Drastic Holiday : Future fic.
Hinata is now a jounin executing Lone Missions, and feels satisfied with it. Little does she know that her life is about to change... drastically!
Mostly chara-introspection and adventure, NaruHina romance. Rated for serious themes, language, bloody fights & bucketloads of UST in later chapters, gratuitous nakedness and Jiraiya's random groping.
A/N: I actually started working on that fic 5 years ago. RL messed things up for a while, but hey, looks like I'm back in business.
Lately, the Naruto manga is kinda nearing a climax of some sort, and no one knows how things will turn out. So, to alleviate our boredom while we wait I created this very very very slightly alternative reality where :
-Jiraiya didn't fight Pain alone, Tsunade was there with him. Both of them were strong enough to defeat Nagato; even though they suffered heavy injuries.
-With Tsunade temporarily unable to act as a Hokage and Jiraiya in a coma, Danzou managed to get elected Hokage and raised merry hell for a while. (cf. current manga chapters)
-Naruto did not fight Pain, never learned about Sage mode.
-Hinata never confessed.
Other than these points, I stick like glue to the Kishi-listic universe. Canon is my middle name.
I follow closely the lastest manga developments, so beware of spoilers.
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Disclaimer : Owning Naruto? Who, me? Are you crazy or what?
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Taki no Kuni (Waterfall Country), North District, Takinobori Road.
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Hyuuga Hinata, jounin kunoichi who'd just turned nineteen, was walking along the muddy road that wound its way through the forest of Takitsubo. Only a few people used that road to travel, mainly because of its complicated path, which tended to lengthen trips instead of shortening them.
Hinata stopped to check her route. She took a small map out of her backpack and unfolded it.
'Ok, so…I entered Waterfall Country by the Takigawa Pass yesterday… and I'm already in the middle of the Takitsubo forest, so if I keep on like this, I should be in Fire Country tomorrow…which gets me back to Konoha around… yup, Friday.'
Hinata wiped her brow with the back of her hand. The heat was stifling, her body was drenched in sweat. Her left forearm, encased in the leather gauntlet, was literally slick with perspiration. The scars underneath the gauntlet were itching like crazy.
Hinata glanced back at the map, and her eyes were drawn to a small red mark in the southern part of Waterfall Country. It indicated one of the country's many hot springs. Hinata's former teacher, Kurenai, had told her to stop by on her way back, if she had time.
Hinata was now seriously thinking about doing so. Part of her was a bit uneasy about delaying her return but, after all, the mission in the Earth country had gone without a hitch and she had already sent her report ahead.
Not to mention that the prospect of relaxing in a hot bath to wash off the stress, and the dirt of the road was suddenly very alluring.
'That's it then, I'm going to the Takibana Inn. And I'll take a nice, long, relaxing day off.'
Folding the map and placing it back into her bag, Hinata began to head south-east, toward the little inn that was reputed for its hot springs.
She was tired, so very tired. The heat was not helping, and it had been a long mission.
Not complicated or anything... Just long. Going all the way to Iwagakure to deliver a secret scroll, and then back to the Leaf. She was supposed to be a courier from an antique shop in Konoha; that enabled her to travel between countries without being noticed.
And, as usual, it had been a lone mission. She didn't know why, these kinds of missions always ended up being assigned to her.
Well, it might have to do with the fact that she always accepted them without making a sour face. In Konoha, most ninja were trained to work on teams, and people were always reluctant to be separated from their usual team-mates. The only ones who were doing lone missions were the jounin with exceptional talent, like Kakashi-san, or … well, for the less dangerous or the boring ones… people like Hinata had to volunteer.
Kiba and Shino had been incorporated into their own family groups long ago, and Team 8 had finally been dissolved. Kurenai-sensei had asked her if she wanted to be incorporated in another team, but Hinata had politely declined. It was better this way. She was convinced that she wasn't cut out for teamwork. And lone missions kept her away from home.
Hinata was perfectly aware that her decision to delay her return to Konoha had a lot to do with the falling out she had with her father, just before leaving.
She didn't want to go home yet, she wanted some time by herself to think things through.
Hinata sighed and rubbed her neck irritably. Just thinking about it was enough to annoy her.
Now that she was of age, her father had started talking marriage. At first it had been only a word here, a hint there, trying to go for subtle and light.
Unfortunately, since sentences like 'You like children don't you? What about having some of your own?' were her father's idea of subtle, Hinata had understood pretty quickly what he was hinting at.
She'd told him she wasn't ready yet. Maybe, when she turned 20 or 21. She'd said she wanted to work for Konoha a bit more before retiring.
Uh-oh, big fat mistake that had been. Her father's righteous comeback was still ringing in her ears.
"It is by retiring and producing heirs for the main house that you will serve Konoha best! Come on dear, grow up a bit, will you? We let you go on these silly missions for a while, but now you need to start thinking about the clan."
That had stung. Deeply.
Hinata had had to fight tooth and nail for the right to go on these lone missions. The Hyuuga heir, wandering unaccompanied through countries? The mere mention of it had been enough to give the Elders a fit.
She had managed to win that right, thanks to the Hokage's support, and to her father's silence. Sure, he hadn't said 'yes' at the time. But he hadn't said 'no' either. He had let the Hokage deal with the Elders without intervening.
But now, even her father was starting to think that this 'silliness' had to stop.
She had left for her mission without telling him goodbye, and without visiting the Elders, as protocol required.
Lone missions were important to her. They were the proof that she had managed to keep at least one of her promises to herself.
There were so many other promises she'd had to break, but she'd finally managed to become a jounin kunoichi.
She refused to be stripped of that achievement just yet.
She'd been so surprised when Mitarashi Anko had told her that she passed. She didn't believe it at first, and it took two whole days to sink in.
Her, a jounin? Jounin meant masters like Kakashi-san, Kurenai-sensei or Gai-sensei. Not 18 year old girls whose weapons were limited to Gentle Fist and Byakugan. She even thought that maybe her father or the Elders, ashamed of the fact that the would-be heiress of the clan was a mere chuunin, had influenced the examiners.
Hinata had a long talk with the Hokage. Tsunade-sama had told her that the jounin potential differed from one person to the next. She told Hinata that she had the skills, she just needed to get to know herself better.
Hinata smiled at the memory.
"Okay, it might be a bit of a gamble, but you know what? I think you can do it, Hyuuga Hinata. So stop being so reluctant about it. Cheer up, will you? Besides, I know someone who's going to have a fit if you don't gain some faith in yourself quickly," said the Hokage, giving her a pointed look.
"My father is?"
Hinata was a bit surprised. Her father had never said anything to her about self-confidence.
The Hokage sighed heavily.
"If only… But no. Uzumaki Naruto."
"Wha… But… How….?"
"He's been harassing me about that. Telling me that you have the potential and all. He's been a true pain in the neck, lately. He should be lost somewhere in Bumfuck Toad Country, over his head in A-rank missions, but nooo, he still finds time to pester me about his former schoolmates. "
"But … Why would Naruto-kun do…", asked Hinata tentatively.
"He says that a Hokage can't let great talents be wasted. That we have to look underneath the underneath," the Hokage said, making convulsive gestures with her hands at that point, muttering sentences including the words 'brat' and 'horrible death', pestering about Kakashi-san in the process.
Naruto-kun had always been good at seeing other people's hidden feelings. Well, not all hidden feelings. Hinata couldn't help but giggle when she remembered her behaviour, up to three years earlier. Fainting at the mere sight of him! What a child she had been…
But now she was an adult, and she had learned some realities the hard way. .
She was better off alone anyway.
The last time she had seen Naruto was still engraved in her mind. Three years ago, it was just after Danzou's coup, when he'd tried to take over Konoha. Tsunade-sama had still been recovering from her injuries, and things had been a bit hectic. The old families had all been in a fix, not knowing what to do, or who to follow.
It was in the middle of all that that Naruto had finally been able to catch up with Sasuke. No one knew exactly what happened between them, except for Sakura who had been there too.
The fight was rumoured to have lasted for days. But no one knew. The only sure thing in that story was its ending: when the three of them had come back to Konoha.
A worse for wear Sakura and a nearly dead Naruto had been carrying Sasuke's limp form. The whole village had welcomed Naruto with cheers and congratulations.
He'd finally managed to bring the last Uchiha back to Konoha! Yes, wonderful, really...
Hospitalized right away, Naruto had avoided death only thanks to Tsunade's determination, disregarding her own injuries.
Sasuke had hovered between life and death for nearly six months, and Sakura had stopped talking. No one could understand what was wrong with her. She had no visible injuries, and yet, she'd been unable to utter a single word. Some medics had said it was a shock-reaction.
Sakura'd spent her time sitting in Naruto's room, just sitting there, silent as the grave. Waiting for him to wake up. People whispered that she hadn't visited even Sasuke.
After a long month, Naruto finally woke up. When she heard about it, Hinata decided to go visit him. There were so many things she wanted to tell him.
But when she arrived in front of Naruto's room, Sakura was already there, as usual.
Hinata had tried to will herself to leave, to give them some privacy, but Naruto's words had rooted her to the spot. She'd listened to the whole talk, unable to stop herself.
Naruto's voice was soft, but determined.
"I talked with the Hokage this morning. I'm leaving."
Sakura opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out at first. Her throat was sore, after a whole month spent without uttering a sound. She coughed dryly and swallowed.
"You can't," her voice was raw, strained. Almost a whisper, really.
"You can't stop me," answered back Naruto, with a lopsided smile.
"Sasuke needs you!"
"Sasuke has you."
Knowing that the relation between these three had not always been simple to begin with, Hinata was surprised by Naruto's tone. It was calm, and encouraging. No trace of the supposed bitterness of a scorned lover.
"Naruto, the village needs you. Everybody loves you. You can't let them down now."
With a sigh, Naruto answered: "Tsunade baa-chan is here for Konoha."
"I… I need you."
"No you don't," he answered with a low chuckle. "You think you do, because of what happened. But you don't."
"I…"
"Sasuke needs you."
"I don't know if he'll live! I can't bear to hope, only to lose him again! I can't watch him die!"
"He'll live. He promised me. Sakura… Sometimes, hope is the only thing that keeps us alive. Give him hope. He needs it. After everything that happened, he needs it more than anyone," as a humourless laugh escaped his lips, Naruto added: "The truth is, I don't think I'm ready to face him yet."
"I can't believe you're doing this to us."
Sakura's voice was strained, but she went on.
"You're just running away! I thought you were better than that! We went to hell and back, all three of us. And now you're abandoning us!"
Naruto exhaled. This conversation was visibly straining for him.
"Abandoning... You think so?… I don't know…"
Sakura got up from her chair so fast that she sent it clattering to the floor: "The team 7 is finally back together, and you're telling me you want to leave? Now that Sasuke is finally back? Now that we can start everything over? I can't believe it!"
"Start everything over, you say...? I don't think we can 'start over'. No one can erase what happened, and...' Naruto paused. "Anyway, I don't have my say in this. This is a direct order from the Hokage."
"Direct order? You've never listened to orders before! You're just using it as an excuse!"
Sakura ran out the room without noticing Hinata, who was standing just outside.
Naruto was sitting on the bed, in front of the window, his shoulders slumped. After a few seconds, Hinata heard him sigh, saw him climb out the window and disappear.
Hinata stayed at the door, unnoticed, a flower bouquet crushed in her hands.
She was still there, ten minutes later, when Sakura came back.
"Naruto, listen, I..."
When the kunoichi saw that Naruto's room was empty, she punched at the wall angrily. "Men! What's with them, always running away! And Naruto, out of all people!"
Then she started crying softly. "I couldn't stop him… First Sasuke, and now him... Why is it happening again? Why..."
Hinata hadn't been able to say a word. She had wanted to say something soothing, to be helpful, to try to comfort Sakura. But deep down, she had known it wasn't for her to do. So she had gathered the petals that had fallen to the ground, and left the hospital corridor without turning back.
No one really knew what had happened between these three. Most of the villagers thought that Naruto had managed to catch Sasuke, that 'renegade', to 'kick his lily white ass back into submission', and that Sakura had been there to pick up the pieces.
Hinata didn't believe it. First, Sakura was not the kind of girl to stay idle while her two team-mates were fighting to death.
And there were the other rumours. The ones that were debated furiously by adults behind closed doors. The ones that said that the three of them had actually been fighting against someone else, someone much stronger. That the fight which nearly killed Team 7, had saved Konoha from a dire fate, stopped the 4th Ninja War, or even saved the world, take your pick.
After a long time, nearly six months, Sasuke had been discharged from the hospital. Sakura had been waiting for him, and since that day, they'd always been together, along with Kakashi-san.
But Naruto had not returned to Konoha.
'Still, I wonder, where is Naruto-kun, and what he is up to…'
She was still musing over that question when she reached the Takibana Inn.
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Taki no Kuni, Takibana Road, South District.
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Naruto Uzumaki was sulking. A pretty good sulk actually, complete with sullen dragging of feet, perpetual shoulder hunching, and the occasional nasty kick at whatever rock was within reach. For good measure, he added heavy sighs from time to time.
He was tired, hot, and cranky. Everything was the hermit's fault, he decided.
But Jiraiya remained unfazed, humming a bawdy song under his breath, a blade of grass stuck between his lips. That old fart was even pushing the provocation as far as walking with a light bounce in his steps.
Naruto angrily kicked at a stone sitting in the middle of the path and exhaled heavily at the same time. That seemed to do the trick, because Jiraiya actually stopped in his tracks and spat out the blade of grass.
"Come on Naruto, stop skulking will you. Why are you being such a sourpuss, huh? It's a nice day, and we're having a nice walk in the forest. Don't you feel swell?"
"Shut your trap, old leech. This is all your fault." There. He'd said it. Hurray for constructive criticism.
" Aw, you're still angry about that? Come on, give me a break. I had to check her out, right?"
Naruto spun around angrily: "I don't want to hear about it!" he yelled, wagging an angry finger in front of the hermit nose. "You knew she was the daughter of that old dragon of an innkeeper, and you still had to grope her! We were just barely tolerated before, but now we can kiss that inn goodbye too! We have only one inn that still accepts us in this country, and it's fucking lost in the middle of a fucking giant forest!"
"Tut tut tut… My dear student, watch your mouth will you. I can feel inspiration flowing around me, in this peaceful journey. You're ruining everything."
"Whatever."
This time, the sullen silence lasted several minutes. At least six. Maybe seven. Naruto sighed in exasperation. He hated travelling by foot without talking.
Any kind of talk was better than that.
"Hey, old perv. I've been having the strangest dream lately."
"Does it involve a busty young beauty? Then I don't want to know. You're too old to ask me why you woke up with your pants wet and your little bir-"
Naruto turned around and threw his hands up in the air in disgust "Oh, shut up will you! I knew I shouldn't have asked you! You can't be serious for a single minute."
Jiraiya held his hands up in a placating manner "There, there, I'm listening. Tell everything to uncle Jiraiya."
Naruto huffed and resumed walking.
"No, it's just… It's strange you know. I've been having this dream lately. It's always the same dream. I'm fighting someone way too strong for me, someone who's managed to wipe out Konoha. And I'm pinned to the ground, I can't move, it's like all my strength is being drained away. Kyuubi's AWOL, and my chakra is disappearing like whoa."
Jiraiya arched an eyebrow and commented, "Typical shinobi dream there. Good ole 'I can't fight back, I'm dead meat, woe is me' fear. Konoha must stand for your inner-self, your strength, and seeing it destroyed, you feel powerless."
"Well, that's what I thought at first. But when my opponent is about to kill me off, someone jumps in, it looks like a girl I should know, but I can't see her face. And she stands her ground in front of that ridiculously strong opponent who levelled Konoha in a minute."
At this, Jiraiya took a notebook from one of his overcoat pockets, and started scribbling furiously. "Interesting. Do go on."
"Well. She refuses to take any crap from him, even though she must know she's already lost the battle. And I yell at her to run away, to get away from there, that she's going to get killed… I don't know why, but I'm scared shitless. I'm sure she's going to get killed. But she stands her ground. She doesn't look at me, she just says 'It's ok. I don't mind dying as long as it's to protect you. You already saved me, I can give up my life for you, yadda, yadda…' well, the kind of crap you only find in cheap romance books, you know, like the ones you write," snarled Naruto, giving the old man a pointed look.
Naruto refused to tell the Sennin about the next part of the dream, where the girl told him she'd always loved him, and other embarrassing things the Hermit didn't need to know.
Jiraiya tilted his head, pondering. "I don't know… I actually think that kind of sentence is really wonderful, when it is said honestly. I mean, do you realise how much you must love someone to be willing to die for them? Hm?"
"Yeah, whatever you say." Damn that old leech, it was useless to try to hide things from him, he always guessed them anyway.
"Did that mysterious woman mention how you saved her?"
"Nah, she speaks in riddles. She just says that my smile saved her. Whatever that means."
"And then, what happens to her?"
"I don't know, I wake up."
Jiraiya lifted his arms in mock despair "Oh, you anti-climatic bastard!"
"What?"asked Naruto, bewildered.
"No, just, that would have been a perfect scene for my next book," Jiraiya whined.
"Hey, don't use my dreams to promote your filthy porn! Anyway, she ain't the most important part! I'm more worried about that opponent."
Jiraiya gave him a thoughtful look. "I actually think the girl is the most important part here."
"You always think women are the most important thing ever."
"It's because they are. Now tell me, what did she look like?"
"I told you, I can't see her face in my dreams."
"what about her size? Hair? Age?"
Naruto thought for a bit. "My age, roughly… as for the size, I don't know… medium. A tad on the small side maybe. And long black hair, untied. It catches in the wind and whips about her neck. That's all I remember."
Jiraiya nodded appreciatively and continued writing.
"Poetic. Nothing else? I mean, you're pinned to the ground, right?"
"Yes."
"And she stands in front of you, right? She says she's going to protect you, so she must stand between you and your opponent, right?"
"Yes…"
"So, what's her fighting stance? Defensive? Offensive? Any weapon?"
Naruto stood speechless for a few seconds. The hermit was really taking things seriously for once. He'd been right, that dream must mean something, for Jiraiya to be that hyped.
"Offensive taijutsu, definitely. No weapons."
"Taijutsu is good, really good. Taijutsu offensive stances tend to have the woman's backside stick out a bit. If you're lying on the ground just behind her, my boy, you must have a very nice view on her surely delightful backside. Tell me a bit more."
"Aw, I can't BELIEVE you."
"Stop acting like a prude, will you."
"I'm not even listening to you!" fumed Naruto.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," said Jiraiya apologetically. "I'll be serious. Anything else about that girl? Any distinctive features? This can be really important you know. In dreams, every little detail counts."
"No." Naruto paused, and racked his mind. "Well, if you want a really really little detail, she has a little mole just below her left ankle. "
"Hm. Very interesting, that. You have a good memory, my boy."
"Well, she is standing just in front of me, her ankle is literally the only thing I can see."
"Good, good. So, ankle you say?" Jiraiya tore a new page from his notebook, and started scribbling furiously.
"Yes…" Naruto gave the hermit a dubious look, but couldn't help but ask, "do you think it has a meaning?"
"Hm? In the dream, you mean? Oh, no. Not at all. I might use that in my book. It's just that ankle lacks spice, so I'm changing it for her inner thigh. The hero can see it when she jumps in front of him : her short skirt fluttering on the wind ('revealing a large expense of creamy white skin' sounds alluring, don't you think?), with a mole nested in her inner thigh, like a promise of paradise that appears every time she takes a step."
Naruto gave the old man a dejected look. Was he doing it on purpose?
"You're really hopeless," spat Naruto.
"Come on, stop pouting, we've arrived!"
Jiraiya pointed at a wooden building, just at the end of the road. The gate leading to the inner courtyard was only a few feet away, and the large wooden sign said 'Takibana Inn, renowned hot springs'
"I'm not blind, old fart."
"Naruto, stop pouting like that, that reminds me the morning you did wake up after an interesting dream, and you-"
"That's it, I've had enough!" Naruto threw his backpack to the ground, bit his thumb to draw blood and quickly performed a string of seals before yelling "Ninpou, Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"
Jiraiya dodged the huge toad that had appeared in front of him. "Why so much hatred, my dear student?"
"Today is the day you die, old fart! Swamp of the Under-"
"Stop! What the heck are you doing? You want to ruin that Inn too? How many times must I tell you, the Swamp is not to be used in small places! Not with your stamina! Stupid student… Underworld Spines!"
"Gah! Kage bunshin no jutsu!"
"Ninpou, Kuchiyose no Jutsu! Two can play that game, my dear boy!"
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End of:
Drastic Holiday, prologue.
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TBC in:
'Chapter One : Drastic Beginning.' (aka : Nudity Advances the Plot.)
Where :
-Groping happens,
-Naruto is totally oblivious,
-Jiraiya learns the meaning of 'fear',
-Hinata's braids have a major role to play,
-Jiraiya forgets pretty quickly the meaning of 'fear'.
A/N : Sorry about Aunty Exposition. She tends to rant a bit at first, but she is a necessary evil.
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