A/N:I have officially updated the entire story of The True Meaning of Valueas of March 9th, 2016. The story has been cleaned up to fix plot holes and hopefully to the betterment of the story's flow - I'm hoping this fixes the crummier parts of the story so that this fanfic becomes ten times more enjoyable with a more realistic approach to the characters and story development. Thank you everyone for supporting and following this story, and please continue to do so as new chapters are on their way! Read on, my fellow fans! I hope to see each and everyone of you guys at the end of this long, long journey!
- Pencilfreak17
Chapter 11: Chase (Part1)
Shoes thundered across concrete streets as a group of gangsters sped after their friend up ahead, the people they shoved past glancing back at them to see the wild group stampede away with a giant barking dog running alongside the first gangster.
An odd sight.
You would almost never see the gangsters moving around so openly, even if they were good people like the Demon Fox gang. Even though they protected the public on their own whim, the police and other public safety officials weren't very fond of them for upstaging their efforts of protecting the public and their welfare. They usually scowled and told that particular gang to stop meddling themselves in trying to act the hero of everything – they had it under control, not them. But this time, this was their own business, so the police would have no right to bother them about this one…
Kiba turned and started running backwards, yelling at his friends behind him as he cupped his hands around his mouth shouting, "HURRY UP YOU ASSHOLES, UNLESS YOU WANT SASUKE TO WHIP YOUR ASSES!"
The two other boys with Kiba equally shot him a glare, but silently they sped up, eventually merging alongside Kiba and his dog Akamaru as they ran together through crowds and past alleyways.
Akamaru took another whiff of the scent they were trailing before barking loudly to Kiba, who nodded and sped off to the left with his dog as he shouted over his shoulder to his two perplexed friends, "THIS WAY GUYS!"
Shikamaru watched Kiba dash away with the large white dog bounding alongside him as he sighed.
"Geez…! And he asks me why we can't keep up."
Shino shrugged with his expression as stoic as ever behind his glasses and the collar of his jacket, as he mumbled back, "Eh, he's always been like that. I'm only staying behind to make sure you don't fall behind."
Shikamaru gave Shino a look as they started to jog after Kiba as he got farther and farther ahead.
"I beg your pardon? Are you saying you don't have any trouble keeping up with Kiba?"
Shino nodded, casually tossing back, "Oh yes, after all, Kiba and I have been friends long before I met Naruto and the others – including you."
Shikamaru sighed up to the night sky as he muttered, "Ugh, fine… troublesome…I'll try to keep up."
Shino genuinely responded, "I never would have thought you would do anything else other than just that."
They finally caught up with the Inuzuka as they spotted him resting in a deserted construction site; obviously distressed as Akamaru whined, pawing the ground and walking aimlessly in circles before Kiba. Shino eyed Akamaru as Shikamaru inquired to Kiba, "Hey, why'd you stop? Don't tell me this was another dead end-!"
Kiba threw up his hands and stood to kick a brick, glaring at the ground as he shoved his hands into his pockets as he grumbled, "…Fuck it all man! No matter how hard Akamaru and I try, we end up in a sticky mess of false trails and dead ends! And for what!? Sakura's pretty pink ass!"
Kiba crossed his arms as he sourly concluded, "Sometimes I wonder if that girl can even handle herself. She gets herself kidnapped so easily, it's just bullshit I say!"
Shino walked up to Kiba and grabbed him by the front of his jacket, pulling him in close to murmur in a frighteningly calm voice, "You know what bullshit is right now? Whatever is coming out of your mouth complaining about the bad luck we're having at our hands."
Kiba's eyes flared with anger as he slapped Shino's hands away from his jacket and growled back, "Bastard, what do you know man? You can't blame me for being upset because of all this shit she's got herself into! Admit it Shino, this is just a waste of time-!"
"-YOU are just upset by the fact that you can't track Sakura down as quickly and efficiently as you hoped. Therefore, there's no need for you to go around making rude comments behind Sakura's back when she could be potentially in danger. I may not know her very well, but all I do know is that she's a friend of Naruto's and Sasuke's. If she's in trouble, we have to help out in some way possible. Even if it's a waste of time, we still have to do whatever we can to help out."
Shino paused, considered something else as he added curtly, "And you know this Kiba."
Kiba glared at Shino, holding his shaded gaze stubbornly before collapsing on top of a stack of sacks of cement as he buried his face in his hands sighing.
"Urgh… fuck it, I can never stay mad at you Shino."
Kiba pulled his hands away from his face as he ruffled his own tangled hair with one hand, avoiding Shino's gaze partly in shame as he muttered, "Because you're always so fucking right."
Shikamaru clapped his hands, drawing the two friends' attention to him, as he spoke up, "Alright then, now that we got whiny Kiba out of the way, we need to figure out a way to track Sakura down in a different way if we can't rely on Akamaru and Kiba. We can't keep running around in circles of Konoha all night wasting precious time. Sakura could be – as Shino said earlier – in potential danger. The last thing we want is for Sasuke to flip his lid if we find Sakura injured – or worse. So let's figure something out guys…"
Shikamaru took out the map of the city Konoha as he marked off the abandoned construction site off the map – to ensure that they didn't come back to it – as he observed the intricate lines representing roads and streets with doubt.
"So far, most of the different places we've been to have been dead ends and I really see no point in searching down here in Downtown Konoha anymore. There's no way the Akatsuki would hole up in such a heavily populated area with patrolling police forces – that know their faces – only to risk being caught. It makes me wonder if Sasuke and his group searching the outskirts of Konoha are doing any better…"
Kiba shook his head, sighing as he replied, "I doubt it. When we all started off at Sakura's pharmacy, I couldn't smell anything heading off towards the outskirts of Konoha. I doubt they headed off there if I didn't smell them."
Shino immediately pointed out bluntly, "Yes, but remember Kiba, even you and Akamaru don't have the strongest sense of smell. Sakura was kidnapped long before we got back to her pharmacy; the scents you had to trail after were old and could've been anyone. Like a customer who walked into the store to buy something hours before she was actually kidnapped. It could've been anyone and or anything."
Kiba sighed, shaking his head as he once again admitted, "Again, you're right Shino. That could be the reason why all I'm catching are dead scent trails. Damn! Why the hell are there so many dead ends anyway? I'm pretty sure Akamaru and I are smart enough to differentiate Sakura's scent from everybody else – so why do we keep turning up empty handed?"
Shikamaru silently inspected the map in his hands as he murmured, "Unless…?"
The other two glanced back at Shikamaru as they prodded, "What? Did you say something, Shikamaru?"
Shikamaru sat there silent as ever before shaking his head, sighing as he tucked the map back away.
It can't be what I'm thinking this is… a gang as confident at the Akatsuki in their discrete nature wouldn't busy themselves with creating false scent trails to scatter us about…
"I have no idea why you and Akamaru seem to be rendered useless to us right now, but all I can say is that we just have to keep trying. At least then, Sasuke can't accuse us of not putting forth any effort to finding Sakura…"
Kiba and Shino nodded in silent agreement as Kiba replied, "Yeah… I guess you're right about that Shikamaru."
It was then that Shikamaru's phone chimed with a new text message as he slid his hand into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He read the text with ease before replying back; then he stuffed his phone away as he started to leave the construction site.
"Come on guys, Lee texted me and says that Sasuke wants us back at the pharmacy. Apparently they found something new."
Shino started to follow as Kiba got to his feet grudgingly as he muttered, "About fucking time too."
Akamaru loped alongside Kiba before stopping to sniff the air, immediately set on edge as he began a feral growl.
Shino eyed Kiba's growling dog as he asked with a touch of concern in his voice, "…Kiba? What's wrong with Akamaru?"
Kiba glanced back at Akamaru and frowned.
"Erm… not sure…"
He took a brief sniff of the city air around them, unable to identify anything as he looked around. Then he shook his head, "Eh, it must be the moon or something. I can't smell anything right now and Akamaru is probably just being the dog he is – sometimes animals act like animals, even as smart as Akamaru is, he's still a dog."
Shino eyed Akamaru, who was starting to bark noisily at the dark ominous half constructed buildings behind them as he agreed with doubt, "Well then… if you say so. You're the one who knows Akamaru best…"
Kiba snapped his fingers at Akamaru and sharply ordered, "Akamaru! Heel!"
Akamaru whined, pawed the ground unwillingly before turning around to stand by Kiba's side, praised by a pat on his head though clearly, the dog was despondent.
"You freak me out sometimes Akamaru, but it's alright. I freak myself out."
Kiba scratched Akamaru behind the ears before moving past Shikamaru to join Shino who stood waiting for them just at the edge of the construction site, "Hey Shikamaru, you coming man?"
Shikamaru stared at the shadows, trying to identify the unseen as he turned around slowly, his eyes suspiciously glued to the half constructed building as he replied, "Yeah… coming."
The three walked away with the dog whining, though obediently padding alongside his owner, the dog dejectedly moved away as well. In the shadows, Zetsu peered from the fourth floor, hiding behind the shadows of tall iron pillars as he smiled.
"Smart dog they got there; good thing the wind shifted the last second, otherwise I'd be toast by now."
Zetsu shrugged as he turned and headed down the unstable rails of the construction site, leaving on the other end as he laughed, "Not that I couldn't handle that hot head with his two friends and his dog with ease. After all, I am one of the Akatsuki."
"Race ya' to the snacks!"
Hinata looked up in surprise as the wild blond tore through the store the moment they stepped foot through the automatic doors. The late night shoppers moved around in surprise as Naruto rudely shoved past them to reach the aisle that beheld snacks and packaged desserts. Sour looks of anger and disbelief were shot immediately towards Hinata; obviously she had arrived here with the hyper blond and they placed her responsible for not restraining him. Mumbling inaudible apologies under her breath, she quickly grabbed a cart from the side of the door and hurried after Naruto, wishing she had at least told him to walk.
She saw Naruto walking up and down the aisle, plucking different bags of chips off the shelves as he then shoveled arm loads of packaged desserts, adding to the growing pile of chips in his arms. Hinata hurried up to him with the cart in tow as she smacked Naruto's hand that was struggling to reach for another snack, much to Naruto's surprise as he noticed her presence.
"Oh, finally, you're here! I got here before you did, right? Heh-heh… yeah…"
Naruto trailed off into silence as he shouldered the mountain of snacks in his arms uncomfortably; her solid gaze tacked to his fleeting eyes as he then nervously asked, "Erm… it's the snacks, isn't it…?"
Hinata grabbed a few from his hands and huffed, "Yes, yes it is indeed."
She shoved them back into their appropriate spots along the shelves as Naruto whined.
"Aw come on Hinata! Can't I have just a few?"
Hinata whirled around and pointed towards him a stick of beefy jerky as she accused, "Can you define 'a few' in your own terms here, sir?"
Naruto cracked a sheepish smile, knowing full well that his definition of 'few' was beyond the scale of what 'few' was meant to mean, and he allowed her to take all the snacks away – his silent way of admitting defeat.
He followed Hinata down the aisle and towards the fresh produce with his spirits dampened just a tad bit. He stretched his arms up and behind his head as he locked them behind his neck, taking long swift steps alongside Hinata who was checking a list she had quickly made on the way to the store as she mumbled to herself what she'd need to make dinner tonight.
"So Hinata, what are you planning on making anyway?"
Hinata looked up at Naruto and back at her list as she shyly responded, "O-Oh about that… I was just going to make a little something, n-nothing fancy really…"
She glanced up at the lights of the store as she tapped her chin as she began to slowly rattle off, more to herself than Naruto; "First off, I think something healthy will do you boys some good, so definitely a lot of vegetables. I can start with maybe some tofu and spinach, or maybe just tofu and some mushrooms. I'll definitely make some soup since a lot of us will be eating and soup seems to be the easiest way to fill everybody's stomach, and I'll possibly consider frying some fish. Like mackerel or yellow croaker. Some side dishes, erm… ah, I can just-!"
Naruto and Hinata both jolted at the sound of his phone screaming an earsplitting ringtone, causing other shoppers to jump and stare as Naruto quickly yanked out his phone to silence the ringtone. He apologized to the people around him as the two quickly hurried off to another section of the store as he observed whatever caused his phone to siren off.
"Geez…! I always forget to change that damn ringtone of mine. What's this now…?"
Naruto busied himself with a text he received from his friends as Hinata began to engross herself with close inspection of the onions to one side, beginning to fill a bag with the vegetable as Naruto put his phone away and went back to Hinata's side.
"Turns out, the boys found something. Hopefully it means Sakura will be alright."
Hinata looked up at Naruto, noticing the hint of concern in his voice as she asked with a growing sense of curiosity, "Erm… a-about this Sakura, I remember seeing her at the party of yours last time. Is she u-uh, a good f-friend of yours?"
Naruto's grim expression melted into a warm and gentle smile, a look of yearning and longing replaced upon his face as he seemed to recollect fond memories.
"Ah, yeah… we were. Still are, I guess. We were friends since sixth grade when they finally acknowledged me for who I was when none of the other students did. I really care for Sakura and… I just really hope she's okay."
He gave Hinata half smile as he joked, "Even if she can be a total witch at times, she at least cares and wants nothing but the best for me and the other boys – especially Sasuke, since we all know he has problems."
Hinata nodded, sensing a relationship much deeper than he let on between him and Sakura, as she silently placed the bag of onions in the cart.
"I see… well then hopefully the news you received are good news…"
Naruto smiled as he agreed, "Yeah, hopefully."
After that, Naruto offered to man the shopping cart while she bustled about to get the different ingredients for tonight's dinner. She had Naruto help him select items off the list she had as they split the contents of the list among themselves; Naruto surprisingly was a fast shopper and was able to get his portion of the list completed in a matter of minutes. Hinata was still nit picking over potatoes when Naruto came back with a bag of fish – the last item on his half of the list.
Hinata watched him place it in the cart as she sighed, shameful of herself.
"I'm sorry N-Naruto; I'm a bit of a slow shopper so you m-might have to wait a l-little b-bit longer…?"
Naruto grinned, nodding as he leaned against the cart's side as he laughed, "Alright, I'll deal with that then."
Hinata gave him a look that silently thanked him for being patient with her as she hurried along the rest of her list so Naruto didn't have to sit there waiting so awkwardly.
Once Hinata successfully scratched off the last item off their list, she looked up at Naruto in triumph as she exclaimed, "D-Done! Now let's go to the check out!"
The two walked together to the checkout station, waiting in a fairly short line for the cashier. Naruto glanced at the magazine and newspapers stand next to them and frowned at the headlines screaming 'HYUUGA SCANDAL!' in large bold print. He silently shifted so he covered up the words with his body, making sure Hinata wouldn't have to see that for the rest of tonight.
"Ugh, I hate long lines, don't you?"
Naruto jumped at the voice as he turned to see Ino Yamanaka standing behind him with a sly smile, a basket in her hand holding her own groceries as she winked at him.
"Hey there dope, how have you been since I last saw you?"
"I-Ino! What are you doing here!?"
Hinata watched curiously as Ino (she faintly remembered her from the party last time) gave Naruto an incredulous look as she held up her basket.
"Really? You're asking me such a stupid question? Damn, you really are a dope."
Ino glanced over to Hinata and brightened, "Ah! I remember you! You're Naruto's new friend, am I right?"
Hinata shyly bowed her head, gingerly tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she mumbled hello to the blond. Ino smiled at Hinata before offering her hand for a hand shake, "I don't believe we've actually officially introduced ourselves to one another. Well, I'm Ino Yamanaka."
Hinata took her hand slowly and shook once, "H-Hinata Hyuuga… p-pleased to meet you…?"
Ino beamed back, laughing as she replied, "Delighted!"
Ino pulled her hand back and eyed Naruto before asking, "Now if I recall, Naruto had some kind of a serious injury and I was also told he should be at home recovering. Care to tell me why this dope is up and about?"
Hinata shook her head shamefully as she responded, "O-Oh that… I-I c-couldn't convince him to stay home and he's very p-persistent when it comes to what he wants…"
Ino planted a hand on her hip, giving Naruto a look as she deadpanned, "Really Naruto? You just had to make things difficult for Hinata don't you?"
Naruto held up his hands in his innocence, "Hey, she let me. It's not like I forced her to take me with her; she could've easily locked me in my room and be done with it."
Naruto gave her a small smile as he added, "But I know Hinata is too nice to do stuff like that."
Ino looked between the two before displaying a coy smile.
"Oh~, I see~! I see what's going on here~!"
Ino playfully pointed at the two, the coy smile still plastered to her face as she hinted, "So tell me… is it happening?"
Hinata and Naruto gave her a puzzled look as they responded in unison, "W-What?"
Ino rolled her eyes before pointing at the two and exclaiming, "Oh don't play coy with me guys; it's pretty obvious."
Naruto and Hinata shared a look, both asking one another if they understood what Ino was even implying, as Ino exclaimed triumphantly, "You two are dating aren't you!?"
Naruto and Hinata stared at Ino before responding seconds too late.
"N-No! Ino, it's nothing like that!"
Hinata shook her head, flustering as Naruto displayed a face palm.
"Oh my fucking God, Ino – how stupid can you get?"
Ino frowned, realizing she interpreted something wrong as she tapped her bottom lip as she reorganized her thoughts.
"Hmm… I seriously thought you two were by the way you gave each other smiles a moment ago…"
Naruto shook his head at her as she shrugged, "Oh, okay then… sorry. My bad."
Naruto sighed as he turned to Hinata grumbling, "By the way, she's a romantic fanatic. She jumps to crazy conclusions because of the simplest gesture or phrase. So just ignore her for now."
Hinata eyed Naruto as she asked, "R-Romantic f-fanatic?"
Ino stomped her foot, glaring at Naruto as she hissed, "I am absolutely NOT a romantic fanatic! Hinata, I'm seriously not, I'm just a bit on the curious side, that's all."
Naruto gave Ino a smirk as he translated, "Meaning that she's nosy as well."
"UZUMAKI!"
Naruto laughed as Hinata hid a smile behind her hand as Ino angrily slapped him on the arm as the cashier asked for the next person in line.
Hinata hurried to interact with the cashier as Naruto dealt with the offended Ino, much to the amusement of the other shoppers behind them.
Hinata watched Ino hiss and fret as Naruto laughed, telling her to calm down as she smiled. Naruto wasn't that bad of a person, in fact, he was one of the sweetest she had ever met. She couldn't quite wrap it around her mind that nobody had fallen in love with the humorous blonde with romantic interests.
I know I have.
Hinata blushed at her own thoughts as the cashier eyed her strangely before asking for payment. Hinata reached for her purse when a delicately manicured hand stopped her.
"Na-ah-ah-ah! I'll pay for it this time."
Ino winked at Hinata to her surprise as she handed the bored cashier a credit card.
"I'll be paying for me and my friends here."
The cashier nodded, mumbling as he swiped the card, "Whatever…"
Ino smiled at Hinata as she began, "We should hang out more. I like you Hinata, let's be friends."
Hinata gave her a puzzled expression before answering in confused agreement as Ino smiled and held out her phone to her.
"Great, now punch in your number so I can save it as a contact."
Naruto then came over and slung an arm around Ino's shoulders as he peeked at the phone she was displaying and smirked, "Eh? You're actually going as far to having Hinata's phone number? And I thought you only saved contacts of the guys you liked-"
Ino smacked him on the face before giving Hinata a sweet smile as she handed the phone back with her phone number inputted.
"Thanks, you're such a dear!"
"U-Um… thank you?"
Naruto rubbed the corner of his eye as he hissed, "Ow! Ino, stop getting your nails so freakishly long and sharp! You could skewer my eyes out with those murderous nails of yours!"
Ino gave him a smug look as she admired her nails, "Boy, that's only one of the many reasons why women get their nails manicured. It's a weapon of sheer beauty."
Naruto rolled his eyes as he mumbled, "I never understood women anyway."
The cashier then had to ask the trio to move out of the line so that he could address to the other shoppers as the three stepped away with their groceries near the exit so that they could exchange farewells.
Ino gave Hinata a bubbly hug as she exclaimed, "Next time we meet, I expect either a nice chat over a cup of coffee and cake in a café, or us eating pizza at my house with an amazing movie we can watch together! Alright?"
Hinata finally cracked a genuine smile of clarity as she embraced the other girl with acknowledgement of a new bond as she responded, "Um, s-sure, whatever you want Ino."
Ino smiled at her as she patted her on the shoulder as they pulled back. Then she turned to Naruto and gave him a smirk as she pinched his nose teasingly.
"And you… you be nice to her, alright?"
Naruto slapped her hand away before giving her a half grin, "Oh shut up Ino; I'm always nice to her."
"Just take care of her – and yourself, you big dope."
Naruto smirked as he responded, "You just take care of yourself Ino-pig."
Instead of slapping Naruto, she pulled him into a warm hug before waving goodbye to take her leave with her own groceries, a skip in her step as she walked out in the dark parking lot to find her car.
"W-Well she certainly is… bright and s-sunny."
Naruto laughed at Hinata's description of Ino as he shook his head, "Really? The first thing I would've thought of her would be bubbly and nosy."
Hinata displayed a small smile as she shrugged, "I g-guess that too."
Naruto and Hinata divided the groceries among themselves to carry on the way home as he randomly commented, "I'm glad I met you Hinata; it's nice hanging out with you."
He gave her an honest smile that could melt anybody's heart. She felt a faint blush warm her cheeks as she looked away mumbling, "O-Oh, uh, w-well… same h-here."
Naruto offered an arm as he grinned, "Now, shall we go homewards?"
Hinata smiled back as she slipped her hand to the crook of his elbow as they walked together.
"Yes, let's."
He had noticed the two shoppers almost immediately. It wasn't too hard to notice the wild blond joking around mindlessly with his fair skinned friend who almost always seemed nervous and embarrassed around him. But for some odd reason, he felt like he knew that woman. Dark hair, alluring eyes and light skin – and a stunning smile and singing voice. Her appearance and movements screamed of natural beauty and elegance, something he had always seen in his life. So without a second thought, he pulled out his phone and took several pictures, and no, not because he was a stalker and intended to drool over her photo like the creeps you'd think would do so. No, he was sure he heard of her somewhere, saw her somewhere… but he couldn't quite recall it.
Then it hit him.
She strikingly resembled the Hyuuga mistress, wife of the Hyuuga president, Hiashi Hyuuga. She had her dark long hair and soft eyes, the elegance in her movements almost as identical as the Hyuuga mistress; it almost creeped him out as he had almost mistakened the woman as the Hyuuga mistress herself. Could it be?
The missing Hyuuga girl?
Eager to find out, the man quickly sent the pictures to a fellow worker at the Hyuuga Company, from the same man he had heard about the heiress rumors from. If this was the missing Hyuuga member, declared their new heiress, he knew that the head agent would want to know where she is. The agent sent the pictures with a message asking if this was the person he was looking for as he pressed send. Nearly milliseconds later, a message chimed in response:
ME: Is this the person you're looking for? I just saw this person while at the store…
-Picture attachments-
KAKASHI: Where the hell are you right now?
The agent smiled as he responded immediately; bingo.
Hinata looked up from the small kitchen window above the kitchen sink to see a van drive up to the garage. She could see the boys clambering out, each one looking just as tired as the next. Hinata thankfully had finished dinner just in time as she placed the last bowl on the dining room table as Kiba kicked the back door open as his voice rang out through the entire house like a gunshot, "-GOD DAMN, WHAT A NIGHT!"
Akamaru ran around the living room, happy to be home, as the dog eventually jumped up on the couch and nestled on the arm rest contently. Kiba kicked off his shoes as he called out, "Yo Naruto, Hinata! We're home!"
The other boys followed Kiba's example as they wandered around, wondering why they couldn't see the two as Naruto called out from the kitchen, "Hey! In here!"
Neji sniffed the air consciously as he frowned.
"Wait… is that food I smell?"
Lee perked up as he took a whiff as well.
"Food! Wait… was Naruto cooking?"
Kiba was already lunging for the dining room, almost running into Hinata as she blinked in surprise.
"Oh, Hinata! What a surprise, how have you been?"
"I-I've been well…"
Kiba peeked over her shoulder to the dining room as he blinked in surprise.
"Holy shit, Hinata, did you make all that?"
Hinata looked back at the dinner sitting on the dining room table as she sheepishly fingered the ends of her hair as she mumbled shyly, "Um yes. I-I made it with Naruto while we were waiting for everyone to return home."
Kiba shouldered past her to sit down as he laughed, "Wait, Naruto helped you make the food? Now that's a surprise considering that this isn't ramen."
There was a scowl from the kitchen in the other room as a voice sang out, "I HEARD THAT KIBA!"
The next to stumble in the dining room was Neji, who looked around for Hinata before spotting her standing next to the door and went over to hug her warmly.
"Hinata! How were you at home? Was Naruto of any trouble?"
Hinata hugged him back as she shook her head, "N-No, he was… manageable."
Neji pulled back and gave her a look.
"'Manageable'? What do you mean by that?"
Hinata laughed lightly, to Neji's surprise, as she responded, "He was fine Neji; everything was fine."
Choji came with Lee at the mention of food, sitting down beside Kiba who had already started without the others. Shino came a moment later, saying he had to wash his hands as Shikamaru appeared next, who seemed vaguely disappointed.
Kiba looked up from his soup as he exclaimed, "Hey Shikamaru, where's Sasuke?"
Shikamaru glanced back at the door as he shook his head, taking a heavy seat next to Choji as he sighed.
"Forget about him; he's holed himself up in his room. I think he's upset."
Lee pointed to the food before them and asked, "Did you mention the food to him?"
"I did, but he didn't seem interested. He claimed that he wasn't hungry…"
There was a clatter of pots as Naruto stumbled out of the kitchen, a rather sour look on his face as he marched across the dining room for the door to the living room dressed in a flower apron as he cursed, "God damn that Sasuke, I'll drag him out if I have to – Hinata went through all that trouble to make dinner for everyone and he's doing what in his room?!"
Shino blocked the door as he rebuked the irritated blond, "Naruto, just leave Sasuke alone for tonight. He's not very happy with what we found out about Sakura…"
Naruto looked at the solemn boys as he asked irritably, "Well!? What was the news anyway? You guys never told me."
Hinata felt like she didn't belong in the room as the boys eyed one another with concern before Shikamaru sighed and began.
"Sakura left her pharmacy."
"What?"
"Apparently she sold it off to some other pharmacist. We went back to her pharmacy to regroup when we found out that some stranger was inside cleaning up. We questioned the woman who claimed she didn't know anything about Sakura other than the fact that she was ditching her pharmacy work for some position in the medical board of doctors at some hospital. So we can easily conclude that Sakura swapped jobs."
Naruto frowned as he shook his head in disbelief, "But Sakura hated working in hospitals. She always used to say that working in a simple pharmacy was more than enough work for her. She liked being at her pharmacy!"
The boys nodded in agreement, though Shikamaru shrugged and sighed.
"We know that Naruto, but we don't understand why Sakura would do something so randomly. Especially after Sasuke had originally found her pharmacy overturned and a note left by the Akatsuki claiming that they 'borrowed' her for a moment. She was kidnapped; and she didn't bother to call us to let us know she was okay. And somehow, for some reason, she's swapping jobs."
Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose as he digested the news, a strangled growl dragged out of his lungs as he grumbled, "Well fuck man…"
Neji piped up, "But aside from Sakura, we still have that problem with the Akatsuki. We have no idea what their intentions are other than killing us off here in Konoha. If you ask me, something is off about the Akatsuki coming here."
"It has to do something with the Hyuuga."
The boys looked up in surprise as Sasuke stood leaning by the door, his gaze locked on Hinata who stared back in confusion and a twinge of fear.
Neji eyed Sasuke as he stood up, slowly edging in front of his cousin as he crossed is arms asking, "…What do you mean Sasuke? Care to fill us in?"
Sasuke continued to glare at the Hyuuga behind Neji as he bitterly claimed; "Really now? You of all people Neji, have you really not pieced it together?"
Naruto eyed the two, sensing the tension between them as he tried to intervene, "Sasuke, what the hell are you talking about?"
Sasuke shot Naruto a look as he snapped, "Of course you have no idea what the hell I'm talking about; you're too slow to realize the big picture!"
Sasuke pointed at Hinata almost accusingly as he growled, "This is somehow all linked to her and her big shot family background. You guys think it was a coincidence that when the Akatsuki came to Konoha, that the Hyuuga Company starts having scandals and financial instability? Not only that, Sakura went fucking missing and the Akatsuki are bent on killing us all. And it all started around the same time Naruto met Hinata."
Hinata inched behind Neji as her cousin protectively blocked her completely from Sasuke's view as he growled, "You keep my cousin out of this Uchiha-!"
"I'm not involving her with anything; she was part of it from the very beginning-!"
"Sasuke."
Everyone stopped to look at Shino who was staring straight at Sasuke, his shaded gaze unwavering as he began, "Are you perhaps by any chance, upset because of Sakura's disappearance?"
Sasuke kept silent as Shino pressed on, "Because from what I see… you're just lashing out all your frustration on a single person whom you think has every right to be blamed for the misfortune falling upon us. And you're blaming poor Hinata for that. You're blaming the Hyuugas."
Sasuke snapped, "Well hell of course I am!"
"But why Sasuke? Hinata hasn't indirectly affected Sakura in anyway. Just because the Hyuuga Company started having Heiress issues doesn't mean she was the reason why the Akatsuki came to Konoha for what you've been implying as for some major overthrowing scheme to bring down the Hyuuga. She had nothing to do with Sakura being kidnapped – I'd say it she was kidnapped simply upon Itachi's own whim."
Sasuke marched up to Shino and grabbed him by the front collar, tipping off everybody else in the room as he snarled, "What the fuck do you know about my brother? He has a fucking reason for everything, and I know exactly what's going on now! And it all has to do with that Hyuuga!"
Naruto quickly stepped in as he yanked Sasuke away from Shino, standing in between the two as he pushed Sasuke away with a look of disbelief on his face, "Seriously Sasuke! What the fuck is wrong with you!? Why are you dissing off everyone in this room!? Just calm the fuck down Sasuke!"
"I AM CALM!"
"Then why don't you start by telling us what the fuck makes you think Hinata is the root of our shitty problems!?"
Sasuke faltered, his anger dissolving for a split second before he cursed and spat, "Sakura… she went to a Hyuuga hospital to work as a doctor."
Naruto stood there staring at Sasuke before sighing.
"Oh my God, Sasuke, just because of that? Shit, we know she went to a hospital to work as a doctor, so what if it was one of the Hyuuga's hospitals-?"
"You don't understand Naruto; think for a moment you fool!"
Sasuke then launched into his lengthy explanation, "I told you that something was off about the Akatsuki coming to Konoha. Even Neji knows that. Around the same time you met Hinata, the Hyuuga Company starts going berserk about Heiresses the moment the Akatsuki entered the city. Rumors are flying around in the underworld about a Company uprising and the downfall of the Hyuuga in case you weren't aware. The Akatsuki are planning something big and when it happens, shit is going to start happening. Now listen carefully; my brother tried to kill you specifically when he came to Konoha. He didn't come for my blood – he came for yours. Almost as if he had been told to murder you first. After beating the shit out of you and me, he leaves with intentions of finishing us off the next time we crossed paths. Suddenly he abducts Sakura beneath our noses and she's suddenly going off applying for a job as a doctor as a Hyuuga Company run hospital – doesn't this make any sense to you!?"
Naruto frowned, still confused as Sasuke cursed.
"Damn it Naruto, think about it! Sakura, she hasn't contacted us to let us know she was okay if she truly been abducted. Either the Akatsuki still has her under their thumb or… or she's aiding them somehow. You and I both know very well that she hates big hospitals; she always complained to us how troublesome it was to work for one. But now she's willingly walking up to one being offered a job, sold her pharmacy, and seemingly cut off all ties with us! Don't you understand, Itachi is manipulating her somehow to help them reach a greater goal – and it has to do something with the Hyuuga. And Sakura as their pawn is only a small part of the big picture."
Sasuke watched in satisfaction as Naruto finally registered the information, realizing how serious Sakura's abduction really was than it seemed, and he shook his head as he ran a hand through his hair, cursing, "Damn…!"
Neji grabbed Hinata's wrist as he led her out the dining room and pointed down the hall as he ordered sharply, "Go to your room now Hinata."
"B-But I want to-!"
"Please Hinata, not now."
Hinata paused, noticing the grim expression on his face before sadly sulking off to her room, knowing full well that the boys would continue to converse about the Hyuuga, Sakura's abduction, and most importantly – her existence.
Wherever she went, trouble always seemed to arise. She had done nothing, and yet something terrible occurs and immediately places her as the center of the issue. She had done nothing to get the poor girl kidnapped – she could imagine how upset the Uchiha must be. But it was such a large stretch to imagine a single gang intending to break down an international company ran by the Hyuuga – it just couldn't be done. Whoever the Akatsuki were, they simply couldn't do it on their own. To challenge an entire organization that large… how was it even possible? Were the scandals occurring by plan or by coincidence? Was Hinata's interaction with the boys simply making things harder for them? It wasn't like the Akatsuki had any intentions for her; they didn't even know her… right?
Hinata couldn't fight the swirling mass of questions and confusion filtering her mind, leading her to question if she should be worrying about any of this at all as she closed the door behind her, sinking to the floor in dazed confusion as she felt only one question continued to gnaw at her inside out – What would happen now with the Hyuuga Company?
The medical board of the doctors of the Hyuuga hospital examined the woman's application with criticism as they conversed to one another.
"She certainly seems exceptional, graduated at the top of her school and from the respectable years of medical research. She seems just like the person we need."
"But are we sure about this? To simply just add her to the medical board? I mean, it took us all years to be trusted for a spot on the medical board. Just because she's an exceptional doctor doesn't mean she can just automatically be trusted with running the entire hospital."
The other doctor shook his head as he responded, "Think about it man, she's been running her own pharmacy for years – she knows how to manage things. I doubt that she would do anything less if she were to do the same for an entire hospital. Besides, she won't be alone. We'll be there beside her to make sure she doesn't do anything wrong."
The other doctor considered his words before agreeing, "True enough."
Once they all agreed, they allowed her to reenter the office. That was when Sakura entered the office, dressed in formal attire, a calm composed expression on her face as she faced the doctors, a silent ring of approval emanated from the men and women that composed the medical board.
Simply and curtly, the head of the medical board stood and came over to her, pressing a folded doctor's coat with her name stitched into the fabric into her waiting hands as he gave her a smile and shook her hand, "Congratulations Miss. Haruno, you're officially part of the medical board as our doctor specialized in the studies of medicine. We're happy to have you with us."
Sakura hesitantly accepted the coat, her fingers clutching the white fabric as she ran her fingers over the stitched letters that formed her name. She closed her eyes once before slowly donning the coat, slipping her arms through the sleeves as she reopened her eyes as she bowed to the rest of the medical board exclaiming, "Thank you… I'll contribute as much as I can from here on out."
SNEAK PEEK INTO CH. 12...!
Giving Shikamaru a glare he growled; "Not now Shikamaru, thanks for the concern, but Hinata's safety is more important right now. I promised her that we'd protect her!"
NEXT TIME IN CH. 12:
THE MORNING KICKS OFF WITH A STAB FROM A STRANGER - A THREAT FROM AN UNKNOWN SOURCE.
GAARA'S SECOND WARNING FOLLOWS SHORTLY AFTER - PERHAPS A NEW DANGER HAS EMERGED!?
HINATA HAS BEEN LOCATED, AND SHE'S ON THE RUN.
CAN NARUTO GET TO HER IN TIME BEFORE SHE GETS ABDUCTED!?
The unexpected has happened and it's a race against time and fate... leap into a rapid paced sequence of action-filled events in the next chapter!
