Textually Active
Chapter One: Help, please!
Summary: Sakura asks what costume she should wear, and Hinata agrees to go shopping with her after school. The next day Naruto and friends receive texts from the girls begging for help... Because monsters kidnapped them from another dimension. Using nothing but their brains, friendship, strength and phones, can the Naruto gang rescue the girls before it's too late?
Disclaimer: Hereby disclaimed. K.
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"Can someone come with me?"
It was such a simple request. But Naruto frowned nonetheless, scrunching his nose.
"No way am I going shopping with a girl," he said, shaking his head. "I've heard the stories." He shivered for emphasis.
Beside him, Sakura let out a huff of indignation.
"Oh, for crying out loud..."
"No kidding..." Naruto mumbled, ducking his head as he continued putting textbooks into his backpack. Unfortunately, Sakura heard him.
"Naruto." Voice laced with venom, Haruno Sakura glared at Naruto, green eyes fiery. Naruto flinched, slowly letting his eyes drift towards Sakura. Her thin arms were placed on either side of her slender hips, and her expression was dark. Many people assumed Sakura was innocently harmless, particularly because of her petite frame and pixie-like pink tresses.
Naruto knew better. You couldn't take Sakura's hair seriously. She could go from angel to demon in an instant, but her pink hair remained constant. It was odd to think about: an angel with candy-colored hair capable of bashing in his brains.
Which she did. Frequently.
"Are you," she said in a low, growling voice, "Implying that I sound like a banshee?"
Quick to redeem himself, Naruto viciously shook his head.
"No, not you, never," he insisted, nervous smile playing on his lips. Sakura let her glower focus on him a few more moments before turning her attention to her own locker, slamming it shut with a loud Ka-Chak! that echoed throughout the halls of Konoha High School. Students nearby turned to stare, and Naruto mentally panicked.
"Then come with me," she said. Naruto hesitated before replying, trying to calm himself.
"I... Can't," he said, drawing out the sentence as he scrambled for an excuse. "I have... Studying."
Sakura raised a pink eyebrow incredulously.
"Studying," she drawled. Naruto nodded his head energetically.
"Yup," he said, with what he hoped was a tone of finality.
"What subject?"
Guess not. Stumped, Naruto took a moment to process what Sakura said.
It was all the time she needed to figure him out.
"Idiot!" she huffed, flinging her hands up in the air. "You're just making excuses!"
Wincing, Naruto attempted to redeem himself.
"Ah, look, it's not like that, I-"
"Naruto."
Both the blonde and pinkette's turned their heads to see Uchiha Sasuke approaching. Hands in pockets, the young man wore a nonchalant expression as he came to a stop before his two friends.
"Sasuke!"
Naruto let out a sigh of relief. Sakura had turned her focus completely to Sasuke now, eyes glittering.
"Hn." Sasuke directed this to the pinkette, almost like a greeting, before facing Naruto again. "Let's go, dobe," he said.
Naruto often rode to school with Sasuke, since his friends sports car was generally funner to be in than his own beat-up pickup truck. This meant, though, that Naruto often had to wait until Sasuke felt like leaving before he was able to go back home.
"Sasuke, wait!" Clearly annoyed that Sasuke had essentially ignored her, Sakura poked him in the chest. "Come shopping with me!"
"No," Sasuke replied simply.
"Eeeeh?!" Sakura cried, voice ringing. "But why not?"
Sasuke shrugged.
"Don't feel like it," he replied.
"But... But..." Dejected, Sakura let her shoulders slump. "I need help picking out a costume..." She turned her head to appeal to Naruto. "It's only three days away, and I still don't have anything!"
Sasuke shrugged again.
Sakura huffed in frustration, running an agitated hand through her hair.
"You guys are impossible," she muttered. Her gaze brightened considerably when her eyes alighted on someone beyond Sasuke. "Oh!" Dashing away, Sakura ran to Hyuuga Hinata's side. "Hinata!"
Startled, the Hyuuga let her hand fall from undoing her lock.
"S-Sakura?" she asked.
"I have a favor to ask," Sakura said politely. "Could you come costume shopping with me today?"
Hinata paused to consider Sakura's question, and Naruto took the opportunity as a sign from God.
"Teme, hurry up!" Not waiting for Sasuke to respond, Naruto snatched Sasuke's backpack and half-dragged his friend away from the girls. "Before she catches us!"
Right before turning the corner, Naruto heard Hinata say a quiet "Okay" to Sakura.
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Riiiing.
Naruto was on his bed, laying on his back, cell phone to his ear as his right hand twisted a pencil absently between his index and middle finger.
Riiiiing.
He always called Sakura for homework help. Despite doing his best to pay attention in class, the velocity of a kunai being tossed from a tree never could stick in his mind as particularly important. A ninja did not have time to calculate and analyze trivial things like that mid-battle; it was either going with his gut or dying. Still, though, in order to become a fully-fledged shinobi, being able to graduate from Konoha High meant he had to pass Kinematics.
Riiiing.
Which was, again, a useless subject. Naruto tossed his pencil up in the air, then caught it.
Click.
"Hello. Sakura here!"
Finally!
Naruto bolted upright, grabbing the phone to keep it from tumbling to the floor.
"Sakura, hey, can you tell me how to do fourteen on-"
"-ight now, but leave your name and number, and I'll get back to you when I can. Thanks!"
Beep!
Naruto sat, mouth ajar, before groaning into the phone.
"Sakuraaaaaa," he whined, "Pick uuuuuup!"
Nothing. Silence on the other end. Sighing in defeat, Naruto hung up.
This was the first time all year Sakura hadn't picked up. It was strange. Sakura was one of those girls who always had her phone on her, and always answered before the third ring. Naruto frowned.
She must still be shopping with Hinata, he concluded. He looked down at his homework and blinked, trying to comprehend the random numbers tossed into the word problems on his homework. Well, poop.
Naruto flopped back on his bed and spent the remainder of his evening staring blankly at his ceiling.
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From: Neji
To: me, Teme, Sakura, Kiba, Bug-guy, Ino, Sai, Shikamaru, Choji, Tenten, Lee
Hav u heard from Hinata? She didn't come home last night.
Naruto frowned. He sat behind Sasuke, who was driving.
"Hey," he said, kicking Sasuke's chair. The Uchiha glared at Naruto in the rearview mirror. "Have you heard from Hinata?"
"Don't kick my leather," Sasuke said in reply. As an afterthought, he added, "No."
"Hunh." Shrugging, Naruto texted a reply to Neji.
From: me
To: Neji
She's probably with Sakura. U kno, sleepin ovr or sumthing. Girlz r like tht.
Satisfied with his reply, Naruto hit send.
"Oi."
Naruto turned his attention to his friend. Sasuke nodded, indicating the school parking lot he was turning into.
"Oh, we're here already?" Naruto shoved his cell in his pocket and began gathering his belongings. "That was fast. We're you speeding or something?"
"Hn."
Naruto did not pursue the subject.
He clambered out of Sasuke's car and headed towards the school building, intent on finding Sakura. He still needed help on his homework. Desperately. Because he didn't finish it.
He hurried upstairs, but Sakura (whose own locker was right beside his) was not in her usual spot on the floor across from the lockers. Frowning, Naruto opened his backpack and began putting away the items he did not immediately need.
And then his cell vibrated.
He dropped his backpack, rushing to snap it open.
It was a text.
From Sakura!
He hastily read it.
From: Sakura
To: me, Sasuke
Help! When we went shopping, monsters captured us! Hurry! We're trapped!
Naruto's eyebrows shot up and he chuckled good-naturedly. Sakura had such a strange sense of humor!
From: me
To: Sakura
Nice try, but it didn't work. I'm not THAT gullible!
His smile fell slightly.
Of course, this was a bit far-fetched, even for a girl with pink hair...
"Hey."
Naruto looked up to see Sasuke approaching. Naruto waved his cell at the Uchiha.
"She's totally trolling us!" Naruto said, shaking his head, grinning. "And failing badly."
Bzzzzt.
His phone buzzed at the same time as Sasuke's. They glanced at each other before Sasuke whipped his out and, together, they read their new messages.
From: Hinata
To: me, Teme, Kiba, Neji, Ino, Bug-guy, Tenten, Choji, Shikamaru, Lee, Sai
Guys, Sakura's not lying! Please help us! We're trapped and can't use chakra! Please help!
Naruto frowned.
"This is so weird..."
"Hn..."
"Naruto!"
The two friends looked up to see Neji dashing towards them, eyes frantic.
"I called Sakura's parents, and she didn't come home either!" He saw Naruto and Sasuke's phones and nodded. "I think..." He trailed off.
"You think monsters kidnapped them." Sasuke's statement was skeptical. Neji shook his head.
"It's illogical, but Hinata wouldn't lie about this." He shook his head again. "I do believe they've been kidnapped, at any rate."
Naruto felt his blood turn cold.
"Kidnapped?" he echoed. "But they're kunoichi!"
"Not full-fledged, though," Sasuke said.
"It's not impossible," Neji continued hurriedly. "I just don't..."
"It could be they're after the Byakugan," Sasuke offered, but Neji shook his head.
"Then why keep Sakura alive?" he said bluntly. "Conversely, if they wanted Sakura, why keep Hinata alive?" He shook his head again. "It doesn't make sense."
"It could just be a prank," Naruto added. He hoped it was true. He couldn't imagine anyone overpowering Sakura. She was a demon when it came to fighting. It took considerable strength and skill to best her in a sparring match. Hinata was equally as powerful. Wielding her Byakugan, the petite Hyuuga girl could incapacitate a foe in mere seconds, and often did. She was also no stranger to surprise attacks; she had grown up under the constant threat of them as the heir to her clan.
Nothing was adding up.
For a few agonizing moments, none of the three spoke.
Then, Sasuke dropped his backpack on the ground and began walking away.
"Let's go."
Naruto and Neji exchanged concerned glances.
"Where?" Neji asked.
Sasuke turned and looked over his shoulder.
"They went costume shopping." He turned around again, and his time, Neji and Naruto followed. "We start there."
"Hold on," Naruto said, pulling out his phone. He began composit a text. "If we're cutting school, let's do it right."
He sent his message to eight recipients.
A/N: a quick fic that should be done by the end of the week. Wee~~! Also, check out my collab with Chelty-chan called "Her Eyes like Silver." k thx bye.