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 :: Hehe. Thanks for the reviews, you guys; it made me very happy! And the ones that didn't review but did add my story to their alerts or favorites?—That made me happy, too. But guess what? THE QUEEN DEMANDS YOU TO REVIEW! Or, well, it would be appreciated.
But, anyways, in this chapter, Hinata finally meets Sasuke! Yay!
Oh, and before I forget, this chapter is dedicated to JamKa because you were my first reviewer! I thank you bunches because I was very excited to see the notification in my email, haha. But, not only JamKa, all of you who reviewed! You really made my day, especially because several days ago I was really angry and about to cry, and I opened it up to read a review and it made me feel a whole lot better. So, you taking precious time out of your life to tell me to update – however selfish and demanding you losers are! ;) -, I appreciate it. No, really, I do, therefore: thanks a bunches! :]
That's enough nonsense for me to spout, so, now keep on reading for the first official chapter of Dull.
And yes, Sasuke is in this one.
oo1 :: a business contract
Hinata stumbled as she hiked up the hill, almost dropping the roses – almost being the key word. With so much experience tripping over flat surfaces and actual, random objects lying on the ground, her instinct to clutch onto whatever important item she was holding onto kicked in faster than the speed of sound. Stopping in her tracks, she checked to make sure that she hadn't smothered any of the flowers against her chest. Hmm. They looked fine, so she continued her journey through the graveyard, the one place someone like her absolutely despised.
Why? Well, the cemetery was ghost central.
Piles and piles of dead bodies below her and piles and piles of spirits floating around her; it was enough to drive her insane! None of them really knew that she could speak to them; one, she rarely came close to such horrifying places, and two, most of the ghosts there were too much in shock at their sudden death or too busy crying and bawling and floundering in a sea of depression to even notice her existence, which is fine with her, frankly. Though, considering the fact of her change of heart, one would think she'd actually go telling the ghosts that she could and would help them pass onto the next world, but no. Sure, she'd help them, but she wasn't going to go out of her way and speak to every wandering soul she could find. Hinata cared for them, but she cared about her grades and her future, too! Let them come to me, she thought. Soon, rumors would spread about her anyways; the ghost community was a close knit one. Rumors traveled faster when you could walk through walls, after all. One ghost passing on wasn't that ridiculous, but three ghosts at the same time? Big news! And somebody must have seen! (- Someone dead.)
But, anyways, the whole reason she was there at the graveyard – cue the shiver – was mainly because she wanted to visit Karin's grave. Hinata hadn't really felt like she had done anything to help her pass on; not only that, but the red-head wasn't exactly in a fabulous mood when she left. It seemed to her that Karin wanted to stay longer and watch the love of her life and death, so, as a result, Hinata thought it would be best to pay her respects and give pretty roses for a pretty girl. If she had seen the ghost when she was living, she bet that Karin's hair would've been as bright as the petals, instead of a dulled red. Ah, what a beautiful color Karin had, not like Hinata's weird hair, a black that seemed to tint blue.
She paused and looked around the many tombstones, trying to locate Karin's. True, she didn't really know how to find her grave site. It wasn't as though there was some kind of directory and map, and she highly doubted that the graves were alphabetized (even if they were, she didn't know her last name) but Hinata just had a feeling. Oddly enough, she could just tell which stone was the one that belonged to her ghost friends that she had met, and it was especially stronger if they had reached their destination.
There was a tugging sensation to the west, so to the west she went, until finally…
"Good afternoon, Karin." Hinata set the flowers down. "R-remember me? I-I hope you do. How are you? I hope y-you c-crossed over s-safely. A-and oh! These roses are f-for you. Aren't they p-pretty? I-I know someone w-who owns a f-flower store."
Sitting down, she made herself comfortable before the grave, fiddling with her thumbs.
"It's a p-pretty day today," she mumbled quietly, looking up at the blue skies with white fluffy clouds. "Do you have weather i-in Heaven? W-wait…you c-can't answer. Um. T-today, my sister r-received her report c-card. All A's. She's so s-smart. I-I hope the counselor m-misplaced my r-report card…"
As Hinata looked around the graveyard, she watched the ghosts near humans to make it seem like she was watching the living and not the dead. There was one woman talking about her day; her husband laughed in response to something she said but she couldn't see or hear him. Hinata watched as he reached to touch her cheek but she kept on talking as if nothing happened, though it looked as though she felt a light breeze blowing her hair back.
Several sites in front of a Hinata, a little boy was crying about wanting to be alive in front of his grandpa who merely patted the stone gently, as though patting the boy's head. He quieted down and watched the old man silently sob.
Dropping her gaze to her hands, she stared at her long and unpainted nails, pondering. Why was it that she could see the dead but others couldn't? Why was it that she received this power? Did it mean something? Was she supposed to…change the world? Or save it? There was no one to answer her question. For all she knew she was the only one who could communicate with the dead.
"I p-pray you are doing okay, K-Karin." She traced her name with a smile. "D-did you k-know? T-that m-man? He l-lives on my s-street. I-I saw him yesterday pulling into t-the driveway, so today, I-I left a rose o-on his car for you. H-he was in the b-backyard, t-talking v-very loudly. He s-said that he comes to v-visit you the first T-Thursday of every month! S-so, I t-think you're w-wrong, Karin. I don't t-think h-he forgot you at all. I-I think you're s-still s-somewhere in his m-mind, because y-you can move on without f-forgetting, right? You can go on w-without having to let g-go of people, e-even if they're dead. Don't you think s-so? I'd l-like to think so."
A bigger grin.
"D-doesn't that m-make you happy?" she said.
From the corner of her eyes, Hinata saw movement several feet away. She sat quietly, pretending to be immersed in her thoughts while she watched the figure secretly. It was obvious that this guy wasn't part of the living; the way his colors were darker, duller, a grayer and washed out hue of what the colors used to be, there was no way he could've been alive.
The stranger bent down and mumbled the words on the tombstone.
Repositioning her legs, she made it seem like she was trying to examine her shoes, when she was actually trying to get a peek at the name that was carved onto the stone plaque.
Yahiko? Was this guy Yahiko?
Hmm.
Suddenly, he spoke, his voice irritated and frustrated.
"Goddammit!"
Should the dead really be saying such things?
"Where the hell is it…?" he huffed irritably and ran a hand through his hair that defied gravity at odd angles. "It's gotta be around here somewhere."
She wondered it what it was he was looking for. Should she say something? Would it help him pass on? Did she really want to get involved? He didn't seem like such a happy-go-lucky type; then again, he was dead. Hinata highly doubted that any of the spirits there were part of the Sunshine Club. Pushing that fact aside, he didn't seem to be a disheartened ghost, either. A vengeful spirit? No, he was searching for something…and he seemed kind of angry. He wouldn't lash out at her…would he?
"This one isn't it either," she heard him mutter.
Helping would be the most reasonable choice. He was a spirit that was probably in pain, and it was her duty to help him pass on.
"Um, do y-you— "
At that exact moment, her phone started to ring and her head dropped down so that she could grab her cell phone, forgetting about him quickly.
"H-hello?"
On the other side was a heavily annoyed voice. "Hinata? Where are you?"
"I-I'm a-at the c-cemetery, F-Father." She always seemed to stutter more around her dad. Maybe it was because he made her more nervous than anyone else on the planet, with his scrutinizing eyes and holier-than-thou attitude and unreachable expectations, but it wasn't his fault, she was sure.
"Get back home. We have something we must discuss." Uh oh. He was using his serious voice (which was his main voice but sterner; it seemed impossible, but it wasn't.). Only a Hyuuga who had much practice in angering her father time and time again could differentiate between the two.
"Uh…um…A-alright…"
"Alright?" he hissed into the phone.
"I-I mean, 'Y-yes, sir.'"
He hung up on her right after that and she sighed, pocketing it. Things weren't looking so hot at the moment. There wasn't any way for her to complete her mission of saving ghosts if her dad was going to kill her and make her one of them. What could she do if she couldn't speak to people and hand them letters and pass on messages? The answer was simple: absolutely nothing. If she begged for mercy, maybe he would give it to her; that was slim though. Very. Slim. There was a better chance for a fat man to fall out of the sky and crush all life as she knew it.
Getting up, she dusted the dirt off her pants only to frown when she noticed the grass stains on them. It really wasn't her day. Remembering the ghost, she looked up to where he was supposed to be only to find that he had disappeared; scanning around the graveyard didn't do anything good, for her search produced no helpful results.
Oh, well, she supposed. Hinata had bigger fish to fry at the moment. She had an appointment with the devil, and he just happened to look like her dad.
She wondered how long it would take her to get back to the Hyuuga Mansion; probably a very long time, since she walked like a turtle and the graveyard was big. Well, better get started then.
Looking around and trying to recall where it was that she had come from, she began walking in the direction she thought was right, figuring it was somewhere on that side of the cemetery (whatever 'that side' meant).
Several moments later and she became lost.
"It's getting dark," she whispered, looking up at the sky. Was it evening already? Those things up there look like storm clouds. "And there's no one at the cemetery anymore…"
No one but the dead anyways.
It actually wasn't so bad, now that she thought about it.
The skies were darkening like a scene out of a horror movie; with each passing tombstone, a thought ran through her mind that a decayed hand might shoot out of the ground beneath her and latch onto her leg like a blood-sucking parasite. It wasn't such a scary thought, though; Hinata would rather deal with zombies than an angry Hyuuga father.
As she passed by one of the gravesites, she saw that there was weed growing there.
"Now, that's not right," she mumbled, getting down on her knees to pull out the ugly plants. It took several minutes, but those several minutes were quietly calming. She didn't think about anything, and nothing ran through her mind; no worries, no problems, just a silent thought that, once the weeds were gone, it would look a lot better.
"There we go." Hinata straightened her back and ran the back of her hand across her forehead to wipe anyway any sweat. "No weeds."
She had been right; the grave hadn't looked right with the weeds devouring everything.
Her eyes darted up to the stone, cracked and rough, but standing strong against all weather and nature against it, holding up the memory of the one who died; across the horizon, there were hundreds of the same time of stone, with cracks just like that one, but each was resisting against the pressure to fall and break down. Oddly enough, she found it rather inspirational. Maybe she could be like the rocks and be strong, too.
Hinata looked back at the one in front of her, staring at the carvings.
"Mikoto Uchiha…?" she read. "That's a pretty name, Miss Mikoto."
"She was my mother."
With a gasp, Hinata whipped around to become face to face with a pair of legs hidden behind long pants. As her lavender orbs roamed upward, she met a hard, dark, onyx gaze: the same ghost she had seen before.
"I…I…uh…um…." She stumbled over her words, wanting to get away from him as far as possible. There was something about him, something about this ghost that wasn't normal. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but he had a strange feeling about him; and his eyes, so dark and deep and black.
"So,"
His voice sent shivers down her back, causing her to wince with fear. That was the first time she was ever scared of a spirit; there really wasn't much they could do but change appearance to how they looked when they died, and that was mere intimidation rather than a threat. Of course, this ghost hadn't done anything – yet – but she couldn't help but feel afraid.
Tilting his head at her, his once onyx-colored eyes seemed to flash an evil red.
"You can see me," he finished. "I had thought so."
"I…" With nothing coming to her mind, she merely nodded her head hesitantly.
He eyed her up and down, analyzing her with a cold stare, not saying a word as he did so. She fidgeted uncomfortably, finding the grass and dirt suddenly so very interesting, but the hair on the back of her neck stood up in warning.
What was he going to do? Could he even do anything? If any ghost could cause harm to a living person, she was pretty sure he'd be the most likely candidate.
"Hinata Hyuuga."
Her head rose to meet his daunting look, fear etched right onto her face.
"You are supposed to be my salvation?" he scoffed skeptically. "I find that hard to believe."
She bit her bottom lip. "S…sorry…" Hinata didn't even know what she was apologizing for; it just came out of her lips on habit, but it was obvious by the irritated scowl he gave her that he did not appreciate her apology but found it annoying and quite unneeded.
He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "Let's go."
When she didn't move, a brow rose in mild displeasure.
"You're lost, aren't you?" It was more of an accusation than a question, but she bobbed her head in reply.
"Y-yeah…"
"Then follow me."
"O-oh," she mumbled, and then scrambled to her feet ungracefully, brushing off the dirt on her bottom and thighs before tagging along behind him. So, he did have a heart, right? Otherwise, why would he be nice to her and show her the way out? Unless he had another plan up his sleeve, but she shook her mind free of that cynical thought. She liked to see the good things in people instead of always accusing them of evil.
"Um. Thank you," she bowed low behind him; he couldn't see it of course, but she had done it anyway.
"I'm not doing this for you," he said, glancing back at her with cold eyes.
She had no idea what he meant by that; her mouth opened, about to ask, but seeing another harsh glare sent her way as if to say that she was an annoying, little kid, she closed it and tightened her lips uncomfortably. The walk was made in silence, with no attempt at a conversation on either part.
Hinata peered at his pack with curious eyes. Her mother always said that a man's back would tell his story, and by staring at his, she could see that his was a sad tale, full of anguish and grief by the way his shoulders were tense and his back was straight as a rigid pole. She wondered quietly how her back would look, but figured the trick worked on men and not women.
The quiet was unbearable, filled with awkwardness and strain. She wanted to say something, but what? Maybe she should ask for his name; after all, it was right since he was her savior, whether his intentions honorable or not.
"E…Excuse me," she started softly, increasing her speed so that she was at his pace and next to him.
"Move. You're too close."
That cut deeply, and she resumed her original position of several feet behind him.
At that point, she wasn't sure if she could even ask for his name; he didn't seem to like her very much, and now she didn't even want to know it considering his obnoxious behavior. Anyways, he probably wasn't going to give it to her, but she didn't have much time to contemplate this possibility because he looked back and scowled at her.
"What?" he snapped.
"W-what?" she repeated incredulously and with a little fear, not knowing why he had said that.
She saw him roll his eyes and clench his jaw tight as if to refrain from saying anything meaner; Hinata wasn't sure how that was possible because he had said every mean thing she could think of in the last ten minutes.
"What were you about to say?" he retorted. Even his attempt at continuing a conversation was nasty.
She replied softly as her she fiddled and twiddled with her fingers. "I was a-about to ask f-for your n-name…"
"Is that it?" he frowned. "It's Sasuke."
Score! So he did have some kindness in him after all. You wouldn't give your name to someone you hated, right? That was just a guess, because Hinata had never hated anyone in her entire life, so she didn't know exactly the details of how that relationship worked.
"N-nice to m-meet you, S-Sasuke," she greeted. "I'm H-Hinata."
"I know."
That was a little embarrassing. She always did have a knack at saying the wrong things at the wrong time, but it was unfortunate that the one she told it to happened to be a scary ghost.
After that, no one said a word. She linked her fingers behind her back and stared down at the ground as she walked, stepping on the crunch leaves with a small smile. It was a habit she always had, a sort of hobby that started when she was younger. Hearing the crackles of the leaves breaking under her foot had a peaceful tone to it.
"What are you doing?" he asked, provoked into saying something.
She jerked with surprised, a faint blush coloring her cheeks with slight humiliation. "N-nothing."
He snorted and she made a face of discomfiture, passing by leaves but refraining from crushing them. Peeking up at him, she noticed that he was reading the stones as they walked; she turned her head and read them along with him, but she didn't recognize any of the names. Her family believed in cremation and then scattering the remains across the sea, an honorable way to go, while the branch family had their funerals in the public cemetery like the one she was currently in, something the Hyuugas looked down upon.
"Do you k-know any of t-them?" she asked, reading yet another unfamiliar name.
"No," he answered.
Finally, they reached the gate; she sighed with relief, glad that was not going to be stuck there any moment longer. Sasuke stopped right before the entrance as she stepped past the invisible line, scanning the dark horizon. Hinata felt a little terrified of walking home alone, but she had done it before so she could do it again; she'd just hurry down the street. A flash of lightning flew across the sky; she'd have to be quick and beat the rain.
Turning around to thank him, he interrupted her, "You owe me."
He crossed his arms and leaned against the metal. "I got you out, so now you help me, got it?" he said.
All he wanted was her help in moving on? He sure had a funny way of asking, but nonetheless, it was her duty and her pleasure in doing so.
"O-okay," she nodded and waited for his instructions, gazing at him dead in the eye. She saw him shift uncomfortably under her gaze, not used to her sudden boost of confidence with a rather professional air, though she didn't stop twiddling with her thumb.
"…You gonna leave or what?" he asked.
She was taken aback by his words, confused. "I…I thought you w-wanted m-my help."
"And?"
"I-I'm waiting f-for you to e-explain what you want me to d-do."
He opened his mouth but then shut it, a dark look casting a shadow on his face. The atmosphere took a hard left turn and the weather just complimented it forbiddingly, what with dark clouds and the occasional thunder and strike of lightning.
"It's not that simple." Sasuke admitted and, for the first time, it was he who dropped his eyes to the floor and wouldn't meet her gaze.
"W-what do you m-mean?"
"I'll come find you tonight," he said, ignoring her question. "We'll talk then, got it?"
"O-okay," she agreed, and the air of security that once wrapped around her evaporated and Hinata was back to her shy and timid self. "T-thank you again," she added and then rushed down the street, almost tripping over her own two feet as she rounded the corner. She was indebted to him for his act of kindness, but that didn't mean she didn't find him to be any less menacing.
"Oh, dear," she muttered as she skidded to a halt, almost slamming face first into the stop sign. She shook her head, wet hair flying left and right; it had started pouring just as she had left Sasuke's company, and it wasn't even a light drizzle but a crazy thunderstorm that pounded against her frail body. Her clothes clung to her body like clingy leeches and the water made everything that much colder when the wind hit her. Hopefully, she wouldn't catch cold because tomorrow, she was supposed to visit Leaf Prison and give the letter to a Mr. Zabuza Momochi. That was not something she was looking forward to, but she did promise and she made it a point to honor her promises.
Finally, the Hyuuga Estates came into view. A crackle of thunder overhead caused her to scream and cover her head, ducking down but nothing happened; after that, she quickly made her way into the house, fumbling with her keys on the way. Slamming the door shut behind her, she locked it and leaned against the wood, sliding down with exhaustion.
"You're late."
Opening her eyes, she met the angry gaze of her father.
"And you're getting water all over the floor."
Slowly, she looked down at herself and saw the puddle below her she had made, feeling a lot like a leaky faucet. "I-I'm s-sorry, F-Father," she whispered. "I-I g-got l-lo—"
"I don't want to hear it," he barked quietly, turning away from her.
Her eyes watered up and she suppressed a hiccup.
"And clean up this mess."
"Y-yes, F-Father…"
"When you're done, I expect you in my office."
He wasn't always like that. She could remember a time when he actually smiled, but that time was long ago.
Getting up, she made her way up the stairs, water dripping every which way, making a little path that one could follow like breadcrumbs. Hinata always told herself not to take what her father said to heart; he wasn't in his right mind. Ever since her mother died, he just…changed. But, how could she ignore what he said? He was her dad, and what he said meant a lot to her; to have him approve of her meant everything.
At least he didn't ignore her, she supposed.
Opening her door, she stepped inside and stripped of her wet clothes, throwing it in the dirty laundry basket that was filling up rather quickly; she made a mental note to go and wash them later. After putting on some fresh, warm and dry articles, she got to work on cleaning up the untidiness she had caused, quietly and efficiently working.
Hinata liked putting her hands to work. Duties such as chores did not need any complicated thinking or thought process; it was all repetitive movements that anyone could do, even a useless girl like Hinata.
She cleaned the stairs because she didn't want anyone to trip, and she cleaned the floor that she stepped upon; eventually, she just cleaned the entire living room, figuring that she might as well, and then she cleaned the entrance to the door and the door itself. Everything was sparkly clean as Hinata sat up on her knees and stared at her work; not a drop of water or a speck of dust in sight. Surely her father would say something, right?
Now that she was done, Hinata threw the rag away and washed her hands, heading into her father's office like he had asked her to. Knocking on the door, she heard the familiar grunt and turned the knob, stepping inside meekly.
"H-hello, F-father," she greeted, closing it behind her. "I f-finished."
At his desk, his fingers were folded and his face was grave, not a good sign. The only times he ever had that position and expression was when he was thoroughly angry with her, like the time she received a B in English.
Her report card! Had he received it?
"Sit," he ordered.
She did as she was told, looking at this mahogany desk because she'd rather stare at it than see his disappointed and angry face.
Mr. Hyuuga took in a deep breath and tapped his fingers together. "You failed math, Hinata," he growled out. "And your other subjects are nothing to smile about."
"I-I'm s-"
"Don't interrupt!"
Her hands flew to her mouth and she cringed. Would he hit her?
"What are you doing in school these days? Are you or are you not paying attention to the teacher? Algebra II is not hard! What did you skip geometry for? To fail and make a mockery of the Hyuuga name? WELL?" His hands slammed down on hard wood, making a loud, cackling sound; she did everything she could not to scream and to remember that he wasn't in his right mind.
"I can't even look at you right now."
Tears were threatening to spill and her heart lurched. She had let down her father, again. When was she going to do something right? When was she going to do something he could be proud of?
"Upstairs. Now."
"Y-yes, s-sir."
"Don't speak; just go."
Hinata bit her bottom lip and nodded, walking out the door and up the stairs gradually, taking in the new information. He hadn't even told her the consequences, but already she was thinking of cruel methods of punishment she should be put through. It wasn't much to ask, getting A's in everything; she had done it before, so what was different now? Oh, right, the ghosts. But, she couldn't just stop helping them. They needed her.
She supposed she could just figure out some way to balance both.
Or...drop one - no, that wasn't going to happen. Though, if her grades kept dropping, she'd have to consider it.
Stepping into her room, she closed and locked the door, leaning against it with her eyes closed.
Mom, what do I do?
Well, first thing was first: wash up and get ready for bed. Hinata put the event behind her, willing herself to completely forget about it until the proper time had arrived for her to decide what to do and how to fix the trouble she had made for herself. Stepping into her private bathroom to wash her face clean, she splashed water onto her face, scrubbing off the dust that was probably there from when she was cleaning the living room. Looking up into her reflection, she saw a figure behind her with glowing eyes and screamed, falling to the ground.
"Boo." Sasuke rolled his eyes.
"S-Sasuke?" she squeaked with a shaky voice. "W-what are you d-doing h-here? Y-you…s-scared m-me…" Anyone would be terrified if they saw onyx eyes flashing a bloodlust red in the mirror.
"We had a deal, remember?" he sighed.
Oh, that was right, she promised to help him in return for leading her out of the graveyard. "Y-yes, I r-remember." She got up and turned off the faucet, noticing that her hands were still shaking. Taking in a deep breath to calm her speedy heart rate, she switched off the lights and grabbed the towel hanging on the rack and dabbed her face dirt-free.
"Nice place," he commented.
"T-thanks." Hinata sat on her big bed and stared at him expectantly. "H-how can I-I help you?"
His jaw tightened.
"S-Sasuke?"
He let out a breath he was holding and crossed his arms. "I'll be honest with you: I have no idea."
That wasn't right; surely he had some notion on how to pass onto the next realm.
"Do y-you want me t-to tell anything to your f-family? Or a l-loved one or your f-friends?"
"I…don't know…"
"Don't you h-have any r-regrets?"
"I don't know."
He kept saying that as if…
"What do you mean, you d-don't know?" she asked, puzzlement marring her pale face. She brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes and blinked at him, not at all afraid now that he wasn't glowering at her with hatred and aggravation.
"I can't remember anything." Sasuke confessed, an emotion other than irritation flashing through his eyes before her expertly repressed it.
"But, y-you told m-me your name," she pointed out.
"I can remember a few details, but that's about it," he corrected.
She didn't even know a ghost could get amnesia, but that was beside the point. How was she going to help him if he had nothing for her to work with? She voiced her question and he shook his head.
"That's not true." Sasuke took a seat on her floor rather than her chair; for one thing, he probably didn't have enough energy to pull it out. "I know my name, and I know my mother and father's name."
"S-so…what d-do you w-want me to d-do?" If he didn't know what it would take for him to move on peacefully, there was really nothing for her to do but leave him alone. There were other ghosts that needed her aid, and although it didn't sit well with her ditching him, what could so do?
"Help me," he replied, and he looked quite embarrassed about asking her for assistance, too, because his head tilted downward, cheeks a little flushed. It was obvious he didn't do it often; even when he couldn't remember anything, the habits and instincts were still there. "I need someone on the living world who has resources I can't reach."
"R-resources?"
"Yeah, books, the internet, rumors and gossips, people in general. I can eavesdrop but that's about it."
She allowed the idea to sink in. If she helped him by finding information, she could, at the same time, lend a hand to other ghosts, too, since his was a long term goal. Hinata dropped down on her bed, lying on her back as she stared up at the ceiling. She felt useful. Her only talent and only ghosts could appreciate her; why couldn't her father see this?
"And…since, it's more of a business contract, if you need me to do anything, I'll do it. We've got a deal, Hinata Hyuuga?"
He was still scary, but…
"Okay. It's a deal."
a/n :: You know, I always did have a hard time writing in Hinata's point of view. I'm just a lot better at Sasuke's, so sorry if this chapter was a little…weird. Maybe I'll pick up my own Hinata somewhere along the way (hopefully, soon).
Anyways, please be a dear and review, yeah?
Thanks for reading!
Signing off,