Chapter Three
"Man, what a drag," Shikamaru drawled. For the past thirty-five minutes, the group had been walking and had not run into any trouble.
"Quit your complaining Shikamaru," Genma said while grinning as he chewed on his needle.
"Hey Hina-chan, I meant to tell you that you look incredible," Shikamaru said while scratching the back of his head as he walked next to the kunoichi.
"Aww thanks Shika-kun," Hinata said as she smiled at him.
"Hinata-san, check to see if we got any company," Genma said.
"On it," she said as she held up two fingers in a seal and said quietly "Byakugan", the veins around her temples rising as they filled with chakra. She saw that a number of shinobi from Kumogakure were waiting for them in different areas.
"A multitude of Kumo ninjas surrounding us in different areas," Hinata said.
"How many?" Genma asked as he stopped the group as everyone tensed. "Sixteen, plus one who thought he could escape me with that camouflage jutsu," Hinata said as she prepared herself.
"Alright Shikamaru, what's the plan,"
Genma asked as he took out a kunai. "All I need is a distraction to catch a few of them in my shadow possession. The rest you can do whatever with," Shikamaru said.
"Alright people, you heard the man," Genma said. In no time, two Kumo ninjas came flying from the trees.
"Partial Expansion Jutsu!" Choji yelled as he raised his expanded arm and smacked them into a nearby tree. Hinata took off her gloves and slid them into her bag. Activating her byakugan, she raised her right arm as she went into the Gentle Fist stance as a number of Kumo shinobi surrounded them.
"Give us the Hyuga heiress and we will leave peacefully," a Kumo jonin yelled.
"Tch, what makes you think that'll happen?" Genma growled.
"Fine, then die by my hands!" he yelled as he raced towards Genma and the fight was on. Hinata found herself surrounded by five Kumo shinobi. "
Come with us and we'll give you a ride of your life," one of the ninjas said lecherously as he boldly ogled Hinata's breasts.
"As if!" Hinata said with a disgusted look on her face. They all charged her at one time.
"Heavenly Spin," Hinata called out as she started spinning, throwing two of them against a tree as they fell unconscious. One of the ninjas who managed to escape her attack started a chain of hand signs.
"I got to stop him before he finishes," Hinata thought to herself. She suddenly disappeared from the three Kumo ninjas' view. She appeared behind the Kumo ninja and hit him in his spine, effectively knocking him out and ending his ninja career at the same time.
"AAAHHH!" Choji yelled as a Kumo ninja stabbed him in his side, blood pouring out. "Choji!" Hinata yelled. Deactivating her byakugan, Hinata decided to end her battle with the two Kumo ninjas for good.
"I wasn't gonna use this just yet, but they've really forced my hand in this," Hinata thought to herself.
Sliding her black gloves back on her hands, Hinata asked
"So you guys want to play rough huh? Let me show you how rough I can play," a smirk gracing her face.
"What in the world is she up to?" both Genma and Shikamaru thought. Hinata cocked back her right fist and, focusing her chakra into her fist, slammed her fist into the ground, causing a massive earthquake as the ground split apart, causing the two Kumo ninjas to fall to the ground.
"S-She has Tsunade-sama's super strength," Genma stuttered out. Slamming her hands into the ground, Hinata picked up a large chunk of earth and raised it over the Kumo ninjas who were begging for mercy.
"Too late," Hinata said, scowling as she slammed the chunk into the two ninjas, ending their lives. The rest of the Kumo ninjas froze in fright at the girl's monstrous strength. Seeing the distraction he needed, Shikamaru yelled
"Genma, out of the way!" Snapping out of his shock, Genma leaped out of the way as Shikamaru made a hand sign and called out "
Shadow Possession Jutsu!" The remaining Kumo nin suddenly found themselves unable to move.
"Shadow Possession success," Shikamaru said as he walked out from the spot he was located at. Hinata quickly ran over to Choji, who was lying on the ground while holding his side as blood continued to seep out. Removing her gloves once more, Hinata said
"Hold still Choji." Her hands over his wound, Hinata focused her chakra and in a
couple of seconds, her hands glowed green as she started to heal Choji. Shikamaru and Genma watched her in amazement before turning their attention to the Kumo ninjas.
"Aside from the obvious, what was your real purpose for attacking us?" Genma demanded.
"Like we're going to tell you bastards," one of the Kumo ninjas spat.
"Fine, have it your way," Shikamaru said, shrugging his shoulders as he made a second hand sign and said "Shadow Stitching Jutsu". A shadow hand reached and stretched around the Kumo nin's body as it reached his throat.
"Either you tell us or you're dead," Shikamaru said.
"Never, I will die before I say anything to you Konoha scum," he sneered.
"What do you think Genma?" Shikamaru asked. Grinning while chewing on his needle, Genma replied
"Eh, get rid of this trash." Tightening his fingers, Shikamaru made the shadow hand around the ninja's throat tighten, strangling him. "Anyone else want to go down with him?" Genma asked casually before throwing a kunai behind him as it lodge in another Kumo ninja's head as he dropped dead. The rest shook their heads in fear.
"Good, now you will tell us the real reason," Genma said.
-Line Break-
After they got their information from the Kumo shinobi, Genma knocked the four ninjas out and tied them up. Thanks to Hinata, Choji was healed and ready to go.
"How you feeling buddy?" Shikamaru asked as he laid a hand on Choji's shoulder.
"Man, I feel great! I probably would've been a goner if it wasn't for Hinata-chan," Choji replied.
"Speaking of which," Genma said as he, Shikamaru, and Choji turned to face the kunoichi, who was sitting on a log with her legs crossed casually, giving them an eyeful of her magnificent legs,
"You want to explain what the hell just happened back there?" Hinata sighed before saying
"No one knows, but when I made chuunin the second time around two years ago, I went to Tsunade-sama and asked to be her apprentice."
"W-What?!" the three exclaimed.
"Yep, she accepted and she's been training me ever since."
"Well, that explains your super strength and medical ninjutsu," Genma surmised.
"Well Hina-chan, is there any more surprises up your sleeves?" Shikamaru asked as he put on a lazy grin.
"Yeah, but that's for me to know and you and the enemies to find out," she said as she returned the grin.
"Now that that's settled, we should pick up the pace," Genma said.
"Hai," Choji, Hinata, and Shikamaru said as they jumped into the trees. Two uneventful hours later, the group made it to the border between Konohagakure and Kirigakure. After showing their ninja ID's to the guard, the group passed on and headed into Water Country. Nearly an hour later, they arrived at the gates of Kirigakure, or the Village Hidden in the Mist.
"Halt, who goes there?" one of the guards asked. After giving their names and the purpose of the visit, the guard allowed them through the gates. As they passed through, they noticed a boy around their age standing a few feet away. He had short blue spiky hair with brown eyes behind square glasses. He wore a pale blue long sleeve shirt with blue and black camouflage pants with shinobi sandals. On his shirt was a holster that held up his large sword on his back. As they approached, the boy walked to them and asked
"You're the group from Konoha, am I correct?"
"That's right," Genma said.
"Come with me, Mei-sama has been expecting you. My name is Chojūrō, and I'll be your guide while you stay here." As he led them through the village, Shikamaru felt his eyes straying to Hinata's swaying hips as she walked in front of him. "
Bad Shikamaru, bad Shikamaru," he yelled in his head as he tried to get rid of his perverted thoughts involving her hips.
"Something wrong Shikamaru?" Choji asked.
"Eh? Oh, u-uh, nothing's wrong. Everything's okay," Shikamaru stuttered.
"….Ya know, you should tell her how you feel Shika," Choji said while wearing a sly grin on his face.
"B-B-Baka, what are you going on about?!" Shikamaru spluttered out.
"Don't pretend like you don't know what I'm talking about. I saw you taking sneak peeks at her." Shikamaru opened his mouth but quickly closed it when he realized he'd been caught red-handed. Turning a pale a pink, Shikamaru said nothing as they continued walking. The group was brought to the Mizukage Tower, where the Godaime Mizukage of Kiri, Mei Terumi, was waiting. Mei was unarguably one of the most beautiful and desired woman in the elemental nations and it wasn't hard to see why. At thirty years old, she was at the prime of her life. Standing at five foot seven, Mei had long auburn colored hair with half up in a ponytail while the rest hung loose. She had a bang
that covered her right eye, revealing one of her emerald green eyes. She wore a blue battle dress with mesh around her shoulders, revealing a decent amount of cleavage.
"Welcome to Kirigakure, Konoha shinobi, and I do hope you enjoy your stay," she said in a warm voice. The group, including Chojūrō, bowed to her as she said this.
"Please follow me to my conference room so we can discuss this." She led them to a large room that had a view of the village. As they sat down, she said
"Now, as I'm sure Tsunade-sama has told you, Sasuke Uchiha and his team have been spotted here."
"Right, but what we don't know is why he's here," Genma said as he casually chewed on his needle.
"Okay, what do you guys know about his team?" Shikamaru asked as his mind went into analytical mode.
"Nothing really except that he has a girl on his team who goes by the name of Karin who is a sensor specialist," Mei said.
-Line Break-
After discussing things with Mei, Genma let the three teenagers have the rest of the day off since the mission doesn't officially start until the next day.
"How about we get something to eat? I'm starving," Choji suggested as he rubbed his stomach.
"Sounds good to me," Hinata said. Shikamaru nodded his head and the three went in search of a restaurant. As they were walking, Shikamaru noticed that a lot of men were sending lustful gazes towards Hinata, who just ignored them. Shikamaru frowned and, in the most discreet way, walked closer to Hinata. They found an affordable restaurant that wasn't too far from Mei's mansion where they would be staying. Shikamaru ordered a plate of mackerel with miso and Hinata ordered a plate of cinnamon rolls with another plate of dangoes. Choji had five plates of different meats piled on each other.
"Have you been hanging around Anko?" Shikamaru asked as he watched Hinata tear into the dangoes. Swallowing the dangoes in her mouth, Hinata grinned as she replied
"….Maybe." As she was saying this, two guys approached their table. One of the guys was short, had messy black hair and plain brown eyes with an abnormally large nose. The taller guy was fair with blond hair held in a ponytail and dark green eyes. He would've been considered
good looking if it wasn't for his unusually bushy blond eyebrows.
"Hey there sexy, you should leave these two losers and get with us real men," the blond bragged. Shikamaru and Hinata stared at them for a few minutes before they resumed eating while Choji hadn't even stopped eating.
"Hey, don't ignore us, you dumb broad!" the shorter guy yelled.
"Hey you assholes, take a hike!" Shikamaru yelled back, growing agitated as a vein appeared on his forehead.
"Shut the hell up pineapple head!" the blond snapped as he went to grab Hinata by her shoulder. Hinata grabbed his hand and squeezed it hard, making the guy cry out in pain.
"It's really rude to disturb people while they're eating," she said quietly as people turned around to see what the commotion was about.
"You bitch, let him go right now!" the big-nosed friend yelled.
"I suggest you and your friend leave before things get sticky," Hinata said, her voice laced with venom.
"O-Okay! I-I'm sorry, we'll never bother you again, just let me go!" the guy pleaded as his voice went up two octaves. As soon as she released him, the blond boy dragged his friend out of the restaurant.
"Dumbasses," Shikamaru muttered as he scowled at the thought of the two morons laying a finger on his Hinata.
"Wait, what? Where did that come from?" He thought.
"Who were those guys anyways?" Choji asked as he finished the last of his meal, making the two other teens sweat drop. After finishing and paying for their meals, the Hina-Shika-Cho trio wandered around the village, occasionally picking up souvenirs. Later that evening inside the Mizukage mansion, as Hinata was getting ready for bed, she saw something outside her window that caught her attention. Looking out the window, she saw Shikamaru having a late night spar with Choji and Genma. He only wore the fishnet shirt that he wore under his black turtleneck. Hinata felt the familiar blush on her cheeks and a warm feeling pooled right in between her legs. Blushing further, Hinata slipped into the warm bed and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she was instantly asleep.
