Kiba turned to Shino, mouth carefully closed. "Hmm," he said insistently.

"What?" Shino asked.

"Hmm."

Shino sighed and looked up from his lunch, staring at the far wall. Most definitely NOT staring at Kiba. "If you do that tongue thing again . . ." he said warningly, before turning to look at the other man.

Kiba opened his mouth, stuck his tongue out--a raspberry balanced on the end--and waggled it while making stupid noises.

Shino looked at him impassively. A bug flew from the sleeve of his shirt, and into Kiba's open mouth.

Kiba's eyes widened, the raspberry dropped, and he started hacking like he had a hairball.

"I told you not to do that tongue thing again," Shino said, returning to his lunch.

Eventually, Kiba managed to spit the bug out. Wet and befuddled, it crawled back to Shino's hand and up his wrist, under his sleeve.

"But admit it. It was funny," Kiba said, sprawling back over the patio chair.

"It's kind of gross, actually," Shino answered calmly.

Kiba sighed and looked around over his shoulder, smiling wolfishly at a passing girl. She laughed and sped up.

"You're not exactly under the radar," Shino said. He picked through his rice, looking for more bok choy, but couldn't find any.

"Yeah, well, neither are you, Mr. Heavy-Jacket-In-The-Plains. If you're gonna look like a tourist, I might as well act like--hellllllo, pretty." Kiba twisted, looking for a moment like he was going to fall out of his chair.

But then, Kiba looked like he was falling half the time anyway. Rangy and long, he tended to trip and drop places where other people walked and lowered themselves. There was an indefinable grace about it; like Kiba always knew what his body was doing, and even when he fell he was so instinctively under control that he didn't have to be under control.

Not that Shino watched him. Certainly not that Shino admired that grace, heart in his throat when Kiba fought, half wild, looking like at any moment he'd smash to the ground or into a tree. Kiba had never done either of those, despite how he moved.

Not that Shino paid attention to that, either.

Shino sighed and ate his rice. "Tell me you're watching the mark, and not just staring at girls."

"'m watchin'," Kiba mumbled.

He was staring at girls. Shino glared at him sidelong, taking a good look at the restaurant their mark sat at while he did so.

The man was still eating tofu and lettuce wraps, case with the scrolls they needed handcuffed to his arm. He was certainly careful.

"Any ideas how to get to him?" Shino asked.

"I'm thinking if I send Akamaru out and then go chasing after him, I can bump into them and spend a decent amount of time apologizing . . ."

Shino frowned. That plan sounded a little strange. He looked at Kiba, who was twisted in his chair, arms folded over the back of it.

"THEN I can ask him if he wants to go get drinks, maybe . . . dinner . . . a room . . ."

Shino followed Kiba's gaze, and saw a cluster of young men their own age--probably eighteen or nineteen--talking and laughing on the other side of the street.

Okay, so maybe Kiba WASN'T looking at girls. "Kiba," Shino growled.

"Huh?" Kiba turned to look at Shino over his shoulder, arms still draped across the back of his chair. "What?"

"I meant our mark." Anger swirled through the pit of his stomach, though he couldn't say why. Sure, Kiba was staring at men instead of their mark, but it wasn't like he didn't often stare at something he wasn't supposed to. Usually women, but . . .

Shino glared at his plate. Idiot.

"Oh." Kiba looked at their mark. "I still think my idea is best."

The muscle in Shino's jaw jumped. "No."

"C'mon. He's gone to the gay bar for three nights running. What's the likelihood that he's going to leave that case cuffed to him while he's having sex?" Kiba straightened himself out, flopping across his chair. "We already know he sleeps with it cuffed, even if we could manage to get past his alarms . . ."

Shino didn't look at Kiba. He just knew Kiba was sulking. "I'm not having you seduce him."

"Tomorrow he leaves. That leaves today and tonight. C'mon, Shino."

Shino risked a glance at Kiba.

The man was smiling imploringly, showing off sharp canines and striking black eyes. "It's not even like I'd have to sleep with him. We could drug his drink. By the time he got back to his room and we started messing around, he'd drop unconscious."

Shino rubbed his head. It would be so much easier if they could just kill him and steal it, but no. Those scrolls had attack plans on them, and if the enemy knew that Konoha had their plans they'd just change them.

It would also be easier if the man hadn't used charms to make the suitcase explode if anyone but him tampered with it. The scroll keeper had to remove the suitcase himself, and he never seemed to do that.

"You're not seducing him," Shino muttered again.

Kiba let his head fall back, hair hanging down, too long and shaggy. The line of his neck curved elegantly, the unbuttoned shirt he'd thrown on over an undershirt sliding off one shoulder. "Shiiiiiinoooo . . ."

"No."

Kiba looked back up. "You're being a prude."

Shino glared at Kiba, knowing the other man would feel it despite Shino's glasses.

"If I just seduce him, we'll be done with it and can go home."

Shino didn't answer. He didn't want to admit that Kiba had a good point. He really didn't want to think about Kiba sleeping with that man. "What if something goes wrong?"

"That's always a possibility. So I'll just do him and go." Kiba grinned, eyes wild. "I wouldn't object to that, either. He's not bad-looking. A little older than what I normally go for . . ."

The chopsticks Shino was holding snapped.

Kiba jumped. "Tense?" he asked after a minute.

Shino put them down carefully. "Fine. If he goes to the bar tonight--"

"Yessss," Kiba hissed, twisting to look back across the street.

Shino checked; Kiba wasn't looking at their mark. His stomach tightened further, and he pressed his hands hard against the tabletop.

It didn't matter to him who Kiba screwed.

**

Their mark went to the bar that night. The bastard.

Shino stood in the hotel room he and Kiba had been sharing, staring at his reflection in the mirror above the dresser.

Nice pants. A long-sleeved shirt. His jacket was too conspicuous, so his neck and jaw were exposed. All those tiny little scars, speckling his skin down and over his chest--though not that much of that was visible.

Shino buttoned the top button of his shirt, hiding as many of the scars as possible. Downside of his bugs, he supposed.

Then he backed up, sitting down on one of the hotel room beds. He tapped his fingers together, waiting for Kiba. Still trying to think of another plan.

The thought of That Man touching the Inuzuka--Shino's eyes narrowed behind his glasses. And Kiba, the little slut, would purr and stretch and let That Man touch him. No one could resist Kiba. How were they supposed to, with his lean body and long muscles, skin that slid smoothly over his lanky form? Wild eyes that held a promise of fun, mischief, anything you wanted if you just had the courage to say it.

Not that Shino paid any attention. He stared hard at his hands, then tugged his sleeves lower over his wrists. Those were scarred, too.

"Okay!" Kiba said, finally walking out of the bathroom.

Shino stood, looked up--and froze.

Kiba was wrapping a leather strap--both defense and weapon, in case something went wrong--around his wrist. The leather wound up between thumb and index finger, heavy around bony wrists, then up his forearm, leaving glimpses of flesh between wraps. It matched the one on his other arm.

Then he was bare. Or he might as well have been bare; no sleeves, a mesh shirt that stretched over lean shoulders, exposing wiry muscle and moving over tanned skin like a lover's hands. The shirt stopped just above his belly button, where a ring--a RING?

"You pierced your navel?" Shino said, the words nearly squeaking out of his mouth. He felt the kikaichuu stir in response, nearly buzzing under his skin. He took a deep breath, cleared his throat, and hoped Kiba hadn't noticed.

"Yeah," Kiba said, glancing down, hand rubbing his washboard stomach. "Looks good, doesn't it? Did that a while ago." He smiled happily.

"It--uh--yeah," Shino muttered.

Far under where the shirt ended, far enough to see hipbones and lean muscle leading suggestively down, pants started.

Kiba was wearing leather pants.

Leather. Pants. And not any leather, oh no, but the kind that looked like butter and clung like a second skin. Specifically, clung way down, hanging only just by delicate bones.

"You okay, Shino?" Kiba asked, shrugging into a leather jacket. "You look a little . . . funny."

"Fine," Shino said, closing his eyes and lowering his head. "Fine. I just--"

He felt Kiba come near, and looked up.

Kiba smiled, eyes lowered, hands at Shino's collar. "Don't do up that button. This isn't a funeral."

Shino let him unbutton it again.

Kiba's smile faded slightly, and a rough thumb rubbed along Shino's skin, between his collarbones. "Kikaichuu?" he asked softly.

Shino stepped back. Kiba touched. That's what Kiba did. No reason to get worried about it. "Yeah," he said self-consciously.

If Kiba was sex on two legs--and he was--then Shino was the epitome of nerdy bug-people. In the field, leading a team--he could do that. He was good at that. In civilian clothes, at a club? With Kiba? This night was going to be brutal.

"All right. Ready?" Kiba asked.

Shino nodded once, trying to regain some composure. His thoughts kept spinning away, had been ever since he'd agreed to this stupid plan. Maybe once they got back to Konoha, he should go in for a physical. Yes. Surely that was it. And put some space between himself and Kiba. No one else could unsettle him like the Inuzuka could. He should have asked for another partner on this mission.

Breathing deeply, trying to get some semblance of peace, Shino followed Kiba out of the hotel.

**

They'd left Akamaru back at the room. A two hundred pound dog wasn't exactly inconspicuous. Shino took some solace in the fact that Akamaru didn't seem bothered by any of this; he was sleeping soundly.

Shino could feel it as they neared the bar; the bass was heavy enough to make the ground thrum. Ahead of him, Kiba strutted down the sidewalk, leather pants clinging to him.

Not that Shino was looking at them.

He took two quick steps to catch up, and tugged at the other man's sleeve.

Kiba paused and looked at him.

"Are you sure you can seduce him?"

Kiba stared as if Shino had just suggested trees were made from stone.

"All right," Shino said. People passed them, wearing slinky pants and little tops. Shino felt distinctly overdressed. He did his best to ignore it. "Look, this--" he fished a pill out of his pocket and held it up, "--will knock him out. But the coating takes twenty minutes to wear off, and the drug won't hit him for another fifteen minutes after that, so--"

"I'll figure it out," Kiba said, taking it and slipping it into his back pocket.

"And alcohol might make the drug hit faster," Shino added. His stomach was sinking just thinking about this. So many things could go wrong. And he didn't want Kiba sleeping with That Man. Because he was worried.

That was all.

"Don't worry," Kiba said with a wolfish grin. "I've done this before."

"You've drugged people?" Shino asked, quirking one eyebrow ever so slightly.

Kiba smirked, recognizing it for the sarcasm it was. "Very funny." Then he turned and took the last several steps, disappearing inside the bar.

Shino braced himself and followed.

It was dark, and small, with a little area set aside for dancing. The bar took up one entire wall, and dimly Shino could see exits at the back. A live band played, stuffed in the corner, the music blaring through the room. Shino couldn't hear anything over it.

Kiba tapped him and pointed.

Their mark was sitting at the bar, looking cozy with another man.

Well, drat. Guess this just wouldn't work. Shino looked at Kiba, shrugged, and turned toward the door.

Someone grabbed his sleeve; he turned back and looked at the Inuzuka.

Kiba--ever able to say things without the bother of words--gave him a "What the fuck?" look.

Kiba wasn't the only one who could talk without speaking, though, and they'd worked together long enough that Shino knew the other man could read everything he didn't say. He lifted an eyebrow and glanced toward their mark. He had a DATE already.

Kiba rolled his eyes, stepping closer.

A body pressed up against his, Kiba's hand circling around the back of his neck, fingers warm and callused. Breath whispered against his skin. "Give me some credit," Shino heard under the beat of music.

Kiba drew away, taking the heat and Shino's breath with him. Shino swallowed. "Bathroom. Now," he mouthed, and marched toward the back of the bar.

He made it through before Kiba did and stood at the sink for a moment, trying to get his heartbeat under control. Trying not to think about how little had separated them back there, about the way Kiba's body felt pressed up against his--

The door opened. "What's your problem?" Kiba barked.

Shino closed his eyes behind his glasses, opened them, and slowly turned to regard the other man.

Kiba had lost his jacket, leaving all that flesh nearly bare for anyone to look at.

"He has a date already," Shino said. "What's the point in continuing a mission if it won't work? We should go back, and figure out how to ambush him on the road--"

"Shino," Kiba growled, "You lead in the field because you're better at it than I am. You have a better brain for things like that--strategy and that shit. But I'm better here. Trust me. I know how to pick up, even after someone thinks they've found their lay for the night. Besides, people switch partners constantly at a bar. Just because he's talking to a guy doesn't mean they're married."

Shino swallowed. The kikaichuu hummed just under his skin.

"Would you just trust me?" Kiba pleaded.

Shino nodded.

"Thank you. Now, I'm gonna go dance. Do me a favor and rumple yourself. Try and look like you just got screwed, would you? It'll only help me." Kiba sighed heavily and pushed back out the door.

Shino glanced at himself in the mirror. Look like he'd just gotten screwed? He ran both hands through his hair several times, but it was already disheveled. He didn't do much with it on a normal day.

He could, however, see how clean he looked compared to everyone else at the bar. He stared at his reflection unhappily, able to see the difference but unable to fix it.

The door opened and another man walked in, hesitating for a moment. "You okay?" he asked. "You look like someone kicked your dog."

No, Shino thought. Worse. Someone's going to lay my dog-boy. "I'm fine," he muttered, trying to quash the thought. Kiba wasn't his.

"You sure?"

Shino glanced at the man. Young, feminine. Redhead, covered in freckles. "I'm trying to figure out how to look rumpled," he said solemnly.

The man laughed and stepped closer, eyeing him. "Trying to fit in, huh?" he said, smiling. "Hang on . . ." He hesitated, stepped back, looking Shino up and down. "There a reason you're wearing long sleeves?"

Shino just nodded slightly.

"Okay," the kid murmured. "Um. . ." He reached up, grabbed Shino's shirt, and yanked it out of his pants. "Hold still," he said, when Shino started to step back. Little hands held onto cloth, bunching it up along Shino's chest, dropping it, then going to his back and doing the same thing.

"Okay," the man said. "Look at me."

Shino turned.

The kid frowned. "Hmm." Then he went to the sink, ran his hands through water, and finger-combed Shino's hair back. "It won't stay, but it's better than nothing," he said after a minute. "Now, rumple your pants like I did your shirt, and--uh--here." He pulled the collar off his own neck and clasped it around Shino's.

Shino stretched, tilting his head from side to side, trying to make it fit.

"There you go. That's better." The young man grinned and headed into one of the bathroom stalls.

Shino eyed himself in the mirror. Much better. Still one of the more conservative people there--and the collar felt nothing but weird--but at least he looked more the part. He stooped to rumple his pants, then headed back into the bar.

Kiba was nowhere in sight. Shino frowned and made his way through the crowd, eyes scanning for the other man. Their mark was still talking to his "friend," showing off the case handcuffed to him. Even Shino could see he was using it as a lure. Sighing, Shino settled at the bar, ordered water--got a dirty look from the bartender--and scanned the crowd for the Inuzuka.

He caught sight of him, finally, through the movement of people. Out on the dance floor.

Shino sipped from a bottle and kept his eyes trained that way, certain that at some point it would clear enough for him to get a good look. Eventually, he'd see something other than an elbow here and a flash of hair there.

Bodies writhed, sweaty and frenetic, a pair of men grinding together. Shino did his best not to look at them, while his mind busied itself dividing into warring factions. One part wanted to watch, while the other just wished the couple would move.

Not that he wanted to watch for any particular reason. He was just trying to learn dance moves. That was all.

At the back of his mind, something laughed at him.

He wondered if his father had ever had to go to a gay bar. Picturing his father dancing--like that--made his libido stop working overtime. Good.

Not that his libido had been working.

The denial was pathetic, even to his own mental ears.

"Can I get you a drink?"

Shino glanced over--it was the redhead from the bathroom. He shook his head slightly. "No. Thanks." He stared back out at the dance floor, looking for Kiba.

"You sure? Might help you relax."

There--a flash of blood red tribal markings. He remembered when he'd first seen an Inuzuka at six years old. He'd been terrified. Thought they were savages. Of course, he now knew from long experience that they were. But they were lovable savages.

"I'm Haruo."

"Shino," he muttered. Then he glanced sideways, realizing suddenly that he was being rude. "Nice to meet you," he added in his usual solemn tone.

Haruo grinned.

The crowd parted, and Shino's head whipped around. Kiba was coming toward them, skin shiny with sweat, wisps of hair darkened against his skin. He stole Shino's water bottle right out of his hand, chugging with powerful swallows. Shino didn't watch the way the tendons in his neck stood out, or how his Adam's apple bobbed. He didn't notice the belly button ring catching the light, either, or that Kiba was standing so close they were touching.

Faintly, he heard Haruo give a laughed, "Oh." When Shino glanced over to ask what he was 'oh'ing at, the young man was gone.

Kiba set the bottle--now empty--down on the bar and grabbed Shino's hand. "Come dance."

"That was my water," Shino said, not budging.

"I'll buy you more. Come dance."

"We're not here to have fun," Shino growled.

Kiba glared at him. "You gonna let me do this or not? I need help. Come dance."

Shino held out for several more moments, then finally stood and let Kiba drag him onto the dance floor. It was a mission. He could dance for a mission.

Then he was in the middle of it, among lithe, moving bodies, and he realized that no, he really couldn't dance. Not even for a mission.

Kiba glanced to one side, and Shino followed his gaze. They were right in the mark's line of sight. "Dance," Kiba said.

Shino stood there helplessly. Somehow, he guessed ballroom dancing wasn't going to cut it.

"Geez, Shino," Kiba muttered, wrapped his hands around the taller man's neck. He started undulating. There really was no other word for it.

Shino didn't squeak--he had entirely too much self-control for that--but he thought seriously about it. Someone had drugged his water. That was the only explanation for how dry his mouth suddenly was.

Kiba's body pressed up against his, hips still moving--and good gods Shino wished he wouldn't move like that right against him--arms wrapping around his neck. Air whispered across his ear, and sharp teeth bit painfully into his lobe.

Shino jumped and started to pull back, but Kiba only held on tighter. "Dance, Shino," the man growled into his ear. "Move your damn hips."

Cautiously, Shino moved his hips, trying to follow Kiba's.

"There you go. Now put your hands on my pants."

He closed his eyes behind his glasses, and very gently put his hands on Kiba's waist. He jumped again when he felt skin rather than leather (very warm, slightly damp, soft) and slid his hands down, trying to find a place that was a little less intimate.

By the time he hit leather, though, he was thinking he'd made a mistake. His hands were now very low on Kiba, just barely brushing the other man at all, and he could still feel muscles play under the material. He could feel the hollow under the man's hipbones, and the swell of muscle on his--his--glutes. Yes. Glutes.

Kiba hummed into his ear. "That was good. Do that again."

Shino started. "Do what again?"

"Pet me, idiot," Kiba growled.

"P-pet you?" He was certain he'd kept the squeak out of his voice, if not the stutter.

"Shino, this should be more like sex on a dance floor than anything. I need to get his attention. Think of it as a mission."

Mission. Right. Sex on the dance floor. He could do that. A mission, and they were having sex--

"WHAT?"

Kiba jumped. He yanked back, looking at Shino with a mix of vast annoyance and surprise. "I didn't think you knew how to yell." Then he glanced over.

Shino followed his look. Well, they'd gotten the mark's attention.

Kiba looked at Shino, eyes narrowed. Then he shoved Shino, hands planted on his shoulders, the push almost gentle compared what Kiba could do.

Shino stared at him, confused and knowing Kiba would see that. Also know that no one else would; Kiba read him very well.

The other man held his arms out in the clear space suddenly around him, looking belligerent. "You don't want to dance with me?" he asked, anger in his eyes. Slowly, he brought one hand up, licked the palm, up his index finger, and swallowed his finger whole.

Shino really, really hoped that wasn't doing to his body what he thought it was doing to his body.

Very, very slowly, Kiba drew his finger out of his mouth, skimmed his hand down a nearly-bare chest, and rubbed his stomach, hand sliding under the mesh shirt. "Fine. Don't dance with me."

Then he turned away, a flick of his fingers playing code across his leather clad hip. "Go away, Shino," the code said. "We've just had a fight. Play along."

Shino swallowed. That finger-- No. He wasn't going to think about the finger. He wasn't going to think about the half-lidded gaze Kiba had, sucking it into his mouth, or the way the man had pulled it out, like it was the best feeling ever.

A show. It was all a show. Shino glanced at their mark.

The mark was staring at Kiba--where Shino didn't dare look--and totally ignoring his previous "friend."

In fact, now that Shino glanced around, everyone was looking at Kiba.

Shino looked at Kiba. People had moved in, closing on the man. He couldn't hardly see anything, anymore, except a random flash of skin or hair or--

Was that someone's hand groping Kiba's ass? Damn it, that was Shino ass. --Teammate! Asshole. That's what he'd meant. Really. That was his asshole of a teammate. And how dare they grope Kiba, anyway? It was disgusting and disgraceful, and didn't they have any pride at all?

He realized he was halfway across the dance floor--Kiba had moved--when someone stopped him.

"Give it up, boy. The sexpot's already turned you down."

Shino's eyes narrowed behind his glasses.

Then he remembered.

Mission. Mark. Seducing. Riiiiight. He took a deep breath and stepped back. The crowd shifted, moving, giving him just a glimpse of Kiba in that mass of bodies. He had his arms around someone else, grinding up against him, a leg between his.

Shino's hands curled into fists at his side. It didn't matter. It was fine. Really. The anger he felt was only because Kiba was in the middle of a lot of people, and that could be dangerous. It had nothing at all to do with the man who was stepping up behind Kiba, pulling Kiba's hips into his suggestively, licking Kiba's neck while Kiba's head fell back and his eyes fluttered closed--

Shino turned away and walked stiffly back to the bar. He couldn't watch this. He was angry. That was all. Angry because Kiba was encouraging all those men. It was a riot waiting to happen.

And the way he'd licked his hand and sucked his own finger had nothing to do with it.

The image replayed itself cheerfully. Hand uncurling slowly, tongue sliding up tanned skin--

Wait. Hand uncurling slowly? Fingers curled. Like they held something. Something small. Shino thought back. That hand had been at Kiba's waist, just for a moment. Yes. Fingers sliding into a pocket--

Shit. Kiba had just put that damn sleeping pill into his own mouth.

Shino looked up. Kiba was still dancing, shaggy brown hair sticking to his neck. The crowd on the dance floor had gotten distinctly bigger.

Shino sent a bug up, over the floor, with very clear instructions: bite Kiba.

Then he headed into the bathroom again.

A moment later Kiba came storming in, holding his neck. "What is your problem?" he snarled.

"You just ate that pill," Shino ground out.

Kiba rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out. The pill balanced on the end. He sucked it back into his mouth. "You said the coating takes twenty minutes to wear off, right? Well, I'm not gonna have twenty minutes once I start on him. Believe it or not, I'd rather not sleep with him if I don't have to!"

Shino felt like a fool. Of course. He should have thought of that. "Ah. Right," he said uncomfortably.

"Man, Shino," Kiba muttered. He glared at his reflection for a moment, checking the bite. A little red spot sat on his tendon. "Look, go back out. I'll follow in a minute."

Shino nodded and headed back to the bar. He glared a spot free, then ordered more water. The bartender gave him another dirty look.

The mark was still sitting there, talking idly to someone. At least a quarter of the people on the dance floor had gone back to their tables.

A few minutes later Kiba came out, slinking across the floor like he owned the place. Heads turned.

Shino's stomach knotted. All those people, looking at Kiba. At his--his best friend. Not that he could blame them. Kiba was sex, and the promise of fun, and something a little wild. He was a predator, and he was screaming that--just for tonight--it might be possible to have him.

The ring at his navel winked.

Kiba walked past Shino without glancing over, got to the other side of the mark, and leaned in between the man and the person he was talking to to order a drink.

Water. He'd better be ordering water.

The bartender handed Kiba lime and salt, and began to pour a shot.

Shino's bottle creaked in his hand.

Kiba gazed at the mark sidelong out of half-lidded eyes, then, eyes holding the other man's, licked his fist. Slowly. He poured salt, turned to face the mark--still sprawled between the two people and leaning on the bar like a big cat--and watched the man. The tip of his tongue wet his top lip, and then, like it was an open invitation, he stroked it along his hand again. He smiled. Canines flashed dangerously before he bit into lime and quickly downed the shot.

Kiba smiled, licked his lips, and slid back onto the dance floor.

Shino swallowed.

Then he swallowed again.

Then he drank half his water bottle in one go.

The mark was staring at Kiba, his slack-jawed expression slowly giving way to a leer.

Kiba was dancing not five feet away, watching the man, hands--

Shino drank the rest of his water.

Kiba was petting himself. There was no other word for it. Stroking down his own neck, head back, exposing his throat. Fingers sweeping up his chest, arcing into the touch like he hadn't been touched in years.

Shino sent a bug off to keep watch, and fled to the bathroom.

He was shaking. Breathing hard. Anger, he tried to convince himself. He was angry.

And he was. Angry that he was watching Kiba prostitute himself for a damn scroll, and angry that all those men out there were looking, and angry that he hadn't realized earlier that, damn it, yes he wanted Kiba because Kiba was his. He had prior claim!

Shino froze and looked at himself in the mirror. Black glasses stared back. He had prior claim?

Well, yes, a little voice in the back of his mind replied tartly. He'd been wanting Kiba for years.

Wanting him? The not-so-courageous part of him squeaked. Sexually?

Yes, the rest of him responded firmly.

Shino ran cold water and splashed it on his face, then across the back of his neck. He was just an awkward, skinny bug-man. Kiba was--

Kiba could have anyone. Kiba flung himself into life, wild and unleashed. Kiba was beautiful to watch, sexy as hell, and very self-possessed.

But he looks up to you, that little encouraging voice said hopefully. Obviously there's something there he likes.

What a time to realize you were lusting after your best friend. Shino sighed miserably, and prepared himself to go back out into the bar.

Kiba was straddling the man's hips, eyes wild.

The man was laughing in surprise, and didn't seem to object. Probably thinks he's the luckiest man in the world, Shino thought bitterly.

He glanced at a clock on the far wall. Fifteen minutes since Kiba had put the drug in his mouth. The longest fifteen minutes of Shino's life.

Kiba petted the man's arms, looking impressed when the mark showed off the case handcuffed to him.

That's right, moron, Shino though grimly. Keep showing Kiba how it works.

Then the man had the gall to put a hand on Kiba's hip, stroking up onto skin and back down again. Shino looked away, but had to look back a moment later.

Kiba smiled, picking up the man's bottle of beer. He licked the rim, tongued the hole, and drank.

The man was smiling lecherously, a hand sliding up under Kiba's shirt.

Shino's grip on his water tightened again. He could deal with this. How dare that man touch Kiba. Shino didn't get to touch Kiba, so some old fart shouldn't be able to touch him, either.

Kiba laughed at something and offered the man beer. The man drank, and Shino felt immense relief.

If he knew Kiba, he knew that Kiba had just smashed the pill into the bottle. Which meant the mark had just swallowed the drug.

Kiba laughed contagiously, breaking it off when the mark leaned in to kiss him.

Shino caught sight of a tongue. On his Kiba. First, people watched his teammate have sex on a dance floor, and now the mark was groping him and sticking his tongue into Kiba's mouth--

Kiba murmured something, and they both staggered up.

Shino took a deep breath. It was almost over. He sent a bug flying up and away, trailing Kiba and the mark out the door.

Then he finished his water and stood, following.

The air cleared his head a little bit. Washed away some of the burning anger he felt at the mark. Reminded him that this was a mission.

He could do anything for his village, even watch Kiba make out with some old man.

He followed them to the mark's hotel, using the bug's eyes to spy on which room they went into. Then he sat in the hall outside the door, listening.

He could hear Kiba's laugh, and occasional moans. He could imagine lips that weren't his on Kiba's neck, hands sliding over tanned skin, under the mesh shirt, and just when he was forgetting that he could do anything for his village, and remembering how the mark had looked at Kiba, and wondering how much pressure he would need to kick the door in, he heard Kiba shout, "Shino!"

Shino took a deep breath and went in.

Kiba was sprawled, shirtless, across the bed. One arm was over his head, the leather strap wrapped around the bedpost several times.

"Kiba!" Shino nearly yelled--or came as close to it as he ever did, which really just meant he sounded very firm. "You let him tie you up?" He was pretty sure his horror was clear.

"It's not knotted," Kiba laughed, flipping over and pulling himself up to unwrap it. "You would not believe some of the kinky shit he suggested--check out the dildo!"

Shino did not look at the article Kiba waved at, and did his best not to look at the mark, sprawled out on the bed, either. "Where's the case?" he muttered.

"There." Kiba jerked a thumb toward the dresser.

Relieved, Shino pulled it off and sat on the floor, glaring at it. The seals were easy enough to decipher; anything chakra based would have to wait for Kiba, but that was all right. Shino carefully unlocked and peeled off seals, not wanting anything to explode. By the time he was done Kiba was free, hovering over him impatiently.

The Inuzuka got the chakra traps removed, and then the two young men spent twenty harried minutes copying over notes and memorizing them as best they could. When that was done they put everything back, sealed the case, and set it once more on the dresser. No one would know they'd been there.

Kiba grabbed a pencil and paper, and started writing. Shino glanced over a lean shoulder to see, "Hey, lover, next time try to stay awa--"

He stopped reading there.

A moment later Kiba followed him out of the room, a smug smile on his face. Shino ignored him.

Kiba had every reason to be smug. They were finally going to go home. He'd proved once against that he was sex on legs and could seduce anyone.

Even, apparently, Shino. Without trying.

Kiba hummed softly, a spring in his step. One of his hands rubbed at his neck, and Shino glanced over. That man had marked Kiba. Teeth marks and bruises dotted Kiba's neck, down his collarbones.

Shino looked away.

Kiba's hand dropped from his neck, rubbing his stomach absently.

Not that Shino was watching. Shino was staring intently down the hall. Not looking at Kiba.

Long fingers slid under Kiba's mesh shirt and back down again. He fingered the ring in his belly button, looking thoughtful.

Not that Shino noticed.

Short, blunt fingernails scratched at defined muscles, rubbing up and down and up again.

"Kiba," Shino growled. "Cut it out." He really couldn't take much more of not noticing these things.

"What?" Kiba asked, surprised. His pinky slipped under the waistband of his leather pants.

"You're petting yourself," Shino managed to say. His heart was pounding. He shoved his hands in his pockets, and wished he had his jacket to hide behind.

"What, that bothers you?" Kiba asked, smirking. He ran a hand up his chest, closing his eyes and tilting his head. "Feels sooooo good--"

Shino whipped around, slammed the other man up against a wall, and kissed him.

Kiba's eyes snapped wide in surprise, but he kissed back.

He kissed back. Shino relaxed a little. Of course Kiba kissed back. Kiba would kiss anything.

He pulled away slightly, suddenly embarrassed. He hadn't thought about that before he did it, he just--

"I didn't think you were ever going to do that," Kiba said, and lunged at him.

Shino felt himself stagger back and hit the opposite wall, fingers curling through his hair and around his scalp. Kiba kissed him, lips parted, tongue probing at his mouth. Shino groaned and opened, felt Kiba's tongue slide inside, stroking along his. The other man's body pressed close, long and warm and wiry.

They were still in the hotel hall.

"Kiba," Shino panted when the Inuzuka finally stopped kissing him.

Kiba made a questioning noise against his neck, tongue dragging over his skin.

"Kiba. We need to get back."

Kiba whined against his jaw. "'N then we can keep making out?" he murmured, lips moving against Shino's skin.

Shino closed his eyes and swallowed. "Yes." At that moment, he didn't think he could have denied Kiba anything.

"Okay. Hotel room." Kiba grabbed his wrist and yanked, pulling him down the hall.

Shino followed the other man all the way back to their hotel, like a leaf caught in Kiba's wake.

Then they were in their room, and Kiba barked, "Out!" to Akamaru. The dog left with a disgruntled 'whuff,' Kiba slammed the door, and Shino found himself pushed up against wooden planks. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you to--to--" Kiba silenced himself by kissing Shino, pressing his mouth roughly against the other man's.

Hands ran up his chest, rumpling cloth. Nails, blunted by Shino's shirt, dragged over his nipples. He jumped and groaned, wrapping his arms around a slender waist and sliding his hands over mesh shirt and tanned skin. Kiba pulled back slightly, sweeping his tongue over Shino's mouth, drawing him out.

He leaned forward, following the soft heat, stroking his tongue over Kiba's. He felt fingers tug on his shirt, and started to hesitate. But Kiba had seen him naked a time or two, during long missions where privacy wasn't always available. Kiba knew about his scars, wouldn't cringe when he saw them.

His eyes flickered open, and he saw the other man's head bent in concentration as he started on buttons. There were marks on his neck--bites and bruises from that stupid man. On his Kiba. He ducked his head, licked one of the red areas, and sucked carefully.

Kiba groaned. "Keep doing that," the man murmured, hips pushing up against Shino's.

Shino's breath caught, hands sliding down smooth skin, hitting leather and pulling the other man closer. He flexed his fingers, digging into a muscled ass, and felt Kiba whimper.

Shino moved his mouth, licking a line up an offered neck, under his jaw, sucking on his earlobe.

"Fuck, Shino," Kiba moaned, pressing still closer, head tipped back to expose the line of his throat, cock pressing hard against Shino. Hands were still fighting with his shirt, struggling with buttons.

Shino found another mark from the man and sucked on it, masking it with his own. He could feel Kiba's pulse flutter under his tongue and pulled the man even closer.

"Screw this," Kiba muttered, and grabbed the edges of Shino's shirt, yanking. The last three buttons popped free, scattering around the room. A deft tongue licked Shino's collarbones, then lower, sweeping over a nipple before teeth bit carefully. Shino's head thumped back against the door. He worked on breathing, closing his eyes while Kiba's mouth sucked. He put his hands on Kiba's head, threading his fingers through thick hair. A tongue swept over the nub, teasing and wet, soft and strong all at once. Shino bit back a moan.

Kiba licked a stripe up Shino's chest, up his neck, nibbling on the man's square jaw.

Shino grabbed the edge of Kiba's mesh shirt, pulling. Kiba moved away enough to get it off, then went back to sucking on Shino's jaw.

"Are you marking me?" Shino asked, laughing slightly.

Kiba made a noise that sounded like it might have been, "Mm hmm" if his lips hadn't been busy.

"Stop that," Shino murmured.

Kiba just laughed against him. His hands, fingers callused, palms wrapped in leather, ran over pale and scarred skin. "Why are you still wearing this?" Kiba growled, tugging at Shino's open shirt.

Shino pushed Kiba back, moving away from the door and shrugging out of the cloth.

"And, gods, where did you get this?" Kiba asked, hooking a finger under the collar Shino had forgotten he was wearing.

Shino laughed self-consciously, reaching up to take it off. "A guy at that bar--"

"Don't," Kiba growled, pulling Shino's hands away. "It's fucking sexy."

"You have a collar turn-on?" Shino said. "Why aren't I surprised?"

Kiba snorted and grabbed Shino, swinging him around and into the bed. The edge hit the back of Shino's knees and he dropped, pulling the other man with him.

Kiba straddled him, hands roaming over his skin, tongue following.

Shino arced, muscles tightening, heat spreading through his body. "Gods, Kiba," he whispered while a tongue probed at his navel, followed by sucking lips. His stomach was fluttering, dick straining against his pants. He sat up, grabbed Kiba, and rolled back down, pulling the man up with him. The body above him ground down, hip to hip, rubbing friction and heat.

"I have been waiting for you to make up your fucking mind," Kiba muttered, hands at Shino's pants. He kissed roughly, fumbling with buttons and zippers.

Shino swallowed hard, then felt fingers slide over his erection, callused and careful. Breathe. He just had to breathe.

"Like that?" Kiba said, lips moving against Shino's mouth, a smirk in the words.

"Asshole," Shino muttered, grabbed the slighter man, and flipped them. Kiba laughed and snapped, teeth narrowly missing Shino's ear. "You are such a damn tease," Shino murmured, sitting up to look at the man under him.

Kiba smiled smugly and stretched, body moving lithe and long over the blankets. "You think?" He bit his lip, eyes half lidded, and shifted his hips.

Shino's eyes widened. He could feel Kiba's cock rubbing up against his, could feel the slide and thrust of it through leather pants.

"It's only teasing if you're not willing to go through with it," Kiba said, voice rough. His hands wrapped around the bedpost, muscles flexing, standing rigid against his skin. He thrust upward with his hips again, stroking them both.

Shino took a deep breath and closed his eyes, skin breaking out in goosebumps.

"Shit, if I'd'a known that me making out with some other guy was gonna get you this hot 'n bothered, I'd'a dragged you to a bar and made out with the entire place long ago," Kiba said, words a husky laugh.

Shino pressed down on the lean body, his hands on Kiba's ribcage, stilling the suggestive slide. "Don't," he murmured, serious.

Kiba stopped. "Don't what?"

"Go make out with other men," Shino said, forcing the words through a closed throat. "That's not funny."

Kiba stared at him. "Okay," he said after a minute. "That mean you're gonna keep me busy?" His smile was slow, and full of sex.

Shino felt his face turn red. Kiba sat up, sliding out from under Shino, legs still trapped but the rest of him free. He slid a finger under the collar Shino still wore and tugged him into a kiss.

That, Shino could handle. He kissed back, feeling slightly chapped lips against his, a tongue flicker out to dance over his mouth.

Kiba pulled back after a minute, looking at Shino in consternation. "Can I take those off?"

Shino frowned. "What?"

"Your glasses."

He hesitated. "My clan has slightly, uh, strange eyes," he settled for at last, uncertain.

Kiba shrugged. "Is that a yes?"

Shino nodded once. He held his breath while Kiba pulled off his glasses, and then blinked into slit pupils.

Kiba examined him. Not with horror, or pity, or any other sort of disturbance. Just looking.

Shino knew what they looked like. Black. Blacker than a moonless sky. Blacker than the deepest wells. Blacker than old blood, left to stain. Blacker than Orochimaru's heart. Black, with no iris and no pupil and no white to show off color. Black like a beetle's shell.

"Huh," Kiba said simply, and kissed him again.

Shino didn't respond at first. 'Huh'? That was it? Then he felt Kiba's tongue stroking at his lips, and he stroked back.

That was it. No fuss. Just 'Huh.' He wrapped a hand around the back of Kiba's head, fingers threading through the man's hair, deepening the kiss.

He could deal with 'Huh.'

Kiba's hands were at his pants, again, unzipping them farther, sliding in carefully, stroking against sensitive skin. Shino groaned into the other man's mouth, his own hands on a slender waist, edging against leather.

"Fuck, Shino, you can go lower than that," Kiba said against him, the words nearly a whine.

Shino smiled and found the button on the leather pants, undoing it quickly before hesitating again. He'd never done this. On himself, sure, but--

Kiba's hand stroked, long and slow, making his body burn. Shino stopped thinking

"Shino," Kiba wheedled, leaning his forehead against the other man's and looking down.

Shino followed his gaze, and almost wished he hadn't. His cock twitched, seeing them both so close, Kiba's hand sliding up and down Shino's dick, fondling the head, thumb rubbing liquid over the top.

"Just do this," Kiba said breathlessly, and stroked Shino a little more purposefully.

Shino cursed, but only in his head where no one would hear. Kiba's hands were magic, spiraling heat and lust through him, making his body tighten. He wrapped his fingers around the other man's cock and stroked carefully, gaining courage when Kiba whimpered and thrust up into him.

"Oh, fuck, yeah," Kiba said, stomach trembling, muscles tense and hard.

Shino shuddered, listening to his partner. Kiba was loud in everything he did, a force of nature, fast and furious. Shino wasn't surprised that sex was the same. He rubbed his thumb over Kiba's head, felt slick moisture, and dragged it down the length of his cock. Kiba shuddered and writhed, shifting until he was straddling Shino's lap.

"Pants?" Shino asked, eyes still fastened on the sight below him. Neither of them had undressed entirely, but Kiba didn't seem to mind.

"Fuck the pants," Kiba said, biting his lower lip, sweat beading on his forehead. "Fuck, Shino, this is--this is--" He stopped stroking, shifting closer still, hands holding Shino's head so he could kiss, tongue plunging into his mouth.

Shino grabbed Kiba's hips and pulled, feeling their cocks touch and the electric shock that shot through him, tightening his balls and making him quiver.

Kiba thrust, sliding their dicks together, his tongue sliding along Shino's. "Fuck, shit--" he said when he came up for air.

Shino pulled his hips closer, grinding their erections against each other, feeling the slip and slide of silky skin.

"Fuck--like that--" Kiba breathed, eyes screwed shut, back arching, neck exposed.

Shino leaned forward and bit. Kiba was his, and he was the only one who could leave a mark.

He felt Kiba shudder and whimper, and the next thing he knew there was moisture--hot and wet and thick--spurting across his cock and stomach. Kiba started to slow, shaking.

"Don't," Shino muttered, pulling the man's hips again, grinding their dicks together, making Kiba move when he might have stopped.

Kiba's pupils were dilated when he finally opened his eyes, his cheeks flushed. He smiled wickedly and slipped a hand between them, fingers wrapping surely around Shino's cock. "You've got to be the best damn fuck I think I've had," Kiba whispered against his ear, breath tickling over skin. A finger rubbed Shino's head, just before a hand started sliding, quick and sure, slick with Kiba's semen. "So fucking hot, makes me want to suck you off--"

Shino hissed and came, pleasure so intense it almost hurt boiling through his stomach, hands wrapping tight around Kiba's hips, holding him there. He shuddered and tensed, breath catching in his lungs, before it finally let him go.

Kiba was nuzzling his jaw, little flashes of his tongue licking out along his skin.

Shino breathed deeply, eyes still closed, fingers flexing into Kiba with every tremor of his body.

He could feel lips against his neck, breath whispering over his skin. After a long moment he moved a hand, settling it on the back of Kiba's skull, petting carefully.

"I think we ruined your pants," he said. It was the only thing he could think of.

Kiba laughed against him, still straddling his lap. "Don't care."

Shino nodded wordlessly. His mind felt fuzzy, his nerve endings still firing as if it had been too much for them, too, and they were only now catching up.

"Okay, stay here," Kiba said, then swung off the bed gracefully and fell toward the bathroom. Shino heard water run, and a moment later Kiba came back out, stripping out of his pants and--he wasn't wearing underwear.

Shino closed his eyes and looked away.

"What's wrong?" Kiba asked, behind him.

"Nothing." He made a mental note to say a prayer later, to thank the god of mercy that he hadn't known that before.

The bed dipped as Kiba settled in front of him once again. He still didn't open his eyes. He was thinking about Kiba dancing like that with those other men and wearing no underwear.

Then something cool and soothing touched his neck, wiping away sweat and stickiness, and he forgot to think about all those things. The cloth swept over his skin, down his chest--where, sadly, he had to move because Kiba wanted his pants off--and slowly over the rest of his skin. His cock twitched when Kiba touched it, but couldn't quite summon the energy to get hard again.

Poor thing.

Shino sighed, content. "This is nice."

"I know," Kiba said smugly. "Hinata showed me."

Shino's eyes flashed open. He stared at Kiba in horror, mind warring over whether he should be angry at Kiba for making Hinata less-than-pure, or angry at Hinata for touching his Kiba before he could, or--

"I was sick," Kiba said, laughing at the expression on Shino's face. "I didn't deflower little Hinata-chan!"

Shino settled back again, mollified. He watched Kiba rise onto his knees, tossing the washcloth over Shino's head, back to the bathroom. It landed somewhere behind him with a plop.

Kiba settled back down, straddling Shino again. Shino rested his hands on the other man's hips, the ridge of bone there, rubbing his thumbs across the soft hollow under it.

"Kiba," he said quietly, "you said . . . that you were waiting for me to make up my mind?"

Kiba was leaning against him again, chest to chest, breath hot on his neck. "Uh huh."

Shino frowned. "How'd you know--?"

"I could smell it." Kiba leaned in, resting his chin on Shino's shoulder.

Shino didn't blush, but it was a close thing. "Oh." He thought about that for a minute. "For how long?" he asked finally.

Kiba sighed, chest pressing against Shino's. "Oh . . . a few years . . ."

Shino's eyebrows rose. "You knew before I did?"

Kiba nodded. His chin dug into Shino's shoulder, then was gone again. "S'why I didn't say anything. And I figured with your dad--well, I wasn't sure you'd ever realize it."

Shino frowned. He didn't want to think about his father's reaction to all this. He glanced at the clothes strewn about the floor, saw the papers there as well. They were going to have to go home. He said as much, quietly, into Kiba's ear.

Kiba sighed mammothly. "You said if I didn't have sex with other guys you'd keep me busy . . ." His tone held a near-whine.

Shino smiled slightly. "I did say that, you're right." He bent and kissed Kiba, where his neck and shoulder met.

Kiba hummed happily. "Even if your dad doesn't like it?"

Shino nudged Kiba's head out of the way and kissed the tendon that ran from ear to collarbones. "Let me handle my father."

Kiba smiled slowly.

Shino nibbled on skin, tasting it, sweeping his tongue along it. The heartbeat in Kiba's throat began to speed and the man pulled back slightly, sliding his hands between them, a finger ticking at skin.

"What are you doing?" Shino asked, feeling the finger tap inch by inch along his breastbone.

"Counting scars."

Shino's lips twisted upward. He knew Kiba wasn't really counting scars; there were simply too many to attempt such a thing.

"You missed a spot," Kiba said, head down.

Shino looked at him.

Kiba lifted his hand and tapped his own neck with a single finer. "You didn't lick this spot."

Shino smiled and leaned forward, brushing the tip of his tongue over warm skin. Kiba sighed and let his head fall back, exposing his throat.

Shino paused. He'd seen the dogs do it; submission, trust, love, a gift of control. He'd seen the Inuzukas do it, too. He leaned in and bit, carefully. Enough to give acceptance, understanding. Not to hurt.

Then he grabbed Kiba by the hips and pushed, knocking him off balance, flat to his back on the bed. He leaned down, licking a stripe up defined abdominal muscles.

Kiba moaned and stretched, long and lean. "Making up for lost time?" he asked with a wolfish grin.

Shino smiled back. "Something like that." He lowered his head and sucked, hard. When he looked back up, there was a mark that would stay for several days.

Good.

Kiba was his. It was about time.

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