[FANFIC - HBD, KARIN! PII] READING BETWEEN THE LINES ; (SK)
By: Kanae (Goth-Punk88 @ ff.net)414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAVxRxNvP2N
Rating: K+414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc91T2zRMS1
Word Count: 1.956414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn0u8rApfOu
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 lol414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeTx1ibKA7P
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reading between the lines ;414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsI99JyMBLr
by Kanae414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAdostyORft
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Stupid Orochimaru.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjxlF0lVcSU
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrKbutTgOen
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAm1Wd3tJY3
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And now it would be ruined.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe3MEZq9zC8
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFoBISINfwI
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5BRhczkz8N
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGdZFWvBGj
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Understood. You won’t be disappointed, Orochimaru-sama.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡauUbzmVzDP
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The man had simply smirked, mirth in those gashes he had for eyes. I know.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6RXYM77yV
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Karin knew, too, even though she rather wished she didn’t.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyBlWOQfAtj
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlUbqtUajqt
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAyqFVf9VRz
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiA1meDaBCk
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHy0EO5eoC
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmbiht2WPLS
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So focused was she on her thoughts, that she does not realize the chakra approaching her until he speaks.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjStWtNP9y0
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“Still packing, Karin?”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDqB1c0qepI
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7J2b7H5f7A
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRwCaBLJ9J
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZNAI5bBAS
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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?414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4kArcHqbCK
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Oh. Right.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYKMpPzlA75
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It takes her a considerable amount of will to repress the sigh that wanted to leave her lips, “Whatever.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQGx3zk3sbs
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE5BtQ1pWU6
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“…You shouldn’t leave your door open like this, there.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpDY5wQCgH5
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDuWTBxFANX
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSZQD2J8XoS
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“I’ve never been there.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEfdFwW8xyg
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“… I see.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNug60jlqR1
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Silence. For Orochimaru to have never taken Sasuke there, it could only mean one thing—414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe0N9FtdWz9
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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…”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlZ5dUhRiVy
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3tAz0Ml6OP
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKbq9LYq1zg
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Sasuke.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ02zUYiAt7x
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“Heh, so you asked him?”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3U9mmA6EWo
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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?”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCyoUkRf7rM
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeKlTluiho8
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“I’m not worried, Karin.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoCatGhlszz
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Karin snorts, “Sure you aren’t.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6kqr1pEWpl
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnR6Oee7vgw
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Anytime soon. Her eyes widen.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzG7Sucd3xJ
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“Say, Sasuke, did you ask Orochimaru for how long will I be there?”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzWzbaSMDq
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He does not reply immediately; and in his silence, Karin hears the reply loudest of all. “… It’s undetermined.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPSGcVpKLt
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjMmT87xeJx
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Chances are she would not get to talk, feel or bicker with Sasuke for months.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡecT1FNwdcS
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4naDhXGRVV
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“… It won’t be that long, Karin.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxOj8bgRX8t
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When she looks at him, she finds a dangerous glint sharpening his eyes and at once knows what he means.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3fHEX0Mhct
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Orochimaru would not be around for much longer.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgrZGte5l2r
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Karin swallows, a shot of adrenaline reigniting her veins.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkUgfL7d1na
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz04kqH4ANK
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAMBuXFwoYo
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“Hn.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7n2dnWYYBz
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLe77zPHmW0
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyapqrZGAi
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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—414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5lc52RgrrA
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUX9p5e1i2k
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As will she.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Bjm4RNL4r
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡefuwlENybf
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUSODXGrWFI
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Flabbergasted, Karin can only catch the pouch that is suddenly thrown at her, “Huh?”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkMn7xULllL
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Ub0eX3qwi
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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.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8HOJEvLGg2
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“See ya, Karin.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzWH5YySv3Y
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“Later, Sasuke.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6hN66qbCxR
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It is almost as embarrassing as her treacherous blush, but for a moment, Karin had actually thought—414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuHdfMYOmo1
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“Pft, as if.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQESHgGWTbn
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmmu2GXtLt
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzm2fGkEqMF
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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.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwrFKf9o3Iy
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She blinks—once, twice—and then her smile morphs into a full blown smirk, her fingertips longingly tracing the pattern.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAq5yVgnusc
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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—414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd1RX8gUN0I
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At the end, it all amounted to the same.414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhkOL3DxSM
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“Happy birthday,” Karin mutters, an enthusiastic glint in her eye. “Uchiha Karin.”414Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLvZAeBiYAX
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end.
tags: fanfic, karin, naruto, sasukarin, sasuke
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