[FANFIC - HBD, KARIN! PII] READING BETWEEN THE LINES ; (SK)
By: Kanae (Goth-Punk88 @ ff.net)422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqPJboQWl8P
Rating: K+422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeg0yeCcHMW
Word Count: 1.956422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Ib0YsN3Ly
Author's Notes: A lighthearted, crack-ish piece, in contrast to the overly fluffy one. I didn't have a clue of what to call it though, so the title is pretty random lol422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmIBRzHuRYO
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reading between the lines ;422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6m92k0NVo
by Kanae422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhIce1wRfML
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Stupid Orochimaru.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD8fTfpEBk4
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Figures he would push her transfer to the Southern base to tomorrow, out of all days. At the tender age of fourteen, there are many things that Karin has shed and discarded—girly emotions and interests that she has cut loose, as a meaning to let go of unnecessary weights that would do nothing but hold her down.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEY6edRkVBW
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This particular weight, though, was proving to be quite hard to seize and dispose of. It only came once a year, after all.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGgcpCkY8vy
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And now it would be ruined.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEmQAJH8Ts
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The thought makes her lower lipstick out in a pout, which promptly gives way to a scowl as she concludes—not for the first time—that the man had probably done it on purpose.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwROqrEIKZN
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No, he had definitely done it on purpose. Forget that such a childish action should be leagues beneath a power-hungry maniac like himself; when it came down to it, Orochimaru’s hobby was making people miserable. He got a kick out of it, so in retrospect, Karin guessed she should have seen it coming.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FHhnXMOD1
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Still, stubborn and proud as she was, she had not given him the pleasure; she had taken the news with a straight face and easily slipped into the act that had taken her months to perfect, but that had started to bear its fruits—even if it had yet to stop making her sick.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1iaibilfh7
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Understood. You won’t be disappointed, Orochimaru-sama.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNslkl9bxEf
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The man had simply smirked, mirth in those gashes he had for eyes. I know.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJoKtHiKACw
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Karin knew, too, even though she rather wished she didn’t.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJS4EUMse9L
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It was embarrassing—more like humiliating, actually—to acknowledge that, while she had gotten playing the part of the loyal subordinate down to an art, she had yet to master the act of not having feelings for Sasuke.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjNI7TZGf8o
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She would do well most of the time; great, actually—no one would dare to second-guess that she held no interest in the boy, aside from a begrudging partnership.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoF7uQNIqcC
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But then Sasuke would unexpectedly do something—a brief touch, a compliment, a look—and her façade would bend at the seams and the truth would sneak out in the form of traitorous blushes and awkward stuttering.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeXSIhGEkZN
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Stupid Sasuke, Karin curses inwardly, her frown deepening as she airily snuck another shirt inside her bag. Making her expose her only weakness while simultaneously remaining completely oblivious about it.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgjY7K0QIFG
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It was no wonder that Orochimaru would want to separate them; Karin had seen that much coming a mile away, so while disappointing, it had not been a surprise. But this—the freaking timing was definitely beyond her expectations.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKN28swbUen
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So focused was she on her thoughts, that she does not realize the chakra approaching her until he speaks.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlAirON3LXw
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“Still packing, Karin?”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNZh3FQNBDJ
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Startled, Karin turns only to find Sasuke casually regarding her from the threshold of the door, against which he was leaning. It takes her all of two seconds to get over her surprise and a couple of extra ones to stop chiding herself for letting her guard down.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHS5CiPiEED
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“I’m almost done,” she states, shifting her gaze back to her open bag. Not like she had much to pack, anyway; she had not taken anything with her when leaving her burning village to join Orochimaru—Sasuke—almost whole year ago, and since then the items of clothing she has acquired have been scarce. Such commodities were unnecessary given the new type of life she lead, and moreover—“Tch, Sasuke, when will you learn how to knock? I could be changing, for all you know.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjY4TkroU87
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Karin does not look at him, there is no need to; she can easily picture the way he tilts his head to the side, bangs falling on his eyes and giving him an impossibly sexy aura as he smirks. “You would’ve stopped me from coming in, if you were.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7vZF6GlTYC
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Damn him. All plain logic even in the face of the prospect of seeing her in her underwear; why did she have to fall for such a clueless, hormone-less idiot, again?422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ89Op0fuq3o
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Oh. Right.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3UjhXl3S4
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It takes her a considerable amount of will to repress the sigh that wanted to leave her lips, “Whatever.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF1FcKVXk7e
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Suddenly she hears him shifting, straightening; and her hands halt in expectation, her thoughts and irritation quieting down to a soundless tune as she patiently waited for the words that would follow.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBGdGU0BOKj
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“…You shouldn’t leave your door open like this, there.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUN5IdBeeO8
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He finally says, and Karin is thankful that her back is to him, or else he may have noticed the way her gaze softens, “I know.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpCe4HI3ga2
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It’s Sasuke’s turn to wait, now; he seems to know it as instinctively as Karin herself did, and he does not utter a single word until she has gathered enough courage to ask what she has been wanting to—but refusing to—ask all along, not wanting to be perceived as weak—as scared. “How is it…? The Southern base, I mean.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEAVc3kjqvT
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“I’ve never been there.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk331mDPjvm
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“… I see.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkE45HNvoNW
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Silence. For Orochimaru to have never taken Sasuke there, it could only mean one thing—422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB9WlliSNY2
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“…Orochimaru told me it’s the less dangerous of them all,” the boy says, and as if to confirm her thoughts, his voice carries a different savor within it—one reserved to accompany his gaze whenever he regarded Orochimaru, or Kabuto, or those that bit—“You won’t have much on your case, aside of…”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ07w8gVcdYy
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He does not need to finish; the unsaid rings loud and clear between them and both direct a look to her exposed, tarnished arms. There weren’t that many scars in them, yet—but she got the feeling there would be, soon. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why Orochimaru wanted her as the sole jailer of the base—the thought makes her stomach clench, and so Karin pushes it away and focuses on something else before the feeling could threaten to take over her.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKCecn5r5R
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She focuses on the one thing—the one person that had singlehandedly managed to help her endure everything she has gone through ever since she lost her family and village.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxnLS6srCsA
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Sasuke.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfYQYnynvtw
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“Heh, so you asked him?”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡstdQTkrcmu
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He must have heard the mocking note in her tone, because he crosses his arms across his chest and furrows his brow, “Hn, so what?”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMmSlBrl4RF
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She pretends to not have heard him, throwing him a roguish look over her shoulder and enjoying a little too much the way his frown deepens in response. He could be so amusing, sometimes. “You should know better, Sasuke; you don’t need to worry about me, I can defend myself just fine.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡetXSVyGLce
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“I’m not worried, Karin.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY7bIpLIkRz
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Karin snorts, “Sure you aren’t.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlzemqUA1n9
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Sasuke wisely keeps his retort to himself, as expected—it’s been a while since he had realized that arguing with her took him nowhere. Both of them were too stubborn, and unlike him, Karin wasn’t planning to put leashes on her temper anytime soon.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx705ou9FMM
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Anytime soon. Her eyes widen.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsC6uXDpvL6
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“Say, Sasuke, did you ask Orochimaru for how long will I be there?”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyLN8ljZCyY
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He does not reply immediately; and in his silence, Karin hears the reply loudest of all. “… It’s undetermined.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsa3FbhmXh0
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“Oh,” is all she can muster, suddenly all too conscious of a single fact—just how long would it be before she saw Sasuke again? He was busy training, and Orochimaru rarely let him out of his sight as it was, and she—she would have her hands full handling the base by herself.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH92dPAKMZ1
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Chances are she would not get to talk, feel or bicker with Sasuke for months.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWUFYw5jh5t
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Perhaps even years. The thought alone is able to make her blood run cold, and she almost lets out a gasp when Sasuke’s voice breaks through the heavy silence, as if reading her very core.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu2rimRQzYF
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“… It won’t be that long, Karin.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyWlOkycdX8
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When she looks at him, she finds a dangerous glint sharpening his eyes and at once knows what he means.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnDcKRWQCBr
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Orochimaru would not be around for much longer.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3dNb9V0Ttw
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Karin swallows, a shot of adrenaline reigniting her veins.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9KMfj4cfDh
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It is the unavoidable future; one that had been decided even before their paths crossed again, and one that Sasuke had set in stone ever since. Nothing Karin could do or say would change his mind, and so all she had left to do was trust him.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3sWwjILiAg
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“…Right,” she smirks, and makes a point of passing her concern as taunting mockery. “Just make sure to keep your head attached to your neck until then. You won’t have me around to heal you anymore, so you will have to get used to Kabuto.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLKgVgUbu56
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“Hn.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN50Ia0xttN
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She sees his scowl, his derisive eye-roll—and somehow is suddenly acutely aware, to the point where she can almost feel it as a physical affliction, of how much she was going to miss him.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡplKtVCdv5l
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Everything about him. From his ways to his silence to the way his chakra felt and the way he made her feel, in turn.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBcqbJGHxxS
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And for the briefest of moments, Karin cannot help but to indulge herself and wonder if he would miss her, too—though she knows better. Sasuke was too single-minded, too focused on his revenge mission to give a thought to anything else, but still—422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpOJEFioo6H
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Of course he would. He was only human, even if he would rather pretend—believe—otherwise, and she was the only person he spoke to out of his own volition. The only person he trusted; enough to rely on, enough to keep her around. If he is not lonely yet, then he is going to be lonely, now.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAtXHRFQTKM
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As will she.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3K6Vzlaxoe
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It is that thought that prompts Karin to entertain being forward for a change and asking Sasuke to spend the night—if only as a birthday present.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNcvYcby5pY
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She is merely wetting her lips and preparing to take the chance and let out a say, sasuke when he beats her to it and calls her name.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtM2FXakQlt
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Flabbergasted, Karin can only catch the pouch that is suddenly thrown at her, “Huh?”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD5sK3UL1W2
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“Poisoned kunai,” Sasuke states with a slight, nonchalant shrug before sticking his hands into his pockets. “I thought they may come in handy.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNEEt67oP6
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She feels warm all over, and prays that Sasuke won’t notice the way her face seemed to be burning like a bonfire, “R-right.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU52i2iTa8C
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“See ya, Karin.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxvPqUgFFhM
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“Later, Sasuke.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRe2tzg8xzK
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It is almost as embarrassing as her treacherous blush, but for a moment, Karin had actually thought—422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAFztUQLhC
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“Pft, as if.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8A3vaXWekX
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She should have known better—Karin thinks, as she opens the pouch and takes out one of the kunai—Sasuke was not the kind to care about birthdays; and neither was she, for that matter. Not the Karin she was growing up to be, at least; she has no doubt that by next year, June 20 would be just another date.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCSvDffGfDB
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Still… while it had not been a birthday present, it had been a nice gesture nonetheless. And then he went around denying that he cared, the nerve of him.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKpSN3j1xap
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Seriously, Sasuke, you can be so basic sometimes. The thought makes her smile fondly, and she is just about to put the pouch away when she notices the inconspicuous little fan carved on its backside, just a small dot of reds and whites in what was otherwise an immaculate sea of beiges.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkGGq2fvaKs
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She blinks—once, twice—and then her smile morphs into a full blown smirk, her fingertips longingly tracing the pattern.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlwRHUkEgTI
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Sasuke probably had not even noticed it—old habits die hard, after all, and he seemed to be as obsessed with that crest as he was with his revenge—but that hardly mattered, for at the end—422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2WHDh1bHNG
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At the end, it all amounted to the same.422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ21v1REHaiY
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“Happy birthday,” Karin mutters, an enthusiastic glint in her eye. “Uchiha Karin.”422Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6YkUhXUijO
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end.
tags: fanfic, karin, naruto, sasukarin, sasuke
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