It's funny how life can treat you sometimes. One day you're happy because you just had a four day weekend (air guitar!) and you finish this chapter sooner than anticipated (another air guitar!), but then you're bummed out because a thunderstorm has hit your city and you're out of Internet for a whole week (I wish I could make something like that up). No Internet for an entire week! The only thing that could make this more awful is if my modem had set me on fire and done me up the ass with my katana (yes, I own one). SO, I felt I was living in a cave for seven days with no outside contact, but at least I had my iPod with me so I could listen to some kickass tracks, including Dude(Looks like a Lady), or as I like to call it, the Sexy Jutsu Song. Personally, I think Naruto characters should have their own theme song. In the future, I'll be letting you know my thoughts on what I think would be the most appropriate theme song for some characters.
It's amazing that it's been a year since I thought of the overall story and I still haven't put it all down on paper. I feel like I have accomplished very little. So, from now on, I will spend my Saturday and Sunday mornings contributing to this story. For this chapter, all NaruHina fans might want to shoot themselves with a tranquilizing dart before you finish reading all the way to the end. OK, that's an exaggeration, but I'm sure the ending will send you into a state of epileptic excitement!
By the way, if anyone complains that this chapter is very long, I'm gonna have to ask you to step outside (you lazy ass). Also, I'd like to apologize for any bad grammar or repetition on the last chapter. I kinda rushed that one in because I was so behind.
CHAPTER 9: HARD TO HANDLE
Tsunade was standing against the window in her office, leaning on the glass. She was looking profoundly at the training grounds where the battle took place, which now resembled a crater. Below, by the entrance to the mansion, a multitude of angry citizens had gathered. She could hear complaints about their well-being and the safety of their families. Some of them threatened her to banish Naruto from the village. Several ninja were trying to control the crowd from breaking in. On the far side of the village, a smaller group of citizens were surrounding an apartment building. The majority was concentrated below a balcony, whose windows were closed and covered with sealed tags. People were madly throwing rocks and debris at it while cursing loudly. It seemed the entire town was on the brink of darkness, at the crossroads of destruction and insanity. In her darkest dreams, Tsunade had thought that if Konoha was to be covered with shadow, it would be when it was invaded by Orochimaru or the Akatsuki. Now, the very hatred of the people towards the Jinchuuruki of the Hidden Leaf made it look like that time had arrived.
"It's just like you said." Tsunade had not realized Jiraiya had walked in. "We can't control people's behavior."
"You're not talking about the villagers, are you?" She didn't look at him when she remarked.
"Look, I should've seen this coming. Fortunately, casualties were at a minimum."
"It's not Hiashi I'm worried about."
"I know. How are you feeling?"
"Like I seriously need a drink."
Jiraiya walked to her side. For a moment, they were both in silence, observing the riot below them.
"I can tell what he's doing right now. He has closed his drapes to avoid light from the outside from coming in. He's probably in bed, curled up with his back against the door. There are probably a few who are menacing it to bring it down and drag him out of town by their own hand. He's trying to ignore their insults. He's trying to sleep, but he can't."
"We hope for the best and prepare for the worst. We did what we had to do. It not only hurts him, but everyone as well. In time, they will settle down and leave him alone."
"Those idiots are the least of my worries. My biggest concern is his spirit."
"Spirit?"
"The last time I saw him face to face, his eyes were dead. It was disturbing, like all life had been sucked out from his soul. His way of talking has changed too. It's like he doesn't care about anything anymore. He speaks monotonously and dry. I think his spirit may have finally been broken."
A small tear dripped from Tsunade's eye. Jiraiya stopped the tear with his finger. Just then, someone knocked on the door.
"Come in." Tsunade answered. In stepped Yamato.
"Lady Tsunade, Master Jiraiya, can I have a quick word with you?" They both nodded. Tsunade sat on her chair and Jiraiya stood beside her with arms crossed.
"I've been meditating this for the last few days and I want to share it with you. As you know, when we arrived at Kyuubi's location, Hinata Hyuga was there too, but the demon didn't seem to have the intent of attacking her."
"Yes, we know." Tsunade said.
"Well, I've been thinking about this and I have considered that maybe Naruto's subconscious was still active when he transformed."
"But if it was, then we wouldn't have the Lord of the Hyuga clan hospitalized for five weeks."
"I know, but my theory is that since the seal holding the Nine-Tailed Fox in place is weakening, then the line that separates it from Naruto has been blurring. Each are now starting to become part of one another."
Tsunade and Jiraiya were silent as they were analyzing Yamato's message inside their minds.
"Which brings me to my next point. Ever since we encountered Sasuke in Orochimaru's lair, I saw how he used his Sharingan to suppress Kyuubi. Maybe, just maybe, I believe that there might be a connection here. I don't think the beast attacked the village fifteen years ago on its own free will."
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Tsunade and Sakura walked into a small, windowless room. The door was covered from top to bottom with tags; their symbols were complex and a strong presence could be felt coming from them. The sign on the door said "Authorized Personnel Only". The walls were completely white. In the far corner was Naruto's bed. He was sitting on it; the sheets were covering the lower half of his body. He was wearing a green robe, the type patients had to wear. His head was down and his eyes weren't looking at anything. He was completely motionless. For both women, it was like observing a statue. Sakura gulped and almost hesitated approaching him. She felt that at any moment, he was going to jump from his bed and attack her. It wasn't any easier for Tsunade, who wasn't used to seeing Naruto so down, almost lifeless.
"We need to talk, Naruto." Tsunade said. The boy didn't react. Tsunade sighed and rubbed her brow.
"Hinata explained us what happened, well, everything as far as she knew. It was enough for us to deduce. We don't want you to blame yourself for what happened, OK? Jiraiya and I should've done something more helpful for you in the first place."
He was still silent. Tsunade doubted she should keep talking.
"I know this is going to be difficult, but none of us can afford to take risks like these. I have talked this over multiple times with the village elders. I tried to defend you as far as I could, but their decision was final. As painful as it is, you will be kept under lockdown until we can find a solution to your problem."
Sakura silenced a gasp since this was news for her. Her heart started aching when she heard those words. She clutched her fists tightly to try to hold herself back. She wanted to say something, but wasn't sure of what words to use.
"The elders will allow you to stay in your apartment. You won't be allowed to leave unless you are being escorted by someone assigned by me. The only place you will be visiting will be the hospital. Be aware that this will only happen when we might need to talk to you or when we have an advance on your situation. If necessary, you will be taken to some other place. Food will be brought to you everyday, so you don't have to worry about that. All doors and windows of your apartment will be marked with tags such as the ones on the door to this room. While you were unconscious, we took a blood sample to get a reading of your unique chakra signature. We embedded this reading into every tag. If you try to walk out your door or window, a binding jutsu will be triggered, stopping you from leaving. Also, there will be a two-man squad keeping guard around your building 24\7. I know this sounds like too much, but the elders aren't taking this easy. None of us, anyway. All this will have to apply until we have progressed with you. So, as much as it hurts everybody, you're going to have to face it. You have become a danger to those around you and yourself as well."
Sakura noticed a tear formed in the corner of her master's eye.
"How's Lord Hyuga?" Naruto finally spoke. His voice was weak and raspy. He sounded monotonous and bleak. Both Tsunade and Sakura were startled.
"H-He'll be in bed for at least five weeks." Tsunade stuttered. "He's…in a coma."
Naruto paused for a bit before talking again.
"What about Hinata?"
"Don't worry. She's not hurt."
"Are you sure?" He looked into the Hokage's eyes. She went stunned as she looked into the vacuum that had formed in his cerulean orbs. Sakura took notice of this, too.
"Everything that she has stood for has fallen to pieces." He said as he turned his back to them. "She has always seen something in me, something that I forget sometimes. She believes that I am strong, that I believe in myself and I can take on the world. But now, she has witnessed how low I have sunk. I have turned my back on the people of my own village. I attacked the leader of her clan, her own father. I let my anger control me. I let that fuckhead take over me. You say I don't deserve it, but I do. I am weak."
"Naruto…" Tsunade tried reaching out to him.
"I don't think I can look her in the face again. She must see me now the way her father does. The way everybody else does."
Sakura's fists were in a tight grip. The veins on her hands started swelling. She bit her lip until it almost bled. Her guilt was swirling insider her mind, making her feel worse by the second. She felt hopeless at the image of her friend in defeat. Tsunade look scared as well. She had never seen Naruto this She tried to talk, but no words came out of her mouth. She looked around; trying to think of something to say that will make him feel better. When nothing came to her, she turned around and left the room with Sakura. Before stepping out, she took one last sad glance at the boy.
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A man was walking the dark streets of the city with haste. He kept his hood up to avoid being seen by others. With his hand, he was playing with something inside his jacket pocket. He avoided the streetlights to maintain a sense of stealth. He quickly looked around to make sure he wasn't being followed. Soon, he was facing an old apartment building. He circled it until he found a balcony that stuck out towards the outside. He could see the shadows of seals around it. He knew this was the place he was looking for. From his pocket, he pulled out a small brick and got ready to throw.
Shadow Possession Jutsu!
The man suddenly was unable to move. He tried to force himself, but his efforts were pointless. He got scared when his hand dropped the brick he was holding by itself. Then, someone landed right in front of him.
"You're not allowed to be here." Ino declared to the man. "If you try to disturb Naruto, we're gonna have to take you in, understood?"
The man was soon able to move again. By then, Shikamaru had joined his teammate.
"What?!" The man asked furiously. "You mean the Hokage would rather protect that freak rather than the people of the village?!"
"Deal with it. He's as much a citizen as you are." Shikamaru said. "If you try to break in, you're only going to be making things worse."
"How is he like any of us? How is that freak allowed to stay here when it could kill us all?"
"That person just happens to be a friend of ours." Ino was starting to lose her cool. "He has the right to be treated like any of you."
"OK, you know what? You ninjas can go fuck yourselves." He said pointing at their faces. "I'll be dead before I decide to live with him around here. You and that guy can go to hell." The man left angrily.
"What an ass." Ino scoffed.
"This is so painful." Shikamaru groaned. "How the hell did I end up on the late night shift?"
"If you're going to be complaining all night, I'm gonna tell Lady Tsunade you fell asleep." Ino complained. She jumped to a nearby rooftop and returned to her post, taking guard behind the apartment building, watching Naruto's window. Shikamaru went back to his post at the front.
"I'm just saying that if his apartment is already protected with those special tags, then why do we need to keep guard outside? And it's not like he will actually walk out the door. People actually want him dead." He talked into his headset.
"Will it kill you to show a little empathy?" Ino nagged into his earpiece. "Just imagine how poor Naruto is feeling right now. He must be alone and depressed. Somebody needs to go talk to him once in a while so he won't feel so lonely. If you ask me, I think Lady Tsunade really went- Hey, are you even listening to me?!"
"Sorry, what was that?"
Ino sighed with frustration.
"Just kidding. I am listening."
"You're hilarious." Ino remarked sarcastically.
Shikamaru lay down by the edge of the rooftop, observing the night sky, lit up by dozens of stars. The moon was large and its glow looked blue. The scene was enough to entrance people with its exuberant splendor. It was almost hypnotizing.
"That Naruto never has it easy, doesn't he?" He asked.
"I know. I hope this doesn't sound too selfish but living a life like his would be painful."
"Yeah, that did sound kinda selfish."
"Shut up." She answered a bit annoyed. "Anyway, I wish could apologize to Naruto."
"Apologize for what?"
"Well, you should to. And everyone else. It's not fair that he has to go through all these problems while feeling like nobody cares about him. It's just that ever since we were still students at the Ninja Academy, everyone would give him a hard time. Yet, he still fought for the people who hated him, trying to win their acceptance. It sure is hard when you try to do your best and people don't care."
"Yeah, I know what you mean. Hey, have you seen Hinata recently?"
"Now that you mention it, I haven't. I've been wondering what she's going to do now that Naruto turned into the Nine-Tails and attacked her father."
"He'll probably think of getting a restraining order against Naruto so epically big, he'll have to move to a different continent for him to be at a safe distance from Hinata. If not him, Neji will."
"Why do you even make jokes about that?"
"Because I'm annoyed and I want to go to bed."
"You idiot, don't you see? Hinata is as big of a victim as Naruto. For all we know, she could now be part of the people that want Naruto dead. Her feelings for him could've been shattered as of now." She sighed exasperatedly. "I feel so helpless. I want to do something to help her, but I don't know what. I just can't let her give up on him after such a long time."
"Well, have you tried looking for her?"
"Of course. I've been to all her usual places. I've tried asking her squad, but they all said they have no idea."
"That'sweird, but then again, Hinata has never been one to be angry."
Ino sighed again. "Do you think we should've told him about her feelings before all this?"
"I don't think so. If we did, things would've gone bad for Hinata. Naruto knowing about it through someone else would be too much for her."
"Well, that's sounds OK and all, but Naruto is still completely clueless about it."
"I know, but sometimes one needs to find out things for themselves. It makes things work out better in the end and gives them a richer meaning. Naruto has to grow up someday, and when he does, he'll figure it out."
"Well, who knows when that time will come. I mean, when he does, it might be too late."
"What'd you mean?"
"I don't know. I'm just thinking that things can change real quickly when you least expect it."
For a moment, there was nothing but silence. It felt like all the tension and negative atmosphere that had fallen over the village was starting to dissipate, even if it was for only a moment. Shikamaru was almost entranced by the small bright dots in the sky as his mind trailed off while Ino tried to stay vigilant.
"You know what I just realized? How could've Lord Hyuga discovered that Naruto was with Hinata just like that? Do you think somebody told him?"
Ino didn't answer.
"Ino?"
"Shhhh." She shushed through her headset. "Someone's coming."
Tsunade was walking towards the building, looking deadly nervous. She constantly looked around. With both hands, she was holding a medical kit. Her hands were shaking intermittently. She let go of the kit with one hand and used it to fix her hair behind her ears. She peaked through the corners to look for anyone who might be around.
"Hey, Lady Tsunade!" She was startled for a moment by the incoming shout from behind her. She turned to see Shikamaru.
"Not that I'm complaining or anything, but how long is this shift anyway?"
"Idiot, stop complaining!" Ino stepped in beside him. "Remember, we're doing this for everyone, especially Naruto."
"D-Don't worry." Tsunade answered. "I'll send your replacements soon. I need to speak with Naruto for a moment."
"OK, you're the boss." Shikamaru yawned. He lay down once again.
"Those replacements better get soon 'cause you're so not the right person for this shift." Ino
had made her way to Shikamaru and was leaning so he could see her face.
"Well, what do you do to stay awake so late at night?"
"I could stay awake all night if I had to. Ninjas have to be alert at all times when they're on duty. If you want to improve yourself, you better learn to be like that."
"If you want to improve yourself, then go back to your post."
"Don't get smart with me."
"Look, if I need your help, I'll call you, OK?"
"Damn, you're impossible."
"Well excuse me, princess." He mocked. With that, Ino went back to watch the back of the building. Both Chunin hadn't realized Tsunade was already at Naruto's door.
For a moment, Tsunade took her time observing the door and the many tags it was covered with. She gently knocked on the door and waited for an answer.
"Who is it?" Naruto's voice came from the inside. The sound of running water could be heard.
"Naruto, may I come in?"
"Hang on." He answered. Tsunade heard his steps from the inside as he got closer. She heard how he removed the locks and then stepped back.
"OK, it's open."
Tsunade twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open. The only light inside Naruto's room came from the bathroom, which had its door closed. She could make out the moist footprints he had left on the wooden floor as he went from and to the bathroom to open up. She could also see his apartment was messy. There were food wrappings all over the floor and a table in the kitchen, his sheets were bundled and tossed around his bed, and some of his clothes were lying around as well. She walked around for a while looking at what were her surroundings. She felt her feet bumped into something fragile. She looked down and found a flute. She picked it up to take a better look. She realized it was an ocarina. It had a mark across it, indicating that it had been broken, but put back together. In a small table by Naruto's bed, there was a set of checkers, a hacky-sack, some kunais, and a bunch of papers thrown around it. The chips were scattered around the board and it looked like there had been a game in progress. The tips of the kunais were chalky. She looked at the wall the table was against and saw two holes in it near the ceiling. She made a look of interest at what she thought he could've been doing. On the corner of the room, she was surprised to see a guitar. The color looked somewhat run-down, but it was still good quality. The room quickly became lit when Naruto stepped out of the bathroom only wearing his boxers, rubbing his hair with a towel. He shook his head, making his hair swirl around, spraying small drops of water around him. He wasn't wearing his headband, which made his hair drop to his forehead.
"So, Grandma," he said while throwing the towel over his shoulder, "come to see if your people are keeping me comfortable?"
"Ummm…why are you showering so late at night?" Tsunade sounded uncomfortable.
"I couldn't sleep, so I had a little workout."
"N-Naruto, get dressed." Tsunade stammered. She looked away while she talked.
"I thought you were a doctor."
"There's no time to explain, we have to-" she gasped when Naruto stepped closer, standing very close to her face. Tunade went completely rigid and felt her face burning. She dropped the kit she was holding. It landed on the floor with a loud thud.
"Are you blushing?!" Naruto interrogated. A puff of white smoke suddenly formed around the Hokage. Naruto backed away with a yelp. The smoke made him cough and slightly blinded him. He rubbed his eyes to clear his vision. When the smoke settled, someone else was standing in Tsunade's place. Naruto was shocked to see her, of all people, coming to visit him. Her entire face was a mixture of different shades of red and her eyes were suggesting she was about to faint.
"Hiinata!" Naruto rushed behind her to keep her from falling. When the girl realized this, she snapped back to herself. She looked up to see a shirtless Naruto holding her by her shoulders. She shrieked and backed against the wall; her face was still bright red. She tried to breathe normally, but she couldn't control her uneven rhythm. She looked at Naruto with a mixture of alarm and embarrassment.
"What are you-" He looked down to himself when he realized he wasn't wearing a shirt or pants. Now, he also looked ashamed with lit up cheeks. He chuckled nervously with a goofy smile.
"C-Could you…excuse me for a minute?" He dashed over to his closet and opened the door. He pulled out a black t-shirt, the type he would wear under his regular ninja gear, and a pair of pants. Now that he was better clothed, he returned to where Hinata was standing. Before that, he switched on the lights to the entire room.
"OK…" He said with a gesticulation of his arms. "Hinata…what are you doing here?" He sounded with more surprise than what Hinata would have expected. She was still too nervous to answer. All she could do was point at the kit she was carrying earlier while trying to force the appropriate words out of her mouth. Naruto picked it up. Before opening it, he noticed it smelled nice. Inside, there were several rice balls with small chinks of meat embedded in them, each of them wrapped around a leaf. Naruto's mouth couldn't help but to water at the succulent sight.
"For me?" He asked Hinata while pointing at himself. She only nodded. The color on her face was starting to diminish. She played with her fingers as usual. Naruto looked at the food and quickly looked back at Hinata several times, trying to understand the situation. He even looked somewhat doubtful about whether he should eat or not. In the end, his appetite won and dug into the small kit. Hinata was genuinely pleased to see Naruto downing into the food she made just for him. Naruto paused when he realized that he was pigging out in front of her.
"Sorry." He chuckled nervously again. "It's just that hospital food sucks."
Hinata let out a giggle.
"But seriously…" Hinata stopped her giggling. "…why did you come here?"
The Kunoichi tried to explain herself, but she was still struggling to speak.
"I know you didn't come in here disguised as Grandma Tsunade just to bring me some food. Come on, what's the catch?"
"I was… I just, um… I thought you…" She tried not to make eye contact with him.
"You mean…you're not mad at me?" Naruto asked.
"What?" Hinata asked, looking very questionable.
Naruto sighed, almost frustrated. He dropped the empty kit to the floor. "Hinata…" he spoke, moving his arms like before, "… I lost control of Kyuubi, I almost killed your dad, and I tried to kill other ninjas. Why are you not mad at me?!"
"Naruto… I-" She was deeply confused by his question.
"Don't you think I deserve it?! Don't you think I'm weak?!" He started raising his voice. Hinata
was frightened by it.
"Haven't you seen what the people have been doing? They want me dead! The whole town is against me! They don't see me as a human being anymore. I'm a monster in their eyes! It all has gone full circle from the beginning! They hate me and they always will! But why not you?! Why can't you be like them?! Why do you always have to be so nice?! It's not right for a ninja!"
Hinata looked petrified. Looking into Naruto's angry stare made her disbelief that was really him. She felt powerless over him. She felt tears were starting to form in her eyes. Naruto saw this and his fury vanished instantly. Ashamed, he lowered his head and held it with both hands. He turned around and sat on his bed. He took deep breaths before talking.
"Hinata, I'm sorry. It's just that… I'm so frustrated with myself. I've always told myself that I was strong. I've always thought that I could tackle any problem I could encounter. But now, I'm not so sure. I feel weak."
"Naruto…" Hinata sat next to him in his bed.
"My anger made me lose control. I let it take over me, and so, Kyuubi did as well. Now that the people of the village know that I attacked the leader of the Hyugas and that I tried to kill other ninjas, they all are afraid that I might do the same to them. It's just like it was before. They don't care about who I am, they only care about the demon inside me. From now on, I won't ever use that power again. I'm better off not being a ninja."
"Please, don't talk like that." Hinata intervened. "I don't think you're weak. I think those people are ignorant."
Naruto turned to Hinata, looking right into her eyes of lavender.
"You shouldn't be afraid of those people. You should pity them. You want to know why?"
Naruto didn't answer.
"Because those people don't want to understand what they see beyond their own eyes. They can't comprehend all the pain you have to go through every day of your life. They don't know what's it like to be like you, struggling to keep that demon in its place. What nobody gets is that you're dealing with a power that surpasses humans. I'm not saying that you're weak, it's just that Kyuubi has always been a part of you, even if it's very unfamiliar to you. You have to learn a way for you to control it."
"That does sound like I'm weak." Naruto said, depressed. Hinata looked around for a moment.
"No, Naruto." She pulled herself together again. "If there is one thing you are not is weak. You have proven yourself many times before and I believe you can do it again. I know things don't look so well right now, but I'm sure you can get up again if you really try. You have never given up on anything and you shouldn't start now, not when the village needs people like you more than ever"
"But, what's the point when the people you try to defend hate you?" He still sounded down. Hinata paused to think of what should she answer.
"You want to know what I think? Those people think that Kyuubi is a curse on you and the entire village, but I think it's a blessing."
"A blessing?"
"Well, it all depends on the way you use it. In the past, you have used the power of Kyuubi for good reasons, like when you fought Neji or tried to bring back Sasuke. Now that the seal inside of you is weakening, you're losing control. If you learn to control it, Kyuubi can become your companion. When you march into battle, you and he can fight together. I don't think one should be in control of the other. Maybe, you could find a way to be as one."
"Yeah, I don't think he'd like that very much. If I don't know how to control it, he might just take over for good."
"Well, La-" She was starting to remember what Tsunade had told her and the other ninjas before, about what would happen if the seal fully broke; how both he and the demon would die instantly. She decided not to bring more grief to Naruto and keep that comment to herself.
"What is it?"
"Oh, never mind that. But Naruto, please. You shouldn't think like you are doing now. I know you can do it. I believe you can become stronger. Don't let those people get to you. All that matters is what you think. Don't ever let anyone tell you what you can't do. If you want to do something, then do it. You have to live for what you want."
Naruto looked at Hinata again. This time, he was at peace and more relaxed. All the tension building up inside him was vanishing. Hinata could tell by just looking at him. She was surprised when he gave her a smile.
"You have a knack for giving good advice, you know that?" Naruto said with slight enthusiasm. "Which is impressive coming from you, Hinata."
"W-what's wrong with me?" she looked a bit embarrassed again.
"Nothing, it's just that for someone of few words, you really have a way with them."
"Thanks." She was blushing again, only for a different reason.
"No, thank you." He said, still smiling. The feeling of warmth inside of her increased.
"Sorry about the mess, by the way." Naruto said. "I really haven't cared about it since the lockdown began."
"It's OK. I don't mind." Hinata looked around, observing the mess. "You must get bored being all alone in here."
"Well, I try to keep myself busy. See that board over there? Shikamaru gave it to me. He said I could try challenging myself. Well actually, a shadow clone. It's strange, but we always end in a tie."
"Really?" Hinata giggled again. "May I ask what are those holes in the wall?"
"Most of the time, I've been working out."
When he said this, Hinata couldn't help but remember when she was being held from behind by Naruto, feeling his muscular arms and pectorals.
"I tried pinning some kunais against the wall and then doing some pull-ups. It worked better than I thought."
"I never thought that. By the way, I didn't know you could play." She turned towards the guitar on the corner.
"Oh, that? Well, not really. Ever since I was this homeless guy playing on the street, I thought I'd be cool if I could learn to play, but I don't think I'm much of a songwriter. So far, I've only tried improvising. I've also learnt some tricks."
"Tricks?"
"Yeah you know, new sounds and notes and such. Here, let me show you."
"Yes, please." Hinata felt a little excited. Naruto got up and picked up the guitar. From the table, he spread the sheets of paper around to find a guitar pick. He sat next to her.
"Alright, check this out." He grabbed the neck with his left hand and held the pick near the strings with his right. He strummed the guitar once and quickly shifted his hand from the bottom of the neck to the top and back again. It produced a whining sound that decreased its pitch as his hand went up and increased as it lowered.
"Wow. What do you call that?" Hinata said with interest.
"I haven't given it a name yet. What do you think?"
"It's impressive."
"Thanks. Now, how about this?" He strummed again. This time, with his left fingers, he repeatedly wobbled the string he strummed to produce a sound that felt like it was vibrating.
"How's that?"
Hinata applauded that trick.
"Thank you." Now, Naruto strummed again, only this time with more strength and emphasis, creating a loud, prolonged note. He changed its sound by changing the position of his left hand on the strings.
"How did you do that?" Hinata asked, bewildered by his prowess.
"I don't know, but I like it."
"Is there anything else?"
"Well, I have this last one. See what happens when I play with a little chakra."
Naruto gathered chakra at his fingertips. When he played, it made a heavy, powerful sound that sounded like a current was going through the strings. Hinata was a bit startled because of the unexpected occurrence.
"Sorry about that." Naruto apologized.
"Don't worry. It was still…great." She said, showing encouragement to her friend.
"Well, that's about it. I'm still working on some new stuff."
"Thank you for showing me. You have a lot of potential."
"You think so?"
"Hmm-hmm." She nodded.
"I hope you don't mind, but I can help you clean up if you want." Hinata said after Naruto had gotten up.
"Are you sure? I don't want this to be a bother to you."
"Not at all. I would be glad to help you."
"OK, suit yourself." He walked towards the corner to put the guitar in place again.
Hinata got up as well and headed for the small table. She picked up the battered looking ocarina on the floor.
"You play this too?"
"No, that's just something that a friend of mine gave to me once. I only keep it in memory of him"
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"Don't be."
"Who did it belong to?"
"I never knew his real name, but I called him Menma. When I found him, he had lost his memory. He couldn't remember anything about his past. Turns out he was helping a group of bandits that were threatening a village in the uh- well, I can't remember where exactly. I never believed that because he was such a nice guy. When I brought him here, all he did was help the villagers. When we got to that village his group had attacked, he helped me set up a wall around it to protect it. Unfortunately, he sacrificed himself to save the very town that hated him because of those bandits from a flood."
"How did he die?"
"There was a mine full of explosive tags near the town. If we blew it up, the town would be safe from the dam that had just cracked. Before I could do anything, he knocked me out and got himself blown up."
"Wow, that was very brave."
"Yeah. He was a lot like you. I'm sure you would've like to meet him."
"If you say so." She placed the ocarina on the table and started picking up some of the papers that were scattered across it.
"Wait, wait, don't-!" Naruto tried to stop her, but Hinata had already seen what was in those papers. Her eyes widened in surprise as she studied the drawings in them. He had made several rough sketches of the Hokage mansion. With arrows, he detailed the different entrances and windows it had. He had circulated and crossed out some of them. He had also drawn what resembled ninjas at the front doors. On another paper, he had drawn the inside of the building. He had detailed the corridors, including the access to Tsunade's office. With another arrow, he had marked a passageway that went beyond the office, followed by a big question mark. In other papers, he had sketched a series of corridors that lead to different rooms. Some of them had question marks as well. There weren't as many details as in other papers.
"Naruto, what is all this?" Hinata asked perplexed.
"I, uh-" He froze, not knowing how to explain what Hinata had seen. "That's just a, uh-…well…I want to, uh-" He started trailing off from there.
"Don't worry. I won't tell anyone." Hinata put the papers down. For a moment, they only stared at each other, as they had done a few times before. Naruto could see from her eyes that she was being honest.
"OK, here we go." He sighed and sat back on his bed again. "You know how I told you how I thought that Pervy Sage and Kakashi-Sensei were conspiring against me?"
"Uh-huh." Hinata agreed. She sat by his side again.
"Well, I figured they would never tell me the answers about my past, so I have been planning to get them myself."
Hinata was focusing all her attention on what he was saying.
"I have dedicated some time here to plan a break-in on the Hokage's mansion, but so far, I've only had dead-ends. First of all, the most effective way of getting in would be through the front door, at least that's what I think. This way, I avoid having to break in through a vent or a window. Now, there are two guards watching the door at night. I could easily fool them by transforming into Grandma Tsunade, but I wouldn't know what to do from there. Also, in the event that they had seen her walk in before I did would mess-up the entire plan, so I would have to find another way in. Anyway, I know there is a room where they keep the files of all the citizens of the village. You know, their birth certificate, registration, that kind of stuff. If I got in there, I could find my file and find the names of my parents and then look them up. The problem is that I don't know where it is. And it would look very stupid if Grandma Tsunade asked the guards where it is. Even if I could figure it out by myself, I'm sure you need a password to get in that room and another one to access the files."
"Nobody knows about this, right?"
"Right. I thought it would be best if I didn't involve anyone else so they wouldn't get in trouble, which sucks because I thought I could use Shikamaru's Shadow Possession or Ino's mind control to help me, but like I said, if they get involved in this, they'll be in trouble as well."
"Well…I could help you."
"What?" Naruto was flabbergasted. "Are you kidding me?"
"Well…if I used my Byakugan, I could tell you where the room where the files are and I can find the passwords too."
"Hinata, you're in enough trouble already." Hinata was a bit taken by his direct tone of voice. "I'm sorry, but neither you nor I afford to be involved with each other anymore. After what happened, the last thing people like Neji and Grandma Tsunade want to do is to be related to me in any way. Hell, it's already bad enough that you snuck in here posing as her. Just imagine what's gonna happen to you if they find out. Damn, I just know Neji will kill me himself."
"Naruto, it's nice to see that you care…" she was speaking with a tone similar to the one she had before. "…but if this is something so important to you, I want to be there for you. You said so yourself that you can't do this alone. I understand that you don't want anyone to have consequences for your actions anymore, but please, let me take this risk. I want to help you. I really do. Please." She put her palms in front of her, almost as if to beg him.
Naruto looked at her, but not directly. He gave the impression that he was thinking about her proposal. He turned to the door with the thought of the possibilities he had at his disposal. He scratched his head and exhaled. He pushed himself up while Hinata followed him with her eyes. He opened the door to his closet and pulled out his jacket. A smile of delight was drawn on Hinata's face.
"I have no idea how you do it, Hinata" He said as he zipped his jacket up and adjusted the collar. "I'm only gonna let you come on one condition."
The girl looked at him in doubt.
"I don't want you to put me before your family. You should be grateful for them and that they care about you. I want you to stay with them and never let them go. Besides, it's the only family you got. Deal?"
Hinata was wowed by what he was saying. She thought it was obvious that he would say such things about family, but it was even more surprising knowing he had never met his parents. She thought that made his thoughts stronger.
"Deal." She remarked as she got up.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Shikamaru felt a cold, wet feeling on his face that made him wake up. He got up with a shout and looked around confused. When his eyes were back in focus, he could see Ino standing in front of him with an empty metal bucket.
"Told you that you'll fall asleep."
"Was that really necessary?" Shikamaru asked sorely.
"Well, for starters, you took of your headset. How am I supposed to know what you're doing if I can't hear you?"
"Well, you could've just come here and talked."
"That's not how it's supposed to work!"
The discussion was interrupted by the sound of an opening door. Both chunnin looked below to see Lady Tsunade stepping out with Naruto from the apartment. The Hokage closed the door shut when Naruto stepped out and they both headed down the building stairs.
"What do you think happened now?" Ino asked Shikamaru. Her tone of voice was concerned again.
"Who knows?"
"Should we ask?"
"It's best if we don't. We'll probably figure it out later, anyway."
"Guess you're right."
"Although…" Shikamaru didn't look sleepy anymore. He sat on the rooftop and rested his chin on his fist. He looked like he was about to go into deep thought.
"Although what?"
"Tsunade seemed a bit off when she was going in. This could be more serious than what we think."
Ino returned to her post, not losing track of the pair, who were now on their way to the Hokage mansion. From the corner of her eye, a transformed Hinata looked in the direction where Ino and Shikamaru were keeping watch.
"What is it?" Naruto asked.
"They didn't ask us anything about what I'm supposed to be doing." Hinata answered with Tsunade's voice. "Well, Lady Tsunade anyway."
"Don't worry. Let's just keep going. Relax." Naruto tried to comfort her. Just then, a loud clattering came from a nearby alley. Disturbed, both of them turned to see.
"What was that?" Naruto asked.
"I better check it out. Could be someone." Hinata volunteered. She silently made her way to the alley and peaked around the corner. There were several trash cans piled up with dark bags stacked beside them. There were no signs of life in that imminent darkness.
Byakugan!
To be sure, she triggered her Byakugan to take a better look. She searched the area up and down, but the only thing she could see was a stray cat that had backed up into the trash cans.
"It was just a cat." Her Byakugan dissipated. "Let's get going." She regrouped with Naruto and they were both back on their way, unaware that from the rooftops above, they were being followed. The Kunoichi was watching them with restless eyes. She clutched her fists, causing her gloves to squeak softly. Her short hair was a mess and covering much of her face. She gulped as she feared for the worst.
Naruto and Hinata were soon in view of the guards standing in front of the doors into the Hokage's manor. Hinata grew nervous on the inside, but she took a deep breath to calm down.
"Lady Tsunade," the guards were easily fooled by Hinata's transformation. "I see you came back earlier than expected."
"Well, yes." She answered, unsure of what he could mean. "Anyway, I need to take Naruto to my office, so could you open up for us?"
"Of course." answered the second guard. After a short series of hand signs, the sound of the door unlocking followed. The guard pushed it open and showed both ninja in. One of the guards gave them a suspicious stare, one brought up because of their imminent silence as they walked in. They shut the door closed when they stepped in. Naruto and Hinata found themselves in a dark corridor. The only light was coming from outside. Through the windows, the moonlight dimly illuminated the place. They both proceeded towards a staircase at the bottom of the hall.
Hinata released her transformation jutsu, returning to her former self.
"Did you see how that guard was looking at us?" Naruto asked her.
"I know." She answered. "Do you think he could suspect?"
"I dunno. Maybe we should've said something before walking in, don't you think?"
"Well, I thought that I shouldn't say anything because Lady Tsunade is usually in a bad mood and right now she should be feeling worse than usual."
"I know, but still…" He gave the door behind them a long look.
"Well, we shouldn't waste any more time. Where is the room where they keep all the files?" Naruto questioned Hinata.
"I'm on it." She said as she drew her hands together and assembled a hand signal.
Byakugan!
Hinata could see everything around her, whether it was in the dark or light. She could see many rooms towering over where they were, including the Hokage's office. She could also see what she thought could be Tsunade's bedroom. It was empty, save for Ton-Ton, who was sleeping in a corner. She looked down from where they were standing. The basement had more rooms than what she had thought at first. Several hallways intertwined with one another as if it was a small maze. One of the rooms was windowless and was full to the brim with file cabinets, each with what looked like a seal.
"Found it. This way." Both ninjas descended the stairs. The light from the hall was vanishing the further they went down.
"Stay close, Naruto." Hinata whispered, Naruto grunted in agreement. Unlike Hinata, he felt he was completely overcome by the darkness, not being able to look where he was going, at least that's what he was thinking at first. Hinata's footprints sounded loud and clear in his ears. He could make out her silhouette and that of the incoming doors and hallways up ahead. The weirdest thing was that a smell of sweet flowers was in the air, similar to the perfume she had been wearing the last time he was at her house. At this point, Naruto didn't need an explanation to know what was going on.
"Here it is." Hinata had halted. Naruto almost bumped into her from the sudden stop.
"OK, now how do we get inside?"
"Let me take a look…" Hinata, with her Byakugan still active, observed the door's lock. She could see the seal that was keeping it shut.
"I see." She said.
"What's that?" Naruto asked.
"With my Byakugan, I can see the symbols that make up the seal. To release it, all I have to do is do the right combination of hand signals so we can get in. Normally, decoders need a special jutsu to find out what is in a sealed document. These documents often require several minutes to fully break into, especially those of the highest importance. But since there is no known way to counter the Byakugan, I can do it in just seconds."
"Well, why wouldn't there be more decoders from the Hyuga family?"
"I'm not really sure. Maybe because my clan has always thought that our abilities are better suited for combat."
"Awesome." Naruto said. He saw with great impression how Hinata executed the complicated hand signals as some of them he had never seen.
"Release!" Hinata exclaimed. The symbol radiated weakly and quickly vanished. The door unlocked and they both entered.
"Whoa…" The room was much bigger than Naruto had thought. Hundreds of cabinets were stacked on top of one another all around the room. The room was divided into several floors, each one holding dozens of the metal cabinets. His eyes spun as he got dizzy from looking at them all.
"How are we going to find my file?" He asked, looking exhausted already.
"You can see them all?" The girl was a bit surprised at how he could see clearly when it was so dark.
"Well, yeah. I uh,…it's not that dark. I can see pretty well." That was the best excuse he could think of at the moment so he wouldn't have to tell her it was Kyuubi's influence over his.
"Let's not worry about that and let's find my file." Naruto changed the subject. "How do we find mine?"
"Some of these must have all of the villager's personal information." Hinata's Byakugan helped her look inside the cabinets. They contained all kinds of information, including village blueprints, ANBU records, BINGO book files, and all manner of old scrolls, probably containing Konoha's previous history.
"There." She pointed at the top left of the room and jumped towards there. Naruto followed right behind her. They landed in front of a cabinet with the letters R-W.
"Your file must be here." She quickly searched the seal and made the required hand signs. Again, Naruto was amazed by their complexity.
"Release!" Hinata exclaimed again. The cabinet slowly opened itself before the pair. An unintelligible number of yellow cardboard folders were lined up inside, each with a small name tag pasted on it.
"Let's see…" With her fingers, she fiddled the folders on the "U" section of the cabinet. At the very end of it was the folder with his name.
"Here it is. It's your folder."
"What about my family?"
"There's only one file with the name "Uzumaki" in it." She said surprised.
"What?!" Naruto shouted as a shock of fear rattled his head.
"I'm sorry." Said Hinata, feeling dejected as well.
"OK, never mind that. Let's see me."
"Right." Hinata opened the folder. Right at the beginning was Naruto's registration as a Genin. His old twelve year old picture was there. This made her feel a bit sad because she remembered that Naruto was the only one from their age group who was still below Chunin class.
"What do you got?" Naruto asked anxiously.
"Let me look for your civil registration." Hinata continued examining the documents in the folder. The one she was looking for was on a light blue sheet of paper. It featured a picture of a young Naruto and a more current one. She went through all his personal information including date of birth, eye color, hair color, sex, address in Konoha, ranking, mission status, and more until she got to the section of his known relatives. She gasped at the sight of it.
"What happened?" Naruto was nervously sweating, anticipating the great truth of his family.
"Naruto…it's blank."
"What? What do you mean blank?" He was confused and perplexed.
"There's nothing in here about your family. I'm looking right at your known relatives section and it's completely blank."
"What? Let me see that!" He aggressively took the paper from Hinata's hands. He looked at it closely to make out the writing more clearly. Despite the fact that he could see through the darkness, he still had to struggle to read. It was just as Hinata had said. There were no names in that section. The feeling of defeat overcame him very abruptly. He dropped to his knees. The folder slipped from his hands and fell. He could not believe what was happening.
"Naruto…" Hinata was starting to feel hopeless.
"THOSE BASTARDS!" He slammed his fists against the floor, making the entire room shake. He breathed strongly, panting. He was ultimately furious. The same blood-drunk feeling from before was returning. His nails turned into small claws that started digging into the stone floor.
"Naruto." The sound of Hinata's voice almost serenaded him. He turned to see her, who was clutching her heart, shaking. This scene made him take control of himself.
"Please…don't be angry." She didn't look like she was going to cry, but her face did show serious concern over him. It was certain that she wasn't afraid of him, but of what would happen to him.
When Naruto was calm again, he got up and placed his file inside the cabinet again.
"What do we do now?" Hinata asked sadly.
"Well, I could always go back to the old plan and find a way to get answers from Pervy Sage and Kakashi-Sensei. There's gotta be a way to loosen their tongues."
"Do you have a plan?"
"Not yet, but trust me, this will be the last time they get the drop on us. They will no longer be ahead of us."
"Us?" Hinata asked. She didn't expect him to use that word.
"Well, you did say that you wanted to help me." Naruto said, grinning at her. Hinata was overwhelmed with joy.
"Come on, we better get out of here." Naruto led the way out of the room.
"Just you wait, we'll show 'em." Naruto spoke as they left. "Those two think they're so smart. I'll get those answers and I'll make them pay for what they did. They think they can wipe my parents out of existence? Well now, it's personal."
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Sakura observed the outside of the Hokage's building from the top of a tree several blocks away. She could see the guards talking among themselves. There were no lights coming from the inside. There was no way for her to know what was happening in there. She believed in Naruto and Hinata, but she couldn't shake the feeling that her friends wouldn't make it out unnoticed.
"Sakura?" A voice coming from below startled her. Thankfully, it was a familiar voice. The pink haired girl looked down. Standing in the shadow of the tree was TenTen. She jumped to join her at the top.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"I, uh…" Sakura looked at her friend with grief. Her eyes wandered to her side as she thought of how to explain herself.
"You're following them, aren't you?"
Sakura looked back at TenTen with disbelief. That was more than enough to answer TenTen's question.
"Yeah, me too." TenTen said.
"It's just that…" Sakura talked with strain. "…I haven't seen Hinata in a while so I got worried. I was looking for her and when I found her, I caught her transforming into Lady Tsunade. I just knew she was going to try to visit Naruto."
"Did she see you?"
"I don't think so."
"How long is it since they've stepped inside?"
"How do you know they're in there?"
"Who do you think told Hinata to go visit Naruto?"
"Wait, you talked her into this?" Sakura asked incredulously.
"It's not like that exactly. She came to me for advice and I told her that it was all up to what she wanted to do. I told her that if she wanted to take the risk, then by all means go for it."
"Did she tell you about, you know, how she feels?"
"She didn't say the exact words about her feelings, but it was more than obvious. I guess that as long as she doesn't say she loves him, she's fine."
"Do you know what they're doing in there?"
"How am I supposed to know? The plan was only to visit Naruto, not break into the Hokage mansion. This is just crazy! If they get caught, I'm gonna have to get in there and save them."
"Wouldn't you get in as much trouble as they would be?"
"Don't worry. I can take out the guards before they even notice. They'll probably have all their attention on the intruders that they won't realize I'm sneaking up behind them."
"Well, why are you arriving just now?"
"I had to keep Neji busy or else he was going to find out."
"Good point. But, how did you find out they were here if you weren't with Hinata?"
"I dropped by Naruto's house. Ino and Shikamaru were on guard duty. They said Tsunade had taken Naruto to the manor, so I had to follow them."
The weak sound of footsteps coming from below made both girls grow silent. They saw a dark figure, walking slowly towards the manor. The person groaned and stumbled in its steps; it looked like it was about to lose its balance at any moment. They both gasped and looked stupefied at this person as the guards quickly approached it.
"Now, they're in for it." TenTen stated.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Naruto and Hinata continued talking as they walked the dark corridors on their way back.
"I'm sorry that this was all a waste, Naruto."
"Ahh, don't worry about it." The blonde ninja threw his arms behind his head. "I mean, I did get out of my apartment, even if it was for just one night. Plus, I got to see someone that wasn't Grandma Tsunade or one of the Jonin she keeps sending with food. It was a nice change of pace."
Hinata giggled quietly with a little red on her cheeks.
"It's amazing that Master Jiraiya and Kakashi-Sensei would go this far. They were really thinking ahead of us the whole time."
"Yeah right, as if they would think they'd fool me. I mean come on, wouldn't it be a bit weird if I was the only Uzumaki on this village ever?"
"I guess." Hinata answered, who was looking like her traditional nervous self. Naruto looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Come on, Hinata. You gotta loosen up a bit."
"Huh?" Hinata asked a bit puzzled.
"You know, be more easy-going. You're always looking so timid and unsure of yourself. You have to relax a little more. I mean, I don't mind your usual self, but once in a while, you should just be more like…well, me."
"You?"
"What I mean is don't care about what people think. Just do what you want to do and don't let what other people think put you down. That's why I am so in-your-face all the time. Well, most of the time since everything that has happened, but you get the point."
"Uh-, I don't know. I don't think I have it in me."
"Hmm…" Naruto paused to think. "Well, maybe that's too much. How about the way you walk?"
"What's wrong with it?" Hinata asked a bit embarrassed. She was a bit ashamed from the thought of criticism coming from him, even if it was supposed to be encouragement.
"Sometimes you look like you're walking with your head down. How about you bring it up like this?" He lifted his chin and drew his chest out with an inhale. He exhaled and assumed a more relaxed position. His head was now in a more normal angle.
"OK, now you."
Hinata still looked insecure.
"C'mon, there's no one here but us."
"OK." Hinata answered with a quivering voice. She started mimicking Naruto slowly. She felt uncomfortable when she brought out her chest, so she quickly exhaled. She was now walking with her sight straight forward. She started feeling glad about what she was doing when a sense of satisfaction filled her on the inside, which was reflected on her face.
"How does it feel?" Naruto asked.
"It feels great." Hinata affirmed with security.
"Told ya."
"Thank you. It's so weird how something so little can make you feel like this." Hinata said. Inside her head, she was thinking that the way she was feeling was all because she felt that she and Naruto were bonding again.
Both ninjas soon reached the staircase leading upstairs. When they had ascended, they heard a loud commotion coming from outside the front door. The guards were talking among themselves loudly.
"Oh, crap. Are we blown?" Naruto asked Hinata. The Kunoichi prepared the same hand sign from before.
Byakugan!
The veins around her head started swelling and her eyes went white again. She could see from behind the door both guards. There was a woman standing in front of them. One of the guards pointed to his left and the other followed in that direction. The one that stayed made a series of hand signs while facing the door. Hinata's face was drawn with fright.
"It's Lady Tsunade! The guards are coming!"
"WHAT?!" Naruto was in shock as well.
"One of them is heading for the back door…" She followed the guard with her Byakugan, who was dashing his way around towards the door at the back end of the manor. "…and the other is coming this way!"
"Damn it! What do we do?!" Naruto looked around as if to try to find a solution.
"We better run!"
"Run where?"
"To somewhere we can hide. Follow me!" Hinata made a right at the end of the hall with Naruto in hot pursuit.
"There's a small broom closet on the second floor. If we can create a distraction, we can hide in there."
"Leave that to me!" Naruto shouted. He raised his hands up to his chest and performed a sign.
Shadow Clone Jutsu!
From a cloud of white smoke popped out two clones; one was a Naruto clone, the other was Hinata.
"Wow." Hinata remarked at his display of mixing a Transformation with a Shadow Clone so quickly. Both the clones and the real ninja continued running until they found another staircase leading upwards. Hinata's Byakugan was still observing the guards, one was just approaching the stairs while the other had already gone inside through the back door. Out of nowhere, two more people had entered the door and quickly followed the other guard.
"Now there are four of them and they're getting closer!"
"How much further to this closet?!"
"If we make another right here, it should be the second door to our right-hand side."
"When we get there, you guys keep running and try to get out of here without getting caught. If you do, cancel the jutsu, OK?" Naruto asked the clones.
"Right!" Both clones agreed.
Just as Hinata had said, the closet was to their right. In a swift movement, the real Naruto and Hinata entered while the fakes continued running. The door was slammed shut. It was dark inside safe for the crack underneath the door. They both waited as the sounds of the clones' footsteps grew silent while another pair grew louder. They both saw a shadow cross the door, following the fakes. He soon stopped as he was confronted by the second guard.
They both heard them talk and complain about the intruders that got away.
"Oh yeah, we got 'em good." Naruto whispered.
"Yeah." Hinata whispered back. Both their eyes went wide open when they realized their current situation. The distance between them was nonexistent. The closet was so small, Hinata had to lean against Naruto so both could fit in it. She was facing him, feeling his hard chest, while he was feeling her breasts. Their eyes traveled slowly to meet and they gave each other an uneasy look. They both went completely red and nervously sweated. This was followed by an awkward chuckle coming from Naruto. Hinata's eyes started quivering and getting cloudy. Naruto thought it was obvious what was gonna happen.
"Wait, no, no, no, no, no, no!" He loudly whispered. "Hinata!"
It was too late. The girl had lost consciousness and her head fell against him, resting on his shoulder.
"Hinata!" He whispered again while his temperature rose. Even if she had fainted, he couldn't help but feel a little turned on. This was all interrupted by the sound of blows landing and bodies collapsing outside. He heard both guards struggling, as if they were fighting someone. From what he could hear, they were defeated easily.
'Don't tell me.' Naruto thought. 'Did the clones come back?! I told them to run!'
He heard the sound of something being dragged across the floor. He assumed that the clones were now taking the bodies.
'What the hell are these guys doing?!' He reached around with his hand carefully to avoid bumping into Hinata's waist, trying to push the door open. He was freaked when the door wouldn't budge. He realized the door could only be opened from the outside, hence the lack of a doorknob. Outside, there was only silence now.
'Stupid door!' He angrily thought. 'Hinata! Hinata, wake up! We need to get out of here!' He tried to move to get her to wake up, but it was no use. She was deeply out of it. Naruto could hear her mumbling something unintelligible in her sleep.
'Damn it! Now what do I do?' He thought desperate for a solution. The silence from outside the closet was broken by the sound of footsteps coming towards him. He gulped; his sweat went cold. In horror, he heard the stepping getting closer as the fear of getting caught was intensifying. He felt the air in his lungs had been sucked out acutely. He tightened his grip and tried to hold his breath. He shut his eyes, not feeling ready to face the worst. He heard the steps stop dead in front of the door. He peaked one eye open to see the shadow coming from outside. He heard as the doorknob was being twisted open. He was engulfed in the person's shadow when the door was swung open. He knew he was a goner now. He waited one second, two seconds, three seconds. Nothing was happening.
"Whoops. Sorry, my bad." A certain familiar voice, only slurred, reached his ears. He opened his eyes to find Tsunade in a way he had never seen her before. A bungle of a smile was drawn on her lips, one of her eyes was closing and her hair was a disaster. Her green jacket was hanging from her left side, with the arm still in its corresponding sleeve. She was stumbling from one side to another and holding on to her balance difficultly.
"What the-?" Naruto asked.
"Look, I am so sorry." Tsunade said with a slur, followed by a quick movement of her arms. "For a moment I thought this was my house. W-Where am I?"
"Are you drunk?" Naruto asked.
"Hey, hey!" Tsunade gave him a mean look, still dragging her words. "Get off my case, kid!"
"Did you just call me kid?" He asked.
"Look, I know you're angry because I walked in on you and your girlfrie- Wow, she must've had some scare." Tsunade looked at Hinata, who was still out cold. "Hmm… she looks nice, kid." She said with a sense of interest. "You sure picked her well."
"Hey, she's not-!"
"She's not?!" Her drunken laughter echoed down the hallways around her. "Why you gold digger…" She patted Naruto's shoulder.
"I'm gonna be honest with you for a second. You are cute. Ladies must be bringing down your door, am I right? Too many girls, so little time."
"Ummm…" Even if it was just booze talking, Naruto felt pleased by Tsunade's inebriated thoughts. He was now blushing.
"Ahhhh, come on. Don't be shy."
"Look, I wish I could talk but right now, I have to get-"
"What? What's the problem?"
"No problem." He said as he tried to carry Hinata out of the closet. "It's just-"
"Lemme tell you about problems." She started. "There's this kid who kinda looks like you and uh…" She paused as she stretched out that last "uh" into a graon.
"That kid worries the shit outta me, OK? He's always getting in trouble and it's up to me to do something about it. Why can't the kid grow a pair and face his own problems himself once in a while?"
"Hey, why don't you just-!?" Naruto was losing it.
"Lady Tsunade!" Sakura and TenTen had appeared from one of the corridors.
"Sakura? Is that you?" Tsunade asked, still slurring.
"Ummm, hi." She nervously waved while smiling uncomfortingly. "Ummm, you see…" Neither of the girls knew what to say. They had not planned ahead for a situation like this.
"What is it?" She asked.
"We…" TenTen started, smiling just like Sakura. "…are here to take you home." She budged Sakura with her elbow.
"Uh, yeah. Don't you remember? You asked us to…finish your paperwork while you were out and then we have to go get you because you would be out drinking, right?" They both chuckled agitatedly.
"Uh…" Tsunade groaned again. Both girls scurried over and grabbed her by the arms.
"We should get going. Tomorrow's a busy day, remember?" Sakura said while dragging her out.
"H-Hey! Hey! Hey, girls! You know this guy?" He pointed towards Naruto, who was now out of the closet, holding Hinata with both arms around her shoulders. "You have to meet him! You are gonna love him!"
"That's great, but unfortunately, we have to get you home now." TenTen said. She quickly glanced backwards and signaled Naruto to get out with a quick movement of her head.
"Never change, my man! Hehehehe…young people." Tsunade said as the three women turned around and left him. Then, there was silence again. All the commotion and excitement from before seemed liked it never happened.
"There's no way my luck is this good." He said as he placed Hinata in his arms, holding her head with one hand and holding the back of her knees with the other, making her feet dangle in the air.
"She's a pretty fun drunk, though." He rapidly made his escape from the mansion.
The way back to Hinata's house wasn't long. There was no need to remain incognito anymore for Naruto. He made his way jumping across the rooftops of houses until he arrived at the Hyuga's district. Here's where he now proceeded with more caution. If somebody saw him carrying the heir to the main household like that, they would try to kill him right on the spot. It was easy to find Hinata's house, as its size stood out from the rest. He hadn't paid much attention on his first visit thanks to the rain, but he was still able to remember pieces of the path he took. He laid Hinata down by a lamp post and examined the building. He thought it would be best to look for the window to Hinata's room first before actually taking her there. He assumed his trademark hand sign.
Shadow Clone Jutsu!
A single clone appeared before him and started circling the building. The real Naruto stood there and waited, taking care of his Hinata. Her face was completely without expression. Her cheeks weren't burning red anymore. It still seemed like she was talking in her sleep, but it was only her lips that were slightly moving.
"Hinata…" Naruto whispered in her ear. "It's me. We're at your house right now. Come on, you gotta wake up. Hinata, are you there?" He rubbed his chin and looked upwards, thinking of a way to get her to wake up. The only idea that came to mind was giving her a hug so she could come back to her senses. Feeling troubled on the inside, he gave it a try. There was no result.
"Damn. She's out good."
In his mind, the scene of an open window a few feet above the ground appeared. It was located near a small garden. He realized that the clone had found the one he needed and canceled the jutsu. He picked up Hinata again in the same manner as before and made his way to her room's window. When he found it, he gathered chakra on his feet and climbed towards it. He carefully jumped inside to avoid making any noise. He looked around her room. It was tidy and it smelled nice. There was no sort of garbage or other objects scattered around. Beside Hinata's bed was a small table with a drawer. There was also a full-body mirror at the corner away from him. Beside it was a desk with several round boxes neatly arranged on top of it. He wasn't surprised that everything was in place. He tenderly laid Hinata down on her bed, resting her head on her pillow. He took a step back and looked at her. She looked so at peace on her sleep.
"Thank you, Hinata." He warmly smiled at her and thanked her. With that, he stepped towards the window. He stopped for a moment to take a look at the full moon, glowing proudly in the sky. It looked inmense from where he was standing.
"Naruto." A whisper, soft and almost inaudible, came from behind him. Or at least that is what he thought. His eyes broadened as this sound made a shiver crawl up his spine, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He heard the sheets from Hinata's bed shuffling. He quickly rotated towards the room to see Hinata, still deep in her sleep, smiling and lying on her side, facing him. She had curled herself up a bit, bringing her legs closer to her upper body. Again, her cheeks were red, but only partly this time. She was being bathed in the moonlight's blue glow coming from outside. It made her hair shine. Naruto watched her with incredulous eyes. He was reminded of the time he had caught her naked in the waterfall, but there was something about the way she was looking right now that was a lot more pleasant, even inviting. In his mind, there was no way for him to wonder if she really did whisper his name or not, as he was deeply compelled by the beauty he was watching.
Naruto stepped away from the window and slowly crept towards her. He crouched down until he was looking right at her face. She was still smiling ardently. He wished her eyes were open so he could look into them. He studied her from head to toe; his eyes went down from her neck and bosoms, he followed the outline of her waist, which ended on her slender legs. For several times, he repeated this cycle. He kept at it until he found his hand reaching for her own. She grabbed it gently and rubbed his thumb on the back of her palm. With his other hand, he softly stroked her hair. He played with it by curling some of it with his finger. Hinata didn't move at all. It was as if Naruto was touching a gorgeous statue. He was almost in a trance, as he kept redoing those strokes and admiring her physique. He felt as if something, an urge different from anything he had ever felt before and couldn't explain, was taking over him. It made him feel a small fire being set inside of him, making his chest heavy. He got closer and closer to her face. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He had stopped stroking her hair, but he was now gripping her hand more strongly as his lips were inched away from hers.
The weight in his chest soon became too strong and he returned to normal. He hadn't realized that he was sweating again. He rested one of his palms on his forehead and breathed erratically. He thought about the way he was feeling right now. It had been a revelation about himself. What he was doing, the way his body and mind had reacted, it was all becoming clear to him. A powerful feeling, stronger than anything he had ever felt before, had developed deep inside him and it was aimed at Hinata. It was like when he saw Sakura when he was younger, only it had been increased tenfold, maybe even more. This exposition of his own emotions confused him. It was as if he was now a new person and he had no idea who he was. All it took was one more look at the girl in her sleep for him to know what he was going to do. He smiled one last time at her and drew closer to her again. This time, he was closest to her cheek. He stopped just instantly and then laid a kiss right on it. It wasn't very long, but he poured a lot of his newfound happiness into it. That was all right for now. He got back up and left through the window, but not without closing it first, giving him a chance to take a final look at his new love.
"Oh, wow." He quietly said to himself as he started walking past the other Hyuga houses. The moment he stepped through the gate, he jumped high into the air with a yell of thrill as he raised his fist as if he had been victorious in a battle. When he landed, he made a small dance that consisted of high energy jumps, flips, and a large variety of acrobatic maneuvers. He continued this as he walked home.
Sakura and TenTen had taken care of Tsunade and were back spying on the blonde ninja. They saw everything. The look, the stroke, the kiss. They felt like for a few small seconds that Naruto, who never really understood a woman's mind, was now a natural at letting out his romantic side. While they thought that he was going to abuse of her by kissing Hinata in her sleep, he showed restraint and maturity, which wasn't something he normally showed. Both girls turned to each other with looks of disbelief.
"Did he just-?" Sakura started.
"Yeah, he did." TenTen answered.
"Who would've thought he could play it so smoothly?" The voice of another girl coming from right next to them made the girls yell flustered. They were back to normal when they saw who it was. She was dressed in black, save for a red cloth wrapped around her waist and another red cloth, much thinner than the other one, to tie a large fan to her back. Her hair was a dark tone of blonde, which was tied into four puffy tails behind her head.
"Temari! What are you doing here?" Sakura asked surprised.
"Who? Me? Oh, I'm here 'cause of him." She pointed at the ninja dancing and shouting on the street several blocks away. He was now singing as well. "I was on my way to visit your Hokage, but I got sidetracked when I saw him carrying a fainted girl on his arms. I mean, I had to see what's up."
"What's going on? Why are you here?" Sakura asked again.
"The Kazekage wants to have a word with your Jinchuruuki about his little problem."
