Crimson Red
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Chapter 1:
Midnight Blue
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"I no longer want to run away!"
-Hyuuga Hinata
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Blood ran down the tip of her nose, a thick thread of crimson that stained pale lips a dark shade of red.
The strong smell of it accompanied by old sweat bathed her body, but Hinata took no time dwelling on it.
Her attention was on something else. Namely, the rusty chains that hung low from the wooden ceiling, a telltale of what the otherwise vacant chamber was used for.
Torture.
In here, people were tortured.
In here, she was incarcerated.
In here, she stayed quiet, listening to midnight cries in the distance.
Her left eye was forced shut, the puffy indigo swollen skin around it an obscene contrast with the natural tints of her flesh. Ivory white against violet blue.
To her supposed abductors, it was a sight that made them smile with superiority and power. They thought the fight was over. They assumed her weak and thus no threat. They thought the drugs they'd mixed in her drink hadn't been obvious; that they had a Hyuuga; that they owned victory.
Opal eyes narrowed with slight contempt.
How...naive.
The bruising was but a throb at the back of her cranium, the toxins of the drink removed long ago by a discreet bug.
Hinata curled her left hand, feeling the bothersome fractures located in her index and middle finger.
She'd endured far worse in the last years. This could hardly count. Even the senbon strategically inserted in several of her chakra pathways couldn't compare.
Her mattered and recently cut short hair stuck to her skull with crusted blood from a day ago. A day ago, she was 'captured' after a night of hanging out with her 'friends' in a lowly food establishment in the northeast coast of the Fire Country.
Well, not quite.
Just twenty-three hours, forty-four minutes, and four second to be exact.
And the count was still on. Time never stopped for anyone. Not even for someone like her.
Her head rose, unbalanced bangs of electric blue adorning her face. They swung to the side with a tilt of her head and she sighed, a soft and contemplative sound.
It was almost time.
Byakugan eyes sharpened, the tickling sensation of a kikaichu the only stimuli required.
She was ready and in position.
"A debt must be paid," she said, and her voice echoed like a lullaby back to her. "And a price will be given."
The door opened without warning. Hinata looked up slowly, her visible eye a moon shining in the dim surroundings.
Heavy footsteps were heard from the threshold, the long shadow casted by the light outside flickering as it began to move. The form hidden in the farthest corner of the small dungeon the obvious target.
"Why, hello there," the male voice greeted, the cheerful tone unsettling her stomach. "My boys tell me you haven't said a word since yesterday. Why is that? Is it the needles blocking your chakra circulation?"
No answer.
The man was undeterred. "Ah, well. That can only be expected," he scoffed with clear amusement. "You're a Hyuuga, aren't you?" he continued casually, only to deliver a sudden kick at her side.
Hinata hissed at the impact.
"Oh, so sorry! Did it hurt?" he inquired, grabbing a fistful of her hair.
Hinata's lips remained stubbornly shut.
The man's smile that resembled a sardonic crescent moon vanished. "A hard nut to crack, eh?"
Another tug of her hair set her scalp on fire.
"I'll take care of that. See," he breathed, his lips dangerously close to her own, "that's what I do best."
One of his hands reached for the senbon in her arm and slowly pressed it all the way in. Blood immediately flooded the harmed area.
Hinata bit her cheek. Noticing this, the man smiled.
"Breaking and harvesting, those are my specialties," he informed her hauntingly.
Her jagged bangs obscured her eyes but her lips took care to display her disgust. "I-I also have specialties," she finally said.
Dark eyes glinted with interest in the poor light. "Is that so?" he drawled.
He was the one in control and he knew it. It was a game he enjoyed playing, and one he played to win.
The rotten smell of his body odor almost made her gag. "Yes. W-would you like to see them?"
A smirk. "Wouldn't it be an honor," he mocked. "And coming directly from a stuttering Hyuuga, no less."
He took hold of her face, grasping it so tightly her jaw hurt.
"I have to admit, I'm impressed; the world believes your clan powerful. Yet, you stutter. How so?" he snorted, that ugly grin still in place. "You're nothing like the other Hyuuga. Isn't that pathetic-"
"How so?"
The man froze, the jab of her fingers against his spinal cord bringing him to his knees before he registered that his own words had been thrown back at him.
Wide eyes watched as the Hyuuga woman he'd talked to disintegrated in thousands of blue petals. They flew around in a nonexistent wind, the senbons falling to the floor aimlessly.
"Am I pathetic now?" an unrestrained Hinata demanded as the last traces of genjutsu slipping away.
There was no answer as the man realized that – "This is a trap," he spat.
"Yes," she confirmed, her pale gaze unrepented. "You thought me harmless, vulnerable, and unresourceful . Rule number one in the game of life: never underestimate your enemies. They can be mere illusions," she explained calmly, her fingers sending jolts of electricity into his skin as her chakra prepared his body for what was about to come. "Don't you agree?"
"W-who are you?" the man gritted out, shaking as he struggled to move.
The others. He had to let the others know of this fraud.
"My name," a Byakugan was activated, powerful chakra coiling beneath veins and arteries across slightly marred skin, " is Hyuuga Hinata." A hand encased in lethal chakra hovered over a pumping heart that galloped with trepidation. "But the shinobi world calls me– "
"–Midnight Blue," the man finished breathlessly, his eyes that reminded Hinata of a frightened mouse finally filling with understanding.
It couldn't be a coincidence.
Her hair, that unique mane of infinite dark navy.
He himself had cut it night before because he preferred his women with short-hair. He should have realized, should have known as the waterfall of indigo slipped through his impure fingers, that it was her, that she was it, but he'd been blinded by the womanly curves that had called to him once he saw her in that (ironically enough) blue dress in that dirty establishment.
And now he would pay for his mistake.
Hinata didn't blink, her silvery stare unmoving. "Yes," she conceded softly after a short but infinite pause. "Hyuuga Hinata. Codename: Midnight Blue. Team: Crimson Red."
And just like the previous others in her past, the last thing the man saw was midnight blue hair flash before his eyes, and then...
Darkness.
And just like the rest, he was painted a soft crimson red from the inside as Hinata's Junken ruptured the internal organs apart in a parody of art.
"Liver."
Her veins retreated.
"Lungs."
The glowing of her chakra faded.
"Heart."
Silence.
"Death."
No more breathing. An undetectable pulse.
An unresponsive heart.
"Refrain from divulging information around," a voice said from in the shadows, and a figure stepped out, followed closely by another tall build. "It can be dangerous; you know that, Blue."
The slight buzzing of a bug near her ear made her stoic facade fall. Concentrating a drop of her chakra to the insect on her skin, she feed it to the small being.
Silently, the insect returned to its owner, and two blank porcelain masks came into the scarce light.
Hinata closed her eyes.
Twenty-three hours, forty-seven minutes, and fifty seconds.
Her team was a minute and ten seconds early.
Aburame Shino and Inuzuka Kiba.
"I know," she said, a light apology in her words. " But you said that –"
"– a corpse didn't talk," the rough voice of the Inuzuka ninja finished for her, brushing the Aburame's worries away with a dismissing movement of his hand. "After all, dead men tell no tales, eh?" he grinned cheekily. "Don't worry, Shino. We got this," he assured him with a wink.
Shino was not reassured. "Everyone is in position. Blue, you have done your part here. Wait for your partner; he has yet to clear the upper level," he continued, ignoring Kiba completely.
Kiba, however, wasn't offended and didn't take Shino's attitude personally. When they were on mission, Shino was all business. Not even Kiba could blame him then.
"Here," he said, tossing her an object rolled in a small sheet. Hinata caught it in mid-air, the familiar weight of her own mask instantly recognized.
"Arigato, Kiba-kun," she thanked as she secured it on the top of her head, the square cloth folded nicely inside one of her pockets.
Kiba gave her a salute. "We'll see you in the designated meeting point, Blue-sama!"
Hinata's closed grin made her dimples show. "Hai!"
With a last thumb-ups from Kiba and an approving nod from Shino, they hurried to the entrance of the torture chamber. They had work to do.
"Kiba-kun, Shino-kun," she called softly as they exited.
Both men stopped instantly at the call of their friend.
Hinata observed her slender fingers, noting absentmindedly the coppery dirt caking her nails. "Please, do it fast."
Behind his colorless mask, the Aburame's brows furrowed. "You are well aware of what they've done. It is illogical for them to die a quick death. It is undeserving."
Pale eyes did not change. "They value their life more than all the money stored in the world, Shino-kun," she replied calmly. "More than any woman, more than any valuable materialistic possession. And as such, their lives will be taken. A debt will be paid with the price of their breathing."
Beside Shino, Kiba shook his head, a small chuckle escaping past his mouth. "It's useless, Shino," he told him with apparent humor. "You know how Hinata is." Whistling to give the call to an awaiting Akamaru outside, he added, "Let's get this over with and get out of here. My stomach wants steak."
Shino simply sighed to himself as he walking ahead of the Inuzuka.
He hated to admit that Kiba was right; they had no time to lose. The sooner they finished, the better off everyone would be. Besides, one of his kikaichu was telling him the rooms above were cleared. He was sure only the smell of death resided in the upper floor, courtesy of a certain raven-haired shinobi.
With another breathy laugh, Kiba followed after him, the bark of the gigantic white dog booming down the hall.
Akamaru had made his presence known.
Hinata's lips curved in a smile she could not hide.
Those men were so dear to her. So dear.
Akamaru included.
They had grown together, struggled together, and fought together for the last five years.
Team Crimson Red was a single unit; they were one and acted as one. Where one went, the others followed. When one suffered, the others did as well.
Or at least, that was what the original five members of the team agreed and believed on.
The sixth member wasn't so keen on thinking like they did.
And speaking of him...
"Still as gentle as ever."
The new presence invading the room failed to startle her.
She was too used to his antics for her to be surprised anymore.
Lily inherited eyes looked up from bottom to top.
Black shinobi sandals and a dark outfit that she knew so well stood in front of her. After all, it was a uniform she herself used. It all led to a pair of capable and strong arms ruled by intense training, and a spiky mop of unkept hair that swayed in the morning breeze. In the closed room away from the outer world, there was no wind and dark bangs at either side of his cheeks laid still for once. His mask had been removed, and his Sharingan was activated, making it stand out in the lack of light. Those ruby orbs blinked ominously as they absorbed her entirely.
"Sasuke-san," she greeted him, his nonchalant, almost bored, gaze a welcome one as her smile deepened.
Soundless steps neared her form and he crouched in front of her, his eyes subtly inspecting her from head to toe.
Silence on his part, and then:
"You are hurt."
It wasn't a question, but his undertone betrayed the concept, and Hinata's eyes softened because she knew that under his cold persona, Sasuke was not merely stating an undeniable fact.
She, however, would never contradict him, or summon the topic, so she shrugged a bit, and admitted, "Just a little."
His unimpressed expression told her that he knew she wasn't being completely genuine, but just as she, he didn't speak about it either.
It was mutual understanding, and that was enough for both of them.
Instead, he glanced at her hair and an unhappy frown flashed by his lips.
"Your hair," he commented flatly.
Hinata's fingers immediately traced the pointy ends of her new haircut. Funny how she had planned for one a week ago, and here she was, with a fresh look and free of charge. "It got cut...but I really don't mind."
His eyes seemed to say, But I do.
"You could have killed him sooner," he said, his gaze beyond her and pointedly on the body behind them. "Avoiding injury would've been easier."
Hinata sighed softly. "I-I know." Her hands tightened gradually on her lap. "I just..."
Sasuke's scarlet dojutsu returned to her.
"I just don't want to be a monster," she whispered. "Unfeeling, killing without mercy without a thought to relay on first. I don't want to become like –"
"Nonsense," he cut her off and grabbed the back of her neck, bringing her closer to that stable gaze that was extinguishing its embers until only dark ash was left. Obsidian eyes replaced red as his fingers knitted the nape of her neck expertly.
She gasped sharply when a 'pop' was emitted and his cold fingers left her, leaving a trail of ironic fire in their wake.
"Better?" he asked in a quiet murmur.
Hinata nodded, her lids lowering in the instant bliss.
"Hn," Sasuke grunted. "I released the women and children and took care of the guards. Shino and Kiba went after the few bosses that were left in the building." A sadistic smirk crossed his mouth. "I can only guess how bloody things will get up there. Akamaru is taking the victims to your Captain – "
" – she's also your Captain – "
The comment went ignored. " – and I assume you already know where the information is," he finished unfazed. "Everything's going according to plan."
"Just like always," Hinata's smile grew. " And I do know. It's three floors above us, hidden behind a wall of chakra metal." She paused, eying him warily. "But is everyone safe, Sasuke-san?"
Sasuke's lips pressed in a grim line. "We are still counting."
The light in her eyes dulled a little. "O-oh."
"Come on," he stood and extended one of his hands to her. "Let's get those documents and regroup."
"Hai."
X
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A mortal's destiny is often believed to be written in stone by the hands of the gods, thus out of their human control.
If a being is born weak, it will be forever fragile.
If a being is born strong, it will be forever formidable.
...These are lies.
In a mid-October night, one of the female integrands of Team Crimson Red successfully infiltrated into one of the world's biggest mafia conspirators involved in the illegal sell of women, children, and vital organs, among others, such as shinobi's bloodlimits.
It was said this organization was impossible to track down.
Team Crimson Red thought differently.
The next night, the nightmare that had successfully haunted civilian residents in the Country of Grass was nothing but a memory existing in a dark realm of memory.
And as the released victims were reunited with their loved ones, the already dark skies descended with rain.
In the distance and atop of the highest trees, five silhouettes watched the rest of the world finally experience happiness.
A smirk played across tan lips and a gloved hand ran through a white dog's fur as the first drops of water began to fall.
The buffoon of the class. The unintellectual. The dumb.
Inuzuka Kiba.
And just beside him, his loyal companion, Akamaru.
A silent man watched a pair of lovers embrace each other, their tears of happiness and sorrow washed away by the cold rain that the heavens had brought.
The weird. The neglected. The misunderstood. The gross and dark.
Aburame Shino.
Pale orbs of lavender mercury were alight with happiness for those who could feel it, and inwardly she cheered for them, her small hands fisted over her heart as her own crystalline tears vanished with the celestial showers. Their happiness...was her own.
The weak. The too gentle. The disgrace. The one who would never be strong. The one who should have never been born.
Hyuuga Hinata.
Contrasting onyx eyes blinked and flashed an eerie red in the abysmal night. Unemotional in the outside, but feeling glad, if slightly envious of the families hugging one another, in the inside.
At least some weren't like him. They weren't cursed.
The mysterious. The arrogant. The tragic child that had become a heartless man. The traitor everyone judged. The one that chose a path of darkness.
Uchiha Sasuke.
All of them, the students.
A cape that protected her from the rain fluttered in the wind as she landed.
None of the students spared her a glance, too concentrated in the scene in front of them to say anything.
Ruby eyes, hardened by the years and death, softened as her equally red lips smiled brightly.
The sixth member of Crimson Red had arrived.
The orphan. The mentor. The widow. The strong teacher.
The one who had rescued them in one way or another.
The mother figure that never failed to say, "Well done," even if they failed because she knew, unlike everyone else, whom each of them was. Their worth. Their infinite value.
The one that casted illusions, the one that stayed hidden. The one that lived a lie but knew truth.
Yuuhi Kurenai.
Inuzuka, Aburame, Hyuuga, Uchiha, Yuuhi.
This was Team Crimson Red, the one that belied destiny.
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A/N:
Now, hear me out: Team 8 never gets its time to shine, so I decided to change that. Plus, in all Team 8 Fanfictions, they are either never well-made or incomplete. It's sad, brothers and sisters. Sad.
As for SasuHina? Well...blame my obsession with this ship. It is actually pretty interesting how Sasuke came to be part of this team, though.
I want to see what people think about this one, but I can't promise you I will update it in two weeks: I have five other Fanfictions to update. However, I'm working on all of them.
-7.11.2014
Next chapter:
Chapter 2:
Ruby Scarlet
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"From now on, I will be your teacher!"
-Yuuhi Kurenai