Author's Note: I forgot to apologize for the late update last chappie…my mom couldn't pay the internet bill so I had to wait before I could update (the chapter was all typed out and everything! *pouts*). Anyway there was not much HinaxJuugo action cause I wanted a filler for what was going on with Sui the plot bunny's idea was just too pushy. Anyway by popular demand *sigh* I will *try* to take it easy on Karin. Thanks for da reviews!
Disclaimer: They aren't mine I'm just borrowing them for my evil purposes muahahaha!
Chapter Nine: A Minor Setback…right?
Naruto blew with ease through the hospital doors feeling high on life. This was a great day, he spoke with the teme (they'd be sparring later), he survived Sakura-chan's wrath, the morning was absolutely beautiful with blue skies, birds and the whole she-bang, and he had some coupons for Ichiraku, all he needed was to deliver these….very tasty looking apples to Juugo. He was hungry but he hadn't dared touch a single slice. Why did Sakura-chan have to be so scary? "Okay! Gang-way! Future Hokage coming though!" he bobbed and weaved around nurses and patients alike. As much as he liked Juugo he was in a bit of a rush. 'Ramen, ramen, ramen.' he thought to himself in the tune of the Cha cha song. 'Oh Kami…Sakura's right I AM a baka!' "Uurrrrgh" he rubbed his temples. Who knew Naruto could get on his own nerves.
…….
The nameless shinobi crept into the small occupied home. He found the pink-haired girl fast asleep with a post-it on her slightly spacious forehead. Ridiculous. This shouldn't be a problem. His chakra was well masked, and he was trained for stealth and absolute silence. He would start in here since it would have been a waste to look anywhere else and then come back here to look. He rolled his eyes. He had hoped this would be a challenge. That Uchiha brat was long gone. She did not look like much, but she was supposedly the Hokage's apprentice. 'First things first.' he thought. He brought out a senbon to paralyze her in case she woke up. Like a shadow he slunk over to her bedside. He briefly noted that she was pretty cute.
Just as he was about to strike the offending weapon into the side of her neck, he found himself leaping in the air to avoid flying debris as a crater opened beneath his feet. 'Holy shit!' he thought. The form on the bed disappeared into a *poof!*. A replacement, damn he'd underestimated her. Before he could react he was knocked out of mid-air by kick to his gut that made him see stars, and smashed him into a nearby wall. "Who the hell are you?" the green-eyed amazon snarled. His vision cleared and he shook his head to regain his bearings. He grinned at his opponent widely. 'Well…it looks like this may be some fun after all.' he thought to himself.
Haruno Sakura was pissed at being awakened from her much needed slumber. The minute she started enjoying it she had to get up and actually fight!? 'Shannaro!' Inner Sakura bellowed. 'Let's show this bastard what happens when you interrupt the beauty sleep of a Konoha kunoichi!' "Where are the chakra samples?" he grinned at her wickedly. "Rainbow junction jackass." she responded lunging for him. He spun away in a movement like lightning. "You may have gotten me before, but I wont underestimate you this time Haruno." he responded. "Tell me where they are." He dodged a few shruiken aimed at his nether-regions. "Ooh, vicious are we? Well so am I." he promised. "Who are you?" she demanded. He whipped out a senbon. "Who are any of us? Is life not about finding that out?" he mocked. "What is your name?" she hissed. "My name is of the wind that none knoweth whither it goest nor from whence it came." he danced about gracefully as a sprite as they fought. "You aren't getting those samples." she growled.
"We shall see." he chuckled. He broke into incredible speed. Sakura wished she had the Sharingan more that anything at that moment. 'Sasuke would own this guy's ass.' she thought to herself. She barely avoided a senbon. He really wanted to nail her with that thing didn't he? She narrowed her eyes. She had to get rid it. She had already leveled her hardwood floors by punching that crater in her room, new technique. They were in a taijutsu match as Sakura was avoiding the senbon. "I don't want to kill you! Just give-me-the-samples!" he swung the poisoned weapon at her. She had to scoff. 'What kind of idiot says they don't want to kill you while trying to stab at you with a poisoned senbon?' she thought. Blue chakra began to flow into her fists.
'What the devil is that!?' he thought avoiding her hits like the plague now. She was aiming for his arms. 'Damn small house! I need long distance!' he internally ranted. With a swift kick she knocked the senbon out of his hand. They both dove for it. The kunoichi used a trick Rock Lee had taught her and tripped him with a swift kick behind his knee. Simple but effective as he tumbled onto his knees and she propelled herself forward with her foot against his head. She grabbed it and snapped it in two, then crushed the pieces under her boot with her chakra strength. "Fine then, bitch." he coughed, wiping blood from his mouth. "That was going to make this easier on you, but now I see I have no other alternative than to be brutal." his voice was dark. "Bring it, biotch." she got into a fighting stance.
…………….
Hinata was at the hospital she thought it might be nice to pay Juugo a visit. In about an hour she'd go down to the lab and wait for Sakura there. The hospital air felt cold as it blew past her face. Well at least it was well air conditioned. Now that she knew where Juugo's cell was, she did not have to ask around. He deserved some company. People paid their respects to her as they passed her in the hall. "Konichiwa Hyugga-san." they would all say with a respectful bow. Hinata still found it odd. Fortunately none of her friends did that to her. She'd never allow it. She also had forbade Neji from doing anything like that either.
Standing in front of the cell she nodded to the guards and knocked politely before they opened it for her. "Be careful Hyugga-san." one of them warned. Instead of giving a polite reprimand she simply nodded. They were only being cautious. Juugo's spiky orange hair lifted with his head as slightly sleepy eyes met with her's. His eyes lit up. "Hello Hinata-chan." he smiled. "It's good to see you. Did you rest well?" he asked. Hinata could not help but smile. Juugo was very mild mannered. It was as though he'd originally been made to be a civilian. Being a farmer would have suited him. He was eating apples from a Tupperware. "Was Sakura here today?" she asked curiously. "No." he shook his head. "Naruto-san dropped these off for her, she needed some rest." he explained. Hinata understood. Sakura devoted much of her time to the hospital shifts, often neglecting her own health. After last night she could not afford to go to work as she usually did. She would exhaust herself.
Hinata looked at Juugo's attire. The same old T-shirt and pants…she frowned. "How long have you worn those?" she pointed. "Huh?" he looked at his clothes. "Oh." he smiled sheepishly. "It's all I have actually…you see I'm rather big and well…" he trailed off and shrugged. Hinata nodded in understanding, although her nose wrinkled in disapproval. She would have to take care of that. "What are you going to do today?" he asked eagerly. "Hopefully Sakura and I can make a thorough study of the samples, then we can compare and contrast knowledge, etc." Hinata answered off-handedly.
"So…did you come here just to visit me?" he asked. He had enjoyed Naruto's visit but a visit from Hinata was better than he could hope for. "Just for a visit." she nodded a confirmation. Juugo felt warm and fuzzy. It felt good to know that she accepted him. She was so different from the kunoichi that he had encountered. Even Sakura. He liked Sakura-san but she lacked a certain softness and tenderness that Hinata held in abundance. He felt instantly drawn to her gentle disposition. "I'm glad I have people like you to help me." he admitted. Hinata smiled graciously. "You're a very quiet person Hinata-chan. I like that about you, the quiet people are always the wisest with their words." he complimented. "I don't know about that." she shook her head with a smile. Neji was always the quiet one, but there were many things he still had to learn. Especially his mouth when he loses his temper. Juugo shrugged.
"What do you do here all day?" she asked to make conversation. "Mostly look out the window and talk to the nurses a little, then spend some time in the hospital grounds with the birds." he murmured. "I really like being outside the best." he added smiling like a child. Hinata briefly admired the chiseled jaw line, and straight elegant nose. His smile seemed to light up his oddly colored eyes with a certain optimistic charm, a set of perfect, straight teeth peeked from behind his finely sculpted lips. At her last thought she blushed heavily. 'NOT NOW!' she wanted to slap herself. It was just a social call. Nothing to be nervous or embarrassed about. So he happened to be easy on the eyes. So what? She had gotten over crushes before! "Hinata-chan…your face…are you…embarrassed about something?" he asked. 'Does he have to be so intuitive on top of it all? Why couldn't he be (sorry to say it) a baka, like Naruto? Damn him.' her last thought frightened her. 'The world has enough Narutos.' she scolded herself.
It was not as though she hated Naruto…she liked him very much. In fact she loved him as a friend but…one had to admit, he was a bit slow on the uptake there. "Hinata-chan? Should I call the nurse-"
"No. I'm sorry Juugo-kun, I'm fine." she assured.
"Are you sure?" he asked touching her forehead. "Y-yes! Yes." she swiped his large hand away nervously. He drew back as if burned. "Sorry." he immediately apologized. "No, no, no it's okay. It's fine I'm just feeling off of my equilibrium today I g-guess." she did not like to make him feel like he repulsed her or anything. 'What is with the stutter? Keep it together Hinata!' she internally beat herself up over her slip up. "Oh…okay." he smiled hesitantly. He hadn't meant to over-step any boundaries. He'd just been worried and forgot is all. Hinata-chan was unique. In her mannerisms, in her acceptance of him, even in her physical appearance. She'd had the loveliest eyes Juugo had ever seen. The mysterious lavender white that met his gaze was absolutely breath-taking within the shape of her eyes, and beautifully framed by a fan of delicate eye-lashes. He caught himself before he gawked. He was always taught that staring was impolite. "So…"
"Hinata-sama!"
Hinata jumped with a start at her cousin Neji's voice as he busted through the doors of Juugo's cell. He looked extremely alarmed. "N-neji..wh-…" she forced her nerves to a calm. "What seems to be the problem?" she asked, determined to help in any way she could. "It's Sakura." He breathed heavily. "She's been hospitalized." Hinata felt her insides drop like a ton of bricks. Juugo stood up. "Sakura-san? But why?" he looked between both of them. "What happened to her?" Hinata demanded gripping Neji's white shirt. "I haven't been informed, but Hokage-sama says that she needs you there immediately." he prompted. Hinata nodded. "Let me come." Juugo implored almost sternly.
"Juugo-kun…I don't think…"
"Please. She is one of my only friends in the world…and if this has to do with me I…." he shook his head. "I need to see her…please." he took Hinata's hands into his large ones pleadingly looking her in the eye. Neji watched the scene with mild disapproval. Hinata willed away a blush. With a sigh she finally nodded. "Fine, come on both of you." she motioned for Neji to lead the way. "Come on she's in the E.R." Neji informed urgently.
……
"I-I-I…I U-Uchiha-san…please..I-I'm sorry but I was told not-"
"Let me see her." the voice of the dark-haired shinobi was deep and almost threatening in nature. Almost too much for the poor receptionist to bear.
"*gulp* My-my superiors said…"
Sasuke leaned over the counter, Sharingan blazing. "Eep!" she moved back. "Teme, what the hell are you doing, intimidating poor receptionist girls!?" Uzumaki Naruto appeared out of nowhere moving in front of the young avenger. Sasuke huffed and folded his arms. "The poor thing is obviously new here! Look at her shaking!" he pointed. "Please, excuse my 'friend' here, he seems to have gotten an angry porcupine stuck up his ass…several years ago, and it's gotten angrier as the years have gone by." he explained. She tried not to giggle due to the scary presence looming behind the bouncy blonde. He was the kyubbi vessel was he not? This must be her week for meeting the celebrities of Rookie 9.
"It's not a problem…I guess." she started to breath easier. "Please." he leaned over the counter. "Our team-mate has been mortally injured and well…she means a lot to us…really so could you please tell us where they're keeping her?" he had such a hopeful gleam in his cerulean blue eyes. The girl bit her lip. "Please." he asked again sincerely. No wonder people could not help but fall in love with this supposed dangerous freak. Who could hate him? "Y-yes…" she relented. "Fine."
Suddenly there was a *poof*. "I have a need to finding one Haruno Sakura." a silver haired ANBU appeared in front of her. "You too?" she asked exasperated. "Me and my boys." he grinned widely putting his arms around Naruto and Sasuke who were both glaring daggers at their late sensei. "And stay out!" A blur of black and white was thrown into the group. They were knocked over like bowling pins. The poor girl looked at the pile of ninja on the ground and sweat-dropped. "Sai…what the hell?" Naruto twitched. "This guy was sneaking around the restricted wing and when I called him out he insulted me!" the security guard snarled. "I asked him about Ugly and he was unnecessarily hostile...noting this I was merely telling him that his excess anger could be due to a suppressed case of constipation." Sai informed dryly. Naruto snorted loudly. The Uchiha rolled his eyes. "Please just tell us where she is." he stood up with Naruto. "Yes well…is it just you four?" she asked. "Well you might get a visit from a blond almost as loud as this one." Kakashi warned. "But other than that yes." There was a silence before she sighed resignedly.
"Room 385D. Okay? But don't tell anybody else!" she warned. "OH THANK YOU! CROSS MY HEART I WONT! HEY! WHAT'S YOUR NAME BY THE WAY!?' Naruto suddenly burst out. 'He really is loud.' she thought to herself. The Uchiha had already vanished. "K-kohana." she told them. "NICE MEETING YOU KOHANA! BYE!" and in an instant they vanished as well. "Freaks." she thought feeling an immense sense of relief…as if a weight was lifted. "Phew." she sighed.
……..
When Hinata found them Tsunade and Sasuke were sitting by Sakura's bedside. Naruto and the rest of Sakura's team filed in immediately afterward. "Is she okay?" she asked the Godaime softly. "She's only unconscious. She will wake up soon enough." she calmly informed. "What happened to her?" Sasuke asked bluntly. "Shikamaru found her in her house in a critical state…she would have died if he hadn't. Her entire house was ransacked." she told the group. They all exchanged glances. "What were they after?" Kakashi asked, puzzled. "I don't know…hopefully Sakura can enlighten us." Tsunade sighed. There was a pain groaned that caught everybody's attention.
"Sakura-chan." Naruto tried to hurry forward but was held back. "Sakura…can you hear me?" Tsunade asked her apprentice with a motherly tone. "Shisou?" sea foam eyes blinked and looked around. "Wait! Where is that bastard!" she tried to sit up only to be pushed down by her teacher. "Sakura…who did this to you?" Sasuke demanded, determinedly. The line was so eerily familiar that she shuddered briefly. "I don't know who he is." she shook her head. "Not even a clue?" Tsunade pressed. "He was a man but other than that… no." she shook her head. "Did he tell you what he was after?" Hinata inquired. Sakura coughed. "He wanted the samples…seemed desperate for it too." she told them. "Samples?" Tsunade raised a brow as Hinata was taken aback. "But why?" she shook her head. After all their hard work. "I tried to ask but I couldn't get anything sorry." she apologized. "Don't apologize." Sasuke grunted harshly. "Will somebody tell me what the hell you three are on about?!" the miffed Hokage demanded. Juugo wisely kept his mouth shut. He was upset. It had been about him after all. It must be his fault. "Sakura-san are you okay?" he asked softly. "I'm fine Juugo." she smiled warmly for the kindly berserker. In all actuality she looked like a mess.
"So those bastards took the samples." Sasuke narrowed his eyes. It felt like a violation to have his chakra stolen by some sick freak, after he worked all night to get it for the two kunoichi that he had come to work with. Sakura smiled. "So he thinks…but boy are they in for a surprise." The pinkette giggled. She whipped out two vials from her shirt. Hinata all but fainted from relief. She sat down and placed her head in her hands, long dark hair blocking her face from view. "What are those?" Tsunade demanded. "Is that chakra? Why?" questions spewed from her mouth. "I am sorry shisou but we can not reveal any of our research without endangering your reputation and position of authority." Sakura explained. "Tsunade-sama this is critical for Juugo's recovery I assure you and if we see that it is useless we will drop it, but if it is successful we will tell you everything." the Hyugga girl assured firmly. Tsunade was hesitant.
"Whatever this is had put my apprentice's life in danger…I feel a deep responsibility to know." she stated. "Tsunade-shisou, I will be fine. Please my life belongs to my village, just trust us." green eyes stared pleadingly at the older woman. Tsunade sighed resignedly. "The both of you are going to need bodyguards…"
"I will protect them." Sasuke and Neji both stepped forward abruptly.
They glared each other down. "Neji, Sasuke-san! Don't you dare!" Hinata pointed at them warningly. "We can't have only one anyway. We can divide duties. One will guard Sakura and the other Hinata." Tsunade concluded. "What is he doing out?" she pointed at Juugo. He bowed apologetically. "I wanted to see if Sakura-san was okay…I will go back quietly now." he promised. Tsunade softened a touch. "Very well. Hinata, Neji..please escort Su-..Juugo back to his cell." she commanded. "What about the samples?" Kakashi pressed professionally, now in ninja mode. "We will have to keep them under high security in the lab." Tsunade told him staring ahead in thought.
"Gang way! Move aside! Best friend coming through!!" a voice piped down the hall.
"Ino-pig."
"Forehead girl! Oh kami are you okay!?" a blur of purple and blonde zoomed into the room, dragging behind a frowning mist-nin. "Please keep your voice down Ino." Sakura pleaded. "People are trying to sleep in this wing." Suigetsu stood up from the floor. "Hey Sakura." he grinned widely. "You do not have permission to speak!" Ino smacked him upside the head. "Ow!" he rubbed the back of his head tenderly. He began to pick white lily petals from his hair. Ino threw herself onto the pink-haired medic, squeezing her. Sakura writhed and choked. "Get off!" Tsunade bellowed. The scene was so typically Rookie 9 dysfunctional that Hinata could not help but smile.
"Let's go Hinata-sama." Neji pulled his cousin along gently getting annoyed at this little gathering. Neji never liked it when there were too many people in one small room. Juugo followed wordlessly. Once in a while exchanging glances with the white-eyed kunoichi beside him. "I'll be out soon Hinata!" Sakura called wearily from her room. Hinata sighed. It was okay. Just a minor delay….but not quite a minor setback.