I do not own Naruto...
As they hurried out, Ino couldn't help but notice that Hinata was actually losing a lot of blood. 'Oh, this is not good,' she thought. "Chouji, we've got to move as fast as we can!"
Recap:
Looking out of the window, Hinata heaved a sigh, "What if I don't make it through childbirth? What if something happens along the way and I… die?"
"You have been thinking too much, my friend." Ino said simply while Chouji nodded in agreement.
"Giving birth is easy." Ino continued. "It's like… umm… like trying to push a really hard stool out."
"Yeah, make that a boulder," added an amused Chouji. "The hard stool was what she said the last time… before she went into labour." Turning to face Ino, he added, "But when the time came, you were shouting your lungs out saying that you're surely going to die, didn't you? And you were going to strangle me to compensate what you had to go through," he related before chuckling uncontrollably.
"That is sooo not funny, man," Ino hissed and gave him a deadly stare before adding, "Don't let him scare you, Hinata. It's not as frightening as…"
"Aaargg," Hinata gasped with her head bowed and shoulders hunched while clasping her stomach with her hands.
"Hinata! Are you okay?" Ino cried before immediately standing up and reaching out to hold Hinata's arm.
Hinata couldn't answer. The pain was overwhelming. She closed her eyes and could only try to take deep breaths.
A few seconds passed before Ino, looking ever so worried, asked again, "Hinata, how are you… are you in a lot of pain… is this a contraction… did the baby kick you… how are you feeling right now…?"
"Ino, stop asking Hinata so many questions at one time." Chouji uttered as he stood up. "Let her breathe." Looking down at the Hyuga lady, he offered, "Are you okay, Hinata?"
A few more seconds passed before Hinata nodded and emitted, "I'm sorry, guys. I… I get this a lot lately except that… it was more painful just now."
"Did the baby kick?" Ino asked, concern showing all over her face.
Nodding her head, Hinata claimed, "I guess it did kick. There was this, this… this pain in the abdomen that came after. I don't even know if that was a contraction. It could be… but I think... that could just be a false alarm. I've been experiencing this sort of discomfort since a month ago."
"You might just be hungry." Chouji remarked. "Maybe you should eat something. You haven't touched your food."
"Chouji!" Ino shouted. "Hinata didn't cringe in pain because she was hungry! That has got nothing to do with food!"
"Oh…"
"It's okay Ino. I'm fine now. Maybe… maybe, I really am hungry, Hinata tried to reason.
"Are you sure, Hinata?" Ino coaxed worryingly before returning to her seat.
"Yes, I'm fine," Hinata gave a weak smile before gingerly reaching for a rice ball. She was genuinely worried.
%%%
Anko walked casually into the Hokage's office with some tea and steamed buns in a tray. "Refreshments, people," she drawled before placing the said items onto a small table in the corner.
"Oh, great!" Naruto cried. "I guess we should really take a break now."
Upon noticing Anko, Kakashi immediately pushed his infamous book into his pocket. He straightened up before walking over to the daunting lady. "It's so nice of you to bring us food, Anko-chan. I had a feeling the Hokage was going to starve us again today, you know?" he said with a smile playing behind his mask.
"Hey, didn't we have ramen in Ayame's for lunch yesterday?" Naruto defended before taking a big bite off the bun in his hand.
"We sure did," Yamato related. "… and the day before yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that too." Sighing, he lifted four fingers, "Four days in a row!"
Anko scoffed before looking around asking, "Came out with anything yet?"
"Not yet…" complained Sai. "And I had to do the drawings twice yesterday because Shikamaru said that I might have accidentally left out some vital spots. He also said that I might have mistaken the width of the river flowing north of Konoha."
"I didn't say that you might have miscalculated, Sai." Shikamaru countered with a sigh. "I only wanted to be positively sure about the measurements. A thirty feet difference could mean a lot in the costs of building a bridge. And that will also decide on whether or not we would need a simple bridge, which Yamato could easily put together or a concrete one that will cost a lot more, you know?"
Hearing this, Sai only shrugged before reaching for a bun.
"So, were the measurements correct?" Anko asked.
"There were no mistakes in his calculations," Shino stated as-a-matter-of-factly. "Sai and I flew on his picture-eagle around the place yesterday while he did his illustrations. Everything was most precise."
"You know, I never would have doubted Sai's drawings in the first place," Naruto commented. "He is still the best when it comes to depictions and precisions…"
"Then why didn't you say anything yesterday, Naruto?" Shikamaru countered, obviously irritated.
"I did!" Naruto defended.
"Yes, he did, Shikamaru," Kakashi offered offhandedly. "But you weren't paying attention. Your mind was… may I say, preoccupied?"
"If I might add, I think from his actions or… inactions today, his mind might still be as preoccupied," Yamato emitted.
Sighing in defeat, Shikamaru muttered, "Sorry, Sai."
"So, what's up with you, Shikamaru?" Naruto questioned innocently.
"Has Hinata been keeping you busy these nights?" Kakashi quizzed, followed by a wink with his exposed eye.
"I know... It must be those pregnancy-related things." Sai insisted. "I know I had a hard time when Sakura was pregnant. She was like a time bomb about to explode anytime. One minute she's fine and the next, boom! That was when I learnt fear." He shuddered at the thought. "Never, never annoy a pregnant woman."
"I do not believe Hinata could be difficult, Sai," Shino quickly defended.
"Yeah," Anko offered. "She's just the sweetest girl I've ever met. Not one with a temper at all."
"Then, what's bothering you?" Naruto asked again.
"It's…" Shikamaru gave yet another sigh. "... it's nothing."
%%%
The door bell rang a second time that day.
"Who could that be?" Hinata asked.
"I'll get the door, Hinata." Ino almost jumped up from her chair. "You just sit down for now."
As she opened the door, an enthusiastic Kiba uttered, "Hinata!" This was followed by a loud bark, complimentary to his canine friend, Akamaru.
"Do I look like Hinata to you, Kiba?" Ino taunted, although on the inside, she wouldn't have minded the mistake at all since Hinata is in fact, really beautiful.
"Oh, sorry Ino, I didn't know Hinata was having guests today," Kiba said with a toothful grin while scratching the back of his head. "I just came back from a mission this morning. Met Shikamaru in the tower and he wanted me to drop by to see her. Plus… I brought rice with grilled beef!" He lifted a small basket to show his treat.
"Well, well… you do proof to be useful sometimes," Ino remarked. "Actually, Chouji and I…"
"Ino!" Chouji shouted from the kitchen. "Come quick!"
Both Ino and Kiba were in the kitchen in an instant. Akamaru trailed closely behind. With a gasp, Ino ran over to Chouji who was holding the arms of a hunched Hinata. Small streams of blood were steadily flowing down Hinata's legs.
"Oh God, she's bleeding, Chouji," Ino panicked.
"What?" Kiba cried. Akamaru started whining softly.
Upon hearing their voices, Hinata slowly looked up. "Ki… Kiba…," she breathed.
"We've got to get her to the hospital quick," demanded Ino.
Without hesitation, Chouji funneled chakra into his hands to enlarge them. He then picked Hinata up effortlessly yet carefully before moving out of the house. Hinata could only feebly hold on to his shirt.
As they hurried out, Ino couldn't help but notice that Hinata was actually losing a lot of blood. 'Oh, this is not good,' she thought. "Chouji, we've got to move as fast as we can!"
"I know," Chouji answered as he struggled to run as quickly as he could without endangering Hinata. Ino, Kiba and Akamaru ran alongside.
"Shi-Shika…" Hinata struggled amidst the chaos.
"We've got to get Shikamaru!" Chouji related.
"I'll go get him," Kiba offered before he swiftly hopped onto Akamaru's back. "We'll meet you guys in the hospital."
Sparing a concerned glance at Hinata, the Inuzuka hoped that his gaze could convey his worries for his teammate. Immediately after, Akamaru, with Kiba on his back, sprinted towards the Hokage's tower, leaving Chouji and Ino running as fast as they could.
%%%
"Then we'll surely need a concrete bridge here," Shikamaru addressed, one finger pointing to a spot in the drawing. "Apart from that, we'll also need to station some men to oversee the interchange."
"That wouldn't be a problem," Kakashi offered. "Now that so many young people are eager to be shinobi… courtesy to our hero, the great Uzumaki Hokage…" he amusedly nodded his head towards Naruto, "…we'll be flooded with recruits."
"Thanks, Kakashi," Naruto chaffed, unsure of whether to take the statement as a compliment or otherwise.
"And I can put up a watch tower over here and… here!" Yamato offered enthusiastically.
"These two roads here will need to be closed though," Shikamaru continued.
"Why is that so?" Naruto asked confusedly.
"Well…" Shikamaru started. "See these spots here… these are enormous villages. If we do not seal these roads, then we might be inviting a big influx of people from here," he pointed to a small spot on the drawing.
"Well, wasn't that our main objective?" Naruto countered.
"Yes, it is, Naruto," Shikamaru sighed. "But we have to channel the people to this road over here for easier control and…"
"Bark! Bark! Bark!"
Everybody looked up as the door to the Hokage's office opened with a bang, revealing a panic-stricken Kiba.
"So it is true... the bark always precedes the owner." Sai emitted tactlessly while Kiba panted for breath.
"What is wrong, Kiba?" Shino questioned with furrowed eyebrows. All those years of working together have given him access to Kiba's behaviour. This time, he could feel the Inuzuka's apprehensiveness.
"It's Hinata!" Kiba uttered. Turning towards the Nara, he said, "She was bleeding. Chouji and Ino are bringing her to the hospital now."
"What?" Naruto shouted. He turned to face Shikamaru but couldn't find him around anymore. Unsurprisingly, the Nara had already left through the window.
"Well, I never thought that the shadow could also move as fast as lightning…" Kakashi stated while the occupants in the Hokage's office exchange worried looks.
