AN: I don't own Naruto or Afterglow by Vanessa Carlton. PLEASE REVIEW!

Chapter Two: Afterglow

Once upon a time there were many demons that roamed the lands and soared in the skies. These demons reeked havoc upon the human race. Many humans hated them even though a longer time before the demons were the ones that started the clans that today have blood traits.

The end of the demons started with the death of the most beautiful woman in all the ninja clans. Her husband found her dead body in their home with a powerful demon standing over her, drenched in her blood. The man went mad at the sight of his wife's body and attacked the demon. The demon escaped with a fatal wound and oddly enough took the woman's body with him.

Neither the demon's body nor the woman's body were ever found.

Her death enraged her clan, who to get revenge killed all the most powerful demons there were one at a time.

The dying demons wanted revenge for their own deaths so they cursed the woman's enraged clan. Now whenever a child is born from that clan they have a demon spirit bound to them that slowly becomes more and more powerful with time to the point where they take over the body and kill anyone in sight.

This cursed clan is the Himura clan.

The cycle of demons is random and it is difficult to determine what demon is within a child until they are old enough to show signs of what bloodline they have other than their own. For those that bear the first demon killed, the one that was known to have killed the beautiful woman, never lives past the age of sixteen. This dreaded demon is. . .

Thirteen year old Hikari Himura slammed the old book shut and groaned in exasperation. Standing up and putting away the book, she pouted and turned to see her pet wolf lounging about in a sunny spot underneath the window.

"Another book with the last page torn out just when they are about to say who the first demon killed was . . . Silver Fang, can't you help me!" Hikari begged the half asleep wolf.

/You are the last Himura. It is your job to uncover the mysteries of the past. There are three reasons I can't help you: One, I can't read Braille, Two, no thumbs to turn the pages and three, you don't want wolf snot all over those priceless old history books, do you/

"Lazy, good for nothing wolf. Can't you be the slightest bit helpful?"

/Fine, I will helpfully inform you that you are going to be late for that orientation this morning if you don't move it./

Hikari frowned, glancing at the clock and yelped, realizing the wolf was right. Grabbing her clothes, she raced into the bathroom for a quick bath. It had been a few years since she had come to Konoha and started living in the Hyuuga branch house. Those that lived in the branch house never seemed to be there and when they were there they kept to themselves and never stayed long. Neji and Rye were her only human companions in the branch house but neither seemed to understand what she was going through.

Things were hard for her during her first year in Konoha and her life only seemed to have gotten harder since then. For starters no one in the village knew she was blind besides the Hyuuga clan, the Hokage, her sensei, and those in the hospital who she had to see regularly. Sarutobi promised her that no one would ever learn about her being blind unless she herself allowed it. Hikari wanted it that way but it still made things hard for her. Like the fact that even the simplest everyday tasks were hard for her.

If she didn't have Fang then she would have been doomed from the beginning. Silver Fang was her eyes. Hikari wore sunglasses to hide her dulled grey eyes from the townspeople and then used Fang to guide her throughout the village. She also got help from Iruka-sensei who stayed after class and helped her understand anything they went over in class that she hadn't been able to grasp because of her lack of eyesight. Rye and Neji also helped her with her homework when they could and trained with Hikari constantly. She also met with the hokage a lot to talk, give her books or learn something, like in the beginning when he taught her Braille so she could read the books he gave her.

Even though everyday tasks were hard for Hikari fighting was different. She refused to give up on becoming a ninja when she became blind and worked very hard. It was starting to pay off too, today was the day of her genin orientation.

Grabbing a comb from her dresser, she started to detangle her white streaked silver hair that went to mid-back and was still slightly wet. Smoothing out her black cargo capris that went just past her knees and a midnight blue sleeveless top, she pulled on her sleeveless white trench coat that had the Himura symbol, a black triforce, on the back. Opening a dresser drawer, she snatched a pair of midnight blue fingerless gloves that went to the wrists and her forehead protector. She let her fingers run over her demon seal that was on her right hand for a moment before she pulled on her gloves and then proceeded to tie her Leaf protector loosely around her neck.

/Hikari, my bandanna./ Fang said, catching his master's attention, a blue bandanna in his mouth.

"Oh, sorry Fang. I guess I forgot to put your bandanna back on you yesterday after your bath." Hikari said, kneeling down in front of the wolf.

/Yeah, just put it on please./ Fang replied, dropping the bandanna into her hands and letting her tie it around his neck.

"Alright, I'm ready. Let's get out of here." Hikari smiled, snatching up her sunglasses from there usual place on her dresser and putting them on to hid her clouded grey eyes..

The two slipped quietly out of the Hyuuga compound and headed towards the academy, the path there taken so often that Hikari really didn't need Fang to guide her there.

One of the main problems living in Leaves was keeping her blindness a secret, especially when everyone loved her mother and father. Everyone always treated her differently then a normal person, labeling her as the daughter of the Hokage who saved the village from the fox demon all those years ago. How do you deal with people constantly bothering and wanting to be your friend when all you want is to be left alone?

When she first came to the village Hidden in the Leaves all she wanted from her life was her revenge. Things haven't changed much from then but after a few incidents she had become less obsessed with revenge and more focused on learning about her clan's past and how she can overcome her curse, if that was even possible.

/We're here./ Fang said, snapping Hikari from her thoughts.

Hikari walked into her classroom and allowed Fang to gently push her legs to guide her to an empty chair.

/You are seating in the middle seat in the last row. No one is sitting in the row with you. In the row in front of you there is Whisker boy and Moody. Middle seat is empty./ Fang explained the situation for Hikari before going underneath the table and laying down at his master's feet.

Hikari didn't say anything but silently thanked Fang. She hated feeling vulnerable and not knowing what is going on around you can make you quite vulnerable. She smiled though at Fang's nicknames for two of her classmates. Naruto and Sasuke. Though she didn't really hang out with either of them Fang knew them by what he saw in class and around the village and had given them nicknames. They weren't the only ones that got insulting names, actually almost everyone in Konoha had received an insulting nickname.

"Hey Hikari!" Naruto greeted her loudly.

"Hello Naruto. How are you today? I don't recall you graduating so why are you here?" Hikari asked politely as she rubbed her sensitive ears.

"What? Can't you see the forehead protector? Starting today. I'm a ninja. It looks good on me, doesn't it?" Naruto said proudly.

"Yeah. . .great." Hikari said uncomfortably.

"I'M FIRST!"

Hikari rolled her eyes behind her sunglasses, knowing that Ino and Sakura had obviously raced to the academy again. The two girls started to argue which Hikari ignored. Instead she folded her arms on the table in front of her and rested her chin on them. Closing her eyes she tried to block out all the sounds and talk to Fang telepathically. Her concentration finally slipped as she heard girls arguing about who got to sit next to Sasuke. Gritting her teeth, Hikari's angry got the better of her and she opened her eyes and lifted her head in the direction of the commotion that was coming from near Naruto's seat.

"No, I'm sitting next to Sasuke."

"No, I was here first. I get to sit next to Sasuke."

I was the one who was first. I should get to sit next to him."

"Oh for the love of. . ." Hikari grumbled, as she tapped her fingers impatiently on the desktop. "Hey! I have a solution to your problem."

"Really? What is it, Hikari?" the fan girls all asked at once.

"How about you all stop fighting over someone who could care less about any of you and get lives?" Hikari snapped.

"You're just jealous, Hikari!"

"Yeah, you're just upset because Sasuke doesn't like you like he likes us."

"Oh yeah. I think I am going to cry. Note my sarcasm here." Hikari retorted as Fang hopped up on to the seat next to her and growled at the fan girls.

Fang hearing the commotion got up and hopped on to the seat next to Hikari so he could see what was going on. Before any of the girls could reply Naruto knelt on the desk in front of Sasuke and glared at him.

/Should I tell you what is going on/ Fang asked and saw Hikari give a slight nod.

"Naruto! Hey, stop glaring at Sasuke!" Sakura screeched at Naruto making him momentarily look at her before going back to glaring at Sasuke.

'How come I have a feeling something bad is going to happen?' Hikari thought

"Let him have it, Sasuke!" a fan girl screamed.

"Just knock him off the desk!" another yelled.

"Go ahead! Put him in his place!" others chorused in.

"Whoa! This is great!" the boy that sat in front said, moving his arm and bumping into Naruto.

"Sorry. Did I bump you?" the boy asked, turning around.

"What the-" Sakura's voice faded off.

"I, uh-" Ino stumbled over her words.

/Well, I didn't see that coming./ Silver Fang muttered.

Naruto had fallen right into Sasuke making them kiss on accident. Hikari raised an eyebrow and smirked in amusement.

"AAH!" Sakura screamed, getting over her shock.

Naruto and Sasuke pulled away from one another and started spitting and holding their throats as if they were choking.

"I'll get you, Naruto!" Sasuke growled.

"They are vicious!" the boy in front of them said.

"Well there you go ladies. Obviously the reason that Sasuke ignores you all is because he has a preference for the other gender. Too bad, so sad." Hikari snickered, earning death glares from not only the fan girls but also from Sasuke.

/Looks like you still haven't learned how to make friends./ Silver Fang grumbled.

"Don't say that!" the girls screamed.

"Hey, I'm just stating what I see. Don't be mad at me if Naruto got to kiss Sasuke before any of you. . . I am so glad I wasn't late today." Hikari laughed, getting up and walking off to sit with Hinata.

/So I guess we are moving because you don't want to get into the middle of the fight that will start any moment./

"I'm not stupid." Hikari said, laughing lightly.

"As of today, you are all ninjas. To get here you have faced difficult trials and hardships. But that's nothing. What comes next will be far more difficult. Now you are only genin, first level ninjas. All the genin will be grouped into three or four man squads. Each squad will be led by a jounin, an elite ninja." Iruka announced to the class.

'The teams are arranged so their overall abilities are the same. That means that I will end up in a group of four. It makes sense. Iruka would put me in a group where there are three ninjas that were strong enough to complete the mission and protect me. I don't need to be protected! I can fight better than most of the genin here!'

"Squad seven . . . Naruto Uzumaki . . . Sakura Haruno. . . Hikari Himura . . ." Iruka-sensei started to call out.

"Yeah!" Naruto cheered.

'I'm on team seven with Naruto and Sakura. Wow. Guess I was wrong about Iruka. He didn't put me with any strong ninjas.' Hikari thought.

". . . and Sasuke Uchiha." Iruka finished and proceeded to the next group.

"Yeah!" Sakura cheered.

'Scratch that.' Hikari sighed.

/You are strong Hikari. Didn't you tell me that whisker boy had the lowest grades in the class before? You are considered strong and not someone who always needs to be protected. Just remember that if you are ever in need of saving it isn't a bad thing. Everyone needs help sometime. Understand/ Fang reassured the girl.

"Next, squad eight . . . Hinata Hyuuga . . ." Iruka called out, making Hikari snap out of her conversation with Fang.

"Yes, sir?" Hinata said softly.

". . . Kiba Inuzuka . . . Shino Aburame."

"Hey, too bad we didn't get on the same squad Hinata."

"Yes." Hinata said softly.

"Don't worry. You'll do fine." Hikari smiled at the Hyuuga reassuringly.

". . . Those are all the squads."

"Iruka-sensei, why does a great ninja like me have to be in the same group with a slug like Sasuke?" Naruto asked, standing up and pointing at Sasuke.

"Hmm? Sasuke had the best scores of all the graduating students. Naruto, you had the worst scores. To create a balanced group we put the best student with the worst student." Iruka explained.

"Just make sure you don't get in my way, loser." Sasuke said.

"Hey, what did you say?" Naruto yelled.

"Hard of hearing?" Sasuke asked.

"Knock it off, Naruto. Sit down." Sakura snapped.

Iruka coughed. "After lunch, you'll meet your new jounin teachers. Until then, class dismissed."

"Well that was boring. I'll see you later Hinata. I need to talk to Iruka-sensei."

"O-okay. Bye Hikari." Hinata said softly.

Hikari walked slowly down the steps towards the front of the class, aware of the fact that Fang had suddenly disappeared on her. 'I kill that wolf when I get my hands on him! He better have a good reason for leaving me.'

"Iruka-sensei?" Hikari called out, unsurely once she was sure all the students had left.

"Hmm? Oh, Hikari. Is there something I can help you with?" Iruka asked, taking her arm and leading her to a seat so they could talk.

"Um, I wanted to talk about my new squad."

"What about it?"

"Oh, come on Sensei! Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke! I mean our squad is the only one with four students this year. I think it's kinda obvious!"

"Hikari, we know you are a good ninja. Your scores in this class are average and that is with your impairment. If you weren't blind I am sure you would probably have scores that rival Sasuke's but you are blind and there will be situations that you will need help with. I know you are upset but we put you on squad seven for a reason and I know there will be times where you will be the one to protect your teammates. Just give this squad a chance."

". . . Fine." Hikari grumbled.

"Thank you Hikari. Now you better get outside, maybe you can bond with your new teammates." Iruka suggested, helping Hikari to the door.

"Yeah, sure. Whatever." Hikari mumbled, walking off.

/Hikari, there you are./ Fang said, once Hikari stepped outside.

"Where do you go! You know you can't just leave me alone like that."

/I thought you were with Hinata and I went to get you your lunch. You left it on the table in the kitchen./

"Oh, my bad."

/Yeah, it is. We should get some training done while we have the break. Did you try to call me telepathically in the classroom? This way./ Fang said, leading Hikari to an abandon spot near the path that leads back to the academy.

"Yes, could you hear me?" Hikari asked excitedly.

/No. I just was wondering if you were wasting time in the classroom while you waited by daydreaming./ Fang answered sounding bored.

"Thanks for getting my hopes up." Hikari mumbled.

/Your welcome./

"I am not doing it."

/Why not? And give me a reasonable answer./

"Because it's stupid."

/Oh, yeah, that's reasonable. Listen, it is not stupid. Now do it. It's the only way you are going to learn how to talk telepathically to animals./

"How do you figure that?"

Hikari and Silver Fang sat under a tree near the pathway that lead back to the academy. After having a quick lunch, the two had decided to work on Hikari's inability to telepathically speak with animals which only resulted in the current argument.

"Well, I am waiting Wolfy. How is singing going to help me talk to animals telepathically?"

/If you sing your enemy will be confused and won't know what you are doing. I mean you can't just call them and tell them what you want them to do or else the enemy will know what you are planning. So stop being a baby and start singing./

"This sounds so stupid. Singing to my enemy. My God, I have reached a new low." Hikari grumbled.

/Sing Hikari./

"What do I sing exactly?"

/Doesn't matter the song, just as long as you concentrate on calling an animal to you./

"Alright." Hikari agreed, standing up.

/What are you doing/

"Well if I am singing I might as well dance too. You never know, it may help."

/I've seen you dance. Trust me it will only make it worse./

"Funny. You know Silver Fang there is a saying, never bite the hand that feeds you . . . or the one that can have you neutered." Hikari gave the wolf a cynical smile, making Silver Fang shift uncomfortable from where he sat.

"No more comments? Good." Hikari took a deep breath and relaxed.

"Just when the days start getting colder,
I walk the streets I never knew,
There's some words I never told you,
The sound rings out like the truth
And if you could see, What's come over me, Then you would know,
Cause I'm walkin' free, The wind at my back, Bathed in after-"

"Hey Hikari!" a voice sounding like a cheerful Sasuke made the Himura girl fall to the ground in shock.

"Wha-"

"Have you seen Sakura?" A beaming Sasuke asked.

"Uh . . . yeah down that way." Hikari pointed down the path.

"Thanks. See ya later Hikari."

". . .Bye. . . Sasuke?"

/He sounded more like Whisker Boy than Moody./

"Yeah. No kidding. Um . . . where was I? . . . Oh right.

"And as I sit here in this dark room, All I seem to feel is light,
I see color, I see the Maroon in the blood of this life. . .that's ours,
And if you can see, What's come over me, Then you would know,
Cause I'm walkin' free, Wind at my back, Bathed in after-"

/Hikari, Moody is back but he came from the opposite direction he left./

Hikari stumbled and turned around quickly as a stoic Sasuke walked towards her . . . again.

'What the hell is going on here?'

"How. . .weren't you just. . . you. . . there. . . here. . . where did you come from?" Hikari frowned in confusion.

"Have you seen Naruto?" Sasuke asked, ignoring her question.

'Naruto? Why would he be looking for- Oh I get it!' Hikari smirked as the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place.

"Nope but a very cheerful version of you walked past here a few moments ago."

". . . Where did he go?"

"Oh come on, it's Naruto. Where do you think he would go?" Hikari asked and waited to see if he would figure it out but after a long silence she rolled her eyes and continued. "To see Sakura. My God you are slow. Why don't you take sometime to actually take notice of the world around you sometimes."

Turning her back to him, she started singing again.

"Watch the sun it paints an orange sky,
Lay me down and feel the days gone by,"

/He's still here./ Silver Fang commented, knowing he didn't need to tell Hikari who already knew.

"Is there something else you need?" Hikari asked in annoyance, not turning to even look at him.

". . . Where's Sakura?" Sasuke mumbled.

"Down the path. She usually eats lunch on a bench by the path that leads back to the academy." Hikari pointed the way to him and the waited until he turned the bend of the pathway before she continued to sing.

"Just when the day, Just when the day,
Just when the days start getting longer,
I walk the streets I never knew. . .The sun comes out for you,
And if you could see, What's come over me, Then you would know,
Cause I'm walkin' free, The wind at my back, Bathed in after-
Cause I'm walkin' free, The wind at my back, Bathed in afterglow."

She ended the song and was starting to feel dejected that nothing happened when a bird flew out of a nearby tree and landed on her head.

/Hi. I'm Ai. Did you call me here/

"Um Yeah. I'm Hikari and that's Silver Fang. Did you come because of my singing?"

/Yup. You were calling for an animal to come so I came. Hey, you're really pretty and your singing is really pretty too. Do you like to sing because you should sing all the time like us birds. You voice is so nice. I like hearing it. Can you sing some more/ Ai chirped.

"Wow, you like to talk, don't you? I guess I can sing something-"

/Hikari, you will have to later. We have to go meet your new Jounin teacher. You don't want to be late and make a bad impression, do you/ Silver Fang interrupted her.

"Yes I do. Does it matter if I am late or not?"

/Yes, it does. Now come on. Let's go./ Silver Fang said, picking up the backpack.

"Fine. I'll sing to you later Ai. See ya around."

/Bye Hikari, Silver Fang./