I don't own Bleach but I sure do enjoy letting the
characters out for some fun.
Nanao's Secret
The sun glinted brightly off the metal as Shunsui quickly sheathed his twin zanpakutōs; Nanao's last burst of Blue Fire had completed the purification, reducing the hollow to a fine dust. This one had been particularly strong, and since so many of the other Shinigami were currently away on missions they had been called in for an immediate dispatch. Their work finished, it was time to return.
"Ready?"
Nanao nodded an affirmative.
The distinctive black wings of the Hell Butterfly appeared and momentarily the two shinigami reappeared on the outskirts of Soul Society, near one of the sakura tree regions. It was still early spring, but the trees were already in full bloom with an occasional petal lightly floating to the ground.
He glanced over at his fukataichou and narrowed his eyes, noticing that the fair skin on her back was marred… not by a wound or even the distinctive crimson hue of blood. No, this was something pink… and very familiar. He rubbed a hand under his chin, trying to place where he had seen it before. A gust of wind could have knocked him over when he realized…
"My Nanao-chan's been keeping a secret from me…"
His voice was low, but it carried the short distance to her. She swallowed, attempting to compose herself. When he spoke in that tone it always turned her legs to mush. What in the world could have brought that on… usually it took at least three bottles of sake to get him to that level.
Her back still towards him, she began going through the motions of adjusting her appearance, something that never failed to help her maintain calm.
An errant lock of hair back into place. Better.
A smeared trail of dirt brushed off her left sleeve. She sighed.
Glasses pushed firmly onto the bridge of her nose. Calm was returning.
It was her form of meditation.
That done, she reached her hands around to pull on the back of her robe to help it fall more evenly across her shoulders… and stopped. The tips of her fingers had touched bare skin. Curse that hollow and his entirely too-sharp claws.
The telltale stickiness of blood was absent, so she surmised that it must have gotten just close enough to rip her clothing. With shaking fingers she traced the small area of exposed skin… there was no avoiding it. She knew what was revealed in that particular spot… and that he had seen it.
She blushed a remarkably bright shade of fuchsia.
There was no escape now… even if she tried to run he would certainly track her down. Ever so slowly she turned around to face her everlasting humiliation. But he wasn't laughing at her. The heat in his eyes burned straight through her heart all the way down to her toes.
He advanced.
She matched him step for step – one step backwards for each step he took towards her.
Until she couldn't back up any further. She had retreated without glancing behind her and was effectively trapped between him and a tree.
"Nanao-chan, how could you keep secrets from your Taichou?" He peered at her from underneath his hat, giving her the sad eyes and pout that seemed to work on everyone but her. Despite her intense embarrassment, she very nearly rolled her eyes. She could read him better than that – and could tell he was anything but sad. Honestly if she had to put her finger on it he seemed… amused… and aroused. A dangerous combination.
"It's nothing," she tried to be dismissive, but it was barely more than a whisper.
He didn't reply, but it was clear from the raised eyebrow that he wasn't buying it.
Not even a little.
Ever so gently he placed his hands on her shoulders and eased her around to take a better look the exposed portion of skin. Eyes closed she tried… but she couldn't force herself to pull away from his touch. There was no resistance as she submitted to his inspection. He leaned over, placing himself at eye level with her lower back.
He studied the design. Yes, very familiar indeed. With his index finger, he skimmed over the five pink petals and the delicate leaves. The brightly colored ink seemed to leap from her pale skin. It was too close to be a coincidence… it could have been traced directly from his favorite haori…
Meanwhile the prim shinigami had lost every ounce of the calm she had previously regained. The feel of his fingers stroking her back – he had stopped what she would consider "examining" and had switched to caressing a good thirty seconds ago. It felt as though she was drawing warmth directly from the contact of his hand on her bare skin.
And much to her chagrin the heat was rapidly spreading… lower.
Her logical side tried to reason it away as a purely biological response.
But then her even more logical side reminded her that if she wasn't enjoying herself, there would be a well-placed kidō to the nether-region of the offending party.
Either way there was no denying the reaction he was causing. One minute she felt as though she would suffocate from the tingling heat flushing her entire body. The next, his touch sent a cascade of goosebumps over her exposed skin.
He watched the tiny bumps appear on her flesh as a satisfied grin broke out on his face.
Though it took significant effort, he allowed his hand to fall to his side. The extraordinary softness of her skin was quickly becoming an addition.
Still facing her newly-intriguing back he asked, simply, "When?"
The violet-eyed shinigami knew he wasn't just inquiring as to when she had gotten herself tattooed – his words held a double meaning. But it didn't matter; the response was the same either way. It hadn't been long before the tattoo when she had realized, with no small amount of self-loathing, that she had fallen for her Taichou.
Able to answer honestly, she replied in the direction of the tree, "Three years…"
He berated himself for never having noticed before.
When he didn't respond she continued, feeling the need to fill the growing silence, "I learned that 'just one drink' with Matsumoto is not nearly accurate. It wasn't that I kept up with her; I think I would die if I ever drank that much. But I let it slip that I was thinking about getting one and one thing led to another…" she trailed off, briefly wondering if there were any documented cases of death by embarrassment. She made a mental note to look it up if she lived through this.
Shunsui blinked in pure shock – his typically unflappable Nanao-chan was rambling. Definitely one for the record books. With one large hand he captured her waist, pulling her around to face him. The pink color had faded from her face, save for two bright circles – one on each cheek.
He couldn't have been more enchanted.
"And what did Matsumoto have to say about your… design choice?"
"As I recall, she gave me a rather knowing grin and nodded, but didn't comment… I swore her to secrecy shortly thereafter."
He chuckled, trying to picture Matsumoto silent – it was nearly impossible.
Nanao pushed absently at her glasses, briefly thinking how convenient it would be to execute a quick shunpo… but realized it would only delay the inevitable.
"My sweet Nanao-chan, why didn't you tell me sooner?"
She crossed her arms across her chest and fixed him with her best glare, "Specifically to avoid this conversation."
They were already standing close but he pulled her even closer, she fit so snugly up against him. Her arms were trapped by his larger ones encircling her whole body. Restraining herself from sighing with pleasure, she realized there was nowhere else to place her hands except upon his chest. It felt so wonderful to be held, she could almost forget her constant duty to maintain protocol.
He reached under her chin to tip her face up towards his, still keeping her firmly within his arms.
"But this is a lovely conversation, Nanao-chan, why ever would you want to avoid it?" he teased her softly, his face dangerously close to hers.
She let out a frustrated breath, "I just couldn't…" she flustered for the right words, his closeness wiping all intelligent thoughts from her head. "I'm so plain and you couldn't possibly –"
He interrupted her, "Ah, that's a dangerous game, telling a man what he does or doesn't want. And I've been telling you for years that you are what I want."
She scoffed, "Taichou, you say that to everyone…"
"Ah, but there is only one who is my Nanao-chan."
Without warning he lifted her completely off the ground and swiftly captured her mouth with his. Her world spun and if he hadn't been supporting her, she surely would have collapsed. His kiss was gentle but insistent; giving but demanding a response from her in return. Moaning softly against his mouth, she wrapped her slender arms around his neck, holding tightly as if she never wanted to let go.
He breathed in the forbidden scent of his previously untouchable fukataichou – it was subtle, a mixture of citrus and spring blossoms. She was so light he needed only a single arm to hold her up. With his lips still melded with hers, his other hand snuck up to release the clasp holding her hair. He knew full well it irritated her to no end; nevertheless he longed to finally run his fingers through her soft hair. The dark tresses fell around her shoulders and he threaded his fingers through the silky strands. He caressed the back of her neck as she slanted her mouth against his, deepening the kiss.
He traced his hand along her shoulders and down her elegant back. Suddenly he reached the ripped portion of her robe, reminding him of his recent discovery.
His fingers slipped inside the hollow-made hole in her garment. Nanao gasped; his hands were still sending delicious shockwaves of pleasure anywhere they met her bare skin. She pressed against him, all thoughts of propriety abandoned.
Reluctantly he broke the kiss and searched her eyes, a playful glint dancing in his own. "So, my lovely Nanao-chan, are there any other hidden surprises you're keeping from me?" He eyed her up and down, as if trying to picture any other tattoos his deceptively proper fukataichou had concealed under her dark robes.
She permitted herself a mischievous grin, meeting his eyes. "I am not sure Taichou, perhaps you should find out…"
He searched.
Twice.
Right there under the sakura trees.
It became her favorite place in all Siereitei.
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A/N - There's a strong possibility this only made sense in my head - if so I deeply apologize, but I still had fun writing it XD
I just love these two!