Underlined speech is thought.
Italicized speech signifies emphasis put on words or a change in tone. You should be able to figure it out from the choice of words and the character.
CAPITALIZED SPEECH IS YELLING.
These are … interruptions in …speech caused … by things …like laughing,…crying, thought,.. and…others.
Words-with-dashes-between-them-consistently-signify-when-a-character-is-talking-too-fast-to-understand.
Bold words are author notes.
I may …create-something.. improvised-by- … combining-the.. above.
(Previously on "The Ultimate Shinobi." Hinata Hyuga began her recollection of the past three days. She first went to the training ground of her team only to find that everyone is on a mission. She returned home, trained, slept, ate, bathed, and slept some more. The next day, she took a walk in the village and wound up in Ichiraku. After some food and embarrassment, she went to the western gate only to see a sight that brought her to tears.)
Finally, the chapter I have been waiting to release. I changed the rating to M because of some details in this chapter and some other planed details.
Off in the far distance was a light-brown haired mid-sized dog wearing a simple blue coat and a Konoha forehead protector like a collar. The troubling part of it was the person that was draped over that dog, one of his legs and arms on each side of the canine's body. He was one of the people she knew to be on the same mission as Naruto, Choji Akimichi. He had slightly spiky light-brown hair, a green jacket, and a thin red spiral on each of his cheeks.
The thing about him that caused Hinata such worry was the fact that the usually plump boy was now not just thin, but anorexic. Hinata knew of only one thing that could do this to an Akimichi, the consumption of all three of the Akimichi food pills. The Hyuga knew that it would take someone stronger than the average Konoha chunin to force Choji to use them all because using them usually ends in death.
She continued to stare at him wide eyed as the dog rushed past her, obviously heading for the hospital in an effort to save the young Akimichi's life.
Thirty minutes passed making the time 13:00. At this time, she saw yet another figure in the distance. Even though she was dreading what she would see, Hinata activated her Byakugan so she could get a closer look. What she saw caused a constant trail of tears to stream down her cheeks instead of just one tear.
Riding on the back of what looked like a very large brown bull dog wearing the same cloths as the other one was her cousin, Neji Hyuga. His long brown hair was not tied like it usually was, allowing it to be splayed over his back. His headband was missing revealing the Caged Bird Seal placed upon his forehead like all of the other Hyuga Branch Family Members. His usually white shirt was now colored mostly brownish-red with dried blood. When the wind moved his hair out of the way, she could see a torn circle of cloth with blood that was still drying around it. She could see that the tear was caused by something passing straight through his shoulder. Around the hole, Hinata could that the skin was torn outwards. She could only watch in horror as he and the dog passed her by. Part of her wanted to follow but the stronger part was too worried about her crush to go anywhere.
She sat on the bench facing the gate. Eight agonizing hours passed as her worry escalated to such a point that its existence snuffed out every other feeling including the physical ones. She was completely immobile that entire time, even blinking rarely. Her left hand was fisted in front of her face with her right hand on it as she stared out the gate pleading, praying for the team's survival.
Once she saw yet another figure on the night's horizon, she hesitantly scanned ahead. This time she felt more surprised by what she saw than anything else. The one figure became two with a closer look. The one to her left looked like an oversized puppet. It had a barrel shaped body, six slender arms, two even thinner legs, and a cylindrical head with brown hair, two red horns, and three yellow eyes in a triangle pattern.
The puppet was connected to the other figure by five thin chakra strings. His clothes were completely black excluding a circle in the center that was half purple, half yellow. They were pajama style, covering every part of his body except his face and his hand, which had ninja gloves that revealed only his fingertips. His face was covered in thick simple purple markings that would be intimidating if it weren't for the color.
Hinata recognized him as Kankuro, one of the teammates of Gaara, a boy her age that has given her a very fair share of nightmares. She wondered if it would be a good idea to stay in case the other Suna shinobi showed up.
Using the Byakugan's ability to see through solid object, she gives the puppet a closer look. Instantly, she charged forward to intercept approaching Suna ninja. The puppet user stopped, seeing the dark haired girl coming for him.
After getting close enough, she spoke for the first time in hours. "Let them go!"
She got no reaction other than a muffled voice coming out of the puppet. "HINATA-CHAN, IS THAT YOU! GET ME OUT OF THIS THING!"
"Why are Kiba-kun and Akamaru-chan trapped inside your puppet?"
"Oh, Black Ant? He was made for capture and transport, so I used him to transport your friend."
"YOU KILLED THAT GUY IN HERE!"
"What, I made sure to clean it out in the river."
"IT STILL REAKS OF BLOOD IN HERE!"
"Oh, if that is the problem than here." With a flick of his finger, the puppet specialist opened the upper portion of the puppet's body. Inside was the head of boy with spiky brown hair, dark slit eyes, and two large red fang marks on each of his cheeks.
He turned towards his female teammate with tears running out of his eyes melodramatically. "Please Hinata-chan, get me out of here."
"Shut-it dog boy." The annoyed tone could not be missed. Waving the Hyuga goodbye, the Suna shinobi ran ahead on his way to the hospital. His puppet was still half open, revealing an embarrassed Kiba to anyone who looked.
A quarter hour passed as another pair came through the gate. One was an annoyed looking Shikamaru. One of his pinky fingers was in a simple splint. The other was a fairly older girl with a serious face and sandy blond hair tied in four short spiky ponytails. Tied to her back was a way oversized fan. This allowed Hinata to easily identify her as Gaara's other teammate.
The pair noticed the pale lavender eyed girl and approached her. The blond raised her right hand in a questioning pose. "What is a little girl like you doing out here at a time like this?"
Wanting to skip as much time consuming conversation a possibly, Shikamaru spoke up. "Naruto went ahead of me to continue the chase after Sasuke and the last opponent. More than likely, Gaara showed up to help him like Temari did for me."
The first sentence made her blush noticeably but the second made an identifiable expression of worry appear upon her face. Her only clear memory of Gaara was when he was killing three practically defenseless ninja.
Having an IQ second only to Shikamaru's, Temari was able to quickly deduce the connections and implications of that short interaction. "Don't worry about your little boyfriend. Gaara owes a lot to the kid. He would give his life for Naruto without a second of hesitation."
The young Hyuga's face went from porcelain to bright red in an instant. "Na-Na-Na-Naruto i-i-isn't m-m-my b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-boyfriend."
Temari smirked playfully. "You want him to be your boyfriend, don't you?" Hinata looked down at the ground wordlessly, which the Suna shinobi recognized as a yes. "Well anyways, I have to get this baka genius to the hospital so he can get his finger properly looked at."
Shikamaru watched the entire scene with a bored expression. "Women are troublesome."
As the pair left, the dark haired girl made her way to the same bench as before. With the time now being 21:30, she saw two more people heading towards the village. When they came into view, it shocked her to find that Naruto was not among them. Taking his place was the one she knew to be Rock Lee. "Why is Lee-san on this mission?"
The other person, she was expecting. His clothes were well suited to desert climate and were made of an assortment of dirt colors, the most prominent being red. The features that set him apart were his spiky red hair, the thick black outlines around each of his teal colored eyes, the symbol on the left side of his forehead, and the oversized gourd on his back. Seeing him, Hinata relived the time when she saw him kill those three men ruthlessly.
The recollection did not last long as Lee snapped her out of it. "Hinata-san, what are you doing here?"
The shy Hyuga merely looked at the ground and stammered words that couldn't be understood.
Lee was able to figure Hinata's feelings for the blond out form the incident at the preliminary exams and therefore figured out what to say. "Naruto-kun had to go ahead to chase after Sasuke who ran off."
"Oh, o-okay."
Lee leaned towards Gaara and cupped his mouth so to aim the sound away from Hinata. "The flames of her youth appear to have diminished."
Gaara looked at the Taijutsu specialist with his fierce yet calm gaze. "Lee, are you in well enough condition to get to the hospital on your own?"
Lee leaned back to a vertical position and tilted his head in confusion. "Hai, why do you ask Gaara-kun?"
"I desire to remain here and wait for Naruto's return." His voice was as monotone as ever but held an underlining respect.
Inspired by the Suna shinobi's devotion to his friend, Lee went into a rant hardwired into his behavior thanks to his sensei. "Gaara-kun, the fires of your youth will act like a beacon leading our youthful friend safely back." Theatrical tears were running down his face.
Gaara decided to say some more after hearing his now least favorite word. "Additionally, I feel as if I am going to kill the next person I here say the word youth."
Lee laughed nervously then left without a word. With the loss of the loud annoyance, the red headed Suna shinobi walked over to the bench where the heavily worried and slightly scared Hyuga stood. Her arms were in front of herself in her classic protective posture. As soon as Gaara reached her voice range, Hinata spoke. "W-w-were y-you s-serious about th-that thr-threat?"
Gaara stopped walking as soon as he reached the bench. "No, but it got him to leave."
Hinata was caught completely of guard from the comment. Gaara was the first to sit down but after some time, Hinata did the same making sure to put as much distance between him and her. One could cut the tension in the air between them with a knife. Gaara could once again feel the familiar feeling of fear coming off of Hinata. "Do not worry. I would never harm anyone who holds Naruto in such high regard."
Hinata looked at her lap blushing madly. "Is it really that easy to see?" Only a short amount of time passed before she looked over to Gaara with an inquisitive gaze, deciding that it was safe to ask a question that was bugging her. "Ano, y-your teammate T-Temari, sh-she said that y-you owe N-Naruto-kun a lot. W-what did she m-mean?"
Gaara's usually blank eyes began to quiver with admiration. "After Sasuke gave me my first wound I fell into a semi-unconscious state. When I came to, I noticed that Temari was carrying me through a thick forest. When Sasuke reached us, I knocked her away as she tried to convince me to stop. He managed to injure me once more, despite the fact that I was using a power that I have killed jonin with. At this time, Naruto and his pink haired teammate showed up. Using my sand, I attached the girl to a tree because she got in my way. I then told Naruto that if I was not defeated, the sand would eventually crush her. I fought him with all the power I possessed and he fought me with all that he possessed, possibly even more. In the end, I was on my back with hardly enough energy to turn my head. When I did, I saw Naruto dragging himself to me using only his shoulders and chin. For the first time in my life, I was scared of the possibility of death. I screamed at him to stay away, that I will not allow my existence to be wiped out. He stopped halfway, looked up at me, started crying, and truly spoke to me.
Gaara's eyes continued to shine with admiration and the Hyuga looked wide-eyed at him, enthralled by the story about the one she felt strongest about. "Until the day I die, I will remember the words he spoke to me." I know it isn't word for word but I am going by memory people. "It's unbearable, isn't it, the pain of being all alone. I lived in that same darkness, and for a time, I could feel it taking me over. But then I met my precious people; Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, Sakura-chan, and even Sasuke-teme. They became my friends. They truly cared for me. They saved me from that lonely pit of darkness. That is why I will never let you hurt them. I will stop you, even if I have to kill you."
Gaara's expression actually changed to a solemn one. "I always fought for myself. I always believed that made me strong. Yet he fought for his friends and he was stronger. Love is what made him strong. For this same reason, I believe you can be strong. Naruto is someone worth living your life for. Do so, and you could be truly strong."
Hinata could not help but to keep staring at the story teller as she was affected by multiple emotions. Seeing the amount of change Naruto was able to cause in a person like Gaara made her hold him in even higher reverence. She felt embarrassed from the mentioning of her feelings, but it was completely replaced by awe. Gaara, one of the most powerful people she knew believed that she could be strong. "Arigato Gaara-kun."
Although he did not show it, Gaara was happy to hear that honorific as it signified that she was no longer afraid of him. Meanwhile, Hinata was rehearing what the Suna shinobi said to her in her head. "He said love. Is it possible? CanI love Naruto-kun? I have liked him for years but love. That is such a strong word. Are my feelings strong enough to be worthy of it?"
Time continued to pass by in a painfully slow manner. Repeated Byakugan scans along with the lack of dinner began to take their toll. One time, Hinata nearly fell upon Gaara's lap, only to be caught by a surprisingly soft cloud of sand. She bolted up in surprise. "G-g-gomen." The sand user just continued to stare towards the gate opening with an emotionless expression.
It was now 23:00. Hinata could barely keep her pale lavender eyes open. Gaara, who can't remember being able to sleep soundly, remained unblinking. An orange speck made itself visible on the night horizon. Forcing her eyes open once again, she was able to notice the approaching figure. Using what little extra chakra she had left, the Hyuga scanned ahead to see her worst fear come to life.
The orange speck was indeed the orange jumpsuit worn by none other than Naruto Uzumaki. Although there seamed to be no wound, the upper left side of the outfit was soaked in blood. Two clear tears could be seen. The blond was unconscious and being carried by his sensei, Kakashi Hatake. He was dressed like most jonin with the addition of a dark blue face mask and his headband covering his left eye. The only other defining feature was his near vertical silver hair. "N-Naruto-kun... he's hurt."
Gaara stood up and walked forward as a stream of sand flowed out of his oversized gourd to form a flat cloud of sand.
When the jonin arrived, he saw the two young shinobi, one standing by a cloud of sand, the other sitting on a bench with tears in her eyes. He quickly pieced together what the sand was for and placed the comatose blond on the flat soft surface. Not wasting any time, he and the sand wielder ran as fast as possible towards Konoha Hospital, the sand gliding gently in tow.
Hinata noticed their departure. Hastily, she stood up and made chase. "Please be okay Naruto-kun." They raced through the rooftops, not wasting a single possible instant as they headed for their destination.
Upon arrival, the pair's entrance caused quite a commotion. Gaara directed his cloud of sand to float over the nearest stretcher, which was being pushed by a man who stopped moving because of the sight. The cloud lowered Naruto onto the stretcher and dissipated. The man would have complained about who was placed upon the stretcher if it wasn't for the glare from both the jonin and the sand user.
Hinata entered just in time to see which hallway Naruto was being taken down. The trio followed until being stopped by one of the nurses. "Gomen, you two cannot go in." She was pointing at the younger shinobi.
The silver haired jonin eye smiled while looking back at the younger pair. "Don't worry. Should the need arise, I will keep both eyes on him."
Gaara simply nodded, maintaining his emotionless expression. Hinata looked towards the ground and muttered her response. "H-hai." Gaara turned around and made his way to a waiting area and stood beside one of the brown leather couches. Hinata followed and sat at the same couch Gaara stood beside. Hardly a few seconds passed as she placed her head on the couches arm and brought her legs up to rest on the remainder of the furniture. The day's events caught up with her, causing a state of deep sleep.
Another of the hospital's staff approached them with the full intention of making the pair leave. The large brown haired man couldn't say anything to the pair before a burst of the sleep deprived red head's focused killer intent scared the man into silence and made him wet his pants. He walked off without a word. Undisturbed, the obviously dreaming Hyuga mumbled in her sleep. "Naruto-kun ...I love you."
In the silence of the room, these words were as clear as the air itself to the trained shinobi's ears. A slight grin graced his normally stoic face. "Naruto, love is and shall always be your greatest power."
I really liked this chapter. I hope you did.