A/N: I do not own Naruto or Ranma 1/2. Really.
RANMA-NARUTO XOVER
PROLOGUE
CASE NUMBER 66928: The Uzumaki Incident
At the eve of the 9th Annual Festival of Kyuubi no Kitsune's Demise, a large portion of civilians, as well as a couple of chunnins had cornered and attempted to terminate the demon vessel Uzumaki Naruto. The 'Festival Incident' begun approximately 8:00 in the evening when a few civilians spotted the said boy in an alley near the center of town. After alerting several others of the boy's presence, a mob escalated and went after the boy, who immediately tried to leave the scene but was chased eagerly by the rioters.
They were able to corner him at least three times and they managed to inflict several wounds and severe beating before he managed to escape again. The chase went through all the way to the southern edge of the village. By the time Jounins arrived at the scene, most of the mob had already dispersed and the only trace of the boy found was a small puddle of blood by the river's edge. Four squads had been immediately dispatched to look for the boy as the remaining squad went to report to the Hokage.
Uzumaki was found by squad 3 and 4 three hours later several miles down river in the care of a young man, between 15 to 17 years of age, with raven black hair in a pigtail, wearing a red silk shirt and black baggy pants. A battle ensued when the young man refused to hand over the boy.
Half an hour later, squad 1 and 2 arrived at the scene to find a decimated battlefield with all members of squad 3 and four defeated. According to reports, the young man was a taijutsu specialist and was said to have transformed into a redheaded girl upon contact with water base attacks.
Further search for both Uzumaki Naruto and the young man proved fruitless.
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HOKAGE TOWERThe Sandaime Hokage sighed once more as he finished reading the official report of the jounin leader in-charged of getting back Naruto. The report was already two years old, but he can't help read it again and again everytime he is reminded of the young energetic blonde boy he had tried to look after ever since the Kyuubi's imprisonment within the said blond. It is just one of the many reminders of his failures, to the boy, to his deceased friend, and to himself.
He stood up and walked towards the large glass window behind his desk. It has a grand view of the village. He could see that the festival was still at full swing. By the looks of things, the celebration was even bigger than last year's, and he knew exactly why. This time, they are celebrating not only the defeat of the Kyuubi but also the demise of its vessel. The old man gave a frown at this. He felt quite ashamed at the bigotry and narrow-mindedness of most of the villagers. Didn't they know that they all owe their lives to the boy and the boy's family? His father sacrificed himself to seal the demon inside his own son. Just by existing, he was keeping the demon fox at bay? If there is anyone worthy to be praised as a hero, it would be Naruto and his departed family.
The old man sighed once more, feeling his age more than ever as he looked up at the Hokage monument, particularly at the face of the Forth. "Arashi, I know I've failed you, but please allow me to make amends when, not if, when Naruto finally comes back."
The Hokage knew there wasn't any assurances that Naruto would be coming back except for the note he left with a promise to return home. He refused to believe that the boy would break his promise, particularly to Hyuuga Hinata, the only friend his own age Naruto ever had. The brat had never back out from his words before, and the Hokage believed that he wouldn't this time.
He gave one last glance at the Yondaime's face before his saw the time at a wall clock near the door. It read '5:30' in the afternoon. Then he said to himself, "I guess I better go now. Wouldn't want to be too late." He then told his secretary that he was stepping out and then left the office.
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TRAINING FIELD 7She moved gracefully through her kata with her eyes closed. Each movement was done so precisely without missing a single beat that it seems more like she was performing a very exotic dance. But despite the fluid motions of her body, almost bordering on tranquility, her mind is another mater altogether.
It was the annual celebration of Kyuubi's death once more. She had dreaded this day for the past two years, and now that it was that time of the year once more, she almost convince herself that she hated it. But then again, she was Hyuuga Hinata, she don't do hate. No, she was too softhearted for that.
As soon as she finished her kata, she immediately started on a new one. The new kata involved several complex body movements and combination that would need full use of every muscle on her body, ensuring that her entire body has a thorough workout, and deliberately doing it in such a slow motion serves as a great balance practice.
Barely two years ago, she didn't even know what Tai Chi Quan is, only that it was a form of martial arts that serves as a sure fire way of calming down. And Ryouga-san was right. Ever since she started practicing Tai Chi, she had started to feel more at ease with herself. This style requires flexibility, coordination, and most of all, patience of both mind and body, merely because the movements require to be made in slow motion to gain maximum efficiency of tranquility offered by this style.
To anybody else, it would seem like she was merely stretching her body in a ridiculously slow and graceful manner. But she found out that when combined with her own family's Jyuuken style, Tai Chi Quan could be quite damaging, if not outright deadly. When Ryouga-san first told her the secret of how to combine both the Jyuuken and Tai Chi, she thought he was merely exaggerating, that is until she accidentally put one of her classmates in the hospital after a sparring class at the ninja academy. She felt herself lucky that Kiba didn't hate her outright for fracturing two of his ribs, and instead, praised her for getting a good hit through. Despite the dreaded feeling of guilt that haunted her for the rest of the week, she could proudly say that Inuzuka Kiba, as well as his pet Akamaru, had been placed on her very short list of friends.
She started a new set of kata once more. Once she was finished, she jumped off the huge log she was training on and went over to get her jacket under a nearby tree. For a moment, she contemplated if she would wear it or just simply go to town with what she's wearing now. She wouldn't say it was indecent but the black sleeveless shirt, lavender short, and long-sleeved fishnet shirt is a little less than what she was used to when going through town, or anywhere else in public for that mater. She is, after all, starting to develop those things that clearly state her feminine attributes, her chest for example, which were already bordering as a B-cup. She blushed furiously at the thought of Naruto noticing that about her once he comes back.
Putting on her coat immediately, she walked towards one of the target log at the farthest corner of Training Ground 7. "Naruto-kun." She whispered softly to herself as she let her fingers traced the dents on the log made by kunais and other ninja throwing projectiles over the years. This was the same log that Naruto had used to spend countless hours perfecting his kunai-throwing skills. And just behind a large group of bushes a few meters away is the very same spot where she used to hide while watching him train himself into exhaustion.
When she first saw the loud blond haired boy at the academy, she didn't saw anything special about him. He was loud, rude, and sometimes quite stupid. But when she accidentally found him practicing alone in this very same training ground, she saw a determination in him that she never saw in anyone else in her life. Through observation, she got to know quite a lot about him and the way the other villagers treated him. But despite all the mistreatment almost bordering on abuse, he still kept going. He never let anything keep him down for long. For that she admire him. Soon after that, she started to feel something more for the obnoxious loudmouth.
She could clearly remember when she and Naruto had officially became friends, and it wouldn't have happened if it weren't for a cute black piglet named P-chan.
-----FLASHBACK (3 months before the Incident)-----
Hinata was currently walking through the market place heading towards Naruto's training ground when she herd one of the shop owners, a meat butcher by the looks of it, running around at top speed while shouting, "Here piggy-piggy-piggy! You can't escape me for long!" followed by a loud, "Bweeeee!"
A few seconds later, she saw a small black piglet wearing a black and yellow bandanna on its neck running away from the said stout, bearded, greasy-apron-wearing butcher chasing it.
Seeing the poor little animal terrified like that, Hinata immediately turn towards the corner and when the piglet was running pass by her, she immediately scoop the little guy and jumped into a narrow alleyway to get away from the butcher without being seen.
As soon as they were a couple of blocks away from there, she turned to the still trembling piglet in her arms and cooed, "There, there, little guy. You're safe now." It took a few minutes before she felt the piglet stop trembling in her arms. When she finally went to take a good look at it, she didn't see anything special about it, it just seems like your ordinary everyday piglet, that is, until she turned her sights on the animal's eyes.
If she didn't know any better, she would have believed that this cute little black piglet is a Summon, because only summons could express human-like expressions through their eyes. She tried to feel any difference in chakra from it and she knew that it wasn't. But if that's the case, how could this little guy express such a profound gratitude from its eyes alone? Besides, how many piglets out there have green hues in their black eyes?
"Are you someone's pet, little one?" She asked calmly to the piglet, feeling a bit foolish thinking that it would even understand her. She almost squealed in surprised when the little pig shook its head in negative.
She looked at it closer, but there were no traces of it being a human using a henge. Not a Summon either. The scarf on its neck indicates that it might be someone's pet but the piglet had answered no.
"Are you sure you're not someone's pet, girl?" she asked again, preparing herself if it would answer her again. And it did. It shook its head in negative and look at her with its almost human-like eyes before squealing, "Bwee! Bwee! Bweeeeee!"
She seems to have offended it somehow. Thinking back her earlier question, it took a few seconds before she finally realized what she said that offended it. She looked at him again and asked, "Um, are you a boy then?" To her surprise, the piglet nodded its, or rather his head in affirmative.
Taking a few seconds to compose herself, she finally put the little guy down on the ground and said, "Well, I better be going now. Try to avoid the market place again, okay." And then she started to walk away. She was already a bit late as it is to stalk, er, observed her Naruto-kun.
She hadn't been walking for more than ten seconds when there was a sudden piggy squeal behind her causing her to turn around. As soon as she did, she saw the piglet running towards her at top speed. Hinata caught him automatically in her arms when it jumped towards her. Looking at its eyes, she saw it trying to relay a message to her that she couldn't understand. "Um, do you want to come with me, Mr. Piglet?" she sasked as a shot in the dark. She knew that she nailed it right when it nodded its head furiously before squealing happily.
-----END FLASHBACK -----
Before she even realize it, she was holding on to her own yellow-and-black tiger-stripped scarf, reminiscing about her time having a cute little black piglet, which she had named P-chan, as a pet. She remembered how inseparable she and P-chan had become after that day. He had been her constant companion, someone she could actually talk to. And despite the fact that the little piglet couldn't talk back, she was sure he understood every word she said by means of either nodding or shaking its head. She took him everywhere she goes, except for those few hours when he just seem to disappear. It was also a bit funny that she had to carry him every where since P-chan had the tendency to get lost easily.
Yes, P-chan could sometimes be too smart for a pig. It was also because of him that she was able, or rather, forced to befriend her long-time crush earlier than anticipated.
-----FLASHBACK (Two and a half months before the Incident)-----
Hinata, along with her trusted sidekick, P-chan, was once again doing their favorite pass-time, watching a certain blond boy train himself in the woods. Well, it was actually Hinata's favorite pass-time. P-chan, on the other hand, was getting quite frustrated at having his temporary owner hiding herself from the said blond boy. If he ever hear her say the words, 'This time, I'm finally going to talk to Naruto-kun' one more time, he was sure he was going to flip.
"This time, for sure, I'll be able to greet him." Hinata whispered soft enough that it was only she and P-chan could hear.
'Hmm. Close enough.' Thought P-chan to himself as he jumped off Hinata's jacket and went behind her.
Hinata was too busy staring at her Naruto-kun that she didn't even notice her pet until P-chan bit her on the ankle, causing a loud 'eep!' from her mouth before she was able to stop herself.
"Who's there?" Naruto shouted, ready to fling his rusted kunai at the tall bushes Hinata was hiding at.
Hinata decided to run for it, but P-chan immediately got in her way, causing her to fall flat on her face. She pushed herself up and was about to run once more, but then she suddenly found her escape path blocked by a blond boy, who was squatting in front of her. She could feel herself blush furiously when she saw him staring at her with a confused, but extremely cute, expression. "G-gomen . . ."
He stared at her some more, making her even more nervous. But the looks of it, he was thinking quite hard. She was about to apologize once more when he suddenly clicked his fingers and said cheerfully, "You're Hinata, right? Hyuuga Hinata? We're in the same class!"
"Um, h-hai." She stuttered softly that he almost didn't hear.
"Bweeee! Bwee! Bweeeee!" came the impatient squeal from P-chan who was standing beside them.
For a moment, both kids just look at the piglet. Then, Naruto suddenly shouted, "DINNER!" and jumped towards the piglet, who was a bit shock at the outburst that he just stood there, stunned.
In a rush of panic, Hinata immediately came to her feet, rushed over to them, and grabbed P-chan in her arms before Naruto could get his hands on him, causing the said blond boy to fall flat on his face on the ground.
Mortified at what she had done, to her Naruto-kun no less, she immediately stuttered an apology. "G-gomen, N-Naruto-kun! P-chan w-was j-j-just . . ."
"P-chan?" Naruto said instantly, looking at the little piglet at the girl's arm squealing indignantly at him. "You mean, he was you're pet?" he asked innocently.
"Um, ah, y-yes."
"Oh!" This time, Naruto had a blush on his face as well as he pushed himself off the ground. "Sorry. Just been a while since I've eaten, er, I mean, I thought he was a stray or something. Yeah, that's right! I thought he was a stray and I've always wanted to have a pet like that! I mean, I wasn't even thinking of eating it, really!" he said loudly, scratching behind his head, smiling at her.
P-chan didn't believed him one bit, neither did Hinata. But she just couldn't help but giggle at the way he tried to cover it up. Then, looking closely at him, she felt something wrong with his smile. But she immediately put it out of her head as she tried to tell, or better yet, stutter a proper introduction to him for herself and her pet P-chan.
-----END FLASHBACK-----
She never felt happier after she finally managed to become friends with her Naruto-kun that day. They started hanging out at the academy as well as sparring at the very same training ground they first met in. Sometimes, they also get to hang out with Iruka-sensei and the Sandaime Hokage, the only other people besides her that seems to acknowledge Naruto. Even P-chan managed to warm-up to the blond boy a week after the 'dinner' comment.
But like all friendships, there would always be things you'll get to learn about your friends, or those that associates with them, that aren't too pleasant. Being friends with Naruto allowed her to see how cruel most of the villagers of Konohagakure could be. She saw how they mistreat him, shunned him, call him names behind his back. She saw how the grown-ups warn their children to stay away from him, never giving him a chance to make anymore friends. There was even that one time when a storekeeper told her to stay away from him, calling him a bad influence and a demon brat. The storekeeper almost had a heart attack when she directed a glare with so much killing intent at his direction. She didn't even realize she had activated her Byakugan without the help of any hand seals, and was glad that Naruto wasn't there at the time. Since then, the storekeeper never mistreated Naruto whenever she was with him in fear of her, despite the fact that she didn't even realize that the storekeeper was afraid of shy, timid Hinata.
Despite their cruelty, Naruto took it all in stride, never letting his cheerful nature waiver even slightly, especially in her presence, always telling her that they'll change their attitudes towards him once he becomes Hokage. She thought he was invincible, but the more she got to know him, the more she realize that his cheerfulness was nothing more than a mask, a mask so well crafted that it took her a month to even know it's there.
Since then, she worked harder to get to know the real Naruto, the person hidden behind the mask of cheerfulness and smiles. But every time she came close, he would always retreat back into himself, hiding behind those fake smiles of his. But eventually, she made progress. Little by little, Naruto started showing his true self, although rarely, usually when he thought she hadn't notice. But she did, and when those rare moments happen, it endeared him more to her. She knows that with time and patience, she would be able to see the real Naruto.
But then, fate intervened. The 'Festival Incident' happened. She had cried for days. She was so devastated that she didn't even noticed that P-chan had disappeared a day after Naruto was reported missing. When she went looking for her pet piglet, she couldn't find him anywhere. She had cried for him as well. She wouldn't have been able to bare such grief of losing two of her most precious persons if it wasn't for that young stranger who suddenly showed up a few days after P-chan's disappearance.
-----FLASHBACK (2 weeks after the Festival Incident)-----
Hinata was crying again. After searching through the village for the nth time, and she still can't find any traces of P-chan. And now, here she is, at Naruto's favorite training ground, crying her eyes out.
She haven't been there long when she felt a presence behind her. Turning around, she saw a young man, probably 16 to 18 years of age, distinguishable fangs, wearing a yellow shirt, green baggy pants, a huge travelling pack with a red bamboo umbrella, with unruly black hair. The two most significant feature he has were his emerald green eyes and the very familiar yellow-and-black tiger-stripped bandanna on his forehead, almost identical to the one P-chan always wear.
"Hello, Hinata-chan." Said the man with a sadness she couldn't explain.
"H-hello." She said timidly. He was a stranger, but for some reason, she doesn't seem to feel any reason to distrust him. "Um, d-do I know you?" she asked, trying to hide her sniffling, and failing miserably.
"You . . . could say that I got to know you through my friend." He said hesitantly, giving her a nervous chuckle. "Anyway, my name is Hibiki Ryouga. I, um, well, you see, your pet pig . . ."
"You mean P-chan?" She asked immediately, hope rising in her chest. "Where is he? Is he safe? Please, tell me!"
"Um, yeah, P-chan. He's sort of my, um, familiar. And he told me quite a lot of things about you."
Thinking about it, this young man being able to communicate with a piglet wouldn't sound that farfetched, especially since P-chan is his familiar. Come to think of it, some other clans, like the Inuzuka for example, have the ability to understand their pets. But then, P-chan still left her all alone. "G-Gomen. I-I know he h-hates me n-now s-since I n-neglected him for a while. B-but," She started to say.
But Ryouga immediately cut her off and said, "No, no! You've got it all wrong. I, er, I mean, P-chan doesn't hate you! He would never hate you!" He knelt down in front of her and put his hands on her shoulders so he could stare directly at her tear-stricken eyes before saying with as much conviction to her, "Believe me, the last thing he would ever do is hate you. He just went to get me so we could look for Naruto."
Hope swelled up inside her once more as she asked, "D-did you find Naruto-kun? Is-is he safe?"
Ryouga gave him a fanged smile as he said, "Yes, I found him. Well, at least a friend of mine did. And for the moment, he's quite safe."
"Really? W-where is he then? Is he coming back?"
Shadows instantly covered his eyes. Fearing the worst, she was just about to ask him what had happened when the young man said suddenly, "Hinata-chan, I know that this might be a bit hard for you but I don't think it's safe for Naruto to go back to this village yet."
"W-why?" she asked, almost fearful of his answer.
Seeing the young girl in the verge of tears once more, Ryouga immediately reassured her and said, "Don't worry. Naruto is perfectly safe at the moment. In fact," He then took an envelope from his pocket and handed it to the distressed Hyuuga heiress and said, "he asked me to give this to you."
Opening the envelope, she found two notes and a rusted key inside. She opened the note and felt a great deal of relief upon recognizing the handwriting. It was from her Naruto-kun and it says:
Hey Hinata-chan,
Just wanted to tell you first that I'm alright. Ranma-nii-chan saved me and now I finally convince him to be my new sensei! He was so cool, especially when he beat all those ANBU they sent after me! He even got this way cool henge technique! When I get back, I'll be a million times more powerful! It's a promise of a lifetime! The only downside is that I wouldn't be able to return for a few years. But when I do come back, you can be sure that everyone knows it!
Anyway, I was going to give you this later once I got it shined up a bit. It's a key to my apartment, well OUR apartment now. I wanted it to be a surprise. Hokage-jiji and Iruka-sensei helped me with renovating the place a bit. I thought, since we didn't really have anyplace to hang out except for the training ground, I'll make us our own place to be just us. Hope you like it.
Also, could you tell Old-man Hokage, as well as Iruka-sensei, about me getting some training and that I'll be back as soon as I can. Thanks a bunch, Hinata-chan.
Uzumaki Naruto, FutureHokage
(Insert crude drawing of Naruto waiving here)
'He's coming back!' she thought happily, tears of joy falling down her cheeks. Naruto said it himself, 'when' not 'if'. He gave her his word that he is coming back, and he never goes back on his words. "A-arigatou! Arigatou-gozaimazu, Hibiki-san." She said sincerely, clutching the key and Naruto's letter to her chest.
"Naruto's a good kid. Ranma would make sure he becomes strong. I might even teach him a few moves myself. And P-chan," At this he cringed slightly before continuing, ", P-chan would keep him company whenever he could, I assure you."
"T-then, I m-might not s-see P-chan a-anymore." She said, beginning to get teary-eyed once more.
"Of coarse you might. It's just going to take time. You see, he, uh, er, kinda got a directional curse, you see. He could sometimes get quite lost." Ryouga said, embarrassment in his voice.
"O-oh. I see." Hinata said quietly, finally figuring why P-chan always seems to get lost, even in her own room. He even have this tendency to pop out everywhere. There was even that one time when she saw him going inside the bathroom door, and then seconds later, he was crawling out from inside her closet.
"Anyway, Hinata-chan, I would also like to give you this." He held out one of his bandanna, as well as a very old looking scroll, which she took reluctantly. "It's kind of like a thank you present from P-chan after the great job you did taking care of him. I'm quite sure he would like you to have it. And the technique in the scroll is called Tai Chi Quan in its purest form. It might help you better than it did me."
"T-thank you, Hibiki-san. W-would I b-be a-able to s-see him a-again? Both of them?"
"I'm sure you will, Hinata-chan. That's a promise." After that, he smiled at her and left, leaving Hinata with good hopes for the future.
----- END FLASHBACK-----
And Hibiki-san, or rather P-chan, kept his promise. The cute little piglet showed up from time to time but he never stayed for more than a few hours. Sometimes, it would be Ryouga-san that visits her, and help her improve her Tai Chi Quan. But those visits were very few, the shortest between visits being a month apart. But still, she cherished those moments, and when Ryouga-san taught her how to combine Tai Chi Quan and the Jyuuken, she unknowingly became a recipient of a totally new fighting style that would make her a force to be reckon with in the future.
She sighed once again as she look up at the darkening skies. She concluded that it was just about time to head back into town for a yearly event that has nothing to do with Kyuubi. She just hoped this year would be the last time she do this.
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ON THE ROAD A FEW MILES OUTSIDE KONOHA"I'm home! Finally! I've missed everything in this place! I bet my mom would put up a huge banquet for my honor!" The totally giddy 12-year old, pink-haired girl said excitedly as she walk down the familiar path heading towards the Hidden Village of the Leaf along with her companion, Shizune, who couldn't help but smile at the younger girl's enthusiasm. She couldn't really blame her since it has been six years since Sakura left Konohagakure to be an apprentice of one of the Legendary Sannin of the Leaf, Tsunade.
"You seem happy. Did you left a boyfriend back there before you left or something?" Shizune asked in a teasing voice.
"What!? Of coarse not! I was six at the time. I think I was still in 'the-boys-are-icky' stage back then." Sakura said indignantly.
"Well, now that you're almost a teenager, any prospect of boys in your foreseeable future?"
The pink haired girl thought about it for a moment. She didn't really want to tell her secrets to anyone, but then again, this is Shizune, the closest thing to an older sister she could ever had. "Well, there is this one guy. He was way older but it didn't stop me from having a major crush on him. He was a genius, heir of one of Konoha's most prestigious clans. He is one of the greatest ninja Konoha had ever produced. Although he always had this serious look on him all the time, his smile will dazzle you if you ever catch a glimpse of it. And I haven't even mentioned his looks. Although, he has this annoying little brother that keeps telling me I have cooties."
Shizune couldn't help but chuckle at the mental image of a young boy telling a chibi-Sakura she have cooties. Although, she didn't dismissed the dreamy looks the younger girl was displaying unconsciously. "So, anything else to know about this perfect guy?"
"Hmm. Now that you mentioned it, I am one of the very few people that knows his obsession with pokey."
"Pokey? The chocolate covered waffle kind of snack pokey?"
"Yup. My mom was one of the sales-representative of that stuff when it first came out of the market. I was with her during her sales pitch at their clan compound. I was sort of like my mom's unofficial mascot." She said, remembering that awful pink tutu her mom made her wear along with a basket full of those pokey bars. "That's when I first met him. He was sitting alone by the veranda after practicing some fire jutsu when I walked over to him and offered a bar of pokey."
"Awww! Aint that cute? What happened next?"
"He just stared at me for a few minutes, took a bar, and told me I'm weird girl to wear such an ugly costume. Of coarse, being four years old at the time, I put on a tantrum and told him the costume was cute because I was the one wearing it and he should apologize by buying all of my pokey. After that he merely laughed at me. I would have reprimanded him if my mom didn't drag me out of their compound apologizing for my rudeness. Then, a week later, he came to our house, apologized to me personally, and ordered a week supply of pokey. He had been a regular customer since then."
"Soooooooo," Shizune said, clearly interested now. "What happened to him?"
"Got labeled as an S-Class Missing Nin for single-handedly wiping out his entire clan." Sakura said as casually as possible, and failing quite miserably doing it as well.
"WHAT!?" Shizune asked shocked. "Don't tell me you're talking about . . ."
"Yup! Uchiha Itachi, oldest heir to the Uchiha Clan. Wiped out his entire clan in a single night, leaving only his younger brother, Uchiha Sasuke, alive. Rumor has it that he is now working for a secret organization made up of S-class Nukenins." She said, having that faraway look on her face.
There was an awkward silence after that. Then, Shizune broke it with a question of, "D-do you still have feelings for him?"
At first there was no answer. The pink haired girl just kept on walking towards the town gate. But then she finally gave out a frustrated sigh, stopped in her tracks, turned around, and gave her friend desperate look before saying, well, more of whining, "I-I really don't know. I mean, I know he's a missing nin and all, and that he's a very dangerous man. But I can't seem to get him out of my head at times. He wiped out his own kinsmen and he wouldn't think twice gutting someone like me but I can't help to wish to see him again. Did you know that the first thing that came into my mind when I heard about the Uchiha Massacre?"
"I never did get your opinion on it at the time. I just thought we were both too busy with our training to think about it. So anyway, what did you think of at the time?" Shizune asked calmly at the ranting girl.
"I thought, 'Would Itachi-sempai still come by for his pokey?' and 'Would he still call me Saku-chan if I ever see him again?'"
"Saku-chan?"
Sakura bristled and immediately said, "I-It's a nickname he gave me. I've always hated it and so he calls me that just to annoy me."
"Saku-chan. Cute." Shizune said, teasing the younger girl.
"What? That's it? You're not going to call me crazy for having a crush at a homicidal maniac?"
"Why? Are you going to be searching for him in the future to join in his homicidal tendencies?"
"Of coarse not!"
"Then it's alright. Besides, I heard rumors that this Uchiha Itachi is supposed to be cute."
"Cute doesn't do him any justice. He is an S-Class Hotty. And that's a certified fact." Sakura said immediately, her eyes getting that dazed look, with a bit of drool on her mouth.
Shizune couldn't help but giggle at her friend's dreamy looks. This Itachi guy must have been a major babe. Well, as long as it's just a harmless crush, there's nothing to worry about. Besides, what are the odds of an S-class Missing Nin being anywhere near Konoha at this very moment in time?
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ABANDONED UCHIHA SECTOR INSIDE KONOHA"ITACHI, PREPARE TO DIE!" Was the battle cry of one Uchiha Sasuke as he charged his older brother with a kunai in each hand. Said older brother merely raised an eyebrow as his younger brother dash towards him with intent to kill.
Kisame, who has been watching by the sidelines, couldn't help but be impressed at the determination of the little brat. Sasuke had been trying to kill Itachi for over half a day now, using quite an impressive sets of tactics to get a killer strike in. Although none had managed to connect, most of them managed to get quite close in taking out the S-Class Missing Nin. And each time he got close, Itachi would retaliate in ways that would put him down so hard Sasuke would need a couple of minutes before his determination would kick in and force him to stand up just to get another beating.
The dojo in the abandoned Uchiha Sector of Konoha, where the battle was being held had suffered quite a lot of missed attacks. In fact, Kisame was wondering how it was still standing, considering all the holes, burns, and scorch marks decorating the entire place, thanks mostly to Sasuke's Katon jutsus.
A loud thud told the shark-like man that the brat had made a new window on the dojo wall. He shook his head at this. Couldn't this brat get it through his head that he would never defeat his older brother? Although he has improved quite a bit since last year, it's still not enough to get pass Itachi's battle genius.
And as for Itachi himself, Kisame had been his partner for years now, and he still couldn't grasp what the older Uchiha is capable of thinking sometimes. He could be quite eccentric if he puts his mind into it. Kisame is still not sure why he even went into the trouble of sneaking into Konohagakure each year just to give his younger brother a shot of killing him. It must be an Uchiha thing.
"It seems you haven't improve much, Little Brother. You still exert too much chakra on all your attacks." Itachi said emotionlessly as he just stood in the middle of the dojo, waiting for his brother to get back on his feet. "I think maybe it was a mistake to come this year. You clearly need more time for improvement." He taunted.
As an answer, a huge fire dragon burst out of the hole Sasuke made earlier. Itachi merely look on impassively as the dragon flew pass him as he sidestepped easily. He was already going through several hand seals for a water jutsu to take out the fire dragon when he felt something approaching from his back. He immediately stepped to the side, avoiding two windmill shurikens, and then jumped up to avoid Sasuke's spinning drop kick. And while still in midair, Itachi unleashed a devastating heel kick, which had hit Sasuke on the head, throwing him towards the other side of the dojo.
Kisame whistled at the sidelines. And here he thought the little brat had already used up all his chakra. To be able to perform such a high level fire technique as the fire dragon, the kid must have been saving it as his last trump card. And now that he had used it, there is no way he's getting up after that. Imagine his surprise when he saw Sasuke already on his knees, staring daggers at his older brother, who was walking calmly towards him.
For a moment, either Uchiha said a word. They merely stared at each other. Then, Sasuke finally collapsed at Itachi's feet.
"You have improved." Was all Itachi said as he turn away from his almost dead younger brother. He hadn't even took one step when he felt something thugging at the helm of his Akatsuki robe. Looking down, he saw Sasuke's hand tightly holding on to his robe. It seems that he was using what was left of his strength to keep him from leaving as a last ditch effort.
Sasuke knew that he wouldn't be able to keep his brother from escaping. He knew, from the very start, that he was fighting a losing battle. Itachi was just too strong. He had trained almost non-stop this past year to kill his brother but it was still not enough.
Itachi merely look at him and said in that same emotionless voice, "Are you going back on your word, Little Brother? Remember our deal. You are only going to get your answers if you defeat me."
For a moment, the two stayed as they were, neither one wanting to back down. Then, a few minutes later, Sasuke finally let go and slumped on the floor unconscious.
Itachi made sure that Sasuke was truly unconscious before finally sending a smile at his little bother before beckoning Kisame to follow him out of the dojo.
"You did quite a number on him this year, Itachi." Kisame said, following his partner.
"Yes. Sasuke-kun improved so much in a short time. And his mastery of our clan's fire jutsus are impressive." He said as he took something out from his pocket.
Kisame grimaced when he saw what it was. Who would have thought that Uchiha Itachi, S-Class Missing Nin from Konoha, would have an addiction to pokey? I mean, Kisame never saw him eat anything else except pokey and tea.
"Well, anyway, we have to get to Iwagakure for our next mission, then, after that, we'll head straight to Mist Country." Itachi said as he begun roof hopping towards the nearest gate out of Konoha.
"Why? What's in Mist Country? I don't think there's any mission for us there." Kisame asked.
"The Annual Pokey Convension, of coarse." Itachi beamed cheerfully, making Kisame facefault painfully.
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KONOHA MAIN SQUAREMitarashi Anko was bored. And having 'Anko' and 'bored' used in the same sentence definitely spells trouble. She was currently eating dango while sitting on top of a ledge near the center of town, observing the Kyuubi festival, which was taking place at the streets below. Usually, during this time of the year, she would be out of the village doing a mission but this year she failed to secure one.
She sighed in boredom once more, and was just about to leave for home when she spotted a familiar face in the crowd below. Squinting her eyes, she spotted Umino Iruka entering an alleyway just beside the building she was standing on. Having her curiosity get the best of her, she decided to grab her leftover box of dango and went to trail him from the rooftops.
She saw him running towards the less crowded part of town, away from the celebration. Then she saw him waving at a young girl wearing a chef's uniform standing in front of a ramen shop a few blocks away. The girl waved back and they entered the ramen shop together.
"Well I'll be damned. I never knew Umino had it in him." She never thought Iruka of all people would prefer younger women. And by the looks of it, the girl seems to be in her late teens. Suddenly, a naughty thought came into her mind.
Not one to ignore her impulses, she jumped off the roof and started walking towards the shop. She glanced inside and saw Iruka sitting on the counter talking animatedly with the girl and the old man wearing a chef uniform behind the said counter. When both the girl and the old man turned around to see to Iruka's order, she silently sneaked up behind him before suddenly embracing him in a rather sensual hug from behind.
She felt him suddenly stiffen at the contact, which caused her to grin evilly. She then used her tongue to lick his left outer ear lobe before saying in the most sultry voice she could muster, "Iruka-kun, you've been a very naughty boy. You kept me waiting in bed all day long."
Iruka almost had a heart attack upon identifying the person who suddenly decided to latch onto him, not to mention almost getting a nosebleed when he felt her rather developed chest pressing at his back. "M-Mitarashi-san. W-What are y-you t-talking about? A-and p-please, c-c-could y-you l-let go o-of me n-now?"
But instead of letting go, Anko gave him a seductive pout and said, "Being formal with me now, Iruka-kun? You didn't seem to mind calling me Anko-chan last night when we were both getting hot and wild in your bedroom."
Not being able to stop himself from picturing such an act in his mind, a small trail of blood finally came out of Iruka's nose. At this, Anko wasn't able to hold herself anymore. She immediately let go and started laughing her ass off.
It took a few minutes but Anko finally managed to calm down long enough to say, "Sorry about that, Iruka. But the opportunity was just too tempting to ignore."
"I-it's alright, Mitarashi-san." Iruka said, who now had a small roll of tissue placed on his nose, which when Anko saw, had her giggling madly. Even the young girl in the other side of the counter was giggling.
"Oh come on, Iruka-kun. Stop being so formal with me. We both graduated from the academy at the same time, you know."
"Sorry about that, Anko-san. It's just the way I am."
"I hope you aren't as formal with your girlfriend there?" she said, turning her head towards the young female chef and giving her a lecherous smile.
"W-what? Y-you're mistaken, Anko-san. Ayame is just a friend of mine, more like an acquaintance, really." He said immediately, more towards the glaring Ichiraku Teuchi than Anko herself.
"Is it true, Ayame?" Teuchi asked immediately in a hard tone, never averting his glare towards Iruka.
Ayame really hates it when her father goes 'all-protective of his only daughter' mode. It's making getting a boyfriend quite difficult for the young chef. She sighed before answer in a monotone, "Yes, father. Iruka-san is just a friend and a frequent customer. So stop being silly."
"It better be, or else." Teuchi said glaring one last time at the sweating Iruka before going back to tend the noodles.
"Really?" Anko asked the younger girl. "You mean you don't find anything interesting about Iruka-kun?"
"Well, he's cute and all but I prefer people my own age. No offense, Iruka-kun."
"N-none taken, Ayame-san."
Teuchi, who was looking at his watch, said, "It's almost time."
As if on cue, both Ayame and Iruka suddenly went serious.
"I'll take down the sign outside." Ayame said, stepping out behind the counter to get the 'open' sign outside.
"I'll set up the tables." Iruka said before immediately heading to one corner of the store to rearrange a few tables and chairs. He had used four 'couple's table' and arranged it so it would be one big table. He was preparing to set six chairs around it when he stopped to look at Anko before asking, "Anko-san. Would you like to join us for a simple birthday dinner?"
"Sure, why not. It's not like I got anything better to do today." She said offhandedly.
Iruka merely nodded his head and set seven chairs around the table.
Teuchi then brought out a huge bowl of his Deluxe Combined Ramen Special (it consists of a large batch of noodles topped with all available meat and vegetables ever served in Ichiraku's, namely pork, beef, chicken, and seafood. It is then topped with vegetables, diced onion leaves, and fried garlic before being drenched in hot steamy broth), six smaller serving bowls, and a smaller version of the Deluxe Combined Ramen Special and placed them on the tables.
Seeing the mini-deluxe, she asked, "So, who's that for?"
"It's for the celebrant." Iruka answered.
"Then where is he? Don't tell me the guy is late for his own birthday dinner?" she scoffed. When all three of them stiffened and didn't gave her the answer, she grinned evilly once again. She immediately sat on the table and grabbed the mini-deluxe before saying, "If the guy can't come early for his own party, then I'll make sure his dinner don't go to waste. So, itedaikemasu!"
She was preparing to sample the mini-deluxe when she suddenly loss all feelings in her hand. When she turned to look at it, she saw a hand holding her wrist. But the strange thing is, she can't feel that person's touch. In fact, she can't feel anything passed her wrist, she couldn't even seem to fell her hand anymore to move them. "W-what?"
"Mitarashi-san, please understand that that particular bowl is for the celebrant." Iruka said in such a cold voice that Anko couldn't help but shiver. She didn't even saw him move, as if he just teleported beside her. She slowly placed the bowl back before he let go. Immediately, all feelings returned to her hand, as if she didn't lose feeling it a few seconds ago. She couldn't even feel any residual pressure from where he grabbed her.
Getting her courage back, he turned a glare at Iruka, who seems genuinely apologetic at what he had done. "What's the deal, Umino? I was just teaching the guy a lesson. If he couldn't even get to his own birthday dinner early, then he should not expect to get the best dish in the house. Who is the birthday boy, anyway? And why would he be late for his own dinner?"
Iruka went silent. It was Ayame who decided to answer for him and said, "Naruto-kun had been missing for two years now. We have been doing this for him ever since he was six years old so it became like a tradition here."
"Uzumaki Naruto? From the Festival incident two years ago?" Anko asked in a shocked voice. She had heard about the Uzumaki kid among her peers. Most ANBU and higher jounins didn't care much about him. Everyone else, including almost all of the civilian grown ups, lower jounins, and older chunins, seem to harbor great hate for the boy. While very few acknowledge and respect him for being the vessel of the Kyuubi no Kitsune.
"Yes." Iruka said sadly.
Anko didn't know what to say after that. She doesn't really care about the Kyuubi vessel since she had never got to know him personally. According to reports, the kid had been shunned, neglected, and abused by almost everyone. There were also those rumors among the ANBU that the kid would have been dead by now if they didn't managed to foil hundreds of assassination attempts done to him until the age of six, before the mastermind of the said attempts, one of the village council members, got caught by the newly instated Special Ops ANBU known only by the code name 'Crimson Dolphin'.
It is said that after the Festival Incident, the Crimson Dolphin had personally see through the capture, torture, and rehabilitation of everyone responsible for the attack. Rumor has it that the mastermind of the attack is still kept alive and still being subjected to Morino Ibiki's tortures even after two years. Those people, shinobi and villagers alike, who had gone through the rehabilitation process, was said to have been subjected to some kind of special genjutsu. Few of them had changed for the better, never tolerating themselves or anyone else speaking ill of Uzumaki. The rest went into deep depression and committed suicide by the end of the month after their release.
After that, Crimson Dolphin never made another appearance again. Some say he went back to Lightning Country, where he had originated from. While others say he had quit the ANBU and became a civilian of the Leaf. Where ever he is, Anko hope she would get a chance to meet him. Anko had never been interested in men before, but this Crimson Dolphin intrigue her to the point where she could honestly admit to herself that she got a huge crush on the dark, skillful, elusive, and mysterious man. At least, she hoped it's a man. If not, then she is sure to make things quite interesting since she's the type of girl who isn't afraid to get prisky with another girl in public.
"Ah, Anko-san, are you alright? You're drooling." Asked a concern Ayame.
"Huh? What?" Anko said in surprise. She didn't even realize she was daydreaming. Looking around, she saw the others sitting by the table with her and staring at her funny. She immediately shook her head to get any remnants of her previous daydreams out of her head before saying, "I'm fine. Just thinking of this A-Class beefcake I like to know intimately."
"Really? What's his name?" Ayame asked, clearly interested, which earned a scowl from her father.
"Don't know. Although, his code name in the ANBU is Crimson Dolphin."
At the mention of the word, both Teuchi and Iruka stiffened. Luckily, neither Ayame nor Anko noticed.
Anko was looking at the mini-deluxe just which serves as an offering for a lost boy that is truly special for the other people in this place. She then took out a few of her leftover dangos and put them on a small plate before placing it beside the bowl of the mini-deluxe ramen. When Iruka and the others looked at her questioningly, all she said was, "It's just a little something for desert."
"Thank you, Anko-san. I'm sure Naruto-kun will be quite grateful for it." Ayame said reassuringly.
Teuchi snorted at this and said playfully, "Grateful? The kid would probably scam her for another one once he's finished shoveling the first one."
Ayame thought about it for a second before giggling madly and saying, "Yes. That's more than likely what will happen since it is Naruto-kun we're talking about."
"And if Anko-san refused, he'll henge himself into his four-year old self and use the dreaded 'Puppy Dog Pout'." Iruka added with a smile.
Teuchi scowl at that and said, "I really hate it when he does that. He always managed to get 50 percent off of his ramen order ever since he learned how to do that."
"But he was just SO cute as a four year old!" Ayame added with a laugh.
"Seems like you've already started the party." Came a familiar old voice from the entrance. When they turned around, they saw the Sandaime Hokage standing there with a smile on his face and a young pupil-less eyed girl with short bluish-black hair standing beside him.
"Hokage-sama, Hinata-san, welcome." Iruka said warmly.
"Hey there, Hokage-jiji, Hinata-chan. Come on in." Ayame said cheerfully.
"H-Hello." Hinata stuttered softly, giving them a formal bow.
"Hello everyone. Sorry we're a bit late. I see you've managed to invite Anko-san along."
"I just got dragged unexpectedly, Hokage-sama." Anko said a bit sheepishly.
"It's no problem, Anko-san. The more the merrier, I always say." The Hokage said with a warm smile.
Teuchi snorted at this and said, "And here I thought it was 'paperwork is hell' what you always said."
The Hokage chuckle at this and said, "You know me too well, Teuchi-san."
Teuchi chuckled himself, nodded to the Hokage, and said, "I'll bring out the saké." He then disappeared behind the door to the backroom only to return a few minutes later with a large ceramic jar in hand.
The rest of dinner was spent talking about all assortment of things, from getting the best place to get quality hair products to Konoha's political future. Of coarse, there was quite a lot of stories that includes the happier moments each people had spent with the birthday celebrant himself.
Anko unexpectedly got to know more about Uzumaki Naruto in the span of two hours than she ever had her entire life. And she could admit that she really wants to know him personally when, not if (both Hokage and Hinata was adamant about it), when Naruto returns.
Another hour later, when the food is gone and all the alcoholic drinks had been consumed, the Hokage raised his last flask of saké and announced, "I would just like to say that I truly appreciate you all for spending a moment of your time to celebrate the birthday of a very special person. And I offer a toast that by next year, young Naruto would be here with us to enjoy it. To his return!"
"To his return!" echoed everyone in the table, including Anko, as they raised their saké cups (or tea cups in the case of Ayame and Hinata) for the safe return of Uzumaki Naruto.
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The dinner party lasted half an hour more after the toast and the people that attended soon found themselves heading back to each of their own home.
Being the heiress of one of the most powerful clans in Konoha, you would think that Hyuuga Hinata would be heading to the Hyuuga Estate where her servants would tend to her every needs, but instead, you would see her walking down the dark streets of more seedy part of town. The place is more commonly known as the 'Slums', where the poor and the homeless tries to take advantage of the abandoned buildings to make a home for themselves, where gangs fights other gangs to gain territory, and where most of the undesirable members of society are vanished to. One would think that a twelve years old girl that came from a high profile family wouldn't even dared to set foot in the Slums in the middle of the night alone, especially now that there are a group of half a dozen mean looking teenagers wearing rags and red scarf on their necks standing by the road towards her home. It was dark so she can't really see their faces but she was sure they were members of a gang. Seeing such a group would usually make normal people try to avoid them. But then again, Hinata wasn't very normal.
When she saw a familiar face in the group, she bravely strode towards them and said, "Konbanwa, Yoshio-san."
The group turned to her and the biggest and strongest looking boy there, who seems to be between the age of sixteen to seventeen, had his mean look instantly transformed into a friendly grin while the rest turned into confusion. Yoshio, leader of the Red Demon Gang, was smiling. He never smiled for anyone. He growls, curse, grin maniacally, snarl, and yell at his subordinates but he never smiles. "Konbanwa, Hinata-dono. Isn't it a bit late to be out tonight by yourself? Did you fell asleep training again?" he asked in a calm friendly tone, which seems to be surprising for him considering how menacingly dangerous he looks just a minute ago.
"Not at all, Yoshio-san. I just came back from birthday dinner with a few friends."
"Oh, right. It's Uzumaki-san's birthday today, isn't it? He still hasn't come back yet?"
"No. Not yet anyway. Are you planning to ambush members of Kaede-san's group again?"
Most of the others blinked in confusion. They all know that Kaede was the name of the leader of their rival gang, the Konoha Scourge. So why does this little girl addressed him in such a friendly manner? And why does their boss so friendly with this girl?
Yoshio merely chuckled and said, "Nah. I'm just taking the new recruits out in a stroll to get their feel on things, you know, stuffs like that."
"Oh, I see. Well, anyway, I better get home. Goodnight, Yoshio-san, and try not to get into too much fight."
"I'll try not to but I can't make any promises, Hinata-dono. Besides, I heard Kaede's gang just drafted several new strong recruits. They say some of them are from the academy that failed the genin exam."
"I really wouldn't know. I haven't seen Kaede-san or his friends for a while. I'll ask him if it's true if I see him again."
"Thanks, I'll appreciate it." Yoshio said as she wave one last time to him before walking away.
Yoshio waited until the girl was out of sight before putting his menacingly dangerous look on his face once more.
"Who was that, boss?" one of the recruits asked.
"That is Hinata-dono." He growled menacingly. "She is not to be touched or bothered in any way or form. The Scourge, as well as most young people throughout the Slums, respects that one rule. Anyone who disregard that rule will answer to me before I personally hand over your sorry asses to Kaede of the Scourge." At this, he gave a maniacal grin, causing the new recruits to gulp audibly in fear.
But one member managed to gather his courage and ask, "Um, boss, who is this Uzumaki you were talking about?"
Yoshi glared at him menacingly before snarling out an answer, "Uzumaki Naruto. He's Hinata-dono friend that disappeared a few years ago. She now lives in his old apartment that he had left in her care. Most of the grown ups seems to hate him but I couldn't care less about it, and neither does that bastard Kaede. Hinata-dono speaks highly of him so if the guy ever comes back, the same rule as to that of Hinata-dono would be applied to him as well, except, of coarse when he mistreats her. Then there would be hell to pay."
Meanwhile, Hinata had finally arrived in front of her apartment building. She entered the building and walked up through the stairs to the third floor. As soon as she got to the third floor, she saw her older cousin Hyuuga Neji standing in front of her apartment's doorway, looking quite unhappy to be there.
Gathering her courage, she walked up to him and said, "Good evening, Neji-nii-san."
Neji, as stoic as ever, merely gave his cousin a small nod and said in a formal, yet cold voice, "Hinata-sama, I was sent here by Hiashi-sama to check up on you, as well as to tell you that as soon as the Traditional Choosing of the Heir commence, you are to immediately leave this pitiful excuse of a shelter and return to the Hyuuga Clan House. And also, Hanabi-sama had ordered me to tell you the same message only adding that you should prepare yourself to be branded as a Branch member."
Hinata sighed at the message. Knowing Neji, and she does, he had neither edited the message nor added his own insults to the said message. He had delivered the message to her word for word straight from her father and sister's mouth. "Thank you for telling me, Neji-nii-san. And please tell father that I will be at the Clan House once the time comes." She said formally.
Neji merely nodded and started to walk away now that his orders had been completed. He was almost at the stairs when he heard his cousin call him and said, "N-Neji-n-nii-san, w-would you l-like to c-come in f-for s-some t-tea?"
She was stuttering again, and fingering that strange yellow and black stripped scarf on her neck. Neji really hated seeing her like this. She's the eldest heir of the Main House for Kami's sake and yet she acts so weak and pitiful. Doesn't she have any Hyuuga pride at all?
Neji admits that Hinata isn't like the typical member of the Main House. She's too kindhearted compared to all those other snobbish, prideful, and oppressive members of the Main House. She doesn't like seeing anyone of her family being hurt, whether they be from the Main or Branch House. Heck, she doesn't like seeing anyone hurt, period. It was one of the main reasons why she was totally respected here in the Slums.
One good example of this is when she had just recently moved here after a fight between her and her sister Hanabi. Neji was ordered to secretly keep an eye on her and make sure she's safe. A few members of Kaede's gang were setting up an ambush for her one night and he managed to beat them up several minutes before the said ambush was sprung. Of coarse, when Hinata rounded the corner and saw them in the ground groaning in pain, she just had to try and give them some medical assistance, not knowing that they were planning to do her harm just minutes before. When Kaede himself arrived at the scene and got to know the whole story, he was going to punish the said members for doing things behind his back but was stopped by Hinata herself saying that they are still pretty much injured. Since then, Hinata had come under the protection of the Konoha Scrouge. And pretty soon, The Red Demons leader got to meet the girl and had came to the same conclusion as Kaede himself. Yoshio had offered her the same protection and the One Rule had been set up by both gangs.
Yup, Hinata is just too kindhearted to be in the Main House, and for that, he genuinely tolerates her presence. He knows that pretty soon, she would be branded with the Cursed Seal and placed in the Brach House. Maybe then he could try to actually become her friend and try to teach her some Hyuuga pride. But until such thing comes to pass, he would treat her like any other members of the Main House, with hate.
He looked at her coldly, causing her to flinched, before saying in a cold voice, "No." Then, he left.
Hinata sighed in defeat once more before taking out her key, and after opening her apartment's door, she went inside. One would think that being in a rundown building like this one, the apartments would be as crappy as the building itself. When Hinata came to see Naruto's apartment for the first time, that was exactly what she thought. That is, until she got to see the inside of the apartment itself. He said in his letter that he was only renovating a bit, and when she saw thick soft carpet, freshly painted walls, brand new furniture, two master bedroom, one guestroom, a fully loaded kitchen/dining room, and a newly built bathroom big enough to have its own onsen, she concluded that Naruto was clearly a master of understatement. She doesn't know how they did it or if Naruto's apartment was already like this before, but Naruto, Iruka-sensei, and the Sandaime Hokage had managed to turn the entire third floor into one huge apartment for her, as well as for Naruto himself. She cried that time, when she first came here and saw her name written on a fox-shape plate hanging outside her bedroom door, telling her that this place is as much as a home to her as it is for her Naruto-kun.
Standing in front of her bedroom door, she activated her Byakugan to see inside her room, which is mostly bare and only has a bed, a small desk, a chair, and closet half full of her normal everyday clothes. Satisfied at what she saw, she turned off her Byakugan before biting her thumb just enough to draw blood and smeared the blood on her door. Soon enough, symbols started appearing on her door, forming a type of seal she was quite familiar with. Seconds later, the entire door emitted a dim blue glow before fading. When she finally opened the door, the sight inside was quite different compared to what she saw a minute ago with the use of her bloodline limit. Her room was almost overflowing with quite a large collection of scrolls, tomes, and personal notes, most of which contains subjects about Seals.
Navigating through several scroll-filled boxes, she reached her closet and searched through all her clothes, consisting of jackets, shirts, cloaks, jeans, and the occasional mini-skirts, for a set of silk pajamas to wear for bed.
As soon as she got changed, she unceremoniously dropped her tired body into bed, already dreaming about the future where Naruto-kun is by her side and her long-time research to counteract the Caged-Bird Seal used on the Branch House of the Hyuuga Clan was a reality. Ever since she learned about such a seal being placed on her fellow relatives in the Branch House, she had secretly begun to find a way to counteract it. Her research brought her such intimate knowledge of Sealing Techniques that she was already halfway to being a renowned Seal Master like the Perverted Frog-Sannin himself despite her young age. One example of this is the seal she used to hide the true contents of her room, making sure that even her fellow Byakugan users would only see a clean and bare room almost devoid of anything, when in truth it was almost overflowing with stuff inside. Another example is the Locking Seal she used on her door, allowing the only people able to open it who owns a key to the said apartment.
But of coarse, if the Hyuuga Clan Head, or even the Hyuuga Council of Elders, ever find out about her research before she becomes the Clan Head, she would be killed instantly to prevent its completion.
Putting aside Clan business for now, she turned her thoughts to more pleasant things, like her Naruto-kun for example. She had missed him so much this past two years, only having his letters that promises her of his return. She fell asleep wishing that her precious Naruto-kun would finally come home.
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It was a new day for the peaceful village of Konohagakure. The sun is shining, not a cloud in the sky, the birds are singing, and every man, woman, and child who had managed to wake up earlier than their peers are all staring slack-jawed at the unbelievable sight they are seeing at this very moment.
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HOKAGE OFFICESarutobi, the Sandaime Hokage, had been in going through some paperworks since four in the morning. The reason for this is because he wasn't able to get much sleep last night, his thoughts always lingering to a certain blond haired, whiskered-cheeks, blue-eyed boy that he had failed to protect. And now, he was drowning himself at his work, trying not to think about his failures.
He was just about finished with another set of files when his chuunin secretary suddenly ran into the room and said in a panicking tone, "H-Hokage-sama! There's an emergency!"
Standing up abruptly, the Hokage asked immediately with all seriousness, "What is it? Are we being attacked?"
The chuunin seems to hesitate for a bit before saying, "S-sir, um, you better see for yourself, sir." The chunnin then immediately opened the window behind the Hokage's desk.
For a moment, the Hokage merely stared at the scene in shock. Then, all of a suddenly, the Sandaime's shoulder begun to shake. The chuunin thought it was due to anger, but the idea was immediately shut out when the old man begun to snigger. That snigger became giggles. And the giggles finally turn into full-blown laughter.
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IRUKA'S APARTMENTUmino Iruka had just stepped out of his apartment to get his morning paper when he noticed his neighbors staring at something with disbelief in their eyes. Turning around to see what the others find so fascinating, Iruka dropped his paper in shocked at what he saw. He immediately went back inside his apartment and as soon as he was fully clothe in his chuunin uniform, he dashed towards that particular place, almost putting the Yondaime's Hiraishin no Jutsu technique to shame, in hopes of finding something he had lost some time ago.
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SAKURA'S ROOMHaruno Sakura had totally enjoyed the feeling of waking up in her own bed after five years of absence. Despite how late her own welcome home party ended last night, she still managed to wake up early to greet this brand new day. But she wouldn't be surprised if her mother wouldn't be able to stop herself from sleeping in today.
Grabbing a bath towel from her closet, she stepped out of her room to head for the bathroom downstairs. She was walking by the 2nd floor hallway when she took a quick look outside a nearby window that had her stopping dead in her tracks. "What the hell?"
"Oh my!" Came the voice of a similarly shocked Shizune behind her. "Does this sort of stuff happens all the time here?"
"I don't know. But that had never happened when I was here." Answered a bewildered Sakura as both women stare at the strange view in front of them.
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NARUTO'S APARTMENTHyuuga Hinata woke up felling something a bit different about this morning, as if she forgot something important. Sitting at the side of her bed and scanning her memories of yesterday, she didn't found anything significant, that is, until her eyes caught the alarm clock sitting innocently on top of her desk.
That's it! She forgot to set her alarm clock! And now she's late for the academy. Rushing to her closet, she picked out her daily clothes and immediately went to the bathroom. As soon as she was done cleaning up and sealing her room once more, she ran out of the apartment in hopes that she could reach the classroom before the teacher gets there.
She was so occupied with the time that she didn't even notice the huge camping bag in the middle of the living room or the orange bamboo umbrella on top of it. If she had seen them, then she would have questioned how they got there since the entire apartment had a seal placed on it which prevents anyone but Seal Experts to break into the place without a key that had been used on the doorknob before the seal was placed. And since she had the only spare key, the original key would be with the person who first lived in the apartment itself.
Meanwhile, Hinata was just about to run out into the street when a small creature suddenly dashed in front of her, almost causing her to fall. Luckily, she managed to stop and regain her balance before such a thing happened. Turning around, she almost squealed upon seeing a small, cute, red eyed baby fox looking back at her. It has an almost silk-like red-orange fur with white highlights on its legs, ears, jaw, and underbelly. It's fluffy tail, with the same white fur highlight on the tip, was wagging playfully.
"Um, h-hello." Hinata said nervously in fear that the fox might attack her. But instead, the little fox walked towards her and rubbed itself on her legs like a cat. "You're quite friendly, aren't you, boy." She said as she picked the little fox onto her arms. When the fox gave her a small growl, she asked, "Oh, you're a girl, then?" The fox nodded its head at her before getting itself, or rather herself, quite comfortable in her arms.
Hinata felt a sense of déjà vu. Almost the exact thing had happened when she first met P-chan. Looking at the little fox purring at her arms, she smiled. She could just feel that things are starting to look up.
She run towards the academy once more, making sure not to disturb the fox now sleeping on her arms. She had just got out into the main road when she saw everyone staring dumbfounded at something. Following their gazes, she was shocked at what she saw.
Someone had painted graffiti on the Hokage Monument. The First Hokage have blue eyelashes and black eyes, combined with clown-like red lips. The Second Hokage have white swirls on both cheeks, long black mustache, and large buck tooth like a beaver. The Third have tears and snot painted on its eyes and nose respectively. While the Fourth have thick black eyebrows almost taking up its entire forehead and drool on its mouth.
The sheer sight of it would have made anyone laugh (although some actually did) if it wasn't for the fact that it was the most sacred landscape in Konohagakure.
Then, a thought suddenly hit her, something she read before. When she finally remembered it, she gasped. It may or may not be what she was hoping for, but she could think of nothing else that could be closer to the culprit's reason for doing such an act of vandalism.
Hoping with all her heart that she was right, she started running towards the foot of the Hokage Monument with the thought of, 'when I do come back, you can be sure that everyone knows it!'
"Naruto-kun!" she whispered softly to herself, having only to get heard by the fox, who seems to be doing its own version of a smile.
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On top of the Hokage Monument was a blond, blue eyed, and whiskered-faced boy grinning like a madman. His black pants with orange strips on both sides, as well as his gray shirt with a red swirl design in front, were sporting a lot of stray paints.
He smiled at the town below him. This was the town where he was born, where he grew up, and pretty soon, this place would be his home. He had made a promise long ago which concern this place, and he is not about to go back on his word. 'HE DOESN'T GO BACK ON HIS WODS', that is his Nindo!
Smiling at the town one last time, he gathered his voice and shouted with all his might, "ATTENTION KONOHAGAKURE NO SATO! UZUMAKI NARUTO IS BACK!"
Pls RxR . . .