#hes got a naruto pin

[ohai-there]

I was talking with @doveywovy about founders era (izuna lives) animal hybrid au.....

Izuna absolutely tugs on Tobirama's little stubby tail and thinks its so cute its so small.

[evilkitten3]

#fandom misogyny so bad they fail to notice the only woman in akatsuki is just as crazy as everyone else i fear

she's worse than most of them frankly

sick of konan being written as the only sane one in the akatsuki. the lady thinks her bestie is an actual deity and she somehow found the time and energy to make six hundred billion bombs for the purpose of killing a single guy who helped kickstart her terrorist organization bc she thinks he's a bit sus

the only sane one is kisame

[eskumii]

yandere!genin!sasuke uchiha + darling who's secretly half uchiha hcs

TITLE: " LIKE WATER, LIKE BLOOD " — navi. — general yandere!sasuke hcs.

NOTES: i've been randomly feinin over naruto again and this idea just won't leave me alone :'D don't press me on lore specific stuff i just yap and pretend it's true ok. also i accidently posted this b4 it was finished ... if you read that, no u didn't.

☆ you're no stranger to the fact that your mother had an affair with an uchiha man a few years before the entire clan was slaughtered like cows. your father had been a high-ranking official in fugaku's inner circle, but you had never learned his name, even when he secretly visited you and your mother on weekends between his missions and clan dealings.

☆ this is not to say, of course, that he was a bad man. he often tried to instill core uchiha values into you (never dishonor the uchiha clan name, always seek to carry on its legacy and strength, etc..) but nothing ever seemed to stick. you were more interested in the little trinkets he would bring you: necklaces, bracelets, hair ribbons, hand fans, and various other accessories that were often branded with the uchiha symbol. none of it was ever worn out in public, though, so you just hung them on your walls instead.

☆ after your father's death, you eventually distanced yourself from the uchiha side of your identity as it had always been steeped in secrecy and the fear of scrutiny from the third hokage/konoha elders/villagers who felt strongly about the nine tails attack. after all, you aren't supposed to exist. you're not sure what your mother was thinking when she got knocked up at such a politically fragile time, when the uchiha clan were still under fire for conspiracy and treason.

☆ at the academy, you intentionally avoid sasuke. you've probably spoken to him a handful of times—many of which were him telling you to get out of his way, or to shut up if you were talking too loud with your friends (your assigned seat was directly behind his, unfortunately).

☆ it isn't until much later after you graduate from the academy and are placed into teams that sasuke somehow finds out you're also an uchiha. whether someone told him or he just... knew, you do not know. at this point, you haven't seen him in months (you're on different teams), so him appearing on the landing outside of your open window is a very startling jumpscare.

☆ he takes one look around your room, which has uchiha merch strung up all over the place, and is immediately pissed at you. all this time there was another surviving member of his clan and he had no clue? and it was you, of all people?

☆ sasuke always thought you were weird and suspicious during your days at the academy. whenever he interacted with you, you would cower from him, almost looking ashamed. you were adept at everything he was and, as much as he used to hate admitting it, you were often his competition when it came to scoring at the top of various skill tests. looking back, it all makes sense: the blood in your veins is special, as uchiha children often are. as he is. and now, instead of callousness, he feels a kindling of pride at your excellence.

☆ it takes no time at all for everything to change between you and sasuke. after he barges his way into your room (you don't how he found out where you live in the first place?!), he forces you to explain why you lied about being an uchiha. you have no choice but to comply after his threatening glares pin you into submission and he refuses to let you past him until you talk.

☆ sasuke really doesn't care that you're a "half uchiha." you descended directly from a member of the uchiha clan so as far as he's concerned, you're his kin through and through. this discovery immediately sparks something primal in sasuke, like a desprate clinging to preserve what has been, and to protect what can be.

☆ you're often dragged away to secluded places by sasuke—the training grounds, usually. you try to fight but sasuke is just stronger than you and you are easily wrestled into defeat; a reoccuring pattern that makes you feel unsafe around him. but despite your growing feelings of contempt towards sasuke, he is brutally relentless in his pursuit of you or, rather, his pursuit of molding you into a proud uchiha who is willing to restore the legacy of his clan with him.

☆ the uchiha boy is a little worried that you lack so many of the values that he himself has been taught by his parents and itachi. you don't know much about the sharingan nor the clan's signature great fireball technique. so he starts there.

☆ let's be honest though: you're not interested in being lectured on the history of the clan by sasuke, but you're not entirely opposed to learning a new jutsu so you allow him to train you for now. whenever you mess up or ask too many questions, he'll sigh in very clear annoyance but bites back any insult as a mercy to you.

☆ you notice how much more patient he is towards you. how he quietly praises you when your little flame grows, how he immediately checks on you when you're winded from using too much chakra. there's a general closeness that never existed before (sitting shoulder-to-shoulder, physically guiding your hands into signs, or poking your forehead when you say or do something he thinks is dumb). it's all strangely... intimate.

☆ the frequency of his visits begin to increase as the days go by, and there were a few times where you would wake up in the middle of the night to see him standing over you. obviously, this scares you, and you have to keep sasuke's sudden intrusions into your bedroom a secret from your mother, so you begrudgingly agree to his strict schedule of meeting at his apartment at least four times a week instead of him breaking into yours.

☆ in the following months, you see a side of sasuke that you're sure no one else has seen. one that isn't carefree, but deeply emotional and reactive, especially when it comes to you. soon enough, he reveals his plan of revenge against itachi to you. you're shocked that he would go to such a length, and the sentiment is not shared by you at all.

☆ before sasuke leaves the village, he of course tries to convince you to come with him. you aren't a fool, though. despite settling into your uchiha heritage at this point, you're no destined avenger. you followed along with sasuke's strange intrusion into your life thus far, but this is where you draw the line. you refuse.

☆ "no? what the hell, [name]? you're an uchiha." he'll spit heatedly, arresting you by the hand when you turn to walk away from him. "your duty now is to kill itachi and restore our clan. don't think for a second that you can just run away from this. from me."

☆ and... he's right. one way or another, you find yourself a traitor to konoha for the sake of the blood that binds you to sasuke. what happened to his family, he won't let happen to you. this time, he's the one who'll kill to protect the one he loves, even if you hate him for doing it against your will.

[tired-biscuit]

naruto is the kind of guy who begs to eat you out. like, he has *never* played it cool and you’ve always known he was into you. but one night he’s hanging out at your place and you look so cozy and domestic and soft and squishy and he just—“c’mon please let me make you feel good! you just look so cute!! i’ll be so good at it, i swear!!!” and when you say yes it’s the first time you see naruto actually focus on something that’s not training or ramen (turns out your pussy is the third and final interest naruto has in life) and he absolutely demolishes you—leaves you without your pants or your soul—on the couch.

18+ MDNI // cw: oral (f!receiving), unestablished relationship.

this is so cute, especially for like a situationship kind of thingy.

like, maybe there is an obvious spark dancing between you even if you aren’t exactly official yet. maybe you hang out a lot, but don’t call it dating just yet even if you love to do stuff together.

maybe you keep him company at the food places that are open 24/7 because he tends to get bored and hungry a lot and goes to bed super late, and maybe he sometimes spends the night at your place as a result afterwards; wrapped in your embrace and wearing nothing else but his underwear because he doesn’t have anything else to sleep in — of course.

maybe you keep making people assume that you’re a couple because of how you always make sure to sit together whenever you’re out with a group of friends, or how his arm is always draped around your shoulders, or how you’re constantly ruffling his hair and hugging him goodbye.

maybe you’ve even shared a couple of kisses and some heavy petting here and there whenever one drink too many got involved and he offered to walk you home from the bar even if he could barely stand upright himself.

that kind of thing.

so when he makes an actual move on you for the first time — completely sober and halfway through an excruciatingly shitty movie that he picked — you’re kind of surprised, but at the same time… not really?

after all, it’s pretty obvious that he likes you, it’s outright spelled on his forehead. and him being the confident guy who’s super open about his feelings, he certainly isn’t the type to deny it when he’s already dug himself a hole this deep. quite on the contrary, he tells you that he likes you right to your face.

you attract him. he finds you so cute, especially tonight, when you’re dressed in your little top that hugs you in all the right places and the comfortable shorts that sometimes ride up high enough for him to see the fat of your ass whenever you angle yourself just right.

but despite asking if he can eat you out and drowning you in compliments and eager promises, he can be quite the little shit when he wants to be, you know?

so he practically pins you down to the couch under the pretense of playfighting and initiates a doting attack of kisses that are peppered all over your face and that make your heart outright flutter with joy the moment you tell him yes. you can’t really blame him for it; he’s just very affectionate by default and has been waiting for literal ages to exhibit all that love he harbours for you.

you wiggle underneath him, trying to break free from under his weight so that you can return the favour, but his warm mouth is already making its way down your chest; leaving audible smooches that tickle and make you laugh quietly.

and even though he’s sunshine incarnate and all things good, he’s surprisingly strong when he wants to be. you squirm and instinctively try to push him away with the help of your legs, but it’s no use.

all it does is pull him closer. your legs are wrapped around his waist; he’s made himself so comfortable between them. his half hard cock is snug against your clothed pussy. the occasional friction you both experience makes you both breathe a little harder than you normally would and makes blood rush south.

he is very boyfriend material even if he isn’t your boyfriend, so the entire thing is literally just a series of loud kissy noises mixing with your squeals of his name. it’s fun and playful and sweet, just like he is.

and then before you know it, things escalate fast. he’s manhandling you into position, making you hug his head with your thighs as he licks you right over the cotton of your underwear, with your comfy shorts tossed somewhere on the floor and your cute top pushed so far up to the collar that both of your tits are out.

he’s messy and ardent to please. if the panties that you’re wearing are plain white, his drool will make them so damp that they’re practically see-through. he’ll make them stick to your pussy so that he can see the literal outline of it; tracing your sticky slit over and over again with the tip of his tongue and finger, shaping you out.

and then when those panties finally come off, sliding down your slightly trembling legs and ending up dangling from one ankle, he really goes to town.

he’s all sloppy kisses aimed at your cunt and tongue fucking and drool, drool, drool. he’s bright red cheeks and lustful blue eyes that remind you of a sea gone murky after a stormy night. he’s mussed hair in the colour of wheat that you just can’t stop weaving your fingers through, and an adorably smushed nose that keeps on pressing against your clit as he keeps on shoving his tongue in and out of your tight hole, tasting you so much and so deeply that your slick is practically dribbling down his chin.

he’s a calloused thumb being swiped over your nipple and a broad hand wrapped in bandages as it tigtens its grip around your thigh. he’s broad shoulders, a fast-beating heart and sweaty tan skin. he’s overstimulation and loud slurps and moans and raspy whimpers as he keeps moving his hips and practically humps the couch because of how fucking horny you make him.

and finally, he’s also ready to cum in his pants the moment he feels you clench around the two fingers he’s shoved into you at some point.

especially because the name that you end up moaning out is his.

[rainybyday]

This is mostly based on these three ideas I had circling in my little head please send help. 

Warring States Period - First Idea

Kaguya won in this timeline and only Team Seven survived, both past and present (Sakura, Naruto, Sai, Sasuke, Tenzo, Kakashi, and Obito (all in a total of seven :D)), and so they went into a new timeline as they used their last bit of Chakra to destroy their timeline so Kaguya will never escape and take over other dimensions 

Relationships 

ObKk because I somehow am in a toxic yaoi shipper cycle, god help

Sasuke and Sakura will stay together because I have a massive pin collection with amazing pins of these two so it made me biased

Naruto and Sai are without any partners since their timeline got fucked

Pray

Ok so let me go over some little details I like to have

Uchihas love so fucken deeply its not even funny so when their loved ones are threatened, all hell breaks loose,

Hatakes are a feral clan and while they are seen as “domestic” in modern times not so much in the Warring States, there are two reactions. One (stupid) people will try to fight them to scare them off (ha) or are scared to high heaven and back away from them

Hatakes have fangs and have habits like touching and calling their close ones pack and mate and pup if considered pack 

Yes all of his students are his pups and Tenzo is affectionately called a sapling once he realizes that is a THING for Senju’s to say to their young

Tenzo secretly loves it

But before he never said it out loud since, you know, trauma

Hatakes are territorial of their pack so if anyone messes with their pack when they can’t handle it you are going to wake up with your throat being ripped apart from Hatake teeth

Having a Hatake and Uchiha couple might be a pair made in shinobi heaven if I think in that sense

Fear them

Kakashi gives head pats like it is free candy

Everyone decided to have the Hatake clan symbol on them to place a barrier between them and other warring clans because no one likes to mess with Hatakes (only dumb people do, aka, the political greedy people)

Oh wait I found my plot!

Sakura is still considered a civilian during this time, with no family name or any of that sort since, back then, a civilian was too poor to have a last name, so she, alongside Sai, are now Hatake. 

Since Hatake’s have a pack mentality they do have the occasion of adopting outside their clan and giving their last name, however, there have been very few cases in which a clan outsider is adopted into the Hatake. Usually, this is issued to the clan head of that clan and things will get sorted out. But, because Sasuke, Naruto, and Tenzo are time travelers, no one knows of them nor are they official in the clan registry they don’t do that. 

 Bastard children if you will, and while it's possible for both Naruto and Tenzo that is going to be difficult to tell with Sasuke and Obito

So they decided not to use their last names in such situations unless officially asked if they were of [instert clan here] and just said they are by blood

After all, last names are a claim so they are careful to say they are a Uchiha, Uzumaki, or Senju

Do they claim them?

I mean no?????

Let's say no

They are blood-related but do not claim name, claim blood, not name. If named they are shipped to the clan’s compound and goodbye pack member. 

NOT ON KAKASHI’S WATCH

Ok so, timeline!

I’m gonna make it about maybe a year or more before the death of Inzuma

Just because I can and because tension is still there

But not THE tension if you know what I mean

I want Tobirama to feel like something is wrong with the Chakra signatures floating around but I want Hashirama to know first what the actual problem is with the forest warning him about a pack he should not cross

Why the forest?

Because they feel another person with the forest within them

Aka Tenzo

Case and point

They find Sasuke first by accident

It was a patrol of Senju who found him and immediately didn’t know what to do but they had to capture the thing because obviously it was a Uchiha

They corner him and they are about to catch him when the trees start to move

At first, they think it's their clan head who came to trap him 

But no

The branches are capturing THEM and leaving the Uchiha alone

So now they are confused

Confused they see a man with short chestnut hair come out from nowhere, take the Uchiha into his arms, and warns them that they shouldn't mess with a Hatake cub

And

Disappears

They promptly freak the fuck out

I'll add more later and edit more of my other two ideas cus I can. Nice to do a break on the dcxdp fandom not gonna lie.

Part 2 | Part 3

[thesonicpunk]

My favourite SNS fanfics (part 1)

Someone in the comments of my own fic asked for NaruSasu recs, so I thought I'd also make a post compiling my absolute favourites here! I've been so fortunate with the response to my work on AO3 so I hope this is a nice way to share the love around:

Inside this place is warm by magma. One shot, a cozy night in with Sasuke and hokage!Naruto where they figure out what they are to each other. It's short, so well written and the author really grasps the subtleness/complex nature of their relationship! (the author is @magmavox on tumblr!)

Swimming against the current by GODZILLA90095. Part 1 of the series with the same name. College AU. When I tell you I devoured this fanfic........ Lowkey-emo!Sasuke, hockey-player!Naruto. It's funny, it's got lots of pinning, it's got feels, it's got Naruto figuring out his sexuality in the most typically Naruto way, basically it's got IT ALL. And the writing is amazing. It was the fic that inspired me to get on the website and post my own work.

Tears don't fall by GODZILLA90095 (again bcs they rule). Part 1 of the series A different way but just as good. Modern AU. It's kind of a Naruto and Sasuke get a second chance in their 30s after a huge break-up. Naruto has kids with Hinata, but he's gay. It's heartbreaking, raw, real, beautiful.... fuckkkk read it!!!

The Symposium series by candlewix. Told from the perspective of ace!Kakashi. We see Naruto and Sasuke's love story across the years from his eyes. No one, I mean NO ONE, is as funny as this author. The way they write Kakashi's POV is hilarious, but so well balanced by the profound and beautiful descriptions the author writes about what Nart and Sake mean to each other. ugh.

We Deserved a Better Ending My Love by narutophobia. Reencarnation babyyy! Naruto and Sasuke in modern times, but everything that was in canon was real just reaaally long ago. Naruto remembers, searches for Sasuke (who doesnt remember!!). SHENANIGANS ensue. Beautiful love story and such an interesting take on things.

love like this is forever by moonplums.  Part 1 of the series forever. It's set in Boruto era/world - I am not usually into that tbh, it gives me anxiety to think about Sasuke and Naruto not getting together after the war BUT this series does it quite nicely, kind of like they have their awakening later in life and it's very cute how they have a family with the kids. Sarada's POV. Worth reading for sure!

when it all comes together, there's just you by kintou.  It's short fragments of both Naruto and Sasuke discovering their sexualities across the years, with and without each other. Super cute and interesting, and smutty! I love the concept. (author is @ao3-kintou on tumblr!)

I might one day make a part 2 to this, but so far these are the ones I've read that I really love! I hope it was ok to share these on here, if you are the author and would like me to remove (or tag you!) just message me.

If you read any of these and you like 'em, remember to leave a comment (any comment!). You can make the author's day with just a little emoji. <3

[nightmarerose1]

Bakugo and Tokoyami are a little like Shikamaru and Temari if you really think about it 💭

Look Since Naruto was a big inspiration for Mha it’s not surprising that their fights are similar especially after reading/rewatching them side to side. Tbh the only difference is that Horikoshi made their fight shorter and added Bakugo pinning Tokoyami down while looking way into doing it. (If Temari did that to Shikamaru while having the same look as Bakugo you could probably guess how everyone would of reacted)

Their best friends reactions to the fight: Choji knows Shikamaru well enough to know that he was going to give up eventually while Deku and Kirishima were just figuring/finding out about Tokoyami weakness. But even after he gave up Kirishima had to add that Bakugo likes to go after that type of stuff, I know it’s doesn’t mean much but the way Bakugo was looking at Tokoyami showed how he way into those type of stuff.

Also this is just my opinion and I know not a lot of people would agree but I’m making a bet if Bakugo was a girl or even Tokoyami was a girl + Had a human head then they probably would of been together or at least their ship would of been more popular (which is a little sad cause Tokoyami is a cool character just the way he is it’s just him having a bird head makes people ignore him most of the time). Of course the argument can be made oh if Bakugo was a girl then he would be with Deku or Kirishima but again since Mha was inspired by Naruto I wouldn’t be surprised if Horikoshi had put them together in a way of saying you “didn’t expect it did ya” or as a joke like “if Shikamaru gave up and got with the spiky blonde then I don’t see why that can’t be the same for Tokoyami”

Bonus: Shikamaru and Bakugo asking their dad the exact same questions 💍❓

Tbh I would do a deeper dive into the whole ShikaTema and Bakutoko being similar but that’s going to take a while so if anyone is interested then stay tune 🦌🌪️🐦‍⬛💥

[sunflowers-in-graves]

Narusasu Smut (first time writing a one shot like this so if it sucks… sorry)

Wanted a one shot with Naruto using his shadow clones on Sasuke…

Next thing I knew, I was kissing Naruto, again, and this time it wasn’t an accident. I don’t know what got into me but he was arguing with me about him being stronger and he could do anything he wanted to me. As he was shouting at me, I was focused on his lips. Those pink soft lips that never tend to shut up. The only thing I could think of, was to kiss him. I leaned in and his eyes widened at the surprise but then he started to deepen the kiss. His arms wrapped around my waist pulling me closer. I could feel him growing harder the more he kissed me. All of sudden there was someone else kissing on my neck but my lips were still attached to Naruto. I look over and see another Naruto. Oh god, this fucker summoned a clone. Two Naruto’s touching and kissing me. The ache in my stomach grew. I couldn’t help but feel myself grow harder as both Narutos had me pinned to the wall. I’ve never felt such intense feelings. Naruto started to kiss down my body where he started to unbutton my pants, leaving me vulnerable. I couldn’t help but stare at him as he smirked up at me, holding my hard on, his soft hands going up and down. While he had me in his hands, his clone had me pinned by my neck against the wall. I looked down at Naruto as he had me in his mouth. I couldn’t hold in my moan as he started sucking

“Oh god, Naruto.”

He looked up at me and I couldn’t help but lock this in my memory, those blue eyes, him smiling as he went down on me, locking his eyes with mine. Oh fuck. I could feel the heat in my lower abdomen growing intensely. My body was thrusting to the rhythm of Narutos mouth. I knew I was about to cum but he stopped before I bursted. The clone and Naruto grabbed my hands and led me to the bed. Narutos clone began kissing me and pushed me onto Naruto who was sitting on the bed. He grabbed me by the throat and gently pulled me back to kiss him.

“How much do you want me, Sasuke?” He whispered in my ear.

I could feel him growing more underneath me as I thrusted on his lap.

His clone had me in his mouth and Naruto had me by the throat as he shoved one finger inside me. Teasing for what was about to come. I mistakenly let out a moan as he put a 2nd finger in. As he widened my hole, I could feel him growing weak to each moan, wanting me more and more. As he got closer his shadow clone disappeared and Naruto shoved me down on the bed backside exposed. He had me by my arms, his strength definitely beating me at this point. He had me weak to the knees wanting more. Wanting release from the tension burning in my abdomen.

“I’m gonna take this slow so I don’t hurt you”

I felt wetness on his fingers as he went in and out of me. Next thing I knew I was being pushed onto the bed feeling Naruto inside me. His moans sent a sensation down my stomach. I wanted him just as much as he wanted me. He grabbed my hair bring me up as he thrusted harder. This time he added two shadow clones, both kissing my abs, one going further down and the other coming up to kiss me.

“Fuck, Naruto” I moaned

The tingling coming at full speed, my legs getting weary, my body starting to shake with every touch and every thrust. One clone had me in his mouth, the other making out with me while Naruto had his hands around me throat. My moans getting louder.

“Hold it Sasuke, I’m almost there too.”

As Naruto thrusted harder his shadow clones disappeared and we both came, kind of making a mess on the bed. We crashed, lying down, both exposed. My legs still shaking from the aftermath. Naruto came closer and kissed my forehead.

“Told you I was stronger, obviously I can make you weak” he teased.

I rolled my eyes, “whatever, loser.”

[thewitchblue]

I loved the ice skater reader btwww

Could you do a Wally west x reader fem preferably 🙏🏼 

Could you make them super strong like Sakura from Naruto. Like Wally with Someone super strong is just 🥰 fr

And can she have super strength? the kind where she kicks the ground and a hole appears.

She’s a model and well model are kinda skinny? 

So she doesn’t even look like she could lift a baby without struggling. So like the Young Justice got kidnapped and Wally c call reader to come help him. And the young Justice is shocked. Because this skinny girl just came and saved them.

English is not my first language 😔 su sorry for spelling mistakes🙍🏻‍♀️

You didn't expect to get an emergency signal in the middle of a random Wednesday afternoon, but here you were; riding a motorcycle like hell is chasing you down and muttering curses. You just got off of a photoshoot, and you had to cancel the next one because of Wally.

If Wally isn't dead when you get there, you'll kill him yourself.

Your anger was so burning hot you didn't even notice the craters you left as you stormed to the warehouse.

You kicked the steel double door open in your anger, which immediately breaks and knocks out a guard with a loud crack.

All guns were immediately aimed at you, but your blood was singing a wrathful song at that moment. You were a hurricane tearing through guards like wheat.

How the hell did your idiot boyfriend get caught by these inadequate goons? Wally was probably dared by Tim to not use his superspeed for one mission.

Actually, almost definitely that was the case. Your boyfriend, as much as you love him, isn't the best fighter or the brightest. He knows this, and he's always been a tad self-conscious about it. He wasn't even the better fighter in his own relationship. There was no other way this dare could have gone differently.

You were as graceful as you were brutal. You practically floated through the battlefield, aiming fists that threw back multiple guards at the same time. You tossed people around like they were ragdolls and even used some of them like a hammer to take out more in one swipe.

The guns were broken before they could even fire. Your shockwave punches mixed with your superstrength crushed the guns like they were clay.

You held eye contact as you took the AK-47 out of the goon's hand and turned it to dust in front of them. You called out loudly,

"Either you all turn yourselves in, or you all get ripped to shreds. Your choice."

Most of them, unsurprisingly, chose to live. One of them even cut out the team on the way out.

Wally ran up to you after buying your favourite sweets and handing it to you with a grin. You sighed at his puppy-dog eyes.

"You are so lucky I could cancel my photoshoot and that I still fit in this stupid suit."

Aqualad recovered from the shock the fastest out of the entire team. Before you could continue to rail into him, he asked with crossed arms,

"Who is this?"

Wally gave you a kiss with a big, albeit awkward smile while rubbing the back of his neck nervously. He insisted on the suit when you found out he was Kid Flash. He wanted matching suits, but you told him you don't want to look like a mustard bottle and picked something else. He wrapped you in his arms and introduced you to the team,

"Guys, this is my girlfriend!"

You grumbled your displeasure at being introduced to the team under such dire circumstances.

"You are SO lucky I love you. I could and would have killed you otherwise. How did you even fall into their hands? These idiots were as tough as a wet paper towel."

Tim offered in a cheery tone,

"He made a bet and lost horribly."

You turned your glare from Wally to Tim. The kid seemed like the brains of the operation. If he's the one to hurt your Wally... Well, John Constantine would have a better fate than him.

"What's your excuse then?"

That caught Tim off guard. Your voice was silky, like a midnight caress. He vaguely recognises you, but he can't pin your face to a name or even where he found you. Was it at school? No, it couldn't be. Kon would never shut up about you. You are his type in every way. Did you meet at a gala? No, he knows everything about every rich socialite. He never came across you at any of the events he was at.

"My excuse? I was the one to warn him against it!"

The audacity Tim felt almost made you smile. Of course you know Tim. Who doesn't? The only brain to rival Bruce Wayne.

"If that's the case, how did you all get overwhelmed? Wally, no offence, isn't your get-out-of-jail-free card."

Tim agreed immediately to your amusement,

"Oh, no, that is Kon. He's our get-out-of-jail-free card."

Kon didn't look nearly as amused as you were. Wally was slightly offended, but he scored Kon's dream girl, so he didn't care too much.

Aqualad walked into the centre of the group and said,

"Nobody is a get-out-of-jail-free card. We all are important, and all are at fault."

You crossed your arms. Damn right, they are at fault. That photoshoot was important to you.

You look gorgeous even when furious. The cooling rage somehow complimented your eyes. Nobody quite comprehended the situation. You were so tiny yet so deadly. It was all shocking. Wally's SOS ace card was a tiny model? They wouldn't have believed you were at all able to fight if they didn't see you just demolish an entire warehouse full of guards. You look like you couldn't lift a twig, let alone 200 kilograms of muscle. Yet here you are, burning and devastating.

Your alarm went off before anything else could be said. Shit. You had a lunch date with an important client. You groaned while shutting off the alarm. Fine. You climbed back onto your motorcycle and said,

"Don't let there be a next time."

You sped off before anybody could offer for you to join the team or express their thankfulness. Wally watched with a dreamy expression.

"I have the hottest girlfriend."

[13as07]

Elegant #1

(Shino Aburame)

[Artwork is not mine! Credit to JUHiHUJi]

Requested by: Anonymous

Word Count: 3,502

Warnings and/or Pre-Notes:

It's a western theme wedding style cause I was lazy and didn't want to do research

Alcohol Use

———————————————————————

     I let out another strained breath, glancing over my wedding dress in the body mirror again. What if Shino doesn't like the style? What if he's getting cold feet? What if he leaves me alone at the altar? What if -

     "Wow," a voice says softly, drawing out the word. "You're so... beautiful." My sights jump up, glancing in the mirror to figure out who's behind me. Naruto's frame fills the mirror as he walks closer, settling behind me as his eyes jump over my dress. He's smiling ear to ear, with stars hanging in his eyes as he looks at me. "You're the second prettiest bride I've ever seen."

     "Second?" I ask, smiling back at him.

     "Ya, sorry but you can't beat out how pretty Hinata was at our wedding. She'll always hold that first place price."

     I laugh at the love-struck newlywed. Hinata and Naruto got married two months ago, and I swear he still looks at her the way he did at their ceremony.

     "Now, I know Sakura will drag me out by my ear if she catches me in here, the whole bad energy from seeing you - "

     "That's only for the groom, Naruto. Groom's men aren't included in that," I correct, shifting around so we can face each other. My squadmate looks pretty nice when he gets dressed up, even if his hair is still messy and pointed every which way.

     Naruto's cheeks dusty a slight pink as he rubs the back of his head. "Oh, right. Anyway, I remember the whole 'new, old, borrowed, blue' thing from my wedding. I don't know if you're doing that like Hinata did but I did bring you something blue just in case."

     "I wasn't planning on it but I appreciate the thought, Naruto," I tell him, leaning forward to wrap my arms around him.

He wraps his arms around me too, being careful not to mess up my perfectly constructed look for my special day. "Anyway, you want to see my gift?"

"Yes, I do."

"Just so you know, this is fully from me. I did it - well Hinata stitched it - but it was fully my idea, all of it," Naruto rambles, digging through his pockets in search of my gift.

He tugs out a square cloth, the main color being a rich blue with the edges being his signature obnoxious orange color. Naruto holds it in front of me, letting the cloth tumble undone to its full size. It's no bigger than a napkin. In careful stitches is the quote 'Trust is knowing that when a squad mate pushes you, they're doing it because they care'.

"Naruto," I mumble, reaching forward to hold the ends of the cloth.

"Pretty nifty, huh? Hinata had a section of Neji's robe turned into a handkerchief, so I asked her to do the same with my old jacket. I figured you could pin it under your dress. If not that's cool too. Oh! And don't worry, Hinata cleaned the material like a bazillion times."

     "Naruto," I call again, tears in my eyes as I lunge forward, wrapping my arms around his neck again. "You dumb gushy fox," I say with a smile and tears of appreciation.

     "Do you not like it? Oh! Please don't cry, you're going to ruin your makeup," he rushes out, carefully slipping at the water that threatens to ruin the makeup I spent an hour on.

"I love it, Naruto," I tell him, smiling at him to send the point home. "You big goof. Would you pin it to my dress?" I ask, shifting my skirt around to figure out where I want it pinned.

"Of course! Let me go find a pin."

————————————

"Just some final touches," Sakura mumbles, running the makeup brush over my cheeks again. "Oh, and a few puffs of perfume," she says, jumping to her feet and rummaging around the table covered in different products.

     "I can't wear perfume, you know that. It messes with Shino's kikaichus."

     "So, you know how Shino has been queasy off and on the last couple of months?" She mumbles, now digging through her bag.

     "Sakura," I utter, my tone warning because of the way our conversation is heading.

     "Well, it's because Hinata and I have been testing different perfumes," She finishes, standing up with a small box in her hands.

     "Sakura!"

     "Oh calm down, it was only a handful of times and only a squirt or two every time. No Shinos and no kikaichus were harmed. Besides, it’s your wedding day. You should be wearing a new perfume to celebrate. It just so happens to be the only perfume that doesn't annoy or make your husband's parasites sick. Now come here and let me spray you down."

     I roll my eyes at her but do get up from my spot. I twirl in a slow circle, letting Sakura coat me in the flower-scented perfume. "See? So much better, plus you can wear perfume more often since it doesn't mess with Shino."

     "I guess so," I mutter, shaking my head at her. I swear Sakura never uses her brain outside of missions.

     "Alright, I'll leave your fancy new scent here on the table," She says, making a show of putting it back in the box and leaving the box on the table. "We need to get going for your first look and such." Shino isn't much of an emotional man and is rarely emotional around other people, so we decided a private first look would be best.

     She leads the way, my veil in her hold, held above her head so it doesn't drag on the ground as we head outside. "Wait here," she mutters after the short walk, stopping long enough to situate the clips of my veil into my hair.

Sakura slips away, leaving me to admire the cherry blossoms as she goes looking for my husband. I do just that, walking along the small path and toying with the heavy branches being weighed down by the weight of their blooms.

Enjoying the scenery helps with some of the anxiety surrounding today. I'm more than thrilled to spend the rest of my life with Shino, but it's still nerve-racking to think about all the things that could go wrong today, let alone the future.

"You don't always have to be such a lug!" Sakura's voice rings out after a few minutes, tugging my focus in the direction we came from earlier.

My best friend is dragging my very soon-to-be husband down the short path, a blindfold wrapped around his eyes to ensure he's not cheating. Shino looks nice, dressed fancy for once and his hair slicked back instead of loose and bushy like usual. "I do not see the point in doing this. I will see her when she walks down the aisle," he grumbles, slowly trudging after Sakura as she pulls him my way.

"I don't want you loosening your macho-ness because you burst into tears in front of everyone," I tease, causing his head to snap in the direction of my voice.

A group of his kikaichus slips out, eagerly flapping their way toward me. Some stay buzzing around me, with a few others clinging to different parts of my clothing. This has been a common thing during our relationship, Shino's bugs ditching him to investigate me or chew at a bit of my chakra. I freaked out the first time it happened but he insists they mean no harm and it helps him feel close to me. Since then, it's come to be something that calms me down, which I need with how loud my heartbeat seems to be.

"I would not and will not cry," he mumbles, stopping in the spot Sakura leaves him in.

"Lug," she murmurs before turning toward me. "I'm going to go make sure everything is settled. Once you two are done, send Shino in and come wait in the corridor, alright?"

"Alright, I'll see you in a few minutes."

With that, Sakura turns on her heels to head towards the waiting guests, leaving the two of us alone for the first time today. "You don't think you're going to cry when you see me?" I ask, reaching forward to toy with his sunglasses that Sakura slithered the blindfold under.

"No, I do not," he whispers, his hands sliding up to wrap around my arms, causing more of his kikaichus to spill out, coating both of our arms now.

I slowly slide my touch backward, taking my time to rest his glasses on his head before I tug at the knot keeping the cloth in place around his eyes. Once the cloth is loose, I take a step back, letting the material dangle from my fingertips.

Shino's eyes are squinted because of the setting sun. I knew they would be, but I want to see his whole reaction especially since this is something that won't happen again. His sight crawls around my body, falling down my dress like a waterfall before climbing back up my frame like a mountain. "Perhaps," he starts, voice cracking as he repeatedly blinks. "Perhaps, I was wrong."

     Once the words are out, he breaks, tears rolling down his cheeks, chasing away the kikaichus that have been clinging to his face. Shino moves forward, enveloping me in his arms so he can hold me. "You look elegant, my Ladybug," he whispers into my hair, his little friends following their leader and knotting themselves in my locks.

     When Shino pulls back, his focus shifts from me to helping his beetles untangle their legs, being careful not to mess up my hair and not to hurt his bugs. He spends the whole time trying to blink away the fresh tears forming in his eyes; he fails, forming water lines down his cheeks.

     "Oh, Shino," I coo when he pulls the rest of the way apart from me. I cup his face, using my thumbs to brush away his tears. "You look very elegant too."

"Not as elegant as you, my dear," he mutters, leaning down to brush a kiss against my lips.

————————————

I shift my dress again, making sure it's laid perfectly as I wait for Kakashi to join me. There's about ten minutes until I'm expected to walk down the aisle with my Sensei giving me away to my husband, to my Shino. My nerves have evened out since our time together under the cherry blossoms, leaving me filled with nothing but joy.

"There's my gorgeous daughter-in-law," Shibi's soft voice calls from behind me.

I turn a bit, making sure not to mess up my carefully laid-out dress and my thin veil settled on top of it. I decided on a royal-length veil, more so because that's what Shino wanted than me, but it is his wedding as well. If he wants me to wear a long veil that trails behind me, I don't mind.

"You look lovely," Shibi compliments again, making his way forward. He stops in front of me, careful hands cupping my cheeks. He tilts my head down, brushing a gentle kiss to my hairline. "You are beautiful. The most beautiful bride my son could ask for."

"Thank you," I mutter, tilting my head back up so I can look at my father-in-law. A soft smile is on his face as he looks down at me. This is one of the few times I've seen Shibi truly content, which only solidifies my decision to marry his son. Shibi is the smartest man I know, and if he agrees with my decision it must be the right one.

"I have a gift for you, a temporary one," he mutters, pulling away from me. "Since Shino and you decided to have a night wedding, I figured a little extra glow would be nice," Shibi tells me, throwing up a few hand signals.

Soft flapping fills the space, a small squirm of bugs following the command they were given. "What are you doing?" I ask, tilting my head backward, watching the bugs settle in a neat line along the hem of my veil.

"Watch," he orders, shifting his hand placement to send out another command.

The bugs shift their wings, a soft glow coming from them, decorating my veil with the soft yellow coloring. "Shibi!" I call in joy, lunging forward to catch him in a hug. "It's beautiful! Thank you."

"You're welcome," he utters, unclinging my arms from around him. Shibi isn't much of a touchy person, a trait his son inherited too. "After the ceremony, I'll need them back, of course."

"Of course," I echo, sending him another smile.

     He nods his head, letting his hands fall back down to his sides. "I should get seated before the ceremony begins. I look forward to seeing you walk down the aisle," Shibi mutters, nodding his head once more before he slips around the corner, heading into the crowd that's eagerly waiting for me to enter.

     I adjust my dress again, carefully toying with my veil so I don't hurt or knock off any of the lightening bugs clinging to it. I have a few moments of silence, giving my anxiety the chance to crawl into my rib cage again. After today, Shino and me will be bound together forever, until the end of our time.

     "There you are," my Sensei calls, pulling me out of my head. "I didn't know you were done getting ready yet." He mutters, adjusting the pin-comb that's holding my veil in place. "You look like an angel."

     "You don't look too bad yourself," I tease, glancing over Kakashi's put-together look. It's weird seeing my Sensei out of his usual outfit.

     He rolls his eyes, letting out a disapproving hum. Despite the small banter, Kakashi still leans forward, resting the side of his head against mine with his arms loosely wrapped around me. "The lightning bugs are a nice touch," he whispers, squeezing me before he tugs himself away.

"They're a temporary gift from Shibi."

"Well, I have a permanent gift for you. Just don't tell the others, they might get jealous."

"Ya?" I ask, watching Sensei dig through his pockets, the familiar sound of our training bells filling the air when he tugs them out of his pocket.

Kakashi hums again, giving me a rare masked and closed-eyed smile. "Naruto gave you his gift already, yes?" He asks, clinking the bells so they'll ring again.

"Yes, he did," I answer, lifting a layer of my dress to show off the handkerchief Naruto pinned to my dress.

He nods again, bending down so he can kneel on the ground. Kakashi works carefully, unlike my clumsy squad mate. Sensei moves slowly, unpinning the handkerchief and laying it on his knee so he can wrap his bells around the pin before pinning both items under my dress again. "There, now you'll have all three of us attached to you during the night."

"When did you get all gushy?" I tease, shaking my leg a bit. You can't hear the bells around the fabric but I can feel their imprint against me.

"When Naruto got married, and again now. I'm sure it'll happen again when Sakura and Sasuke get married too," Kakashi answers, straightening up before taking his spot next to me. "Are you ready to do this?" He asks, prompting his arm out toward me.

     "As ready as ever," I answer, clinging to the bend of his elbow.

     "That's my girl," he mutters, poking his head around the corner to send Sakura the signal that we're ready.

————————————

Shino's hands cling to me for dear life, his social anxiety at an all-time high as he spins us in slow, small circles. His left-hand grips mine, his ring digging into my fingers, threatening to leave an imprint. His right-hand rests on my waist, clinging to the material of my dress. "I despise dancing," he mutters, focus flickering around the millions of eyes watching us have our first dance.

"I know."

"Everyone is watching us."

"I know."

"You are my wife now."

"You are my husband now," I echo, shifting forward, I loop my arms around his neck, laying his head on my shoulder. Shino gratefully takes the change, his arms tight around my waist and his nose buried into my neck.

We sway, still moving in slow circles around the dance floor. "I will not be dancing again tonight," he whispers into my neck, the feeling of his kikaichus exploring the new position, little legs tugging at the material of my dress.

"I know, I appreciate you doing this though."

"Of course, Ladybug."

Shino reluctantly pulls away from me as the song comes to an end, fresh tears raining on his face. "What's wrong?" I ask, hands jumping up to wipe away his tears before anyone else notices.

"Nothing, my dear," he answers, fingers wrapping around mine to pull them away from his face. "You... are perfect," he mutters, glancing around before quickly pressing a kiss to my fingertips. "Can we go sit now?"

"Yes we can," I murmur, smiling from ear to ear as my husband tugs me off the dance floor.

Cheers from the guests fill the room, a few of them jumping up from their spots to take up the dance floor as the next song starts. Kiba and Naruto are beaming from the head table, as are my bridesmaids; Sakura and Hinata. "Our baby is all grown up!" Kiba cheers, Hinata giggling and nodding in agreement.

"Be quiet," Shino mumbles, helping me into my chair before he sits down alongside me. Once we're situated, his hand messes with my dress, ruffling my layers in search of a small amount of skin on skin. "What's that?" He asks as his fingertips slide over the pinned presents from my squad mates, head tilting down to glance at the items.

"Bells from my Sensei and a handkerchief from Naruto," I answer, helping him move my dress out of the way.

He hums softly, fingertips digging into my knee as he clings to it. His thumb slides over my knee on repeat, a kikaichu or two crawling over his fingers, occasionally dipping down and crossing my knee. "You are perfect," he repeats, sending me a rare smile before turning to hell at Kiba again.

I smile to myself, soaking in the repeated compliment. "Well, Mrs. Aburame," Sakura teases, a huge smile on her face as well. "What does it feel like being officially married now?"

"Wonderful."

————————————

Sakura and I belt out jumbled lyrics of the song playing, the liquor in our system commanding our dancing with both of our wet blankets of partners watching. Sasuke and Shino are sat near each other, both men's full attention on us as we dance. "What do you think they're thinking right now?" She asks, her arms dangling over my shoulders as we move in beat with each other.

"Well, knowing Sasuke he's probably talking himself out of killing me and Shino might have one or two more songs in him before he gets clingy again."

Sakura lets out a loud cackle, the alcohol chipping away the bubbly cute persona she tries to maintain. Her laughter only increased when Shino starts heading our way. "You're wrong about Sasuke but it seems you were right about Shino."

"Right about what?" My husband asks, impatience in his voice as he stands next to us, both of us still swaying to the music.

     "About you wanting my attention," I answer, pulling away from my friend to wrap Shino up in my arms.

     "That is not what I want," he mutters, staying still as I squeeze him in my hold. "I wish for us to go home. I would like some alone time with my wife," Shino airs out the last word like he can't comprehend being able to use it.

     "What kind of alone time?" I ask, sliding my hands up to toy with the ends of his hair, fluttering my eyelashes at him.

     "Just... alone time," he whispers, a hint of pink dust on his cheeks. "Should I have it announced that the ceremony is over?"

     "Have them announce the party is over in thirty minutes," I mutter back, letting my arms fall to his shoulders, leaning myself against my husband. I tip my head up, lips brushing against his ear as I speak. "If you can't wait thirty minutes I'd be more than happy to give you a little... support." I let a hum out, flickering my eyes down.

     Shino's face is full red now, mouth gapping a bit. "That is not... we cannot... Ladybug," he stutters, as flustered with my straightforwardness as ever. "I am... that is something I have been excited about today, but that... that is an at-home activity."

     "I know, I'm just teasing."

     He lets out a sigh of relief, gently pulling me off of him. "Your mind is lacking the elegance the rest of you possess."

     "I know."

———————————————————————

[hegoeshardasfuck]

i've got nothing to do and neither do you

wordcount: 1.3K

tags: orgasm control, heavy edging, light bondage, danger kink, sub Naruto, Anbu Reader, Hokage Naruto

synopsis: what's a little bit of sex between the Hokage and his most trusted Anbu anyways?

authors note: just realized i never ported this one over here (。_。) hope ya'll enjoy regardless and hey! kinktober starts tomorrow, i got a lot of fics to post about this blonde idiot so keep an eye out if thats ur jam

https://archiveofourown.org/works/58217035

Naruto keeps his wrists together behind the swivel chair of the office as you, his most faithful Anbu, inspect them. Just to make sure they'll stay put once tied together. You press in on the center of his palm and watch as fingers flex outwards. With a swift motion you lay his wrists on top of each other before sliding off your headband and tying well worn fabric around them.

"You do know that I have rope in my desk, right?" Naruto asked as you secured the knot. He shimmied his wrists and the tightness of it sent a jolt of pleasure through him.

You nod as you slide off your over-armour, "I know, I just have a preference for it over rope."

"Rope would be more secure than fabric," Naruto countered with.

"The headband won't leave rugburn," You stated firmly, reaching out to tilt Naruto's face away with a gloved hand to kiss at exposed neck.

He whimpers just a bit as your lips come into contact with his flesh, slowly repeating the motion. He let's you. He doesn't fight it at all. He could easily have you pinned and thoroughly fucked into the floor in a swift motion.

But he doesn't.

He let's you grip his throat and kiss the nape of his neck and tilt until it strains. Your fingers glide over the flesh and the bone and the veins and you can feel his breathing stutter under your fingers. You trace the markings on his face, one by one, he jolts and shudders under every hint of pressure on the markings. The only place that Kurama is visible on the outside, you wonder if fur is bristling very briefly.

You unbutton the cloak on his shoulders, popped collar jutting awkwardly into your neck. You tug it aside, exposing a clothed shoulder and gripping the collar of his shirt and going to tear it.

You falter, letting your nails dig into his collar bone.

"I have a spare," Naruto answered with, voice a little bit airy. He sounded impatient.

"Good," Was your hushed answer before clawing his shirt apart.

The shirt cuts down the seam under the stress of a clawed glove, poison tipped pinpricks always threaten his flesh. Yet he trusts you with his life just like that, like a good boy. He knows as well as you do that of you dare to sink in all ten poisoned claws it'll kill him, and he has faith you won't. You better not at least.

You kiss down his throat once more from his jawline and press further on towards his shoulder. A pause at his collar bone to add enough pressure for him to shiver. Then you continue, kissing down his shoulder and his upper arm. You would leave lipstick down to his wrist but he's restrained in such a fashion where it's too awkward to do so.

With metered motions you drum your fingers along his shoulder, trailing the back of your claws on sensitive skin. You circle him briefly, walking behind and staying there just long enough for him to come back to reality. Back to the fact that anyone could open up a window or open that door and see him. And as fast as worry hits him it evaporates because you're gripping his throat.

He yips at the suddenness of the motion, staring up at you with sharp eyes that indicate nothing but being a prey. Vulnerable. Weak. You could just, tear out his throat, and he can't do shit to stop you. You take one long breath to ease your grip off his neck, and lower it down to his chest. With an easy motion you catch your claw on the grain and rip through it, just a bit off center.

You swipe the paperwork his desk aside and take a seat before flaying the fabric like ribs, the viscerality of the response is similar enough at least. His back arches into the motion of a threatening touch. His breathing is heavy and somehow he's already rebounded back into that cocky smirk that won hearts.

The only way to wipe it off his face is to grab his head and jam your fingers in his mouth. You watch as he moans against the cool metal of poison daggers on your fingertips, because of course he gets off on the threat of death. He lets his jaw slacken as you tease the pressure of a deadly paralytic to the base of his fangs.

It's fucking rich, the fact he's seriously getting off on this. This must be like edging to him. It is like edging to him, a casual threat to his life with motions alone and tenderness to your lips against his skin. Yet you never once dared to touch below his waistline, where the markings of the seal lay.

Would it be sacrilege to touch there?

Time to find out.

With a fluid motion you slide off his desk and lay your hand on the seal. All five fingers, resting exactly where they should. The full body gasp and shudder and writhe it elicits is enough to make you think he came just from that alone. He stares down at you and you can't tell if it's spite or reverence on his dazed face.

The markings are darker, flared. His pupils are barely slit, so close to circle but off just a bit. That azure of his eyes is flickering with red and he's breathing heavy. You can see that his teeth are sharper and fangs are larger.

You file it away for later that touching the seal is all it takes for him to border on the feral state that the Nine Tails chakra puts him in. Retracting your hand you watch as he tries to breathe and lower himself back down. You don't let him do so though.

You nip and kiss at the tender skin of his marked abdomen, never on the marks but careful at the edges. He yips just a bit as you rest your hands at his hips to hold him in place and he can't lower himself back down again. Stimulus overbearing on his mind but not enough to push him over the edge, sages, its easy for him to forget that you're a cruel mistress.

He goes to grip your head but he stops dead in his tracks when he feels the bindings on the wrists. An unspoken promise that he's yours until they come off, even if that means him letting you touch his body everywhere but where he wants it. He could snap the bondage, he really could. But that's your fucking headband, your identifier of you being a shinobi, and now he understands why you like it over rope. His dumb moral code won't let him tear away your pride.

Your fingers reach for the hem of his pants briefly brushing the heel of your palm across his bulge. He writhes at the hint of friction, oh he's close alright. Your grin is muted but present. He really does get off on his life being threatened to the point he'd cum if you actually touched him with earnest.

He whimpers as you pry the zipper apart with claws, fully disassembling it. If he doesn't have a spare pair of pants he'll just have to hope he has a coat to tie around his waist on the walk of shame back. You undo the seam and slowly slide a hand around the circumference of his hips. The other hand reaches around under his thigh.

You press gently and he raises his hips and tries not to push back the chair too far. With a swift motion you have his pants down to his knees. You still don't touch, no, sages no, why would you do that and end the fun now?

It's been too long since you last did this to end it prematurely.

You slowly stand up, hands resting heavy on his thighs as you lean in. Mere inches away from his lips on your own, he's still biting back the ferality that sparked at a mere touch. You smirk, "We're gonna be here all night long."

"We better," Naruto answered with, and despite the haze on his brain he means it in earnest.

[twomiddlefingersforthehaters]

When Gaara approaches to attack Sasuke, Sakura stood up to Gaara to protect Sasuke. And she ended up pinned to the tree. But why didn't Naruto rush in to save her?

A similar thing happened in FOD,

When Orochimaru was about to attack Sasuke, Naruto's body moved on its own to save him.

Naruto felt angry and disappointed, and because Sasuke was acting like a coward he went into rage at the Forest of Death. That something even Orochimaru noticed, "when your emotions are heightened... the power of the nine-taiks overflows... "

Naruto's body did moved here on it's own to save Sasuke. But why couldn't he run to her to save her from Gaara's grasp? Why doesn't his nine-tale power overflow here like in FOD? If you say he likes her, then, why didn't he get into an extreme rage to save her? Where is his anger??

He's worrying about her but he still scared about Gaara. And he didn't know what to do.

Naruto was trying to summon Gamabunda, which required Kyuubi chakra to summon the toad. But he was unable to extract the Kyuubi chakra, so he failed to summon. But he was able to instantly take out the Kyuubi's chakra when Sasuke was in trouble.

Remember what Haku said, "When a person has something important to protect... That's when they can truly become strong"

"Don't know what I can do... But I'm gonna give it my best shot!"

As Naruto said, he gives it his best shot by only making 4 Kage Bunshins.

But when Sasuke says that Naruto was also his precious comrade and that he can save Sakura....all of a sudden he manages to make 1000+ Tajū Kage Bunshins compared to the mere 4 Kage Bunshins he made earlier to save Sakura.

"To protect someone important... Naruto becomes even stronger..!!!"

So, who is this 'someone' important to Naruto?? who is this 'someone' who always leads him to be stronger and more confident??? Yes, it's Sasuke. Because he is his driving force.

How Sasuke's words and actions affect him is nothing new. Similar thing happened in war arc,

In war arc, Obito taunts Naruto and asks him and everyone else to give up. Naruto almost break down and shredded tears when he saw Obito wipe out some of the alliance. Seeing Naruto was crying Sasuke just said 2 sentences with a tease and Naruto got fully charged. It shows how well Sasuke knows Naruto and how he can motivate him even after years of being apart.

[anyon-else]

Our History's Tiresome (The Red Room pt.17) | As you begin coming to terms with your place in the world, you find that leaning on your new-found family doesn't have to be burdensome. In fact, it might be what all of you need to begin healing. (Marvel AU) – spotify playlist | read on ao3

Pairings | Kakashi Hatake x Black Widow!Reader + Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, Tsunade Senju, Danzo Shimura, Sai, Orochimaru, Itachi Uchiha

Warnings | female!reader, angst, fluff, hurt/comfort (yeah we're not getting.a happy-go-lucky chapter just bc its the last one), nightmares, mild body horror, blood

Word count | 6.8k

(previous chapter) | (series masterlist)

"But will you return? I came looking for you. I want to go home."

J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

You'd taken Kakashi's bed for granted before you were back between his sheets.

The Red Room's beds were certainly passable. They were small, lumpy futons spread in two rows across the floor of a room you shared with the other Widows. Still, it was more than nothing. At that point, you were grateful for what you'd been given.

But then you got a taste of real comfort. A bed stocked with blankets for cold nights and a pillow that was fluffy and full rather than flat and impossible to sleep on comfortably. You wondered how you’d ever slept on anything else.

When you went back to Orochimaru, you realized that you had taken the Red Room for granted. At that abandoned base, you were often left laying on the reclined chair that kept you locked in place with metal cuffs around your wrists, ankles, and neck. It was easier than moving you in the state that Orochimaru’s experiments often left you in at the end of each day.

Now, as you cracked your eyes open and took in the sight of Kakashi laying in front of you, you wondered if you'd ever be able to sleep peacefully anywhere else.

You're getting too soft, a voice whispered in your head, hiding in the shadows yet still petulantly refusing to vacate. Ignoring that voice's constant reprimands was becoming almost as easy as listening to them had been once.

You ran a finger over the curve of Kakashi's cheek and along his jawline with a featherlight touch, doing your best not to wake him. By the time your fingers reached his parted lips, the voice had gone quiet, seemingly just as entranced by the sight before it as you were.

You pulled your hand back when he shifted and let out a sigh before settling back into the same position. After a few seconds of stillness, he reached forward and wrapped gentle fingers around your wrist, tugged it forward and placed it back on his cheek. He sank back into the pillow below him with another contented sigh.

"G'morning," he mumbled, inching closer to you until you relented and met him halfway, letting him bury his face in your chest. He wrapped an arm around your waist, and you moved your hand so you could run your fingers through his hair. "Mm. That feels nice."

You chuckled, tugging at his hair until he pulled his face away from your neck and sleepily met your eyes. You felt your heartbeat pick up as you touched your forehead to his, then tilted your head to meet his lips. He leaned closer, propping himself on one elbow and sliding his fingers over the back of your neck. 

Your body felt hot despite the cool breeze coming in through the open window. Your heart was practically beating out of your chest in an embarrassing show of your feelings. He lifted himself over you, never pulling his lips from yours as he grabbed the hand that was still in his hair and pinned it below you.

His lips were relentless as he slipped his tongue into your mouth, pushing you further and further into the mattress. He seemed to get heavier on top of you with each moment that passed, and a spike of anxiety made you go rigid in his hold.

"Kakashi," you muttered into his lips, beginning to panic as you tried to move away from him, but there was nowhere for you to go, "hold on—"

He was quick to break the kiss, but he didn't pull his weight off of you. Instead, he stayed bent over you and slowly dragged his lips over your cheek until they reached the shell of your ear.

"Oh, little spider," a sickeningly familiar voice whispered, "what's wrong? I thought you'd gotten past these childish fears."

A chill shot through you at the feeling of cold lips brushing your ear. Fear was an icy knife between your ribs, twisting and digging deeper until you felt it embed itself in your heart. Its chill spread through your veins, paralyzing you and putting you at the mercy of the man hovering above you. You couldn't move your head to look at who it was, but you didn't need to. You knew too well who would be staring back at you—even dead, that voice was impossible to forget

"I killed you," you muttered, finally cracking your eyes open to meet his serpentine gaze. "You're dead."

Now that you had locked eyes with him, you were finding it impossible to look away. Blood was leaking between his eyes from the bullet hole on his forehead. It dripped down his nose and landed on your face like crimson teardrops. You felt sick and tried to move again, but it was like you were no longer in control of your body.

"You did," he responded evenly, no hint of anger in his voice despite what you'd done. He barely seemed to notice the blood, but it showed no signs of slowing, "but here I am."

You blinked away the blood that fell dangerously close to your eyes.

"Let me go," you demanded, finally regaining some control over your limbs as you began to fight against his hold on your hands. His hips were pinning you against the bed, and had he been real, you may have been able to throw him off. But here, you could barely move him at all. It was like he was anchored in place, not unwilling but unable to move off of you. 

Then he began to change. His eyes went blank and lifeless, and his head fell forward like someone had snapped the strings holding him up. His features started stripping away, leaving behind bare bone and muscle and tendon. You watched, horrified as the man on top of you fell apart before your eyes. His skin split and decayed, tearing itself apart so that new features could grow where the old ones dissolved. His eyes rolled, yellow irises and slit pupils suddenly disappearing. Familiar brown eyes rolled back into place, though they stared down at you with the same coldness as Orochimaru’s had. Now it was Kakashi staring down at you, but a different Kakashi than before. This one was a very familiar lie. 

Your defenses were immediately raised high. You wouldn’t fall for this trick again.

"You're not real."

You spoke the words like a prayer, still held against the bed despite your best efforts to pull your hands from his tightening grip.

"Let me go," you repeated through grit teeth, though you felt paralyzed beneath him once again. The sudden strength that had found you in your desperation to escape seeped from your pores, leaving you helpless and completely at his mercy.

"Why?" he asked calmly, though his voice sounded...wrong. It was distorted and off, like he hadn't quite figured out how to perfectly imitate Kakashi's inflection, "I thought you wanted me."

"Not you," you said, almost hysterical. A laugh bubbled from your throat. You might have finally gone insane. But even if you had, you would not let yourself be tricked. Not again, "you're not him."

He seemed to study you for a moment. The only sound in the room was your panicked breathing, but he only stared until he finally seemed to come to some sort of conclusion.

"Someone real," he said calmly, his face beginning to melt away again, "and someone living."

Kakashi's face began to crack and decay just like Orochimaru's had. You closed your eyes, but you still heard the sickening shifts of bones as his features shifted into a new face. When you opened them, new skin was crawling up his face. He heaved in a long, deep breath through his nose once the skin had fully formed around it, then met your gaze for a third time.

"Maybe this will be up to your standard, then."

Staring down at you now was Itachi Uchiha. Your breath halted, fear gripping you in a way that it hadn't before. This was a monster you had no idea how to defeat. A man who was still a complete and utter mystery to you.

He was with the Akatsuki, which made him a very real threat to the people you wanted to protect.

"You're meant to be the very best that HYDRA has to offer," he said coldly, narrowed eyes hard as steel. You choked, panic clawing up your throat, "and look at you. What a waste."

He released the tight grip he had on your wrists and wrapped his fingers around your throat, squeezing with so much strength that you wondered if he truly wanted to kill you.

Perhaps he regretted leaving you alive, and now he’d come to correct his mistake.

Despite their freedom, your arms were still locked in place above your head. It felt as if the weight of hands holding them down had never left, but you knew that it was nothing but pure terror keeping you from moving.

Itachi squeezed your throat harder, pressing all of his weight down until your vision began to blur. All the while, his dark eyes watched you with a gleam of satisfaction.

“Don’t you just want it to be over?” he asked calmly. “Don’t you want to wake up?” 

You choked on a reply, survival instincts kicking in just enough that you could move to grip his wrists, desperately trying to pry them from your throat. 

“I said,” he boomed, voice inhumanly loud. You released his wrists and lifted your hands up to cover your ears. “wake up!” 

You sat up with a gasp, lashing out at the body in front of you. They stepped back with a grunt, and you quickly felt around your neck to take in the damage. 

There was nothing. Not even any pain when you pressed against where bruises should have been forming. With a dreadful feeling of clarity, you looked up at the person you’d shoved away.

Genma did not look very enthused to be seeing you again, but he was good enough to give you a moment to catch your breath. You blinked, looking down at the small futon below you. It wasn’t lumpy like the ones in the Red Room, but it didn’t compare to the comforts of Kakashi’s room. 

“What?” you asked, far harsher than you’d intended. Genma narrowed his eyes.

“The Director is waiting for you outside,” he grumbled, eyeing you as you attempted to compose yourself. You ran a hand over your face, trying to scrub away the image of Kakashi’s face peeling away and the feeling of fingers squeezing your neck. Genma’s patience lasted all of ten seconds.

“Let’s go,” he snapped, already turning from where you were beginning to stand and striding towards the door to the cell block. You threw your blanket to the side and pulled on your shoes as you stumbled down the hall, hopping on one foot so you could shove the other into your boot. By the time Genma opened the door, you’d managed to fit two unlaced shoes on the correct feet. You probably looked about as shaken up as you felt, but when the door opened to reveal Tsunade standing patiently on the other side, you figured she wouldn't question your disheveled state.

You grew just a bit fonder of her when she barely gave you a once over before turning away from you and striding down the hall away from the cell block.

“Good news,” she said, though there was little enthusiasm on her face. “You’re not my prisoner anymore.”

"I want you all to stay calm when I tell you this."

Naruto was practically vibrating. Sakura was leaning so far forward that Kakashi thought she would tip over. Even Sasuke was looking at him with eager curiosity. They all knew what this was about—there was no other news that he would have announced with so much caution and ceremony. He'd gathered the three of them in a small conference room, summoning them for a private conversation for the first time since they'd arrived. Kakashi had felt too guilty to do so before, and the air of anger and depression they'd been sitting in would have been hard to breach with anything other than the news he was bringing them now.

"C'mon, Kakashi-Sensei," Sakura groaned, taking an eager step forward, "is she out? Did Tsunade-Sensei let her go?"

"About time," Sasuke grumbled.

Kakashi sighed at their presumption—it was a bad habit that they'd eventually need to break as they climbed SHIELD's ranks, though it felt slightly redundant to say this when they were correct.

"Yes," Kakashi said calmly, "she's out. But there are conditions to—"

Kakashi was very quickly drowned out by Naruto's triumphant shout, coupled with Sakura's whooping and laughing. Naruto pulled her and a barely-smiling Sasuke into a hug, letting out happy giggles as he squeezed the two as if they'd freed you themselves.

Kakashi paused, letting the celebration run its course before he let them down easy with the less-exciting news. It was true that you were no longer trapped in a cell while SHIELD deliberated your fate. But you hadn't gone through a trial yet. You were still under strict supervision from SHIELD, and you weren't going to begin any training—let alone start going on missions—until you'd been given level-one clearance.

His fear was that Danzo would make the process as long as possible, giving you far more hoops to jump through than was fair. He let out a long, labored exhale at the thought as Naruto continued to celebrate, dragging an equally-excited Sakura and a reluctant, grumbling Sasuke into the mix.

"Can we see her?" Sakura asked suddenly, wide-eyes trained on him once again. The others paused as well, looking at him expectantly "You told us that she remembers everything—that means we can be around her again, doesn't it?"

"It does," he said he nodded, "but there are still going to be–"

"Finally," Sasuke said at the same time that Naruto let out another, somehow louder celebratory shout. Kakashi closed his eyes, head tilting back as another round of chatter began. Even Sasuke was beginning to get more excited, participating in eager conversation with Sakura and Naruto.

"I was starting to think of breaking her out! Good thing they freed her or they would've been in for a big surprise! Believe it!"

"That would've made things worse, stupid!" Sakura told him, though her grin didn't budge, "but it doesn't matter! I knew Tsunade-sensei would come through!"

Kakashi sighed again, louder and far more laboured than the previous one. He hoped that Tsunade hadn't heard that little confession from the other side of the door. Sasuke glanced at him, a gleam of suspicion in his eyes.

"What is it?" he asked hesitantly, eyeing Kakashi as if he was going to put you back in a cell himself, "is there something else?"

Kakashi felt his eye twitch.

"How intuitive of you," he grumbled, "Tsunade has been negotiating with Danzo and the council about the possibility of recruiting Y/N. Once her trial is over—assuming it goes well for us—she'll go through a period of heavily supervised missions and training.

"Danzo also wants to have an agent of his choosing overseeing her at all times for the foreseeable future. I assume he's going to try and build a case against her with anything his agent can gather, so we'll have to be careful. Even if there's nothing suspicious going on, I'm sure Danzo will try and twist things in his favor."

All three nodded. They knew how Danzo operated—most in SHIELD did. It was an open secret that the man's tactics were questionable, but he had never broken any laws or SHIELD regulations.

None that Kakashi could prove, at least.

"That's not fair!" Naruto insisted, "She's already proven herself plenty. She saved Sakura!"

"She's proven herself to us, but that doesn't hold much weight for the rest of SHIELD," Kakashi corrected. He knew, objectively, that asking SHIELD to accept you unquestionably was unreasonable. Had it been anyone else, he would've been appalled at the mere suggestion of it.

But it wasn't anyone else.

"And she wasn't just HYDRA—she was a Black Widow. She was raised by someone who betrayed SHIELD, and everyone knows it. People are bound to be suspicious."

He glanced at Sasuke pointedly, but the boy was quick to avert his eyes.

"Can we see her?"

The anger had drained from Sakura's voice—all that was left was quiet hope. Now she just looked tired and desperate to see you. Kakashi understood the feeling all too well.

Kakashi reached up and rapped his knuckle on the door behind him. It opened almost immediately, and Tsunade poked her head in to scrutinize the room's occupants before stepping to the side.

Sakura's gasp was nearly drowned out by another, somehow louder shout from Naruto. Kakashi barely had time to move out of the way before the two were barreling towards you. Sakura reached you first, arms wrapping tightly around your waist like she could keep you anchored at her side through sheer willpower. Naruto followed after her, gathering you and Sakura up in his arms with a gleeful laugh.

"You're okay," Sakura muttered into your shoulder, repeating the words over and over like a prayer.

You smiled, pulling both Sakura and Naruto further into your chest and nodding against Sakura's hair.

"I'm okay."

Kakashi saw your fight to keep tears from falling and took a step towards you, reaching a hand up to the small of your back and brushing a thumb over your spine. You let out a shaking sigh, relaxing into Sakura and Naruto as if finally accepting that this was reality.

You glanced up at Sasuke, who was staring at the floor rather than watching the display in front of him. Kakashi could see his clenched fists trembling.

You slid past Sakura and Naruto and placed a hand in Sasuke's hair, ruffling it with unconcealed affection. He glanced up at you, arms still firmly at his sides, but he didn't resist when you pulled him into a hug. He stared ahead, eyes wide and arms held in front of him like any move he made would make you back away. He blinked once, then very hesitantly returned your hug.

"I'm sorry," you whispered, voice cracking on the word.

Sasuke pulled away, confusion just barely gleaming through the flurry of emotions on his face.

"Why?"

Before you could answer, Tsunade cleared her throat. You went silent, turning towards her with a straight back and a hard expression.

"I've spoken with Danzo," she said after a pause, "and we've come to a compromise."

Kakashi glanced at you, trying to discern whether you'd been told about this development before you came in. Your face was blank, similar to how it had looked when you lost your memories. He had to remind himself that you did not see Tsunade the same way he did. She was your superior, and that meant something very different to you than it did to the rest of SHIELD.

"This morning, Danzo introduced me to one of his students—Sai Yamanaka. That is who he would like to have supervise Y/N during her probationary period. He will accompany her on and off missions."

"A glorified babysitter," Sasuke grumbled, face souring, "what a great use of our agents."

"Sasuke..." Kakashi warned, though he wasn't particularly pleased by this development either. To have supervision while on missions was perfectly reasonable, but off missions?

"Well he sure as hell isn't going to live with us!"

"Of course not," Tsunade said, "he'll be living in the dormitories on SHIELD headquarters, same as Y/N."

"What?"

"No way!"

"Tsunade-sensei, that's ridiculous–"

Tsunade did not look impressed as the three trainees began to shout over one another. You glanced at them, and Kakashi saw the smile you were trying to fight off your face.

"This is non-negotiable," Tsunade said sternly, "and you all should know better than to think she can live with you. For at least the next year, she'll be under heavy supervision. That's how things have to be if you want her to stay. I wanted you all to be able to see one another now. It might be one of the last times you can spend time together without supervision for a long time."

Kakashi closed his eyes, chest sinking. The situation was getting further and further from his control. Realistically, he knew that things would be taken to an extreme. His judgement was clouded—this was nothing more than protocal. Tsunade had no reason to trust you beyond his word and the fact that you'd helped her agents, but you were still a former Black Widow. In fact, this was far better than what his best-case scenario had been.

But his chest still ached at the thought of how long it could be before he got time like this with you again. He met your eyes for a split second, but your attention was quickly taken up when Sakura and Naruto began talking over one another again.

You glanced at Kakashi again after another moment, studying his expression the same way he had been studying yours. When you met his eyes, you blinked, anxiety clearing from your expression as a steady calm took over. He took in a deep breath, as if you'd passed your renewed serenity to him.

"I'll be outside—I technically can't leave you alone unsupervised," Tsunade continued, glancing at Kakashi pointedly. He shrugged and Tsunade turned her attention back towards you, "so if anything goes wrong, make sure it happens loud enough for me to hear. You've got twenty minutes."

You gave her a nod, and she slipped from the room, shutting it quietly behind her. Kakashi heard her footsteps stop a short ways down the hall, and then silence fell.

You took in a slow, deep breath, shoulders slumping as the tension melted from your body.

"This isn't fair," Naruto grumbled. You sighed, placing a hand on his head and smiling when he glanced up at you.

"It's more than fair," you corrected, "and it could be a lot worse. Tsunade has bent a lot of rules to keep me here."

"Yeah, but...you haven't done anything wrong!"

You grimaced, glancing at Kakashi. He returned a small smile, hoping you remembered his words from the night prior.

In his eyes, you hadn't done anything wrong. The sins of your family were not yours to bare, and it was your grandparents who had sacrificed your agency when they gave you to Orochimaru. All that followed had been a product of cowardice and cruelty, but none of it had come from you. You had only done what you needed to in order to survive.

"You seem pretty sure of that," you muttered, resting your chin on top of Naruto's head with a sigh. The boy squeezed you tighter, nearly lifting his feet off the floor in his excitement.

"Of course I am," Naruto said strongly, pulling away from you and taking you by the shoulders, looking into your eyes with a rare intensity, "and I don't care what anyone says. They don't know you, so I'll keep telling them until they believe me!"

Surprise briefly flashed across your expression before a cool smile took its place.

"Naruto, you don't have to do that. You were suspicious of me at first too, remember?"

Naruto opened his mouth to retort, then closed it slowly, brows furrowed and frown deepening.

"Yeah, but...but that's different," he grumbled, though he gave no reason why that was. Instead, he scuffed his foot and glared at the ground, grumbling under his breath.

"So...are you joining SHIELD?"

Sakura's expression, though hopeful, was full of skepticism. She knew firsthand how HYDRA trained their Widows. How they raised them to hate SHIELD. You took in the look on her face with a calculated eye.

"If things go well, then...yes. I guess I am."

You frowned at the words, as if you hadn't fully processed what all of this meant. Helping Sakura and the others had been one thing—that had been out of necessity and a fierce, desperate need to protect the one thing you cared about. Now, you were joining an organization that you had been raised to view as the enemy.

"But it's not about SHIELD," you said after a moment, "or HYDRA or the Red Room or anything else. It's the same as before—I'll go where I need to to make sure you're all safe."

It had never been about SHIELD, and though you'd once served them, it had never been about HYDRA either. It had been about doing what needed to be done. It had been about surviving long enough to protect yourself, and now, to protect those you loved.

"That's not good enough."

Sasuke looked furious. Kakashi had long since learned not to question why Sasuke's mood swing's seemed so sudden and antagonistic, but right now, they did not have time for a tantrum.

"Sasuke," Kakashi began, but the boy ignored him, taking a step in your direction. You faced him with as much neutrality as you could muster.

"No, we all know it's not. You," he said angrily, pointing an accusing finger in your direction, "aren't the only one who wants to protect people. You think we aren't here for the same reason? That's bullshit! You might have a hard time figuring it out for yourself, so I'll spell it out for you: we want to protect you just as much as you want to protect us! And for once, maybe you can start thinking about being happy."

The room went silent, all of your staring wide-eyed at Sasuke as he heaved in a long, deep breath. Once he'd opened his eyes, the calm, indifferent attitude that he generally had about him had returned, but he still shot a half-hearted glare in your direction.

"The reason we're here is because you sacrificed yourself for Sakura. And back then, circumstances were different.

"But you don't have to do that again. And you won't," he mumbled, glancing away from your open-mouthed stare, "because we'll protect you too. So stop it with the self-sacrificial bullshit. It's getting lame."

The memory seemed painful, and as you looked at the others, you felt like an idiot for not addressing it sooner—at the very least, you could've apologizes to them through Kakashi while you were still in your cell. You'd been half out of your mind for the past few weeks, and you hadn't been thinking of anything other than their safety since you'd regained your memories.

Old habits died hard, but maybe you could let that one rest for the moment.

"I never meant to hurt any of you by leaving," you said, guilt tugging at you when you glanced at Sakura's fists clenched at her sides, "but I hope you can forgive me."

"We're not mad. Just don't do it again," Sakura ordered firmly, though the furrow in her brow seemed forced as she attempted to fight a smile.

You nodded and laughed as she threw herself against you again. She wrapped her arms around your waist and nearly lifted you off the ground in her excitement.

"Thank god you're okay," she muttered, "I thought...I thought you were dead. I thought he killed you."

"I know," you nodded, smiling solemnly as you brushed her hair from her face, "it won't happen again."

"Of course it won't!" Naruto interjected. "We won't let it!"

Something warmed at your chest at that, and you couldn't resist the urge to pull Naruto into your hug by the back of his neck. He made a noise of surprise, but quickly reciprocated the gesture with a laugh, far more enthusiastic than you were in your affection.

A gentle protectiveness hummed through you as you looked around the room. Here, everyone you wanted to keep safe was within eyesight. You could make sure that nothing and no one would come to take them again.

Ino is still gone.

Guilt filled you at the thought, but you quickly moved past it. Ino was strong—you knew that better than anyone. And without Orochimaru there to torment her, she would be alright. She could take care of herself...

The thoughts didn't make the guilt lesson, but you were pulled away from your thoughts when Kakashi took a hesitant step forward, glancing at your embrace with his students with barely-concealed affection.

"Do you three mind giving us a minute?" he asked, almost shy as you all turned to him. Sakura's shock immediately shifted into a knowing smirk, and she didn't hesitate to grab Sasuke and Naruto by the wrists and drag them quickly through the door. He heard Sakura beginning to tell Tsunade that he'd insisted that he get time alone with you, but the door cut off her rambling.

You met Kakashi's eyes once silence had fallen, suddenly feeling far more exposed than before. He took a step forward, giving you enough time to react, and then closed the distance with a sigh of relief. You met him when he reached forward to pull you into a crushing hug, arms wrapped as tightly around him as you could manage. He reciprocated with the same desperation, wondering if he could save the feeling of your body against his before it was taken away once again.

Not forever, a hopeful voice whispered in his ear.

Right. Not forever, but long enough that he already felt a gaping hole in his chest.

"I'm sorry," Kakashi said quietly. "I tried to negotiate with Tsunade and Danzo to come to a compromise, but Danzo wouldn't budge. I haven't met Sai, but Tsunade wouldn't have agreed to Danzo's terms if she didn't know that the kid is at least trustworthy enough not to do anything illegal. I'm going to talk to her about finding some rooms in the dorm for the four of us, so we can at least be close by for the first few weeks while things settle down. At the very least, I want to make sure that Danzo doesn't–"

"Kakashi," you cut him off, taking one of his hands, "it's alright. There's nothing unreasonable about Danzo's terms."

Kakashi huffed, rolling his eyes. Nothing Danzo did was reasonable. The man always had a second agenda, but after you had dealt with Orochimaru for so many years, he supposed that Danzo's scheming would seem tame in comparison.

"Danzo is many things, but reasonable isn't one of them," Kakashi grumbled, "just...be careful."

You nodded, though a small smile made its way onto your lips.

"Is this what the kids have had to put up with for all these years?" you grinned, "I hope all this worrying doesn't give you stress headaches."

Oh, it most certainly did.

He huffed, ignoring your responding laugh and taking your hand back in his, craving proximity now that he knew how short-lived it would be. It would likely be months before you could be alone again.

He swallowed, squeezing your hand and leaning closer, "I want to kiss you."

You let out a surprised laugh, taking a step closer until your chest brushed against his.

"Good," you murmured, glancing down at his cloth-covered lips, "I do too."

Before he could do it himself, you hooked a finger over the edge of his mask and slid it from his face. Your knuckle brushed his lips, and part of him wished his mask was still covering his cheeks so you wouldn't see them turning red.

"I, um..." he started, swallowing against what likely would've been a humiliating noise rising in his throat, "was gonna get that..."

You hummed, tracing a thumb over his cheek and studying his exposed features.

After you'd been so afraid of him, being close to you again didn't feel real. It was like some kind of dream that he would wake from at any moment, and you'd be right back where you started. It had taken so long to find you—so long to bring you back to yourself—that he wondered if it was possible that it was all over. That you were finally on track to getting the peace you so rightly deserved.

He sighed into your lips when you closed the distance, tension leaving his body in a rush as a comfortable lightness took its place. Just like the first time, part of him couldn't believe that this was real. Your trust was something sacred—something he'd taken for granted before you left.

You parted from him just long enough to catch your breath and pressed your forehead against his, eyes closed and a small smile on your face as your quiet breathing filled the silence.

He shivered when you brushed a finger over his scar, your thumb tracing the uneven ridges on his cheekbone. After a moment, you leaned forward and pressed your lips to his cheek where his scar ended. Your touch was as light as a feather, but still left behind an addicting warmth. He swallowed, cheeks heating as you pulled back, your hand still tracing over where you'd touched your lips to his skin.

"You've never told me where you got this," you whispered.

He blinked, meeting your curious gaze.

"Neither have you," he retorted hoarsely, looking pointedly at your jaw where your own scar ended. You chuckled, shrugging as your hand trailed to the back of his neck, finger tangling in his hair.

"You never asked."

"Neither did you."

You laughed again, and he couldn't fight the smile that spread across his lips. How long had he wished to see this? To finally see some semblance of peace in your expression?

Your fearful eyes on him was an image forever ingrained in his memory, but each of your smiles seemed to chip away at his guilt. Each shining crinkle of your eyes was a healing balm to the bleeding wound in his chest.

"You're breathtaking."

Your eyes widened, and you let out a surprised exhale as you averted your eyes from his. He stopped you from turning with a gentle hand on your cheek and lifted your face back up. Your lips met once again with renewed desperation, and he felt the heat in your cheeks against his palm and the rapid beat of your heart against his own chest.

He wrapped a firm hand around your waist, pulling you in closer as your fingers tangled in his hair. Desire and elation and utter sorrow clashed together within him, and he tilted his head in an attempt to pull you closer.

He was getting carried away—he knew he didn't have much longer with you before Tsunade called you away, yet...

There was something addicting about the movement of your lips against his. About the promise of more—of something permanent. You were back. You remembered him and trusted him and wanted him.

Your fingers threaded through his hair, tugging gently at the strands at the same time that you leaned him into the wall at his back, Your free hand drifting beneath his shirt, gentle fingers grazing the spot where his bruise was beginning to fade. He felt you tense when he reciprocated the movement, placing a hand on your waist where your shirt had ridden up, but you quickly leaned into his touch, tugging at the strands of his hair between your fingers.

A sharp knock at the door broke him from his trance, leaving him with a bitter disappointment that you seemed to share. You parted from him with sigh, backing away a step but leaving behind a burning heat where your hands had begun to drift under his shirt.

Tsunade peeked her head in carefully, eyes narrowed in suspicion as Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto attempted to see into the room over her shoulder.

"It's time," she told you gravely. Sakura was whispering furiously to Sasuke and Naruto, and all three of them seemed unable to process the scene they'd just stumbled on. Kakashi supposed neither of you looked very put together—his hair was tousled from your fingers running through the strands, and you were attempting to subtly smooth your shirt out as Tsunade eyed you both.

Most suspicious, however, was probably the rapid rise and fall of your chests. Kakashi stepped away from the wall, almost in a daze as he avoided the gaze of each person staring him down, silently begging for answers to what he knew would be endless questions.

You nodded at Tsunade, looking back at Kakashi with an unreadable expression.

He slipped a hand into his pocket and pulled out the phone that he'd given you months earlier, pressing it into your hand and folding your fingers over it gingerly.

You hadn't used it since you stayed at his house—you wondered if your short conversations were still saved in the small device. Night after night, the same short "no updates," sent to you, each feeling more hopeless than the last.

"Use it," he demanded, covering your closed fingers with his hands.

You nodded, itching to lean forward one more time before you had to meet Sai. You could feel three pairs of eyes on your back, tracking each movement you and Kakashi made. You let out a breath, a smile slipping onto your lips despite the rift forming in your chest as you pulled yourself away from him.

You had gone a long time without him before now. You could go as long as you needed to prove that you could be useful. To prove that your devotion to the ones you cared for was worth anything these people wanted from you.

And despite what Tsunade wanted you to think, you knew that Danzo wouldn't let you roam free even with Sai at your side. You understood how men like him operated—you had lived under their palm your whole life.

However, understanding him didn't make him or his scheming any less dangerous.

All of this ran through your crowded thoughts as you walked towards the door. You placed a gentle hand on Sakura's head as you passed by. She leaned into the touch, giving you a firm nod that seemed a bit less serious when you ruffled her hair. Still, you understood her meaning well enough: don't let them break you.

That had been your advice when you'd first met her in the Red Room. She'd seemed desperate for some kind of direction, but you'd said it thinking that she was just another one of Orochimaru's projects. You thought she'd be gone within the week, a victim of the success that Orochimaru had been so desperate for. That was the only explanation you could come up with for why he would recruit someone as old as she was.

But a week passed, and she was still there. You remembered seeing her for the first time and being a bit surprised that she was upright. Orochimaru's experiments, if not deadly, were generally intense enough to result in incapacitation for at least a week. He wasn't kind to his subjects, and you had assumed that was what she was there for. Orochimaru didn't take in strays. Not when they'd already been broken in.

But when you spotted her that day, she'd met your gaze, something fierce in her eyes.

Perhaps that was when you'd gotten attached. You still weren't sure how she had wormed her way into your heart after it had been closed off for so long. It was a mystery how any of them did, but here you were.

She'd been with the other girls her age, but none of them had strayed from their position. Staring straight forward, only Sakura stood out among the group with her vibrant pink hair and determined, defiant eyes.

Ino had been among them, in the same age group as Sakura. Hinata had been there too. It was just days before you'd killed her.

I'm just like him.

It was a passing thought, and one that you found was easier to dismiss now, but it gnawed at you all the same.

You left his cruelty behind with him. It died with him.

Kakashi words rang in your head, but they did nothing to dispel the bitter taste in your mouth. You followed Tsunade through the door, giving one last glance at the others standing behind you. Rather than the sadness you expected to plague you upon parting with them, a foreign, hopeful feeling filled your chest.

You would prove yourself here. And perhaps Orochimaru's cruelty really would die. And maybe you would be there to see his empire fall.

Orochimaru's legacy was still thriving. Kabuto was alive, and Itachi had taken Ino back with him. He may have left you alive and in SHIELD's hands, but there were dozens...maybe even hundreds of others. Girls who were still trapped in the Red Room, their fate to be decided by people who had no concern with whether they lived or died.

Killing Orochimaru had done nothing to stall the machine. Thinking that things would be different because he was dead was nothing short of naive. HYDRA would probably continue recruiting girls, taking in innocent children to raise as Widows.

You could almost hear Orochimaru's taunts in the back of your mind.

And what could you possibly do to stop that, little spider?

The Red Room would not stop functioning because Orochimaru was dead. Perhaps it wouldn't even falter. But something had changed. It was no more than a small crack in HYDRA's protections, but the Red Room had lost more than its leader. It had failed to fulfill its purpose. You and Sakura were proof of that.

Orochimaru was not immortal. He was never your savior, nor was he your father, and the Red Room was not your home. It was all a carefully constructed lie.

Lies were fragile things. Pull one thread, and everything unravels.

"There are wolves in the night. The soldiers would say that when I was a girl. My uncles and brothers in war. My friends, raising me on the battlefield because there was nowhere else to go. There are wolves, they would say. And there are stories about wolves and girls. Girls in red all alone in the woods, about to get eaten up.'Wolves and girls both have sharp teeth."

— Black Widow #1 (2020), Kelly Thompson

(previous chapter) | (series masterlist)

Author's note | it's over!! i honestly can't believe it. this chapter was a toughy. i really wanted to leave this on an impactful note, so i hope it lived up to expectations!

i want to thank everyone who took this journey with me. the past two years have not always been the easiest, but coming back to this fic and seeing all of the wonderful comments you all left me was so encouraging. this little community means so so much to me. i hope you guys stick with me as i continue writing about this little family.

ahh i can't believe it's over!! this is actually the first time i've ever finished a series (even though its technically not fully finished). i tend to get very invested in the beginning of series and then lose momentum, so i'm really proud of myself for sticking with this one. i guess that goes to show how attached i've become to these characters. if you've been here since the beginning, wow!! thank you so much!! and to those who are newer, i'm so so glad you've found this fic! if you're reading after it had been completed, there is definitely going to be more to this story. i actually have a second AND third book planned, but it will probably take a little bit to get started on that. first, i'd really like to go back and edit this one to make sure everything flows well. but it won't take too long! i've already started writing significant scenes for the next book.

i will be posting updates on the editing process and on the status of the second book on my tumblr, so if you want to know what i'm up to in between now an when i start posting the second series, feel free to follow me there! also, i want to write some one-shots in between series that are a bit shorter but much lighter than the series themselves. if there is anything specific that y'all would like to see, you can send it to me on tumblr or leave it in a comment! i've already seen some suggestions that i'd like to explore further, so thank you to those who have shared some ideas with me!

i've mentioned this before, but i'm a grad student and i am working two jobs, so life is a bit chaotic, but i write whenever i have the time and the motivation to do so. my schedule is definitely why i've been getting chapters out slower, but this fic has been like a little sanctuary for the past two years, and i think it will continue to be that for me in the future. if you'd like to chat or bounce ideas around, please send me an ask!

if you're as invested in this fic as i am, here are some extras that i use for inspiration! i have a pinterest board that has all of the quotes i've used for each chapter plus so many more that i so so wanted to include — you can find that here! as i've mentioned in all of my previous chapters, i have a playlist for this fic that i listen to when i'm writing. i'm going to keep updating that, and i've ordered it based on the plot! — you can find that here! and finally, my wonderful friend @turbulencenotforcasted made a playlist for me that i highly highly recommend checking out! i love it sm. also go read their fics bc i'm obsessed — you can find that here!

anyways, i don't think i have anything else to say. i hope you all are enjoying the holidays, and i'll see you guys very soon! don't forget to leave me some love if you enjoyed!

title is inspired by "STAR-CROSSED" by Ethan Gander

[zentriii]

yk that concept of werewolves just turning into silly doggos at the full moon? that but it’s the uchiha clan turning into cats

given the infinite tsukuyomi works by reflecting a genjutsu onto the moon via rinne-sharingan, which spreads its effects to those outside the range of the castor, one can say the moon has an amplifying effect on dojutsus, specifically the rinnegan/sharingan. so for uchiha who’ve awakened their sharingan? you could tangle them together more and say the moon enhances the strength of their eyes

if a full moon means don't fuck with the uchihas, then when there’s no moon? kitty cat transformation time >:3

it would probably be a pretty normal affair in the clan since most everyone awakens it, such is the life of a shinobi etc etc

(if there’s a civilian portion of the clan, the intersection of the two would be so fun. the swordsmith visiting their clan head’s house to drop off some fish bc the heir got their sharingan this month and in the frenzy of it all the amount of food that’s safe for cats got low)

((on that note, foodstuff cats can’t eat would only apply when they’re in cat form but i’m sure they have in-clan superstitions about how it should be avoided as humans as well but. there are differing levels of compliance to that))

anyways. cat uchihas in the clan compound = absolutely normal sight amoung themselves. nothing new. cat uchihas OUTSIDE the clan compound on a new moon. well then.

team minato on a weeklong mission and one night when obikaka are rooming together kakashi wakes up in a cold sweat bc obito suddenly smells like cat. taking getting along like cats and dogs to a whole new level w them lol

silly lads like shisui n kagami n mikoto (in my mind) are probably pushing things off shelves like :3c esp when crashing with their non-uchiha buddies

itachi n fugaku being grumpy/hissy/fussy asshole cats for various reasons (i’d pin itachi as being sensitive to the sensation changes meanwhile fugaku just wants to be unbothered. he knows his wife is terrorizing the clan kids who haven’t awoken their sharingan and he supports her, he’s just enjoying the one night of the month he doesn’t have to live up to any expectations by himself)

uhh did i forget anyon– oh yes the founders

madara tries to be a dignified cat but he bristles when offended/startled (often n easily) and is LOUD izuna is that black cat which is just eyes in a Shape. somehow always there where u never expect him. watching. sometimes messing around w kagami. also loud but affectionate in the annoying way n he does it on purpose <3

hikaku is impossible to spot n looks like the normal one but he gets roped into whatever silly things kagami and izuna like to do on occasion. no one who doesn't know him suspects his involvement

man. now i'm thinking abt tobirama w his big cat summons and how people adjusted to this in early konoha.

it's probably not something they advertised, given that it's a possible point of exploitation, but would totally be brushed off as "it's just a thing we do," when people ask or turned onto others like "you don't transform w the moon?? weak."

edit: let’s ignore how i forgot sasuke but if u watched naruto in any capacity i think u can guess what sorta cat he is <3

[socra-time]

Naruto Episode Comments, Ep. 1-20

(Context: I know a lot of the character’s names and some of the big plot points, but I’m going in blind otherwise)

Ep 1:

-Naruto is kinda annoying but also he’s just a lil gremlin and I can respect that

-I kinda love Iruka. Also he’s hot.

-”Clone jutsu? That’s my worst jutsu!” says Naruto, known for his Shadow Clone jutsu

-there’s just something so charming about the old anime style (but also some of the expressions are so goofy)

-HOLY SHIT IRUKA IS A REAL ONE

-I don’t trust the Hokage. I don’t really have a concrete reason for this yet, but his vibes are off

-oooh Irukaaaaa you’re so sexy for not being an asshole to the traumatized child

-oh I guess Shadow Clone jutsu is different from regular clones so disregard my earlier comment

-honestly this was a better first episode than I was expecting. I’m sold!

Ep 2:

-Naruto continues to be a lil gremlin

-Naruto pls for the love of god stop using your stupid ass “sexy jutsu”

-the Hokage really has had enough of these little kids and honestly I can’t even blame him

-I love the voice of Konohamaru’s trainer (I’m watching dub btw), it’s so pompous

-I love the ninja sandals. I want a pair.

-I like that Naruto’s voice actually sounds childish. It’s a tad bit grating sometimes but I think I’ll get used to it quickly

-STOP IT WITH THE SEXY JUTSU

-STOPPPPPP

-anyways #KonohamaruForHokage

Ep 3:

-again, the ninja sandals are so fucking drippy

-Ino wtf is up with your outfit. Why is half of it bandages

-the amount of sheer passive-aggressiveness in these 12 year old girls-

-Naruto has a crush on Sakura at first???? I didn’t know that lol

-Sasuke does not give a singular shit about anything other than his brooding and tbh I didn’t expect anything less

-Sakura’s little inner monologue is so feral lmao

-I don’t like Sasuke’s voice so far. It’s monotone, but not in an edgy way, just in a kinda dull way? Also he doesn’t really sound like a kid

-no hate to Shikamaru but his ponytail looks painful. My scalp hurts just looking at it

-oh my god not Sakura ragging on Naruto for being an orphan-

-lmao the amount of fucking drama with this team of kids is crazy

-why are the Hokage and Kakashi just casually breaking into Naruto’s home to look around

-rip Naruto’s bowels

Ep 4:

-I was not expecting Kakashi to sound like that but I’m kinda here for it actually

-oh I can already tell I’m gonna hate how the female characters are written in this show. Sakura honey I’m so sorry

-I know Sasuke’s got trauma or whatever but god he’s so fucking edgy. “I hate most things and I don’t like anything” bitch just say your favorite food or something

-oh my god Naruto is so tiny compared to Kakashi

-ok I already see why people love Kakashi so much

Ep 5:

-Kakashi is raining hell down on these children and I’m so here for it

-Kakashi is so COOL

-fucking “HEADHUNTER JUTSU” is the most metal name for a jutsu

-“you think like little kids” says Kakashi to the 12 year olds

-Kakashi really didn’t need to give his “you failed” monologue while pinning Sasuke to the ground. Bro was just doing it to assert dominance lmao

-I know that Sasuke’s reasoning for sharing is logical and not because he cares about Naruto, but I like that he offers his food to Naruto first

-aw the squad is starting to squad just a teeny tiny bit

Ep 6:

-booooo Naruto is a cat hater :(

-I love that Naruto is shorter than Sakura

-I like that we get some worldbuilding early on (also I’m a sucker for a good map so the scene explaining the different regions was cool)

-okay Sasuke is a badass

-Kakashi is also a badass but I already knew that

-I love how chill Kakashi is about literally everything

Ep 7:

-Kakashi is so over the bridge builder guy’s bullshit

-I do wish there was more of a sense of scale regarding how far apart the different locations are, since I have no idea how far away from Konoha the Land of Waves actually is

-okay I was NOT expecting Zabuza to fucking THROW HIS GIANT CLOUD STRIFE SWORD LIKE A BOOMERANG???

-Zabuza 🤝 Kakashi

not wearing their headbands correctly

-I like Zabuza’s voice

-the sharingan doesn’t make that much sense to me in terms of how it works but I’ll just chalk it up to anime logic

EP 8:

-oh the Water Prison jutsu is kinda terrifying to think about

-I can’t get over Zabuza’s fuckin armwarmer thingies

-ah yes gotta love the choppy old anime fight animation

-between Kakashi and Zabuza, Sasuke really cannot get a break from being pinned to the ground

-the demon wind shuriken is so sick-looking

-okay good on Naruto and Sasuke for working together but couldn’t they have given Sakura something to do

Ep 9:

-binging this makes the flashbacks at the beginning of episodes very annoying

-oh Kakashi is fucking PISSED

-shoutout to whoever animated all the hand signs for the jutsus holy shit

-yeah Kakashi would be so annoying to fight ngl

-Sakura is constantly calling Naruto out on his bullshit and that’s the kind of hater behavior I’m here for

-the soundtrack is hitting different this episode

-wow Naruto really saw another kid kill a man and got immediate imposter syndrome lmao

Ep 10:

-I like Haku’s painted nails

-aw Kakashi is actually a really encouraging teacher

-how is Naruto so bad with chakra control and yet was able to master Shadow Clone jutsu????

-Kakashi casually defying gravity to walk up a tree with his crutches was actually kinda hilarious to me for some reason

-I’m still not sold on Sasuke’s voice. There are moments when it’s fine but otherwise it’s just so stiff

-YAY FOR SAKURA GETTING A WIN OVER THE BOYS

-aw Naruto encouraging Sakura was cute (even though he was salty about her beating him)

-I like the difference that’s set up between having a lot of chakra (like Naruto) versus good chakra control (like Sakura)- hopefully this means people are going to go about how they train and fight differently

-Naruto asking Sakura for advice and asking her not to tell Sasuke anything was actually kinda endearing lol

Ep 11:

-dumb question maybe but if Gato is so against the bridge being built and he has the resources to hire a bunch of goons, why doesn’t he just bomb the bridge or something

-ah yes Sakura discovers poverty

-Sasuke is slowly growing on me. He’s very awkward

-Sakura I’m so sorry you have to deal with those two idiots as teammates

-holy fuck Inari’s backstory with Kaiza was darker than I thought it would be

-also rip Kaiza you were a real one

Ep 12:

-lmao not Naruto thinking Haku is prettier than Sakura fjfhshhajasisa-

-aw Sasuke helping Naruto walk home after training was nice, there’s definitely very slight development happening in their relationship as rivals

-Kakashi’s talk with Inari was a really nice moment

Ep 13:

-I like the way Haku talks. It’s very impassive and mysterious

-I’m always a fan of when the MC inspires literally everyone around them and Naruto is no exception

-Haku’s painted nails continue to slay (also I realized his toenails are painted too)

-the needles Haku fights with are really cool-looking but also seem really impractical

-YEAHHHHH NARUTO TIME

-aw Kakashi is proud of his kids

-goddamn Haku is so cool

Ep 14:

-I’m only thinking about this now but did Naruto never wonder why he had a big seal on his stomach

-literally half this episode was recap which was kinda annoying

-Naruto I love you but you’re so stupid

Ep 15:

-I really wish they gave Sakura more to do in this fight. I get that Kakashi’s the only one who can take Zabuza and that we need to see Naruto and Sasuke fighting together, but Sakura is kinda just standing there the whole time

-Haku needs to go to therapy ASAP

-I’m still confused about how Kakashi’s sharingan works tbh

Ep 16:

-aw yeah baby Sasuke sharingan time

-aw yeahhhh Sasuke saving Naruto

-god fucking dammit I think Sasuke is my favorite Team 7 member and I hate that for me

-oh boy Naruto is about to go apeshit

-also there is no way in hell anyone watching this actually believed Sasuke died

Ep 17:

-geez the animation quality really went up this episode

-yeah Haku’s backstory is just as tragic as I thought it would be but also Jesus Christ his relationship with Zabuza is so fucked up

-I’m very curious as to why Kakashi has the sharingan if it’s a bloodline trait of the Uchiha clan (and also why he only has it in one eye)

-Kakashi summoning fucking dogs was so random but also hell yeah doggies

-andddd Kakashi’s a lightningbender? I thought the sharingan was his main thing but apparently not

-Haku PLEASE go to therapy

Ep 18:

-this show’s soundtrack has actually been so good so far

-so like was Naruto actually gonna kill Haku before Haku stopped him

-oh FUCK rip Haku (also first real-time death of the series!)

-Kakashi closing Haku’s eyes and saving his body was nice, you can tell that he feels bad about him dying even though he was on Zabuza’s side

-also they didn’t hold back on the blood, goddamn

-I like that the bridge builder seems to have a bit of a soft spot for Sakura since she’s been with him the most

Ep 19:

-Gato is literally so fucking disgusting I need him dead ASAP

-Kakashi wrangling Naruto back from attacking Gato was kinda funny

-ah yes the big Shonen Protagonist Speech™ from Naruto

-Zabuza’s last hurrah was fucking epic, I really like how his and Haku’s story ended (also the line “where he’s going, I cannot follow” about Zabuza joining Haku in the afterlife was metal). I like that Zabuza got a last moment of humanization

-aw Naruto is such a wholesome, determined lil guy

-oh Naruto is gonna be so insufferable when he finds out the bridge is named after him

Ep 20:

-HELL YEAH CHUNIN EXAM TIMEEEE IM SO EXCITED

-wow Naruto is really out here fantasizing about being Sasuke’s knight in shining armor

-Sasuke is a cocky little shit but also he’s technically right about Naruto and Sakura being “worse” than him

-so far Sakura’s biggest fight has been her beating up fuckin Konohamaru

-SAND SIBLINGS SPOTTED!!!

-I don’t like Temari’s voice

[bythenineshards]

First art of my Naruto oc Shiori Ito! Art done fabulously by @skykashi

You truly did a fantastic job bringing her to life. Thank you so much!

I'm only part way through Shippuden. Things in this lore could change as I continue through the anime. I know some stuff that happens but don't quite know when. This is just what I have so far.

Placing a cut here so this novel doesn't bog down anyone's feed. Under it is her lore if you wanna read it.

There's some darker stuff in how she got her scars and mention of her mother struggling with infertility. So be aware of that.

Shiori comes from a clan that is dying out. She and her father, Kenshin Ito, might be the only remaining blood members of the family.

Her father adored his wife. She was the light of his life but she struggled to conceive and carry children. After trying for a long time, she was finally able to have a single baby, Shiori. The pregnancy was extremely difficult and they were told to go through this again may result in the mother dying. Her father was not exactly thrilled that his one child was a girl but didn't want to lose his wife.

You see, the notoriety of the clan had died out with the other members. So if Shiori were to marry, they had no real leverage to request that the man take their name. Their only bargaining chip was their Kekkei Genkai. But even that probably wouldn't be enough. So her father was just going to have to be content with the family he had and accept that he and Shiori would be the last of their clan and the power would pass to a new name if she married.

Yeah... he couldn't. For the first few years, he tried. He really did. But the idea of his daughter marrying and their name disappearing and their power being given to another man's name bothered him. It bothered him so much that in his anger of being the man to let the Ito clan pass to unworthy hands, he decided that it was best for it to die with them now rather than be muddied. Yay.

One day, he took Shiori out for training. He'd started to show her how to use their Kekkei Genkai recently. The power itself is a poison release where they can take poisons out of plants around them and crystallize them into darts. She thought nothing of it and she was also a child who trusted her father. Instead of starting to train, he pinned her to the ground and was going to drive a blade through her heart then do the same to himself. What stopped him was realizing that killing Shiori would devastate his wife. She'd been through so much heartache trying to have a child that he'd be robbing her of that happiness. He then came to the realization that he only needed to make her hideous enough so that no man would want her. He took the blade to her face and began to cut it up. Telling her that no one would want her if she was a disfigured monster (not those words exactly but that's the gist).

Shiori fought back and tried to escape but being that she was little, only incurred defensive cuts on her hands and arms. Mama Ito heard her screams from the garden and instantly came running. Coming upon the scene of her husband disfiguring her baby. Without hesitation, she struck him with the small shovel she was holding until he passed out or died. They don't know which. He fell limp and Mama Ito scooped up Shiori, got what little she could carry and the two left for the village hidden in the leaves. There, they would start over unsure if her father had survived. Mama Ito works in Ino's family's flower shop.

Upon arriving, Shiori noticed instantly that people stared at her. At first she understood it was concern but some of the children poked fun at her and that mixed with the concern and her father's words, she began to see herself as a hideous monster. Her mother got her a mask to wear. Painting some of her favorite flowers on the surface. She wanted Shiori to see herself how she saw her. Mama Ito intended the mask to be a thing to help her only until the cuts healed to scars. It became a twenty year thing. In fact, after the first few days in the village, no one has seen Shiori without a mask in public. It just sorta became the norm. Despite her mother's best attempts, Shiori still sees her face as being unpleasant and hard to look at.

Now, when she was a child but after she started to wear the mask, she met Guy. Despite wearing the mask, some of the village boys would pick on her and push her around. Guy wasn't having any of this. Challenging the boys to a fight and promptly getting his ass kicked. Shiori would visit him in the hospital and brought him flowers. He'd get in fights with the same boys over her multiple times and each time she'd visit him in the hospital and bring him flowers. Always the same ones. Lavender, Verbena and Jasmine for healing, daisies for gratitude and a single red rose. She was smitten.

For years, throughout their training, he'd cheer her on and she'd do so for him quietly. She grew up to be a soft spoken person. Every time she thought about telling Guy how she felt, she imagined taking off her mask and seeing him shrink back in disgust. So she would just stay put. She was assigned a trio and went through the normal training. Due to her Kekkei Genkai and skill as a Shinobi, she was brought into the ANBU Black Ops pretty early. She was sent on missions with Kakashi a few times. They bonded despite both being reserved and enjoyed working together. He noticed her interest in Guy right away. On their first mission together, she was quiet but super professional and extremely good at what she does. But the moment they returned and Guy would challenge Kakashi and greet her, she was a bumbling mess.

At the time of Naruto, she was selected by the 3rd Hokage and works directly with him (and later Tsunade). Both find her gentle nature in spite of the darkness caused by her trauma to be trustworthy and neither fear she would doublecross them. Otherwise she does normal ranked missions. She and Kakashi are friends and both are fans of the Make-Out Tactics and Make-Out Paradise books.

Shiori has an affinity for animal companions. A favorite headcanon of mine is summons are just naturally drawn to her. She has her own summon, a mouse called Akko (might change it later).

Shiori and Guy end up together in a rather humorous way. Due to her worry that Guy would find her face disgusting, Shiori planned to keep her feelings to herself and just hope whomever he picked would love him the way he deserved to be loved. She also thought that Guy had worked so hard for everything he had so he deserved to have a partner that wasn't a challenge to love. Fate, or rather a misunderstanding by Rock Lee had other plans.

Lee overhears Shiori's friends poking lighthearted fun at her crush on a certain green jumpsuit and thought they were referring to him. He asks Guy what to do without telling him that it was Shiori. Guy's advice is to be forthright with her. Lee asks Guy to come with him for support. Lee then approaches Shiori and very loudly proclaims that he's flattered but his heart belongs to Sakura. Guy, deeply confused, asks Lee to paint him a clearer picture of the situation. Lee explains what he overheard (green jumpsuit, bowl cut, power of youth) and Guy is flabbergasted. He had no idea that Shiori felt that way about him. He poses the alternative of it being him and not Lee. Lee does see how this makes more sense and wants to apologize but Shiori has already fled. Begging Lady Tsunade to send her on a mission before she has to face this.

Guy comes looking for her to talk about what Lee had overheard. It all comes out then. She admits to her longstanding crush, she reveals her scarred face to him and they decide to explore this. Guy isn't offput by her facial scars in the least. He actually finds the scars to be very beautiful. He thinks she should stop wearing the mask. The scars are a testament to her resilience and accomplishment in suffering and coming out kind despite it. It takes a long time but eventually she gains the courage to go without the mask.

I do plan for her to face her father in the future. He'd come to Konoha but I'm not sure when or what he's been doing this whole time. Guy is extremely ready to fight him though.

But that's what I got so far...

(Besides the Jiraiya lore 😏)