Role Reversal
Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I hope that you all enjoy this chapter.
Chapter Notation: The description of the Hyuga and Uchiha fighting styles is "head cannon." I could be wrong, but I don't think the Hyugas and Uchiha fighting styles were ever really compared much in the series. So this may or may not line up with cannon, but I do believe it makes sense.
Chapter 4
CRACK! As soon as Orochimaru and Kabuto were gone, Hinata does something that Sasuke never would have expected. She snaps a whip at him. Where she had been hiding that was anyone's guess, but he digressed.
He knew that she'd likely be angry that he was there with her now. Sasuke just never expected her to actually attack him. Fortunately, he mostly managed to dodge.
"Hinata!" He cries out in shock as he hisses in pain.
The whip had slashed against his right arm. He could still feel the sting of it and there was now a thin line of blood welling up. She wasn't playing around. If he hadn't have dodged, Sasuke Uchiha knew that he would've been in a world of pain.
"That was a warning. Sasuke, I don't want to have to hurt you, but I will. I will if you stand in my way of doing what has to be done. You saw what happened that day. You saw their bodies. Can you honestly tell me that that man deserves to live?!" She half snarls at him.
"Good because I don't want to have to hurt you either, but I will. If I have to drag you back kicking and screaming, that's' what I'll do. You're right, Hinata. I was there. I saw what Neji is capable of. That's why you should come back to the Leaf. We're a strong village. We CAN help you rid the world of that butcher." Saske says.
There had to be a way to make her understand. There just had to be. She was still Hinata. If he looked hard enough, maybe she'd listen. Somewhere deep down, the lavender eyed woman was still that girl who had knitted him and Naruto those scarves.
"Hey, Hinata. What you got there?" Naruto asked brightly, one day at the Academy.
They were all around ten or so. Unfortunately, that was when it first started to happen. Sasuke was now discovering that every single girl in his class who wasn't named Hinata was completely and utterly insane. With that in mind, he quickly darted over to Naruto.
Sometimes, they left him alone when he did that. Sometimes. It was better than not at all. Though lately, he had begun to worry about Hinata's safety.
"Oh I made you and Sasuke a scarf. It's cold o-utside." The bluenette stammered out.
For some strange reason, these girls had decided that they liked him or worse that they were madly in love with him. Not Hinata though. Hinata wasn't borderline psychotic like them.
She was still the same girl that he and Naruto practiced throwing kunais with. That's what worried him. The other girls were starting to give her dirty looks. It was as if they were actually demented enough to think that Hinata had "stolen" him from them or something crazy like that!
"Really? That was really nice of you, Hinata!" The blonde said excitedly as he put on his orange scarf.
Orange. Yuck. Sasuke really didn't understand Naruto's obsession with orange. Didn't he know that it clashed horribly with his hair? Did the loser truly have no sense of style?
It was a nice scarf though. Hinata was apparently a very good knitter. He couldn't find any fault with the actual craftsmanship. Sasuke just detested the color orange.
"I'm glad you l-ike it. I got you one too, Sasuke." She said with a smile as she handed him a red scarf.
Ah red. A respectable color! That was better! Much better! Well at least Hinata knew what he liked and what he didn't like.
Not like these other girls. They kept giving him chocolate and sweets. He hated sweets, but they didn't seem to realize that. They weren't even smart stalkers.
"Thank you, Hinata." He told her with a smile.
Maybe, he'd actually survive the Academy. He had two good friends. That was all he needed. Eventually, the other girls would girl up.
They had to, right? It wasn't like they were going to stalk him for the rest of his life. With that thought in mind, Sasuke places the scarf around his neck and smiles. If nothing else, it would protect him from the cold. (Too bad, it probably wouldn't work on his admirers though)!
"Sasuke, I'm not a little girl anymore. I don't need you and Naruto to be my Knights, anymore. I can fight my own battles. I HAVE to do this on my own. You should go home." Hinata tells him.
Sasuke winces. That one hurt. It wasn't like he was trying to treat her like some fragile princess who couldn't handle herself. He just wanted to get her as far away from Orochimaru as humanly possible.
"I know that, Hinata. Believe me, I'm likely going to have the scar to prove it." Sasuke whispers as he gingerly looks down at his arm.
He was bleeding, but it was largely superficial. It could have been much worse and he was pretty sure that they both knew that. Still that didn't mean that Sasuke wasn't willing to play the Guilt Card, if he had to.
"I am sorry about that. You really shouldn't let me beat you up though." Hinata says.
"Hinata, I wasn't letting you do anything. I tried to dodge that. I just didn't manage it. You're…fast. Really, fast. Neji won't know what hit him. Come on. Let's get you home." He says.
Hinata shakes her head and Sasuke wanted to groan in frustration. Things had been a lot easier when she just went along with whatever he and Naruto said. Of all the times to develop an independent streak, she chosen now!
It was ironic, really. For years, he had tried to encourage her to just say and do whatever she wanted. He'd told her that she didn't need to worry about pleasing anyone and now, Hinata was finally following his advice. Just not in the way that he ever expected her to or liked.
"Thank you, but you don't belong here. Sasuke, go home. Go home to your family. Treasure the time you have with them. I'd give anything to have the chance to see my father, my sister, and the rest of my family again." The ninja whispers.
"You still have family in the Leaf. You still have me and Naruto." He tells her.
At this point, Sasuke was seriously considering trying grab her and Flickering off. He couldn't get her all the way to the Leaf on a Flicker, but he could get her far enough away from the Sound that she wouldn't necessarily know where she was.
It was a tempting idea. Though that meant he'd have to actually get a gripe on her. That meant that Sasuke would have to move to within her striking range. She could lock up his chakra again. Was it worth the risk?
Meanwhile Orochimaru smirks. Things were going even better than he could have hoped. Sasuke had walked right into the Sound as soon as Kabuto mentioned Hinata.
"It's a shame that she wasn't a bit older when you found her. This could have been such an interesting experiment in regards to merging the bloodlines." Kabuto says.
"Yes, it is. Well still having an Uchiha be my second Vessel is quite the nice find." Orochimaru reasons.
Kabuto nods. Orochimaru knew that the other man would understand. He always did. The medic was by far his most faithful servant.
The Sannin loved to find talented young ninjas and train them. It was an excellent way to ensure loyalty. Sadly, that hadn't been the case with Hinata. She was still being difficult.
"Do you think that having Sasuke here will help with her stress levels?" Kabuto asks.
"It might in the long run. In the short run, I expect that they'll increase. That's alright though. As long as they don't become debilitating, we can overlook that." The snake lover observes.
Young love was sweet. It was almost a pity that he was going to take her body, even Orochimaru wasn't immune to a good love story. Friends didn't enter Criminal Ninja Villages for each other. This was at a minimum a case of puppy love and perhaps more.
He hadn't been lying when he said that it was a shame. Truly, it was. Orochimaru would have very much liked to see what would have happened if the bloodlines were mixed. Tragically, there simply wasn't time.
"Of course. What are your orders?" Kabuto asks.
"For now, treat Hinata as we usually do. Inform everyone that Sasuke is to be considered my guest. If anything happens to him, there will be consequences. I don't want a single hair harmed on my second Vessel's head." The Sannin replies.
"Understood. I'll go and make certain that everyone is aware of the new situation." The silver haired medic assures him as he flits off.
Good. Good. Everything was going according to plan. Actually, everything was going far better than he had ever dreamed it would. Things were certainly looking up.
Not only did he have a Hyuga as his next Vessel, he had an Uchiha as the one after that. Few things could be better than that. He'd possess two of the strongest bloodlines in the Ninja World!
"It's all just a matter of time, now." He whispers to himself.
His dreams were all within reach. It was ironic. Puppy love might actually be the key to immortality. Who would have thought that?
All these years, he had spent trying to discover the secret and it might have been staring him in the face the entire time. That was such a cruel and beautiful irony. It was rather poetic in a strange way, really.
Back in the Leaf Village, Itachi frowns as he discovers Sasuke's note. It didn't make any sense to him. Why would he have to leave so suddenly?
"I'm going to speak to the Hokage about this." He mutters.
When would Sasuke have had time to get assigned a mission. The only logical explanation was that Tsunade must have sent a messenger hawk.
With that in mind, he swiftly heads towards the Hokage's Office. Surely, she could at least give him some hint about what she had sent Sasuke off to do. He would have suspected a kidnapping, if that hadn't been his brother's handwriting.
"I need to speak with Lady Tsunade, immediately. It's an emergency." He says.
"Wait here. I'll let her know." A guard states as he heads into the blonde's office.
Scarcely a moment later, Itachi was allowed inside. It was as damn good thing too. He liked to think of himself as a composed person, but there was very little that he wouldn't do to protect his baby brother.
He was more than willing to break down a door for him. That included even the Hokage's door. Fortunately, things hadn't come to that. At least not yet. Itachi could only pray that that would continue to be the case.
"Itachi, what's wrong?" Tsunade demands.
The Uchiha couldn't blame her for her alarm. He rarely would burst in like this. The woman had to know that he did not use the word emergency lightly.
"I'm sorry to disturb you, Lady Hokage. I would not do so, if I didn't believe it was urgent. My brother left us suddenly. There was a note on the fridge. He said something about a mission, but the only way that could be possible is through a messenger hawk. I know that you may not be at liberty to discuss the details of the mission, but I need to know. Did you assign Sasuke a mission?" The young man asks.
Tsunade frowns. She hadn't assigned Sasuke a mission today. She was completely at a loss for what Itachi was talking about.
"Itachi, I didn't assign him any missions today. I don't know what kind of prank he's playing on you, but I didn't send him out on anything." The Hokage informs him.
"I see. Well thank you, Lady Tsunade." He says as he bows his head politely.
"Do you think something happened to him? He could have just left a note saying he was on a mission and be off meeting with his girlfriend or something of that nature. He is at that age." The medic points out.
Itachi shakes his head. He highly doubted that. If Sasuke had a girlfriend, he would known about it. Nothing stayed secret for long in the Uchiha Clan.
"I doubt that. I shall look into the matter further. He left recently. So it should be a simple matter to follow his trail." The Uchiha assures her.
"If you really don't think that it's something like that, I can send out a team of ANBU. It's better to air on the side of caution. He has the Sharingan. That makes him a target. There are many ninjas who would love to have his eyes." The blonde reminds him.
"That may be a bit excessive in this case. I'd be lying though, if I said the idea didn't appeal to me." He confesses.
He hated to waste an ANBU Team on such matters. Itachi didn't even really know, if Sasuke was in trouble. Still it was better safe than sorry.
Tsunade was right about one thing. The fact that Sasuke had the Sharingan made him powerful, but it also made him a target. There were ninjas who would stop at nothing to acquire a bloodline for themselves or for someone else who was willing to pay for those eyes.
"Very well. I'll send a team out. We'll find him." Tsunade promises Itachi.
"Thank you. You have no idea what this means to me." Itachi says as he Flickers off to go track down his very foolish little brother.
Back in the Sound, Hinata watches Sasuke warily. She was going to have to be cruel with him. There was no other choice.
Him staying there was a liability. It was tempting just to take his offer. She knew that he was sincere. Unlike Orochimaru, Naruto and Sasuke did care about her. She knew that.
"He has to die, Sasuke. I don't care if I have to severe ever bond that I've ever had to accomplish that. He can't be allowed to live. I won't ask again. Leave now and you can go home. You don't have to get hurt. I will though, if I have to." She warns him.
That's when Sasuke shocks her by charging at her. Hinata tries to dodge, but the attack was too sudden. Sasuke manages to slam her into the ground with him on top of her.
"That's exactly what I was going to say to you. You're out of your mind, if you think that I'm going to let you stay here. It's not safe. I'm not going to let that freak touch you. You're going back to the Leaf. I don't care, if you hate me afterwards. I'd rather have your living hatred than your dead gratitude." Sasuke hisses in her ear.
She hated herself for it, but Hinata feels herself shivers slightly. More at the feeling of his breath against her ear and his physical closeness than out of fear. Sasuke was Sasuke. He wouldn't actually try to hurt her unless she gave him no choice.
If it came down to it, Hinata was sure that Naruto would rather lose his own life than kill a friend. With Sasuke, well she wasn't so sure. He definitely believed in self-defense. It was at best a 50-50 shot.
"You should respect MY decisions more. I know that you don't want to see me get hurt, but it's too late for that." She says as she brings her knee up and shoves it hard underneath his ribs.
That should knock the wind out of him. Maybe, he'd get the message. She doubted I though. Sasuke seemed bound and determined to drag her back to the Leaf. Almost as determined as she was not to go back, really.
"Damn it!" He hisses as he falls off of her and tries to catch his breath.
That was when Hinata jumped on him. She glances down at him. There was a bit blood on his mouth and chin. Hinata must have hit him harder than she thought.
"I'm a big girl now, Sasuke. Like I said, I don't need you, Naruto, or anyone else to protect me anymore. The sooner you get that through your head, the better off you'll be." She informs him.
"Apparently, you do. You're strong, Hinata. You're wrong though. You're allowing yourself to be blinded by your hatred of Neji. Hatred that he deserves, but you walked right into the Serpent's Den because of it!" He snarls at her and flips them.
Unfortunately, the Uchiha and Hyuga fighting styles had always been different. Uchihas fought more like lions. Raw strength was their specialty. They tended to overwhelm their enemies with sheer power and tactics. The Hyugas were completely different though.
Her family had always been like leopards. Strong enough to make the "kill" and then they would retreat up a tree. Flexibility and precision was more important than raw power. They needed just enough raw power for their strikes to be fatal. That meant that in terms of raw strength, Sasuke had the advantage here.
"I know what I'm doing! You're the one who came here when you didn't have to." She growls at him and tries to throw him off of her.
It was like trying to move a mountain though. The Uchihas tended to have a lot of compact muscle. He might not be the bulkiest ninja, but he was strong. Somehow though, she manages to throw him off of her.
Well at least a couple feet. It was a start though. Maybe, now he'd get the point. She could only hope.
"I came here for you! This is madness and you know it! You can't possibly trust him!" The raven haired man hisses at her.
He was right about that. This really was madness. She was fighting against one of her best friends who was trying to help her. That didn't change the fact that she had to though.
"You could have left. You made your decision." Hinata tells him as she charges at him with the Gentle Fist.
If she could lock up his chakra points, she could get him out of here. She could leave him somewhere that he'd be able to find his way back home or a Leaf Villager would find him.
That would be the ideal outcome. Sasuke would be safe and she could still have her revenge. Granted, spending time with Orochimaru probably should never be referred to as an ideal outcome. It was the principle of the thing though.
"And you made yours. If you want to do this the hard way, we can do it the hard way. I'm not Naruto. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty." The Uchiha warns her.
Just like that. The two of them collided into each other. It was a flurry of punches and kicks. Hinata scarcely had time to block and throw a blow, before Sasuke would do the same.
The Sharingan gave him an advantage. He could copy her moves almost instantly and he had more power behind his moves. While he couldn't perform her family's trademark technique, he could do everything else. Sasuke could do everything else, very well.
"Good that means you might survive this then!" Hinata yells at him as she aims another vicious kick towards him.
It was complete savagery. The way that they were going at each other more closely resembled a battle to the death between two wild animals than skilled ninjas. All her years of training had gone out the window.
Hinata could barely block and launch her own attacks. She couldn't worry about actual strategy. She had been reduced to pure instinct and Sasuke didn't seem to be faring much better.
"Why do you have to be so damn stubborn?!" Sasuke roars at her as he sends a punch towards her had.
SMACK! Hinata winces in pain as she feels her cheek swell up. It was a miracle that hadn't broken any bones. He must have been softening his blows slightly.
Unfortunately, Hinata couldn't afford to extend him the same courtesy. Her kick goes flying straight at his chest and she hears a sickening CRACK. She'd gotten one of his ribs.
"DAMN IT!" He snarls in pain, but somehow he was able to press on.
Hinata could only assume that it was the adrenaline that was allowing her opponent to power through his pain. That had a way of numbing pain at least for a little while. It was a survival mechanism in some cases.
"Yes, damn you! Damn you! You should have left when I told you to do so! You should have listened to me! You're supposed to be a genius! You should have been smarter than this!" She screams at him.
"And so are you!" Sasuke thunders right back at her.
It was fitting in a way. His secondary chakra nature was lightning. Thunder went with lightning. She had never heard him speak like this before and it almost shocked her into paralysis, but thankfully it didn't.
The attacks were coming even faster and more furiously now. Sasuke had a black eye, was occasionally coughing up blood, and several bruises. For her efforts, she had received a badly bruised cheek, a possibly broken wrist, and an impressive array of bruises.
"Now, now. Children should play nicely." Orochimaru suddenly says as he walks back into the room and has his long tongue restrain them.
Oh that was just disgusting. Hinata shivers. She was a Sound Ninja now. Not many things truly disgusted her anymore, but this was definitely one of them.
It looked like Sasuke felt the same way though. The other ninja was grimacing. Good. He should feel uncomfortable. Sasuke shouldn't even be here!
"Let him go." Hinata insists, hoping that maybe at least she could save Sasuke's soul.
Hers was likely too far gone. She'd done too many horrible things. Her hands would never be clean again. Sasuke was a different matter though.
By ninja standards, he was still relatively innocent. He could go home. There was no need for him to be here. She had made her decision and that was that.
"As I told you before, he's my guest. Sasuke may come and go as he pleases. It seems that it pleases him to stay at this time. Though it doesn't seem to please you as much as I had hoped. You two certainly have an interesting way of greeting each other. I shall have Kabuto attend to your injuries." He says.
Kabuto. No. She'd rather deal with the possibly broken wrist and her other injures on her own. The last thing that she wanted was to be examined by him again.
There was also Sasuke to consider. Kabuto really shouldn't be allowed to touch her childhood friend. It seemed almost like blasphemy, really.
"That's right. I'm staying." Sasuke says firmly and Hinata sighs.
Uchihas were a stubborn Clan. A very stubborn Clan. She supposed that they were going to find out who was more stubborn though. Her or Sasuke.