Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by its rightful creators, storywriters, and artists, as well as anyone I may have missed.
So I hope you've enjoyed reading thus far. We're about to journey into the final stretch of the story, so hang on tight!
-s.p.-
The Deathly Calm
It was three in the morning, and already a long, sleepless night for Uzumaki Naruto as he tossed and turned, saddened and lonely in his usually-comfortable bed. The memories of his childhood, from when he was a genin, continue to play in his head. He remembered the fight he had with Neji at the chuunin exams, and how difficult it was to overcome and defeat him. Hinata's words from earlier in the evening echoed alongside his memories..
"You taught me so much… and I never got to truly… to truly thank you.."
Naruto's eyes were dim and filled with sadness as he rolled over onto his back and stared at the dark, shadowy ceiling of his bedroom. He thought about Kaelu, and he grew angered. How he wanted nothing more than to rip that bastard limb from limb. He replayed the horrible scenes of his fight with him in his mind. Though only two days ago, it had felt like an eternity. He still hurt from time to time from sheer fatigue, and he still did not know of the condition of his long time sensei, Kakashi. Now, this killer was still on the loose and he had taken down an innocent civilian and fighter in Hyuuga Neji, though Naruto remembered the dark figure's objective clearly.
"I can still get the answers I need by killing you. All of you."
"The Fallen Angel," Naruto muttered to himself. "Sounds powerful, but just what is he out to prove by finding it? Not only that," Naruto stopped a moment to think carefully, trying to piece the puzzle together. "Who or what is it? And I don't understand!" Naruto shook his head, the pieces weren't quite fitting. "If he's not hesitant to kill people, how would he know if he killed the Angel or not in the process?! I mean, would the person even know what they are in the first place?" he sighed. "I'm just so confused by this."
What he did remember was looking up at Minaya, paralyzed and useless and the twisted jounin proceeded to massacre his teacher and best friend. He remembered his stern, cold eyes and his threatening words to him and Sakura.
"If you get in my way again, I will not hesitate to kill you.."
Naruto was unmoving, still staring up at the ceiling. He shed the blankets, feeling a hot flash come over him as he lay there. "I let my guard down with him," he tried to excuse himself. "Still," he admitted. "I didn't know what he was capable of, and I fell into his trap." He shook his head. "Why am I so stupid, so ignorant?" He pulled himself up and sat up in bed, he back leaning against the near wall behind the bed. "I let my team down, and now this psycho is going to pick off my friends, one by one, until he finds this being. He's… he's a damned monster." Naruto hated that word. He avoided it as much as he could. Monster. That word was one of the ugliest to Naruto, as he had become very familiar with it over his childhood, but, as a young adult, sitting in the darkness of his room, the darkness of the atmosphere which was Konoha, was did not regret saying it about the Southern assassin.
A slight breeze blew through his window, and he was cold once again, as he lifted the blanket over his body once more and huddled underneath it. He reached over and shut the window, then looked over to his front door, wishing dearly that it would open, that Hinata would be creeping in slowly, asking to see him, to be with him, to be held by him.
He looked over at the clock on his bedside table, as he had five minutes ago, and five minutes before that, and so on. Never had a night dragged on so slowly, and never had so many thought filled his mind. He didn't know how to feel, especially considering the events that took place. He loved Hinata, and she loves him back, she loves him. That word brought such a magical feeling to his stomach and the butterflies were aflutter! But at the same time, he couldn't be happy. No, he wouldn't allow himself to feel happy. He had lost a partner, a rival, and a friend. Hinata's loving cousin, and probably the most important family member she had.
He threw the blankets off of himself, feeling a hot flash come over his body, and he began to sweat. He threw his tshirt off and hurled it into the corner of the room. He rolled over and faced the window again. He sighed quickly and tapped his feet lightly together, impatiently, but for what? 'What the hell am I waiting for?' he asked himself.
"She's not coming, Naruto." He sighed to himself. "Give it up," he rolled over again, laying on his back, and stared up at the still cold, still dull ceiling, looking for answers. The silence of the room brought nothing, except the occasional interjection by a lonely cricket, from outside, journeying about the night.
"Hinata's probably lonely, too," he assumed. "Uuuugh!" He sat up in bed, flustered. "I can't do this. I can't leave her alone like this! She needs me.." he stopped, and looked out his window once more.
"At least.. I need her.."
It was decided. Naruto jumped out of bed and stumbled over to the corner of the room and picked up his shirt. He flung it over his body again, not bothering to fix his hair or even put pants on. His shorts for suffice for the night. He was on a mission, and he had no time to waste.
"She's probably waiting for me," he told himself as he slipped on the second of his sandals. He swished his foot around in it until it felt comfortable, he walked over to his dresser and grabbed his keys and forehead protector, resting alongside the photo of himself and the rest of team seven, taken years ago. "Okay, I'm ready," he took a deep breath, checked his pockets for the essentials, which happened to only be his keys, and he was good to go.
He took a few quiet steps towards his door and as he reached for the doorknob, he heard and saw it turn and click. He took a step back and watched as the door slowly crept open and, to his astonishment, the love he had so truly wanted was now in his doorway.
"Hinata.." His eyes gazed upon her with wonder. What was she doing here?
"Naruto-kun, I.." her voice trailed off as she closed her eyes tightly and yawned. Naruto couldn't help but crack a smile. She was adorable. She was dressed in a purple silk button shirt and white pajama pants with a baby blue outline. In her arms she held a white, down pillow, basically cuddling it, hiding the bottom half of her face behind it.
"What are you doing here, Hinata? I'm already worried about you, and it's late. If your father finds out that you skipped out, you might be in bi-"
"My father knows I'm here," she interrupted, putting a finger to Naruto's lips. "We talked about.. tonight, and how we felt."
"I see.." Naruto shook his head, forgetting his manners. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, come on in!" he motioned her to follow him. He led her into his bedroom. "Have a seat on the bed," he offered. She nodded her head, and with a soft 'thank you', she placed her pillow neatly behind her and sat down on the bed. Naruto sat down by her side slowly, and he hesitated to make any movement closer to her."
"So what happened with your father?"
Hinata sighed and looked at the floor. "It was a long talk.. we talked about family, and about.. about Neji," she took a long, deep breath. She looked at Naruto, "I promise I won't cry."
Naruto slowly put his arm around her. "If you need to, it's fine. That's what I'm here for."
"Thanks," Hinata cracked a smile. "Anyway," she went on. "We talked about Neji and what he had done for not only us but for the village, and.. well, he's a hero. He died protecting us, and he left me with the courage to believe in myself. Courage that, months ago, I didn't think I'd ever recover. You see," she lifted up her sleeve and showed Naruto her left arm. There was enough moonlight for Naruto to see, and, upon closer examination, he found the scar on her arm.
"That scar," Naruto said. "Hinata, when..?"
"I.." she looked away from him and lowered her voice. "I did that myself, Naruto."
"Hinata.." he was shocked. "Why would you do such a thing?" He ran his fingers over her arm and lightly massaged the scar and the area around it. "Does it hurt?"
"No, it's fine," she replied. "I've been a wreck without you, Naruto, and Neij knew that, and he had helped me through so many things. Whether it was my training, stress in my personal life, or simple household tasks, he was always willing to lend a helping hand. If he was around, of course. I don't know where I'd be right now if it weren't for him," she smiled, warmly, truly, for the first time all night since the horrible news. "I don't even think I'd be alive if it weren't for him.."
"Hinata, don't say that." Naruto responded. "You're strong, Hinata."
"No," she said. "I haven't always been. I barely have been. I've been so.. so dependant lately and I'm just sick of it at times. As grateful as I am to have friends willing to help me and.. family supporting me, I want to be able to take care of myself, to stand up for myself and my beliefs." She clenched her fists, her voice raising and carrying throughout the room. "I want to have people respect me for who I am, not who I was." She reached over and gently placed her hand over Naruto's. "And that's what I did tonight."
"What do you mean by that?" Naruto was puzzled.
"Well, my father asked me what I felt I needed."
'Oh no!' Naruto thought. 'Her father? She snuck out, I know she did!' He began to guess to himself. He kept his cool, wanting to hear what she had to say.
"What did you tell him?"
After a long pause, Hinata moved her eyes over to Naruto, to his face, and she reached up and lightly stroked his cheek. "I told him the truth, Naruto-kun. I told him that I needed you. That I needed your company tonight, and that you were the only one that would be able to keep me from possibly doing.. uhm.. something I would regret.."
"Hinata," it pained him to hear her speak like that. She was truly, truly depressed, and his stomach began to twist and turn at the thought of her acting out in the wrong ways. He thought of the scar on her arm and could only imagine how that came to be, and he had to shake the thought from his head. It hurt too much.
"You told your father?" He kept cool. "He wasn't okay with it, was he? I mean.. I'm not even in your bloodline and, well.." Naruto looked away for a moment. "I'm sure he thinks I'm some kind of demon or monster.."
"Naruto, that's not true at all!" Hinata corrected him. "I mean, yeah, you're not in my bloodline, and yeah, you haven't had the greatest past.. but.." Hinata tilted Naruto's chin so he would look at her. "But Neji had told my father a lot of.. of great things about you, Naruto-kun, and my father took Neji's word very seriously and very strongly.
"So.. you said you needed… me?" Naruto was touched. He loved her more and more by the minute.
"Yeah.. and.." she blushed immensely. "I told him I..."
"You.. what?"
She whispered, "I told him I love you."
Naruto jumped back, letting go of her a moment. "You did what?!" Hinata moved her finger back to his lips, and he kept quiet.
"It's okay, Naruto. Yes, I told him. I told him everything about how I feel," she, to Naruto's amazement, very perfectly calm. She, actually, was growing more and more excited. She had good news she was willing to share with Naruto, and it was getting close to the good part. "He said that, though he doesn't completely agree, that he won't take away from me something, or somebody, that I love and need in my life. He told me that if I'm to love you, Naruto, then.. well.." She smiled, turning deep red. "Then, I'm to love you."
Naruto couldn't believe it. Her father was okay with her loving him! Alright, well maybe not okay.. but certainly more than he had expected.
"You came all the way here to.. to tell me this, Hinata?"
"Well, not only that," she continued. "I'm.. I mean, I was going to ask if I may spend the night here."
"Wait, here?? Does your father know you're here?"
She nodded slowly. "Yes, he does. I asked if I could invite you back to my community to keep me company and he suggested that I just come here." She tapped her fingers lightly as she explained the situation. "He said that if I need a night or two to keep up my spirits, then he'll allow it, but.." she stopped.
"But what?" Naruto leaned in and brushed her cheek with the back of his hand lightly.
"He's.. he's trusting you with me, Naruto," she blushed. "He's worried that we'll.. well, be teenagers, like we are.. and I can't disrespect him, Naruto. I won't.
Naruto blinked in confusion a couple of times. "Wait, are you talking about…? Hinata, nodded slowly. "Sweetheart," he said softly, that word echoing lightly through her head as if a God-send. "I can only imagine how important that is to you, and I wouldn't dare disrespect you, or your father, for that matter." She smiled in relief. "Can you imagine, though? How mad he would get?" Hinata nodded and cracked a smile. She found amusement in her father's antics at times. She had always said he didn't know how to get mad, and when he tried, it almost always brought a laugh to her and Hanabi.
"What happened with your father, though, Hinata? Didn't you and him used to not get along a while back?"
"Well, as we got older, my sister Hanabi and I bonded more and more, as I felt we needed to. There is a lot of pressure for success in our clan, and as two sisters of the main branch, I guess you could say we were able to relate more and more as time went by," Hinata smiled. "As her, Neji and I grew closer, the bond between my father and the three of us began to develop once more. He became more approachable, and he became more willing to help us out when we needed it." She gazed over at Naruto. "Can you believe there used to be a time where he wanted nothing to do with me?" she laughed, thinking about it. "I mean, he practically gave me to Kurenai-sensei!"
Naruto shook his head, "You never told me that."
"I was ashamed, Naruto. Can you blame me?" he shook his head. "Anyway, Neji became more involved with the main family and he and my father had grown very close. They shared a lot, and Neji was being the son that daddy never had."
Naruto giggled softly. "Daddy?" Hinata lightly hit him on the arm. "I'm sorry, I'm joking. Please, keep going."
Hinata smirked at his joke, "Well, Neji had explained to my father how I was feeling, how stressed I was, how upset I had been. He told my father that I just wanted to feel loved, to feel like I could do something, anything I wanted."
"And it worked?"
"Amazingly," Hinata responded, her voice fluttering slightly. "I guess Neji was able to change his heart for the better.. just like.." her eyes returned to his, bright and full of life. "Just like you.. were able to change Neji's." Naruto smiled.
"Hey, Hinata," his smile faded. "For what it's worth.. I'm really sorry to hear about Neji, and I just want you to know that your family has my support and my thoughts."
"I understand, Naruto. I know, and they know, and thank you," she ran her hand through his hair lightly. "But I'm trying to keep my mind off of the sadness, away from the depression. Neji meant a lot to me, as he did for a lot of people, but I want to spend my time remembering him, not mourning. He wouldn't want me to."
Naruto gazed at her wonderously. He couldn't believe the courage she was showing.
"I mean, I'll admit I miss him terribly already, and it hurts so much, Naruto. It really does.. but.. but I just don't think I can cry anymore. It's not that I don't want to, I feel like I just.. can't. When I try, I feel this horrible pain, and I feel that, in a way, it's telling me not to cry anymore." Naruto rubbed her back gently, and she coughed to herself. "Thanks," she cleared her throat. "I'm sorry if my mood isn't helping you, but.."
He waited a few seconds for her to finish, but then he asked. "But what?"
The smile broke from her lips. "I just.." Her eyes brightened what seemed to be the entire room. "I just wanted to tell my… my boyfriend what's going on in my life."
He couldn't contain his smile. Boyfriend. He was her boyfriend. That word excited him, and he leaned over and kissed her lightly on the cheek.
"Well, I'm glad you told me all of this, Hinata." He nodded and continued to run his hand up and down her back. She shuddered to herself at his touch, and she leaned her head on his shoulder. "You're welcome here as long as you feel you'd like to stay."
"Thanks," she replied, grateful to his kindness. It had killed her inside, just a little, that she couldn't say she'd be here forever, especially because she wanted to be.
"Naruto-kun?"
"Yes, Hinata?" Their eyes met in a long, caring glance.
"I love you," her words, though gentle and whispered, meant the world to him. He lifted her chin off of his shoulder lightly and he turned to face her more, smiling back.
"I love you, too." She smiled and leaned in ever so slowly towards him. In spite of everything that had happened tonight, he didn't know what to do.
"Hinata," he whispered. "Love, I.. are you.. do you..?"
She nodded once and continued to draw closer to him, her eyes closing with every bit closer she got to him. "I want this, Naruto. Please, give me what I've wanted for so long."
His hand let her chin up as he motioned closer towards Hinata. He closed his eyes and, out of nervous habit, licked his lips quickly, as they had been pretty dry.
"I love you, Hinata," he had reminder her through a whisper as their noses now touched. He slightly parted his lips and awaited hers with much anticipation. She leaned in the last little bit as she expressed her love back to him in the faintest of whispers..
.. and in the most gentle of kisses.
Their lips had met tenderly on this moonlight night, just as shy and timidly the two youngsters had first met many years ago. Hinata wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck as he placed his arms on her back at the same time, one around her neck, the other further down her back. Naruto pressed his lips harder against hers as that first kiss began a string of many as the young couple embraced this beautiful moment with a happiness they would never be able to describe.
Hinata ran her hand through Naruto's hair and she tugged at it gently as she continued to kiss her prince charming. Naruto planted kiss after kiss onto her lips, parting his own more and more with each passing moment. She was quick to react as she opened her own mouth slightly more to accommodate, kissing him more deeply. After a couple of seconds, she parted, turning slightly to his cheek, exhaling heavily.
"Naruto-kun," she said, half moaning, half out of breath. She immediately tilted her head back to kiss him a couple more times. Once she had gotten her fill, she broke the kissing and leaned forward, resting her cheek against his. As numb as her mouth had felt, she kissed his cheek and then nuzzled her cheek to his warmly. "I love you.. my Naruto-kun."
He grinned widely and turned, kissing her cheek, and holding her very tightly in his arms. "We should get some sleep," he suggested. "We have to be at Tsunade's address early tomorrow."
"Yeah," Hinata agreed. That's all she really did, though, was reply, for she was too high on Cloud Nine to really grasp what Naruto had said.
He let go of her briefly and threw his arms up in the air and stretched them out, yawning out loud. Hinata watched him, giggling. She found it cute how he was acting. He positioned himself against the wall in his bed, giving Hinata as much space as she needed. She smiled and, blushing, got herself cozy under his covers. She brought her knees up and basically curled herself up, facing Naruto. Naruto blushed and laughed to himself.
"You're not going to kick me, are you?"
Hinata laughed and leaned forward, kissing his cheek. "I'll be careful." He smiled and ran his fingers through her hair once more and, again, she nuzzled his hand like a cat. He grinned and stole a kiss from an unsuspecting and tired Hinata. Her cheeks turned red as she covered her mouth and yawned to herself. Naruto placed his hand onto her cheek, smiling.
"Goodnight, Hinata-chan."
She closed her eyes and prepared herself for the journey that her and her boyfriend were about to take into their dream worlds.
"Goodnight, Naruto-kun."
"So, any update on Minaya?" He looked up at Tsunade, who stood with clipboard in hand as she stepped from the doorway towards him. He was bandaged up, sore in many, many places, but thankful to be alive. The operation had been a success, and he knew it. He could move his hands and feet, and he was even told he could be comfortably standing within the next day or so.. but his own well-being, however, was not his concern.
"It is unclear where his current location is, though we are working hard on tracking down possible sheltering areas both inside and outside the village. Regardless, he's become a great danger to our society." She turned back towards him with a grave look. "Tonight, we have lost Hyuuga Neji to his terrible doings."
Kakashi's eyes opened wide. "Neji was.. taken down?" His mouth quivered at that thought. He had known Neji to be one of the strongest ninja in the village. "That's certainly very.. very tragic.."
Tsunade nodded. "His family has been informed, as will the rest of the village tomorrow when I address our community in a state of emergency.
Kakashi sat up painfully in bed, picking his comforter up with him. The recovery room was air conditioned and, with the lack of commotion about the area, it had gotten very cold. "What are our options? I mean, we can't sit back and allow this infiltrator to take us down one by one."
The Hokage placed her clipboard down on the table next to the bed and pounded her right fist into her open palm. "A complete eviction of all visitors to Konoha. We have about fourteen non-residents currently staying within the limits of our village, and they will all be asked to leave within twenty-four hours of my statement. Konoha will be on lockdown until a crack in this case is found, and we will investigate and put an end to these senseless killings.
"They're after the Angel," Kakashi reminded her. She stayed silent, sighing and shaking her head.
"I don't care what he's after, Kakashi. We have taken two serious blows in the last three days, and who knows when this will end? This murderer needs to be found and eliminated.
His eyes dimmed. He looked back up at Tsunade. "How's my team?"
"They've both made almost full recoveries. Naruto's due in for a check-up tomorrow morning. He just woke up earlier this evening from his drug-induced sleep. The aftershock of the battle left a lasting mark on his spine and his chakra system, but if finishes up the treatment, he'll be well enough to return to duty by the end of this week."
"And Sakura?"
"She suffered a severe piercing wound to her stomach by a lightning strike. We were able to close the wound and repair her internal organs, but the new patch of skin on her stomach and back is still very fragile and very tender, as it hasn't completely developed it's purpose. She's going to need a little more time before she can get back in the swing of things. I'd say a week or so," Tsunade picked up her clipbord and began to walk out of the room.
"Tsunade, wait!" She stopped in the doorway, not turning around to face him.
"What is it?"
Kakashi paused a moment as he sighed to himself. "Will I be able to return to my duties?"
Tsunade remained quiet for a long time as she took a deep breath and, holding it briefly, exhaled, letting her stress and pressure go with it.
"I can't answer that right now, Kakashi. Just get some rest for now. It's three in the morning, and I'm just as tired as anyone else around here. I'm calling it a night."
Kakashi nodded, "Okay then." She left the room with no more than a peep, as he heard her footsteps disappear down the hall. He turned to look at his window. "Naruto, Sakura.. I'm sorry, guys.. " He opened and closed his fists very gently, feeling for pain, which there was none.
"Minaya Kaelu," he muttered to himself. His mind flashbacked to the young jounin standing weakly underneath him as his charged hand flew up at his spine, hitting with that final, painful blow.
"Shock Helix!!"
Kakashi winced, still feeling the sting of that attack. He put his hand behind him and ran his fingers up the bottom of his spine, up as far as he could reach.
"Artificial.." he told himself, his pride somewhat hurt by that word. The last thing he remembered was Tsunade leaning over him, ordering the doctors around her to get him on his stomach before he willingly succumbed to Shizune's genjutsu. He felt the bumps on his spine where the new material had been added and attached to his cord. The thought began to sicken him.
"I'm.. artificial.. I'm more artificial.." he sighed to himself, shaking his head, resting his arm once again at his side. "What's happening to you, Kakashi?" He asked himself aloud. "You're the son of the White Fang, himself.. and here you are, struggling to stay alive, being kept alive by these artificial parts like some f--king robot!!" He picked the glass of water up from his table and hurled it into the far wall of the recovery wall. The glass shattered upon impact, easing some of the anger building in his mind. He took a couple of deep breaths and rolled over onto his side. His forlorn glance gazed out into the hallway.
"Is being kept alive actually living..?" He asked himself, slowly closing his eyes. Images of Naruto and Sakura flashed into his mind, and, upset with himself and the world, he drifted off, painstakingly, into a deep a much needed sleep.
Aidon clutched his cup of tea as he sat in the darkness of his living room. He hadn't fallen asleep, nor did he get any decent sleep the night before. His rocking chair creaked very lightly as it held him in it on this warm, humid evening. He coughed very heavily and his pounded his chest furiously afterwards, clearing his throat. He ached, and, aside from his consistent tea drinking, he was losing his appetite. He coughed again and looked towards the staircase, thinking about his two grandsons, and how they were at peace, sleeping the night away.
He closed his eyes and sighed, leaned back in his chair, his face facing the sky.
"I'm glad they're here, Oroyo. It has certainly made it worth my while." He opened his eyes and looked over to the mantel over his fireplace, and, as dark as it was, he could still pick out his wedding photo, standing tall in the center of the gallery. He smiled.
"It's been a long time, Kasumi," he gazed into his wife's smile and a tear rolled down his cheek. He grinned, sipped his tea, and held up his glass, toasting it to her.
"I'll be home soon.."
He awoke to feel her lips softly planted to his forehead. He opened his eyes as she leaned back, eyes bright, smiling at him.
"Hehe," she giggled. "Good morning, Naruto-kun." She ran her hand through his hair.
He blushed. "Good morning, Hinata." He reached and took her chin lightly, pulling her towards him and he gave her a quick smooch on the lips.
"Sleep well?" She sat up and stretched her arms up towards the sky, grunting and groaning as groaning as she tried to greet the morning.
"Very," he replied. "Especially because I had some very nice company." She smiled, blushing at his remark. She stood up and walked over to the window opposite the bed and peered outside. Naruto scoot over to the center of the bed and stretched in place, body now sprawled across the frame. He looked over at her, rubbing his eyes.
"It's beautiful outside," she said quietly. She turned back to face her love. "Tsunade's address to the public is this afternoon, right?"
"Yeah," Naruto responded. "What time is it now?"
Hinata peered through the doorway and looked into the kitchen, where a ramen bowl-shaped clock hung on the wall. "It's a little bit after ten." She walked slowly back over to the bed and sat down by him, pecking him on the cheek. He smiled and returned the kiss to her own, then he slowly put his arm around her and hugged her tightly.
"Would you want to grab something to eat?"
She thought for a second, putting her finger to her lip and looking up to the ceiling, but then shook her head.
"No thanks. I want to get back home and get ready for the day. I'm going to take a nice hot bath and get dressed into some actual clothes." She picked at her night shirt and laughed, as did Naruto. "Don't you have your check-up this morning anyway? You should get yourself ready as well."
"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot!" Naruto jumped out of bed and began to roll his neck and shoulders, loosening his body up. "Thanks for reminding me. I'm going to head over to the main bath house now." He walked over to his drawer and grabbed clothing from each of the drawers and put together his outfit for the day. He was going with summer attire today, grabbing a white T-shirt, black shorts and black sandals. He looked back to his girlfriend, who was attentively watching him. "Would.. would you like me to walk you home?"
She shook her head. "Thanks, Naruto, but we both are pretty busy this morning, and I'm pretty out of the way if you're going to the bath house and then the hospital. I think it would just be better if I met you before the address. I could meet you at the hospital if you'd like."
"I don't know how long my check-up will be, but I'll get there as soon as I can."
Hinata stood up in front of him and caressed his cheek lightly. "Don't take a quick bath?"
"I guess I could," he joked. "I won't have anybody to distract me." She blushed heavily and he smiled and leaned forward, planting a light kiss on her. "How long will you take to get ready? I mean, I could just head over to your house when my check-up is done."
She nodded, "That actually might work better. I like to take my time, and I wouldn't want to keep you waiting at the hospital or around the village with nothing to do." They began to walk towards the front door, hand in hand. He opened the door and walked downstairs and into the streets of Konoha.
"I'll be at your house at noon, honey. Is that enough time?" He asked, taking a step towards the bath house but not wanting to let go of her hand.
"More than enough. I'll be ready and waiting," She smiled. She tugged at his arm and pulled her towards her with enough force that he stumbled into her open arms, and she embraced him tightly. The sunlight shone down upon them as it had just begun to peer over the building on this already-hot summer morning.
Naruto pulled away slightly, holding her at her arms, so that he could gaze into her eyes once more before heading on his way. Sakura was heading down the street behind Hinata, though he didn't notice. Sakura stopped and leaned against the building a couple of houses down, watching from a distance. She was a little worried about approaching Hinata, because the last time she did was anything but good news, but seeing her two friends embrace made it a little easier to acknowledge.
His hand ran down her cheek and her neck, and she closed her eyes and smiled, enjoying every second of his affection. "I love you, Hinata." She inhaled deeply, took his hand into her own and kissed it gently.
"I love you, Naruto-kun." She leaned up onto her toes and, closing her eyes again, planted a deep kiss onto his soft lips. Naruto closed his eyes and held her by her neck very gently, embracing the kiss and holding it for a few seconds.
Behind them, Sakura stood, blushing, her hand up to her own cheek, hiding her smile. "Hinata," she soft to herself. "I love you, girl. I'm so… so happy for you. You deserve it."
Naruto gently broke the kiss and smiled at the gorgeous young woman in his arms. He couldn't ever remember being this happy, but he was going to save telling her that for a later time. He turned once again towards his destination and offered Hinata a small wave.
"Don't miss me too much," he joked as he began to walk away.
"I won't, Naruto-kun." She bowed slightly and held her hand up in a slight wave back to him. She began to walk back home and, after a couple of seconds, she turned back to Naruto and yelled out to him.
"I love you!" He turned back, smiled, and blew a kiss back to her before heading on his way again.
She was frozen in place, watching him go on his way. "He's so… he's so perfect…" she said happily to herself. "He's so wonderful, he's so caring.. and he's… and he's.."
"And he's yours." Hinata gasped. She knew the voice. She turned around and ran into her friend and sister's arms as Sakura happily embraced her.
They squealed to each other for a moment as Sakura swung her around once, hugging her incredibly tightly and kissing her on her cheek. Sakura eyed her friend up and down and chuckled "Nice jammies." Hinata laughed, embarrassed and tried to escape her frien'ds grip jokingly.
After putting her down, Sakura's smile disappeared and she held Hinata in front of her, her arms over her shoulders. "Hinata… I'm.. I'm sorry, Hinata, about last night.."
Hinata looked away a moment, her emotions crashing down to Earth. "It's alright, Sakura.. I'm trying not to be sad about Neji. He died with honor, as a hero to me, to you, to everybody." Sakura offered a slight smile.
"As sad as I am, I know that, in my heart, he would want me to try and live my life, the same way he's pushed me to all this time, and I can't let him down. Because I know he's up there, watching me even right now!"
A tear rolled down Sakura's cheek. "Hinata, I'm so.. I'm so proud of you. You've become so strong, and you've blossomed and matured in a way that I honestly never thought you could, and I'm just so happy and so proud of you. I'm sure Neji's just as happy," she kissed her friend's forehead and smiled brightly into her eyes. "And he'll always be watching over you." Hinata smiled and threw her arms around her friend.
"Thank you, Sakura.. I'm so lucky to have people like you and Naruto in my life."
"Anytime, babe," she nodded. "Oh, so anyway.. about Naruto.. I'm guessing the talk went well?"
"You bet!" Hinata shouted. "I.. I actually got to spend the night. It was amazing!"
"Wait, you spent the night over there?? Oh my God, that's so amazing, that's wonderful!" She hugged her again. "I saw you kiss him, it was the cutest thing ever!!" They squealed again. "So how was it?"
Hinata blushed, "It.. it was incredible. It was the warmest feeling I have ever felt, and.. and at the same time, I got shivers and goosebumps and, oh, it was just amazing! It was exactly what I needed, Sakura! It really was, and when we first kissed, I felt like everything was going to be okay. Despite everything that's happened with.." her smile disappeared. "..with everybody, I felt for once that, in the end, everything will be okay.. that for once, my life has meaning. I felt so alive!"
Sakura smiled and put her arm around her friend. "I know things have been really really rough on you lately.. I can only imagine how great it made you feel." She laughed, "I'm actually kinda jealous." She reached over and messed with Hinata's hair slightly. "Hey, I'm thinking you should get your hair cut. I think it would look a lot cuter the way it used to be, and I'm sure Naruto would love it."
"I don't want to cut it too short, Sakura. I mean, I've kept it neat and layered, but I haven't taken any length off since I was a genin!"
"Well, I think you'd look adorable." Sakura ran her fingers through her friend's hair. "You can do so many things with this, you have beautiful hair, Hinata! And, well.." She leaned in to whisper, even though nobody else was around. "Between you an' me? Naruto loves girls with short hair."
She gasped and responded loudly. "He does?!"
"Shhh," she motioned for Hinata to be quieter. "Yes, he does. Trust me, if he saw you with your old hairdo he'd be thrilled. One of these days, surprised him with it!"
Hinata giggled, "Okay, okay, I will. But only if you help me!"
Sakura jumped for joy, "Not a problem, girlie. Hair's one thing I know! So, where are you going?"
"Back home, to my community bath. Naruto is meeting me at noon and I need to get out of my pj's and ready for the day." Hinata pointed to her pajama pants, laughing to herself
"Sounds like a plan!"
"Hey," Hinata said. "Want to join me? I could always use the company and I'll tell you more about how my night went."
Sakura gasped. "Hinata! You didn't!"
"No!! Of course I didn't!!" She gently swung at her friend's arm, laughing. "Come on, Sakura, I'm sure you want to know everything."
"When don't I?"
"Uzumaki Naruto," the young boy pronounced to the lady behind the desk. "I'm here for my check-up with Nurse Kichio."
"Ah, Naruto! Just in time, Nana Kicho has actually just punched in." He looked over to the clock. It read 11:02 AM.
"Good timing," he agreed. As much as he had hated hospital visits, he loved check-ups with Nana Kichio. She was probably the oldest nurse on the Konoha medical staff, and she was always on time and always really quick and efficient with her check-ups. She was like the grandmother he never had.
The receptionist pressed a paging button on the phone along her desk. "Nana Kichio-san?" She waited patiently. "Please excuse me a moment, Naruto. You know how Kichio-san is, she's always about the wards and never stays in her office. I'll try once more in a moment and if she's not there, I'll message her via the PA system. After a few seconds, a beep returned to the phone and an elderly voice spoke from the speaker.
"What is it, dearie? I was just about to step out." The voice was sweet and very polite for just having gotten to work.
"Uzumaki Naruto is here for his treatment check-up."
"Oooh! Naruto, huh? How pleasant!" Her voice beamed. "Tell him to wait right there, actually no! Tell him to go to 211B, I'll meet him there, hehe! Hurry now, Naruto!" Then, they heared a click, and she was gone.
"So pleasant," he said as the receptionist nodded in agreement. "Thank you, I'll be on my way up now," he walked over to the elevator.
"You know where it is, right?"
"Please," he joked. "With all the crap I've been through since becoming a ninja, that room's practically my second home!" The receptionist laughed at his remark as he disappeared behind the elevator door.
When the doors re-opened, he found himself on the second floor, where most of the rooms are for therapies and treatments, were. Down the far end of the hall, towards the opposite side of the building were a few recovery rooms, but not many. These were usually reserved for critical care patients. And he had wondered for a moment if Kakashi was still in one of them or if he had been moved upstairs. He figured he'd ask Nana after his treatment.
He stepped into the empty room, and his eyes moved back and forth around the room. He walked over to the patient's table and propped himself onto it, waiting for the nurse to arrive. In the mean time, he kept himself busy reading all of the educational posters around the room. He found many of these interesting and he seemed to pay more attention to the charts and displays rather than the words from his academy books. He had started with the nervous system, then to the chakra system, and he had just finished reading the one about sight and the human eye. He looked across the room, and on the other table, there were informational pamphlets. Now, he had never really paid attention to these before, because he had considered them "reading" material, but one had caught his eye this time around. He hopped off of the bed and walked over to the multicolored pamphlets. The one he eyed was blue with bright white lettering and it said "Knowing Your Body." Now normally, he would scoff and say he knows everything there is to know, but that would be for the males' pamphlet, which was the green one next to it. The blue one was oriented for females, and, all things considering, this had completely caught Naruto's interest.
"Well," he chuckled. "Might as well kill time." He went to reach for the pamphlet when he heard a voice behind him.
"What'cha interested in, my boy?" a shaky, elderly voice asked out. Naruto, startled, jumped away from the table. He glanced over at the little old lady and cracked a rather embarrassed smile.
"Uhm, nothing! Nothing! Just looking to see what you had over here, ma'am."
"Mmm-hmm. If you say so," She smiled warmly. "how are you, my dear?"
"I'm doing alright, Nana. Feeling so much better as of late. How are you?"
"Same ol', dearie. Old, but alive and kickin!" She threw a couple of punches in the air, laughing to herself. "You know, Naruto. I'm eighty-two years old and I'm as fit as I was at sixty! It feels good waking up every morning just knowing you're alive and you can see another sunrise!"
"Yeah," Naruto frowned, thinking of Neji. "It must.. it must be nice."
"Come now, dearie, you must know the feeling!"
"I do," he replied. "But.. Neji.. my friend."
"Oh," she stopped. "Oh dear, that's right? Aw I'm so terribly sorry, Naruto. Neji was a good kid, and he will be missed, no douby. He will be missed. But life moves on, as it must. Unfortunately, sorrow doesn't stop for anybody! Now, where were we.."
Kichio smiled and walked over to the counter and opened a drawer, revealing hundreds of color-coded folders, one for each of her patients. "Nope, not in here." She closed the drawer and pulled open the one below it. As Naruto seared himself atop the table again. "A-ha!" She grabbed a folder, colored with the letters "UZU" on the corner and she flung it open. "So, Naruto, this treatment is for aftershock treatment, right?" She shook her head. "Ohhh, I heard you had a nasty fall the other day, I'm glad to see you're on your feet!"
"Nothing keeps me down for long, believe it!" He laughed out loud to himself, and Kichio smiled and walked slowly to the other smaller cabinet and pulled out a tiny bottle with a syringe on the inside. "I'm guessing," he gulped. "That shot is for me?"
"Yes, indeedy!" She remarked. "When your body converts chakra, it takes the energy you obtain from an unknown source and converts it at the Heart Gate into your own energy. However, when unknown or foreign chakra strays throughout a person's body without being converted, it can be dangerous to the body, as it's nature will affect your internal systems from the inside out. Because your opponent was a raijutsu user, his chakra consists mainly of electrical patterns and energies, understand?" Naruto nodded his head. He was actually getting this!
"The remainder of the electromagnetic chakra which has not been converted is still infesting your body, shocking various points of your chakra system that it reaches, causing a painful sting to any of your main chakra release points."
"So," Naruto replied. "That would explain the occasional stinging and numbness I still get."
"Exactly," Kichio answered. "You're being electrocuted from the inside out." She held up the medicine bottle to Naruto.. "This is antalysis. It fights any harmful chakra that may stray within your body, destroying it. This is your personal antalysis, as the cells were taken from your body to create the aintodote. Whatever it doesn't destroy, the antibodies will convert it, using your own DNA, into your own chakra."
"Wow, that can really do that??" Naruto asked, amazed.
"Yes," Nana replied. "But it's a long process. It will be done in seven sessions: left arm, right arm, left leg, right leg, chest, torso, and head. Once every week, for the next seven weeks, you will be injected with a dose of Antalysis to fight the static charge in that specific area of your body until it is completely eliminated. This week, we will start with the left arm and work from there."
"Will it hurt?"
"The needle will sting," Nana said honestly, "but the treatment itself is painless. The only side effect is that you'll be very tired. Your body will tire very easily while you're under the treament. Consider it like you're the battlefield and there's a battle going on in your body."
"I see," Naruto said, staring at the clock on the wall. It read 11:20. "How long after each injection will the treatment last?"
"About six hours."
"That's fine," Naruto said. He knew now that today might be a long day. "So nothing too strenuous during that time?"
"It would be recommended that way, yes."
"Alright," Naruto rolled the sleeve of his T-shirt up to his shoulder and held it in place. Nana twisted the cap off of the bottle and removed the needle, pumping a full dose of Antalysis into it. She took a piece of cotton and rubbed disinfectant on his forearm. Then she checked the needle for proper output, then she took his left hand as he began to tense.
"This will only sting for a second, Naruto. Hold on, okay?"
He had to look away, "yes, ma'am." He clenched his fists and grit his teeth as he felt a sharp sting on his arm. "Ow!" he winced and tensed up his body. His left arm began to shake. As brave as he may be as a ninja, Naruto still held a grudge with needles. He felt the cool liquid slowly enter his system, and it was a weird feeling that made his arm tingle and his whole body shudder.
Nana withdrew the needle from his body slowly. "There, all done for today." She reached into her pocket and grabbed a bamdage and placed it over his arm where the needle had gone. "If you feel any discomfort, I want you to come back immediately. I'm sure you know this isn't something to fool around with."
"I know Nana," he flexed his arm slightly, trying to ease a little bit of the sting. "Thank you so much," he fixed his shirt and got up from his seat slowly, and began to walk out of the office when he stopped and turned back to the old woman. "Nana, do you know if Kakashi-sensei is still down the hall or has he been moved upstairs?"
"He's still in the same room down the hall, but he has requested no visitors for today. If you're interested in seeing him, he'll be at the address this afternoon, so your best bet would be to see him there."
"Okay," Naruto nodded in understanding. "Thanks, Nana"
"Anytime, Naruto. Now, remember. Take it easy today, no working out on treatment days, understand?" Nana pointed her finger at the young shinobi and he nodded, giving her a thumbs up.
"Of course! I'll see you next week!" He ran out of the room, looking at the clock as he passed by it. It continued to sit on the wall, ticking away, now reading 11:30.
He ran out the main entrance so fast the automatic doors almost hit him, barely opening fast enough for his exit. He ran as fast as he could down the street, avoiding numerous pedestrians along his stampede, but, within minutes, he had arrived at the entrance to the Hyuuga community. He came to a halt and, breathing heavily, he peered into the gated community, nervous and anxious. He assumed Hinata might still be in the bath hall as he was early, so he took a few steps in and saw down patiently on the bench along the open training area. It had appeared deserted as his eyes shifted back and forth, desperately looking for any sign of life in the area. It was a while before a door had opened on the far side of the community and he peered down the road to see if it was Hinata. Sure enough, two young teenagers emerged from the house, talking and laughing their way back towards the main entrance. Naruto immediately recognized both of them, and he began to walk towards them, waving. Sakura saw him and tapped Hinata on the shoulder, pointing forward. Even from far away, Hinata's eyes connected with Naruto's, and she began to sprint towards him. Naruto's swile grew wider and he picked up his own pace towards his girlfriend. She held her arms out and upon reaching him, held him in a big, loving hug. Naruto looked at her and smiled, then he brushed her hair from his own face.
"Your hair's still wet," he laughed. He looked up and saw Sakura waving, taking her sweet time behind her friend.
"Sorry, Naruto," she said, moving her bangs from her face. "How did the check-up go?
"It went alright. Hey, Sakura," he waved again as his pink-haired sister joined Hinata's side. He turned back to Hinata to finish his explanation. "The nurse said I have to go back once a week for seven weeks for the last of my treatment. I won't be able to train on those days, though."
"Ehh, you'll live!" Sakura exclaimed, patting him on the back. She kept his hand at his shoulder.
"Where's Oroyo today?" Naruto asked. Sakura shook her haid.
"I'm not sure, but I'm sure he'll turn up eventually. He always does. I bet we'll see him and his little brother at the address." Sakura pointed in the direction of the Center Building, where Tsunade said she would be making a roof-top address to the public.
"Hey," Sakura turned to her friends. "You hungry?"
"Actually, yeah." He said. "Are you guys?"
"I haven't eaten since dinner last night," Hinata said softly. "I'm starving."
"Well," Sakura concluded. "We have an hour. Let's go grab some lunch somewhere!"
"Sounds good." Naruto kept his arm around Hinata and she did the same as the three of them strolled out into the streets of Konoha in search of food.
"Let's go to the steakhouse," Sakura suggested. "They always serve big portions and their food is always fantastic!"
"That's a great idea!" Hinata replied. "What do you say, Naruto-kun?" She traced her finger down his chest. "We can make this a lovely lunch date, don't you think?"
"Yeah," he nodded, though he was clearly in the mood for something else. The girls made sure, however, that he would have no say.
"Why don't we go grab some ra-"
"No!!"
As always, comments appreciated.
I'm going away on vacation from the 11th of August until the 17th. I will be working on Chapter 12 whilst away, but it may not be posted until I return. As of right now, I will aim to have the Chapter posted no later than 11pm (EST) on the 17th, so I hope to see everybody then! Cheers!!
s.p.