Anko's promise

" You totally don't want me to take care of you?! "

Called out Anko as if offended gravely, Mizuki smiled slightly and said with a stiff tone.

" Yes... I do not think lap pillows are therapeutic in any way shape or form. "

Anko grabbed her chest as if injured as she fell down on the ground.

" .... But it surely is! You should totally give it a try, it is the greatest medical ninjutsu even Tsunade sama couldn't master! "

Mizuki's mouth twitched, Anko was acting in exaggerated ways to get his attention, it was very anime but it also had it's actual reasons. Ninja's were used to muted expressions, so letting lose like this means you are truly opening up to the other person.

Seeing no way out like this, Mizuki thought of a compromise.

" Hai Anko san, you can give me your lap pillow later.. As of now doctor san has healed me appropriately. "

* Tch *

Anko clicked her tongue as she glared towards the now sweating doctor. Anko was Orochimaru's student with snake Justus, her glare was one of the coldest around.

' The hell man, keep your girl under control! It looks like she wants to tear me apart! '

Thought the doctor as he was sweating bullets, seeing it was about to be fatal he decided to go against his doctors ethics! And throw his patient under the bus!

' Should have helped me! Now suffer! '

" Miss, he might be fully healed but rest is still very much needed, you stay here to keep him company while, I will take my leave, good day! "

Mizuki's eyes slightly widened at the doctor's actions and so did Anko's smile!

Giving the doctor a polite smile with his eyes narrowed, Mizuki moved his lips as if talking, but words didn't come out so Anko didn't find it. But the doctor did.

' What's this... I.. am.. Jonin...?!?! '

' Oh shit! I am so so done! Why God why? Why meeeeeee, I messed with a Jonin all of a sudden?!? Nooooo'

The doctor went out of the room stifling his sobs, he was about to go to the bar, he isn't living his last without a drink dammit!

Mizuki let out a sigh as he saw Anko sitting on her knees as she patted her lap with a big smile.

' Ahh what the hell. Might as well. '

Seeing Mizuki shifting his head onto her lap Anko was filled with thrill.

' Yeeeaass! I Anko Mitarashi am finally giving someone a lap pillow! 25 years too late but it's here!! Suck on that Kurenai! '

Giving herself many pats on the back, Anko slowly ran her hands through Mizuki's hair.

Feeling his smooth locks she smiled gently, even without noticing it herself. She kept caringly running her hands through Mizuki's hair.

A few minutes later, she saw Mizuki tiredly closing his eyes as his breathing became steady.

' He has relaxed.. finally.. '

Anko slowed down her hands in Mizuki's hair but she didn't stop, lest she startles him.

' You were exhausted teaching the entire day at the academy, yet you chose to fight with the Hokage. Even being that tired and injured you tried walking by yourself back to the medical center... Silly.. Don't try to do everything on your own like that.. I know how it feels to not have anyone to care for you but yourself, to drag your dusted body back to an empty room.. So don't worry.. I'll be there for you now.. just sleep. '

Anko stayed incredibly still as she kept slowly moving her hands all the way through his hair again and again.

Mizuki though wasn't about to simply lie down and take it, he wanted to know what was Anko thinking, what was driving her.

" ...Anko. why are you doing this..? "

Anko smiled slightly, it was smile filled with memory, one of nostalgia...

" I am a disciple of the traitor Orochimaru.. you know that right Mizuki san..? "

Mizuki hummed, which Anko took as acknowledgement. She had already understood he knows, but asking was a kind of mental help for her.. she had seen too much scorn for this.. way too much.

" Life wasn't kind to me after he left Mizuki san.. he did the damage, I his disciple had to pay the charges.. there was only one snake user around, and that was me. "

Mizuki knew how the village got with situations like this..

Naruto's hatred, White fang's hatred, Uchiha's hatred. They needed something to hate, Anko too was one of the victims of her time.

Anko's voice was slightly off look, as if something was amiss underneath.

" I had to hide from the public eye Mizuki san, before Hokage sama gave me the position to conduct assessments, I was living in the shadows for a long time.. "

Mizuki was realising where she was going with this, she was one of the shadows, he was one of the brightest light, it was not difficult to guess her agenda.

" Shadows don't play nice Mizuki san.. I barely survived, every eye, every emotion was filled with deceit, you cannot trust anyone but yourself.. "

As she spoke, Anko was getting slightly agitated and took frequent looks at Mizuki's eyes. Searching for something amiss..

" Those eyes, I remember them all Mizuki san~ that was all there was to the world.. I was sure. "

Anko's mouth cracked open slightly.

" Then I saw you Mizuki san.. I was expecting the same you know, when you see me, hate is supposed to be a natural reaction! "

Anko with her tilted head now bent slightly forward said in an unsettling hissing voice.

" But I didn't see it in your eyes.. Mizuki san.. I saw only warmth. I thought you had forgotten me so you didn't care. But then you said my name.. You knew Mizuki san.. you always knew yet you smiled.. "

Wiping the slight tears forming in her eyes, Anko proceeded to lick her fingers clean, as to not dirty Mizuki's hair.

" You were patient with me, I was very crude and was making dumb mistakes even in our short conversation, trying to act mighty yet making a fool of myself.. I just couldn't help it. I was feeling flustered, these eyes were something I had forgotten. Just my parents who I now remember only blurry had eyes filled with warmth like this.. that was my warmest time.. and you brought it back.. I remember those eyes again Mizuki san.. "

Mizuki had fully understood what was the deal with Anko

' She has too many mental scars, hasn't even seen someone truly care for so long that her mental state has gone downhill. '

Mizuki wasn't showing her obvious professional kindness or straight up scorn

He was a warm person, he was someone who knew Anko, he wasn't shallow enough to judge Anko like others either.

' That's what made her confused and flustered, she had kept sustaining herself believing she should be hated, when that truly didn't happen, something clicked in her, she realised she doesn't need to be hated, she has an alternative.. Me. '

Anko didn't say it out loud, but she didn't need to, Mizuki had already gotten the jist of it, she simply kept looking at Mizuki with an eerily wide smile.

Anko was realising she wasn't just interested in his eyes anymore, she was beginning to grow past that.. it has been too long being all alone.. she wanted company from someone she can finally trust~

' I know my simple crush has turned into love for you. You are everything I am not, you can complete me Mizuki san, you have supported me in my darkest hour, I will make sure I support you through yours... '

This, I promise on the name Anko Mitarashi.

-------------

Meanwhile Mizuki was sighing inside as he finally let himself go.

' She didn't stab a kunai through me until now so that's good. At least I know she doesn't want to kill me. It's hard pretending to sleep like this. My neck hurts.. sigh.. the things I do to keep living. '

But Mizuki decided to let his guard down this once, he has confirmed she wasn't a threat. He seriously wanted to sleep, he wasn't about this but it seems like Anko was right.

' This is truly therapeutic.. I must study this later.. '

Mizuki's thoughts blurred as he went to sleep, his breathing had truly evened out.

A/N

Anko has a technique called Twin snake of mutual death. It has a lot of unsettling lore attached to it.

She is one scary girl, Orochimaru would be dead right there if he wasn't cautious enough.