Summary: Kayabuki takes note of a man in Section 9.

Disclaimer: Ghost in Shell belongs to Masamune Shirow. These are merely ramblings based on absolutely nothing in canon.

UNEXPECTED TARGET
Ladders

The Prime Minister was a perfect lady. She maintained her facade with dedication and was the epitome of grace and good manners. This was not a difficult task because she was typically surrounded by old men in suits, such as Aramaki, or middle-aged men who had spent far too much time in the diplomat's chair. Or even downright ugly men such as Gohda. While she appreciated the wit and wisdom of these men, physically they were the equivalent of her male relatives. She shuddered to think of any of them touching her.

Nor did her personal life lend itself to a change in male scenery. Her ex-husband had done a good job of making her believe she was sexually inadequate, so she had thrown herself whole heartedly into her career once that fiasco of a marriage was dissolved. Still, her body made her aware that she was not designed for a life of celibacy, thus her brain compensated by creating fantasies that would have left her colleagues blushing. In order to ensure her wayward body did not pursue these fantasies, she avoided all social engagements with men. She became an exemplary member of the dateless league and even avoided hired escorts. All in all, Kayabuki was deprived of opportunities to appreciate the male physique.

Although she had spent a decade maintaining the mask of Ice Princess, Kayabuki was not a sexless woman nor indifferent to men. She was reminded of this when the hotel where she was speaking was suddenly under a bomb threat. Luckily Section 9 was in attendance, all dressed in their civvies. The crisis was quickly diffused, arrests were made, and the Prime Minister managed to dodge the concerned faces of Aramaki and Togusa as she excused herself to find a bathroom. Batou and Kusanagi never looked concerned about her, but she wanted to dodge them anyway.

So it was as she walked down a corridor, she saw a door pop open from the ceiling followed by a ladder suddenly expanding to the floor. Soon a lean but muscular and very masculine body was descending. The fit of the black trousers molded the legs and hips of the man very nicely as one leg was extended while the other was bent at the knee when his progress halted. She could see the definition of the thigh muscles, the firm buttocks, the lean abdomen. Then the man lowered himself further to reveal of perfect upper torso, not top heavy like Batou or too lean like Togusa, just, well, perfect. She could hear a case being retrieved before the man completed his descent.

Kayabuki was lost in inspecting the man's chest peeking through the navy shirt. It was partly unbuttoned and a silver chain was gleaming against his skin. Then she realized that she should be screaming because this might be one of the saboteurs. She was about to follow through when she decided she should really move her eyes to look at the man's face rather than focus on his chest. Recognition and embarrassment struck simultaneously.

It was Saito, the sharpshooter of Section 9. His face was expressionless and a slight tilt of his head was the only acknowledgment he gave her.

Kayabuki blushed as she realized that he probably knew she had been staring at him while he descended from his position. She told herself to remember to act like a lady and gave a slight bow to the man before walking away.

But just as she passed him, she could have sworn she saw the man wink at her. No, it couldn't have been. She turned slightly to look over her shoulder at him, but he just kept walking away. She blushed when she realized she was staring at his derriere again.

"You idiot!" she chided herself as she splashed cold water on her face. "He couldn't have winked. You're--you're...and he's, he's--gorgeous," groaned the woman.

She looked at her reflection in the mirror and blew a puff of air at her bangs. "Lady, I think you need to get laid."

But that was as much a fantasy as the wink she thought she had seen. Kayabuki might be the Prime Minister, but she was no Motoko Kusanagi. Besides, the man only had one real eye! She felt herself flushing again. Of course, that explained it. He had just blinked his eye, a natural movement that had nothing to do with her.

- - - - - - - - - -

Saito met the rest of his section in the lobby of the hotel just as ordered. Batou looked at him quizzically and asked, "You really enjoy your job, don't you? I can tell you're smirking."

The sharpshooter smoothed his expression. Yes, he did enjoy his work, but as a member of Section 9, one could easily start to feel like another machine even though he had very few cyber parts. It was nice to be seen simply as a man. He had heard the footsteps of the woman coming down the hall when he had made his exit. He had heard her stop when he began his descent. He had realized she was watching him and not calling out in alarm. This had made him curious to see who it was, although part of him expected it would just be Motoko making her rounds.

To his surprise, he had found himself face to face with the Prime Minister. He had to admit, Kayabuki looked quite fetching when her face was flushing. He couldn't help but wink at her, although he expected he'd get a stern note about appropriate professional behavior. One did not wink at the political leader of Japan. But one could dream of her.

- - - - - - - -

Yoko was standing on the second rung with her back against the ladder. She braced her arms against its sides to remain immobile. She knew his complete attention was focused on her. Her gaze dropped onto his body and verified that she was indeed an object of lust. He stepped closer and she found that her position put her at eye level with the man. His hand reached out to trace a curve, tease her body and then to taste...

Kayabuki sat up and was breathing heavily. The release had felt good, but it would never do to let the sniper become the focus of her fantasies. Still, it wasn't as if she saw him every day. In fact, he might be the safest man to fantasize about. He'd only find her attractive if she were a target.

"Right, Yoko," she scoffed. "No man in his right mind would be dreaming about you."

She punched her pillow and went back to sleep.

Author Note:

Kayabuki and Saito? Sure, why not.