Hiruko's fingertip gave her waist a sharp pinch—not quite painful, but firm enough to send a localized shiver racing across her skin.
He let out a low, breathy chuckle, his voice a cocktail of mockery and dangerous tenderness. "Still so much fire after all these days?"
He closed the distance abruptly. His hot breath brushed against her earlobe before tracing the curve of her neck, like a creeping flame that left her skin searing.
"Since you're so ungrateful..." He drawled the last word, his thumb grazing the line of her hip with feigned nonchalance. "Perhaps you'd like to sample my newest injection instead?"
Pakura's pupils constricted. Before she could snap back, he let out a short, dry cough, and his tone shifted to one of playful intrigue.
"...Actually, I've changed my mind."
His hand traveled slowly up her spine, moving with the slow, predatory grace of a serpent. It was an invasive, undeniable advance, yet each touch left a lingering warmth that made her skin crawl with a confusing itch.
His voice dropped to a gravelly rasp. "I can't bring myself to kill you just yet. You're becoming my favorite toy."
Pakura lay flat on her back. The lingering effects of the previous suppressants left her limbs like lead, but her gaze remained as sharp as a kunai. Through the jagged tears in her tactical gear, flashes of porcelain skin were visible.
Hiruko's eyes roamed over her, his Adam's apple bobbing almost imperceptibly. He cleared his throat again, a cryptic smirk playing on his lips.
"What are you planning?" Pakura asked coldly. Even with her body compromised, her voice carried the authority of a high-ranking shinobi.
Hiruko's hand paused. Then, he laughed—a dark, suggestive sound. "I'm planning... a lot of things."
The air in the room grew heavy, thick enough that their synchronized breathing became the only audible sound. Pakura's ears turned a faint shade of pink, and her heart hammered against her ribs. She was a kunoichi, yes, but she was a woman first. A primal, instinctive fear began to flood her mind like a rising tide.
She fought it down, desperately trying to mold a spark of chakra in her gut. Her knuckles whitened as she squeezed her eyes shut, a crimson killing intent swirling behind her lids.
"If you dare try that..." she started, her voice icy but betrayed by a microscopic tremor.
But she stopped mid-sentence, her lips curling into a derisive sneer.
"Heh..."
She swept a contemptuous gaze over him, her eyes lingering mockingly on his midsection. "Setting aside whether you have the spine for it... you're a greedy man, Hiruko. Would you really be willing to 'devour' me so crudely and waste the potential?"
"You're a fool! You're playing with death, woman!"
His voice turned low and jagged, vibrating with a suppressed, restless agitation. Without another word, his right hand snapped up, his palm slamming firmly against the side of her waist.
Vrummm—
The potency of the medicinal agent surged again. It tore through her nervous system like an electrical storm, instantly shattering the fragile embers of chakra and stamina she had spent hours trying to gather.
"Ngh...!"
Pakura gasped, her body arching as if struck by lightning. Her face went deathly pale, and for the first time, a flash of unmasked terror flickered in her eyes. She tried to squirm away, her voice finally breaking into a frantic flutter.
"You... you piece of filth! What are you doing?! Stop... don't you dare...!"
Hiruko rubbed the bridge of his nose with his left hand, his throat tightening as a dark, unreadable amusement flashed in his eyes. He subconsciously licked his canine tooth, thinking to himself: Tch, I certainly want to... but the timing isn't right. The finest fruit should only be plucked when it's reached absolute perfection.
He wondered briefly if he was becoming a bit of a deviant.
But watching her lose her composure—seeing the "Hero of the Sand" reduced to this panicked state—was undeniably fascinating. He let his lips curl into a wicked smirk and leaned down, his voice a honeyed, persuasive purr:
"Now, don't be so tense... it's not like it's going to hurt."
His fingertips traced the curve of her waist in a light, teasing motion—half-soothing, half-probing.
"Relax. I'll be very... 'gentle.' I promise it won't be... 'uncomfortable' for you."
He spoke the last few words with agonizing slowness, his raspy voice dripping with heavy implication.
Pakura's breath hitched. It won't be... uncomfortable?
The words felt like they were being squeezed through her teeth. Her ears were now a vivid red, the flush spreading down to her collarbone.
If it's not uncomfortable... does that mean it will be... pleasant?
As the thought flashed through her mind, she felt a wave of soul-crushing shame. Her heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest.
"You—!"
She bit her lower lip so hard it bled, her eyes a chaotic mix of fury and wordless panic. Her body was powerless, yet the drugs had dialed her sensitivity up a hundredfold. Every brush of his skin felt like a stray spark landing on tinder.
Damn it... why now of all times?!
The more she tried to suppress it, the more the alien sensations surged, crashing against her willpower like a relentless tide. Finally—
"Mmph...!"
Her spine snapped taut, her toes curling instinctively as her entire body went rigid like a drawn bowstring.
Hiruko raised an eyebrow, a flicker of genuine surprise crossing his face before it turned into a knowing smirk. "...Tch, you're actually that sensitive?"
The room went deathly still, save for Pakura's ragged, uneven gasps. Her eyes were rimmed with red, and silent tears finally escaped, tracing lines down her face to dampen the sheets in dark circles. She looked like a young girl experiencing this vulnerability for the first time, made all the worse because it was happening in front of the man she loathed most.
"Hey, you..."
He opened his mouth to speak but found the words stuck. They were enemies, yet the atmosphere had shifted into something suffocatingly intimate. It was as if an invisible thread had wound itself around them, pulling at emotions neither of them wanted to name.
Finally, he ran a hand through his hair in frustration and stood up, heading toward the bathroom.
Cold water blasted down on him. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, letting the icy stream kill the inexplicable heat rising in his gut.
"...What the hell is wrong with me?"
After a vigorous scrubbing to settle his nerves, he stepped back out, only to find Rin Nohara walking in.
Rin's face was still slightly flushed; she had clearly noticed something was "off" with Pakura. Hiruko had never bothered to hide Pakura's presence or his treatment of her from his student.
Rin had come with a request, but she seemed hesitant, fidgeting with the hem of her sleeve. When Hiruko approached, she swallowed her nerves and bowed deeply.
"Lord Hiruko, I have a favor to ask. I... I've heard you have ways to rapidly increase someone's strength. I want to become stronger. Could you please... give me some guidance?"
She knew how bold this was. Shinobi clans guarded their secrets with their lives; power was not something given away freely, especially...
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