A Chance Encounter (M)

Valen was changing out of his kimono as he considered the past few months in the Heavenly Emporium. He had grown stronger as a shinobi since coming here and even won an incredible weapon that he would gladly utilize for the fulfillment of his Queen's desires as well as to do his task as a member of the Nightmare Brigade and take down evil where he was commissioned to. Still, the Festival celebrating the birth of Okane was not over yet and didn't seem to be showing signs of winding down. When one had incredible amounts of money he supposed it made sense that one could throw the longest party in history without batting an eyelash. Still it was certainly worth have a quiet moment or two when one could get their hands on it and Valen had finally come across a hot spring that wasn't crowded. At best there might be one person in them from what he heard, two at most. Which made it so much better as an option than the others he had seen. He hadn't seen any signs denoting it as a mixed or specific gender bathing or not but he would cross that bridge when he came to it.

Underneath his Kimono he wore a pair of swimming pants, the tight fitting attire covering him better than trunks would and he finished folding his Kimono and placing it in one of the cubbies inside the changing room quietly. At his side he still held onto Hai no Ha. He didn't really want to or intend to let the weapon go after it had been given to him. That moment had still seemed so surreal, he had actually been given such a powerful weapon because he had won it and it was definitely the most valuable single possession he had. He began to run a comb through his hair as he considered that, giving his hair a careful combing before getting it wet more than likely. It had grown out a bit since coming here and finally gravity had won it's battle against his black locks and finally pulled them down. So now his hair hung down to just about his shoulders and he intended to keep growing it. He'd started growing a bit of facial hair too which was odd but he kept that trimmed into something that might look decent when it filled out a bit more.

Still, one of the most disappointing things that had happened had been his inability to track down Kara Darhk that day she had come to the restaurant he'd been at with Kaida. When he had left after making sure the red heads gifts had been left with the manager to ensure someone didn't come in and steal them while she was eating. The blonde woman had already disappeared into the crowd. She of course knew her way around and where she was going. He did not, and as such trying to track her had been a fruitless effort. He'd tried her offices but the woman was a busy one and she continued to move around the Emporium from what he had heard, delivering prizes to raffle winners. One day he hoped to meet the woman and try to talk to her about some custom equipment for him but it seemed it wasn't meant to be during the festival thus far.

With that said he would finally finish up and open the sliding door to the hot spring proper itself. Padding outside he would close the door behind him. Due to the fog and mist from the heat he wouldn't be able to see anyone quite yet. He also wouldn't make the mistake of just getting in the water. No, he would circle once around the spring to ensure whoever, if anyone was here, knew he was too. Too many shinobi in the Emporium to risk startling someone by jumping into the water with them. So, Valen would begin a circle around the spring, the whole thing seemingly separated from all others and more akin to a giant hot tub almost than a spring but it was large and the scenery around seemed hot spring like. Of course given the heat fog even that was hard to tell. So he would simply walk around the edge until he found someone or vice versa.

[1]

Kara had been quite busy as of late, especially on the Heavenly Emporium. Fortunately, she had her own suite which included a private hot spring, and she was taking full advantage of that now. Doku was with her of course, there was rarely a time when Doku wasn’t with her. Even though the chamber was quite far removed from the general public, she still felt more comfortable with her bodyguard there. She had arrived in a verdant green gown and that same gown was now safely stored in one of the lockers, locked of course - the gown was probably worth more than most people made in a year.

Doku was sitting on a bench in the room with her, staring appreciatively as she sank into the steaming water. The pool was deep enough to allow the water to rest a few inches below the tops of her shoulders if she remained seated, but she could see he apparently had quite the imagination. His silver eyes never left her form as she lounged, being careful to keep her metal prosthetic arm out of the liquid. It wouldn’t be damaged by a little water, no matter how hot that water was, but it would make cleaning it later a bit of a nuisance if she let it soak.

“Have you checked on those orders yet Doku?” She absolutely couldn’t relax without still working it seemed. The dark haired man rose from his seat and paced towards her as he answered. “Not yet, Mistress. Ahvn’t had thuh chance yet.” His slow voice complemented the slow shake of his head. She knew he hadn’t of course, for the past forty eight hours he’d been practically joined at the hip with her. Part of that very nearly literally. Not that she was complaining, he had been hired for more than just his skill with a katana.

At that moment she considered inviting him into the water with her as she felt the familiar ache in her heart that she tried desperately to mask. She had previously filled that ache with alcohol, but despite that working rather effectively it had caused a minor problem in certain social settings. So while she did still drink, she had turned to more socially acceptable dullers of pain, rather than being drunk day in and day out. Sleeping with anyone that made their interest known was exciting and so far had not caused any social problems. At worst she could imagine that it was muttered that she was a whore, though as yet no one had dared to say as much within ear shot. And she wouldn’t have even found it insulting if they had, she probably would have laughed. Laughing at the stupidity of common folk was one of her favourite pastimes.

Laying back against the rugged stone wall of the pool she would smile seductively up at Doku. “Like what you see?” Doku grinned a happy puppy grin and opened his mouth to reply, when he turned abruptly as they both heard the distinctive noise of a locker closing. The steam in the room made it difficult to pick out exactly who had entered the private space, but Doku sprang to action putting himself between Kara and the intruder. “Who goes thayure?” Doku growled menacingly at the form in the steam, his hand placed on the hilt of his sword as he readied himself to defend his Mistress. Kara simply looked on in curiosity, though a tiny voice in the back of her mind informed her that she needed to be prepared for another attack.

As he stepped into the area, having just closed the locker. A voice would growl out from within the steam and it would take the short man a moment to understand that last word. Having difficulties communicating at times was not made easier when the person who was communicating with him had an accent. However he did end up figuring out what 'thayure' meant after a moment of thought. Still he was confused, why was someone acting so aggressive when all he had done was close a locker and come into the springs? He had no intention of hurting anyone. Although the sword he was carrying with him was probably not going to help anyone actually believe that in the end was it? Still, it would be rude leave the voice waiting and Valen padded toward it on unshod feet, his black swimming pants covering him although they were meant for swimming in so they outlined his form a little too well. He didn't really have a ton of friggin options though unless he wanted to swim naked and that would not be within his best interest he suspected. Still, he held his hands away from the hilt of the Hai no Ha as he moved through the steam.

"I mean no harm, that said I am armed. I'm coming through the steam and my hands are off the weapon. I was just coming for a soak in some hot springs. Everywhere else is full of people and I'm not the most comfortable with crowds." He would explain. The group that had flown around on a giant chakra construct had proven that quite well as he had for the most part been unable to get himself involved with the group in terms of conversation. He had been nervous to a degree and simply content to remain aloof as Satomi had shown all of them just what ninjutsu could truly do. "My name is Valen Minamoto, Genin of Kirigakure." He would continue to say as the shape of a man holding the hilt of a katana came into view. Quickly after the shape of a blonde woman in the hot spring came into view as well. Had he interrupted them? That hadn't been the intent, although the man was still clothed. She however seemed to not be. Now that Valen was close enough he could tell that much through the water although it was only the basic shape of her form and no specifics. His red eyes turned toward her, acknowledged surveyed her for a few moments. Then turned toward the man holding a weapon, one thing at a time.

It was as he turned from the woman that it hit him like a brick and his red eyes snapped back to her in recognition. Seriously, he spends months looking for her and he runs into her here accidentally? He could not help it, he laughed. It was a sudden thing and more of a bark of one than a full blown laugh but it still happened and he spoke quickly after to explain. "Kara Darhk, I've been trying to find you for a while. Since you came to the restaurant I was eating at with someone to deliver some kind of consolation prize. I tried you at your offices but you were always out and I've tried to find you everywhere on the Emporium to have no luck. Only to run into you by pure happenstance when I try to find a hot spring that isn't overly crowded." He would say, his shoulders rising and falling slightly as he chuckled again at the end. Her presence probably meant the man was some kind of body guard. Turning toward him he would hold his empty hands up. "Your charge has nothing to fear from me sir. I've been trying to find her to ask about getting custom gear. Not to try to kill her. That said, why so aggressive when all I did was close a locker? I didn't stumble into somewhere I shouldn't have did I?" He would ask, an eyebrow raised.

He was becoming mildly more eloquent as time went on and he interacted with different people although he still had trouble with a lot of non-quantifiable concepts. 'Honor', 'Duty', 'Valor', 'Love', 'Hate', and other such things eluded his understanding. As it was he simply did what he enjoyed and tried not to treat others badly if he could help it. A surprising amount of his personal relationships went that way actually. Sayuri wanted him to serve her unquestioningly in public. Which as his owner was her right and so he did so. But in private wanted him in control, wanted to feel like she had no control. So he delivered that to her. Takara had simply wanted to be treated with some kind of equality although the word 'respect' was one of those words that eluded him so he wouldn't even think of it. Sero wanted the evil to be culled and didn't much care how it got done so long as 'innocents' weren't harmed. Valen wasn't entirely certain what made someone innocent but their missions were direct enough 'go kill bad guys here' so he did and it had yet to become an issue. Regardless, he was at the point in his vocal skills that he could in fact hold a relatively decent conversation and get his point across without looking like a complete idiot although he could still absolutely put his foot in it sometimes.

Like now, when he would spent a few moments looking at Doku, and then looking at Kara are well with an appreciative light in his eyes. He couldn't see details but her blonde hair, yellow eyes, and general form were striking. The metal arm was strange, although he had seen that in the restaurant and heard of it even before that. However it did not detract from the overall quality of the woman. Simply added something to it, something different and unique. Now, while his hands were away from the hilt, showing he meant no harm. He was not stupid, and his feet had naturally fallen in the stance for Kendo, a simple style. He would be ready to grab and draw if the bodyguard came at him however he hoped Kara would stand him down. Valen didn't want anyone to get hurt over a stupid misunderstanding. Especially if he had wandered into somewhere he should not have.

Doku was ready to slice the intruder in half; he wouldn’t be surprised if it was just another drunken partier, but on the off chance it wasn’t there was only one other type of person he could imagine making their way into Mistress Kara’s private hot springs - an assassin. It was what he had been hired for, to fend off anyone that came close enough to harm her in any way. And considering the not so vague threats on her life, it wasn’t that far fetched to think it might be someone that wished her harm.

Though when the intruder called out and was. . . reasonable. . . he stayed his hand for a moment, and prayed to every god in existence that he wouldn’t come to regret that pause. He kept his sword stance, and kept himself between Valen and Kara, but chose not to potentially commit murder. It was a large part of why he was Doku now - choosing the wrong targets. And then the man laughed. That almost made him change his mind, until Valen explained the irony of the chance encounter, and his words reassured Doku that Valen didn’t seem to be laughing at him. It pleased Doku that Valen was focusing on him and not treating him as some inanimate fixture like a lamp or a bookshelf. It had been some time since Doku had received any real respect and it soothed his nerves and calmed his temper.

Kara watched the exchange with amusement, she was not particularly worried - at least she didn’t show it. She was in fact very worried, ever since she’d had to flee from the insanity that was the former Kazekage she had been especially paranoid. Seigi's warning still rang through her head to this day;

"I also have reason to suspect you may also be a target.”

There was not a single day that went by when that warning did not weigh heavy on her mind. She was aware that in that particular moment when the warning was given she was also in shock; both physical and emotional. She had just lost her arm and her husband. She hadn’t received confirmation of the latter until she’d arrived in Kumogakure, but she had suspected it at the time. The world had felt. . . wrong. And as illogical as it was she had spent the entire journey trying to convince herself that Damien was fine, and even if in dire straits he was most certainly not dead. So when the news was finally given to her it had dealt her a soul crushing blow. Since that moment Kara had turned to just about everything other than anything that could be labeled ‘healthy’ to ease her pain.

One of those things was Doku, and watching him now she felt more confident in that choice. Regardless of his many shortcomings, he was loyal and willing to do whatever was necessary to keep her safe. When she heard the man named Valen laugh however she raised an eyebrow as that same recognition went through her as well. She had not spoken to the man directly, but she did remember seeing him in a restaurant as she had been delivering raffle prizes. Intrigued, she would move gracefully through the water until her chest was pressed firmly against the edge of the pool closest to Valen, raising her arms to fold in front of her and hold her form slightly higher out of the hot water. “It’s alright Doku, I recognize him.” Doku would glance over his shoulder and upon receiving a nod of confirmation he would loosen his grip on his katana hilt and move so that Kara could view Valen fully. “Naw funny business.” he would say to Valen as he moved to take up his post outside the private hot spring, and to Kara he would speak more loudly. “Ahl bay out hare few need may, Mistress.”

Doku hadn’t bothered answering Valen’s questions, the nod from Kara was all he needed to know he was dismissed. Once Doku had left the room and she heard the door close, Kara would smile at the dark haired man with the incredibly well crafted sword. She let her eyes sweep across his form, lingering on a few interesting details. Her gaze was sensual and sharp, a combination of attraction and intelligent scrutiny. “Valen was it? Pleasure to meet you. As you’ve already realized, I am Kara Darhk, and you have managed to stumble into my private hot spring. Whether that is a pleasure or not remains to be seen, but suffice to say you’ve done nothing wrong. Though typically I come here to be alone. . . ” She would let her gaze settle quite obviously on his midsection, taking in both the masterfully created sword and the impressive bulge beneath his tight swimming shorts. “But today I am feeling. . . sociable. Come, join me and tell me what you’ve been seeking me for. Oh, and if you wouldn’t mind, I’d very much like to examine your sword.” As she spoke she floated backwards in the pool, beckoning him into the water with her metal hand and a seductive smile.

The man would hold his blade, which was good because Valen really did not want to get into  a fight when he was only wearing shorts and around a hot spring no less. He would do it if he had to, purely to defend his life of course and not to kill the man who would only be doing his job. However he would fight if needed. Part of him wanted that fight, the part that loved it. The enjoyed the blood pumping through her veins at the increased pace that adrenaline provided. The curious part of him that wanted to try out the new sword he had won against a real contest to see how well it held up. So much of him actually wanted the man to take that swing. However he didn’t, and Valen was aware it was better that way. As the man held the sword, hand upon the hilt and ready to draw it, Valen kept his hands away from his own blade, his red eyes bright and curious. It was then that Kara would swim over to him. Or rather to the edge of the pool before leaning against it, her arms raising her out a bit. When she did she ordered her man down.

Apparently the bodyguard's name was Doku and when he looked at her and got a nod of confirmation, he would loosen his grip and move aside. Then the man would speak with the accent again and Valen would have to blink once or twice in order to let his internal ‘translation’ function to turn on. Just so he could understand what the swordsman was saying. Of course he wouldn’t say anything aloud, that would be rude. However he quickly determined the meaning of the man’s word and realized only the first sentence was directed to him at all. Then he would leave after speaking to Kara, stepping outside and closing the door behind him. Kara herself would proceed to smile at him and her eyes would travel up and down his form. He could see interest in those eyes and definitely the kind he had seen before. When she had finished her perusal of him she would speak, introducing herself formally and telling him that he had wandered into her own private hot springs. He had apparently done nothing wrong but she had originally come here to be alone and he would frown in annoyance. Not at her, but at himself. He would begin to turn toward the door to leave, not intending to interrupt her, when he noted her gaze.

He saw where that gaze had landed, first upon the sword he carried and then upon the very obvious shape beneath his shorts. Then she would invite him to join her. Or, was it an invitation? He had a feeling now that if he tried to deny her she would become annoyed. Besides, why would he want to? She was offering him everything he wanted. The chance to soak in a hot spring, the chance to speak to her about custom equipment, and as she spoke, her smile even hinted at other possibilities that he would indeed be quite silly to ignore. Nodding his head to her, he would take a moment to pull the towel that he had over his shoulder and set it in a nearby table before moving toward the edge of the pool. He would sit upon the edge of it, dipping his legs into the water before letting himself fall off the edge and standing within it. The water was just able to reach up to his hips if he walked and he stepped through the water toward her. He would swim, but given he was holding a sword with one hand he felt that that might be ill advised. “Of course you can inspect my sword. I won it in a raffle prize. At first I didn’t understand what was going on.” He would laugh as he moved closer to her. As he did his own eyes would admire her figure in the water, now that he was closer he could see her better now and hey, if she could look, so could he.

When he reached her he would offer her the weapon. The sooner she looked at it the sooner it could be put aside and not make it nearly impossible to swim. As he did he would flash her a smile. “I think I’ve been rude, I must ask for your forgiveness. I am not the most educated of individuals. I’m still quite behind in terms of that. However I will say it a pleasure to meet you as well Miss Kara. If I might be so bold, I’d like to get business out of the way before hopefully, enjoying a conversation and a soak with you here if you’ll allow it. In terms of what I’m wanting, I was looking for two things. First, a pair of strong, black, gloves to protect my hands. Clothlike if possible. Following those, I would very much like a cloak and hood. Black outside, red on the inside. With pockets lining the inner layer. A detachable mask in case I need to be more obscure and I’d like it to be as protective as it could be.” He would say, he would sink down and sit however the water would actually probably submerge his head a bit if he tried. However he could certainly lean against a wall if one was nearby and  would do so if able. “I must admit I’ve never tried to order custom gear before...does any of that sound unreasonable? Come to think of it I don’t even have any idea how much such equipment would cost” He would ask, his red eyes looking toward her golden ones and frowning slightly as he realized he had failed to figure out such information. It felt like a failing and proof of his lack of intelligence. He still needed to work on things. But if he caught himself like this when he made such mistakes. He would soon stop making them.

[3]

Doku of course listened to her immediately and took his leave, not without first issuing his version of a warning though. Kara had to keep from rolling her eyes, he was better when he didn’t speak, more convincing. It was, beyond his intellect, his greatest failing. That damn voice, and more so that damned accent. It did provide ample evidence that he and Damien were two different people, because otherwise it would have been near impossible to tell them apart. At least near impossible for anyone who was not intimately familiar with either of them.

As Kara floated backwards through the steaming water, she came to rest against the opposite rock wall of the hot spring, sitting on the elegantly carved stone bench that was submerged beneath the surface a few feet. It was one of two such benches, carved in such a way as to blend in with the rocky aesthetic and be nearly invisible until used. An optical illusion of course, but Kara had a more minimalistic aesthetic to her design choices, and preferred to have most things in an environment remain neutral and subtle - this made her own presence, that was usually a streak of bright or rich colour, all that more striking.

Her golden eyes followed Valen’s every movement as he removed his towel and lowered himself into the water, wading over to present his sword for her examination. As he drew closer she could clearly see who had made it, she would need to touch it to be completely sure, but she would recognize Okane’s craftsmanship anywhere. When Valen presented the sword to her, she almost corrected him with a ‘Not that one.’ but decided against it, her humour was not always well received and he had made it clear that he wished to do business with her. So instead she smiled and gently took the offered sword from his grasp. The moment her hand touched the worked metal she knew; this was undoubtedly Okane’s work. She could feel it in every fold of Midnight Ore, the precise wrapping of black silk and the intricately hammered tsuba. Drawing the blade out of the sheath a mere three inches she marvelled at the edge of the blade and it’s colouring, in this weapon Okane had truly outdone himself.

The blonde woman hummed lightly as she lovingly ran her fingers across the weapon, her mind envisioning the creation of it as she closed her eyes for a few seconds. After a time she would reopen her eyes and sheathe the blade, turning her hands so that the weapon lay horizontally across her palms as she presented it to its owner. “A true work of art, treasure it. That makes you the raffle grand prize winner. You seem blessed Valen Minamoto, Genin of Kirigakure.” If he took the sword back from her she would resume lounging in the water, her arms back with her elbows bracing her against the back wall of the pool.

“Now as for the apology, it is quite unnecessary. You were not rude, in fact you were more polite than most that deign to speak with me. And, don’t fret about your lack of education. Compared with me, everyone is uneducated, which makes you average.” Her words were not even a boast, it was a simple fact - She had yet to meet anyone that could truly rival her in raw intellect or in skill. Her eyes would glance down to his form beneath the water and then meet his red eyes once more. “Average intellectually. Though you are far above average in other respects.” She would give him a wink as she turned her naked body to better face him, she didn’t even attempt to hide her interest in his other respects.

It only took Kara a moment to measure the man by eye and do the calculations for what it would take to create the items he was requesting. “As for the items you would like, those are simple enough. A week at the longest and I can have those created for you. Fret not Valen of Kirigakure, your requests are quite reasonable. As for payment. . . I could charge you ryo of course, and if you insist then I will. Personally though, I prefer to accept other methods of payment. Ryo will buy you a meal or a house, transient material possessions that may satisfy for a time but ultimately are forgotten to the annals of time. Favours, loyalty, information, services. . . those things are intrinsically more valuable to me. So, Valen Minamoto, Genin of Kirigakure. What can you offer to me that is more valuable than simple coins and paper?” Kara had one or two ideas on how Valen could repay her for her work, but she was curious about what he might think was valuable.

As he moved toward her she would reach a small stone bench on the other side of the hot spring and sit upon it. The slightly higher elevation would make it so that when she sat upon it the water level would reach up to a lower level than before on her. Before the water had reached up to her shoulders and now it was reaching up to the top of her breasts. Giving a fair tease of them from a distance as he crossed the water toward her. His eyes naturally fell on them but he would quickly pull them away and back to her golden orbs. When he reached her and held the sword out to her she would smile gently at him and take it. He would take the moment to sit down upon the stone bench next to her as she inspected the weapon. Her fingers trailed over the weapon, a light tune coming from her lips as her eyes closed. She withdrew a few inches of blade and looked at the craft of it admiringly before finally sheathing the weapon and offering it back to him. The weapon lay horizontally across her palms as she presented it to him. Her words would cause him to nod at her, confirming himself as the grand prize winner of the raffle. When he took the weapon from her, he would smile at her softly before setting it on the wall outside of the water.

Realistically of course it wouldn’t hurt the weapon at all to get wet. However he felt a certain desire to be careful with this one for some reason. Besides, in the end it was awkward to hold onto a weapon while sitting in a hot spring and he certainly was not about to leave the side of the strikingly beautiful woman next to him to put it next to the towel by the tree. So he sat it upon the wall next to them, easily within reach if needed. When he turned back to her he found her elbows up on the wall of the pool and her back leaned against it. He wasn’t sure if she was aware but the position gave her physical assets a certain..underlining in regards to their presence and his eyes fell down to them once more. Now that he was closer the translucent water was no longer a debilitating factor and he could see her form quite clearly. Her lithe, sturdy, athletic form, the curvature of her body. His eyes slowly trailed up her form, reaching her shoulders, the droplets of water forming on the skin drawing the eye and before long he was meeting her eyes again.

He quickly became aware of what he had done and blinked in surprise. Had he really just been that blatant? I mean he wasn’t shy, never had been, and his experience with Sayuri did not indicate that would ever be the case. However he had picked up quite a bit since coming to the Emporium and the heavily crowded festival and that was that in most of the situations. Women didn’t quite like someone to be that obvious. His mind would race, looking for the proper way to apologize as she spoke. Telling him his earlier apology was unnecessary. He was surprised to hear that he had apparently been more polite than most who wish to communicate with her and her comment on his education would draw a small smile from him. He had no trouble with people who thought they were the smartest. He couldn’t know for sure it was true, he didn’t know everyone. But what he did know was that most people were definitely smarter than him. So he wasn’t even in the running for that race. He could quite happily leave it up to the people in that percentile to have that debate. Then he would get his own bit of surprise as her eyes glanced down at his waist beneath the water. Then coming back up to meet his eyes. Her following words would cause his eyes to widen in mild surprise.

It was safe to say that his earlier perusal of her form would not be regarded as ‘unwanted’ and he attempt to not even hide her own interest as she winked and turned her naked form to face him would cause something akin to a vicious little grin to appear on his features. When she informed him that his items were simple enough in creation and that payment could be made in a variety of ways he would listen intently. It seemed she had no need for ryo and desired other things. Some of the words she used he couldn’t understand, although this time he wouldn’t interrupt someone to explain the words. Things like ‘transient’ and ‘annals’ however he was able to get the gist of everything easily enough even without knowing what those two words mean. She made a list of things more valuable to her, favours, loyalty, information, and services. Then asked what he could offer. He licked his lips in thought. He couldn’t offer her loyalty, Sayuri had that. Couldn’t offer information given he didn’t have any and probably wouldn’t if he did. The other two were possible though. Still, her earlier actions and statements did not require a decoder ring to figure out. Even for one as uneducated as he and his eyes met her golden ones before speaking. When he had sat next to her earlier he had placed a bit of distance between them. Not more than half his own arm’s reach but as he spoke he began to move closer, slowly. “Well, I can’t offer loyalty, don’t have information..I have something to offer in terms of favours or service. I suppose what matters now is if I pay in advance..upon delivery..” He would say, pausing as his form nearly touched hers, his eyes still not moving. He raised a hand, just one, up to her cheek and ran the back of one finger across it before snaking it around her head. He spoke as he performed the last motion, his voice coming out with a low heat to it as he let lust have the reigns. “Or both..” He would say simply before making to pull her into a passionate, and ferocious kiss. The fires of desire fueling it, the earlier, possible unintentional teasing from her earlier had already caused his member to become erect. If the kiss was successful his other hand would move to her hip and rest there.

Kara noticed his obvious perusal of her body, and she smirked. This was the way of things, not that she was complaining, she had made her interest obvious as well. When he slowly moved towards her she kept her position and eye contact with him. She was decidedly interested in his physical attention, and would even sigh softly as his hand snaked around her head. She didn’t pull away from the kiss and even returned it with equal ferocity, going so far as to rise from her seated position as she kissed him and kneel atop his lap. She kissed him this way for a few moments, desire propelling her left hand over his skin as her right metallic hand wove itself around the back of his neck. When her left hand reached the waistband of his swimming shorts she would pause and channel chakra into her fingertips, applying her signature sun and moon seal onto his right hip.

Once the seal was applied she would abruptly break the kiss, leaving him with just the barest nip of her teeth on his lower lip as she pulled away. With a wicked grin of her own she would stand and move to his left, stepping out of the hot spring. Walking towards the room at the front of the private hot spring she would stop long enough to look over her shoulder and give him instructions. “Upon delivery. Don’t remove the seal I’ve placed on you, I’ll use it to find you when your items are completed. You can pay me then, Valen of Kirigakure. For now, enjoy the hot spring, no one will bother you.” And with that she pushed open the door and removed herself from sight. She could have stayed, and a few months prior she probably would have, but she did enjoy teasing and was very patient. She did wonder just how patient Valen would be. Putting on her green gown she would exit the private spring and make her way back to her shop with Doku.

[Exit Thread - Placed 1 FTG tag on Valen]

When he kissed her, she kissed back, fiercely and he delved into that contact. She would shift to a kneeling position on his lap and her arm, the metal one, would snake it's way around the back of his neck as her left one, the real one, traced it's way down his form. When the left hand reached his waistband she would do something to his right hip before suddenly breaking the kiss. The contact ending with a small bite upon his lower lip. She would grin at him wickedly as his red eyes blinked in surprised bewilderment. She would proceed to get out of the hot spring, her naked form now out of the pool and his eyes would take her in without the waters minor interference. He felt his own hunger and desire peak and he felt the ample evidence of that below his waistband as she strode away, that infuriating smirk on her lips. Before the got too far she would turn toward him and speak, informing him that she would accept payment upon delivery. And telling him about the seal she had placed upon his hip. She would also give him permission to use the hot spring for the moment. Then she would leave.

Valen wouldn't say a word the entire time. Instead his eyes, smoldering with need to sate the desire she had helped stoke would simply follow her. Right up until she stepped out of the area, closing the door behind her. It was at that moment that he would sigh. So, he had managed to find the woman he was looking for, commission the equipment he wanted, and not only that, he had also gotten the private hot spring he had been searching for to begin with. Yet somehow, he felt like he was the loser. "Well, fuck." He would say simply before simply leaning his head back against the wall of the spring, the taste of the woman's lips still on his as he considered just how intense what might have happened there could have been. It would seem he would have to wait, and he wondered how patient he could be. He didn't know, and he would evidently have to wait and see. He would remain in the spring for a while before deciding it was time to leave. He needed a cold shower, not a hot spring.

[5]

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