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Well, this was just fucking great.Kisame had never been afraid of heights, but as he looked down at the busy street traffic one hundred feet below where he dangled from the edge of the building, he was beginning to suspect it would become a new fear of his, if he didn't fall to his death first.He could feel his nails scrape against the ledge he held onto, and he grimaced as he felt sweat drip down his neck and back. The brick was rough against his hands, and he gritted his teeth as he looked along the building’s wall again to see if there was some sort of foothold he'd missed seeing before.He let out a frustrated grunt as he came up empty again, wondering exactly how he was going to get out of this conundrum he'd gotten himself into.He could only imagine what his captain would say if she saw him like this: “You wouldn't be here if you had a partner backing you up, Hoshigaki.” He resisted rolling his eyes at the thought, hating at how he's now proven her right, but also hating that he's now even considering taking on a partner if he makes it out of this.Fuck, what an embarrassing way to go if this was it for him. What a goddamned rookie mistake. He was better than this.Before he could scope out the side of the building again, he heard a sweet voice above him suddenly speak. “Need some help?”His eyes widened at the sight before him, and he felt his jaw drop as he took in the sight of an honest to gods Kitsune.He didn’t know why the sight of an elusive fox spirit was putting him in such a tizzy, but for whatever reason, he felt his breath catch and his fingers go numb as he stared at her. He lived in a world where demons roamed the earth freely, most causing havoc wherever they went, but the sight of a Kistune was bringing up doubts he had long suppressed. If they existed, just like demons did, what else was out there? Hell, he himself was half demon, but all he wanted to do in this world was create a little peace for others and be left the fuck alone. But being alone was what got him in his current predicament.He allowed himself to look at her, and he swallowed slowly as he took her in.Eyes as green as emeralds peered at him from beneath petal pink hair, and he saw a long pink tail swish behind her as her mouth twitched. The gold earrings on her long, soft ears tinkled as she cocked her head at him, a curious look in her eyes as she peeked over the edge of the building, long golden fingernails tapping against the ledge. If she leaned over any further he'd see down her yukata, but Kisame was a respectful son of a bitch, and he was more concerned with not falling currently.He'd check out the incredibly attractive fox spirit at a later date. “I thought Kitsunes were a myth,” Kisame finally said, grunting as he held on for dear life.“I'm as real as you are, Kisame,” she said.He felt his brows reach his hairline, and he huffed out a disbelieving laugh. “How do you know my name?”“I'm your guardian, that's why,” she purred, her lips stretching into a wide smile he did not trust one bit.Kisame rolled his eyes. “Guardian? I thought those were myths too. I thought all we had to worry about nowadays were these pesky demons causing trouble.”“Trust me, there are more things than just demons for you to worry about. Now, do you want my help or not? You're hanging from a ledge here, and I don't see many options for you,” she said, standing back up to look down at him while she put her hands on her hips.He watched her golden fingernails tap out an unheard rhythm across the green fabric of her yukata, not allowing his eyes to stray further across her form. He could not afford to get distracted by her bare shoulders and lithe legs, nor the way her ears twitched at every little sound, not unless he truly wanted to lose his grip and fall to his death.He sucked in a harsh breath and said, “How should I trust that you're my so-called guardian? Kitsunes are known to be mischievous tricksters according to the legends. That doesn't seem like very guardian-like behavior. ‘Sides, I don't even know your name, kitten.”“My name’s Sakura, not kitten,” she said quickly, smiling at him with all her teeth, and Kisame smiled back at her just as sharply, baring his own supernatural teeth.Sakura blinked at him, almost as if she was only just now realizing he was more shark than man. The gills on his cheeks and the sides of his face were hard to miss along with the pale blue pallor of his skin and the sleek fins on his forearms or his webbed fingers. His golden amber irises against the black sclera of his eyes were always a clear signifier to others that he was more than human–he was also half demon, or as the kids liked to call him growing up, half demon monster spawn.But Sakura wasn’t afraid or intimidated as she looked at him; she just looked curious, and dare he say, worried. Gooseflesh broke out against his heated skin as he clenched his teeth, immediately on guard at the look in her eyes. No one had ever looked at him like that before. Like he was someone to worry for. And he wasn’t sure if it was genuine or not, but he didn’t like that it made his heart skip a beat in his chest as he tried to figure out if there was truly a way he could get out of this situation without taking Sakura’s offer of help.A frustrated sigh brought his gaze back to her green eyes, and he grunted as she tapped one foot.“Look, do you want my help or not? I gave you my name and everything,” she muttered, one hand coming up to brush some of her short bangs out of her eyes as she stared at him.“That’s not enough for me to trust you, Sakura,” he said, his voice raspy as he struggled to hold onto his grip of the ledge. “How do I know you’ll save me from falling only to push me back over five seconds later, huh?”Every muscle in his body ached as he used willpower alone to keep himself from falling, and Sakura narrowed her eyes at him.“I give you my word, no harm will come to you from me after I help you,” she said, leaning down and placing her hands on his wrists. Her grasp was firm, and Kisame felt fire lick through his veins at her touch. “If I don’t, I’ll be deemed a failure, and I won’t let that happen.”Kisame peered up at her, sweat dripping into his eyes, and he blinked as he let out a sigh, pressing his cheek into the brick wall of the building. “You’re really serious about saving me?”“Yes,” Sakura said, rolling her eyes as she made to pull him up, but he clicked his tongue at her and shook his head, and she stopped. “What, do you need a bargain or something to trust me?”“Look,” he started, feeling his fingers dangerously close to slipping, “I want to trust you, but I also don't want to be a huge idiot. Do you see my dilemma?”“Fine,” she said, huffing as she let go of his wrists, leaning back on her knees. Her yukata was dangerously close to slipping off of one shoulder, and the neckline slipped further open, revealing the creamy skin of her chest. Kisame barely breathed as he watched her hold her neck, gold fingernails tapping against her skin as her eyes roved over him, thinking. “Okay, look. How about I save you now, and you can call in a favor from me later, okay?”“Wait, you’re gonna disappear on me after saving me?” Kisame rasped, his throat dry.“I have other duties besides being your guardian,” Sakura said, running her fingers through her pink hair as she glanced away.“Really?” he said drily, a smirk tugging at his lips even though he was mere moments from death.“Yes, really, now are you gonna let me save you or what?” she snapped, her green eyes darkening as she leaned over the ledge to grab his wrists again.Thank the gods she did because he felt his fingers losing their grip, but her grasp anchored him back to the wall as he tightened his hold on the ledge.“Only if you promise to stay with me,” he said, not sure where he was going with this or why he wasn’t already agreeing to her deal.“Kisame, just take my hand and let me pull you up,” Sakura murmured, her eyes wide as he shook his head.Groaning at his refusal, she snapped two fingers and he felt something appear before his feet, giving him a sturdy foothold. He chanced a glance down to see a small step beneath his feet, and he choked out a laugh at the help she’d given him. Holy shit. Looks like she does have some useful tricks up her sleeve, even if it’s only to her advantage right now.A thought slipped into his mind, and Kisame pursed his lips as he looked back at the fox spirit, wondering if he could convince her.“Do you have to leave me after helping me?” he asked quickly, and she frowned.“Yes, always,” she said.“But then how do you watch over me as my guardian if you’re not here?”“We don’t have time for this, Kisame,” she said, but he tsked her, stopping her again.“Tell me,” he said.“You’re insufferable,” she growled, before she took a deep breath. “Guardians are always with their charges, but they must remain invisible at all times to prevent unnecessary interference.”“But you’re not invisible right now,” he said.“No.”“So, why can’t you stay visible after saving me? I could use your help you know,” he said, grunting as he felt one of his feet slip on the foothold, only to curse when he looked down and saw the foothold shrinking.“Shoot, I thought that had more time! Give me your hands, Kisame,” Sakura said, her voice frantic as he still stupidly held onto the ledge.“Make a bargain with me and promise you’ll stay visible and be my partner,” Kisame rushed out, offering her one hand. She took it with a frown, and he added, “At my job. Be my partner at my job.”“I can’t show everyone I’m a Kitsune,” she said, biting her lip, and Kisame’s eyes watched the action, momentarily distracted as he watched her teeth nibble the soft flesh of her lower lip.“Can’t you, uh, shapeshift or some shit?” he said, snapping his gaze to her eyes. “Just do that.”“You don’t need me in that capacity though,” she said, her brow furrowed as she held onto him.“Oh, I beg to differ,” he rasped, giving her his other hand. “My boss has been riding my ass to get a partner, because with no partner I’ve been getting into other situations like this one. And I imagine as my guardian that’s a headache for you. This way, you can be my guardian and help me out in the long term by being my partner.”“This seems like it’d benefit you more than me,” Sakura grumbled, and he laughed.“I thought you didn’t want to fail at being my guardian,” he murmured. “Come on, Sakura, my fingers are tired and I’m about to croak any second here.”“Ugh, fine, it’s a deal, now give me your hands and let me pull you up.”Kisame assented and offered up his hands, and the next moment he was hauled up over the ledge and onto the top of the building, like he weighed nothing. Only, it wasn’t hard concrete his body met as he found his bearings, but a soft, feminine body beneath his.“Oof, you’re heavy,” Sakura mumbled into his chest, and Kisame laughed as he pushed himself up to hover above her.“How did you do that?” he asked, staring down at her as he felt his mouth open. She hadn’t even broken a sweat. “You pulled me up like I was a bag of feathers, and I’m not exactly petite like you.”She laughed, her eyes closing as she laid underneath him, her chest soft against his. She opened her eyes to smile up at him, and Kisame felt his heart stop at the smirk she sent his way.“Super strength is one of my many perks of being a Kitsune,” she whispered, biting her bottom lip as her eyes fluttered, her lashes brushing the tops of her cheeks. “That, and I work out.”She giggled as Kisame laughed, his arms giving out as he fell against her again, and she squeaked. He hurriedly pushed himself up again to not be on top of her, grunting as he tried not to let his body linger against hers, but before he could pull away, his eyes were drawn to her plush lips, and he swallowed.“Sorry about that,” he muttered, taking in the details of her face that he’d missed before. “Thank you for saving me. I owe you one.”His eyes lingered on her forehead, now marked up with a diamond surrounded by petals, almost like a flower, that wasn’t there moments ago. His eyes moved across her face, noticing the freckles across her nose, before his gaze snagged on his own left hand, now marked up in a similar looking pattern.“Oh,” Sakura said, noticing where his attention had drifted. “It’s a physical reminder of our bargain essentially. Don’t worry, people usually just see them as tattoos.”“Won’t people connect the dots when they see the matching one on your forehead?” he asked, pushing himself up to stand. He held out a hand for her to take, avoiding the way her yukata further opened around her chest. She was going to need some new clothes as his partner. He may be a gentleman, but it didn't mean he didn't notice how alluring Sakura was.“I can, what was it you said? Shapeshift or some shit, remember?” she said, one eyebrow raised as she smirked up at him, one shoulder exposed from her askew yukata.She pushed herself up and took his offered hand, so small compared to his, and Kisame reminded himself that it was impolite to gawk at the beautiful woman who saved his life. Sakura deserved his respect. No matter how tempting a sight she was.“Right,” he coughed out. He stuck his right hand in his pocket, grabbing his wallet and removing one of his business cards he had in there. “Here. Meet me at my office tomorrow morning. Ten am sharp. I’ll introduce you to my boss and get you settled in as my partner. Although, you’ll need to blend in and choose some more modern clothes to wear.”He let his eyes rove over her form, careful not to spend too much time on any one part of her, but it was hard because she was beautiful. Her cheeks pinked at his words, and he felt satisfaction settle in his gut as she swept her long hair over her shoulder, biting her lip as she fought a smile.“Sure thing, Kisame, see you then,” she murmured, saluting him with a sardonic smile as she disappeared in a puff of pink smoke.Kisame shook his head with a chuckle, wondering what he had just gotten himself into, but he couldn’t exactly say he wasn’t looking forward to more interactions with the Kitsune.
Three Weeks Ago
Sakura was fascinated.It’d been a week since she’d been assigned her newest charge, and already she could tell that she wouldn’t have another boring day in her life as long as he was around.She let her thoughts wander as she watched him click around on the computer at his desk, doing some sort of administration duties since he was waiting on follow ups for leads on his open cases. Hoshigaki Kisame. Half man and half shark demon, Sakura was curious about how her charge felt about his career. A former task force leader of a specialized group who wrangled out of control demons to keep the peace, Kisame was now a detective for the police force. His job still worked with the task force, and he more often than not was assigned cases where the suspects were demons, but Sakura wondered how he felt as a half demon himself, trying to keep the peace between the species.A read through of his file had told her his mother was seduced by a shark demon but was abandoned when she became pregnant. Sakura bet more than anything that must have affected him, especially seeing as Kisame currently had no partner at work and kept to himself unless dragged out by his coworkers or the few friends he has.He seemed lonely. Even if it was self-inflicted most of the time, she saw longing in his eyes for connection with someone, but his actions of pushing others away said otherwise.He was an enigma to her, and it didn't help that she had a small crush on him too. The few times she’d seen him smile or hear his deep laugh at something his coworkers said or did tugged at something in her chest. She was charmed by that brief glimpse of joy on his face, even if all other people saw was a hybrid sharkman.Sure, the fins on his forearms and webbed fingers and gills and sharp teeth were unnerving compared to human anatomy, but he was still a man. Still a being worthy of love and respect and attention. Besides, she was a Kitsune. She knew a thing or two about strange. And interspecies relationships were more common than most people thought—she didn’t think humans were ready to know about the existence of vampires, werewolves, and other shapeshifters quite yet. But half demons like Kisame were almost as common as humans themselves, but most of them were lucky enough to have features that easily blended in with normal human anatomy. Kisame wasn't so lucky.He was so much more than his lineage, and something in him called out to her. Even though it was forbidden for her to reveal herself to him as his guardian, she wanted nothing more than to pull him into her arms and smooth out the ever-present worry line on his forehead.She’d never felt this way towards any of her charges before, or any of her past lovers either. It worried her that she felt such an attachment to him so quickly, but it also only further encouraged her to learn everything about him. This went against everything she’d been taught when training to become a Guardian, but her heart was telling her to fuck the rules and do what she wanted.And she wanted so desperately to reveal herself to her charge and get to know him the old fashioned way: through conversation and interaction.But that was one rule she wasn’t willing to break. Yet.“I’m going out for some coffee, Uchiha. You want anything?” Kisame’s gruff voice brought Sakura out of her thoughts, and she crossed her legs, put her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands as she watched him grab his wallet from across the room.He couldn’t see her of course, nor hear her, no one could, but that didn’t stop her from wishing the Guardian magic would glitch so he could see her. No one told her that not being able to talk to their charges would make for a very boring job. She let a beat pass before she sighed and followed Kisame out the door, doomed to forever remain invisible.Guardians implemented the rule of staying invisible to their charges two hundred years ago, saying it was too dangerous for Guardians and charges to know each other. Something about Guardians getting too involved in their charges’ lives and not having sound judgment when it came to their safety, but Sakura ignored all of the textbook reasons the Elders gave.She knew the real reason why they didn’t want Guardians and charges interacting anymore: love.Her mentor, Tsunade, had told her the truth back when she was in training to be a Guardian, and it was all a bunch of bullshit reasons and silly Guardian politics. Essentially, more often than not, some Guardians and charges would fall in love, and it would create a soulmate bond. And since charges and Guardians were matched up based on compatibility, it only made sense that if the relationships turned into something more romantic, they’d end up as soulmates.Sakura snorted as she followed Kisame on his journey for caffeine. That was poor planning on the Elders if they didn’t want soulmate bonds to happen. They set themselves up for failure.But according to Tsunade-sama, the Elders were scared of what the soulmate bonds did . Since most of the human population was so intermixed with demons and other magical species, most of the charges that the Elders choose to protect have some small percentage of magical blood in them. And when combined with the magic of the Kitsunes, well. That gave the charges Kitsunes were deemed to protect a sort of power up that the Elders did not like at all.So, all in all, total “only we can have the power” bureaucratic bullshit.Sakura looked at Kisame beside her, completely unaware of her presence beside him, and she huffed out a laugh. “You’d probably think all this Guardian stuff is bullshit too, huh?”“Yeah,” Kisame said, and she jumped, her mouth falling open, before she realized they had stopped at the coffee kiosk. “Can I get one large Americano with two extra shots and one chamomile tea?”“Oh,” Sakura said, realizing he wasn’t talking to her.She didn’t question why her heart sank at the thought, stupidly forgetting that Guardian magic was almost unbreakable by outside forces. Kitsunes alone could undo it.“Have a nice day,” Kisame murmured to the man at the coffee kiosk, and Sakura frowned as the barista only nodded with wide, frightened eyes.Why was he so scared of Kisame? He had a police badge, and he actively worked to protect people like him from demons and other evil forces alike. He’d served Kisame coffee every day this week–why was he so shocked to see him still?Sakura felt her chest ache at his kindness to the barista still, especially when she realized this wasn’t the first person to treat Kisame this way since she’d been assigned as his Guardian. Humans were ignorant and dumb, and sometimes she wondered why the Guardians held them in such high esteem as to make them their top priority as charges. Sometimes she thought they should leave them alone and let them figure out how to interact with all the other species in the world besides the demons they so vehemently feared.Sakura didn’t miss the hunch of Kisame’s shoulders as he turned away and headed back to the station, and she wished more than anything that the stupid rules for Kitsunes weren’t a thing. If this were two hundred years ago, she’d give that barista a piece of her mind and then cheer Kisame up. She just wanted to see him smile again.When they reached the building, she furrowed her brows as he ran inside and came back out within seconds, his other hand free of the tea he had gotten his coworker. He still sipped at his own coffee, but he walked past the building and she followed. Maybe he found a lead on one of his cases earlier and was investigating it now.Kisame walked leisurely along the sidewalk, nodding and smiling to people they passed even if they didn’t smile back. Sakura silently cursed every one of them.They eventually stopped at the edge of a park, and Kisame sat down on the bench near the entrance, golden eyes scanning their surroundings. Sakura wondered how he’d feel if he knew she was watching him.Standing off to the side of the bench, Sakura crossed her arms under her chest, blowing some of her hair out of her eyes as she felt her tail swish behind her. She was grateful for the slow day because then she didn’t have to truly worry about protecting Kisame, but she was also bored .“Meow!”Sakura gasped as she looked down and saw a small, black kitten, and she cooed, “Hi, little friend! What are you doing out here by yourself?”The black cat meowed again and started purring, rubbing itself along her legs, and she glanced at Kisame to see him looking at her. Well, not at her, but at the kitten. A soft smile was on his face, which some people might not think possible with his sharp features, but it was , because she was witnessing it right now.“Hey, sweetheart,” Kisame murmured, his voice low and soft, and Sakura smiled as he sat his coffee on the bench and stood up to lean down toward the kitten. “Where’s your home, kitten? Do you have one or are you all alone?”Sakura almost squealed at the gentle way Kisame picked up the kitten, his large fingers delicately scratching behind the kitten’s ears as he continued talking in a low, dulcet tone, calling her all sorts of adorable nicknames since she had no collar with no name. Her cheeks heated as she saw how the kitten fit right in the palm of his hand, and she was suddenly struck by how large Kisame actually was. She wanted to be that kitten, and she wanted him to call her sweetheart. She let out a breathy whine at the sudden realization, and her cheeks burned as Kisame tucked the kitten against his chest. He was so sweet, and no one had ever bothered to find that out about him.“Let's get you home,” Kisame murmured, chuckling when the kitten burrowed into his neck, and he turned and grabbed his coffee, making his way back in the opposite direction of the precinct.As Sakura followed him home, her heartbeat echoing in her ears and her face so warm she felt like she was on fire, she realized she was doomed from the moment she had laid eyes on Kisame. Her cheeks hurt from her smile at watching him interact with the black kitten, and she realized she never stood a chance at not liking Kisame.Because that’s what this was. She liked him, and she definitely had a little crush on him. She was going to be in so much trouble when the Elders found out.
Present Day
“Hey, boss,” Kisame said as he walked into Mei’s office.She looked up at him from beneath her crimson hair, bangs askew as she sorted through papers on her desk.“What do you need, Hoshigaki?” she said, one eyebrow raising before she went back to her tasks. She paused, clicking through something on her computer before she grabbed a pen and wrote something down on one of the many papers across her desk, and at his silence she looked up again. “Well? Get on with it. I don't have all day.”Kisame blew out a slow breath as he crossed his arms across his chest. “I've found someone to be my partner. So you can cross that off your to-do list.”At his statement, she dropped her pen on her desk and leaned forward in her chair, placing her elbows on the desk and folding her hands underneath her chin. “Oh? And who is this partner of yours, or should I say, where did you find them?”“Her name is Sakura, and she actually saved me a few days ago when I was in a bind chasing after the perp for the ritual murders case I'm on,” he said in one breath.Mei was quiet as she tilted her head and looked at him, a small smirk tugging at her lips before she leaned back in her chair.“A woman, huh?” she asked, and Kisame scoffed as she laughed. “You know we have a hiring process right? You can't just bring in people off the streets to work with you!”Kisame rolled his eyes and shook his head. “You dragged me off the streets and into the police academy with you years ago in almost the exact same way I met Sakura. Give me a break.”Mei cackled, her shoulders shaking as she threw her head back, and Kisame chuckled, the tension in his shoulders melting away as she sighed.“Alright, fine, but I'd like to meet her before you start chasing perps together,” she said, turning back to her computer when it chimed with an I coming email. “Bring her by tomorrow, and we'll get everything sorted.”“Sure thing, boss,” he said with a mocking salute, and she rolled her eyes.“Get out of here.”Kisame wiped his hands against his pants as he looked at Sakura beside him, before he knocked on the door to his captain’s office. Her tail swished as they waited for an answer, and his eyes watched as her ears twitched before he raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her. She was thankfully in a more modern outfit of tight fitting jeans, a t-shirt, and leather jacket instead of the silky green yukata he'd met her in, but he secretly bemoaned the fact that so much of her was hidden from him. She was still a beautiful sight to look at though. Not that he was looking. Much. This whole bargain of making her his partner, where he’d be around her almost every single day, might have been a mistake. She smiled at him when she noticed his gaze on her. Yes, a very distracting mistake, he thought.“Aren't you going to hide your tail and ears?” he said, biting the inside of his cheek.“I look like a normal human to everyone but you,” she said, green eyes crinkling in the corners as she gave him a wide smile.“Lucky me,” he teased, before he knocked on the door again.“Yes, lucky you,” Sakura said with a wink.“Come in.”With one more glance at Sakura, he shrugged his shoulders and opened the door, stepping in. Running one of his hands through his short, dark hair, he inhaled a slow breath before clearing his throat.“Boss, this is Sakura,” he said, gesturing between the two women. “Sakura, this is Terumi Mei, my captain and the HBIC of the precinct.”“How many times must I tell you not to call me that, Hoshigaki?” Mei growled through a smile. She stood up and offered her hand to Sakura.“Until it's no longer true,” he said with a sharp smile, and Mei snorted and shook her head.“Hello, Sakura, nice to meet you,” she said, pushing some of her red hair behind her ears. “Kisame hasn't told me much, but he says you're his new partner and reliable, which is a lot from him.”“Ah, I see,” Sakura said, a laugh in her voice as she looked between him and his captain. “Well, I'm happy to be here to keep him in line and out of harm’s way. Looks like he needs it based on our first meeting.”Kisame scoffed as Mei practically cackled, grabbing a stack of papers and handing them to Sakura. “Here are some standard forms for you to fill out for HR, and I'm gonna call someone in to give you a tour of the precinct while I iron out some last minute details with Kisame.”Kisame frowned while Sakura nodded and waited as Mei picked up her phone to call someone to her office. A minute later, Ino appeared, and Kisame sent Mei a look, which she ignored, as Ino introduced herself to Sakura. She was Uchiha Obito’s partner, a spitfire of a detective that luckily he rarely worked with. He didn't know how Uchiha put up with her. He watched as Sakura and Ino seemed to hit it off immediately, and he had a feeling that he’d be seeing more of Ino than he’d like as long as Sakura was his partner.Moments later he was alone with his captain, and he didn't like the smirk she sent his way as he waited for her to speak. The silence stretched on, and he shifted his weight as he tucked his hands into his pockets.Finally, Mei said, “I like her. I think she'll be good for you.”Kisame blinked at her before he smiled, relief settling in his shoulders as he chuckled. “Good. Yeah, she's a force to be reckoned with, and you haven't even seen her in action yet.”Kisame thought back to when Sakura saved him, wondering just what other tricks she had up her sleeve as a Kitsune. He couldn't recall much about what the legends said their abilities were past shape shifting and general trickery, but he had a feeling she would be an asset to him as his partner. If anything, she’d probably be able to identify demons faster than he could. His lineage gave him an advantage, yes, but it wasn’t much compared to those with more demon blood in their DNA or supernatural creatures like Kitsunes. “And you've seen her in action?” Mei said, her tone curious as her eyebrows rose beneath her red bangs.“Uh, yeah, when she saved me?” he said, not liking the smile on her face as she tilted her head. “Why are you looking at me like that, Mei? Cut it out.”She laughed and shook her head, opening up a drawer in her desk and pulling out a piece of paper.“Here,” she said. “I have a feeling you'll need this. she's very pretty.”Kisame frowned as he saw the words “Relationship Declaration” printed at the top of the form. “I know, but what the fuck is this, Mei, I don't—”“If you two start fucking, please fill out that form and save me the headache of having to save your ass,” she said, shooing him out the door with her hands before he could open his mouth again. “Thanks, Kisame. Be safe and use protection.”Kisame sputtered as he tried to deny anything between him and Sakura, but Mei just shook her head and booted him out of her office, her laughter following him down the hall as he slunk to his desk.He had never blushed so hard before in his life, and now he had Mei to thank for his distracting thoughts about Sakura.Staying in the human world and being visible to others was a dream come true for Sakura.Not only was she able to keep an eye on Kisame and protect him, but she wasn't bored anymore, now constantly busy with one thing or another. She was also becoming fast friends with Ino, and even Obito, which was nice. Being a Guardian didn't leave much time for friends usually, but now she had them. The only friend she probably had before was her mentor, Tsunade, but it’d been years since she’d last seen her.Who knew choosing to save Kisame personally would lead to this? She would have saved him regardless of choosing to reveal herself to him or not, but she couldn't help but admit the idea of meeting him and actually talking to him is what spurred her on to reveal herself. The Elders weren't happy when she told them the new parameters of her guardianship with Kisame, but they could freaking deal with it.Now, she had the chance to get to know him through other means than her status as an invisible Guardian. She didn't regret anything.Plus, she enjoyed being in the human world. Now that she could interact with people, she could do so many things, and she always dragged Kisame along with her to explore when they weren’t actively working on cases or at the precinct. Not that he put up much of a fight. For someone who was so prickly towards everyone else, he sure was amenable to joining her on her outings.But the only downside to staying visible in the human world were the constant trips she had to take back to the Guardians each night. It was exhausting trying to maintain a proper sleep schedule when she needed to travel from there to here to keep her on Kisame’s schedule. It'd only been a couple of weeks since she'd started this arrangement with Kisame, but she had a feeling once his caseload started picking up, her living situation would become unreasonable.Which brought her here, to Kisame’s doorstep, ready to beg him for a place to stay.Knocking on his door, she folded her hands in front of her as she heard footsteps come toward her. She didn’t know if she’d be able to convince him to let her stay with him, but she figured she could be very charming when she wanted to be.The door creaked open, and when Kisame’s golden eyes connected with hers, he pulled it wide, leaning his shoulder against the door to keep it open.“Can I help you?” he murmured, not hiding how his eyes looked her up and down.She swallowed as she felt her blood heat under his gaze, and she tapped one long fingernail on her lips. “Are you busy?”“No,” he answered, crossing his arms as he held back a smirk. He raised one of his eyebrows for her to continue, and she blew out a breath.“Can I come in?”“I–”Before he could finish answering her, she was slipping inside past him, glancing around his apartment with a whistle.“Wow, this is a nice place,” she said, eyes roving over the large kitchen with an island counter, and a living room with a couch cozy enough for two people to share, if Kisame ever had guests over. She barely heard the door click shut as she continued inspecting the space.“I didn’t say you could come in, Sakura,” he said beside her, putting one of his large, warm hands on her shoulder. She shivered at the touch and at how close he was to her, his body brushing against her tail, and she turned her head to look at him over her shoulder, scrunching her nose at him and sticking her tongue out at him. “Careful, or I’ll put that thing back where it belongs.”“Kisame!” she said, her cheeks hot as she turned away, stepping toward the hallway where his bedroom was. She moved quickly so he couldn’t grab her again, and she laughed when she heard him curse behind her as she inspected the rooms. “Oh, you have two bedrooms? Well, that’s kinda perfect.”“Why is that perfect? Wait, you’re not–” Kisame said behind her before a tinkling sound stole her attention from the rest of his response.She squealed as she looked down and saw a familiar black kitten, kneeling down to scoop up the kitten she’d seen a few weeks go. “Hi, babygirl! Oh, it’s so nice to see you again.” She continued cooing at the kitten as she scratched behind its ears and beneath the pink collar, and she finally turned back to Kisame. “What’s her name?”“Uh, it’s uh,” Kisame stuttered, his eyes wide and his cheeks turning a light purple. Was he blushing ? He cleared his throat and brought a hand to scrub at his face before he sighed. “Her name is Purrsimmon. Wait a minute, again ?”She snorted at the name, giggling as she realized it was a play on words of his last name as she ignored his last remark. “Oh, gods. That’s funny.”Kisame joined in on her laughter, easily forgetting his question, and she sighed as Pursimmon purred against her neck, her little whiskers tickling her skin.“So,” Kisame said after a beat had passed. “What did you mean by my having a second bedroom was perfect?”Oh, right. Time for her to turn on the charm .“Well, I kinda need a place to stay,” Sakura started, biting her bottom lip as she widened her eyes and looked up at him, her tail swishing behind her as she played up her expression. “It’s exhausting traveling back and forth from Guardian land to here, and if I lived here, I’d have more energy to expend to help catch our perps! Plus, it’s a win-win because then I’ll always be here to protect you.”Kisame scoffed and rolled his eyes as he fought the twitch of his lips. “I don’t need your protection.”Sakura laughed, raising her brows at him as she shifted her stance to cock out one hip. Purrsimmon snuggled deeper into her neck, and she made sure her voice was even so as not to disturb the sleepy kitten. “Really now? Might I remind you that it’s because of me you didn’t decorate the street with your guts when you would’ve inevitably fallen from that building, Mr. I’m-so-tough-I-don’t-need-any-help-ever.”“Okay, okay, fine, you helped me out,” he said, and at the click of her tongue, he sighed and added, “and I’ll probably still need your help. But why do you have to move in here ?”“Oh, Kisame, I just explained it to you,” she said, giggling as she turned and went into the empty bedroom. It was just enough space for her and her things, and she smiled as she started making a mental note of where she would put all her room decorations.He trailed behind her, and she turned back around to him.“Explain it to me like I didn't hear it the first time,” he said, crossing his arms and tilting his head.He leaned against the door frame, golden eyes on her and her gaze caught on how much space he took up in the room. He was barely in the bedroom, and yet she felt like he was everywhere, his tall form mere inches below the top of the doorframe. His wide shoulders made the white t-shirt he was wearing look too small, the sleeves cupping his biceps in a way that was decidedly sinful to look at. His tight black jeans did him too many favors, and Sakura could only thank the gods she couldn’t see his ass because she’d probably be drooling and embarrassing herself.Clearing her throat, she ripped her gaze away from him and stepped toward the bed in the room. She bent down and gently placed Purrsimmon among the blankets, smiling when she curled into the soft bedding, and Sakura grabbed the throw from the edge of the bed and made a makeshift cocoon around the sleeping kitten.Kisame cleared his throat, and she hushed him, sending a pointed look down at Purrsimmon before walking over to him and placing her hands on his chest, quickly moving him out of the room. She tried and failed to ignore how firm his chest felt beneath her fingers, and she inhaled a slow breath as he let her push him back into the living room of his apartment.Kisame looked down at her hands on his chest when they finally stopped, a small smirk on his stupidly handsome face. “So, are you going to tell me why I should let you live here then?”“Yes, I just didn’t want you to wake up Purrsimmon,” she said, stepping back from him, hoping he didn’t notice the blush that was surely on her cheeks. She held up one hand and counted off her reasons on each finger. “First off, traveling between the Earth and Guardian planes takes up a lot of my energy that I could be using for my other Kitsune-esque powers you so lovingly reminded me I have. Normally, I’d just stay here without you knowing because of the whole invisible thing. Secondly, now that I am visible to you and everyone else, I have to expend energy on the illusion of me not having a tail. So, this way, I’m just making my roommate status known to you, and lastly, it saves me the commute from there to here for work! Please let me live with you, Kisame.”Kisame shook his head as he chuckled, and he let out a sigh as she continued looking at him, clasping her hands together as she gave him her best pout and puppy dog eyes. Her ears drooped as she whispered out another please, and she smiled when he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He stood no chance against her pathetic ear drooping.“Alright, fine, I guess,” he said, opening his eyes. “Don’t make me regret this.”Sakura laughed and disappeared in a puff of pink smoke.A few minutes later she reappeared in the living room again, everything she’d need for her stay here in packed bags. Kisame didn’t yelp so much as let out a shriek at her appearance as he jumped off of his couch cursing.“Oh good, you’re still here,” she said, letting the bags on her shoulders drop to the ground with the others.“Uh, yeah, I live here?” he said, one hand on his forehead as he caught his breath from the fright she gave him. He looked at the many bags surrounding her feet, and he groaned. “And so do you now, huh?”“Yes, sir, I do!” she said, trying not to gawk as she realized he’d changed into gray sweatpants, which did very little to hide what wasn’t so little in his pants. Oh my gods, would you look at that, her inner voice purred. She’d only heard stories from other Guardians about the wondrous clothing item of gray sweatpants. And now she understood what the hype was about. Her brief glimpse had her heart racing and sweat dripping down her neck, and she swiped one hand through her hair to distract herself from her naughty thoughts.Kisame sighed, and she looked up at him, snapping to attention. “Well, come on. Let’s get you unpacked.” He bent down and grabbed several of her bags and stood back up, already heading back to what was now her bedroom.Her chest ached at his gesture, and she knew she shouldn’t let herself get attached to Kisame, but she feared it was already too late.Living with someone else was a bit unnerving, but Kisame soon got used to Sakura’s presence in his apartment. He didn’t let himself think about how quickly he adjusted, or how seeing her teasing grin each morning before they left for the precinct each morning just felt right.And having her as his partner?Best. Bargain. Ever.Sakura was a lifesaver, and he wasn’t just saying that because she saved his life when they met.Not only was she more sensitive to half demons and full demons, but her abilities as a Kitsune meant she could quickly identify whether a crime committed even involved any supernatural beings or not. Knowing this early on helped streamline the investigations and cases they were assigned, and Kisame felt like he was closing cases left and right after being able to focus on the correct evidence needed.He wanted to kiss her for how much easier his work life had become, and he tried not to focus too much on that fact. He couldn’t afford to mess up his now very comfortable work routine, and thoughts of kissing the pretty fox were at the top of the list of things that would fuck that up.So, he would stop thinking about how soft her lips looked every time she looked at him when she found a lead in one of their cases, or how her green eyes brightened whenever she turned out to be right on one of her hunches. She was radiant on the days when they were stuck at their desks doing paperwork, her scrunched nose as she stared at the computer doing things to his chest whenever he had to intervene and show her how to open a pdf file.That shouldn’t make him smile, but goddamn it, he always found his lips twitching upwards whenever she called him over for help again. He liked the feeling of being needed.“Kisame, how do you open this file? I’m clicking on it, and nothing’s happening.”Speak of the devil, or in this case, fox.Kisame chuckled as he stood up from his chair and stretched his arms behind his back before making his way around to Sakura’s desk. Leaning over her shoulder, he looked at the file she was trying to open from an email, his large hand encasing hers on the mouse as he looked at her screen.Ah, a zip file. He hadn’t shown her how to open this yet.Her long, fluffy tail brushed against his thighs through the opening of her chair between the back and seat cushion, and desire flickered through his body, which he ignored. He didn’t know how, but he kept his voice even as he explained in a low murmur how to right click on the folder to use the file archiver and compression tool installed on every computer in the office, showing her how easy it was to use.“Oh, wow, this has been so helpful, Kisame, thanks,” she said, turning to look at him, her face mere centimeters from his.“Sure, no problem, Sakura,” he said, his breath caught in his throat as he gave her a small smile. She didn’t blink at their proximity, nor did she seem scared to be faced with his sharp smile. “Let me know if you need anything else.”“Of course,” she said, giving him a sweet smile as she turned back to her screen.“And keep your tail to yourself,” he whispered, rolling his eyes when she merely giggled and winked at him.“Kisame.”He turned at Mei’s call, frowning when he saw the serious look on her face. His stomach turned as she motioned to him and Sakura to come into her office, and his foxy partner merely raised her eyebrows when he grabbed her by the elbow and gently pulled her along with him.Once the doors were shut behind them, Kisame crossed his arms as he waited for Mei to spit it out. Sakura stood right next to him, her shoulder hitting his elbow, and Mei closed the manila folder on her desk before looking up at them.“The Jashin killer is back. Dispatch just called in another murder, ten minutes ago, and they’re blocking off the scene of the crime right now.”“Fuck,” Kisame grunted, his entire body going tense as he absorbed what Mei said.“There's something else,” Mei murmured, her voice low. “There's three bodies this time, all at the same location.”Kisame went still as Sakura sucked in a breath at the statement, and he looked at her, frowning when he saw the worried look on her face.“Is that not normal?” Sakura asked, looking between Mei and Kisame, her brow furrowed as if she was trying to recall something.Mei sighed and lifted up the folder she had closed earlier. “Here's the case file. Kisame can fill you in on more details on the drive to the crime scene, but short story is yes, three kills at once in one location is unusual. The Jashin killer has killed multiple times at once, but usually the bodies have been left in different locations, each body a sort of breadcrumb trail to the next one. This guy is meticulous, and three kills in one location is new. ”Sakura looked at Kisame, tapping one finger to her nose as she thought over what Mei said. “Why is he called the Jashin killer?”“Because of the ritualistic way he murders his victims,” Kisame interjected, stepping forward to grab the folder from Mei. He handed it to Sakura and ran one hand through his dark hair. “We've linked the symbols painted in blood at the crime scenes to a ritual in Jashinism, a god believed to grant immortality through human sacrifice.”Her pretty mouth dropped open before she opened the folder, quickly scanning the contents of the file.“Let me know the minute you get there and get a chance to look at the crime scene,” Mei said, nodding toward the door. “I've texted you the address. Three bodies in the same place means more opportunity for mistakes.”Kisame nodded and grabbed Sakura around the elbow and led her out of the office at Mei’s dismissal. She hummed to herself as she continued reading the file all the way to his car in the parking lot, and he rolled his eyes with a smile as he buckled her in.“Riveting stuff, huh?” he said once they were on the road.“I recognize these symbols, Kisame,” she said, finally looking up at him. She blinked at her surroundings. “When did we get in the car?”He laughed as he came to a red light and pulled into the turn lane, turning on his blinker and giving her a glance. “I practically carried you out of the precinct you were so preoccupied. But tell me about the symbols.”Sakura rolled her eyes even as she sent him a smile, her cheeks a pretty pink as she cleared her throat. “These symbols are actually for the demon Jashin, not a god. But the problem is he's dead, had been for a while actually. I'm surprised that whoever is doing these sacrificial killings knows the proper symbols, though they're not for a ritual.”“What are they for then?” he asked as the light turned green.“It's an invocation for repossession spell,” she murmured, her brows furrowed when he looked at her.“Repossession of what exactly?” he said, left hand on the wheel as his right hand tapped the center console along to the beat of the low music coming from the radio.“For Jashin himself? I'm not sure until I see the crime scene,” she said. “But I think it's a way for Jashin himself to come back?”“But you said he was dead,” he said, letting himself peek at her as he waited for the next light to turn green.She was biting her pointer finger as she thought over her next words, her plush lips around the digit making Kisame's mouth go dry. He drew his eyes back to the light and the road in front of him, but he coughed when he tried to clear his throat.It was such a simple action, yet now he was thoroughly distracted.“...killed in threes?”Kisame blinked. “Sorry, could you repeat the question?”“How many killings have there been in total?” she asked.“These three bumps it up to fifteen,” he answered. He frowned as she hummed, worry churning in his gut.“And had every murder spree been in a group of three?”“Yeah, now that I think about it. How'd you know? I don't think it was labeled as such in the file.”“Oh. Well, that’s not good,” she muttered, one hand toying with the end of her long hair that was held together with a green bow.“What’s not good, Sakura?” Kisame said, his teeth clenching as he finally pulled up to the crime scene. He turned off the engine and turned to her, but she was already unbuckled and out of the car headed towards the yellow tape. Kisame followed after her, cursing. “Wait, Sakura!”He caught up to her just as she reached the taped off area in front of a quaint yellow house, easily encasing her wrist in his hand to stop her from moving past the two officers stationed there. His hand was so large compared to her wrist, and if he didn’t know that she was a powerful Kitsune who could throw him over her shoulder, he’d almost believe that he could snap her wrist in two. Not that he would–he’d never want to hurt her.Her tail wrapped around his thighs as he pulled her back away from the officers, and he leaned down to her ear. “Why are you being so vague and cagey, Sakura? What do you know?”“I’m not sure,” she breathed, looking over her shoulder at him, her nose just barely brushing his before he pulled back up to his full height. “I’ll tell you when I see the crime scene.”Kisame held back his groan and nodded, and his untethered hand grabbed the end of her tail that was wrapping around his waist now.“Fine,” he said. “And what did I tell you about your tail?”“Keep it to myself,” Sakura drawled, rolling her eyes before sending him a wink. “But why would I do that when I know you like my tail?”“What, I, what do you mean?” he stuttered, dropping her tail and scratching his cheek. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”“Mhmm, sure, Kisame,” she purred, her eyes half closing as she stuck her tongue out at him. “Now, are you gonna stop holding my hand so the nice policemen can let us through?”“I’m not holding your hand,” he said.“Oh, you one thousand percent totally are,” she said, smiling at him before turning back to the officers. “Hi, we’re the detectives assigned to this case.”“You’re hanging out too much with Ino,” Kisame groused as he reached into his pocket. “You’re beginning to sound just like her.”“Hey, that’s my friend you’re talking about,” Sakura said, elbowing him before she smiled back at the two officers.“IDs, please,” Officer number one said as number two looked between Sakura and Kisame with a smirk.Kisame scowled at number two as he showed number one his ID and said, “She’s with me. Her ID’s still being processed.”Both officers nodded and lifted the tape to let them through, and Kisame tugged Sakura along as she giggled.“You didn’t have to be rude to them,” she whispered, releasing her wrist from his grasp only to wrap both hands around his left arm, snuggling her face into the middle of his bicep. She pinched the skin of his arm gently, and Kisame tried not to make a big deal out of it, but this close to her he could smell her perfume of apples and jasmine, and he wanted to live in that moment a little bit longer.Realizing he hadn’t responded to her yet, he coughed and said, “Well, your tail is distracting.” He tried not to let color flood his face at her touch, but her tiny hands on his arm and her face against his bicep had him wondering if he had put deodorant on that morning.His heart jumped in his chest, and he took a slow breath, trying to calm himself down. He wasn’t used to such blatant affection, but dammit he liked it. A lot. Too much in fact, that he let her stay snuggled into his side until they had to separate to put on their shoe covers and gloves to not contaminate the scene.They meandered through the house, taking in the details of each symbol drawn in blood on each wall, and Kisame fought back a grimace at the smell of copper and death in the air.He kept one eye on Sakura though, cataloging her reaction to the symbols and letting out a breath when he realized her frown was getting deeper. What had her so concerned? What did she know that she wasn’t telling him?Finally, they made their way to the master bedroom, where all three victims were arranged in an upside down triangle, the sign of Jashin. The sigh was also painted in blood across their necks, their cheeks, and their wrists. Blood covered almost every inch of the room, most of them some sort of variation of the triangle, and Kisame felt his stomach lurch at the sight. He dragged one hand across his jaw as he came to stand beside Sakura, who was worrying her bottom lip with her teeth as she stared at the victims, her wide green eyes flicking from one victim to the next, then to every symbol painted on their bodies.“It comes in threes,” Sakura murmured, her voice only loud enough for Kisame to hear.“What comes in threes? What do you mean?” he asked, turning to her fully and crossing his arms. Breathing through his mouth so he wouldn’t have to smell the tang of copper in the air, he waited for Sakura to speak before he quickly changed his mind when he almost tasted the spilled blood instead.“Every murder up until this point has been a triple homicide in separate locations, three found in one night, right?” Sakura said, looking up at him as he nodded. “Now, we’re onto murders thirteen, fourteen and fifteen, and it’s still three. It’s all multiples of three. Every murder is a multiple of three somehow, and this one happened to be the fact that the victims were displayed all together. And I bet you we’ll have two more triple homicides to make it to twenty-one total victims.”“What’s the significance of that?” Kisame said, rubbing his eyes with one hand. He was already exhausted, and with every new murder, this case took another piece from his hardened heart.His job was only one of the reasons why he only let a select few get close to him, and he was worried that he already included Sakura in that group now. But he couldn’t be upset about that. He looked forward to his days with her, whether at work or at home, and he couldn’t help but wish that this arrangement between them would be permanent. Of course,  he never specified when she’d have to stop being his partner…so he could assume that meant when he retired, which wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.“In some cultures, the number twenty-one signifies perfection,” she said, still staring at the victims’ bodies with a frown. “Remember how I told you the symbols drawn are for an invocation for repossession spell?”Kisame nodded, crouching down to get a closer look at the wrists of the victim in front of him. “What does that have to do with all the threes?”He slowly stood up, straightening out his slacks as he did, and he motioned for Sakura to follow him out of the master bedroom.When they were alone in the nook of the living room, Sakura took a deep breath.“I think Jishan’s soul is out there in somebody’s body, a fully human most likely, murdering all of these victims. But not in multiple ritualistic killings, but one big ritual. The point of this ritual is to tether Jashin’s soul to whatever body he’s in, essentially making him a real being again. He’s trying to come back permanently, and this means that he was never truly put down in the first place, and oh gods, if he comes back, everything is going to get fucked, and I’d have much more to worry about than just you and–”“Hey, hey, hey, take a deep breath, Sakura,” he said, reaching forward and cradling her face in the palms of his large hands. He grimaced at the sight of his webbed fingers against her beautiful skin, but Sakura merely sucked in a breath as she covered his hands with hers.He allowed himself to brush one gloved thumb along the swell of her cheek, and her breath stuttered as her bright green eyes flickered to his amber ones, and he nodded at her to keep breathing. She stared at him as she continued taking deep breaths, and he smiled at her when he felt her breaths start to even.“There you go, good girl, keep breathing for me, Sakura,” he murmured, chuckling when he noticed her stiffening and blushing at his use of good girl. He didn’t mean for that to slip out, but now that he knew she had a reaction to it, he mentally bookmarked that nugget of information for later. He cleared his throat. “Everything’s going to be okay. We’re going to catch this guy and put him away for good so he can’t hurt anyone else. Okay?”Sakura nodded, his hands moving with her head, and she smiled up at him tentatively. “Okay,” she said.“Okay,” he said with a wide grin, reaching up to brush some of her bangs out of her face. “Everything’s going to be alright, I promise.”With that, he slowly pulled away from her, even if everything in him was screaming at him to tug her to his chest and hold her. It’s funny; she’s his guardian, but he feels like more often than not he wants to be hers instead.Shaking her head, pink hair getting in her eyes, she let out a sigh as she turned back to the crime scene, her nose scrunching adorably as she looked around the room.“Come on,” she said, taking him by the hand. Kisame ignored the way his heart jumped. “We need to check for other potential evidence, right?”Kisame nodded, swallowing. “Correct. Mei probably wants a check in too.”With that, they continued their perusal of the entire house, searching for anything unusual from the past crime scenes, hoping to find something that will lead them to the whereabouts of this murderer.He had to have fucked up somewhere, and Kisame was determined to find this guy’s mistake, if only so he could prevent that worried look from ever appearing on Sakura’s face again.Weeks passed easily as their caseload fluctuated from light loads to hectic weeks filled with endless paperwork, following leads, and chasing down perps. The Jashinist case was at a standstill right now, but Kisame could feel the tension building in his shoulders as the days went by without any solid leads towards the unsub’s location.They’d gathered plenty of evidence against him, sure, but nothing concrete that gave them a clue as to where he would go next. Kisame was just waiting for the next three bodies to drop as Sakura had predicted.But right now, they were waiting to apprehend a different unsub in an entirely different case. One where Mei had instructed Sakura to act as a honeypot to tempt this guy out of hiding.Kisame did not like this one bit.He stood against the wall in a back office of the club, across from where Sakura stood in a barely there two piece top and skirt, her hair pinned up with a bow at the crown of her head that was fitted with an invisible camera. The updo showed off the graceful curves of her neck, and five inch high stiletto gladiator heels adorned to her feet made her legs look a mile long. His mouth was drier than a desert as he looked at her, and his entire body felt like he was coming down with a fever the more he thought about what she had to do.The club owner’s graciously allowed them to use the space for the op, and Ino and Obito were there with them as support. They’d stay with him in this room waiting for Sakura’s signal to move in while she made herself a target on the club’s dance floor. He was both grateful and annoyed that he wouldn’t be alone while waiting for Sakura’s go ahead, but at the same time he just wanted this all to be over. Ino was currently adjusting the tiny wires beneath the back of Sakura’s tiny top and skirt, and Kisame flexed his jaw as he watched.“Here, let me,” he heard himself say as he stepped toward the two women.“I know how to hide a wire, Hoshigaki,” Ino said, rolling her eyes even as she stepped back with her hands up, and Sakura leaned into his touch.“Yes, but she’s my partner,” he groused, his brows furrowing as he gently brushed his large hands over Sakura’s clothes, making sure the wires were sufficiently hidden and undetectable to the naked eye.He pressed his lips together as he realized Ino did an excellent job, letting his hands fall to her hips, telling himself he was still checking the wires.“Sakura’s a big girl, Kisame, she can handle herself,” Obito chimed in, and Kisame held back a snarl.“Yeah, Kisame, I can handle myself,” Sakura murmured, her voice laced with amusement as she looked up at him and fluttered her eyelashes, one of her hands coming up to tap him on the nose.He raised one eyebrow as she giggled, and he moved his hands to her shoulders, giving himself the excuse that he was trying to ground himself as he opened his mouth.“I know. Now, remember, this guy looks for the vulnerable women in these clubs,” he said softly. “You’ll want to play the part so he’s drawn to you.”“I’m pretty sure she knows how to draw men in. That outfit is doing most of the work,” Obito said, and Kisame sent him a glare.“Don’t antagonize him, Obito,” Ino said, elbowing him as she sat down at the desk where they had set up their laptop to hear what Sakura’s wires picked up. “He’s bigger than you and will beat you up.”“He’s nothing I can’t handle,” Obito scoffed, cracking his knuckles as he sent Kisame a smile.“Don’t tempt me, Uchiha,” Kisame growled. He took a deep breath and looked at Sakura again. “Say it again. What’s your signal?”“I sure am thirsty. Could you get me something sweet to drink?” she purred, biting her bottom lip with a smirk as Kisame fought a blush from the feel of her fingernails trailing a path across his chest, her touch gentle but firm.“And your signal for help if shit hits the fan?” he husked, his hands coming up to hold her hands against his chest. He knew he should pull away, but he was lost in the depths of her green eyes as she looked up at him.“Actually, I’m a bit tired, I think I’ll head on home,” she said, one of her fingers tracing a figure eight between the divots of his pectorals.Kisame couldn’t breathe. Shaking his head, he coughed and nodded, dropping his hands to his sides and stepping out of her grasp. “Good. We’ll be waiting for confirmation. But please, Sakura, be careful.”Sakura’s playful smile turned soft and she nodded. “Of course.”She turned to leave and head to the dance floor, but Kisame reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her back. “One last thing: don’t underestimate him. He’s only an underling in this sex trafficking ring, but he’s learned dirty tricks from the demons he works with. Some of them are going to be in the crowd too, and we don’t want to tip them off to our operation. Things could get ugly too fast.”“Thanks, Kisame, I’ll be okay,” she said, winking at him before she was gone.Everything was not okay, and shit had decidedly hit the fan twenty minutes ago. Mere seconds after Sakura had given them the okay, she was saying her phrase for things going wrong, and Kisame let himself freeze and panic for two seconds before he was charging out onto the dance floor.People had started screaming and running towards the exit as Kisame fought his way through the crowd, having heard gunshots right before, and he’d cursed as he saw Sakura in the midst of holding off five guys around her. Her body moved fluidly as she engaged the group of men in hand to hand combat, her arms in front of her face as she dipped away from their blows and used her legs to strike them where her hands couldn’t. He didn’t know how her outfit was staying on her body as she fought the men off, but somehow it was, and he couldn’t look away as she continued incapacitating the men coming at her.Kisame was mesmerized, but the shouts of Ino and Obito had brought him back into focus as he realized more men were swarming the floor. Squad group five from the task force he’d called in as backup had finally arrived, jumping into the fray as more members of the sex ring began fighting, and Kisame pulled out his gun from his holster as he heard shots begin to fire.He lost sight of Sakura as he worked with Ino, Obito, and the other members of the task force to detain these guys, and by the time they finally had all the members of the ring handcuffed or immobilized, Kisame was dripping in sweat.“Where’d Sakura go?” he asked Ino and Obito as he looked around the club, the strobing lights distracting from his goal of finding his partner.“Cool your jets, Romeo,” Ino said, wiping her brow with the back of her arm. “She’s over there in the corner talking with Zabuza.”Kisame whipped his head to where Ino pointed, ignoring her and Obito’s amused laughter as he stalked toward his partner.“Sakura!” he bit out as he drew closer, holstering his gun that was still in his hand as he took her in. She didn’t look hurt, but one could never be sure. “Are you okay? I lost sight of you in the middle of everything. Are you hurt?”Sakura smiled at him as she nodded at Zabuza and walked toward him, meeting him before he could reach her in the corner.“I’m fine, this was nothing,” she said, smiling up at him as she put her hands on her hips and shrugged.“It wasn’t nothing, Sakura,” he murmured, hesitating as he brought one hand up to brush some hair out of her eyes that had fallen out of her updo. “Are you sure you’re okay?”“Really, I’m okay,” she said with a smile, biting her lip as she turned and nodded her head to her right. “But that guy and his cronies won’t be. I think I was a little rough on them. But it’s nothing a jail cell won’t heal.”Kisame laughed as he shook his head, slowly letting out a breath as he inspected the group of men Sakura had single-handedly detained. They looked a little worse for wear, purple bruises already mottling their faces and necks and exposed arms, and he let out a low whistle.“Nice work,” he said, his eyes back on Sakura as he continued looking for signs of hurt on her that he might’ve missed. “Do you need to see a medic to see if you’re okay?”Sakura giggled, shaking her head. “You were really worried about me, huh?”“You’re my partner, of course I was worried,” he said, crossing his arms and biting the inside of his cheek.“Mhm. Well, no need,” she said, reaching up and patting his cheek, before tilting her head up to kiss his cheek. Her lips were soft, and he held his breath as she pulled back, smirking at him. “That’s cute, and really sweet, but I don’t need you to worry about me. ‘Sides, I can always heal myself if I do get injured.”With that, she patted his cheek again and walked past him, humming to herself as he turned to watch her go, and his jaw went slack as he noticed the extra sway to her hips. She looked over her shoulder at him and winked, and his cheeks burned.“You could’ve mentioned that ages ago, you know!” he called after her, and she merely laughed, her bare shoulders shaking as he worked to get his heart rate under control.As he watched her walk away, he was hit with the sudden realization that he didn’t like watching her walk away from him. In fact, he didn’t like it when he wasn’t with her period. There wasn’t a moment he could think of in the past few months where he’d been alone and was grateful to be alone. Instead, he remembers thinking to himself how he’d wished she’d been with him, and how he even went so far as to seek Sakura out if he didn’t know where she was.If anything, he was glad to be saddled with her presence, and she’d become a balm to his lonely soul, easing past the hardened shell he’d encased himself in. And now that she was there, he didn’t ever want to let her go, no, he couldn’t let her go.He craved her companionship, yearning for the moments where they didn’t have to worry about their caseload or the outside world, instead just choosing to spend time together exploring the good things in this world. Hell, he was pretty sure she was the best thing in the world, and he couldn’t put into words just how he had come to know that. He just did.He knew what this feeling was, was afraid to put the thought into existence for fear of what it would mean, but it was too late.He was falling in love with Sakura, and he didn’t know what the fuck to do about it.Sakura was in trouble, and she’d known she’d been in trouble ever since she agreed to this bargain with Kisame in the first place.But damn it, she didn’t regret it one bit. Especially since it all led her to where she was now, undercover with her partner Kisame, pretending to be a couple.It was the stuff of her favorite romance novels, and she couldn’t believe she was acting out one of her top fantasies.“Do we have to hold hands the whole time?” Kisame grumbled from beside her in the booth, and she turned to him, pouting at the frown on his face.“We’re a couple, we need to look the part,” she muttered, her thumb tracing patterns on the back of his hand as she looked down and bit her lip, playing the part of the blushing wife. She loved his hands, not minding his webbed fingers at all, because she knew what his hands could do. She was also fascinated by the fins on his arms, and she wanted to reach out and stroke them, but she felt that was a little bit too forward.  “So, a little affection from you would go a long way to sell this, Kisame. Besides, we blend in a lot more as a couple here. Do you want our mark to get a clue that we’re following him?”Kisame sighed but moved closer to her, untangling his fingers from hers to wrap his arm around her shoulders. He pulled her into his side as their thighs touched, and Sakura felt her entire body ignite from within, desire coursing through her at such an intimate touch.“How's this?” he murmured in a low rasp, his other hand reaching for hers, tangling their fingers together.She thought the webbing on his hands would make it awkward to entwine their fingers together, but she was pleased to find how easily her hand and fingers fit with his. Sakura hummed as she watched him play with her fingers, the diamond ring on her finger glinting in the low light of the candle on the table, and she bit her lip to stop her smile. This felt too nice, and she could get used to this. Kisame’s hand around her shoulders began to move slowly up and down her skin, and she almost purred at his touch, but she opted to lay her head against his chest as she looked up at him.His heavy lidded yellow gaze sent a bolt of arousal flooding through her limbs and she sighed, the fingers of her free hand dragging slow patterns across his firm abdomen. His embrace was so warm, and she could only imagine what his skin would feel like against hers, but she needed to focus on their goal of this undercover op.But that could wait a few minutes.“Hm, I don't know,” she finally answered him, tilting her head up, her nose brushing against the underside of his chin. She boldly pressed her lips against the skin there, drawing back to smile at him and giggling at his stunned expression. “I feel like you could do more.”Kisame's cheeks darkened, turning to a pretty lilac color, and his fingers tightened on hers as her free hand crept up his chest to wrap around the back of his neck, his dark hair soft against her fingers.His eyes darkened, turning amber as he dropped her hand and cradled her face, his thumb brushing against the swell of her cheek. Sakura almost mewled at his warm touch and the way his large hand enveloped the entirety of her face, and she nuzzled into it.“What, do you want me to kiss you or something?” he murmured, his thumb slowly tracing her bottom lip, his eyes following the movement. “What about staying focused?”She smiled, dragging his thumb into her mouth and wrapping her tongue around the digit and sucking before releasing it with a wet pop. Kisame's own mouth dropped open, and she noticed his blush turn a deeper purple. She wanted him to kiss her, and by gods she was going to make him kiss her.“I am focused. Our target is currently staring at us actually, wondering why we’re not like every other affectionate couple in here,” she quipped, smiling when he rolled his eyes.“Somehow I don’t believe you,” he muttered, even as he moved his face closer to hers as her own hand tapped the back of his neck to do so.Even if his words said he opposed her suggestions, Kisame was very easily giving in to her suggestions, and Sakura was tickled pink about it. She also wanted to make him blush again, and she was pretty sure she could do so if she somehow managed to get him to kiss her.“You know, a good husband would believe his wife,” she retorted.“True,” he said, his other hand coming up to brush some of her pink hair out of her eyes. “Unfortunately, you’re not my real wife.”“But our target doesn’t know that,” she pointed out, her eyes flicking over his shoulder to indeed check on their target. She wasn’t lying about him being curious about them, seeing as every other couple in the restaurant were sharing kisses occasionally, and she and Kisame had yet to do so.“And yes, by the way,” she said, bringing her gaze back to her partner, “I do want you to kiss me. At least to keep up our cover.”Kisame hesitated, frowning as he looked around the restaurant discreetly, noting all the couples that were indeed kissing. “You want me to kiss you? As your husband?” he said, and Sakura laughed, wondering why he was finding it so hard to believe her.“Yes, of course,” she said. “Unless you don’t want to kiss me?”Kisame sucked in a breath at her words, and his eyes drifted down to her lips, his own tongue peeking out to wet his own.“I do,” he whispered, and Sakura smiled at her victory.Now all she had to do was convince him to follow through.“Then get to it then, Kisame,” she cooed, nuzzling her face into his hand.“I don’t think husbands give in that easily, Sakura,” he said, chuckling when she pouted up at him.“Oh, I don't know, Kisame, I am your wife,” she purred, her fingernails scratching the hairs at the nape of his neck. “Every wife wants her husband to kiss her, and husbands usually give in when their wives throw themselves at them.”His brow furrowed as his eyes snapped to hers, a question in his eyes that he wasn't voicing. She tilted her head, waiting for him to respond, her fingers still toying with his hair, and he took a breath before nodding.“You're right,” he murmured, his hand gripping her face more firmly as he leaned in and turned his body towards her. His nose brushed against hers, and Sakura sucked in a breath, waiting. “And a good husband always gives his wife what she wants.”His fingers followed the curve of her jaw, the touch a mere whisper against her skin. She felt her breath catch as he swept his thumb across the swell of her cheek before dragging it so slowly over her lips. She parted her lips to inhale a small breath, and Kisame smiled, the sight making her heart race at the look in his golden eyes.“Kisame, please,” she whispered, her voice so quiet she was afraid he didn’t hear her.He stared at her for another moment, his fingers gently caressing the side of her face, and then the next instant his lips were on hers. Sakura closed her eyes and sighed into his kiss, a moan making its way up her throat. Electricity zipped through her veins at the feel of his soft lips against hers, and she gasped when his tongue pushed past her lips as he licked into her mouth.She couldn't hold back her moan this time, instead pressing herself into him, needing to feel more of him against her. Kisame's other hand came up so he could cradle her face with both of his hands, and her heart stuttered in her chest as he angled his head to kiss her deeper, his lips pressing more firmly.She could feel herself needing air, but she didn't want to pull away from this amazing kiss, scared he wouldn’t want to kiss her again, but Kisame broke away first. Before she could protest, he trailed his lips across her cheeks and then her nose while she gasped for breath, and then he started feathering hot kisses down her neck as she panted above him, entangling her second hand in his hair. Her nails scratched his scalp as he licked and sucked his way across her neck, his mouth hot and leaving the memory of his lips and teeth imprinted onto her skin. She held him against her as his lips continued caressing her neck with attention, and she never wanted this moment to end.“Kisame,” she whimpered, gasping when he lifted his head and his sharp teeth suddenly nipped her earlobe, pleasure zipping up her spine and down to her toes. “Oh gods.”Kisame hummed against her ear, his tongue tracing the shell of her ear, and she mewled as she threw her head back. One of his hands stroked her other ear, and she felt her panties grow damp beneath her dress, and she choked when he pressed another kiss to the back of her ear. Her ears were so, so sensitive, and the fact that he didn’t even balk at the feel of the soft fur of her ears made her want to throw caution to the wind and lose herself in him in the booth of this restaurant. Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore, and she reached up and grabbed his face to bring it down to hers. Said booth they were sitting in was far too tiny for her to crawl into his lap like she wanted to, but she sufficed with pressing herself into his chest as she kissed him. She nipped at his lips, their hot breaths mixing as she felt Kisame’s hands drift back down her neck to her shoulders and then her waist, his large hands slipping beneath the hem of her shirt. His hands were hot to the touch as his thumbs drew circles into the skin of her waist, and she bit his lip as one of his hands drifted further up her shirt, smoothing over her abdomen.She trembled beneath his touch, and she felt him smile into the kiss when he noticed.“Ahem.”They pulled away from each other at the interruption, and Sakura blushed when she saw the waiter there with their food on a tray, waiting on them, completely unphased. She almost forgot this restaurant was notorious for having a secret underground sex club, run by the very target they were following for money laundering.“Sorry,” Kisame husked, and Sakura clenched her thighs together as she sat back on her side of the booth, discreetly checking her reflection in the back of a spoon to see just how chaotic she looked after that kiss.Their target was nowhere to be found, but that situation could easily be rectified soon enough.On the other hand, her situation with Kisame, well. She was so screwed.One kiss was all it took for her to realize it was too late for her to pretend this was only infatuation, because now all she wanted to do was kiss him again, and again, and again. One look from him had her heart going into overdrive, and she didn’t know how much longer she could contain what she felt for him. Oh, please, as if you weren’t smitten with him since he saved that kitten, Inner screamed. The nail has been in your coffin since the very beginning. Sakura mentally scoffed to herself and rolled her eyes, ignoring what she knew to be true.She didn’t know what to do, but right now, she had an op to focus on. She could dream about kissing Kisame again later.Two days after their undercover op, Kisame was sitting at the table in the break room with Sakura, both of them sipping from their coffee mugs as they went over what they knew about the Jashinist serial killer.They still had no leads, but they were working the case whenever they had free time in between all their other cases they were assigned.But Kisame couldn’t stop thinking about the other night in the restaurant when they kissed. It was all he could think about the past few days, and he feared he wouldn’t ever stop. Kissing Sakura was like coming up for air after sinking to the bottom of the ocean, and he wanted to remember that feeling forever.But he knew he needed to talk about the kiss with her, because things between them had been off since it happened. Nothing had changed between them per se, in fact, Sakura was acting just like any other day, but something felt off, and he couldn’t put his finger on what exactly it was. He wasn’t sure if it was good or bad either, and that’s what was driving him crazy. He could have sworn that she was even flirting with him that night, but he couldn’t tell if it was part of the act of being undercover, or just her usual self playing tricks on him. He didn’t like either option, but he figured he might as well lean into the new boundaries of flirtation in their relationship if she didn’t push him away.Ultimately, he knew he needed to come to an understanding with Sakura, so that they could keep working together easily.He would just have to stop staring at her lips first.Silence stretched between them as they sat at the break room table, pictures of the Jashinist case laid out over the table. He looked up and caught Sakura’s gaze, and she blushed and bit her lip, staring down into her coffee cup.“So,” Kisame said, breaking the silence and clearing his throat when Sakura looked back at him. “About the other night.”Her lips twitched and she brought her cup up to her mouth before she said, “What about it?”She drained the rest of her cup and got up to go to the coffee pot, slowly refilling her cup. As she searched the drawers for sugar and creamer, Kisame stood up and came up behind her. He reached out and tugged on the ends of her hair, his fingers brushing against the green bow holding her hair together, and she squealed as she turned around.“What are you doing?” she said, her nose wrinkling as she slapped his hand away from her hair.Kisame chuckled, giving her a wide smile as he leaned against the wall and watched her fix her coffee to her liking. “Just trying to get your attention.”“You’re kinda hard to miss,” she said, giving him a once over as she looked him up and down, and he felt his blood heat at the look in her eyes. It was the same one he saw right before he kissed her, and he felt his heartbeat echo in his ears as he coughed. “You always have my attention.”“Do I now?” he asked, tilting his head as he looked at her, taking the opportunity to check her out.She was fitted out in tight black leather pants and a matching vest, her leather jacket hanging on the back of her chair at her desk. He loved her shoulders, and seeing them exposed in the vest and pants duo had him wanting to brush his fingers across her skin to see if she was just as affected by him as he was by her.But he didn’t have any good reason to touch her, and he couldn’t think of one either.He cleared his throat, bringing one hand up to rub the back of his neck. “So. That kiss. I wanted to apologize if things got a little out of hand the other night. I’m sorry.”Sakura’s mouth twitched, and she leaned her hip against the counter as she tilted her head. “Why? I didn’t think things got out of hand. It was a great kiss.”Kisame crossed his arms as he stood a bit taller, and he licked his lower lip as he smirked at her. “Great kiss, huh?”Sakura blushed as her eyes widened, and she pressed her lips together, her tail swishing behind her legs as her ears went straight up. She was adorable, and Kisame smiled wider at the sight, stepping closer to her.“I’ve said too much,” she murmured, ducking her head as she turned back to the counter to continue fixing her coffee. “You’re a good kisser, it’s not a big deal. So what?”“No, no, say more, it is a big deal,” Kisame said, moving up behind her, pressing his chest against her back. He chuckled when he saw her shoulders breakout in gooseflesh, and he brushed her hair to the side of her neck, unable to resist bending down to place a small kiss on the back of her neck. “I don’t think you’ve said nearly enough about what you thought of that kiss and my kissing skills. Please continue.”She melted into his touch, her tail wrapping itself around his thighs as her ears stood straight up, and he smiled when he noticed her labored breathing. He wanted to kiss her again, and he had a feeling that he had a fifty fifty chance she’d let him.“What do you want to know?” she breathed, her voice wavering when he placed his hands on her shoulders, slowly sliding them down her arms, memorizing the feel of her skin beneath his fingertips before he covered her hands with his webbed ones.“Hmm, do you have any notes? Anything I should do for next time?” he husked, nosing the back of one of her ears and delighting in the way her entire body shivered at that specific touch. He noted her sensitive ears and that she seemed to like them being touched, and he smiled at the memory of her whimper when he touched her ears the other night.“Next time? How are you so sure there’s going to be a next time?” she whispered, gasping when he removed his hands from her only to turn her around to face him.He pressed her back against the break room countertop, his hands gripping her waist, and she brought her hands up to lay on his chest.“Oh, I don’t know, Sakura, probably from the way you haven’t pushed me away yet,” Kisame teased, rubbing circles against the slight strip of skin exposed between the edge of her pants and her vest.“Cocky, aren’t you?” she said, raising one eyebrow as she pressed her lips together to hold in a smile.“I think I have reason to be,” he answered, trailing one hand up her side before he lifted it to cradle her face, his fingers tangling into her pink hair as his thumb stroked the side of her face.Sakura inhaled a sharp breath, her pretty pink lips parting as her pupils dilated, and Kisame grinned, dipping his head towards her.Just as he was a mere whisper away from tasting her sweet lips again, a throat loudly clearing had them jumping apart, Sakura cursing when she smashed one of her elbows against the corner of the counter. Kisame cursed when he turned to see Mei, one eyebrow raised with her hands on her hips as she stood in the doorway of the break room.“Don’t forget to fill out a form for HR if the relationship between you two has changed,” Mei finally said after an awkward minute of the three of them looking at each other. She shook her head with a pleased grin as she pointedly looked at Kisame. “I believe you remember where I keep those in my desk, Kisame.”With that, she turned around and came back the way she came, and Kisame groaned as he covered his face with one hand, his cheeks hot and probably the color purple now as Sakura giggled.“What form is she talking about?” she asked.“Don’t worry about it,” he muttered, stalking out of the break room, trying and failing to keep his dignity intact.He was going to murder Mei, and then he’d never solve this stupid Jashinist case or kiss Sakura again, because he’d be too busy dying from mortification as he served out his murder sentence.As he sat back down at his desk, he couldn’t help the smile that overcame his face though, because Sakura was definitely flirting back with him. She was receptive to his touch, and his chest felt warm at the fact that she almost welcomed his touch.Sakura joined him back at their desks a few minutes later, having brought the case file and photos back with her. As she sat down across from him at her desk, she sent him a shy smile as she logged back onto her computer, and Kisame answered hers with a smile of his own, his chest lighter than it was before.He didn’t know when he’d get the chance to try to make something of whatever this was between them, but he found comfort in knowing that she probably felt this pull between them just like he did.A few weeks later, Kisame found himself once again undercover with Sakura, but this time they’re following a lead on the Jashinist case. They finally figured out the identity of the guy, or at least the name he goes by: Hidan. Just Hidan. No last name, no description of what he might look like, except that he has a tattoo on his neck of the Jashin symbol they’ve seen painted in blood at all the crime scenes.Three weeks ago there’d been another triple homicide at the same location, following the pattern Sakura had predicted. When they looked up how long it’d been since that first case Sakura was on, they realized it’d been three months exactly since then. They figured they now had three months until the last triple homicide that would bring the body count up to twenty-one, when all hell will supposedly break loose.Sakura was a ball of anxiety, and Kisame found himself doing anything he could to help distract her while they worked the case. More often than not, this led to him giving into the urge to flirt with her, and surprisingly, she flirted back with him. He didn’t know what was happening between them, shocked still that she even seemed to like him, but he wasn’t going to question it.In fact, he was leaning into it, not getting stuck on his own insecurities as he found reasons to touch her and get close to her, going so far as to be in her personal bubble whenever possible. She never pushed him away, and he’d lost track of how many almost kisses they’d almost had in the past couple of weeks. He was a fucking goner, and he’d take whatever attention she gave him, because he was just grateful she wasn’t put off by him.And now, here they were, undercover as a couple again, but this time they were checking into a hotel together for their cover. Kisame swallowed as the hotel receptionist slid their key card over to him, and Sakura thanked the woman as they went towards the elevators.Five minutes later they were in their hotel room, and Kisame felt his jaw drop as he saw the single queen bed.“I thought I requested two beds,” he rasped, his mouth dry as he glanced at Sakura. Already he could feel his cheeks heating, and he scratched his cheek with a sigh as they set down their bags by the closet. “Let me just call reception.”“Kisame, it’s fine, we can share a bed,” she said, sitting on the bed and letting out a small moan as she leaned back into the soft mattress. “Oh, this bed is heavenly. Come try it out with me.”Kisame spluttered at her words as the receptionist answered his call, and Sakura giggled at him with a knowing wink as he asked if they could be moved to a room with two beds.“Yes, I understand, but I requested two beds in my booking,” he said, pinching the bridge of his nose as Sakura continued getting comfortable on the bed. He barely heard the receptionist’s response as she typed away on her keyboard as he watched Sakura stretch out along the mattress, arching her back as her hands reached above her head, her tail tangling between her legs, and he felt his cock twitch beneath his pants at the sight. Fuck, he needed to pull himself together. He could not share a bed with her. He brought his attention back to the receptionist’s voice in his ear as she said they had no more two bed rooms, and he sighed as she offered up a cot. “Okay, fine, that will have to do. Thank you.”Sakura rolled over on her side, holding her head up with one hand as she looked at him.“So? What’s the verdict? Are we sharing or not?” she said, giving him a smile as she noticed his eyes on her legs. “My eyes are up here, Kisame.”“Cot. They’re going to bring me up a cot,” he said, snapping his gaze to hers, his cheeks so hot he felt like he was on fire. “You can take the bed, and I’ll take the cot.”Sakura frowned, and she sat up, sitting cross legged as her tail fell down off the edge of the bed. Her ears wilted as she looked at him and then the bed, and she said, “Why do you need a cot? We can just share. We’re adults and can manage that, right?”“Well, yes, but I tend to be a cuddler and don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” he said, rubbing the back of his head as he avoided her gaze.“You think I’m scared of a little cuddling?” she asked with a giggle, sitting up on her knees as she cocked her head, putting her hands on her hips. “I’ll have you know I love cuddling, and if that’s the worst thing that could happen if we share a bed, then bring it on, Sharky.”Kisame rolled his eyes at her annoying nickname for him, trying to remind himself she meant it in a cute way.“I’ll take the cot, thanks,” he muttered, going back to their bags to begin unpacking.“I’m beginning to think you don’t think I’m cute anymore,” Sakura pouted, and he heard shuffling behind him before he stiffened as he felt her hands wrap around his waist as she laid her head on his back beneath his shoulder blades. “Am I not cute enough to cuddle, Kisame?”“That’s not it, Sakura,” he grunted, placing his large hands over hers. He felt hot all over as she only pressed herself further into his back, and he felt his breath catch when he realized he could feel her breasts against his back. He coughed and cleared his throat, but before he could say anything else, there was a knock on the door. “That’ll be the cot.”Thirty minutes later, Kisame stared down at the tiny cot they’d set up at the foot of the queen bed, his brows furrowed as he realized this cot was going to either fuck up his back tonight, or he just wouldn’t get much sleep tonight. Sakura came out of the bathroom and stood beside him, crossing her arms as she too stared at the tiny bed. He tried not to glance at her out of the corner of his eye, but he couldn’t help it.She looked absolutely adorable in her olive green pajama set, a pair of shorts and a simple tank top, but he stifled a groan when he realized the cold air of the hotel room was making her nipples hard. Her outfit only made it more noticeable, and he cleared his throat and tried not to think about his own state of dress and how she could probably see the outline of his cocks in his fitted navy boxers.“Kisame, this is ridiculous. There’s plenty of room in the bed for both of us,” she said, and he turned his head to protest but got distracted as he watched her chew on her bottom lip. He wanted to replace her teeth with his own, and he batted those thoughts away as he felt his cocks ache at the thought of kissing her again. “Seriously, it’s not a big deal.”She turned to him then, and he snapped his eyes up to hers, letting out a sigh. “It’s fine, Sakura. I’ll be fine. It’s just a couple of nights.”She frowned at him, but shrugged and went to the bed and got in, reaching over to switch off the lamp before she tucked herself beneath the covers. “If you’re sure. Although, I will say, this bed is super comfortable. I bet it’d be even better with you in it, sharing all that body heat.”She wiggled her eyebrows at him, and he chuckled, shaking his head as he drew back the covers on the cot. The bed squeaked as he lowered himself into it, and he held back his dissatisfied groan when he immediately felt how uncomfortable and too small the mattress was.Ten minutes later he was still awake, and it felt like every other second he was shifting trying to get comfortable. His muscles already felt sore from the discomfort, and if it weren’t for his pride, he’d probably be in the queen bed with Sakura, happily asleep already. Kisame stared at the ceiling in the dark, praying for sleep to come so he could get the night over with.“I told you that cot was too small,” Sakura’s sweet voice made him jump as he broke out of his thoughts.“I thought you were asleep,” he whispered.“I can’t fall asleep with you shifting every few seconds trying and failing to get comfortable,” she retorted, and he heard her move beneath the covers of the queen bed.“Sorry, I’ll try to be quieter,” he said.“Kisame, this is ridiculous,” Sakura said, and he blinked as she turned on the bedside lamp, lifting himself up on his elbows to stare at her. “There’s plenty of room. Get your ass up here.”He pressed his lips together as he thought over his options, his eyes straying to the thin straps of her tank top. He knew her matching pajama shorts were currently hidden by the covers, but the idea of sleeping beside her when she wore so little made him nervous. But if they stayed on their sides of the bed, maybe it’d be okay. But he knew that was impossible. He really didn’t want to wake up to her screaming when his face inevitably wound up in her chest during the night. He always sought out warmth when he was sleeping, and he knew he’d gravitate towards her during the night, as he always did whenever he shared a bed with someone.“I’ll be okay, I promise,” he said, deciding to play it safe to keep his dignity intact.“Kisame, if you don’t get your ass up here in two seconds, I’ll come over and drag you to the bed,” she almost growled, and his brows shot up as he sighed and finally relented, not wanting to test the limits of her aggravation, and he pulled the small blanket off and sat up.“Alright, alright, I’m coming,” he grumbled. He quickly made his way to the unoccupied side of the bed, sliding under the covers and sighing in relief as he felt the comfort of having enough room to stretch his legs and a soft mattress beneath his back.“See? That wasn’t so hard,” Sakura said with a laugh, and Kisame mentally groaned at the feel of her warm breath on his shoulder. The last time he’d been this close to her, he was tasting her lips, and fuck , he should not think about that if he wanted to keep any sense of decorum. “G’night, Kisame, sweet dreams.”“Sweet dreams, Sakura,” he murmured, closing his eyes.Kisame was wrapped in a cocoon of warmth, and the smell of apples and jasmine filled his senses as he took a deep breath. He didn’t want to move lest he break the pleasant ambience he found himself in, but a breathy moan and the feel of something soft yet firm rubbing against his groin had him slowly opening his eyes.All he saw was pink hair, and it took him a moment to realize he was smelling and feeling Sakura , her soft pliant body completely molded to his. Another moan left her lips, and Kisame gasped as he realized she was rutting against him, the feel of her pajama shorts against his thighs as her covered pussy rubbed against his cocks making his head spin.“Fuck,” he muttered, his hands tightening around her shoulders as Sakura continued grinding against him, soft moans spilling from her pretty lips.He could feel precum leaking from both of his tips, the sensation of Sakura’s soft pussy grinding against him making both of his cocks rock hard. He sucked in a breath as she mindlessly lifted her top leg to hook over his hip, pressing her pussy even closer to his cocks, and he groaned when he realized her shorts were soaked through. He could smell her arousal, and his mouth went slack as he allowed himself to thrust his hips against hers, before he snapped his eyes open and realized what he was doing.He was already close to exploding, and he did not want to wake her up with the mess he would inevitably make. But her arms were locked around his neck, and there was no way for him to untangle himself from her that wouldn’t result in someone getting hurt because of how wrapped up in each other they were. Fucking hell, it’d been a long time since he’d found himself in such a compromising position. His only regret was that it happened in his sleep.“Sakura,” he said urgently, raising his voice when she merely moaned. “Sakura, wake up!”Sakura’s eyes finally opened as she whimpered, and she smiled at him sleepily, blinking at him before she nuzzled her face into his firm chest. “Morning, Kisame. Gods, I knew you’d be a good bed mate.”“Morning, Sakura,” Kisame choked out, her center still pressed very firmly against him. “Would you, ah, would you mind kindly releasing me? You’re uh, shit, how do I say this? You’re um, pressing against both of my cocks, and I’d very much not like to make a mess of you by making the wrong move.”Sakura stilled in his arms as he imagined she processed his words, and she slowly looked up at him, her green eyes wide and mouth open in a small ‘o’ as a blush spread across her cheeks and the tip of her nose. “Two?”Kisame nodded and muttered, “Yeah. I’m half shark. So.”She stared at him for another moment as her blush drifted down to her chest, and she coughed as she slowly extracted herself from him. She quickly got out of bed, grabbing the top blanket and wrapping it around herself, and she gave him another look before she nodded. “Okay then.”With that, she disappeared into the bathroom, and after the door shut, Kisame fell back into the mattress with a groan, covering his face with both of his webbed hands.What a fucking disaster .He knew this would happen. Of course she would get scared off by his two dicks, and he can’t believe he just casually blurted out that he had two cocks! He usually took his time introducing potential lovers to the idea of two cocks, not that Sakura was a potential lover or anything even though he definitely wanted her to be, but there he went, just awkwardly telling her to get off his two cocks.He’s had previous partners who were fine with the whole two cocks situation, but more often than not he’d hear his lovers say something along the lines of how fitting it was that a monster like him had two monster cocks, before they used him and left him the next morning. He’d never had a repeat lover, and so more often than not, he found himself passing on the opportunity to take any lovers and risk exposing himself to them both emotionally and physically. No one had made him feel worthy of love, and so he didn’t see a point to seek out relationships.Until Sakura.But now he’s gone and fucked that up too.Kisame groaned again before he finally got out of bed and quickly changed his underwear and put on some clothes for the day, hoping that this wouldn’t change too much between them.By the time they made it back to the hotel that evening, Kisame was exhausted. It’d been a long day of following people connected to Hidan, and it wasn’t until their last destination of the day that they even got his last name. Smith . Hidan Smith. It was such a normal name, and Kisame and Sakura had laughed over the fact that it was someone so ordinary sounding that was committing such heinous crimes.But then they both had grown quiet and somber as they realized Hidan probably wasn’t himself anymore, that it was most likely the demon Jashin who had taken over his identity completely. Despite the morbid mood, that was the one moment of the day that felt normal between Kisame and Sakura, because the rest of the day fucking sucked.Sakura had been standoffish and awkward with him all day, stumbling over her words and avoiding his touches as they gathered intel on Hidan. Once they had learned his full name it seemed like things were getting back to normal as they looked him up and made a plan to hit all his normal spots tomorrow, but now it was back to the same quiet and awkward air between them.Kisame set about making the cot up for bed, having resigned himself to the distance, but a disgusted noise from Sakura had him looking up.“What are you doing?” she asked, towel drying her pink hair as she frowned at him.“Getting ready for bed,” he said, furrowing his brows.“The fuck you are,” she said, throwing the towel down on the floor as she crossed her arms. The motion drew his eyes to her breasts, and he noticed she was dressed in another similar pajama set to the one she wore last night. Gods, this was fucking torture . “I’m not letting you sleep on that thing, you’ll break your back.”“Sakura,” he said, a warning in his voice as he narrowed his eyes at her. “I figured you’d want some space from me.”She snorted, scrunching her nose as she shook her head. “What, because you have two cocks instead of one? I don’t think they take up that much more space, Kisame, you’re fine.”Arousal spiked through his body at her words, but he took a slow breath as he counted to ten. “Are you sure?”“I’m sure,” she said with a smile. “Sorry if I was weird today, I just, um, I was just adjusting. Anyway! Don’t fight me on this. I don’t want you to hurt yourself trying to sleep on that thing.”Still unsure, Kisame rubbed the back of his neck as he said, “Sakura, I don’t–”But she cut him off. “Plus, you’re my source of heat and I need my shark man to warm me up.”Kisame felt his jaw drop at her words, and his cheeks warmed at her words. He knew he was blushing and turning into a purple popsicle probably, but Sakura tutted and nodded her head towards the bed.“Okay, I’m going,” he husked, unable to hide how affected he was by her words.After they both got into bed and turned out the lights, he felt as Sakura turned on her side and stared at him. “So. Do I need to ask permission to cuddle or can I go ahead and get into position?”Kisame huffed out a laugh as he opened his arms in silent permission, and Sakura purred as she nuzzled her face into his chest. “You’re more like a kitten than fox sometimes, you know.”“Shut up,” she purred, rubbing her cold nose against his chest. Her soft ears brushed against his chin as she did so, and Kisame felt his heart relax as she made herself at home in his arms. “I promise I won’t assault you in my sleep tonight.”Kisame grunted at the memory of that morning, and he let himself chuckle as Sakura sighed against him. “It wasn’t so bad,” he mumbled, pressing his face against her hair and touching the barest of kisses to the top of her head.She gasped at the contact but kept quiet, and their even, steady shared breaths quickly lulled them both to sleep.When Sakura woke up the next morning, she knew exactly where she was, and she knew exactly what she’s doing. This time.She’s once again wrapped around Kisame, her throbbing pussy pressing against Kisame’s two cocks, and gods, she’s already so wet she can barely think straight. But she’s just coherent enough to realize Kisame is still asleep, his face pressed against her neck, his hot breaths against her skin making arousal flood through every limb. Her pebbled nipples are aching with need, rubbing against the material of her sleep tank that’s just thin enough for her to feel how solid Kisame’s chest is beneath her.She is so turned on.Kisame groaned and nuzzled his face deeper into her neck,and Sakura gasped as the slight movement pressed both of his cocks further between the apex of her thighs. Her pajama shorts are soaked again, and she’s thankful she had the foresight to forego panties last night, because she hoped that she’d end up in this position again.Kisame shifted again, and Sakura couldn't help grinding back against him, arching into his chest as her fingers curled into the short hairs of his nape. She wanted him to be awake by now, but her body moves again before she can think to try waking him up. She slowly rocked against him, moaning when she felt a large hand smoothing along the leg she had hooked over his hip. Now that she knows about it, she can feel both of Kisame’s cocks against her barely covered pussy, and she can’t help moaning again at the mere thought of what it would feel like to have no clothes separating them.“Sakura?” Kisame breathed, his eyes wide as he looked at her, and Sakura gasped when she realized her loud moans woke him up.“Kisame,” she breathed, rutting against him again as he sucked in a sharp breath.“Fuck,” he rasped, his hands tightening on her hips. “You feel so good, Sakura. But gods, we shouldn’t–”“Don’t you dare fucking stop, Kisame,” Sakura groaned, locking her leg behind his hip and clasping her fingers together behind his neck. “Please don’t stop. Touch me. Gods, touch me, Kisame.”His cheeks turned a pretty purple as he stared down at her, and she licked her lips as she panted, rocking her hips against the large bulges in his boxers. She could feel her damp arousal begin to soak his boxers, but she felt no shame, only unlocked desire as she moved against him.“Yes, maam,” Kisame husked, letting out a disbelieving breath as his fingers moved from her hips to trail a path of fire along her sides.His hands mapped trajectories across her soft skin, dipping beneath her tank top to trail across her abdomen and reach higher towards her aching breasts. His knuckles barely brushed against her tits before he dragged his hands down again, his touch light as he dragged his fingertips down her outer thighs before coming back up to settle on her waist. He gripped her hips and began thrusting his hips against hers, smirking as she whimpered from his ministrations, needing more from him.“Kisame,” she mewled, pressing an open mouthed kiss to his pectoral, her teeth scraping against one of his nipples.Kisame’s breath hitched, and she smiled as she looked up at him, kissing his chest again. She could feel him leaking through his boxers, and she slowly dragged her cunt across his hidden cocks, moaning at the feel of him.“Fuck, Sakura,” he rasped, his eyes now a dark golden hue as he looked at her, his face flushed purple. “What are you doing to me?”“Not nearly enough,” she murmured, moaning as he bent his head and tugged at her lower lips with his teeth. She was so hot, his bare skin pressed to her, but she needed more than just the feel of him. She needed to taste his lips. “Kiss me, Kisame. Please.”She dragged his face to hers, and he immediately capitulated to her request, pressing his mouth against hers in a burning kiss. One of his hands came up to tangle into her messy pink hair as they kissed, and Sakura sighed into his mouth, sucking on his tongue as she continued moving her hips against hers.Pleasure rolled through her veins as they rutted against each other, but she needed more, more more .“Use your fingers, Kisame,” she begged, pulling away to feather kisses across his jaw. She dragged her tongue across her skin, nipping along his throat, and Kisame moaned from her attention.“Are you sure?” he asked, one of his hands already dipping beneath her soaked sleep shorts. “Fuck, Sakura, did  you not wear anything beneath these?”“No,” she mewled, canting her hips against his hand so that his knuckles brushed against her soaked cunt. “Touch me, Kisame, please. I need you.”“As you wish,” he rasped, two of his fingers easily sliding between her soaked folds.She gasped at the feel of his large fingers inside her, keening when his thumb circled her clit.“Oh gods, oh gods, fuck me, please,” she cried, shaking as Kisame fucked her with his fingers.He laughed, the sound like warm chocolate dripping down her spine, and she closed her eyes as she felt her orgasm quickly approaching.“Fuck, you’re taking my fingers so well, Sakura,” Kisame praised, his lips feathering across her cheeks as he continued finger fucking her pussy. “I bet you’d take both of my cocks just as well too.”Sakura whimpered at the image of Kisame fucking her with both of his cocks, pleasure zipping down her spine to her toes as he increased the pace of his fingers, feeling so full but needing more. He seemed to know what she wanted, adding a third finger inside her pussy, and she cried out, feeling so incredibly full she didn’t know how she would fit his cocks inside her. Because she was going to, she needed to. But first, she wanted both of them to finish this. She reached down to palm at his soaked boxers, her hands squeezing and rubbing his hard cocks above the fabric of his boxers, and his hips stuttered against her hand.Gasps and moans and hot breaths were exchanged as they moved against each other, until finally Sakura came with a cry, and Kisame followed soon after, his boxers now completely soaked like her sleep shorts. Letting go of him, Sakura fell back against the bed as she caught her breath, and she watched dazedly as Kisame brought his glistening fingers to his mouth, licking the digits clean of her essence.“You taste so good,” he rasped, and Sakura smiled as she covered her face, suddenly embarrassed of what they had done.She’d wanted it, gods, she’d wanted it, but she didn’t think she’d be so shy afterwards. And they hadn’t even gotten to the main event yet.Before she could think of anything to say, Kisame was hovering above her, looking down at her as they both caught their breath. He slowly lowered himself down, his eyes on her lips the entire time, but before he could close the distance between them, the alarm for them to wake up on his phone went off, and they both jolted at the loud noise.“Duty calls,” she whispered, looking up at him.The phone alarm continued to go off as they looked at each other, and Sakura allowed herself to reach up and push back some of his dark hair behind his ear.  He smiled at the action, and he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her cheek before pushing himself back up and leaping off the bed.“You’re right. Duty calls,” he said as he put his hands on his hips after turning off the alarm.Sakura rolled onto her side and watched as she slipped his thumbs beneath the waistband of his boxers, dragging the clothing down, and she felt her breath get stuck in her throat as she finally caught sight of Kisame’s two cocks.“Holy shit,” she breathed, arousal thrumming through her veins at the sight of the two thick and long cocks protruding from Kisame’s groin. She rubbed her thighs together as she looked back up to Kisame’s face, a mischievous grin on her lips. “Do we have to go just yet? I really need to explore more of this whole double cocks situation you’ve got going on in your pants.”She laid back and brought one of her hands to her chest, kneading her breasts through the thin fabric of her pajama top, all while keeping eye contact with her partner. Kisame groaned  and brought one of his hands to his mouth, creating a fist and biting down on his knuckles at the image she created before him.“You’re a fucking vixen,” he said, his voice thick as he shut his eyes quickly. “As much as I’d love nothing more than to say fuck responsibility and ravish you right now, we can’t.”Sakura sighed and hopped out of bed, her tail swishing behind her back as she gave him a rueful grin. “You’re right. Another time then.”“Oh, you can count on it, Sakura.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

A week had passed since they'd gathered the intel on Hidan Smith and tried to find him at his local haunts. They'd come up dry in trying to catch him at any of these places, but Mei called them back before they could argue that they needed to stay where they were. She said they'd done enough right now, ensuring they had contacts in each location who would alert them to any new activity if he did end up showing. For now, she needed them back at the precinct for current ongoing cases that were rolling in.Kisame was frustrated, wanting to keep chasing leads, but he understood Mei's reasoning. Until they got a fresh tip about the Jashin killer, it'd be useless to stay stagnant in one place waiting for him.It'd also given him time to come to a decision: he needed to fill out that stupid form Mei had given him, but he didn't want her to know about it and be smug about being right. Unfortunately, he’d crumpled it up and thrown it away, so he needed to get a new one. But those forms were in Mei’s office, and he didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing he was filling the god damned form out.He also didn't want to do anything else with Sakura, no matter how much he wanted to, until they talked about what happened and what it meant. So, he figured filling out the form for HR would be a good start. He just needed to get his hands on another one.For the past week, he took note of Mei’s schedule, figuring out when would be the best time to sneak into her office and grab the relationship declaration form for HR. And now, he was ready to make his move.The precinct was eerily quiet as he wandered past his and Sakura’s desks, making his way towards Mei’s office. Sakura was still asleep back at home, and he smiled to himself at the thought.He'd learned almost immediately after she moved in that she loved to sleep a little bit too much, and most mornings he was dragging her out of bed by her ankles so they could get to work on time. Though, he hadn't done that at all this week, unsure of if he could or not with their new dynamic. He couldn’t just ignore how they both got each other off and then didn’t talk about it.Sighing as he reached Mei's closed office door, he reached forward and slowly opened the door, only to stop when he realized her office wasn't empty and that the light was on.“Kisame?” Mei said, sitting up from the small couch she had by the door, her wife’s arms around her shoulders.“Ah, I didn't think you'd be in this early,” he said, stepping into the office anyway. He was here, so he might as well face his fate of Mei’s merciless teasing and get it over with. He nodded at Mei’s wife. “It's nice to see you, Tsunade. How have you been?”Tsunade arched a singular brow as she smiled at him, a knowing glint in her eye, and he swallowed as she said, “You too, Kisame. And I've been good, just missing my wife as of late. Why are you here so early?”Tsunade’s question sounded amused, but Kisame bit the inside of his cheek as Mei tilted her head with narrowed eyes. “Yeah, why are you here so early? Or should I say why are you breaking into my office like you knew I wouldn't be here?”He rolled his eyes and laughed, shaking his head. “You're making me sound so sinister, Mei. And it's nothing, I just needed a form I didn't want to annoy you with.”“Oh?” Tsunade said, her hazel eyes curious. “What form? Transfer paperwork?”“Shut up,” Mei said, elbowing her wife with a fond smile. “Kisame would never leave me, we're best buds.”“Unwillingly,” he snarked, moving towards her desk since she made no effort to be free of her wife’s hold. He belatedly realized he might have interrupted an intimate moment between the two, noticing their flushed cheeks, red lips, and messy hair. He cleared his throat as he dug through the drawers of Mei’s desk, looking for this stupid form. “And don't worry about it. It doesn't concern you.”Mei clicked her tongue and laughed, leaning into Tsunade's shoulder, pressing a soft kiss to her wife's cheek. “You're rifling through my desk looking for something. Of course it concerns me.”Kisame didn't answer her, but he groaned when he opened yet another drawer and didn't find anything but pens, paper clips, and staples.“Fine,” he said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Where are those stupid forms for HR?”He was met with silence, and he looked at his boss and friend and her wife, both of whom had shit eating grins on their faces, although Tsunade also looked like she was about to throttle him.“Which forms exactly?” Mei finally said, her voice higher pitched as she elbowed Tsunade to be quiet when the blonde started snickering.Kisame glared at both women, not wanting to see their satisfaction at both of them being right.He had run into Tsunade with Sakura about two weeks after Sakura started as his partner, and it seemed as if the two women had known each other. But then, Tsunade had teased him out of earshot about Sakura, and he knew Mei had probably already told her all about when Kisame first told Mei about finding Sakura.“Yeah, Kisame, which form are you looking for?” Tsunade chimed in when he still hadn't answered.Letting out a deep sigh, he shut the drawer he had opened and put his hands on his hips as he looked down at the ground. “The relationship declaration form,” he mumbled.“Sorry, what was that?” Mei said, and he could hear the smugness in her voice.“You heard me,” he said, looking up at her with a glare. “Don’t make me say it again.”“Oh, but I think I will,” she cooed, leaning her head on Tsunade’s shoulder. He tried to ignore watching Mei’s hand drift up Tsunade’s thigh, the blonde merely purring at her wife’s touch, and he bit his tongue to stop himself from giving in. “Come on, Kisame, just tell me, and I’ll direct you to the proper drawer. Say it again, but this time a little louder so we can hear.”Both women giggled and he rolled his eyes, groaning when he realized he wouldn’t find the form without telling her. “The relationship declaration form,” he said, glaring at Mei’s victorious grin.“I knew it! I knew he wouldn’t last six months,” Mei said with a gleeful shout, turning to Tsunade and kissing her cheek. “I told you, he’s weak for pretty girls who kick ass.”“Gods damn it,” Tsunade grumbled even as she smiled. “Now I’m out fifty bucks.”Mei cackled as she finally told Kisame the forms were in a purple folder in the big middle pull out drawer, and he quickly grabbed the form and made his way towards the exit.“Don’t forget that Sakura needs to sign it too!” Mei called out as he left, and he tried not to shudder as he heard his boss and good friend kiss her wife, moans soon following after.They were great together, but Kisame didn’t need to hear or see just how good together the two women were.Things have been weird since the hotel, and Sakura didn’t know what to do. She knew what she wanted to do, but that was different from what she needed to do.She wanted to kiss Kisame, hell, she wanted to do more than that, but every time she even thought of bringing up the subject about what they were to each other now, something always got in the way.She really needed people to stop committing crimes, like right now.And honestly, she just needed to talk to Kisame. Figure out what this was between them, because if she was going to go all in with him and fuck the Elders, then she needed to know. They had reluctantly signed off on her living in the human world revealed to her charge, but they didn’t sign off on her starting a relationship with her charge. That was still banned according to them, but as far as she was concerned, fuck that.It was too late for her heart, and she wasn’t going to let some stuffy old Elders dictate who she could and couldn’t love. There was nothing they could truly do to punish her, and plenty of Kitsunes today still broke that rule with no consequences. She’d even run into her former mentor, shocked to realize Tsunade-sama was one of those very Kitsunes.It had given her hope.But for now, she’d just try seeing if she could talk to Kisame to see if they could define what this was. Because she needed to know.Sakura took it back–talking to Kisame could wait, because he was driving her fucking crazy.Last week he’d gone to work super early and failed to wake her in time for work or make her coffee, not that she’d gotten used to him doing either of those things for her of course, but after that day, it seemed like something had shifted. Sakura didn’t know what it was, but she was not mad about it.Kisame touched her more often, letting his fingers linger with each touch, and more often than not she found reasons to press herself against him in retaliation. He never pushed her away. In fact, he pushed back whenever she did this, and Sakura was left in a constant state of arousal it felt like. She’d lost track of how many times she’d had to lock herself in her room at night to touch herself to thoughts of Kisame, because she was still too scared to ask for more in this limbo they’d found themselves in.It made work interesting at least, even if they couldn’t afford to get distracted right now.She groaned to herself as she found herself struggling to open a stupid pdf file again, cursing the advancement of technology and her inability to grasp these new concepts. She knew how to do this, she did, but today it wasn't clicking for her. It didn't help that her mind was preoccupied with thoughts of her partner. Kisame looked over at her at the sound, and she gave him a sheepish smile.“Can you help me? It’s these stupid pdf files giving me trouble again,” she murmured, glancing back to her screen with a sigh.“Sure thing,” he said, getting up and coming to stand behind her. She held her breath as he proceeded to lean down behind her, almost wrapping himself around her as he placed his hand on top of hers, and she felt her entire body go hot at his proximity. “You just need to right click on the file to choose how to open it. We have Adobe reader installed, so that’s our preferred application we use to open pdfs. See? Like this.”His voice was like melted butter, low and soothing as he guided her hand through the motions, and she found herself staring at his hand instead of the screen, remembering how he had touched her in the hotel with that very hand. Her cheeks went hot at the memory, and his hot breath in her ear had her squeezing her thighs together.“Okay,” she breathed, realizing he was waiting for a response from her.His hand lingered over hers as she instructed her to open another pdf file, and every nerve in her body felt electrified. She was waiting for him to say something else, or hell, do something else, her brain working overdrive to stay focused as she felt his hot breath on her ear.Her tail swished back and forth, brushing against his thighs, and she smiled to herself when she heard his breath hitch as her tail wrapped itself around his waist, keeping his chest against her back.Her tail had a mind of its own sometimes.“Sakura,” Kisame said, his voice low as she clicked around on the computer, trying to remember the instructions he had just given her.“Hmm?” she said innocently, biting her lip when she failed to open the pdf file like Kisame had shown her.Gods, this pdf business was so tricky. She frowned.“Are you and your tail going to release me anytime soon?” he murmured, his lips brushing against her ear.She shivered at his question, knowing she wasn't as innocent as she was trying to appear, but she played dumb.“You can leave anytime, Kisame,” she purred, turning her head to the side to look at him, his face now right next to hers. His lips twitched, and she smiled. “But I'm still not getting the hang of these pdfs. You don't want to leave me in the lurch now, do you?”Kisame chuckled, the sound like melted chocolate and doing numbers on her heart, and she bit her lip as he stared at her, a knowing smirk on his face. He couldn't know could he?“I don't know, I have much better things to do,” he said, grinning at her when she pouted. “Besides, I'm sure you can get this. I've only shown you how to do it, what, ten times now at least?”“More like fifteen,” she said, shifting her eyes back to the screen.“Oh, so you've been keeping track, have you?” he said, chuckling when her ears shot straight up as his free hand not on the mouse wandered up her side, his hand dangerously close to her breast. “It’s hard to imagine that you've forgotten how to do this with my repeated instructions.”“Maybe I've been distracted,” she breathed, gasping when his hand slid back down to rest on her thigh, his fingers dragging slowly across her exposed skin.She was suddenly very happy she'd decided to go with her favorite leather skirt for today's outfit. She felt her nipples pebble beneath her matching black lace bustier top, and her breath hitched as his fingers played with the hem of her skirt.Her eyelids fluttered as she felt arousal spread throughout her body, her core clenching around nothing as his fingers slipped under her skirt and farther up her inner thigh.“You've been distracted?” Kisame husked, his breath hot against her cheek. “What about me? Fuck, Sakura, you're so soft.”She gasped as two of his fingers pressed against her damp panties, and she quickly looked around the precinct to see if anyone had noticed. She glanced down at Kisame’s hand under her skirt, realizing her desk hid them from view, but her cheeks still heated at the fact this was even happening.Luckily, everyone was preoccupied with their own work at their own desk, and she bit her lip to stifle her moan as Kisame’s fingers pulled her panties to the side. His thumb found her clit as his two fingers slipped inside her soaked pussy, and she bit her tongue as a moan got caught in her throat. The chatter of coworkers and sounds of email notifications and clacking keyboards of the precinct filled her ears as Kisame slowly fucked her with his thick fingers, her legs trembling as she fought to stay still.“Kisame,” she whimpered, her fingers slacking on the computer mouse, not even bothering trying to pretend she was working. His hand still covered hers, and she fought to keep her eyes open as she said, “We’re at work. Very much in public. We can’t–”“Best stay quiet then, babygirl,” he murmured, moving his face close enough to hers that if she turned her head she could kiss him.She resisted though, not wanting someone to look over and realize what was happening. His thumb circled her clit as her mouth parted in a silent gasp, and she felt like everyone could hear the wet sounds of him fingerfucking her pussy, but another glance around only confirmed no one was none the wiser.His fingers moved faster inside her, rubbing against the walls of her pussy and filling her so nicely, and once again Sakura was reminded that these were only two of his fingers, and not either of his cocks. A low whine escaped her throat, and Kisame huffed out a laugh, his hand over hers suddenly moving as he did something she couldn't make sense of on her computer screen.“Now, Sakura, when it comes to editing and then saving pdfs, you need to remember to go to the file button in the top left corner of your document and hit save as,” Kisame said, and she furrowed her brows at the sudden change of topic. “Otherwise, nothing will save, and you'll lose all your work. It doesn't have the automatic save button like Google docs does.”“What's, ah, what's Google docs?” she muttered, trying to follow along but failing miserably as his thumb pressed against her clit again, and she felt her composure close to breaking as her orgasm approached.“Don't worry about it,” Kisame husked, and she could feel his golden eyes on her face as she stared at her computer screen, biting her lip to keep her moans from escaping. “We don't even have it, so it doesn't matter.”“Okay,” she whispered, her vision going hazy as she felt her pussy squeezing around his fingers as the rest of her body throbbed.Her nipples ached for attention and her pussy clenched around Kisame's fingers, her thighs sticky with her arousal, and she wanted to turn to him and moan into his mouth as she kissed him and begged him to let her come. But she couldn't.They were still at work. In public. Very much exposed with one wrong move or moan.“You're such a good girl for staying so quiet, Sakura,” Kisame rasped, his voice so low she almost didn't hear it, and it took everything within her to stay upright in her chair. Her shoulders tensed as he added a third finger yet slowed down the pace of his fingers, and she almost cried out as she felt her orgasm so close she could taste it. “Do you think you'll be able to handle it from here?”“I, I don't know,” she stuttered out, sucking in a sharp breath, and the slam of a door had her looking up, her eyes widening as she saw Mei exiting her office.Kisame's fingers immediately left her pussy, and she gasped as she shut her legs and Kisame stood to his full height, shoving his hand that had just been in her pussy into his pocket. She swallowed as she watched him return to his desk across from her, and moments later Mei was beside their desks, asking if they'd heard any updates on the Jashin case.She focused on her screen in front of her and not at the aching emptiness in her pussy. Sakura mindlessly nodded along to whatever Mei was instructing her and Kisame to do as she failed to pay attention, glaring at her partner once their boss left.“I can't believe you did that,” she hissed, her ears flat as she flipped her middle finger at him while he laughed.“I can't believe you let me,” he said, his eyes flashing with heat as his yellow gaze turned into an amber shoulder promising much more. “Come on, we've got to follow a lead on this robbery case we got two days ago.”Kisame stood up and grabbed his keys off his desk, jingling them in his hand as Sakura slowly stood up, her legs like jelly from her almost orgasm. He huffed out a laugh as she glared at him, putting on her leather jacket since the weather was getting colder.“What lead?” she asked, trying to change the subject so she didn't think about how Kisame almost made her orgasm in front of all their coworkers.“Didn't you hear what Mei said?” he asked as they walked to his car, looking at her with a knowing smirk.“I was a little preoccupied,” she said, elbowing him in the side as he laughed. “I'm going to kill you.”“Aww, but then you'd fail at being my Guardian, wouldn't you?” he quipped, and she rolled her eyes as they arrived at his car.Kisame opened the passenger door for her, motioning for her to get inside, and for some reason, this act alone had her flushing more than she did when he had his fingers inside her mere minutes ago.“Shut up,” she murmured as she got inside the car.She still heard Kisame's laughter after he shut the door, and she groaned to herself, wondering how she had fallen in love with such a menace.A few days later, Sakura sought her revenge on Kisame for the incident at her desk. It was only fair.They were coming back from the evidence storage room, having successfully closed the robbery case, and now that all the evidence was filed, Sakura made her move.Quickly glancing behind them to make sure they were truly alone and that no one was coming, Sakura forcefully shoved Kisame into the corner at the end of the hall, her hands already drawing the zipper of his pants down. She untucked his crisp navy button down from his black slacks, her mouth going dry as she watched the muscles of his thighs flex beneath the fabric.“Sakura, what—fuck,” Kisame grunted, his hips bucking into her palm as she gripped both of his cocks through his boxers. “How the fuck are you so strong?”“Shh, Sharky baby,” she crooned, smiling up at him as she lowered herself to her ground, stopping to place a kiss on his abdomen before settling her knees on the cold tiled floor. “We don't want anyone to come investigate what's happening if they hear something suspicious.”Kisame choked as she leaned forward and mouthed at his cocks over the fabric of his boxers, stifling a groan as the fabric became damp from her tongue. Her fingers played with the waistband of his underwear, and she hummed against him when he slid both of his large hands into her hair, his thumbs brushing against the sides of her ears. She could feel her tail tickling her calves as it swished, pleased from the attention of his hands, and she couldn’t wait any longer as she tugged his boxers down.Both of Kisame’s cocks sprung free, one on top of the other, and she wet her lips as she gazed at them. They were huge, and she worried they wouldn’t fit inside her whenever they did get past teasing each other like this, but she pushed that thought aside as she focused on the pretty sight before her. Kisame panted as she brought her hands to her mouth and spit, rubbing her hands together before taking one cock in each hand, her long golden nails a stark contrast against the darker blue skin of his cocks.Kisame groaned as she slowly began stroking them both, and she took pleasure in the harsh grip of his hands in her hair when she leaned forward and licked each tip, one at a time, making sure to drag her tongue against the slit on each head.“Fuck, Sakura,” he choked out.She stroked his lower cock with her hand but slipped her mouth around the head of his upper cock, slowly taking more of him in her mouth and sucking. He was so thick and long, but she relaxed her jaw as she moved the flat of her tongue against him. His hips bucked against her mouth, pushing him deeper down her throat, but she took it in stride, widening her mouth and letting her tongue swivel around his shaft, all while her other hand squeezed and caressed his lower cock.Her mouth was so incredibly full, and she squeezed her thighs together as she imagined what it would be like to finally have him inside her. His fingers dug into her scalp as his thumbs continued massaging her ears, and she hummed around his cock, the vibrations making him moan.“Fuck, your mouth feels so good, babygirl.”She shivered at the nickname, the second time he’d called her that in a matter of days, and she realized she liked it very much. So much of her time was spent worrying about Kisame and making sure he was safe when she wasn’t trading barbs with him, but him calling her baby girl made her feel like the safe and protected one.It was nice to feel looked after for once.She dragged her mouth up his cock, drool slipping out the sides of her mouth, but she paid no attention to it as she sucked at the tip of his cock again, before pulling away with a wet pop. She immediately grabbed his lower cock and licked a long stripe from base to tip before sliding it inside her waiting mouth, now using both of her hands to pleasure his upper cock while she sucked on the lower one.“Sakura, Sakura, Sakura,” Kisame chanted, his fingers tightening in her hair as he bucked his hips against her mouth again, and she smiled around his cock at the incantation of her name on his lips, the way his eyes were shut as he let him lose himself in her mouth.Her ears twitched suddenly as she heard something come from down the hall, but she continued sucking at his cock and stroking his upper cock, counting down from five in her head as she looked up at Kisame, watching the pleasure roll across his face. Perfect timing.Once she got to one in her head, she pulled away suddenly and stood up, quickly tucking him back into his boxers and pulling his pants up, just as someone turned the corner and came into view. Kisame cursed as his eyes opened, his cheeks a dark purple as he went to complain, but he shut his mouth when he realized they weren’t alone, quickly zipping up his pants, leaving his shirt untucked.Sakura recognized Ino’s blonde ponytail as the blonde walked and read something on her phone, completely unaware they were there yet. She took two steps away from Kisame, giving him a wink, before she wiped her mouth with a smirk and greeted Ino.“Sakura! I’ve been meaning to ask you if you wanted to go shopping with me this weekend,” Ino said, hooking her arm through Sakura’s and dragging her further away from Kisame.“I’d love to,” she answered, beaming at the blonde as she tilted her head back at her partner. “Can you pick me up from Kisame’s place? He’s letting me stay at his since my move here was sort of sudden, and it’s been impossible to find a place.”Ino narrowed her pretty blue eyes at her, looking between the two as Kisame grumbled, muttering something as he excused himself and stalked off down the hall back towards the storage room.“Really? You two are roommates?” she asked after he turned the corner, and Sakura smiled.“Yep! Granted, I bugged him until he let me move in,” she said, and Ino cackled.“That’s how I got Obito to let me move in,” Ino said, and Sakura arched a brow at that, saving that nugget of info for later. She wondered if Kisame knew about the two of them. “I knew I liked you. We’re kindred spirits.”Sakura giggled as they walked down the hall and toward their desks. They stopped at Ino’s desk first since it was closest, and Sakura lingered, crossing her arms.“So,” she said in a whisper. “You and Obito, huh?”“Ah, you caught that, huh,” Ino said with a laugh, flipping her ponytail over one shoulder as she placed her phone down by her mouse. She smiled with a shrug. “Yeah, about a full year now. Not many people know about our relationship because we both wanted to keep it private for a bit, but we both filled out the form for HR, so everything’s good on our end as long as we don’t let it affect the job.”“HR form?” Sakura said, her brows raising as her ears perked up.“Yeah, for interpersonal relationships that might develop between colleagues,” Ino said, typing on her computer to log back in. “Everyone gets a form when they’re onboarded, and dating amongst colleagues isn’t against the rules, so long as you fill out the form and declare your relationship.”“Ah, I see,” Sakura murmured. “I must have overlooked it during my onboarding.”“I did too!” Ino laughed, glancing up at her. Her phone buzzed beside her, and she frowned as she picked it up and read the message. “Shoot. I’ve got to run. But I’ll text you about Saturday with more details!”“Okay! And I’ll send you Kisame’s address,” Sakura said, giving her a wave as she headed back to her own desk.Kisame reappeared at his desk fifteen minutes later, and she glanced at him with a smirk when he glared at her, mouthing “rude” while she simply mouthed back, “Payback’s a bitch.” He snorted and rolled his eyes, logging onto his own computer, while she mindlessly played a game of spider solitaire.She wondered if Kisame knew about the form for HR, and if so, why he hadn’t brought it up to her. They were definitely in a situation, but she didn’t know if he wanted it to be a relationship like she did.She glanced at him again, a small smile on her lips as she watched him become entranced in whatever he was focused on, and she figured she could wait to ask. She wasn’t in a hurry. It wasn’t like she was going anywhere soon, because he was her charge, and she was his Guardian. She had a job to do.And she was pretty sure she was in love with him too.She would make sure she could stick around to see that through.They were in the hallway again the next week, and Sakura grinned to herself as she looked at their corner as they passed, stifling a giggle as Kisame looked down at her.“What are you laughing about?” he murmured, his eyes going back to the corner, his cheeks turning a light shade of lilac.“Oh, nothing, just remembering last week,” she sighed, giving him a toothy grin as she made to move past him and go back to her desk.“Oi, you little vixen, wait a damn minute,” he said, grabbing her around the elbow and tugging her back.She squeaked as he pressed her against the wall, right next to their corner, taking her by surprise as he held her by the waist with his left hand. His other hand came to rest by her face, putting him at an odd angle as his elbow touched the wall, and he bent down and kissed her forehead, right in the middle of her bargain tattoo that matched the one on his hand at her waist.She felt her breath catch in her throat, and she looked up at him with wide eyes, her lips parting as he stared down at her, his eyes like liquid gold. His eyes dropped to her lips as her tongue peeked out to wet her bottom lip, and his nostrils flared as he pressed his lips together.“We can’t keep doing this, Kisame, or we’re gonna get caught,” she teased, placing one delicate hand on his firm chest and trailing her fingernails up to his neck and back down.She felt him tremble beneath her touch and she smiled, biting her lip as she looked up at him. Every part of her body was on high alert from his proximity, her ears perked up high and her tail stiff behind her from where she was pressed into the wall.Kisame flexed his jaw as he pushed himself even closer to her, leaning his head down to whisper in her ear.“I think you want to be caught,” he whispered, his teeth catching on her ear and biting gently.She whimpered at his actions, her body on fire from one simple touch to her ear, and he pulled back and smirked at her, his teeth gleaming in the low light of the hallway. She was beginning to suspect he knew how sensitive her ears were, based on how often he put his mouth on them, and she felt her cheeks flush at the thought.“You’re the one who started this,” she said, her other hand reaching up to wrap around his neck, standing on her tiptoes.She could shift herself to be taller, but she rather liked feeling small in his arms, especially when he got unnecessarily protective of her when they were out in the field. That, and she liked to surprise him with her supernatural strength whenever she could, especially since she was so much smaller than him.“And you’re the one who continued it,” he rasped, his eyes on her lips once again.She saw nothing but molten desire in his gaze, and she wanted so badly to give in and reach up and offer her lips to him again, but she also wanted to talk to him about the HR form. She’d thought more about it and decided she wanted to fill it out and couldn’t wait, only because she realized she needed to know how he felt.Every second of every day since her realization had her wanting to blurt out her feelings and beg him to ravish her, but she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of her giving in first. She wanted him to ache for her just as badly as she did for him. And she wanted him to say he loved her first. She could wait.It was only fair.“Well, what are you going to do about it?” she said, her eyes now on his lips.Kisame chuckled, the noise sinking into her soul. She wanted to memorize every sound he ever made, claim them as hers, and never let anyone else hear them. He was hers, and she so desperately wanted to be his.“Gods, you drive me fucking crazy,” he husked, dropping his head so low that his nose skimmed across her cheek, and goosebumps rose across her skin as she heard him take a deep breath. “Fuck, you smell insanely good.”Sakura giggled, her insides practically melting as she tucked her chin against her chest, but he brought his left hand up, placing two fingers beneath her chin to tilt her face up to his. Their eyes locked as a heated silence grew between them, breaths mingling as they both fought the urge to kiss. But Sakura knew it was as inevitable as it was falling for him. She took a small breath as he leaned his face closer to hers, his eyes half lidded as he waited for something from her, but she didn’t know what.Just as she was about to pull him down those last two inches to press her lips against his, his phone rang, the shrill sound echoing off the walls of the hallway, and he cursed as he leaned his forehead against hers. A moment later he pulled away and answered the stupid phone, a frustrated growl on his lips as he listened to whoever was on the line.Sakura caught her breath as her heart pounded in her chest, quickly glancing left and right and letting out a relieved exhale when she noticed no one had caught them seconds away from kissing. She didn’t want to be caught if they hadn’t signed that HR form yet.Kisame uttered a quick goodbye and snapped his phone shut, pinching the bridge of his nose.“What is it?” she asked, stepping away from the wall and placing a hand on his forearm.“We’ve got a location on Hidan,” he said. “He’s been spotted, and a team is already in place, tracking his location since he’s on the move. We’ve got to go and get a mobile team in place in case we see an opportunity to capture him and bring him in.”“Well, okay then,” she said with a short nod, rubbing at her chest. “Let’s go.”Kisame’s entire body was taut with tension as he and Sakura sat in the demon task force van, waiting for the signal to move in on Hidan. Although everyone had been informed that Hidan was a mere human and not a demon with potentially supernatural abilities, the fact that he was possessed with the soul of the demon Jashin was reason enough to have the special task force with them. They didn’t come across possessions that often, and much was still unknown about possessed human’s abilities. Based on the evidence of each crime scene though, it was safe to say he had some sort of supernatural abilities since it had taken them so long to get a decent lead on him.He looked at the seat across from him, where Itachi Uchiha and Kakashi Hatake sat, nodding at the duo before he glanced at his partner beside him. Kisame knew the pair well enough from his years on the task force, having headed a team with both of them on it, so he knew this was routine for them and knew what to expect. But Sakura was eerily calm beside him, even though he knew she could take care of herself as a Guardian.That didn’t stop the knot of worry from growing in his chest.They were both fitted out in the task force weapon-proof vests over their normal clothes, and Kisame couldn’t help staring at Sakura as they waited for the signal. She looked like she belonged here, like she was destined to be next to his side as they took down criminals, and he almost forgot that she wasn’t actually from here. She was a Guardian.He hadn’t put an end date on their bargain for how long she needed to be his partner, and Kisame’s chest ached at the thought of not seeing her every day whenever it did end. He didn’t want her to leave, and he wondered if he was enough for her to stay.“Are you alright?” he murmured, nudging her with his elbow to get her attention. “You seem too calm for what’s about to go down. I don’t know if I should be worried or not.”Sakura smiled at him, reaching out to squeeze his thigh, and he bit his tongue to ignore how much that simple touch affected him. Now was not the time to get turned on.“I’m just relieved this is almost over, but thanks for worrying about me,” she said in a low voice, ensuring they were the only two privy to this conversation. “I imagine it won’t be as easy to subdue Jashin as we think, but also you have me. It’ll be fine.”Kisame chuckled at her confidence, the tension in his shoulders relaxing a bit, but he still furrowed his brow as he covered her hand on his thigh with his. “Don’t do anything rash, okay? Let me help you.”She eyed the big sword strapped to his back, his favorite specially crafted sword for demon specific encounters, and she arched a brow at him as she giggled.“Maybe I should be the one telling you that,” she answered, her voice now at normal volume, and she nodded at the weapon. “That's a pretty big sword you've got there, Kisame. You plan on cutting down everything in your path?”“If that's what it takes,” he muttered, narrowing his eyes as he thought of all that Hidan, or Jashin possessed Hidan had done. “Samehada is efficient, and she'll take care of anything supernatural we might encounter.”“Oh?” she said, her lips twitching as she eyed the sword in his back again. “Good to know. Although, I'm surprised you named her.”Kakashi and Itachi huffed out laughs across from them, and Sakura grinned at them while Kisame glared.“Some people name cars, but Kisame-san likes to name his weapons,” Itachi said quietly, smirking at him while Kakashi snorted and Sakura laughed.Kisame cleared his throat, feeling the tips of his ears heat. “Moving on. Just promise to stay by my side,” he murmured, lowering his voice again.This time Sakura smiled, rolling her eyes even as she gave him an imperceptible nod. “Sure thing, Sharky baby.”Kisame huffed out a laugh at her nickname for him, heat zipping through his spine as he squeezed her fingers, trying not to think of the last time she called him that. He needed to focus.“Copy that.”The sound of the static from the handheld radio and Kakashi’s cool voice broke him out of his thoughts, and he nodded at the silver haired man.“It’s time?” he asked.“T-minus two minutes. Our covert team is entering the facility now, and once inside they’ll give us the signal.”Kisame nodded as the rest of the team prepared themselves to move, and he brushed his fingers one last time against Sakura’s, catching her eyes as they shifted in their seats.“Stay by my side?” he whispered.“Always,” she said, her green eyes bright as she entwined her fingers with his.It was time to end this.Kisame gritted his teeth and grunted as he made his way through the absolute fuckery of chaos that was this op. Hidan Smith, or should he say Jashin, was hiding out in a facility filled with his followers that would do anything to keep him safe, including putting themselves in the way of the task force.As soon as they had entered the building, they were bombarded by groups of his followers, all of their bodies painted like off-kilter skeletons with white and pitch black body paint. It was a horrifying scene to stumble into an unknown building and be immediately assaulted by these followers, especially when they realized they each held a triple-bladed scythe as their weapons of choice.It was an immediate bloodbath on both sides of the fight, especially since it seemed the Jashinists killed indiscriminately, sometimes even killing their own comrades in the cross swing of their scythes. Kisame couldn’t say he was sorry to see that happen though.He had never been more thankful for his large form because he easily grabbed and snapped scythes in two as he apprehended the followers, his eyes on the lookout for Hidan. His big sword also helped parry attacks and incapacitate the Jashinists, but he was more concerned with how he'd fare against Hidan. He was the main priority for capture. He felt his heart drop when a brief glance around made him realize Sakura was no longer by his side, and he felt his pulse thrum as he fought off Jashinists trying to find her, abandoning his goal of finding Hidan.She was more important, and he needed to know she was okay.“Shannaro!”He swiveled at the sound of Sakura’s battle cry, eyes widening when he realized she was fighting their target, a blur of pink and gray all he could make out as the two fought each other. From how fast they were moving, Kisame figured Hidan did have some supernatural abilities from being possessed by Jashin, and Sakura was in full display of her Kitsune form. He noticed black threads wrapping around her body starting from her forehead, and he didn’t have time to ponder what it was as he tried to fight his way to her.“Sakura!” he called out, cursing when the scythe of a Jashinist sliced his cheek, and he quickly dealt with the follower, cutting him down with Samehada before making his way towards the woman who owned his heart.Blood dripped down the side of his face as he drew closer, his heart beating overtime as he watched Sakura struggle against Jashin possessed Hidan. They both had each other by the throat, but Kisame watched as Sakura’s lips moved while her other glowing green hand came to rest over his chest, right where his heart was.Before Kisame could reach her, a pulse of something went through the air, Sakura and Hidan flying through the air as a bright white light ripped them apart.Kisame watched, his body frozen and his mouth open in a silent scream as the woman he loved was sent crashing into the wall, the wall caving in from the imprint of her body as she crumpled to the floor. He'd never seen her look so broken. Sucking in a harsh breath, he ran over to her, bulldozing any remaining Jashinists out of his way. The fighting was already stopping as he finally reached her, but he paid no mind to anything but Sakura.“Sakura! Sakura,” he choked out when she didn't respond to his call, throwing Samehada to the ground as he kneeled down, carefully pulling her into his arms.He brushed her matted pink hair out of her face, his heart aching at the scrapes that littered her face, along with the busted lip she had. Her hands and arms were just as battered up, purple bruises already forming across her knuckles. Threading his fingers through her hair, he tilted her face up to his as he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, mindful of her wounds even as he tasted copper on her lips.“Come on, babygirl, wake up,” he murmured, holding her against his chest as he felt his breaths shorten when she still didn't move. “Sakura, please, I can't lose you. Not when I've just found you. Please.”Normally he'd be embarrassed at the way his voice cracked in despair or the way he was openly showing affection, but none of that mattered if he couldn't have Sakura with him.Finally, after what felt like forever, Sakura opened her eyes, wheezing as she sucked in a breath, and Kisame felt tears in the corners of his eyes as he cried out with relief.“Kisame–” she rasped, her voice like gravel as she brought a shaky hand up to his cheek.He didn't let her say another word before his lips were on hers again, teeth knocking as he desperately tried to convey how much he loved her all in one kiss. She moaned against him, kissing him back, and he tasted copper again as he licked into her mouth, but this time he relished it. She was alive.“Kisame, his head,” she husked against his lips, pulling away to breath as he skimmed his nose across her face, feathering kisses across the scrapes on her face. “Hidan needs to be decapitated to complete the spell I used to banish Jashin for good.”“Is that it?” he said with a smile, his thumb brushing over the bruised swell of her cheek.She smiled into his hand, nodding. “Yeah. But I can't do it right now, but it needs to be done as soon as possible.”“Don't worry, sweetheart, I'll take care of him,” he murmured, leaning down and kissing her one last time. “Will you be okay here for a second?”She hummed her assent, closing her eyes with a sigh as he gently positioned her against the cracked wall. He made sure she was comfortable before he turned, grabbing his large sword from the ground and stalking towards Hidan’s unmoving body.Rolling his neck side to side, Kisame grunted as he made sure his grip was steady on Samehada, looking over Hidan’s prone body. His chest was barely moving as he still breathed, but his eyes were closed as the rest of his body laid still.Hefting his arms above his head with Samehada, Kisame grunted as he swung down, the sword slicing clean through Hidan’s neck. Blood splattered across his clothes and spilled onto the floor as the severed head disconnected from the body, black and white smoke surrounding the corpse.A ringing in his ears started as he watched, entranced as the body went up in purple flames, a loud screeching filling the room as the body crumbled to ash. Kisame took a step back, gasping as he felt like his body was on fire, dropping his sword and bringing his hands to his head, holding  himself as if that would help stop the pain.His eyes felt heavy as he looked around the room, noticing all the taken down Jashinists and members of the special task force were also all clutching at their heads. So it wasn't just him.He grabbed Samehada and stumbled back over to Sakura, who was grimacing as the sound only got louder, and he pulled her into his arms, praying it would end.“What's going on?” he yelled, tucking her against his chest as she gasped, arching as her entire body glowed green. “Sakura?”“It's the spell doing its job,” she said, her ears perked straight up as her entire body glowed from green into white. “Don't let me go, Kisame.”“Never,” he said, wrapping his arms tighter around her body.She glowed brighter as the screeching turned into a high pitch, amplifying the ringing in his ears. Before he could close his eyes, he watched as the bright light exploded out of Sakura, enveloping the whole room, almost as if it were purifying the space.People standing up got knocked down to the floor, and Kisame looked towards the ashes of Hidan’s body, dispersing into the ether before disappearing completely.Sakura slumped into his arms, her eyes fluttering closed as she nuzzled his neck, her breath hot against his skin but not unwelcome.“It's over,” she mumbled, pressing her lips against his neck mindlessly, her arms wrapping around his back as best she could in her exhausted state. “We did it.”“Yeah, sweetheart, we sure did,” he murmured, putting his hand against the back of her head as he exhaled the biggest breath, all the tension in his body drifting away as he held her.Afterward, Kisame and Sakura found themselves sitting in the back of an ambulance, their wounds looked at and deemed needing no further treatment as they sat together, sharing the warmth of a tiny blanket. Apparently, Sakura had already started healing most of her injuries from being thrown into the wall before she was enveloped in that white light, but she only had enough energy to heal her major injuries.The slice on Kisame’s cheek was covered with three butterfly bandages, but the wound was still bleeding, the bandages doing their best to hold his cheek together. Sakura’s busted lip was cleaned up, but he knew he'd have to be careful if he wanted to kiss her again. He didn't want to reopen the wound.“You really scared me in there,” Kisame said, breaking the silence. He had his right arm wrapped around Sakura, pressing her into his side, and his fingertips were drawing patterns into the skin of her thigh exposed from her ripped jeans. “I thought I'd lost you there for a moment.”“You could never lose me,” she whispered, looking up at him with a smile. “Besides, it's my job to protect you, and that's what I did.”He brought his other hand up to cradle her cheek, mindful of her scrapes and bruises, his thumb carefully brushing over her busted lip. She inhaled a sharp breath but still smiled at him, her green eyes soft and filled with an emotion he was scared to be wrong about, but he wanted it. So badly.He suddenly couldn't wait any longer to tell her how he felt.“I love you, Sakura,” he murmured, his voice thick with emotion as he dipped his head to place his forehead against hers. “I have for a while now, and you don't have to say anything if you don't feel the same, and I know you're probably going to leave eventually, but I just needed you to know.”Sakura huffed out a laugh, placing her hand over his hand on her face, pressing a kiss to his palm. “I'm not going anywhere, Kisame,” she said, her voice a balm to his soul. “Why would I, when I love you too? I'm not leaving you. Ever.”“Really?” he said, his heart beating so fast he felt it would break through his chest.“Of course,” she said. “I think I've loved you since the moment I watched you rescue Purrsimmon.”Kisame’s mouth dropped open at what she revealed, his cheeks heating at knowing she was there to witness that moment. She'd been with him longer than he'd imagined.“I can't believe you saw that,” he said, a chuckle clawing its way up his throat as he groaned. “Gods, that's so embarrassing.”“Nu-uh, it was endearing,” Sakura countered, lifting her head to press a kiss to his chin.Kisame felt his heart soar at her confession, sliding his hand up into her hair, his thumb stroking the base of her ear. He had caught on pretty quickly to how sensitive her ears were when he touched them, and he smiled when she purred in response. He really couldn't wait to be alone with her to explore what other areas of her body he could touch to make her make such pretty sounds for him, and his eyes drifted down to her tail that had carefully wrapped itself around their entwined legs.“I really want to kiss you right now,” he croaked, his nose brushing against hers.“Why won't you?” she breathed, moving her hand up his arm to his shoulder and then his face, her delicate fingers tracing the gills on his cheeks.Kisame sucked in a shallow breath, watching her as she brought up her other hand to his other cheek and continued to stroke his gills, completely unafraid of him. He'd never met someone who accepted him so completely and wholly, so willing to love the parts of himself he'd always seen as too monstrous to love.“I don't want to hurt you,” he said, his thumb brushing over her hurt lip again.“I'm tougher than you think,” she said.“I know you are,” he murmured, smiling as she groaned when she tried to smile, but her lip started bleeding again. “Careful, sweetheart.”“Kiss me, Kisame,” she begged, grabbing his wrist when he went to wipe at her lip. “I'm okay with a little pain. I can heal it later, remember?”He searched her eyes as he hesitated. “Are you sure?”“If you don't kiss me right now, I don't think I'll ever forgive you,” she murmured, and he chuckled, rolling his eyes as he dipped his head.“As you wish, Sakura,” he said, closing the distance and sighing as their lips came together.He sucked her bottom lip into his mouth, groaning at the taste of her—jasmine tea and copper. She didn't let him pull away though, gasping as he licked into her mouth, her hands wrapped around his neck and pushing him closer against her.Only when he needed air did he pull away, letting out a shaky laugh as she grabbed his face and pressed a kiss over his butterfly bandages.“Gods, I love you,” he murmured, tucking his face against the top of her head as she feathered kisses down his neck. “Fuck, Sakura, I love you so much.”“And I you,” she whispered, caressing his cheeks again, gills and all.He kissed her again, pressing his lips more firmly against hers, nipping at her lips as she moaned into his mouth. He moved his hands down to her waist and squeezed, chuckling against her lips as she groaned, her nails digging into the hair of his nape. He felt desire course through his veins, unashamed at how all it took was a simple kiss with Sakura for him to want her in every way possible.He swore he saw stars behind his eyes as they kissed, his chest feeling tight as his head buzzed. His entire body thrummed with energy as he continued kissing her, tiny pinpricks of pleasure zipping across his skin, but he frowned when they felt more painful than pleasurable.A slight pop rang in his ears, and he opened his eyes when Sakura gasped, knocking his head against the top of the ambulance. He frowned. He knew he was tall, but he didn't think he was that tall sitting down.“You okay?” he asked, his voice like gravel as he dropped his hands down to her waist.He got distracted by the sight of his hands on her, noticing how large he was. In fact, it almost seemed like his hands were bigger than he remembered, his nails a little longer and sharper, but before he could think more about that, Sakura spoke.“Yes, but,” she started, biting the inside of her cheek as she looked up at him, her green eyes wide, “gods. I guess this is why the Elders were so against relationships between Kitsunes and their charges. They were scared.”“What are you talking about?” Kisame asked, his voice lower than he'd ever remembered it'd been.He paused at the unfamiliar sound of his voice, clearing his throat. His eyes went back to staring at his own hands, sure that something was different about them, about him. The fins on his forearms looked bigger too, more pointed and in the way than he'd ever remembered. “Kisame,” Sakura murmured, drawing his gaze back to her with her small hand on his cheek. “Well, you're a bit, um, ah, how do I say this, more shark than man currently?”Her eyes flicked up past his eyes, staring at his forehead, and he brought one hand up to run through his hair but stopped when he felt only smooth skin.“What the—” he said, but Sakura cut him off, placing both her hands on his mouth, which also felt larger somehow.He pressed his tongue against the back of his teeth, panic bubbling in his chest when he realized they were sharper than usual. How had Sakura willingly kissed him when his teeth were so monstrous? His mouth also felt slightly sore, as if he'd sat in the dentist chair for too long with the mouth props in during a dental cleaning. He wondered what she saw when she looked at him, and why none of it mattered to her when he would never be normal.“It's okay, Kisame, don't worry,” Sakura said gently, smiling at him before she laid her head against his chest, wrapping her arms around his thick neck.  “Hold onto me for a second.”He wordlessly did as she said, and then they disappeared in a plume of pink smoke.