and shook slightly as it retreated in to the ceiling.


"We should go inside, it will only remain open for fifteen seconds; otherwise we will have to wait forty five minutes to be able to open it again" Hayate stated while motioning for the young men to follow him inside.


Once inside they were immediately bombarded with white. The furniture, the paint, the carpet, the ceiling, the walls, the equipment, everything, every inch was white. In the corner were two twin beds pushed along the side wall. There were two large screen televisions on the far wall side by side with a white sofa in front. Behind the couch yet in front of the door was a small area that had a table with two chairs and two white laptops attached to various pieces of equipment strewn about and around the round table. On the wall opposite was a small kitchenette and next to it was a full bathroom. Deep in the back of the room on the far left corner stood a red metal door that looked oddly out of place.


“Welcome to the control room also know as ‘headquarters’,” he turned and face to two pony tailed agents, “As for you two, also known as ‘home sweet home’.” He then turned to the impassive red head who stood with his arms crossed, leaning casually against the wall near the doorframe. “You will remain in constant contact for necessary assignments”, turning only slightly so he could point to the only spot of color in the room, “That is specifically for you. Otherwise, you don’t exist. Understood?”


The teal eyes stayed unchanging in response as he listened to the brunet. He could have breathed out a relieved “Finally” but for the fact that he was… well, he was Gaara. He pushed himself off the wall and grunted in response as he turned toward the door and stood in silent expectancy.


Hayate sighed and rolled his eyes, he always got the fun ones. After a few shallow coughs he popped another Halls ™ in his mouth and cleared his throat. Pushing the lozenge into his inner cheek for a moment he spoke, “Disengage: Midnight Assassin.”
A panel on the inside lifted up revealing a small screen and following the earlier example, Gaara leaned his face forward. Once again a horizontal red line scanned his face three times. Afterward his picture popped up on the small screen. “Disengaging Midnight Assassin: phase two.” The automated voice stated and then the screen went blank.


“Finger prints.” Hayate supplied helpfully.


Getting the hint, Gaara placed his left hand on the screen and soon the door was rumbling and going back into the ceiling.


Before Hayate could utter the words “Good luck” the red head was gone. He shrugged and turned back the other two, the guy didn’t really need the polite formality anyway.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Fuck yes…" he breathed, eyes still closed as he emptied himself into the eager mouth below swallowing every bit of seed he had to offer. One hand unwound from silky strands as a strong porcelain arm shot out against the glass, squeaking as it slid slightly, and steadied his wobbling body that was buzzing with pleasure.

The lavender eyed male’s tender licks cleaned off every inch of his softening penis as he let it fall from his mouth with a nearly inaudible pop. His brought his fingers to his mouth to wipe up the cum and saliva mix that spilled from the corners and licked his fingers clean. He looked up through icy bangs and stared into the murky obsidian that looked back at him.

"Gods, you taste so good," he murmured as he was pulled up roughly by his hair to meet the intense endless black eyes.

"Shut up." Sasuke whispered out harshly, though with less venom than he intended. Their mouths were so close that their lips brushed with every word.

"Kiss me", Suigetsu pleaded, closing his eyes involuntarily. Just as the words escaped his lips he knew the result of daring to break his lust filled haze. Just as he predicted, the coldness crept back into the beautiful eyes in front of him as he was roughly pushed back into the smooth glass of the giant tank, losing the warmth of the other body. He blinked open his eyes and stared at the ceiling in mild frustration as he heard shuffling from the other man. He should have known better… he just… He sighed at the retreating back as he followed Sasuke, who was buckling his belt, into the room. "Well, take what you want", he stated bitterly as they walked into the bright room.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


The car door was yanked open and a hard object was tossed in, hitting Kabuto in the face, knocking his glasses askew. Snatching the object off his lap while pushing his frames up the bridge of he nose he scowled at Sasuke as he settled himself back into his seat. He thrust the item into the raven’s chest, harder than necessary.


“Did you get everything you needed?” he inquired, his agitation dripping in his tone.


“Hn.”


4 hours later:


They finally arrived at the private air strip out side of Honolulu International Airport. Once the small aircraft finished taxing on the runway, the door opened and the three men tiredly descended the stairs. Once they reached the ground Kabuto turned to Orochimaru.


“We’ll see you back on the mainland. I’ve radioed for your plane to come at eight am tomorrow morning.”


Orochimaru was tempted to protest the early departure time but wisely held his tongue. The arrangement would leave him no time for his extra curricular activities, though he suspected that was what Kabuto intended. If that were the case, the raven decided he needed to be more careful. He thinned his lips and nodded to both the younger men. He turned around and headed toward the small airport terminal without any parting words. As he walked he pulled out his sleek black phone and swiftly dialed a number.


“Zaku”


“Yeah?”


“Are you here?”


There was an annoyed sigh, “Tch, yes…sir” the voice added the last word reluctantly… painfully.


“With the van?”


Sigh. “Yes…”


“Good, we have to pick up some merchandise.”


The two men watched as the Orochimaru spoke in his phone and disappeared inside the small building.


Kabuto sighed as he slung his small duffle bag over his shoulder and turned toward the idle black Lexus waiting on the runway. Their journey was not quite over yet. They had to head to the small helipad on the other side of the island and take a small island hopper helicopter from Oahu to their private complex in Niihau. He smirked as he remembered helping with the acquisition of half the land on the ‘Forbidden Island’. He was still new to the organization at the time and that particular operation had been extremely exciting. The information they gathered on the family that owned the island was just so juicy. The way they begged for silence, bargained anything and everything, caused excited tremors to run through his body. He knew right then and there that he would love his new job. And he did. He loved everything about what he did, everything but…He was brought out of his wistful thoughts by the scraping of Sasuke’s bag as he brought it from the ground and shouldered the luggage. He frowned as he thought about spending the next few hours alone with the stoic raven. He had to get this done as soon as possible.


Sasuke sighed as he pulled the strap of the long thin cylindrical case across his chest and pushed his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose. He followed Kabuto, who quickened his pace, to the nondescript vehicle. It was time he got this over with.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Yoshio Takahara was one of the wealthiest men in all Japan, hell one of the wealthiest men in the world. He had acquired throughout his life time, through merging or buying a company out, all control of the privately owned docks and ports through out Japan. Of course considering that Japan is an island, it was needless to say that he held a lot of power. Recently he expanded his business into the United States, specifically Hawaii. To say that his position was becoming increasingly enviable and sought after would be an understatement. Usually finding himself at the top of the world he was far from comfortable being tied up to a cold metal chair in an empty damp room with nothing but a heavy steel door in front of him and a swinging, hot light bulb above his exposed balding head.


The heavy door groaned morosely as it opened slowly. A young man with a bushy white hair tied back into pony tail and large framed glasses slipped in. He stepped into the corner near the door and dragged a metal folding chair out. The screeching of the metal on the concrete floor caused the plump man to wince at the grating high pitched screech of the produced sound. The noise finally ceased when the chair was placed in front of him and the younger male plopped down. The new arrival crossed his legs; right foot propped up on left knee, and leaned back, crossing his arms. They sat in silence as they regarded each other, sizing each other up.


"Ah, Takahara-san, so lovely to see you again" Kabuto began as he smirked down at the balding sweating middle aged man, bound and gagged in a steel chair. The bald spot was bright red as it sat directly under the long hanging bright bulb. His smooth voice bounced off the walls as the bright flash of light from the reflection of his glasses made the slightly rotund male squint as he tried to take in the vision of the only other occupant in the room.


Sweat dripped down from his forehead, stinging his eyes, blurring his vision. All he could make out was a fuzzy outline, unable to make out any of the man’s features. If only his hands were free… Blinking rapidly, desperately, to clear his vision, the features of the male before him slowly came into focus. When he was able to see the other plainly, Yoshio narrowed his eyes in recognition. He should have guessed this man would be involved.


"I don't know if you recall our last conversation, but it involved our acquisition of your company. I remember you saying something along the lines of 'prying it from my cold dead hands…'? Well, we're here to take you up on that offer."


The chubby man's eyes widened at the statement. The sweat from his brow poured in steady rivulets down from his forehead to his temples and absorbed into the stiff white fabric of the gag placed firmly in between his teeth. The fabric became increasingly damp as it took in the sweat from his head and the saliva from his mouth. His mouth was so dry. He idly wondered what type of fabric they used. He narrowed his dark beady eyes at the circular rims before him. The smug expression the fair haired younger man had panted firmly on his face infuriated him. They really think they got me huh?

They may have been able to kidnap him, beat him, and threaten him, but that was all they could do. He was not dumb, they needed him alive to get what they wanted, whether they wanted to admit it or not. He was much smarter than what they gave him credit for and they were not getting his company. Long ago when he was first approached in Japan about relinquishing his dock control to the yakuza, he worked out a secret pact with his lawyer. It was a hidden clause in the mountainous pile he called a will. It was called the "One and Only Clause". It dictated what was to be done exactly to his company once he passed, naturally or otherwise. It worked out so that the only person able to inherit his company would be his son upon his twenty third birthday, a birthday that would be eighteen years away. Until then he had specific instructions, painstakingly planned out, for every year as to what was to be done with his company, regardless of the change in the current trend of the ensuing modern day, until the exact date of his son's birthday. No one would be able to dispute it, thankfully, a tribute to his lawyer's excellent wording. It would be as if he continued to control the company beyond the grave.

The only way some would be able to take control would be to buy him out or his son, once he took control. He did this as his only means to fight the powerful organization. He saw what happened to those who got involved with the yakuza and he would not allow himself to be one of the many unfortunate victims. The sweat that beaded rapidly in his bald spot caused the drops to plaster his salt and pepper hair to the back of his head and the nape of his neck. Despite his disadvantaged position he turned a defiant glare toward the young man that leaned casually in his chair. Instead of the irritated scowl he expected in return, he got a delighted smile.


"Still playing hard to get I see." Kabuto began placing his right foot on the floor and scooting forward in his seat. "Well I guess you're not as easy to get to as we think you are. It is almost as if you feel as if you were protected from our advances…" he trailed off and eyed the older man with calculating blood shot eyes. The whites of his eyes always were tinted red because of his lack of sleep. He was constantly working and making sure everything involving Otogakure ran smoothly.


The older man's eyebrows scrunched up in response. He was trying to keep the dawning realization off his face. No… they couldn't know…It's impossible… He received his answer when the look of concentration on the young man's face turned into a look of triumph.


Kabuto smirked as he caught the fleeting panic that flit across the portly man's face. That was what he was looking for. "Yes, we know about the 'One and Only Clause'." His smirk grew as he pushed himself up from his chair and made his way over to the startled plump trembling form secured tightly in the chair before him. He placed a firm grip on the slippery sweat slicked chin and tilted the rounded visage upward.


"We are going to get you to cooperate with us. We just have to do a little… convincing…" he trailed off as, if on cue, a dark figure stepped up from the shadows, though was still not visible. His body immediately stiffened at the sing of metal being released from a sheath. He eyed the now steady glint of metal that flickered in the shadows. Soon the metal moved forward into the light. A sword, was the first thought that registered in Takahara's mind. Attached to the hilt of the long cold steel was a large pale hand belonging to a tall well toned male dress from head to toe in all black. His midnight locks and eyes contrasted greatly to his moonlit skin, making him look surreal, in a way, enchanting. Is this the face of death? He thought eyeing the silent beauty.


"This is Sasuke," Kabuto began, never turning his attention from the man in the chair,

"He's really good at convincing."


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


1. I don’t know if I want to keep this paragraph or not. I mean, it’s there just in case I use Japanese and have to cover the plot hole in the future. It’s like a safety net.


edit: Alas, in my zeal to edit this chapter I accidentally got rid of my review replies. It would seem too cheap to redo them and besides all the people I replied to read this chapter already. But would it help if I said I love you all with the fiery passion of a thousand red hot suns? Too much?