7.23.10

Dull

Full Summary: For Hyuuga Hinata, seeing ghosts is an everyday thing. They come from far and wide to seek her assistance, because she's the only one who can help them move on into the next world. When a certain deceased Uchiha Sasuke catches wind of her abilities and comes asking for her help, things begin to get stranger as she quickly realizes that he isn't a regular ghost. There's more than meets the eye to this dead guy!

Disclaimer: Yeah, so I don't own Naruto. That should be obvious though…

a/n :: Yo, what's up? This is the queen speaking, and thanks for checking out my first story on this account! I hope this chapter isn't boring for you; it's just the prologue after all. I was planning on introducing Sasuke in this chapter, too, but I just figured it wouldn't work out right so I left him out of this one. But, no worries, he'll probably pop up in the next chapter!

I think the rating's a little high. It's not like this story has blood, guts, and gore (as far I as know, anyways), but I just wanted to be safe in case there's a whole bunch of cussing.

I had a lot of problems trying to figure out a title for this baby. Some of the ones I was debating were Ghost Charmer, Here Ghostie, Here Boy! (I thought that one was cute but much too long), Echo, and Quiet. I don't know what the last two really have in common with the story's plot or anything, but it sounded cool, haha. Anyways, it's almost four a.m. as I'm writing this so give me some credit!

Eventually, I settled on what it is called now. (I actually forgot the title for a couple of minutes there…)

But, moving along.

Without further ado, I present to you: Dull.

ooo :: prologue

One. Two. Three.

No, wait, four.

Four, right?

No. Just three.

There were exactly three ghosts trailing Hinata Hyuuga at that exact moment, the same three she had seen yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that. Obviously, they knew her secret: they knew that she could see them. Well, they were suspicious anyways. It was obvious that they were waiting for her to slip up, for her to show any sign that she could communicate with them; and that was when they would strike.

That was when they were going to get down on their knees and beg.

All they had to do was: wait for her mistake. Even a small one would do; it didn't have to be anything dramatic. She didn't need to stand up and yell at them to leave her alone and go back to hell; a small glance in their direction, a gulp of anxiety, a hitch in the breath, or a nervous twitch. Any of those would set them off and confirm their doubts.

What they didn't know was that she had the advantage.

What they didn't know was that she was good at what she did.

And, what was it that she did?

Well, she ignored the dead.

The only sounds in the room were the tick-tocks of the clock providing unneeded pressure on the poor high school students, and the soft scribbles of pencils against very important papers that, at first glance, would seem as harmless as a puff of cloud; in reality, it would determine their report card grades and, pretty much, the rest of their life. Or so the adults said, anyways.

Hinata bit her bottom lip, tapping the end of her pen against her cheek. She was the only girl in the entire classroom that would complete a math test in ink, and because of it, her paper was usually the messiest. She could feel one of the ghosts peering over her shoulder, peeking at her answers and muttering about how she had forgotten to add pi to the answer to question number one. Mentally, Hinata sighed, but she made sure not to hesitate in her scribbles in case it tipped them off; too bad she couldn't go back and change it. That was a couple of points off for sure.

From her peripheral vision, she could see one ghost kneel down next to her. Though their colors were dulled, she was very pretty; long black hair and a cute, pink kimono, too, something that Hinata would not be able to pull off.

Great. Even the dead looked better than her.

"I know you can see me," the ghost said softly, placing a hand on top of Hinata's, though she couldn't feel anything.

Ignore them, ignore them. She forced herself to relax.

"I know you can see us," the pretty girl corrected herself with a smile. "It's very shameful of us to come to you and bother you with our problems when you obviously have plenty of your own. I'm sure it's very hard to concentrate on this math test when you are thoroughly distracted by our loud noises." Her laugh was like a bell, but no one in the room even glanced in her direction so Hinata followed suit. As long as she didn't answer them, they would leave her alone, believing that she wasn't the one they were looking for.

Her voice dropped a couple of notches. "Please, I'm begging you," she whispered. "You can understand where we're coming from, right? You understand that there are people we left behind without a word, people that still wonder about us, and love us."

Hinata was listening intently, despite the advice she gave herself. She couldn't help it! Her heart just flew out to these ghosts, to these people who desperately need assistance. It was the problem with being so caring toward others, despite them being complete strangers.

But... No, it was better to not be involved with the affairs of the dead; nothing good ever came out of it. They were just going to find someone else or deal with it themselves. Still...she felt for them.

"Please, help us."

Don't listen to her. Concentrate, concentrate! Okay, if I move the four to the other side of the equal sign, I'll have—

"There's no one else we can turn to. Hinata Hyuuga, you're our only hope for salvation."

…Um…uh…If…If I move…If I move the four to the other—

"We can't move on otherwise."

Four. Other side of the equal sign. Then—

"Please. Please, won't you help us?"

The pen stopped scribbling.

"I think he did it," one of the ghosts whispered. "Haku actually did it."

"So she can see us! And the bitch was just pretending not to the entire time?"

"Shh! Do you want her to help us or not, Zaku? Then shut it!"

She racked her brain on a decision; the last time she helped out a ghost, she ended up almost failing math! With these dead guys all around her, how was a girl supposed to study? How was she supposed to get into a good college and find a wonderful husband and start a perfect family and become a daughter her father would be proud of? No, no, she couldn't help these people; they were dead, gone, six feet under, but she was still alive, still living. She still had a future, a life ahead of her and these ghosts…

They'd just wander around for all eternity.

Hinata let out an audible sigh.

"Can I…take that as a sign that you will assist us?"

Lavendar orbs turned to the pretty girl. Turning over her hand, she wrote on her palm a yes and gave a small reassuring – though tired – smile.

A grin erupted on the ghosts' face.

"Thank you so much, Miss Hinata Hyuuga," the pretty one said. "We shall come again when you have been released from school."

With that, they disappeared, and so did the noise. Finally, she could focus on finishing her math test – RING!

Well. So much for completing it and getting at least a passing grade.

See? Nothing good came from associating with the dead. Why couldn't she understand that?

"That's the bell, class." Mr. Hatake announced from behind his orange book. "Put your writing utensils down and turn in your papers at my desk. Naruto! When I say, 'put down your writing utensils,' I mean, 'stop writing,' not, 'scribble down random numbers and hope to get at least one of them right.'"

"Aw, come on, Kakashi! Have a heart!"

"Too bad, Naruto. Let's go; turn it in, people."

One by one, the students lined up at his desk and placed their paper down in a pile that was far from neat; after all, that was the only way students could get back at teachers for not giving them more time. That and nasty looks, but that could result in a detention so only the really stupid ones did that – like Naruto Uzumaki. Or, that was what most would say. In all honesty, Hinata thought he was a very admirable person, someone to look up to for their courage and bravery and generosity. Plus, he was really good-looking.

Well, normally, the infatuated Hyuuga would take a moment to take in how bright he seemed to shine with his fantastic smile and kind and charming eyes, but at that moment, all she could really think about was how she was going to fail math to help ghosts who pretty much didn't have anything going for them. But, that was a good thing, right? She was doing a good deed by helping these lost souls.

Oh, God, once her father received her report card, she was going to become one of the lost souls, wasn't she? Oh, God. It was an inevitable outcome.

Making her way to her locker, Hinata bent down and took off her backpack, fiddling with the lock until she managed to open the metal door up and cram a bunch of textbooks into her backpack. If she was going to fail, she might as well study for the next one. At that point, she wasn't aiming for a high A anymore; a good D would do the job for the moment. Desperate situations call for desperate measures.

"Hinata! Hey, Hinata!"

A light blush coated her cheeks as she turned to see the magnificent Naruto bounding down the hall toward her, the no-good failure who would die in a couple of days.

"Oh, h-hi, N-Naruto."

How embarrassing! Not only did she stutter, but she didn't even speak! She squeaked like a little mouse! Squeaked, for Pete's sake!

"What'd you think of that test that stupid pervert Kakashi gave us?" he asked with a frown, going down to her level.

Wow, did her face just get hotter or was the school heater acting up again?

"Um. I-I thought it w-was okay…" she mumbled, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. That was a total lie; with all the time spent trying to ignore her stalker ghosts, she didn't get any studying done! Everything on that test was over an area she didn't get to, yet! Or, wasn't good at. Either one was bad.

Naruto pouted playfully, but a little grin managed to sneak its way onto his face as he gazed at her. "Yeah, right. Hinata, you're so modest! I bet that test was a total breeze for you, eh? Oh, gotta go, there's Sakura! Bye, Hinata! See you on Monday!"

"Oh, um. B-bye, N-Naru— "

"Oi, Sakura! Wait up!"

Another sigh. That was starting to become a habit for her. She closed her locker and slung the heavy backpack over her shoulders (by now, she was getting some muscles in carrying that thing around everywhere she went) and headed for the exit, ready to get the next mission over with. Honestly, why was she so compassionate? It was going to kill her one day!

The first step she took outside and she had noticed them already at the foot of the steps. They were the only ones a little duller in color after all; while everyone was vibrant with yellows and oranges and pinks and blue with whatever clothes they had on and skin tones they were born with, the ghosts' colors seemed to have a grayer shade to them; it looked as though they were there, but they weren't fully there.

She walked right by them without a word, but they followed as she rounded the corner and stepped into an empty alleyway where no one could see her talking to what seemed like herself.

"So, you really will help us?" The girl with red hair looked at Hinata up and down.

"Y-yes."

"It's about damn time!" the male exclaimed, and she cringed a little.

"Zaku, stop it," the prettiest one there scolded gently. "You're scaring her."

She then turned back to Hinata and beamed gratefully. "My name is Haku. The angry one here is Zaku, and this is Karin."

"N-nice to m-meet you." Hinata gave a polite and low bow, something she was accustomed to, what with her father bringing home executives and presidents of major corporations and such.

"No, it is we who should be bowing." Haku followed her example and the other two did the same (though one was rather begrudging the motion).

"Um, how-how can I help y-you to m-move o-on?"

"Her stuttering is so annoying!"

"Zaku!" Karin smacked him upside his head.

It was true though. Hinata's stammering was very aggravating; many people told her so, but what could she do about it? Nothing could be done; she tried everything known to man and she still stuttered! It was a little humiliating to have him to point it out, though, because it was the first time a dead person had told her so.

"Why don't you go first, Zaku?" Haku suggested.

Karin voiced her opinion. "Yeah, I agree with his idea."

Wait, Haku was a boy? Huh. So spirits really did come in all shapes and sizes.

The red-head nudged Zaku's side. "Go on, you big idiot. Don't be shy."

"I'm not shy!" he hissed in return, vehemently glaring at her, but she took it with a roll of her eyes.

"Hurry it up. We don't have all day!"

His eyes fell onto Hinata's tiny form, analyzing her. She was short and petite; dozens told her that she was so small that it seemed even a gentle breeze could knock her around! She knew she was the last person any ghost would want to entrust their will to, but she really was his only choice.

He scowled and folded his arms. For a while, nothing was said; the tension and awkwardness was overwhelming, and Hinata dropped her gaze, not knowing what to do or say. She was feeling quite useless, wallowing in her self-pity, but she would be patient. She would wait for as long as he needed her to, because she understood it wasn't any easy thing, asking a complete stranger to do such a personal favor.

Then, when she felt as though no one would say anything for an eternity, he opened his mouth and cracked the silence with his rough voice.

"My brother."

She looked up, waiting for his instructions.

"My brother," he said again. "His name is Dosu Kinuta. He goes to your school; he's in the eleventh grade right now."

He was starting to fade. By just speaking about it, he was starting to disappear from the legs up, passing into the next world.

"Dosu…he…" Zaku cleared his throat uncomfortably. "He thinks…he thinks that it was his…"

A pause. Hinata waited silently for him to find the right words. His legs were gone and his arms and torso were going next.

Zaku shook his head, clearing his mind from the distractions his thoughts and memories were giving him. "I want you to tell him something for me. I want you to tell him that it wasn't his fault." His voice was soft. "Tell him it wasn't his fault. It...It wasn't his fault…"

"I will." She nodded. "Rest in peace, Zaku."

The last of his body disappeared and the male was gone from the presence forever. She felt a little lonely, now that there was one less person beside her, but she hoped that he made it safely to heaven without any interruptions. He must have loved his brother a lot, for someone who acted so rude.

Karin sniffed, wiping her nose despite the fact that it was clean and not runny. "Who knew that jerk actually had a heart? Go ahead Haku. I'll go last."

"Thank you." He reached inside his kimono and pulled out a letter, handing it to her. "Take it. I've been hiding it in my body for a while now, and I can't hold onto it much longer."

She accepted it, surprised that it was solid and not missing an actual form. This was the first time a ghost had ever done something like that, that she had seen anyways. She had heard of spirits causing trouble by messing with objects, but she had never heard of one holding onto something they could barely touch. "Who is it f-for?" she asked, pushing her curiosity aside.

"His name is Zabuza Momochi; he's an inmate at Leaf Prison," he explained, his eyes taking on a rather guilty look. "I know you've probably never been there, and you probably don't want to. I'm sorry to ask something so unreasonable of you; if I had any way to deliver this myself, I would, but..."

"It's fine." Hinata smiled. "I'm not s-scared. I-I promise to d-deliver this l-letter to him. He must be a g-good person i-if you'd go t-through all o-of this trouble to hold onto t-this letter."

Frankly she was terrified. Right at that very moment she was shaking in her small shoes, but if putting on a brave front helped him pass away peacefully, then she'd be as brave as Naruto was!

"How do you know someone so crazy, Haku?" Karin asked with wide eyes. Hinata had never heard of this Zabuza person, but Leaf Prison did have a reputation of holding only the craziest of criminals.

He laughed when the two expected him to reveal a horrible and bloody past, his voice echoing as he disappeared right before their eyes, the little particles glowing and sparkling like fairy dust. "He's not crazy. He's a very special person to me."

Hinata placed her backpack on the floor and unzipped it, pulling out her main binder. She opened it up and slipped the envelope into one of its pockets, careful not to bend or rip it in any way. When it reached its destination, she wanted it to be in pristine condition, as though Haku had given it to the man himself. Was it possible for there to be good, insane criminals locked in Leaf Prison?

"I guess it's me next, yeah?"

"I-I guess so."

"Walk with me."

"H-huh?"

"Come on, let's take a walk." Karin jutted a finger down the street and started walking in that direction, not waiting for the Hyuuga as she hastily zipped up her back pack and slung it over her shoulder, running after the ghost that only she could see.

At first, they didn't say anything. The streets were still bright and hot with the sun overlooking the horizon, and people were still walking about doing their things, not even realizing the invisible soul walking side by side with Hinata. No one knew about her secret, not even her family or her friends. It was a burden that only she bore, but…she supposed she couldn't call it a burden. She liked to think of it as a gift, her ability to communicate with the dead.

Hinata wasn't really good at anything. Hell, she could screw up the most simplest of tasks. The one thing she was good at was cooking, and even then her father refused to try her dishes because of how poisonous they looked, but it still tasted good! With her knack of messing up everything she did and doing no one any good, she liked to think that helping the wandering ghosts move on without any regrets was a decent thing to do. At least she was useful to somebody. Yes, that was right. That was why she first started helping them out. The feeling of being wanted, of being needed, of making a difference in someone's life, even if it was their afterlife.

I guess I forgot that ever since my grades started dropping.

"You're a weird girl; you know that, Hinata Hyuuga?" Karin stated out of the blue.

Hinata wasn't sure if she was to take that as a complimented and be glad, or be insulted.

"I mean, seriously, who in their right mind would take the time to help dead people? Am I right? You have a life! You have a life, and we don't. It doesn't matter what you do, cause, well, we're still dead, you know? We're still dead and even if we do say, 'I love you,' to that one person, it doesn't matter, because they've moved on, right? And it doesn't matter if they still love you because they have to move on, right? All of you can move on, but we can't. I can't. I'm stuck. We can't go anywhere but…but…we're still looking for you, wanting you to help us when it won't even make a difference because we'll still be forgotten, still be left behind in the past where we're stuck and we can't get away and we can't go to the future where you guys will be and…" She stopped, in her words and in her tracks.

Following her gaze, Hinata saw a man with strange, white hair talking to a beautiful woman. The two were laughing without a care in the world, deeply in love as they sat across each other in a café booth. They sipped coffee from the same cup and said funny things to make the other blush.

"We were engaged," Karin murmured. She pressed her hand against the glass window, peering at the couple with a sad look in her eyes. "Supposed to be married in January on the twenty-first. His mother said that day was a lucky day to get married. How stupid!" She let out a giggle, but it sounded so far away as the rest of her body started to disintegrate like the two before her. Little golden sparkles whipped around her hair.

"The day I died was the twenty-first of January. So much for lucky, huh?"

What was Hinata supposed to say?

"I'm…I'm sorry, Karin…" Somehow, that just didn't seem like the right thing, but it was the only thing she could say.

"Don't be. He looks happy. I'm glad."

"D-don't you want me t-to tell h-him something?" she asked, glancing from the departing ghost to the white-haired man. "Tell him that you love him or t-that you're a-at p-peace?"

"It doesn't matter." Karin shook her head, her eyes glued to his form. "That ring that girl has on her finger? That was my ring." She spread her fingers in front of her, eyeing the empty married finger with almost a disdained look. "Nothing I say will make a difference." After that, she was gone. Hinata didn't even know what it was that made Karin move on. She could've seen the man any time she wanted to. She turned back to the people inside the cafe.

"It really is such a beautiful ring!" the woman squealed. "I love it so much!"

"Good. The ring is special to me."

"Oh, well, it's special to me, too!" She giggled. "When do you think we should get married? What about the twenty-first of January! That was when my grandparents got married, and they stayed together all their lives! They even died at the same time together!"

Hinata turned away from the window after that, feeling a little bad that she was eavesdropping on an engaged couple's conversation, but she felt even worse that she couldn't help Karin in any way whatsoever. Maybe she'd go and find her gravestone later, place a few flowers at the site. She wondered what her favorite was.

Lilies?

Maybe roses.

a/n :: And, that's it! I hope you enjoyed it. Please review, yeah? Otherwise I won't update it if no one's interested because there's really no point…

Who knows…maybe I'll even dedicate the next chapter to my first reviewer…kukuku. And yes, I'm bribing you. Is it working? Is it?

Haha, well, I'm getting tired, peeps, so good night and be careful of the biting bed bugs!

Signing off,