A/N. Well it's good to be back. I am glad that the semester has wrapped itself up and now I can get back to making these chapters. I must admit that in the last few chapters a reviewer here and there has pointed out that I have given Taro and Tsunade a lot of screen time. I can't explain all that I will do in future for this story, but I promise that the Naru/Hina relationship will be covered more and all that has been written is meant for the purpose of setting the scenario. That said I thank you all for the reviews and now it's your turn to enjoy.
*Early Morning*
A series of loud beeps made her open her pale eyes that appeared a bit blood shot despite their milky color. She rotated and slapped the snooze as the warmth of her bed refused to release her into a new day. There wasn't any light out and she honestly wondered if she really wanted to get up and go on a mission with Naruto.
However, when she recalled who she was to be alone with she sprang out of bed and dressed suddenly immune to the cold air. She tossed her clothes into the hamper and redressed in her normal wardrobe of blue Capri pants and her purple and white jacket. Naruto hadn't told her too much about the mission, but she figured it was probably a simple assignment. She was thankful, since that limited what she needed to bring.
She picked out a change of clothes and one of her warmer jackets, since she didn't know the destination. She grabbed a sleeping bag and decided to forego her fire kit as it was supposed to be clear skies for the entire day. She was happy to spend more time with Naruto-kun and was glad that he had picked her out of the entire village to assist him. The last mission hadn't started the way she had planned, though she did get some time alone with her crush. Even though they were separated by a wall, it was special to her as they actually conversed like a normal couple. She blushed at the comment and started toward the bathroom.
She stopped as she walked by her body size mirror and wondered if there was anything else she could do to improve upon her look. She remembered the hungry look the blue eyed male had given her when she had removed her jacket. She stared at her body and started to feel like she had a few abnormalities that the blonde wouldn't like if they weren't covered up. She noticed her skin was a bit pale and wondered if some make-up would encourage Naruto to look, although she didn't exactly own a large supply of cosmetics.
"What could I do," she wondered and examined herself with scrutiny. She felt her face blush as she thought to slide the zipper on her jacket down to reveal some cleavage as she recalled that Anko female did. However, she took some time to consider it and decided it wasn't how she wanted to attract the male. That and if it was only physical he wouldn't really appreciate the person behind the body.
She tapped her fingers in defeat and decided to go natural as she had grabbed his attention without the need of other aids. She finished in her preparation and examined all the items she had set aside for the mission.
"Naruto-kun's jacket," she said and realized she had thrown the item into her hamper as she had worn it to bed.
She secretly didn't want to return it, but she had to give it back. Naruto had let her borrow it and she didn't want him to see her as a thief, yet she was sure he wouldn't care in the end as he had many copies.
Hinata felt a slight pain hit her stomach and decided it was time to venture toward the kitchen for sustenance before she left the village. She took a step out her door and was surprised when she nearly tripped over what appeared to be a packed sling bag with a note attached to it.
Hinata Hyuuga
The bag has the things that we discussed the other day. I also noticed in your chart that you have water affinity chakra so I put together a jutsu scroll for you.
Don't get killed,
Taro Masahiro
Hinata blinked a few times and noticed that the item matched her jacket. The wrap that went around was white and the actual carry pouch was light purple. She figured it would be rude to not wear it, since it was technically a gift. She placed it cross body so that that the strap went from her chest and the pouch settled on her hip. It seemed bulky, but it was functional and didn't restrict movement. She pulled the plastic white zipper down on the pouch and noticed inside was a scroll about half the size of the pouch and a small plastic specimen container with black quarter size pills.
The jar had been marked with a label on it and she felt a bit flustered that it came with handwritten directions on how to take them.
Two Pills a day one with breakfast and dinner. Do not exceed four pills in a single day. Side effects include shakes, slight fever, and excess energy. Each pill is worth two thousand calories of food and can be used as viable meal replacements.
She felt her stomach gurgle at the sight of food and decided to just sate the beast in her. She turned the cap and produced a single pill and contorted her face as she anticipated a terrible flavor as she chomped it with her teeth. She felt greatly impressed as the coat on the outside was a licorice vanilla mix and the inside tasted like a chocolate strawberry tart.
It tasted incredible and she felt like she suddenly had a large rush of energy, yet unlike the time she tried the soldier pills at the academy she didn't feel jittery. She felt a smile spread across her lips as she returned the items and moved the pack back and placed her bag on top of it. She walked about the compound with no one aware of the extra item she had. Hinata reached the gate after a few moments and was excited when she noticed Kurenai-sensei leaning against the compound wall.
Kurenai had thought she could just get up late morning to talk to Hinata. However, when she heard she had a mission alone with Naruto she decided to get up and wait to ensure she could talk with her. She had been so early that she actually had started to practice what she would say several times prior to her departure. It wasn't that she had trouble with speeches, but more she was nervous about approaching Hinata since she did faint from excess embarrassment.
"Hinata, follow me," she said and started to the village gate.
"Hai," she responded with a bit of yelp as she worried there was another change in her mission.
"I wanted to speak with you before you left with Naruto."
"Why?"
"I know that you are shy, Hinata; but I believe you need to talk to Naruto about your condition."
Hinata nearly threw up at the bluntness of her sensei. She had thought no one would figure her out, but now Kurenai probably knew. Although, she had to admit the signs weren't exactly subtle. Yet, she hadn't been that obvious in her first form of treatment.
"I…I didn't think."
"I understand you're worried about how he'll react, but the longer you keep this from him the harder it will be for him to deal with."
"I didn't think about that," Hinata thought as she went over her condition in her mind.
Naruto on this mission wouldn't have anyone to depend on except for her. She knew her body could cripple her if she didn't have any food, but she always figured she could manage. However, she wondered what would happen if she couldn't. If she couldn't fight or react she could get hurt. Naruto could get hurt.
Kurenai took a second and saw the worry and deep thought cross her student's mind. It was hard to explain you were with child, especially when you had to tell the father. Though that was the least of one's problems if the male didn't want a kid. But, she did want her student to be happy and decided to revise the last bit of the conversation before she spoke.
"Hinata, if you love Naruto he has the right to know," she added and saw Hinata's face start to lighten up on the seriousness of the situation.
Kurenai had decided to allow Hinata to go on a harmless mission as she did have some explanation to give the blonde. However, she couldn't shake the bad thoughts that loomed as she considered the possible dangers.
Hinata gave it plenty of thought and knew with all her heart that she loved Naruto, but she was embarrassed of what he would think about her. It was so hard for her to reveal things about herself to him, since she valued what he thought over everyone she knew. It would destroy her if he thought it made her less desirable, or worthless. Nevertheless, she needed to share her condition with him otherwise it could drive a stake between them.
"Alright," she confirmed to Kurenai and gave a smile.
Kurenai sighed at the confirmation, however she knew it didn't make it any easier for when she told Tsunade and she took action against Naruto. Although, she didn't want to mention that to Hinata as it wouldn't do her any good.
"Hey, Hinata," shouted Naruto as he waited at the gate with his pack.
Naruto didn't sleep too well the night before as a nightmare of a Konoha without Ichiraku continued to plague him. He had waited at the gate for about two whole hours and was glad that Hinata arrived on time, unlike Kakashi sensei.
"Are you ready?"
"Hai. Um…,Naruto-kun?"
"Yeah?"
"Where are we headed," she asked more to get a conversation with him started to help ease the tension she felt.
Naruto took a second and felt like an idiot as he remembered the previous day and his lack of explanation of what they were exactly to do.
"We're headed to wave country to locate a trade caravan; and if we can't, Ichiraku has provided a list of ingredients that were ordered," he said as he actually took out a map that had the marked route that the caravan would've taken to get to Konoha.
Hinata had to admit that she was impressed that he had done so much work in preparation. But, when it came to matters Naruto was passionate about, he truly had no bounds in the energy he put in.
When he finished with the paper and placed it back in his pack they both set off on the mission.
He had explained everything he planned to do to the Hokage, but that didn't mean that he needed to tell her all of his objectives over the next couple of days. However, he felt like he had been screwed by Mist as she refused to drop him off at the Yamanaka flower shop. Normally Mist would take care of payment to all his employees, yet she refused to work after he had her drop off the items at the Hyuuga compound at midnight.
Taro was frustrated with his predicament because most of the roads in Konoha were dirt with numerous rocks and potholes. This made it incredibly hard for someone in a wheelchair to navigate without someone to push them around.
"Someone needs to file a complaint about this crappy public service," he grumbled as he managed to finally get through the door of the flower shop.
"Welcome to the Yamanaka flower shop," Ino greeted with an almost too friendly tone.
"Glad to be here," Taro deadpanned and rolled up to the countertop.
Ino sighed when she saw the man. She hadn't known Taro for very long, but it was enough for her to want the man dead. However, with the current rumor around town, she apparently didn't have to do so herself.
"Taro, the question around town is who tried to kill you. The three bets were Tsunade, Sakura, or Anko. I put my money on Sakura," she said with a smile.
Taro offered a series of unintelligible words as he appeared more interested in the many plants around the shop.
Ino couldn't help herself as she gave a grin and laugh.
"Great! I'll be able to buy those new clothes and gear," she thought with no little amount of gratification. But, she wondered if maybe that was why she hadn't seen the pink haired female around. Ino figured Sakura probably had a mental break and Taro ended up with a physical one. Although, if it were an innocent injury why was it such a secret?
"Ino, I pay you for good information about other people," he clarified and spotted something that caught his eye.
"What is that," he asked as he saw a green plant with various buds that looked propped open like miniature bear traps.
"It's a Venus fly trap. It uses the color of its buds to attract insects and once they're inside it traps and breaks them down into useful energy for itself," she explained and went to the case and removed a sapling, carnivorous plant.
Taro looked at it and couldn't help it as he felt an evil smile rush across his lips.
"We were made for each other," he said and took the plant from Ino.
"I hope you don't plan to buy that."
"Why not?"
"That plant is illegal to own in Konoha."
"Carnivorous plants grow in the forest of death."
"The Aburame clan had them declared illegal so they wouldn't lose any more of their bugs in the village."
"Then why do you have it?"
"One of the flower shipments we got from Mist country had it by mistake, but he couldn't take it back. And if we sell it, the shop could get in trouble with the Aburame."
"So, it would be good for you if it just vanished from the shop," he inquired as he examined the new creature.
"Only if the thief left triple the worth behind," she said and watched Taro flinch at the cost. She knew he had plenty of money, but the man was cheap whenever he had something he wanted.
"One and a half times," he countered
"Two and a half times," she retorted
"One and a half, plus two weeks of free beauty treatments at the Konoha Spa?"
"Konoha doesn't have a spa," she countered
"It will when the workers finally arrive from Rayumi Island."
"You haven't built the place have you?"
"I own the land, and I have an Anbu who owes me a favor. So by week's end it should be done."
"Can I bring someone with me," she asked and entered the cost into the register.
"Deal."
"Anything else?"
"Information," he said and soon found his mind frozen up
A small house spider slid down a single thread of silk from the ceiling until it reached the edges of one of the plants traps. It was a mindless creature as far as he knew, which wasn't confirmed when it seemed to spot that he had his eyes on it. The arachnid rushed down the open area only to have its only means of escape slam shut and its fate sealed to become fertilizer.
"Afraid of spiders," Ino questioned as she saw tremors run through the male's hands.
Taro blinked a few times as he got a nasty chill down his spine. He was scared of the infernal creatures with good reason. He shook his head to clear the thoughts of the sizeable eight legged freaks that he had come into contact with at the end of the war. But the thought that came back to him of that twisted female made him start to shake even worse.
"Taro," Ino shouted loud enough to make him snap out of his trance of fear.
"I need to go," he spat and with his free hand rotated his chair and made for the door.
Ino scratched her forehead at how he had reacted, but it did give her a nice little bit of information to store away in case she needed to make Taro remember their deal.
"I should probably go and check on Sakura too, but I have to finish my shift," she thought and came to realize a sudden problem she had.
"He didn't pay for that plant," she realized and wondered if she could somehow manage to hit him with a mind swap jutsu from the counter, but he was unfortunately long gone.
It had been about twelve hours for them and still not a single word had transpired between the pair. They had met at the village gate and headed off for wave country by use of the road. Although, that was the extent of their interaction and currently neither wanted to speak.
Naruto couldn't look at Hinata after the encounter he had with her sensei. He still wasn't sure what she meant by asking if he would take responsibility for something. What was it that had made Kurenai think Hinata and he were more than friends? He stole a quick glance at the female over his right shoulder, but instantly turned back to face the road when he thought she noticed.
Hinata felt like she had done something wrong. Naruto hadn't spoken a single word to her other than when he showed her where they needed to go on the map. She felt like there was a void between them, which didn't encourage her to reveal her medical status.
"Why hasn't he said anything to me? Did I do something to make Naruto-kun uncomfortable," she thought and kept her face pointed away toward the nearby tree line.
"Why hasn't she looked at me," he thought and couldn't help himself as he scratched the back of his head.
Hinata kept her face turned away from him and decided it would be okay if she well looked at him without his knowledge. She activated her Byakugan and as the world faded she focused on his facial features. She felt torn up inside as she noticed how serious he was, and he looked rather deep in thought at that.
They had been on the road for quite awhile and had nearly covered the entire route the caravan could've taken. The last place they needed to check was a stretch of road that went through a thick forest just before the great Naruto Bridge. Naruto was familiar with the area as he did travel through it once, but that wasn't the best experience as his team had run into Zabuza.
"What's that," he asked and made Hinata jump since she hadn't paid any attention to their mission.
There on the side of the dirt road was a brown cart that had two of its wheels broken, and the horses that had pulled it seemed to be long gone.
"The trade convoy," Hinata asked as they approached and decided to check for any signs of what occurred.
The cart itself looked normal, except for the destroyed wheels; but there were no signs of battle or struggle anywhere else. They decided to look inside and were welcomed by the putrid smell of carrion and decay. There were several barrels, each of them had been full of fish, fruits, and vegetables. There were even a couple bundles of clothes and a small safe with thousands of yen. However, the strange thing was that it had all been left behind for some reason.
Hinata was at a loss for words. She couldn't understand where everyone had gone to. If there had been a battle of some sort, why hadn't the supplies been taken as well? Raiders or rogue ninja would take whatever they could to survive; yet there was too much left, and that made so little sense. Also if the workers were forced to abandon their transport, they would've taken their money or at least some clothes and food.
"Hey, anyone there," Naruto shouted and seemed oblivious to Hinata's flinch at the sudden noise.
"Naruto-kun, we should be quiet," she warned as they continued to search through the remains.
"Where is everyone," Naruto wondered as he looked at the ingredients and noticed that none of them were fresh enough to be salvaged.
Hinata, meanwhile, decided to scout the nearby area to see if maybe there were tracks or some evidence to where all the traders had gone. She swept the landscape with her Byakugan for any indication that someone had walked by. She examined the ground, rocks, trees, and nearby road, but there wasn't a single shred left. It seemed as if all of them had just somehow disappeared into thin air. She looked straight up and wondered how that would be possible as there were no trees above to prepare an ambush.
Naruto came out of the cart and already knew they had to make a trip back into wave country. Although, he actually looked forward to that since he could check in on Inari and old man Tazuna. He looked forward to see how things had changed over the time he was gone, but right now the lost people were his primary concern.
"Anything?"
"Nothing at all. I don't see any proof that someone was even here."
"There must be…"
A shrieked "help" from the voice of what sounded like a young female cut him, off and made both of them go into full alert.
"Where did that come from," Naruto asked and waited for Hinata to scan for any trace of a child.
She had to concentrate to put more chakra into her eyes and expand her field of vision. It stung a bit for her to accomplish since the coils behind her eyes needed to adjust to the higher level of chakra. It took her a few moments until she finally noticed a nearby cave that seemed to have distinct signs of peculiar tracks.
"This way," she took off in a sprint with Naruto close behind her as they progressed through the thick foliage.
The area began to crowd in around them as they proceeded deeper into the nearby forest. They suddenly ran into a bottle neck made by a set of boulders, which lead into a dark cave like entrance. Neither of them hesitated to enter as the screams began to get louder and more erratic.
"I can't see a thing," Naruto commented as he tried to figure out a way to make some light.
Hinata read his mind, although she was fully able to see even though it was black and white; yet she needed Naruto able to see in case they needed to make a quick escape.
She removed a trio of glow sticks from the side of her pack and with a quick crack and shake filled the entire cave formation with a neon green light.
They both gasped when they looked up to see a roof not made of rock or tree canopy, but of spider web. The structure was large enough that it blocked out all of the residual sunlight that slithered through the tree cover. The only thing that provided a small amount of illumination were white orbs in it that gave off a light blue shine.
"It must have taken thousands of spiders to make that. Or one giant one," she gulped a bit shocked an arachnid could grow to such a size.
"Hey, up here," called a female voice.
It was hard to make out the form as there were several oval shaped balls of silk. However, quite a few of them appeared to be thinner and that didn't bode well to either Konoha Nin.
"Where are you," Naruto asked and swept the area with his eyes to the best of his ability.
"Here," came the voice again this time one of the cocoons swayed back and forth to isolate it from the others that was located nearly twenty feet in the air.
Naruto smiled and started to take off, but was stopped by Hinata who grabbed his elbow. She blushed at the contact, yet she knew that needed to wait for another time.
"Don't touch the web."
"Why not?"
"Spiders hunt by the feel of vibration against their webs," she warned and tired her best to locate a safe route to the captured girl.
It hurt her eyes as she tried to focus with her blood limit on the silk, which had a rather strange property to it. The threads were thin by the best of her knowledge, yet it appeared to block her Byakugan's ability to see through it. She figured it probably had something to do with the creature that made it; since the size was unnatural, the arachnid had to be as well.
The path took them around a few strange sacks that sounded like they had a pulse in them. The sound only seemed to get louder as they approached the spot under the damsel in distress.
Naruto took over when they were close enough and performed his favorite jutsu. A group of six Naruto's popped into being and formed a human ladder. The one at the top performed a quick slice with his kunai and that caused the pod to drop into the arms of the real Naruto at the bottom.
They held their breath and wondered if all hell would break loose and to their surprise it didn't.
"Hey watch it. I'm a person not a rug," complained the female that was being carried like a carpet over two of the clones' shoulders.
"Piece of cake," said a clone who suddenly stepped into another sack on the floor that opened with a loud crunch. The clone looked down and noticed a male human face that appeared to have been drained of all its fluids. His eyes went wide and in a sudden burst all of the clones shouted as they grabbed both females and made for the entrance at full speed.
The group exited the makeshift cavern and continued on for a bit as the clones figured it was finally safe to catch their breath. They were glad to be outside in the open where there were no more creepy bags filled with people. He placed the girl down and was a bit surprised when he noticed that one of the clones had grabbed and carried Hinata out as well. He put her down and allowed the clones to disappear since they were no longer needed. Hinata felt her face start to return to her normal skin color, and in a desperate attempt to avoid eye contact looked to the sky.
"I didn't expect that. Naruto must not like spiders too much. It looks like it might rain soon," she thought to take her mind off of the sudden physical contact.
"Who are you anyway," asked the female who was still all wrapped up.
"We're ninja from Konoha," Hinata responded as Naruto produced a kunai to cut her out.
The female remained still so Naruto could start to cut her loose of the spider webbing. He figured her face was a good place to start since the only things left exposed were her nose and mouth. It was strange how strong the material was, since it was silk strands. Although, he couldn't understand why she had been covered up to only her mouth though. He hadn't taken the time to check all the cocoons, but they had been completely covered.
"She probably chewed her way through it so she could cry for help," he reasoned as he got her head free.
The woman appeared to be in her near thirties, she had a few wrinkles about the edges of her eyes and light brown hair cut into a bob with a set of eyes that had yellow irises and skin that was caramel colored.
"Um, can I have a little support here," she asked as he noted that she was uncomfortable with her head unsupported as she lay there.
Naruto sighed as he knew this was probably some spoiled female he had to deal with again. It really made him wonder how so many females became stuck up. He knew it could happen from a rich household or high prestige.
"There are exceptions though," he thought and took a small glimpse at his Hyuuga companion that came over to assist.
"I'll hold her head," Naruto volunteered to hopefully get on the female's good side.
He sat down beside the girl and slowly moved his left thigh under her head. She appeared to be comfortable as Hinata got a kunai underneath the sheathe she was in and began to peel it away. She worked quickly since she knew what it felt like to be in a cocoon and to say it wasn't pleasant was an understatement. Hinata finally split the wrap open and wasn't surprised to see the female was in what appeared to be a high quality purple silk outfit that covered her from head to toe.
"I should probably inspect for injuries," Hinata thought and decided to use her Byakugan since she couldn't use a diagnostic jutsu, because a chakra system was needed to perform such an analysis of someone's body. She decided to do a forced activation without the use of hand signs. Just to see if she were capable to do so.
She felt a small twinge of pain behind her eyes, but other than that it wasn't a hindrance. The world faded again, but this time Hinata blinked a few times because she thought she had possibly done damage to her vision.
"She has a chakra sys…," she couldn't finish because one of the female's legs made contact with her chest and sent her backwards.
Naruto didn't have time to react as the woman's head turned and she took a bite into his stomach that made him shout in pain. It felt like he was being split open with a knife. Naruto tried to hit the female, but she was swift and nimble as she contorted into a weird hold that put her legs around his head and her hands pinned his to the ground. She saw a kunai fly at her from a recovered Hinata, which was enough motivation to make her let go and jump back.
Hinata was beside Naruto in a second confused as to why she had bitten him, but she didn't have time to care about that. Naruto looked like he was alright, because it was only a simple bite.
"Who are you?"
"Hensa Ichizoku, a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"What do you want? Why did you attack us?"
The female licked her lips that were covered in Naruto's blood. The red fluid seemed to give her an urge of euphoria as she caught some of the droplets on the dark skin of her right hand.
"I want the same as any person. To survive," she said and licked more blood off her hand.
"Do you normally ambush people who come to help you," Hinata retorted and looked back happy that Naruto was back on his feet and the bite wound had clotted.
"Well only you two. You see not many animals or people come by here anymore. So I had to improvise and that caravan had plenty of tasty animals….and people," she explained and seemed to delight more as she kept her focus on the blonde.
"She caught us off guard, but she probably didn't expect us to figure her out until it was late and she could kill us both as we slept," Hinata thought and prepared for combat.
She lowered into her fighting stance, but felt her stomach sink as her companion grabbed his chest and collapsed to his knees.
Naruto didn't quite understand what had happened, but he knew that the situation they were in didn't bode well. He had been bitten and that wasn't such a problem as he knew it was really a last resort if you didn't have a weapon. The wound hadn't hurt too badly and he couldn't honestly feel any pain from it. He had gotten up and been prepared to fight, but all of a sudden the entire world started to spin and he couldn't even breathe properly. It felt like his body had been turned against him.
"Naruto-kun," Hinata got to his side and noticed that he seemed confused and a bit feverish.
"I see it's taken effect already," Hensa said and smiled at Hinata to show a pair of canines that were long enough to touch her lower gum line.
Hinata appeared to keep her eyes on the threat, but had her attention on her teammate. It was bizarre as she checked him over and noticed how the chakra around his gut was absent. Normally when there was an injury, chakra wasn't affected unless the wound was into the deep tissue.
"Poison, I need to get it out before it circulates," she thought and began to look through her emergency supplies for a poison balm.
Her attention came back as a spike of chakra brought her focus onto the enemy ninja. Hensa finished a quick sequence of hand seals and spewed a cone of spider webs. Hinata felt a surge of panic take over her. She couldn't leave Naruto, but if she didn't there was a good chance they'd be trapped.
She pulled a kunai from her pouch and quickly tied an explosive note to the handle. She threw the item into the web vomit and felt herself pray to kami for their safety.
Hensa was caught off guard by a blast of fire that ran up the jutsu and made her nearly swallow a fireball. She halted the technique by biting the silk threads, but still got blown back by the explosion. She grunted in frustration, yet was quickly on her feet to check the area of effect.
The ground area was coated with a layer of webs, which were still on fire. She smiled when some of the dust settled and there were the pair with the female on the male as if she had attempted to shield him from the blast. She grumbled when she saw that the dress she had gone to such trouble to steal was now destroyed with numerous burn marks. However, she figured with the girl dead she could always strip her of her clothes.
She approached with caution, since she knew it could be a trap. She decided there was no fear of danger and reached out for the pair only to watch them phase out of existence.
She gritted her teeth that such a low level jutsu had fooled her, but she figured no matter where they went it couldn't be far.
"Summoning technique," she said and had a white egg sack the size of a human head pop up on the ground.
"They're in our woods, find them," she ordered as the sack popped and thousands of brown spiders with blood red eyes emerged like a swarm of ants to search the area.
Hinata felt like her lungs couldn't provide her with enough energy to keep them both on the move any longer. It hadn't been her first choice to run away, but she knew there was no way she could fight with Naruto crippled. She looked back over her left shoulder and noticed that he was unconscious with perspiration accumulating on his brow.
She gritted her teeth and decided it was time to find a hiding spot. She continued on for a few more seconds until she saw a large oak tree that appeared to have grown too large, its base had opened to form a makeshift overhang. She jumped down from the branches, but felt her legs buckle a bit as Naruto's extra weight caught her off guard.
"We should be safe here, and I need to work on my leg strength," she thought and took him inside.
The tree was an ideal place. It would shield them from a sneak attack since there was only one way in or out. The downside was there was only one way in or out, which meant a frontal assault would trap them since they were exposed and could be spotted from a ways off. That normally wouldn't be a problem if she could keep her Byakugan active all day and night, but not even Neji or her father could manage that amount of chakra usage.
She sighed in defeat and decided she had best go to find something for camouflage. Her plan was interrupted when Naruto grit his teeth and let loose a groan of pain. It had still amazed her how badly he had been injured by such a small thing, since she had seen the blonde be pulverized by Neji and Sakura before and been fine. However, this was different. There was some kind of poison inside him.
She stopped and decided to check his temperature before she headed out, but that only made her refuse to go anywhere than be beside him.
"You're on fire," she whispered and had to figure a way to treat him.
She had to take a second as she knew where the bite area was, but it still made her blush even as she tempered her resolve and lifted up his shirt. Her heart dropped at the site on his belly. There were two entry holes, which were the fang marks. However, a four inch circle from the spot of the bite had turned black and a yellow white puss discharge had started to emerge.
Hinata had to catch her breath to steady her mind against the possibility that he was about to die.
"No, I need to keep it together. Naruto-kun wouldn't give up on me," she assured herself and decided to treat him in a calm manner.
Hinata had gone through the techniques that were required for medic ninja. Though she wasn't anywhere near as capable as Sakura and she also had no idea how to remove poison from a wound. She took some time to think about the possibilities she could try, but as she waited Naruto only appeared to grow worse. She reached for her emergency supplies on her left side and found it absent.
"Where did my supplies go," she thought and figured she must've dropped it when she tried to escape.
"I need to get his fever down first," she said and reached back for her canteen.
She shook the item, but felt overwhelmed with dread when there was no sound of liquid movement inside. She looked at the side and saw a finger size hole at the bottom and a fragment of the kunai she had thrown embedded inside. Her fortune wasn't any better when she noticed Naruto's was empty as well.
"What can I do," she groaned in a rare bought of anger at the situation.
"Maybe I could go find some water? No, I can't leave him like this. I should deal with the poison, but it won't matter if his temperature reaches 108," she thought with real concern that things were about to get worse somehow.
The sudden crack of thunder followed by the pats of water made her realize that it all had to happen at the worst possible time. She looked out from their shelter and knew it was about to become more difficult to survive, especially without a fire. However, a small drop of water hit her head from a long root that crept down from the tree and soon gave a constant stream of water.
She felt the urge to pout, but caught herself when she realized that she now had a steady supply of fluid. Hinata moved Naruto onto the ground and opened his bag to try and find something to use as a cloth as she didn't bring any such items that could fit the job. Well she did, but they were more intimate pieces of clothing she didn't want to place on his head.
She was glad to find a spare white shirt and after a few expert folds and some time under the drip placed it on his forehead. He seemed to be in less pain, although his right hand seemed to try and scratch at the lesion. Hinata tapped her index fingers together and figured she could try and tend to his wound a bit more.
"Maybe I can remove some of the poison, but I only know the chakra scalpel technique and I could do some real damage to his organs if I just cut around inside him," she thought and had to contemplate a new procedure she could try to assist him further.
Although, all she could come up with was to suck the poison out from the wound site. While she knew it was a good thought she found two large holes in the idea. One, she didn't have anything to coat her mouth with, which meant the second she got the substance on her lips she'd be contaminated as well. The second was that if she did find a way to remove the toxin she had the fear that Naruto would wake up and see her mouth on his lower abdomen.
"That would just be too much," she thought and felt her stomach complain that it had gone too long without food.
She felt a blush rush over her face and looked at the still unconscious figure of the blonde.
"Gomen," she whispered and felt a bit confused that she kept up her conversation with him despite his oblivious state.
Hinata was unsure if she should continue, but it did help to ease the tension she felt.
*three hours later*
She was drenched to her bones and the lack of adequate cold weather clothes didn't alleviate her pain. She flicked some of the brown hair from her yellow eyes, but she was no closer to her goal then when she started. It had been a bad string of luck that the white eyed girl had gotten out of her sight before the rain began.
Spiders used many ways to track their pray, since their eyesight wasn't much use to them. The thousands she summoned had begun on a good trail, yet they failed when the vibrations on the ground from the rain threw them off. Hensa had dispelled them once the storm started, this was only to prevent them from a slow death from the water.
She had attempted a futile search for quite a period of time, though she only found herself back at her home/web. She used a quick fire jutsu on some of the wood she had collected and decided that tomorrow she would go out for a real hunt with her larger friends and maybe even in her real form.
Hinata felt like her eyes had balloons behind them that steadily increased in pressure the longer she was awake. She needed to get some rest, but each hour without fail Naruto's compress needed to be changed. She had been glad to see that his temperature had gone down, but the black on his skin had only spread further up towards his chest.
It had been hard on her for a bit to be in silence around Naruto, since she was on edge when she heard even the slightest noise. She was unsure if that enemy ninja was nearby or if there were other sources of danger in the area. Therefore, to fight the silence she decided to talk to him and for once do a majority of the conversation.
"I know you probably can't hear me, but I just wanted to say that this is worse mission I've been on," she said and felt herself respond as if he were still awake.
"Because of the situation were in. Not you," she said with confidence, though it was from the fact he didn't show much reaction to the stimuli of her voice.
She stopped for a moment and reapplied the cool water to the male's forehead. It was a bad situation to be in, although she tried to look at the positive parts. The only one possible was that she could talk to Naruto without fear of embarrassment.
"You want to know a secret? To be honest I never thought that I would have to be the one to protect you. I've seen how much you've improved over the time that you were gone. I tried to do the same, but I feel like I'll never catch up with you," she continued and noticed that he seemed to want to get comfortable somehow.
Hinata looked over her shoulder to make sure no one else saw her next action. She moved closer to the male and lifted his head so that he rested comfortably against her thighs. He appeared to snuggle into her and relax and that helped to ease her frail nerves and grant her more courage.
"I wanted to tell you that I have a medical condition, but I was afraid to tell you about it. I know you wouldn't care and probably tell me that it wouldn't affect me if I just tried hard enough. But, I was afraid that it would put a greater distance between us," she groaned and did one of the things she longed to do if she ever became his girlfriend and lightly combed her fingers through his blonde spikes.
"You truly are incredible. I know the Rasengan was one of the Fourth's personal jutsus and you managed to do in days what took him years to understand. Someone that skilled deserves someone just as great as him" she explained the best she could and decided to take a moment to moisten her throat with some of the plant filtered water.
"I've just been really happy to talk with you on these missions. You couldn't imagine all the nights I dreamed of the conversations we could have, yet I know most of them wouldn't interest you that much," she added a bit sad with how plain she was.
It had done wonders or her nerves to just talk with him, even though he wasn't able to hear it. She closed her eyes and embraced the silence and comfort that the sound of rain brought her.
"Silence," she thought with fear and turned to her companion whose chest had ceased to rise and fall.
Hinata was immediately out of her tired haze and at her crush's side in a flash. Her sense of embarrassment was overcome by her urge to protect as she pulled up his shirt. She felt her mind and heart crumble as the skin of his entire torso had turned black. She checked his pulse and thankfully it wasn't absent' however, it was dangerously low.
"Naruto-kun," she called to him and touched his forehead to hopefully get him to wake up.
"Naruto-kun!"
It couldn't really have been anymore miserable for the animal. If any of the other tailed beasts could see him now, he felt like they would laugh themselves to death. Stuck inside a cage in a dark and moist sewer was the final insult to the great nine tailed fox demon. The great Kyubbi trapped for eternity inside an idiotic child until such a time that he escaped or died along with the container.
It was truly a terrible situation to be behind bars with nothing to do. But, what made it worse was that he could hear echoes of the containers conversations. Some of the voices the Kyubbi heard didn't aggravate it, however there were two male ones that sounded dark and depressed that made him nearly lose his mind.
The fox demon rested his head between his paws when he realized that his environment was different. True, they weren't wonderful accommodations since it was technically a sewer. But, the Kyubbi did wonder if the reason there was always so much moisture inside was because the child ate too much salty ramen, which made him retain all the water.
"Why is the child's heartbeat so quiet. And why is it darker than usual," he thought and stretched as he rose onto all fours.
"Child," he shouted and noticed that normally he could see some manifestation of the boy.
The fox put his face close to the sealed gate that kept him contained and saw the manifestation of the child with some black snake like substance that seemed to surround him through the fluid on the floor.
He grunted and stomped his paw, which sent the fluid away and the substance appeared to retreat as if it were hurt.
It displayed its fangs and gave out a sudden roar as it let some chakra flow out from the cage to solve the problem, which was the weak constitution of his human confine.
"Don't give up, you haven't become Hokage yet," she called to him and noticed that there was only a faint heartbeat left.
Hinata couldn't accept the sight before her as she continued to perform CPR to restart his heart. She knew the procedure was fifteen compressions and two breaths, yet she was too deep in shock to focus on the later part. She just kept her hands on him and refused to let him slip away. She wouldn't let him, she couldn't bring herself to do it.
She felt her arms start to get fatigued from the number of presses she had done to his chest. Although, she refused to give up until she felt the beat of his heart start to ebb into silence.
She took her hands off him and slowly looked at his face that appeared too peaceful for the situation they were in.
"I….I…," she felt the words collect in her throat as he gave out a rather long final raspy gasp of air.
"I love you," she whispered with closed eyes as she touched her forehead against his.
She couldn't stop herself as tears started to flow from her eyes, but against all the urges she had to keep them closed her eyes flew open when she felt a sudden surge of energy. Hinata felt relief, but to her great surprise his eyes were blood red.
An explosion of red chakra surged forth from Naruto's body and it appeared to affect the entire forest. The rain came to a stop and the temperature inside their shelter seemed to sky rocket. She fell back on her rear end and retreated out of self-preservation due to the pure malevolence that the red chakra gave off. It wasn't anything she had ever felt before.
The eruption receded as quickly as it sprang up and she noticed a strange seal on his stomach that appeared to evaporate away to show only his normal colored skin. The black discoloration was gone and he appeared to be awake without any grimace on his face from pain.
Hinata was weary to come close again, since she hadn't felt such a power before in her entire life. The crimson chakra had caused her heart rate to spike, but she decided to approach him to ensure that he hadn't been harmed. She noticed that his eyes were wide open and now back to their natural blue, though he didn't appear to be fully aware of outside stimuli. His pupils focused on her as she moved and he somehow produced a smile as they closed.
"Where had that energy come from," she thought as best she could with the adrenaline that refused to thin in her blood.
She retreated back toward one of the walls of the tree and took a long inhale to steady herself. Her hands continued to shake, but that was the least of her worries. Hinata had recalled that they were supposed to be hidden, but that gush of power probably alerted their attacker. However, she noted that nothing came from the nearby trees and even the animals that were nearby seemed absent.
Hinata was still cautious, but as soon as she lost focus on the possibility of danger her mind returned to the crisis in regards to Naruto. She tried to think of any occasion that Naruto had done a feat such as the one she witnessed.
"Wait, Neji had lost to Naruto at the Chunin exam and Shino said there had been a strange occurrence," she thought and was actually glad she had been unconscious due to her own injuries.
She looked over Naruto again, though she didn't know how to truly feel. Naruto was always so kind despite the loneliness he had suffered through most of his life. On the other hand, that energy she felt wasn't gentle. It felt like it had been pulled straight from the heart of a demon. She felt fear toward Naruto, although those feelings were put under control when she noticed he stirred and turned toward her.
"No, I know Naruto-kun and that power wasn't him. But, where did it come from," she wondered.
Hinata's her heart rate steadied, yet her tiredness had literally been scared out of her. She knew she needed to rest and figured if Naruto was better she could set up traps, camouflage, and maybe scout the area to find out where they were.
She activated her Byakugan and swept out about three hundred feet around them to confirm they were still safe. She moved from her spot and stopped at the entrance.
"Don't worry, Naruto-kun, I won't let you out of my sight," she commented
Naruto's eyes cracked open slightly not of his own will as the Kyubbi wished to know who the current voice it heard belonged too. It normally was aggravated by most human voices, though the female it heard made it want to sleep due to comfort. It could only grab a short image of the person. It made sure to note specific spots on the female's body, which were her breasts, hips, and face. It took the great fox demon only a moment to reach his conclusion.
"Acceptable," he growled and curled back up on himself so he could rest and dream of some place outside of his prison.
*****One hour later*****
Hinata had pushed herself harder than she thought possible. It was a God-send that she had so much more energy with her condition treated, but she had used so much chakra in her Byakugan that the coils behind them throbbed in pain. She pushed aside some of the foliage she had put up and was surprised how cozy the nook seemed now that she was exhausted.
"I can't do anymore," she thought with a deep sigh.
Her clothes were soaked from the rain, but she was so tired she didn't care much. Hinata removed her jacket and was relieved to see that it had absorbed all the water and left her upper half dry.
She tried to stay on her feet, but felt them go out from under her and she landed beside Naruto on the floor. She groaned deeply and finally felt herself lose to her fatigued body as her eyes shut.
"Naruto-kun, I guess we do have something in common. We both have secrets that we're afraid to tell each other. But, I can wait until you're ready if you'll do the same," she slurred at the end as she finally got some needed rest.
It was a terrible place for them to be, but drastic times called for drastic measures. The group had arrived at Anbu headquarters and thankfully avoided any questions as one could when with the Hokage; who could go anywhere she pleased. Kakashi had volunteered to come as it did involve his ex-student, but he couldn't exactly understand why Taro was with them.
Shizune had been given the great honor of wheelchair pusher, which made her wonder at times if Tsunade secretly loathed her. It was a stronghold to say the least. The entrance had two Anbu on duty, followed by several different security checkpoints. The front door opened into a hall with three separate doors with several guards at each and even had an overlook at the second floor with just as many men. They had left the area for an elevator that was the size of a small room.
The elevator had a short, white haired Anbu with a mask that had just two slits where both eyes should be who was in charge of destination.
He seemed confused to see a man in a wheelchair, but at the sight of the Copy-nin and the Hokage he went to attention and entered a code on his console that only he and the five man squad in the shaft above knew.
"Interrogation," Tsunade said and soon they were all several floors below the building.
The elevator wasn't cramped, although the silence didn't help any of them as they approached the lowest floor.
"Would it kill someone to put some elevator music in," Taro asked and noted how everyone appeared to roll their eyes.
A small chime released them into a dark thirty by thirty foot room with a rather deteriorated Sasuke unconscious on a table with numerous machines.
"Just like we left him," Taro stated and tried to roll further forward only to have Shizune hold him in place.
"Show some respect," she chided and tilted her head toward Kakashi.
The copy-nin was at a loss with all the emotions that he had inside of him. He was glad to see his student, but sad it had to come to such an end, and mortified that he couldn't stop him before he got this far. He kept up with Tsunade who began a diagnostic jutsu to see if there was any possible way to wake him up.
Taro was disappointed since he had to just sit in silence and wait, but all was not lost as he reached behind his place on the wheelchair and to Shizune's shock brought out a container that had a yellow tail sushi roll.
Tsunade turned and gave him a death glare, but it didn't seem to affect him as he munched away on the roll and tossed a few bits of pickled ginger in after.
She did her best to ignore him and sighed when she couldn't find any way to wake Sasuke up. He wasn't brain dead, but his heart just couldn't put out enough blood. That was only the first part of the problem as she realized the poison limited the amount of ATP in the body; by inhibition of the citric acid cycle. That meant even if she could get the blood flow up, he wouldn't be able to move, which would prevent conversation of any sort. She scratched her head and thought, only to have Taro look at her with a smug expression as he picked the last grains of rice off the plastic container.
"Do you have a plan, Taro," she asked as he wheeled himself up and pulled a pair of shots out of his jacket.
"Yep," he responded and moved up toward his head.
"What are those?"
"A shot of adrenaline and Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide."
"You want to wake him, by the use of an alternative energy pathway."
"Exactly," he said as he put the shot of adrenaline into the male's chest and put the other injection into the carotid artery on the left side of his neck.
"Doesn't matter, he needs an outside stimuli to wake hi…," she cut off as Taro removed what looked like a peanut sized green ball from his food container and with expert skill pulled back Sasuke's upper lip and smeared a large amount between his teeth and upper gum.
"Wasabi," everyone questioned at once.
He took a step back and raised three of his fingers only to have the Uchiha erupt with life. He yelled and forcefully spit, but it more just oozed out a green slime from his lips.
"Where am I," Sasuke slurred as he had trouble with the burn that rushed through his brain and nostrils.
"What's wrong with his eyes," Kakashi asked as he looked over the young male before him that couldn't open his eyelids.
"Temporary side effect of some poisons when taken with chakra stimulants," Taro replied and watched as Tsunade and Kakashi got to work on his plan.
"You're back in Konoha, Sasuke," Kakashi explained and had to hide the pain he felt to see him so weak and fragile even if he deserved it.
Sasuke tried to move, but couldn't so much as close his fist he felt so weak. He couldn't even see as his eyes were sealed shut. But, he still managed to think and needed to only know one thing.
"Itachi…is he dead?"
"Yes," Tsunade responded and was a bit unnerved to see him smile at the fact he had gotten his vengeance.
"The joyful family reunion aside there are other circumstances that you need to be made aware of," Taro began and pulled out the papers he kept underneath him in a metal case to for safety.
"Who is that?"
"That doesn't matter. You only have about eight minutes before you suffer acidosis from all the lactic acid in your blood."
"I don't care about my life, I killed Itachi and that was the only ambition I had left."
"What about the lives of your teammates?"
Sasuke went silent and seemed to be troubled by the subject. He actually hadn't thought about them, except for the times that they were close in their pursuit of him. It felt strange to be void of emotion toward either Sakura or Naruto. It just had been so long that he honestly had started to forget what they even looked like.
"I don't care."
Taro grit his teeth and knew he could solve the situation the same way he managed to fix clinical conditions. He sighed and in a childish act struck Sasuke in his groin with a punch. The Uchiha hacked in the pain, but realized he couldn't do a single thing to stop it.
"Taro," shouted all the other occupants of the room.
"Sasuke, there are many incentives if you decide to help out your teammates," Tsunade cut in and wasn't shocked when he only grunted and appeared to not want to interact any further.
Taro rolled his eyes at the thought. He could understand all the thoughts she had to bribe him, yet it was superfluous with the Uchiha male. The boy had done so much to avenge his clan and had even gone to the extent to abandon his village and friends. It took guts to do that, but it also took an incredible amount of stupidity. Although, it did leave room for some possible persuasions he could try.
Everyone seemed shocked when Taro got close enough to Sasuke that he could've bitten off his ear. Everyone appeared silent and figured each of them could give it a shot to try and reason with the unreasonable male.
Although, when Taro retreated he pulled out the documents and awaited a response with an aura of confidence.
"Sign where," Sasuke asked as Taro put the item right by his hand, which wasn't able to even move.
"Ready," Taro stated as he removed a third and final shot from the carry case in his chest pocket.
"Taro, what did you," Tsunade was cut off as he injected Sasuke with another needle and he was able to slowly lift up his right hand. It was nearly instantaneous as he opened and closed his hand and Taro placed a pen into his grip.
Sasuke wasn't able to properly see, which made the signature look more like a scribble rather than a legible signature. But it looked good enough to hold up so long as there were other witnesses who signed it.
"Guard," Taro called and waited for a man with a scorpion on his mask to enter.
"Read and sign the witness section," he explained and watched the last piece of his plan came together.
Everyone appeared clueless to him as he nodded his head and smiled as he started to wheel himself out.
"Come on," he said to everyone who just kept their clueless eyes on him.
None of them cared nor knew if they could understand the mind of Taro Masahiro. Although, he seemed to usually know what he was up to and they all figured that the current situation called for some faith.
The group exited the room and immediately made their way to the elevator to get as far away from the issue as possible. None of them spoke to each other, but Taro appeared far more confident than usual as he decided to carry himself out on a pair of crutches that were collapsed on the back carry pouch of his chair.
He handed the paperwork over to Tsunade who decided the best place to hide them was in her robe for safety. Because, there wasn't a man or woman alive that could get into her clothes.
As they left the place of torture a familiar old face made itself known as he arrived with a pair of masked Anbu for his "protection."
Danzo had eyes in numerous places in the village and when he was told that Tsunade, Taro, and Kakashi had arrived at Anbu headquarters he was weary of their intent.
"Strange company for a visit to prisoners," Danzo stated as he noticed nothing strange on their person.
"I wasn't aware the council elders were interested in the Hokage's social interactions," Tsunade retorted to the nosey male.
"I can see the reason for your presence here Hokage-sama, but I see little reason for theirs," he said and pointed to the group around her.
Shizune gulped for a split second, before she came up with a viable excuse.
"I am the Hokage's assistant," she added and everyone appeared to follow suit with practiced ease.
Kakashi was about to say his reason, but Taro suddenly put his arm around him.
"When I heard about the Uchiha's capture I figured Kakashi was in need of a shoulder to cry on," Taro added and noted the small glare of disgust Kakashi gave him.
He was by no means a male that wore his emotions on his shoulders, but he had to play the part and like any ninja was able to turn on the tears in an instant. He even went as far as to rub his exposed eye into Taro's shoulder who with believable care embraced his male friend.
"Say one word of this to anyone and you won't wake up the next day," Kakashi whispered to him.
Danzo felt sick to his stomach at the image before him, yet it wasn't that far off as the he figured it probably would take a toll on Kakashi Hatake who had managed to now get two separate Uchiha killed in his lifetime.
"I take it Sakura Haruno will serve you a purpose soon," he inquired at Taro who continued to "comfort" his friend.
"Yes, the clan restoration procedure will take place soon."
"Procedure? Why not just take what is rightfully yours?"
"She broke my leg with a single kick, I don't want to imagine the damage if she had both legs around me," Taro explained and tried not to puke as the image of Sakura Haruno in only red lingerie with a "seductive" finger on her lips. In fact, the thought sent a shiver down his spine.
"Well I have matters to attend to, Hokage-sama, Shizune, Masahiro, Hatake," Danzo stated as he approached the large doors of the compound.
They all seemed to catch their breath and figured it was time they all departed. Kakashi abruptly pushed Taro away, which nearly made him fall to the ground.
Kakashi had held himself back at the time of the confrontation, but he needed to go someplace that he could think and the memorial for their fallen ninja was as good as any.
Tsunade took her leave home with Shizune right behind her.
Taro rolled his eyes at the fact he had to take care of so much paperwork lately. He honestly wondered if he should have Mist assist him, but he figured he had a few loose ends to tie up at his office.
*Konoha Hospital*
He had been released from the hospital, yet he found himself right back in his office despite that. He looked at his new plant propped near the window cill with a piece of meat nearby to help attract files. He wondered if he needed to worry about moisture, but he decided he could counteract that by the addition of more water.
Taro knew the paper work would be safe with Tsunade, but now he just needed to go down to the restricted area of the hospital. The decision to leave had nearly been made, but he examined the current state of his room and figured he couldn't abandon his plant.
The office itself was fine mostly, except for the paint everywhere and a broken door glass window. He figured Anko would be back and he needed to catch her red handed if she decided to break more of his possessions. He ventured back to his desk and opened one of the drawers on the left. He first removed a picture frame that he placed on the desk along with a spray bottle.
The bottle had a sinister concoction inside of it. The spray looked clear when you applied it to something, but when you mixed it with another chemical it turned the skin that it touched dark blue. He gave the plant a few quick sprays to coat it, but managed to get some of the mist on his picture frame.
"Damn," he grumbled as he put the bottle back and searched for some gloves to clean up with.
"Masahiro-san," said the voice of a female he didn't figure to hear from.
"Miki," he questioned and was quite surprised to see her at the hospital given the wealth she had now.
The small female entered into the room, but in a rather deep blue silk dress by what he could guess.
"I know this isn't a good time for you, but I wanted to check-up on you before I left and say I was sorry for what's happened," she explained and smiled. She was glad to see him on crutches, it meant he was in recovery.
"Left," he questioned as to why she used that word.
"I purchased a small section of coastal property and I plan to live there from now on."
"I didn't think you would go to such lengths to get away from me," he said with no little sarcasm as he turned about.
"That isn't the reason, I assure you," she began in a panic, which only made Taro shake his head in how finicky she was.
"I am aware of the circumstances and know you will be happy closer to the ocean," he dead panned and went about his search for some gloves.
Miki sighed as she figured he wouldn't have any well wishes. She stopped for a second before she left and wanted her last words to him to be kind.
"I pray Kami will light you a path to happiness, Taro-kun," she said and exited.
Taro took a second behind his desk and looked out of the window to clear his mind. His ears perked when his office door started to creak open. It was a trifle thing, but he figured he could be nice once to Miki. After all she was about to leave so there was no worry she would hint to anyone he had a good side.
"May Kami guide you to a safe place where sorrow and pain ceases," he spoke and turned about to see a rather scarred up older male's face.
Danzo had heard the comment and didn't so much as open his one good eye at it. He just stood there and let Taro stew a bit in the fact he had said a nice thing to one of his least favorite people.
"I'm sure you will forgive the hour of my visit," Danzo offered with fake sympathy and entered through the door.
"Yes, it wasn't as if I needed rest," Taro responded and reminded himself to not assume anymore.
"I take it the leg is a bit of trouble," he questioned and remained on his feet before the desk.
"Not at all," Taro responded as he moved about some more on his crutches despite the pain they caused in his armpits.
"I decided to come by and discuss some matters with you."
"What matters?"
"You knew about Sakura Haruno's fate, yet decided to protect her?"
"Clan rights do protect her as my property. I'm sure you're aware."
Danzo kept his stoic face set and stood in front of the door to block it.
"Can't stay, I need to rest. Doctor's orders," Taro said and attempted to move around the obstacle.
He brought the crutches around and found his problem managed to move in his path and prevent any possible getaway route.
"You continue to insult me and I want you to realize that clan laws won't protect you from me," Danzo explained as he walked over to the desk and picked up the picture.
The frame was old, based on the cuts and cracks of the black painted wooden edges. Inside the frame was a picture that made the old man smirk. It was a photo of the snake whore Orochimaru left behind and Taro. Anko had her hair down and had her hand pointed toward the fact Taro's younger self had longer hair than her and a shared smile. He made a small circle around Anko's head and pushed down hard enough to break the glass and made sure Taro saw the action.
"Neither can they protect the people that you actually care about," he dead panned.
Taro bit his lip and kept his stare locked on the male to keep his mask of confidence on. In the ninja world confidence and the ability to hide ones emotions were key, but Taro still had trouble when it concerned Anko.
"Tomorrow I will submit a list to the Hokage of possible candidates to bear the Uchiha clan. Make any actions against me and I assure you my grief will become yours," he explained and exited without another word.
Taro didn't make a move and turned his head down in defeat as Danzo left. He was sick to his stomach as he wondered if his choices would affect those around him. But, he realized that something needed to be done about Danzo before he tried to end him or someone else. He felt like an idiot when he recalled that he kept a pair of gloves in his coat pocket. He put them on and when he removed the picture and dropped the frame into the bucket he usually kept acetone in.
"Maybe this could work for me," he thought as he filled the bucket with acetone and made his way to the restricted area of the hospital.