Before

In the smoke from her pipe she saw him. As he was, before everything went so horribly wrong. Before his best friend abandoned his humanity in the pursuit of power. When he was strong, rash, irresistible. Then she blinked the water from her eyes and it was gone. Another swig of sake, another pull on the pipe, before she handed it back to him. The room spun, memories encroached. He was turned to the side, laughing in his boisterous way to the other woman in the room, her best friend and sometimes lover. As he was. As he had been.

She would never forget the first time she saw him. That wild hair, those wild eyes. Fierce determination that it took years before she would truly see. At first she was too infatuated with the other of their team, so cold, so aloof and entirely too pretty. The betrayal had been terrible. And he had helped her with it. He had given so much to her, cared for her in the place of himself.... And she had not even noticed.

Not until later... Waking up in the dark of the room, watching the streetlight play over a finely tuned body, wild hair sleepsex tousled. That loud mouth still, silent but for the deep breathing. It was probably the first time she had ever really seen him. It was then that she decided to stop overlooking him. And the rewards had been rich.

Ah yes. The rewards had been so rich. The nights of groaning, panting, taking. The aftermath of possesive arms and steady heartbeats. For all his brash demeanor he was so gentle with her. Unless she didn't want gentle. Those were the nights, and sometimes days, that he took her breath away. The sight of him, all control thrown to the wind, could sill make her breath catch in her throat, make her go liquid at the core.

His face was red, she noted, flushed with sake and life. Despite the trials of his life, he was a vigorous man, drinking the world to the dregs. There were times that she believed he would never die. She scoffed at herself and had some more wine.

She shook her head sharply, dispelling the idle memories. Time was short, really. Memories could not keep a woman warm at night. One graceful hand reached out, touched a muscular arm.

"Care to walk me home?" His mouth made the shape of a grin and in it she could see all the promises made and the fulfillment yet to come. Her mouth answered.

~*~

She was drunk and she knew it. As soon as she stumbled, coming out of the bar, she knew she was drunk. Stong hands supported her, and for a heart stopping moment, his breath tickled against her ear, warm and sake smelling.

"Oh... Thanks." Her voice was husky, and she pretended it was from the pipe.

"Its ok." His was deep and he pretended it was the wine.

The village was dark at this hour, most having gone to bed. There were a few burning lights, but in the cool of the summer night, they were distant, sparks of lives lived away from the moments the teammates shared. Shuffling feet led them to her apartment, and she wavered in the doorway, old anxieties asserting themselves before she stepped aside.

"Come on in...." Without looking to see if he would follow, she walked down the hall, sensitive fingertips trailing along the walls. A heavy step followed and the door thumped shut. She smiled in the dark.

Warm hands on her shoulders, that deep breath in her ear. Strong white teeth at her neck, and her shirt lay on the floor. He was talented. She tilted her head back, breathed his scent in, her breath exiting as a sigh, content and needy all in the same moment. Calloused fingers slid over her ribs, down her flat stomach, slid into her pants and she could feel her knees go liquid. His breath rasped.

"Mmmm.... Bedrooms the next door down." Breathless and helpful. His hands tightened for just a moment, crushing her to him before he let her lead him there. Her bed sat on the floor, blankets tousled. She sat heavily, facing him. Greedy eyes watched him pull his shirt up, watched scarred skin stretch over tight muscles. Then he was on her, bearing her back against the bed. His kisses threated to stop her breath.

Clothes impeded and were gone, leaving skin to slide, nerves to sizzle. His teeth against her neck never felt so good.

"Oooh. God. Right there." She did not recognize her voice. His was a rumble on her skin. Strong hands, thick fingers, and then they were wandering into dangerous territory. She couldn't stop the instinctive press of her hips to his hand, and he chuckled at her impatience. Just a crook of the index finger, and she could not stop the noise that came out of her. Then he was moving and something much bigger was poised before her. She held her breath. There was a moment of pain as he pushed into her, then it was over and her breath couldn't keep up. Frission built, her heart thundered in time to her moans.

"Oh. Oh. Please..." He was oddly silent, his face intent as he studied her. She writhed, the feel of him pounding into her so good after so long and she couldn't focus. She could not stop touching him, running her fingers over scars, clutching when the heat at her core became too hot, too tantalizing to concentrate. Her eyes clenched, muscles jerked and she could hear him gasping as he followed her. The jerk of him as he finished was enough to elicit gasps, and then he was gone and she was empty again.

She closed her eyes. The room was spinning, and her body was sated. She never wanted to move again. There was a soft, heavy weight over her stomach and after a moment she looked. His arm was wrapped around her, protective, possessive. Tsunade smiled. White hair was tangled around his face, and the cares were for once not present there. He smiled back at her, his eyes crinkling. Then he was kissing her again, this time slow and languid. His taste never changed, spicy and mellow all at once. She snuggled into his chest, let herself drift off. She knew he would always be there for her. That was just the way Jiriaya was.


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Authors Note~ I don't know where that came from. Admittedly, there isn't nearly enough TsuJiri out there, but yeah. So. This is probably one of the first times I've written in the last 2 years, the only other one being World So Cold. So, please be nice to me? I give kittens for reviews....