9. Trapped
She was certain of it. She had seen the Uchiha. It was as if her sense of foreboding had struck true for once. Her teammates had not noticed because they were occupied with the remains of their battle. It stank of blood. She could imagine Kiba not being able to smell anything else. The opponents of her teammates were out cold. And before she knew it, Sasuke and his retinue had moved on. For now, there were other pressing matters.
Her foes were not dead, but unattended they would surely die.
'Kami…', Kiba said, ' Hinata-chan, your new style is messy'. Hinata went to stand next to him and looked at the unconscious heaps that had been his opponents. 'Those Cloud shinobi were after my eyes.', she said. 'Ever since the incident of my abduction, they have a personal grudge against Hyuuga.'
'But how come there were so many?', Shino wondered. 'It seemed as if they were some sort of delegation. Do you suppose they were on their way to Konoha?'
'Who knows.', Hinata said. She dipped into her supply scroll and took out medicinal salves and bandages. 'I know I don't want to cause a war on my behalf. I will treat their wounds. The two of you should pack our stuff. We'll be on our way soon. I want to be far away from here when they come to.'
'About five hours travel from here there's a town called Tarui', Kiba said. 'We should go there and rest for the day. Tsunade will send us her Katsuyu summon so that we can report about this incident.'
Hinata's first attacker was a weapons master. It had been as if she was assailed by several people at once. It had taken all her concentration to deflect the kunai. He must have been the leader of the bunch. His wound was severe. Her tachikaze - windcutter lost strength in distance, which was what saved the man. The cut that took up his entire torso was deep, but it would heal. Her other four assailants were chuunin and jounin of about her own age. Three out of the four were kunoichi. Hinata regretted that her cuts would leave scars, all the while knowing her regret was foolish. They were vying for her eyes. Fighting them had taken quite a bit of chakra. She used a good bit of her remaining chakra to strengthen her medicinal salves. She was not a medic-nin, like so many Konoha kunoichi, but her salves were nonetheless quite effective.
It took some time for her to finish and while she stored back her supplies, she realized this was the moment to tell her team about who she had seen. For some reason, she could not bring herself to.
He had been staring at her.
Watching him with her Byakugan had carved the image of his spinning-wheel eyes into her memory. But they didn't seem hostile. She was in turmoil. She thought of all the people who had gone through much to get him to come back to Konoha.
Naruto, Neji, Kiba and Chouji had almost died for the bastard. And the only thing driving Naruto right now was this same traitorous bastard.
How could a person ally himself with someone who had done his home village so much harm? Revenge for his clan.
And that was it.
And in a way she understood. A person's clan should come before the village. It was what the Hyuuga taught. Sasuke must have been raised in a similar way. And even if he hadn't been, she could at least grasp that some were willing to go to hell for revenge. He hadn't moved to harm them. Something must have remained of his goodwill towards the Leaf, right? She decided to keep silent. If Kiba caught whiff of him they would give chase. If not, they would continue their original mission.
They moved out quickly, taking up the moderate pace long distance travelers could endure for long periods. After several hours they took a break. Getting themselves to move on at that point took an immense amount of willpower.
They arrived at the gates of the town at dawn. It promised to be another bright summer day. The sunny disposition of those that were already out to greet it seemed to mock them. Team 8 looked like it had returned from visiting death. The fatigue trying to overwhelm them was torture. Ever since they left Konoha the previous day they hadn't slept. The battle with Cloud had taken a lot of strength and chakra. On top of that they had to continue traveling. The sounds, the smell, the crowdedness, of the town were overwhelming. As towns went Tarui was small, but almost every town seemed big compared to Konohagakure. They were drawing attention. Of course they were, Hinata thought tiredly. There's a huge dog, a man wearing a winter coat and a fellow with paint on his face. I'm carrying two large swords on my back.
Team 8 noticed a few hostile stares.
'They do not like ninja.', Shino said.
'Whatever'. Kiba shrugged. Let's just find a place to sleep.'
Hinata was already on it. She was utilizing her Bloodline to scan for signs. This town had three inns. She selected the closest one. Her team wearily followed her lead.
The proprietress was a short and stocky middle-aged woman that somehow managed to look down on them. 'No dogs.'
Akamaru whined in apology. Kiba's anger was evident, but there would be no arguing.
'Fine.' Hinata resigned. The other place they tried luckily had an innkeeper who did not mind animals. They got the three rooms they asked for. Heavenly sleep awaited them.
-X-X-X-
It was late in the afternoon. He had taken a bath and made sure to scrub Akamaru good. The poor canine didn't like it one bit. 'We just don't smell good Akamaru, All that fighting, running and sweating …just bear with it.' Well rested and clean he sat on the bed with Akamaru lying next to him. He fell into deep concentration and focused the chakra in his nose. The world became a palette of scents. This was the talent of clan Inuzuka. When a person smells something, he simply does. One cannot mistake the scent of a rose for something else. Scents had in common with most senses that they were attached to memory. Though the world to Kiba was now a palette of scents, not all of them were meaningful as they were not attached to a significant memory. It was easy to ignore such scents. Two scents triggered. He jumped up in excitement. 'These are Orichimaru's and Sasuke's.' Akamaru was wagging his tail excitedly. 'Yes Akamaru! Our mission is finally going somewhere!' He went to see Hinata. On his way to her room he could hear the swing of her swords. Her door was wide open as well as both of her windows. She was training. Her swords were moving sinuously. Attack and defense were executed in two simultaneous movements. To attack with one sword was to defend with the other. Her footwork was strong and reminiscent of the Hyuuga style. As if she could start rotating any second. The kata finished, she sheathed her swords and wiped away her swear. She smiled broadly at him. Taken aback by the cuteness of her smile he grinned and scratched his head self-consciously.
'I spoke to the Katsuyu summon.', Hinata said, 'I told her what happened. It seems Shino was right. Those Cloud Shinobi were a delegation to the Leaf. They complained to Hokage that they were attacked by a Hyuuga with swords who almost killed them. Two shinobi who fled from the scene told them I was vengeful and ferocious. Nothing overtly negative about you and Shino though, just that you aided me in battle. They demand some sort of recompense from Hyuuga.'
Kiba was baffled. 'Those lying cowardly bastards! After all you did to keep them alive!'
'Hai.', Hinata was momentarily at a loss for words herself.
'Anyway.', she continued, 'Their original reason for coming to Konoha was to complain about Uchiha Sasuke. He and his retinue are now part of Akatsuki. They attacked and captured the Hachibi Jinchuuriki, who was the younger brother of Raikage.'
Sasuke. Kiba thought, what has come over you? Kiba had never particularly liked him, but he and Akamaru had almost died for Sasuke. He wondered how Naruto would take it. The same thought was mirrored on Hinata's face.
'Uchiha Sasuke has become very powerful and his team consists of 4 people.', she said. 'If we should encounter him, our original mission takes precedence. Tracking him is too dangerous. Hokage's orders.'
Shino who had been silently listening on the roof entered Hinata's room through one of her windows. 'Will Hokage send another team to apprehend Sasuke?', he asked.
'I don't know.'
'At least now we know what to do.', Kiba said. 'I caught whiff of both Sasuke and Orochimaru. They are both stationary. Sasuke is close by, but I take it we should go after Kabuto.'
'Y-yes.', Hinata was slightly nervous. 'Keep track of Sasuke if you can. So that we might at least inform Hokage of his whereabouts.'
Shino's insects were spiraling around him. 'In which direction is Kabuto?', he asked.
'North-east from here. The scent is weak, It's quite a distance.', Kiba said.
The gigai set off.
'We leave when night falls.', Hinata said.
-X-X-X-
He was asleep. Or trying to. He took to closing his eyes any time he deemed it safe. Ever since the battle against the Hachibi Jinchuuriki he suffered from spells of blurry sight. Maybe if he rested his eyes more often, the affliction would lessen. Or if he stopped depending on his Mangekyo Sharingan. No matter. As long as his eyes would last until after his revenge against Konoha. Revenge was all that drove him.
He would destroy Konoha and that Hyuuga girl with it. After seeing her fight he was affirmed in his goal to take Kabuto's kinjutsu scrolls. Though he was powerful, he couldn't go up against a village of capable shinobi by himself. A village with clans like Hyuuga who were masters in their art. Like the girl he witnessed the previous night. Her face came to him again. The bangs that framed it were floating on the wind of her attacks. Her clear eyes analyzing the fatality of the strikes she dealt. Eyes that had looked at him.
And they were haunting him.
Such foolish thoughts. She and her teammates were proud shinobi of the Leaf. Comfortable in their stories of camaraderie, teamwork and fighting for peace. Itachi had lived a life of hell for the peace they enjoyed. And so, he would give Konoha a piece of hell. The best way to go up against such a magnitude of shinobi had become clear to him. He would have to take them out individually or a couple at a time. He needed barriers infused with illusions. Such jutsu existed and he was skilled enough to use them. The scroll that contained the techniques was in Kabuto's possession. Ironically it was one of Konoha's kinjutsu.
The members of Team Hawk didn't yet know the true extent of his quest for vengeance. And when it would come to it, he would make sure they stayed out of it. For now, they were useful. Karin had kept track of Team 8's movements and for a while it had seemed as if Hawk was being followed. But the team had stopped while Hawk continued moving. Sasuke surmised they were coincidentally moving in the same direction. If that was the case, they must have been on their way to the town as well. He was proven right when Karin confirmed his suspicions. What was their aim in Rice Country? Konoha had a stake in retrieving their scrolls, with the threat of Akatsuki looming. If Team 8 had been on a mission to apprehend him, loudmouth Naruto and the other half of Konoha would have been on his case right now. And that was the odd thing. The Hyuuga had clearly seen him. Yet neither her own or any other team had given chase. Was their current mission more important than finding him?
Because of the presence of Team 8, Sasuke decided to abandon his original plan of going to Tarui. Hawk had moved to one of the remnants of Orochimaru's old hideouts. They were lucky to have running water, because the place was close to civilization. But candles were the only source of light when it turned dark. He did not mind the darkness. Like the hawk the team was named after, Karin and Suigetsu bickered less and turned silent in the dark. For all his violent urges, Juugo gave Sasuke the least trouble. The young man was meditating outside with birds perching on his shoulder. Suigetsu had set off to quench his abnormal thirst. Karin was out scouting the area for Kabuto's chakra signature. Her excitement was evident from the sound of her running footsteps. She had apparently found something.
Sasuke stood and got dressed. Team Hawk was finished resting.
Karin burst into his room without knocking. One of the many things that annoyed him about her. The familiar foolish blush tinged her features.
'What is it?', Sasuke asked.
'I found a chakra signature that is sure to be Kabuto's. But…'. She stopped in mid-sentence, her face creased in uncertainty.
Sasuke simply waited.
'The chakra-signature, it feels a lot like Orochimaru-sama's.'
'I see.', Sasuke said thoughtfully. Orochimaru was dead. Sasuke's Curse Seal was gone. His brother had seen to both. What had Kabuto done to have a chakra signature similar to Orochimaru's? For now, it did not matter.
'Also, Team 8 is moving in the direction of the chakra signature.', Karin added.
If that team was looking for Kabuto as well, Sasuke's plan was endangered.
'We will set off now.', he said. He was filled with a sense of urgency. It was likely he would see the Hyuuga girl again.
Suigetsu chose that moment to enter the room, water trailing him and looking strangely fresh and satiated. 'You idiot!', Karin murmured.
'Ugly witch.', Suigetsu said in an equally subdued tone. Sasuke ignored their ritual of name-calling and walked out of the room. 'Karin', he said, 'lead the way.'
-X-X-X-
They were traveling the grasslands in search of Kabuto's hiding place. The scenery had changed from wide open spaces, to rice fields to forest. It was dark and they weren't going as fast as he had wished. Occasionally Karin would turn her head to watch him and blush. She was infatuated, like so many girls he had encountered. She was silly and her crush was foolish, but she was the most useful one in the team. Where Karin was almost useless in combat Suigetsu would compensate. Suigetsu had a passion for swords and was a strong fighter as well. Why he picked up Juugo partly eluded Sasuke himself. Juugo was strong, but his urge to kill was unpredictable. However, if Juugo was the original source of the Curse Seal, Sasuke somehow owed him for the strength the Seal had lent him in the past.
'Kabuto is about a mile ahead', Karin said, 'he is surrounded by a wide expanse of chakra… like a shield of some sort.'
'What of Team 8?'
Karin seemed uncertain.
'To be honest, the closer we get to Kabuto and that chakra shield, the harder it is for me to focus on any other chakra. It's riling up my senses. But Team 8 must be close by, since they're traveling in the same direction.'
'Duh.' Suigetsu said. 'As if Sasuke couldn't have come up with that by himself. Don't worry though, I'll take them out by myself if they give us any trouble. And I'll take those Hyuuga's swords.'
'What the hell you want her swords for you fool!', Karin snapped.
'Well, like the swords of the Hidden Mist they are different. They're not nihonto, swords you usually see in the Great Five, like katana, nodachi, chokuto and wakizashi. Their make is foreign. The blade broadens and curves towards the tip and their color is peculiar. But most important of all, they are swords that need to be conquered.'
Karin was not listening, she wore an expression of deep concentration.
They were in a place with a lot of trees. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary but Team Hawk had stopped. 'Even I can feel the chakra now.', Juugo said. 'Something is not right with this forest.'
'Sasuke-kun, do you see the chakras?', Karin asked.
'Yes', he said, 'ít is the makings of a barrier. Kabuto wants to hole himself up. Do you sense where the chakra is dispersed from, I will make an end to it. Then we can go after him.'
'Different places, but the closest to us is somewhere to our left.'
He already saw. It was a seal attached to a tree and chakra was flowing out of it into the shield, making it stronger with every second. He was walking towards it. Just as he stretched his hands to tear off the seal he disappeared.
-X-X-X-
'I can see it.', Hinata said, 'there's a seal, chakra is flowing out of it. Let me undo it.' She was walking to one of the trees, stretching her arm to tear of the seal. 'Hinata wait!' Shino warned. But it was too late. She had disappeared.
'Hinata!', Kiba called her name. 'Shino, she disappeared!'
Kiba and Akamaru were sniffing around the tree. '
'I didn't see a seal even though it was obviously nearby, how come only she could see it? It's why I warned her.'
'I can't smell her anywhere!', Kiba said. 'As if she suddenly stopped existing. Hinata! Where are you!'
'The gigai I sent with her are gone too.'
'What kind of jutsu is this? Where the hell is she?'
Their search was stopped short. The two ninja and the nindog became aware of another teams presence and turned to face them.
A redhead, a waterclone and a gentle-faced giant.
'You're Sasuke's team.', Shino said. 'Do you have Hinata?'
'Nope,', said the waterclone, 'she was caught in a trap. It was a time-space ninjutsu.'
'How do you know this, if you don't have her!'. Kiba said.
'Because I'm not an idiot like you!', the waterclone countered.
Kiba and Akamaru made to charge. Shino stopped them. It was important to stay unperturbed by insults, finding Hinata was priority.
'The chakra dispersing has stopped and the shield is stable.', the redhead said. 'That's why we know. And Sasuke is outside my sense's range, he must either be inside the shield or very far away. Your Hyuuga, must be in the same place.'
So Sasuke's gone too.
'It was a trap aimed at doujutsu users.', Shino said. 'Only they would be able to see the chakra and the seal it formed. Kiba, do you still smell Kabuto?'
The dog-nin bowed his head in concentration. 'No.' He sounded surprised.
'I don't sense his chakra signature either.', the redhead said. 'Kabuto lured us here with his presence and laid a trap. Now that he has his quarry, the barrier was allowed to form completely.'
'So how is this barrier undone?', the gentle giant asked.
'By defeating the one who casts it.'
'Wait a minute!', the waterclone said, 'the caster is inside the barrier. We can't reach him to kill him.' The boy unsheathed his giant sword and took a stance. He was apparently trying to measure the distance, but the barrier was unseen and the forest appeared undisturbed. However, a large part of the forest could not be entered. 'Karin, if I attack the barrier, will you know how far it reaches by the ripples?'
'There's no need.', Shino said. 'It's a large area with a circumference of three and a half miles.'
'Then there's nothing to it.', the waterclone said. 'We'll just wait for Sasuke to kill Kabuto.'
