Peace for Traitors

Peace between mankind and demons is a hope more fragile than a dream. So long as neither man nor beast is willing to be a traitor to his own pride, such an eventuality is unlikely. Prejudice reigns in the place of reason on both sides of the conflict, as the ninja struggle to maintain their borders and traditions without regard for the creatures who sustain the world around them and the demons resist as they must. Perhaps such blindness is only human, but the great clans neglect to notice their folly, blind to the fact that they ensure their own destruction, that they continue to actively make war upon the very things which they must have to survive. The greatness of men is humbled without the power of wood or air, made meaner than beasts in the chilly night without fire, elements whose eradication is tied intimately to that of their demon familiars. Even the jinchuuriki, beings made by men for their own purposes, are often the victims of such vapid hatred. They are killed, the subtlety of their nature twisted and turned against them by the clever designs of those they might otherwise consider kin, often for no other reason than hatred alone.
-Koumyuo Sanzo, Lives and Habits of Far Eastern Demons
Hiashi was annoyed, perhaps even more than annoyed, but he was too proud to allow the emotion more than a tenuous foothold at best. Clan Uzumaki had apparently ignored his demands to meet with Neji or, more accurately, Sakura Haruno had managed to thwart him with ambiguity in regards to the situation. The Oni matriarch sent the courier back with her most sincere assurances that his nephew was quite happy and healthy as well as an invitation to visit at his convenience. The sneaky little bitch had managed, without breaking or even straining any clan law, to maneuver that situation firmly into her own control. Hiashi could not replace Neji with a clone if he was forced to talk to his nephew within the Uzumaki compound and he could not very well separate him from Sasuke there either. Hiashi had assumed that the Oni and his mate would have been too ignorant of clan law to refuse his request and Sasuke too concerned about insult to try, but Sakura had neither implied offense to the Hyuuga clan nor acquiesced to his request. She further explained that Neji was currently very busy acclimating to life as an Uzumaki and preparing himself for the claiming, a process, she cautioned, that should not be interrupted lightly.
The ugly little bitch was smarter than people gave her credit for, damn her, and there was not much he could do except wait for Neji to be claimed or send more letters. If he pushed the issue, Sakura would not doubt use her considerable medical expertise to concoct some perfectly acceptable reason why Neji was restricted to the compound and she could easily get the Hokage's support of the ploy too. If he chose to let the matter drop, his coup could fail. The pink-haired whore had managed to make any further demands to meet with Neji seem almost as though Hiashi was recklessly endangering his nephew's health. He had hoped to attack before Neji was claimed and avoid being forced to fight yet another subordinate, but time was short.
"We have no time, Suki. We need him. Now." Hiashi hissed at the crouched kunoichi where she knelt on the floor.
"He is being allowed out of the house, perhaps I can speak with him briefly…" She offered.
"Perhaps, but only if he is alone and you have sufficient privacy," Hiashi sighed, "And that is unlikely."
"Is there a signal, a gesture, something he might recognize so that he could sneak away to meet with me?" Suki asked. Hiashi shook his head.
"As of yet, Neji is unaware of our plans and I would have him remain so. He cannot reveal what he doesn't know, even if Naruto does choose to compel him."
"You believe he is under the creature's thrall?"
"In my experience, Naruto does not rush to take lovers and I doubt he has been claimed so soon, but there is no way to know for certain. Regardless, if that Haruno slut has her way he will be under Naruto's thrall before we will be able to attack!" Hiashi snarled.
"If he is under the thrall, the Oni is aware of his physical being, correct?" Suki asked, expression pensive.
"I'm not certain. In what way do you mean?"
"I believe the creature may sense its subordinates emotions, at the very least, and may also feel their wounds…"
"Your observations had yielded this?" Hiashi asked, curious.
"Hai."
"An interesting possibility, but it is worthless without confirmation, like everything else." Hiashi growled.
"That is something we must know. If Naruto is hurt when Neji feels pain, our task may become much easier than originally foreseen." Suki whispered.
"How so?" Hiashi asked, scowling.
"We know little about jinchuuriki, but if the beast were able to feel the pain of its subordinates, the cursed seal could be employed against him." She explained.
"It is a possibility, but I would prefer not to subject my nephew to the seal unless necessary. We will attempt an assault first, deal with the creature in a moment of weakness, all we need is a way to watch for such an opportunity." Hiashi puzzled.
"There is a chance that the Oni's wards are not designed to reject tags placed on individuals already recognized by the jutsu. If Neji leaves the compound again, I may be able to place such at tag and allow us a way to infiltrate the fortress. He may notice the jutsu, but will not mention it." Suki suggested.
"I find that unlikely, especially considering the structure of the wards, but every option must be explored. Attempt the tag and also continue to observe the energy of the creature with it's whores. If it is as you suspect, then Naruto is already dead and Madara Uchiha wasn't as stupid as I thought." Hiashi laughed nastily.
"My Lord?"
"Madara Uchiha thought he would use Sasuke against Naruto, the fool, and he practically threw the little devil into Uzumaki's lair. An arrogant trap, though it nearly worked. Sasuke was too loyal to the Oni in the end, but Madara may have been partially correct in his approach. If they share energy, more than just a compulsion, perhaps influences travel both ways…" Hiashi mused.
"I have reason to believe it is so." Suki agreed.
"Regardless, we must kill the female. Our campaign is worthless if she survives to give birth. We will attack, in force, as soon as you bring me the intelligence I need." Hiashi ordered.
Suki bowed and retreated behind the sliding doors, her retreat just as soundless as her entrance had been and the Hyuuga clan head was left to his own thoughts. Care was needed in this, nothing left to chance or supposition. The Haruno bitch had thwarted him for now, but Neji belonged to him and soon his nephew would return to his rightful family with the information needed to be rid the creature once and for all. Patience and force, that was what Madara had lacked. Naruto was an army unto himself and so Hiashi would bring an army to his door to defeat him and if that failed, well, Neji had suffered before.
OoOoOoO
Neji's previous experience with sex had always been heavily competitive, a kind of animalistic game played by calculating opponents, a contest to see who would give in first. Anko had made sex like everything else, a match of wills culminating in something close to violence, passion and anger in equal measure. Loving Naruto was nothing like that. There was no calculation, no competition and surrender was a certainty. Naruto touched him and Neji tried to match the jinchuuriki's love-play with his own only to be utterly overwhelmed, consumed, driven beyond petty human constructs like thought or will. With Naruto there was no winner, only push and pull, only lover and beloved, action and reaction, as ceaseless and omnipotent as the waves of the ocean. The blond made him feel fragile, vulnerable, with such natural ease that the older ninja was left utterly off-balance trying to decide if he was terrified or aroused. The Hyuuga had challenged him, made the decision to turn stolen touches into something more, and Naruto had held nothing back. The way the blond held him, cornered him, commanded submission without words or anything as trite as strength drove the very thoughts from the brunette's mind. As a child, Naruto had been magnetic, but as a man the jinchuuriki was no less than an elemental force and a sexual one at that.
The blond was jogging, loping like a wolf with his prey, carrying two full grown men as if they weighed next to nothing. The snowy night swirling around him and Sasuke's cursing was spinning and fragmented like a kaleidoscope with the golden lights of Konoha as Naruto carried them home with the same single mindedness that the blond did anything. Sasuke was snarling something about dignity and perverts and Master Jiraiya that neither he nor Naruto were really listening to. They had argued most of the way home, or rather Sasuke argued and Naruto ignored him. They were funny, the golden demon and his black haired murderer, and Neji could not help laughing even as he searched every alley they passed for anyone who might possibly see such a spectacle. The streets were blissfully empty, thank Kami. Only the steady thumping of the jinchuuriki's stride dominated his awareness, as incessant and unstoppable as the movement of continents, each step bringing them closer, closer to the total submission Sasuke had warned him about all those weeks ago. Though it was hard to think about with Naruto's warm shoulder in his belly and Sasuke's pretty, snarling face bare inches from his own, Neji knew he might die tonight. He might die when Naruto entered his body, when he tried to synchronize his chakra with Neji's own, when they made love. People died doing this, Sasuke had almost died, Sasuke...
Konoha's best ninja and several of the other most powerful jinchuuriki in the world had tried to kill Sasuke, all the kings horses and all the kings men had tried to bring him down, but the holy terror had repelled them all. Sasuke Uchiha had only ever come close losing his life in Naruto's bed. Neji giggled a bit madly, watching his breath move like smoke in the freezing air and thinking about death. He wondered about death, death in Naruto's arms, which was surely one of the better ways on the planet to go. Regardless, he had never been afraid of death before. Dying in battle was an easy concept, one he had always been comfortable with, but now…now when he imagined the way that Naruto would look at his lifeless body… He shuddered. Neji did not want to die, not when he could wake up to the glorious blue of Naruto's eyes and the porcelain perfection of Sasuke's body, not when he could see Sakura again. He had no idea when they had come to mean so much, but Neji did not want to leave them. Death was easy, maybe even attractive, when life held only duty and obligation. Now there was so much more, there was touch and feeling and love, real love, the kind that Anko had told him about and asserted that they never shared. Neji believed her now.
Naruto walked through the main gate of the Uchiha compound, the entryway lit with glittering lanterns like a beacon in the darkness, and on through the winter garden covered with frost. Sasuke was bitching tartly about leaving the gate open, but Naruto smacked him soundly on the ass and the argument ended with something almost like a squeal. It was so funny that soon Neji was laughing again, laughing as Naruto threw open the door and toed off his shoes, laughing as he stomped down the hall loud enough to wake the dead, ninja stealth be damned. He could not stop laughing, though whether it was from mirth, or nervousness or sheer terror, Neji could not say. He giggled like a crazy person as they stormed into the house in a fury of blushing, drunken, male madness; nearly running over one of Sasuke's maids as they marched towards an unoccupied bedroom. Naruto shouted for a bed to be prepared and the servants scurried to comply, running ahead of them towards one of the empty rooms, doors banging as they tried to make the bed up before the blond made it down the hallway.
Servants ran everywhere, lighting lamps and carrying bundles, shouting to one another in total confusion. Sasuke rolled his eyes, though the expression was surprisingly lacking in force when performed upside down and snapped his fingers, pointing to the room at the farthest end of the hall. Naruto was humming, something dirty he had probably picked up in a tavern while journeying with his master, walking down the hall as people tripped over one another in a worthless effort to both do their job and get out of the way. Sasuke growled something about stupid music and worthless wandering perverts, clearly criticism of Master Jiraiya, and then began giving directions to the servants. He even managed to sound vaguely menacing hanging upside down over Naruto's shoulder like a drunken damsel and few men could have managed that.
If this had been happening in the Hyuuga compound the staff would have had a fit and someone certainly would have been flogged, but here it was almost…normal. Clan Uzumaki was boisterous, sensual, in a way his own people could never be. Naruto's pack loved eating and drinking and sex and felt no shame in showing it. Life existed as an expression of measured chaos, so much so that even the staff was relatively unperturbed when their master came thundering home with two dangerous men in tow and every intention of fucking them senseless. Either he was far more inebriated than he thought or Neji had somehow fallen into a culture diametrically opposed to his own. Or perhaps not, since they were his culture now, since they were his people…
"Dobe! Put me down, you fucking moron! I have my own legs! Asshole!" Sasuke snarled from Naruto's other shoulder, still blushing brightly with the shame of being carried through Konoha like a sack of rice.
"Hmm…soon…" Naruto purred, voice heavy with promise.
Despite the chaos, Neji was powerfully relieved that Naruto did not choose to carry him into the main bedroom he usually shared with Sasuke and Sakura, though it was certainly the blond's right. Sai was still in there trying to figure out what an erection was and while Neji had finally managed to openly admit his desire for Naruto, Sai was still a perturbing unknown and not one that he had any interest being sexual with. Like a flash flood, the roaring commotion was over as soon as it had started and the house was almost silent again. Neji felt a deep surge of heat as Naruto kicked open the door, maneuvering them all into the un-used guest bedroom with something that sounded almost like a growl. No one ever held him, carried him, this way and it was both titillating and bizarre. The last time anyone picked him up was during the last war and only then to save Neji's life for Hiashi to use later. Being dragged across a battlefield by an irate medic was not the same as being swept up by a feverish jinchuuriki who held him like Neji weighed nothing and made him feel both fragile and wild at once.
The room was quiet and warm after the chilly air outside, but Neji noticed Naruto turn up the thermostat even more. The servants had laid out a very large futon made up with an attractive ochre bedspread and dark orange pillows of heavy silk, obviously chosen for winter. More pillows had been piled up in a comfortable heap a short distance away. The staff had even managed to light several small candles in their wall fixtures and set out a selection of oils and lotions with a small stack of towels, which was…very weird. Naruto rumbled happily and slid the door behind them closed with his toe.
"Put me down NOW dammit!" Sasuke hissed.
"So impatient…" Naruto chuckled as he dropped Sasuke onto the bed.
The dark haired ninja, even drunk and disoriented, landed as gracefully as a cat on the ochre bedding and immediately moved to take off his shoes, lobbing one at Naruto's head. The blond kitsune neatly dodged the shoe and began to undress Sasuke, pressing the struggling raven into the thick mattress as he knelt. Too smoothly to be anything but planned, Naruto let Neji's body slide off his shoulder and into his arms beside Sasuke on the bed. He and Sasuke struggled for a moment, mashed together by the steel strength of Naruto's arms, and then the vessel's mouth was against his own, searching, moving; commanding a response. Neji moaned into the kiss, lacing his arms around the blond's neck as Sasuke nipped him sharply on the throat, hissing irately when Naruto continued pulling his clothing away. The room was warm now, almost too warm, echoing the inferno rolling in succulent waves off of Naruto's fevered skin. Sasuke spat something nasty and barely distinguishable into Neji's left ear as Naruto toyed with the laces on his arm covers, but showed shockingly little resistance when his alpha pulled the long tunic away from his body.
The angle was awkward and Neji's legs were tangled up with Sasuke's, but somehow the clothing kept slipping away until his naked skin was pressed against the alabaster hardness of the raven's chest and the heat of Naruto's arms. The vessel moved to kiss Sasuke, rumbling affectionately as he took his subordinate's mouth. The raven moaned, the sound needy and a little helpless, pale limbs graceful against the tawny gold of Naruto's skin. Neji felt too flushed to speak, his belly tight, breath coming fast. Sasuke turned to him, midnight eyes large and open in the low light, gazing at him as the jinchuuriki moved lower to ravish his nipples. Neji gasped. The blond sucked the tender peaks, flicking his tongue wantonly against the blushing flesh, making Sasuke writhe and arch his body into the touch with a low groan. Just watching Naruto's powerful lips working against Sasuke's tender, pink nipples was so arousing that the Hyuuga moaned, his body reacting to the display alone. They were a spectacle, like lightning in a snow storm, two colliding powers both vast and terribly beautiful.
"Dobe…wait…Ahhh!" Sasuke keened as Naruto bit the muscular rise of his left pectoral, tugging the captured flesh roughly.
"N…Naruto…" Neji managed, running shaking fingers down Sasuke's body.
The blond smiled at him like the demon some people thought he was, sharp teeth grown long and deadly with arousal as Kyuubi's chakra surged in him again. He was flushed, warm with the heat, desire turning Naruto's normally blue eyes dusky purple. Neji knew that Naruto wanted him, that he wanted to be inside him, and after meeting the blond vessel's indigo gaze the Hyuuga felt his stomach turn to water and he could not seem to look away. There was fire in the depths of that look, but discipline as well. Unlike before, when Neji had been treading on the very edge of the blond's concentration, Naruto was still completely in control. Everything he did was deliberate, maddeningly careful, intended to entice; Neji knew this, knew he was being seduced and was helpless against it anyway.
Sasuke moaned, tugging hard on Naruto's hair. He was gorgeous, smooth and pale against the dark gold of Naruto's body, dark hair a wild mess against the ochre bedding. The jinchuuriki teased the raven's nipples until the flesh was ruddy and firm before turning to Neji, kissing him softly on the mouth like he was something special, something precious. Naruto's tongue was soft against his own, a sensual counterpoint to the jinchuuriki's hand, heavy and hard like warm granite, holding firm on the exposed ridge of Neji's hip. There was power in the blond's posture and movements, but Neji could tell that Naruto was offering him a kind of acceptance instead of merely commanding submission. The feeling was there in the reverent way he stroked Neji's long hair, in the tiny circles of heat that followed Naruto's thumb on the tingling crest of his hip, in the way every stroke of his tongue was an invitation. The Hyuuga genius had never been so utterly overwhelmed by a feeling, more than a feeling really, a kind of sensual communication.
The blond released his mouth, offering him a breath, and Neji managed to notice that Naruto was touching Sasuke too. He was holding him close and trembling against Neji's own skin, making him blush shocking crimson, touching him in places Neji could not see, but could feel in the way Sasuke was breathing. The thought, the realization, that they were writhing naked together beneath Naruto's hungry eyes was nearly enough to worry him, or it might have been if the jinchuuriki had not kissed him again. Anko often said that a good kiss was just a fuck with one's tongue and, if that was true, this was far beyond mere fucking. Naruto was making love to his mouth. He bit him, sucked him, nibbled and stroked him until Neji's lips tingled and he was nearly approaching climax from the exotic lip-play alone.
Fighting the erotic delirium threatening to melt his brain, the Hyuuga responded to the kiss by thrusting his own tongue into Naruto's mouth, wrestling for dominance. Sasuke said it was stupid to challenge Naruto this way, but Neji was falling into a place where he had no control, no way back, and he reacted thoughtlessly. The golden phenomenon that was somehow still his childhood friend hissed a little, the sound almost a warning, and nipped Neji's lower lip with his sharpened teeth. Eager, the silver eyed genius bit him back and earned a low snarl that filled the air to resonate into the bones of his skull. The sound seemed to move into his organs, vibrating in his nerves like sparks stirred from a sluggish fire, hot and powerful. That sound, nothing like any noise a human could make, affected him physically. Before he could even comprehend it, the Hyuuga was responding to Naruto's gentle show of force, moaning and tipping his head back to expose his throat. Only Naruto brought him to this, this animal submission, more instinct than true thought.
The jinchuuriki accepted the trembling offering, closing his powerful jaws loosely around the naked pulse in Neji's throat and teasing razor sharpness over the sensitive skin. Those fangs, so keen and so close…Neji shivered and could not tell if it was in ecstasy or fear. For a heartbeat and another Naruto held him that way, like prey, simultaneously subjugating his body and bringing him closer to the edge of release. By the time the blond released him, Neji could feel the heat of his mouth like a spiritual fingerprint left to linger on his skin. Naruto purred for him, sucking the dusky flesh of Neji's nipple into the molten heat of his mouth, stroking the captive flesh wetly with his tongue. Anko had often wanted him to use the knives on her nipples and Neji had never really understood why, but the feel of Naruto's mouth, Naruto's teeth, against the sensitized flesh was almost enough to make him sympathize. The thrill of danger so close to the tender nerves was thrilling and terrifying and also alright because Neji knew, he knew, Naruto would never be careless enough to hurt him. Sasuke's words echoed in his head, swimming in the luscious heat the blond was kindling with his tongue: It's something you can trust…
Naruto gripped the burning nub gently in his front teeth, carefully stroking the tingling flesh with his tongue, and Neji had to bite his fingers to keep from screaming. The jinchuuriki's hand was in his hair, wrapped around the mahogany tresses, cupping his skull, holding him open before the vessel's burning caresses. He moved to the other nipple and Neji bit through the flesh of his hand with a startled cry mostly muffled by his palm.
"Stop that," Naruto whispered against the sensitive flesh, "I want to hear you."
"Yes…Scream for us Hyuuga." Sasuke ordered darkly, pulling the bleeding hand from Neji's mouth.
OoOoOoO
(Earlier that evening…)
Anko watched the trio walk across Konoha, laughing and occasionally fighting, embracing each other hotly in the deserted streets. They were obviously compatible, the three of them, and would have made an excellent operative team for any mission involving both talent and charisma. As for the sex, she knew it would only make them closer. Anko smiled behind the mask she wore, oddly warmed by the thought of her students working together during the day and sharing a bed at night. There was something comfortable in that and they certainly would not be the first team to make it work. Next time the occasion arose, she would have to keep them in mind for tricky political reconnaissance work if, of course, she could foil Hiashi and keep the younger ninja alive long enough for their dynamic to make any difference. Anko leapt smoothly from rooftop to rooftop, moving quickly and noiselessly as she stalked the silent shadow dogging the boys' steps. The ninja she had been marking was following the boys far too carefully, too closely, to be up to anything benevolent and Anko had no intention of allowing Neji to be killed just when it looked like he might actually be happy. Stalking a stalker was a difficult task, but silence and stealth was one her specialties and she was reasonably sure that the ninja following the trio had not noticed that she, herself, was being followed. Anko paused, watching from enough of a distance to be undetectable even to Neji. He knew her well and was an exceptionally adept shinobi, so hiding from him took caution, skill and not a small amount of luck. Sasuke seemed a bit edgy, but he was too inebriated to use his instincts well enough to detect anything. As for the sulking spy following them, the woman was obviously very good, but not good enough to evade her.
The possible-assassin was a woman, that much was already clear from the way she moved, but she was no ordinary spy. From the peculiar habit the stalker had of pausing intentionally and frequently to watch the boys, Anko guessed she was likely a Hyuuga using Byukugan to study their energy, just as she had originally feared. Such a thing was more than passing dangerous and if anyone could kill a jinchuuriki, it would be an assassin able to watch his energy. It was a sticky situation. If Naruto died and he had claimed Neji, her student would die as well. If Naruto died without sleeping with him first, well, Neji could very well live the rest of his life wishing that he hadn't been spared. Anko knew about that, oh yes, she knew well the regret that came from losing a loved one instead of following them into death and Neji did love him. The love was there in the way he moved, leaning a bit too close to Naruto's shoulder, and in the way he smiled. Kami, who would have thought that the boy could smile? Anko watched them together, watched the way Neji melted into Naruto's embrace, and knew that he had succumbed to the same nameless power that had consumed her own stony heart so many years ago. He was in love, in love for the first time, and also in terrible danger.
She really should have known that Naruto was the jinchuuriki in question, but Anko had hoped, foolishly hoped, that her instincts were wrong. If Neji had been mated to a foreign vessel and sent far away, Anko could have believed that political power was the only thing Hiashi hoped to gain. With Naruto, knowing how Hiashi hated the little blond orphan for his rising influence in Konoha, Anko had no doubt that the Hyuuga clan leader meant to kill him. This would destroy Neji, she knew it, and the woman would do anything she could to prevent her student suffering the same agony she still endured.
The kunoichi clung to her perch, heedless of the cold in the air, and watched. The stalker was pausing again and scrutinizing them, her posture far too motionless to be anything other than a visual bloodline talent. Naruto was kissing Neji, pressing him against a building, the two of them rough, young and in love, utterly oblivious to everything except their own bodies. Sensing that she would not be noticed, Anko crept closer, preparing a set of poisoned shuriken. Seeing a potential killer watching Neji that way, watching him try to open his heart for another person, made her unreasonably angry. He deserved some space, some peace, without politics or intrigue. Politics had ruled everything in Neji's life since he was a child. Politics had killed his father, enslaved him to his uncle's whims and forced him into a dangerous marriage with a creature he had no way of understanding. Living as a tool for Hiashi's campaigns had made Neji bitter, apathetic and pathologically fatalistic. The boy barely cared, beyond pure animal reflex, whether he lived or died and Anko could hardly blame him. She knew what it was like to be someone's weapon, someone's pawn, and if Naruto could save him from that utter hell, she would do anything in her power to help.
Anko had been playing a tense game of cat and mouse with the skilled nin following the jinchuuriki and his mates for the better part of the evening, ever since she noticed the tail on the boys as they walked down the street. Neji, at least, should have noticed that they were being followed, but her one time lover had been understandably distracted. Even being within earshot of Naruto's damn jewelry had nearly made her head explode and Neji had been standing right next to the obnoxious blond racket. Anko had decided to follow and had been conveniently equipped for stealth having just returned from a recon operation in Wind country. She had followed, blending with the crowd, sneakily changing into clothing that made her look like a civilian. Anko was no great beauty, but she had a face anyone could forget and it had served her well. She watched, always only a few blocks away, casually planning a long night of surveillance and possibly murder over a particularly nice cup of coffee. The restaurant Naruto picked made keeping track of the boys hard since it offered semi-private rooms, but that feature only made keeping track of their tail easy, and the food was good too. Trust Naruto to know where to find good food, Anko thought smugly.
The Hyuuga skulker was on the move again, gliding from shadow to shadow, trying to get even closer without being detected. She was studying their energy, looking for something specific, and Anko wished she had one of the bloodline abilities necessary to see what the assassin was seeing. Even without Sharingan or Byukugan, Anko had a reasonable idea about what the stalker was looking for and it wasn't anything good. The woman was probably searching Neji's chakra, trying to discern if he was under the thrall, but Anko already knew that such a thing was impossible unless the thrall was being actively exerted upon a subordinate. As long as the perky kitsune decided to avoid activating the thrall, as long as Neji did what he was told, she would not be able to learn much and that was a good thing. The brunette was a good soldier and followed orders but, her old lover appeared to be currently doing what he did best: provoking a response. Even Naruto would use the thrall if Neji pushed him too far and Neji Hyuuga liked to push people.
Anko huffed under her breath, mentally willing Neji to back away for once in his life, letting out a slow breath when he stilled in the kitsune's embrace. He was deciding to wait, thank Kami. The stalker's posture was frustrated, apparently she had hoped the vessel would use the thrall as well, and made Anko want to snicker. Naruto picked up Neji and Sasuke, settling them on both his shoulders, and began jogging away with the singular strength and power only possessed by a jinchuuriki. He was moving fast and smoothly, forcing the stalker to move into the open in order to follow them, which she would because no ninja followed a target for 5 hours just to give up. Anko smiled. Bad people were so damn predictable.
OoOoOoO
The raven licked the blood away from his fingers, moaning in ecstasy, and for a moment Neji was in Anko's bed again, trembling as he tempted her with a bloody offering. The thrill was the same and also the terror, the instinctual feeling that what was happening was alien and dangerous, that a predator was near. The way Sasuke lapped at the spilled blood, face flushed and eyes glazed, was so close to the near trance Anko entered during blood-play…far too close to be coincidence alone. There was a revelation there, something obvious in the way Sasuke drank his blood, lapping needily at the marks Neji's own teeth had left on his fingers. It was more than similarity, the action and the feeling too close, but the Hyuuga could not focus long enough to discern it. Naruto sucked the blushing peak of his nipple fully into his mouth just as Sasuke brushed his knuckles boldly over the naked flesh of Neji's erection and he did scream.
"Good…" Naruto purred.
"Oh…Oh Kami…I…I…" Neji stuttered, not sure what he was trying to say but too overwhelmed not to say something.
"Shhh…Relax…" Sasuke hissed, nipping his palm.
Naruto rumbled, smiling around his fangs as he nibbled Neji's nipple, working his tongue on the nub until the flesh was so stimulated it was almost sore and surely would be later. With something like a whimper, the raven turned and sunk his teeth into Neji's shoulder, making the brunette gasp with both surprise and arousal. Naruto released his flesh for a breathless moment to nip Sasuke roughly on the thick muscle of the raven's arm, the action a clear chastisement. Sasuke hissed, but softened his body beneath their alpha's kisses. Sasuke yielded, just like that. It was amazing and a year ago he never would have believed it. Anko had told him about how lovers could slowly change each other, training one another subconsciously for specific behavior, but he had never really believed her. He did now. Neji had never seen such shocking submission before and certainly not from someone who had once crumpled empires for sheer spite. Naruto captured Sasuke's throat, holding his neck loosely in his jaws, but Sasuke only moaned and opened his body to the embrace. Kami, he had been so beautifully trained, and Naruto probably had no idea what the significance of such an act might mean…
With one last nuzzle for Sasuke and a brain singeing kiss for him, Naruto backed away, removing his own clothing with the efficiency of long practice and the urgency of sexual desperation. For a moment Neji merely laid on the bed, blinking up at the polished wood of the ceiling and shivering from Sasuke's sharpened kisses. The room was too warm. His heart was pounding in his head and every nerve seemed set on the edge of firing. Neji sat up, greeted with the vision of Naruto slipping his silky shirt off over his shoulders, smiling warmly and totally oblivious to how gorgeous he was. Neji blushed, biting his lip.
"Take it off slower." He whispered.
"What?" Naruto asked, looking genuinely confused.
"Slower, take your time undressing. I want to watch you." Neji purred, gaining confidence.
"Me?" Naruto practically squeaked.
"Obviously moron, everyone else is naked." Sasuke sniped, rolling his eyes.
"You, I want to see you. You're gorgeous." Neji agreed, moving to hold Sasuke's kiss swollen nipple in his fingers.
"Oh…well…okay…" Naruto mumbled, blushing fetchingly.
"Relax, just make it last a little." Neji whispered, rolling the sensitive nub in his hand to make Sasuke moan.
"Fucking slut." The once-Uchiha huffed, biting his ear too roughly to really be sexy.
Naruto swallowed hard and licked his lips nervously, letting the shirt slide away with the help of gravity alone, baring his golden skin. Neji felt his belly clench, penis already hard from the foreplay and now aching from the image alone. Next the jinchuuriki unbuckled the leather bracers, holding the straps slowly in his teeth to pull the catches free, silver chains tinkling enticingly. The leather fell away, revealing the smooth, unblemished flesh of his forearms. Naruto's skin was far too smooth, even more than Sakura's, utterly free of the marks every ninja carried. He probably healed too quickly to scar much and, if that were the case, the blond's skin had to be so sensitive, so fine to the touch. Both Neji and Sasuke where still wearing their respective arm covers and seeing Naruto's naked forearms seemed somehow intimate and very sexual, almost as stirring as a woman's uncovered breasts. Kneeling up, the blond began to slowly work the fly of his pants down, squirming out of the garment like a siren out of the ocean, every movement making the muscles of his belly undulate. Neji felt his breath catch in his chest and his arousal tighten at the sight and Sasuke had completely stopped breathing. How had he ever thought that loving Naruto would be a problem? Sasuke's eyes widened as he watched, totally rapt, black depths warm and fluid with desire.
"See, beautiful…" Neji whispered into the raven's ear, letting his hand drift lower over the rippling plane of Sasuke's pale belly.
"Kami…" Sasuke whimpered, eyes locked on his alpha.
"You guys are kind of making me nervous…" Naruto hedged, slipping the underwear away hurriedly.
"Idiot, hasn't anyone ever looked at you before?" Neji chuckled.
"Yeah, but not like that." Naruto hissed, blushing hotly.
Sasuke said nothing, watching and taking shallow little sips of air. Naruto moved back onto the bed with them, lying in a lazy sprawl, obviously far more comfortable being fully nude. Sasuke was still staring at Naruto like he had never quite seen him before and the jinchuuriki's too-still blue eyes were fixed on them in turn, watching languidly, like an incredibly friendly serpent stalking its prey. That exotic stillness was something that Naruto did that no human could quite duplicate; something in his nature closer to the Kyuubi, and it was fascinating to see. Neji was uncomfortably reminded that tonight he would not just be taking a lover, but making an energetic pact with a creature of a different species that may or may not kill him. The Hyuuga swallowed hard and looked away, hand motionless on the porcelain hardness of Sasuke's twitching abdominal muscles.
"Scared?" Sasuke purred cruelly.
"No." Neji snarled, biting him sharply on the shoulder.
"Liar." Sasuke accused smugly.
"Quiet, Sasuke. It's not something to tease about." Naruto whispered gently.
The jinchuuriki moved closer, kneeling before them in the same quiet posture one might assume when waiting for a sensei to speak or an order to be given. Delicately, he gripped the edge of Neji's jaw and turned the Hyuuga's head up to meet his gaze, close enough to be kissing, the air between them as thin and soft as a gossamer veil. Naruto stroked the brunnette's cheek with his thumb, whisker-marked face smiling a little apologetically, and then moved his hand higher to touch the steel of Neji's forehead protector. The Hyuuga immediately stiffened, blood running suddenly cold as the blond's fingers ghosted over the hideous thing hidden beneath the layers of silk and metal. No, not that, he couldn't possibly want that...
"May I?" Naruto whispered, expression abruptly serious.
No, Neji wanted to scream, no you may not; but how could he share his body with the jinchuuriki and begrudge him something as simple as seeing his entire face? It was stupid, stupid to feel this way. Naruto had seen it before, he knew what lay under the leaf insignia, even if he only knew the rudimentary basics of how the Hyuuga curse mark worked. Naruto had seen it, but he did not know what the mark meant, not really. The pretty, delicate, deceptively refined symbols cut into his face in dark green tattoo made him a slave. It was a brand for a piece of property, a shock collar to train an unruly dog and Naruto wanted to see it for reasons he could not even begin to fathom. Kami, why would he want to see someone else's mark on Neji's body? Why would he want to see something like that?
Neji bit his lip, pulse jumping hard enough in his ears that Naruto could probably hear it, trying to speak without screaming or sobbing. His erection was gone, the flesh more truthful than he could ever be with words, but neither the demon nor the murderer had the callousness to mention it. Silence stretched as Neji tried to think, trying fruitlessly to find a way out. He could feel Sasuke move, the attentive way his body settled, waiting to see what Neji was willing to do, how much he was willing to commit. Dammit.
"May I?" Naruto asked again, softer, lips close enough to his face that Neji could feel the warmth of the blond's fever radiating against him like sunlight.
"H…Hai." Neji whispered brokenly, and for once even Sasuke remained silent.
Gently, Naruto undid the straps and ties that held the bandana in place, fingers steady against Neji's head even if the rest of the Hyuuga's body was shaking. The garment fell away, baring the curse mark to the jinchuuriki's eyes for the first time since they were children, the first time he had allowed anyone to see it in years, and the first time Neji had ever shown it to a lover. He squeezed his eyes shut, breathing shallowly, trying to stem the unreasonable panic turning his insides to ice. Sasuke turned in his arms and Neji knew the darksome killer was activating his sharingan, studying the mark with the same academic interest he would have if their places had been reversed. Of course Sasuke would be curious, ridiculous to think otherwise and Naruto...What would Naruto think? They saw, they knew…Kami…
"Does it hurt?" Naruto asked gently, running warm fingers around the edges of Neji's forehead.
"No, not now." Neji replied quietly, shivering.
"I'll never let it hurt you again." The blond whispered fiercely.
Suddenly his fever-warm lips were against Neji's forehead, kissing the cursed mark like some kind of benediction, tracing the lines he had traced himself so many times in the mirror. With a broken sigh, Neji leaned into the affection and let Naruto touch him, let the heat of him melt the chilly pain. Then Sasuke was touching him too, brushing fingers over the tattoo, his hand calculating and perhaps even silently angry. They were claiming it, Neji realized with shock, trying to make the hideous mark null with their own possession. I'll never let it hurt you again… Neji played the words over and over in his head like a prayer. It was stupid, meaningless, a foolish promise that Naruto had no hope of ever keeping and yet Neji believed him. He believed him utterly.
OoOoOoO
(Earlier that evening…)
Anko left the buildings, leaping gracefully into the trees and following them from above, the sound of Sasuke's cursing more than enough lead for her to stay oriented. Not shockingly, they were headed for the Uchiha compound, which meant safety for Neji so long as Naruto's formidable wards were not breached. Still, wards were never perfect. The snow muffled sounds well and for a brief moment Anko lost track of the Hyuuga ninja, misplacing her shadow among the many others cast by the trees in the moonlight. Unperturbed, the kunoichi backtracked and re-traced her previous route, picking up a few subtle signs that the stalker was moving father than expected. The light impression of her shoes in the top layer of the snow indicated that the Hyuuga was moving at near full speed, too fast to sink into the snow more than a millimeter or to cover her steps with jutsu. Following her gut, Anko put on a burst of speed, leaping and spinning through the trees as fast as her body would allow. She moved ahead of Naruto, farther down the path until the warm glow of the lanterns the Uzumaki clan kept at their front walkway came into view. The stalker was there as well, crouched low in the snow to hide her profile, and certainly up to no good.
Anko called a winged-snake summons, one of her favorite companions, and sent the creature ahead to quietly observe the integrity of the Oni's defenses. Cold weather was hard on all reptile summons, but Quetzal would be quiet enough for the task and more than capable of finding a hole in Naruto's walls if one existed. The stalker had paused several paces ahead of the boys, readying some kind of jutsu to lay in their path, drawing blood signs into the snow. Anko narrowed her eyes. If she were trying to murder a jinchuuriki who was well protected by what amounted to a warded fortress, the best way to go about it would be to create a path inside. The wards would never allow a summons to enter, but they might not be sensitive to a well-placed tag on a person already recognized by the defenses, especially a person carrying the same bloodline as the creator. The ninja was moving through hand gestures, the gesticulations both complicated and undeniably graceful. It would be a powerful jutsu, well designed and well hidden.
Sasuke's grousing was coming closer. Anko took a breath and leapt down from the tree, flipping in the air to soften her landing into utter soundlessness as she dropped into the snow a few yards from where the stalker worked. For the moment, the woman was still oblivious, but she wouldn't be for long. She unwound the translucent lengths of steel silk kept wrapped around a special spool at her waist until she had created a lasso of the nearly invisible and lethally sharp material. The spy paused, turning to look at where Anko stood out of pure reflex, but the Kunoichi was not perturbed. The Hyuuga spy would not live long enough to make any use of the knowledge. Smiling cruelly, Anko hurled a shuriken into the woman's face and dashed away into the trees, silent as a spirit and twice as fast. The purpose of the missile was not to injure, but to provoke, and the tingling sense of danger at her back proved that the ploy had worked. The smart thing for the skulker to do would have been to finish the jutsu, caste the tag and worry about faceless assailants later, but Anko knew that the Hyuuga woman would follow her. It was what Hyuugas did.
"What is your business here?" The spy hissed from behind her.
Anko did not respond, but turned and kicked a cloud of snow into the air in order to foil the assassin who was now no more than a few steps behind her and closing fast. The boys were already passing the area where the spy had tried to ambush them and in another few heartbeats they would be safely within the warded walls of Naruto's home. Anko dodged a well thrown kunai, and flipped backwards around the tree limb she had previously been standing on. She let the wood catch and roll around her ankles, slickened with newly fallen snow, but the assassin was a tree nin as well and anticipated the movement by throwing an explosive tag against the trunk of the tree. The explosion disrupted her balance, but Anko merely rolled in the air and let the force of the blast propel her into the waiting branches of a sturdy old spruce. If the spy was already using explosive devices, it could only mean the boys had passed into the compound and behind the wards. Perfect.
Anko loosened her grip on the steel silk and let a long loop of the razor-sharp fiber float into the air. She jumped from the tree, letting the deadly thread lag out behind her, catching on the other tree limbs in a web of nearly invisible death. The Hyuuga followed her, neatly avoiding the threads using the Byukugan, but the technique took tremendous energy to use and Anko knew that she was already tiring. Crouching a few feet away, the kunoichi launched a merciless volley of fire with her Dragon Fire technique, igniting the forest around them in a swirling storm of flame. The Hyuuga ninja flipped in the air and dove to the ground, narrowly avoiding the roaring fire. Anko followed her, jerking the steel thread caught around the branches taught and cutting the tree limbs with the deadly wire, sending hundreds of pounds of wood tumbling into the air. The heavy tree branches fell, crashing through the canopy and carrying the heat of Anko's fire to the ground where the Hyuuga bitch was madly rolling to avoid being crushed.
The laughter that had been tingling behind her lips for the better part of an hour finally escaped and Anko let the cruel giggles spasm out into the air, drifting like a death sentence down to the crouched figure waiting in the snow. The spy formed a quick jutsu and Anko had to spin behind the thick trunk of a nearby tree to avoid having her heart forcibly stopped by a perfectly executed Hyuuga somatic technique. Too bad the bitch was just a servant, a slave given only rudimentary education, a member of the main house would have known the variant for the attack that allowed it to pass through living material. The spy was just a pawn, a good one, but not good enough to have any hope of surviving. Anko spun and performed the jutsu for a serpent strike, fingers moving through the symbols quickly, ignoring the bombs exploding on the other side of the tree trunk.
The assassin was climbing the tree easily, darting up towards Anko's position like a particularly deadly squirrel, tanto held firmly between her teeth. Regardless, she would never reach the kunoichi in time and the farther she climbed, the longer it was to fall. Anko ignored her and focused on the jutsu she was preparing. A shower of knives flew up form below, well aimed and forceful, but the kunoichi dodged the weapons easily and prepared to release her technique. The serpent strike required a lot of energy, but it would suite her purposes perfectly without killing the bitch too quickly. The next projectile imbedded itself into her calf, obviously thrown with assistance of the Byukugan and probably poisoned too. Unworried, the kunoichi turned and let her chakra flare out towards the climbing nin, the serpent manifest for the spell appearing with a sound like the crack of lightning and rushing towards the Hyuuga in a maddened strike. The chakra beast hissed, the sound of it like steel against granite, jaws open for the kill. The Hyuuga nin jumped, trying to avoid the jutsu, but she was far too slow. The thing hit the assassin like an arrow, moving too quickly to easily see, coils propelling it hard into the enemy nin's unprotected hip. The woman screamed as the snake turned to strike her, burying it's chakra fangs deeply into the meat of her thigh, jerking her body from the tree. The Hyuuga spy was well trained and did not waste breath on screaming as she fell through the air, leg dead with poison and the ground hundreds of meters away. Tough, Anko thought, she would enjoy killing her.
A soft thunk and a huff of involuntarily expelled air told her that the nin had landed mostly on her feet and was certainly still alive, probably trying to cough up enough strength to use Byukugan again. The poison from serpent strike did not kill and likely that bitch was already hunting around in her supplies for an antidote. Still, the technique had slowed her down. Anko giggled again and pulled the kunai from her own leg, sniffing the blade to ascertain what kind of poison had been used. The thick scent of curare and nightshade syrup drifted over her palate, but it was a toxin to which the kunoichi was already immune thanks to her old sensei and his penchant for truly sadistic experiments. Anko released the jutsu, allowing the creature to dissipate with a malicious hiss. Limping just a bit, the kunoichi flung her steel silk out again, letting it drift in deadly loops down into the snow. The trap was set and now all she had to do was distract the woman, force her attention away from the glistening loops of nearly invisible death, let her walk into her own demise.
"You Hyuuga's have a funny way of dealing with marriage. You whore Neji out just to kill his mate? What the hell is the point?" Anko asked, shouting over the roaring of her fire.
"This matter is none of your concern, walk away." The Hyuuga spat, her voice strained with pain.
"I think that's for me to decide. After all, I don't take kindly to people trying to kill my lovers." Anko hissed, knowing the comment would confuse the other nin.
"Lovers…But…Sakura?" The Hyuuga asked, her voice shocked.
"Guess again, bitch." Anko hissed.
She turned and spat an expanding ring of fire out into the air, aiming for the Hyuuga assassin's voice. It was a tricky technique, one even Sasuke rarely used, but perfect for a chaotic situation in which an opponent only had a few options for escape. With the fallen tree limbs and the smoldering fire of Anko's previous technique, the burning lasso would drive the stalker exactly where Anko wanted her. The dark figure of the other woman's slender body was silhouetted for an instant against the flames as the ring forced her to leap clumsily away into the trees and ever closer to Anko's well laid trap. The kunoichi grinned darkly.
"What is your purpose here?" The assassin snarled.
"Oh just a favor…for an old flame." Anko replied smugly.
"Neji Hyuuga is the property of Hiashi Hyuuga and his clan, you have no claim on him!" The woman hissed, finally putting two and two together.
"You damn Hyuugas always think about things in terms of who owns what. Neji owns himself and Kami help you the day he figures that out."
"Jealous?" The stalker laughed.
"Nope, just pissed." Anko replied, hurling a storm of weapons into the air.
The assassin dodged the weapons easily, flipping up through the trees and then back onto the ground, running smoothly along the ground despite her wounds. She was good, especially for being one of Hiashi's many slaves, almost a worthy opponent. Anko laughed again, letting her voice drift into the air, effectively giving the Hyuuga her position. A few more feet and she would be standing among the loops of razor wires resting on the snow.
"You serve the demon, Naruto Uzumaki." The assassin accused.
"I serve no master other than Konoha. Serving people sucks, or haven't you noticed?" Anko quipped.
"It is my honor to serve Hiashi-sama! My honor as Suki Hyuuga!" The woman snarled.
"Honor huh?" Anko laughed.
Anko listened to the woman's ragged breathing, noting how the Hyuuga ninja had given her name unnecessarily just in case the information might save her. The woman at least recognized that she was outmatched and was trying to use psychology to gain a bit of an advantage, a smart ploy actually. Give a potential killer your name and it was sometimes harder to do the deed, harder to make the kill knowing the name of the body under your knife. Of course, it was also possible that the Hyuuga assassin was frightened and holding onto the last vestige of hope that Anko had somehow misunderstood the situation. The thought made the whole ordeal slightly more pathetic, but still fun in the end. Either way, she was already dead.
"Yes, it is an honor to serve such a powerful and benevolent master. A master whose plans might even be in accord with your own, a master whose rewards are generous…" Suki called, the bribe almost casual.
"No thanks, I've seen how Hiashi rewards his pawns and I don't feel the need to be his sacrifice." Anko grunted.
"Hiashi makes sacrifices as necessary, as all great leaders must. No need for anyone to die tonight…" Suki argued, her voice cloying and friendly.
"Oh I disagree, someone is definitely going to die." Anko said, projecting her voice off the trees to draw the Hyuuga closer.
"Service to my clan has much to offer. I could tell you about it, powerful allies are never a bad thing to have, and everyone is somebody's pawn. You should think about what kind of lord you want to serve…" Suki pushed.
"Oh you poor little idiot, he's got you all fucked up, huh?" Anko replied, shaking her head a bit in pity.
"I think that you're the one confused, after all, do you even know your own motivations?" Suki hissed.
"Indeed I do and I didn't even need some old pervert without the balls to do his own dirty work to tell me. How about that?" Anko laughed cruelly, voice sharp and a bit mad above the roaring flames.
"Quiet! How dare you?!" The woman roared, finally losing her composure.
"I know about serving people the way you serve Hiashi. They fuck you, send you off to die and then have the nerve to make you feel like shit if you manage to make it back alive…" Anko said, the steel silk itchy in her fingers.
"You don't know anything!" Suki spat.
"Oh? So you haven't been taking his dick since you were thirteen? Oh wait, maybe you were actually younger, too young to even know what in the hell was going on…" Anko jibed.
"You're wrong! He never forced me!"
"Kids can't consent, girl, it doesn't work that way. I should know. You're even his fucking cousin, right? Kami, all this time I thought my own life was fucked up…"
"The Hyuuga bloodline must retain its potency, it's not something commoners understand very well, but you don't have to worry about the particulars." Suki offered.
"The particulars are important, trust me. Evil is never upfront in the broad strokes, it's always in the particulars." Anko sighed, almost to herself.
"Why kill for nothing? Why not get something in return for your blood? Hiashi will rule Konoha someday and you would do well to be on the right side." The woman replied, changing tactics and trying to regain her own control.
"The right side is the side that doesn't treat people like tools to be used and then replaced."
"I think you have been misinformed…" Suki laughed, the sound strained with too much emotion.
"Oh? So he doesn't use you like a cheap whore and then send you out into beautiful scenarios like this one without so much as a pat on the head? I guess I've read you all wrong…"
"Shut-up! He loves me!" The nin shrieked.
"Oh yeah, he loves you, just not were anyone can see, right? You're his dirty little secret, at least until you get too old or too dead for the lie to be juicy anymore…" Anko pushed.
"FUCK you! You don't know ANYTHING!"
"Oops, did I hit a nerve? Sorry, I guess all Hyuugas have one…" Anko laughed.
"I'll KILL you!" Suki roared, leaping up into the first branches of the tree.
"Nope." Anko said coldly and jerked the thread.
The steel wires, so slender and sharp that they never even sank into the snow, leapt at the tension. Suki had walked through the spider's web of steel silk lying on the ground while talking to Anko, too engaged in the interaction to notice the razor death clinging around her ankles, too angry to feel the weightless trap. The wires went taught, slicing easily through Suki's ankles. The woman screamed. Anko grunted at the sound, but did not hesitate. She gave the silk a savage pull and the woman's feet were severed cleanly from her body with an ugly swishing crack, gushing steaming blood over the snow. The wire warbled in the icy air, rebounding back to bite into Suki's flesh again. The Hyuuga spy flailed helplessly with the stumps, eyes wide with terror and shock as Anko leapt down from her perch to finish the kill. Dismemberment was ugly, but then again so was murder and the kunoichi had gotten over sensitivity to other people's pain long ago.
The sharp scent of her blood was rich and cloying in the air, appealing and sickening at the same time, but Anko focused on the task at hand. The spy still hung from the tree limb with a kind of spastic determination, using the last of her strength to avoid falling into the web of fine cutting threads below. She had been trained well, very well. Suki shrieked as Anko flung a kunai into the Hyuuga's white knuckled hand where she still clung to the tree, effectively destroying her grip. The Hyuuga fell, back into the mass of sharpened steel silk, screaming in pain and horror as the blade-like fibers sliced her body.
Anko followed her, pulling the silk up into a spinning maelstrom of glittering death, cutting the woman where she lay in it's sharpened loops. Suki screamed, reaching for a weapon even as her wrist was caught in the wires and cut savagely to the bone. Anko spun and landed to the side, safely outside the snarling mass of razor fibers. She pulled hard on the thread, feeling slightly giddy as the Hyuuga's blood sprayed onto the snow, filling the frozen air with steam. The woman screamed, shaking like a dying rabbit in the jaws of snare. The wire cut her, tangled about itself, and cut her again. Suki screamed again and Anko realized how very young she was, too young really, but there was no going back now.
"Who do you work for?!" Suki screamed.
"Neji." Anko hissed.
"W…What…?"
"I won't let Hiashi hurt him, not this way, you just got in the way." Anko sighed regretfully.
She jerked the threads again. The girl's ear was cleaved from her body and her blood gushed from the wound in pounding spurts to mingle with the river of life already on the ground. It was a disagreeable kill, messy and painful, but a point was being made. Anko moved closer, winding the loosened threads around her gauntleted hand before jerking the slack taught again. The woman screamed, writhing in pure reflex even though the movement only cut her more. Suki's right hand had been tangled in the killing threads and when Anko had pulled the limb was cut into four pieces, unattached fingers twitching gruesomely on the ground. Her face was cut to the bone, but Anko thought she had probably once been very beautiful. What a damn pity.
"Why…?" The Hyuuga whispered, flinching as the wires cut her lips.
"Because I'm a monster and I don't want Neji to be one too." Anko said, kneeling carefully at the dying woman's side.
"But…Naruto…the demon…" Suki choked, shuddering.
"Sure, but he's no monster, not really. The real monsters are people like me who look and talk like everybody else, who walk around trying to be normal. One monster like me is enough in this world, don't you think?" Anko asked, smiling sadly.
"Please…Please…" Suki managed, choking on her own blood.
"Sorry baby, I can't let you live. What kind of ninja would you be anyway, what would it be like with your hands and feet gone? It would be worse…much worse than death I think…" Anko said gently, genuinely saddened.
"I'm…I…I don't want you to spare me…" Suki choked.
"Don't worry kid, I won't. I'm too cold for that." Anko sighed and jerked her wires taught one final time.
OoOoOoO
Neji's breath was coming too fast, he was seeing stars. Somewhere in the fevered haze of his mind the Hyuuga knew he needed to take a full breath, pull the air deep with his diaphragm, and resist the instinct to pant. It didn't matter. Focus was impossible with the way Naruto was licking him, the velvety flat of his tongue slow and fever-warm against the underside of his penis, the blond's strong hands like iron against his skin. The jinchuuriki held him open wantonly, one hand wrapped like a shackle around his left ankle and the other pressing firmly against the joint of his right knee, the weight of it forcing his pelvis up against Naruto's mouth. Rumbling, the vessel ceased his teasing and moved to suck Neji's shaft confidently into his burning mouth. There was something rough and muscular about the sex, very male and utterly different from the way Anko had done it. Naruto did not flick him with his tongue, or shield his teeth, and sucked him nearly hard enough to be uncomfortable. For the second time that night, Neji felt his body flex and tighten with impending orgasm, but the blond broke the rhythm of his licking and nipped the crown instead, teeth grazing the sensitive skin roughly enough to halt his release. Neji cried out, throwing his head back in both ecstasy and frustration.
"Fucking gorgeous, I love it when you do that." Sasuke whispered to Naruto, his voice low and velvety.
"He looks good like this, too good…" The blond agreed.
"Fuck! How many times are you going to do that!" Neji shouted hoarsely, quivering.
"I want you to be aroused." Naruto explained smiling nonchalantly.
"Aroused?! You're going to fucking KILL me!" Neji moaned.
"You'll live through it Hyuuga." Sasuke chuckled, caressing his face.
Neji was not sure he believed him, especially considering that this was far more perilous than simply making love, but there was no point in thinking about it now. His muscles were tight and trembling, bunched taught at the edge of climax, hands fisted reflexively in the soft bedding beside his head. Neji felt as if every inch of his body had been ignited, covered in tingling flame, roaring heat wherever they touched him. Sweat ran down his chest from the strain, tingling against the sensitized skin of his nipples and dripping down onto his belly. The room was almost uncomfortably warm and Sasuke was sweating too; his pale, muscular body glistening with it in the gentle light. Kami, he was too beautiful…Neji moaned, clenching his eyes shut tightly as Naruto pressed the muscular slickness of his tongue into the narrow slit of his penis, pushing deep. The feel of it was almost frightening, intense and almost aggressive, an echo of more profound penetration to come.
The Hyuuga lay couched between them, head pillowed in Sasuke's lap as the jinchuuriki sucked him, legs spread wide around the blond's shoulders. He was exposed this way, vulnerable, and the slick smoothness of Naruto's claws against the skin of his knee and ankle was both thrilling and too intimate. Sasuke moaned, running the pads of his fingers over Neji's chest, pausing to hold his nipple gently between his thumb and forefinger. Just the press of the raven's hands was enough to make him writhe, heat blooming low and tight in Neji's loins from the weight of the man's fingers alone, pulling him again to the very brink of release. The silver eyed genius gasped, clenching his teeth together as he fought to hold back. Neji had experienced oral sex before, but never like this, nothing like this!
"Don't fight it…Try to relax…" Sasuke purred.
"Ngh…" Neji managed as Naruto thrust again with his tongue.
"It's okay, it feels too deep, but he won't hurt you." Sasuke assured him, smiling oddly.
"Kami…What…How…?" Neji panted.
"It's something Sakura taught him. It makes you feel like cuming and then you can't, but it's good, it's good he's keeping you close to orgasm. You shouldn't think too much…" Sasuke whispered, stroking his face.
Neji shuddered and wondered vaguely if this could be considered a kind of torture. Naruto used every part of his mouth, caressing Neji's aching body with his tongue and teeth, but also swallowing him down into his throat and pressing the crown with his lips. The sensation was so intense, so overwhelming, that Neji could barely even manage to focus on breathing and feeling at the same time. Sasuke bent to take his mouth, kissing his lips and jaw and cheeks, nipping the flushed skin. Neji moaned, thrusting reflexively against the jinchuuriki's steady hands, held firm against the bed with the vessel's strength. Naruto rumbled in approval and spread his legs further apart, taking the tender sac of Neji's scrotum into his mouth, stroking softly with his tongue.
The Hyuuga licked his lips, acutely aware of Naruto's mouth, and teeth, against his testicles. For an eternal moment, the kitsune simply held him that way, allowing Neji to study the sensation of his balls lying heavy and full against Naruto's tongue. He whimpered and then Naruto was rolling them with his lips, pressing through the thin skin to the delicate structures beneath.
Neji had watched him do this with Sasuke as well, placing focus on the most vulnerable parts of his body, promoting submission through sheer vulnerability of touch and position alone. He knew the theory, understood the psychology behind the act, but the awareness of the behavior did not matter. Neji opened himself further for the jinchuuriki, spreading his legs and tipping his head back on instinct, unable to resist. Naruto touched him and his body moved, quivered, and responded as if the flesh was no longer his to command. The blond was playing his nerves like a flute, defining every sensation, his lovemaking purposeful and magnetic. Neji had never been so defenseless with a lover before, so utterly unguarded, helpless…
Gently, slowly, Naruto transferred the heavy flesh of Neji's balls to his palm, rubbing maddeningly before moving his fingers lower, over the skin of his perineum. No one had touched him there before and the Hyuuga nearly screamed as Naruto's claws ghosted over the root of his sex, fingers pressing in. The pleasure was deep and hot, shocking, as the blond massaged the hidden flesh. Neji shut his eyes and wondered if it was possible to die from overstimulation.
"Is he ready?" Sasuke asked, voice husky against Neji's hair.
"Nearly…" Naruto purred.
"I want him…" Sasuke whispered, pressing his lips to the cursed tattoo on the Hyuuga's forehead.
"You're sure? He's big…" Naruto cautioned, moving his thumb over Neji's genitals appreciatively as if to demonstrate.
Sasuke nodded, running a hand over the Hyuuga's shivering torso. Some silent agreement passed between them, but Neji's mind was too foggy with pleasure to do anything more than note it. The blond sat up on his knees, his indigo eyes warm and fluid with desire, almost glowing in the golden light. Neji watched him and tried to relax, to think, to breathe enough air. Naruto smiled at him fondly, the expression only a little ruined by the long fangs, and tipped his head to Sasuke. They moved synchronously, Naruto pulling and Sasuke pushing, until Neji found himself on his hands and knees. A deep shudder settled into his flesh as the jinchuuriki ran a burning palm down his spine to caress his buttocks, the touch both affectionate and possessive.
"So beautiful…" Naruto whispered admiringly.
"T…Thank you…" He replied lamely.
"Are you okay?" Sasuke asked softly.
"I…It's too hot." Neji managed, mouth dry.
"Hmm...Yes, the heat will make it easier for you to relax." Naruto purred, lips moving sensually over the nape of his neck.
"Are you going to…um…?" Neji asked, licking his lips.
"Soon, not yet. Don't worry." Naruto promised, motioning to Sasuke.
Smiling like a hellion and still a little drunk, Sasuke moved in front of him and knelt low against the bed. The posture was almost like a bow, like a devotion in a temple, graceful and compliant at the same time. The elegant curves of the raven's hips and back were accentuated by the pose and Neji was hit with the realization that he was about to have sex with the most fearsome killer in all existence. Sasuke settled on his elbows, cheek pressed against the ochre silk, eyes full and very dark. Neji gasped, struck by the eroticism of the position and all it entailed. He might have tried to retreat, but Naruto's hips were pressed against his own, the blond's left hand spread wide and strong over his belly, the thick hardness of his cock couched against Neji's ass. The jinchuuriki fumbled with his other hand at the side of the bed, hunting about for the right kind of oil, and a bolt of fear lanced through Neji's mind. He had never done anything like this before and Sasuke was Naruto's…Naruto had loved Sasuke since they were children!
"Kami! Sasuke! I…I can't…" Neji whispered, shaking his head.
"Tch, don't tell me you're scared of topping?" Sasuke mocked.
"That's not it! I don't even know what to do...I…" Neji protested.
"I'll show you, it'll be good…" Naruto purred, mouthing his ear.
"Naruto…but…"
"Shhh…Just look at him, look at how beautiful he is. Think about that pale, gorgeous body, think about how it will feel to be inside him. I want to see you inside him, I want to see him take your cock, I want to feel you fucking him…" Naruto coaxed, reaching forward to draw a finger down Sasuke's bowed spine.
"You have a filthy mouth, Dobe." Sasuke sniped, but moaned a little at the touch anyway.
Neji swallowed, Naruto's words making him blush. He reached a tentative hand for Sasuke, shamefully grateful that the raven's face was pressed down into the bedding instead of watching the way his fingers shook. With something akin to awe, Neji lay his hand against the other ninja's porcelain hip, feeling the thin scars there, the corded muscle and the elegant bones beneath. Sasuke was a violent person and the texture of his body evidence of that. He was also stunning, more so than any real person should ever be. The alabaster planes of his back, rippling with powerful muscle, tapered abruptly to the raven's slender waist. His black hair, a sooty contrast against the delicate blush of his cheeks, was slightly damp with sweat and clinging sensually to his face. Sasuke was gorgeous, just as Naruto said, harmonious in a way that only a very great artist could have imagined. Imagined, but never painted. Neji had never seen a painting so lovely…Wetting his lips nervously, Neji moved his inwards to cup Sasuke's firm buttock, squeezing gently.
"Good, rub him there, hard." Naruto instructed, demonstrating on the raven's other butt-cheek, massaging the muscular flesh deeply.
"Ah…" Sasuke moaned and spread his legs a little.
"Raise your hips." Naruto commanded and Sasuke cried out loud in surprise and ecstasy as the thrall surged through them.
The raven moved, raising his ass into the air without even a hint of hesitation, hands clenched tight in the coverlet as the inhuman pleasure of the thrall pounded through his awareness. Neji could feel it too, a sensual pressure on his nerves that had nothing to do with being touched. He and Sasuke moaned in unison. When Neji's vision cleared, Naruto was squeezing the tense muscles of Sasuke hips and lower back, rubbing deeply with his thumbs.
"So sexy…" Naruto purred, setting Neji's hands against his subordinate's ass and pulling the Hyuuga up onto his knees.
"Does it feel good?" Neji asked softly, still dizzy from the thrall.
"H…Hai…" Sasuke panted.
"Rub him, harder. You have to knead the muscle or he'll be too tight. You're bigger than I am…" Naruto instructed gently, pressing firmly into the flesh of Sasuke's back.
"I don't understand." Neji said, confused but enjoying the masculine feel of Sasuke's perfect buttocks in his hands anyway.
"It helps him relax, prepares his body for penetration." Naruto whispered.
"Oh." Neji gasped, eyes widening.
They rubbed until Sasuke's skin was flushed and the muscle beneath soft and pliable. The raven was quivering now, shoulders bunching and flexing with each stroke, moving his hips back into the massage. Naruto rumbled and moved his hands lower over Neji's own, guiding the Hyuuga's fingers until their hands were cupping the darksome killer's ass, pressing outwards. Neji gasped as the rosy pucker of Sasuke's entrance was opened before him, laid bare.
"Beautiful…" Naruto breathed.
"Small…" Neji replied, voice brittle with both passion and terror.
Chuckling, Naruto dug his fingers into the jar of coconut oil, smearing the thick, white substance over his thumb and fingers generously. Neji waited, breathless, as Naruto took his own hand and pressed the fragrant lubricant over the pads of his fingers. Sasuke moaned, but made no move to pull away. Naruto pressed a finger against the raven's entrance and began to rub gently, the pressure deepening as Sasuke's body softened and opened at the touch. The jinchuuriki rubbed for a while, pressing in with only enough pressure to lubricate the sensitive flesh, and soon Sasuke was audibly panting. Neji watched, amazed, as the raven's body opened for his master and the soft pad of Naruto's finger slipped easily inside.
"See how he does that, how his body opens for me instead of tensing away? That isn't a natural reaction, but the muscle here has learned to accept penetration. It's because he's never been hurt, because I've always been careful." Naruto murmured, adding more of the oil and rubbing in a widening circle.
"I don't want to hurt him." Neji whispered, shaking.
"Pain is…It's just part of it…Ah! B…But the feeling blurs with the pleasure and you don't care." Sasuke panted, biting his lip.
"Naruto…please…" Neji pleaded.
"Touch him, you won't hurt him." The jinchuuriki chuckled.
Neji pressed a finger beside Naruto's, shuddering at the erotic intimacy of touching Sasuke there, heart pounding. When Anko had put her fingers inside of him, it had hurt, badly. Like everything else about loving her, the vulnerability of penetration was paired with pain, any kind of vulnerability was associated with pain. Sasuke, however, seemed to be fully enjoying the caress, pressing back against Naruto's hand, taking his finger in to the knuckle. Neji moaned just to see it, to feel the silken slickness of the raven's wise body. He pressed, just a bit deeper, echoing Naruto's movements and his own finger slipped inside the tight ring of muscle beside the blond's. Neji yelped in shock and moved to pull away, but then Naruto's free hand was around his wrist, holding him firm.
"It's good, he can take two now…" The blond oni whispered, licking his ear affectionately.
"Kami, Sasuke…!" Neji hissed
"Ah! Fuck! Dammit…Hyuuga…keep moving!" Sasuke snarled, pressing back against him.
Swallowing hard, Neji obeyed him, pressing in and rubbing in a widening circle. He followed Naruto, massaging the tiny opening slowly until the flesh was soft and flexible against his hand, adding oil as Naruto drove his fingers deeper. Sasuke was thrusting back against them, the motion smooth and well-practiced, as the jinchuuriki moved to add another finger. The raven paused and whimpered at the larger intrusion, but did not flinch in pain the way Neji had when Anko penetrated him with her fingers. Instead, Sasuke rocked back against them, taking his and Naruto's fingers further into the clenching, satin, vice of his body. Neji moaned, so aroused he ached, as Naruto added a fourth finger.
"Ugh…Hurts…" Sasuke grunted, voice strained with pain.
"He's big, baby, bigger than you think. I gotta stretch you…" Naruto purred, leaning forward to kiss his hip.
"D…Don't call me baby…Baka…" Sasuke hissed as he gasped and trembled, trying to adjust.
"Oh…Oh shit…Oh…" Neji chanted, mesmerized by the tight slickness of the flesh around his fingers.
It was like rain-wet silk, but hard too, muscular. Sasuke moaned; his face pale with pain and his eyes closed tight in ecstasy, a dichotomy of feeling Neji knew well. Naruto spread and scissored his fingers, carefully aware of Sasuke's body and his tolerance for their invasion. Soon, the raven was breathing more normally and moving back against them again. Neji swallowed hard and remembered to breathe just before he lost consciousness, twisting his hand against the muscular opening. Sasuke practically shrieked in pleasure, biting his own wrist hard enough to draw blood, body arching like a loaded bow. Neji's eyes widened. Naruto smiled against his shoulder and pulled his fingers away with a wet sound so sexual that Neji knew he would never be able to forget it.
"Push in slowly, resist the urge to thrust in too suddenly…" Naruto was whispering, his powerful clawed fingers coating Neji's weeping cock with coconut oil.
"I…"
"Shh…Just push…Push slow…" Naruto instructed gently, pulling the Hyuuga tight against his own chest.
Neji's heart was thundering in his chest, weirdly in concert with Sasuke's heavy breathing, synchronized as if they were already one. The jinchuuriki grasped his erection, thumb pressing erotically against the pounding pulse at the top of the organ, fingers wrapped firmly about him. Neji tried to breathe, to focus as the vessel moved, guiding his swollen body against the oily tightness of Sasuke's entrance. Neji was shaking, hands trembling against Sasuke's hips, some of his fingers still coated with the fragrant lubricant slipping against the raven's sweat-slick skin. He expected Naruto to hesitate, to simply hold him against the thrilling ring of Sasuke's intimate muscles for a moment, but the jinchuuriki pushed hard with his thumb. It was tight, far tighter than a woman and cooler as well, but Naruto pushed him steadily and Neji could barely find enough focus to avoid biting through his own lip. The pressure, the sensation, so much more than he had expected…
Naruto kissed his shoulder tenderly as he forced the engorged head of Neji's cock into Sasuke's taut body, breaching him and nearly causing the Hyuuga to cum. He screamed or perhaps it was Sasuke screaming, he could not be sure. They were connected, moving through more than flesh, together in a way he had never been with anyone. Naruto's hands against him were so warm, so sure. The pressure, muscular and trembling, was almost painful. By Kami he was tight, so tight! Sasuke's body spasming around him, crushing him in erotically fluid contractions, was nearly enough to make him scream. Neji panted, shaking down to the very marrow of his bones, Naruto's strong hand around his sex the only still place. Sasuke was quivering as well, his lovely body misted with sweat and pale with the pain of being breached. The blond held him, hands like warm granite, holding him still until Sasuke could adjust. It was agony, the instinctual urge, the visceral need to move pounding through Neji's body like water through a shattered dam. Neji moaned and it sounded more like a sob, but held himself still in Naruto's arms.
"Good…You're doing good. We just have to wait, wait a little…" Naruto panted, licking his lips.
"H…Hai…" Neji replied shakily.
Sasuke moaned and, bit by bit, began to move again, undulating his hips shallowly against Neji's penis. The stimulation was unbearable and Neji shrieked in both ecstasy and frustration, head thrown back against the firm rise of Naruto's shoulder. Suddenly, Naruto was pushing him again and the Hyuuga was sinking into Sasuke's perfect heat inch by aching inch, mind a perfect white blank filled only with sensation and raw desire. The raven whimpered and moaned, struggling to accept Neji’s length into his body, panting raggedly. Naruto was moving against him as well, thrusting gently against his back, moving to the primal rhythm that moved them all. Sasuke cried out as Neji penetrated him completely, thrusting the last inch with a mindless jerk, fully seated and resting inside the carnal pressure of the raven's body. They breathed together for a moment, the Hyuuga shaking with the strain of being motionless when every instinct he had ever trusted was screaming for him to move.
"Oh…So sexy…" Naruto breathed, running his hands over each of them, down Neji's spine and over Sasuke's ass.
"Dobe…Too much…Fuck…" Sasuke panted, shaking against Neji's hips.
With the same powerful purpose with which he did everything, Naruto stroked his hands lower, wrapping his fingers loosely around both Neji and Sasuke's scrotal sacs, holding them together in a commanding ring. Sasuke shrieked and jerked, pressing back into Neji, the friction of the motion making the Hyuuga cry out as well. The jinchuuriki's hand was an unyielding band around them, pressing the delicate skin of their most intimate flesh together in an embrace too intense to fully comprehend. Neji was moving, pumping shallowly, Naruto's grip preventing him from pulling back too far. Sasuke screamed, hips thrusting back to meet him, back arched wantonly.
They moved, bare inches at a time, Naruto controlling the motion far more than Neji was. Sasuke gritted his teeth, jerking back savagely against him, held from the precipice by the pressure of their alpha's fingers and the restriction of their movement. Naruto purred, moving up against Neji's ass shamelessly. Neji felt his eyes burn, gather water and release in helpless frustration only for the blond to drink his tears the way he had long ago when they were children, the way he had when Sakura lay dying. For a brittle moment, the Hyuuga thought he might have been begging, the words barely intelligible under his breath. His perspective tightened to the feeling of Sasuke's body and Naruto's hand, rational thought burned away into the roaring inferno.
Naruto released them and Neji pulled back with a startled grunt and thrust back into Sasuke with something almost like a sob. The raven screamed, clawing at the sheets as Neji found the nerves of his prostate and pounded against the sensitive tissue. They moved together without rhythm, a writhing tangle of muscle and teeth, shrieking like madmen. Neji jerked Sasuke's legs further apart, penetrating him even more than before, groaning at the rush of fire that shot through his belly at the increased friction the position brought. He was close, so close…
"Cum." Naruto ordered softly against the shell of Neji's ear.
The thrall moved through their flesh like heavy lightning, the searing pleasure beyond imagination, beyond any physical sensation. Viscerally obedient, Neji's body contracted and released with pleasure so sharp and concentrated that the sensation was nearly pain. He came harder than he ever had before, filling the raven's inhumanly beautiful body with his essence. Sasuke tensed beneath him, muscles bunching like woven steel. They came, screaming together, bodies synchronized to Naruto's command. The jinchuuriki held them, peppering kisses over Neji's tingling flesh and Sasuke's back, his body the only stable support left in Neji's muzzy awareness.