FROG MASK
CHAPTER XII:
By Blackmamuth
"Kyuubi speaking"
I always had found funny that being nearly beaten to death is one of my fondest memories. –Hyuuga Hinata
Hyuuga Hinata knew she wasn't a particularly strong shinobi. She had been beaten soundly by her younger sister several times in sparring matches. That wasn't that surprising in itself. Hanabi was a genius, and she was not.
The disapproving gaze from his father watching her shortcomings in those fights had hurt more than the physical pain from the beatings themselves.
She had known for long that she was a disappointment. Oh, nobody dared to tell that to her face, but she knew it. The day her father enrolled her in the academy, not deeming her worthy enough to be trained inside the clan was a huge blow to her already low self esteem. The conversation she overheard with her sensei and her father was the nail in that particular coffin. The Hyuuga heir was supposed to be trained personally by the elders themselves, only to enter the academy to attend the genin examination to join Konoha shinobi ranks. Tradition dictated that only the branch house attended the academy classes, the main house was educated instead by the clan itself, teaching them the Hyuuga most exclusive and secret jutsus, politics, etiquette and protocol.
It didn't help Hinata's self esteem that she suspected that the village gave her genin rank only because of her eyes. Hinata wasn't stupid, when people looked at her, they saw her white eyes. Not her. They saw a Hyuuga, not a scared girl afraid to disappoint their peers. They saw one member of the strongest clan of the leaf, not a girl that barely passed the genin exam.
But she wasn't going to give up. Someday, somehow, she would improve, becoming someone worthy of respect, they would see her, not her eyes. They would see past the "Hyuuga" to see the "Hinata". That was Hinata dream. To change herself.
Wasn't ironic that people noticing her scared her? She wanted people to recognize her, to tell her she was strong, to be noticed as a strong shinobi, but she was afraid of being judged and being deemed lacking instead.
An idea was what helped her during the exhausting training and terrifying missions. That helped her cope with the disappointment of the elders. An idea that she developed from watching Naruto. Naruto wasn't very strong compared to his classmates, but he never let it stop him. When he failed, he got up again, and tried another time. Never give up. If you get down try again. That was real courage. That was what she learned from Naruto. She could change herself. She would change herself. How, she didn't known, but she would do it.
Naruto was the boy that despite having the worst grades of their class, had never given up. Hinata had always envied him, to be able to be in the spotlight, to be able to always say out loud what he wanted on life, to be able to dream to be Hokage. To not be scared of anything.
People mocked him, insulted him, and made fun of his dream. And despite that, he never gave up. He flashed his foxy grin, and proclaimed to everyone he would be Hokage no matter what. And Hinata believed him. She could already envision his foxy grin in the mountain, with the other Hokages.
Today, in Hinata's mind, she had won. She did it. She overcame her fears in the match with Neji, and managed to fight with all her forces. She never managed to do that before. She managed to change herself. It was a tiny victory. A small step in the long road of becoming stronger. Now, she was nearer to her destination. She knew, that someday, she would reach it.
But today her victory wasn't enough. She lost soundly. Like always.
But even her tiny victory had a reward. Naruto noticed her. Acknowledged her. Cheered for her. It was enough to make a smile appear in her bruised face.
Naruto had helped her make her first clumsy step towards being stronger. She was going to try again, and next time, she would become a chuunin. And that would be another step in the right direction. Hinata was going to learn how to walk. And eventually, she would reach her dream.
-XXX-
Angry wasn't strong enough to describe what Naruto's felt about the combat between Neji and Hinata. Pissed wasn't also. Stark raving mad was more accurate, but it wasn't still quite there.
Naruto was trying to hide his emotions from the world like a good shinobi would do, with rather surprising success, one must point. He had a lot of practice doing exactly that in his childhood, after all.
During the match, when that destiny idiot started talking down Hinata into giving up was maddening, and then, he mocked her efforts to put up a decent fight. Especially because the moron wanted her to be in pain. He enjoyed beating her verbally. What kind of messed up bastard was that guy?
Why he attacked family? According to Naruto's way of seeing things, it was utter madness. Family was something to treasure and cherish. That Neji boy was lucky enough to have a family. Even if what Kakashi said was true, and half his family treated him like dirt, it was still wrong. Naruto would have given his dream in a heartbeat if that meant he could have a family. He really tried not to explode during the match.
But with a SUPREME effort, he managed to hold it. Naruto saw himself in the small girl fighting impossible odds. Hinata said that she wanted to change herself. Something he also wanted. From dead last to Hokage, the best shinobi in Konoha. And the white eyed guy said that a loser would be always a loser. That everyone fate was written when they were born. Obviously, those words didn't agree with Naruto's beliefs. But even after hearing them, Naruto keep his mouth shut.
But Neji wasn't finished. He started guessing Hinata's train of thought with his Byakugan, telling everyone present that Hinata was not able to overcome her fears, that changing herself was impossible. And that was the last straw. Naruto couldn't keep his feelings locked anymore. He shouted to Hinata. "YOU CAN! STOP DECIDING THINGS ABOUT PEOPLE, IDIOT!" Since his first outburst, Naruto had encouraged Hinata to fight with all his spirit.
But the sad truth was that Hinata had no chance to win without "creative" tactics, though. Especially after seeing a bit of the fight, Naruto quickly reached the conclusion that the girl would lose if she did stick with that "gentle fist" style, and let the fight end without trying anything else. And when Neji threw her to the floor the first time, Naruto realized that Hinata could be seriously hurt in that fight. (A rather alien concept for Naruto, especially because he was used to recover from his injuries with only a good night sleep, and there was no injury grave enough that remained after he woke up. he would wake up like nothing happened. Only after the wave mission, he did notice that little advantage the fox gave him, before that, he always believed everyone healed that fast.)
The match continued rather one sided, the girl was obviously losing, only still fighting because of her will and endurance. It was only a matter of time that she would be defeated and she would receive severe damage in the process. At the very end, Naruto had to try to stop it. He had to plead Hinata to give up, telling her than her health was more important than an exam.
The girl didn't seem have the same opinion. It seemed that for her, it was more than an exam, something worth risking everything.
It hurt. It hurt so much to tell someone to give up. It was against his nature. In a normal day, Naruto would have burned with anger at the mere idea of someone giving up. But it wasn't a normal day, it wasn't a mission. It was a stupid fight for a chance at a promotion. A chuunin exam took place twice a year. Giving up was sad but perfectly acceptable. Naruto had encouraged Hinata to fight, and wouldn't want to have her death in his conscience. This wasn't a mission. Logic said that giving up was acceptable. Although his heart said the contrary, it was the right thing to do. His heart wanted to tell Hinata to continue the fighting and teach that arrogant bastard a good lesson no matter what, but his brain knew that the chances of that happening were near zero. In the end, logic had won. There would be always more exams and a promotion wasn't something important enough to wager your career as a shinobi. Naruto begged Hinata to stop.
But even after his loud pleading to stop the fighting, Hinata didn't give up. Until she couldn't stand anymore, she continued fighting.
Naruto really respected that. He knew how hard it was to walk that path. Never surrender. Never give up despite common sense. Continue to strive for the highly improbable (The word impossible didn't exist in Uzumaki Naruto vocabulary). To continue walking a chosen path no matter the costs. That was Naruto's way of the ninja. Naruto's life code.
There was something that was bugging Naruto. If he had been the one fighting, he would have never given up the match. Why the double standard? Why it was acceptable for Hinata to give up in his mind, and not himself? It was a worrying idea. Something he had to meditate about. Was he being stupid because of his stubbornness?
The combat continued, in where Hinata was barely managing to resist the inevitable, until, she fell down, and her body seemed to have lost the strength to continue the match.
Naruto exhaled the breath he didn't know he was holding. It was over, finally. The entire match had been a torture to the psyche of Uzumaki Naruto. There had been moments where his mind played with the idea to jump in the arena and stop the match himself. The only thing that prevented him from doing so was the fact that he would not appreciate his own fight being jumped into, and that he would be most likely disqualified from the chuunin exam.
And then, a badly beaten Hinata barely managed to find the strength to get up and stand. She was in no condition to fight anymore, and the mere gesture was only a show of her willingness to fight. Hinata was shaking, clutching her abdomen, obviously in great pain. Neji, seeing she wasn't going to attack soon, and he was clearly the winner of the match, entered again lecture mode.
"From
the time of your birth the responsibility of the Hyuuga main house
has been forced upon you. You have always hated yourself for you
weakness. But people cannot change, that is destiny." He made a
small pause, to put more weight in his words.
"You cannot
change, there is no need to suffer anymore, let it go." Neji
finished.
Hinata looked at Neji, for the first time in years without fear in her heart. She had just fought her fears and won. And saw it. In her exhausted gaze Hinata saw for the first time Neji's pain.
"That's not true, Neji. Because… cough" Hinata's mouth was suddenly painted with the red of blood, a few drops escaped her tiny mouth and stained the floor in red. "It's not me at all…" Hinata's white eyes found the emotionless eyes of her opponent. "The person lost and suffering within the destiny of main and branch houses is you"
At those words, Neji rage flared. The veins around his eyes doubled their size, and he ran towards Hinata, with the intention of ending her life. He was radiating a good amount of killer intent.
The referee shouted "Neji, this match is over!" Sadly, the warning from the referee wasn't enough. Neji didn't stop.
The jounins reacted almost instantly after that. In a heartbeat, Kurenai, Kakashi, Gai and the sickly referee restrained Neji from going further. In the same heartbeat, Naruto jumped the handrail to the main level where the fighting took place. Although Naruto wasn't fast enough to go anywhere near Neji in time to do anything before the jounins had effectively immobilized him. But a few of the people watching took note of his reaction to Neji's mad charge.
One of them was Sarutobi. Who let go a ring of smoke from his small pipe, contemplating the blonde genin actions. The blond boy was indeed the number one ninja in Konoha at surprising people.
Meanwhile, Neji revealed his bitterness for everyone to see. "Why do ever the other jounins jump in…?" And added sarcastically "Oh, more especial treatment for the main family…"
Gai shook his head sadly, and berated his student. "Neji, give it a rest. You gave me a warm promise not to lose your head over this main family stuff."
Neji seemed to calm instantly at that. But not everybody in the room regained their cool. One pissed Naruto was still running towards Hinata, holding the cream she gave him in his hands. Hinata collapsed even before Naruto could reach her, and she started coughing good amounts of blood. Naruto only reached her in time to help her lie down, with the help of the concerned Lee, who managed to reach her faster than Naruto himself.
Naruto was still looking at the unmoving Hinata, when Neji requested his attention "Hey…The loser over there."
Naruto briefly toyed with the idea of ignoring the guy; he had always prided himself with being able to ignore those remarks. But the derogatory comments still affected him somewhat. After all, one of his dreams was to be acknowledged to everybody. Naruto Glared at the pale eyed boy.
"If you're a shinobi, then cut out the pathetic cheering off others. And one more… In the end, a loser is a loser, they cannot change!"
If' Naruto's glares could burn, Neji would be a smoking piece of charcoal.
Naruto desperately wanted to kick Neji's ass, but he wasn't stupid. What he saw in the match spoke for itself. Right now, if he fought Neji, he would struggle to beat him at the skill level he displayed. Adding the fact that Neji had been obviously holding back was also a good reason to be cautious. But Naruto wasn't one to shy from a challenge, and those remarks about losers were a challenge in itself.
Naruto was fingering his weapon pouch, pondering about the wisdom of attacking the confident Hyuuga, when a bandaged hand rested in his shoulder. It was Rock Lee.
"Naruto, I understand your feelings so much that it hurts. But the fighting should occur in the matches. Whether a loser could defeat an elite through the power of hard work. That's something to look forward in the main test. Though I hope I will be his opponent. But even if it's you, Naruto, there would be no hard feelings."
Naruto looked at Lee and nodded. He was not the only one who wanted to teach that guy a lesson.
Lee smiled and made a "nice guy pose", a pose his sensei returned. A tense silence filled the room. A silence that ended suddenly with the strained coughs that came from Hinata. Blood filled coughs.
Kurenai quickly assessed Hinata's situation, and what she found must have been pretty big, because she glared at Neji, Who politely pointed that she should spend her time taking care of Hinata instead of glaring at him.
To Naruto, It was only a confirmation of what he suspected. Hinata was hurt badly. If a jounin lost its cool, it had to be pretty serious. His assumption was only confirmed, when the red eyed jounin quickly yelled for the medical team to hurry.
And then the bombshell dropped. One of the medics yelled the piece of horrible news. "At this rate, she won't last 10 minutes! Take her to the emergency medical room, quickly!" The medical team quickly grabbed Hinata in a stretcher, and exited the complex with her in a hurry.
Naruto's eyes shot open while trying to digest the news of Hinata's current predicament. The pale eyed guy tried to kill her, tried to kill family, tried to kill someone who was giving her all in a fight despite the overwhelming odds. And he nearly succeeded. Something unknown inside Naruto snapped. A hint of red tinted Naruto's blue eyes, but quickly disappeared before anybody could notice. Hinata didn't deserve that. No one deserved that. He was going to kick Neji's ass for Hinata's sake.
Naruto moved to the spot Hinata was resting a moment ago, and his fingers grasped the still warm pool of blood. Naruto's fist closed, and he slowly lifted it while glaring at Neji... He sealed in blood his inner promise to Hinata. "YOU ARE GOING DOWN"
Neji Let known everybody in the room what he thought about Naruto's statement with a sarcastic "bah"
-XXX-
Kankurou of the sand was a little amused by Naruto's antics. The Hyuuga boy that had just fought was the strongest the sand trio encountered in the chuunin exam, and as far Kankurou was concerned, the blonde boy was no match for him. Granted, he showed some good tactics during his match, but the skill gap was there. The Hyuuga boy was lighting fast and he had been holding back in his fight.
Kankurou's good mood evaporated fairly fast when he glanced at his younger brother. He knew THAT expression. The blood from the match excited him.
Kankurou lazily observed Neji while he was climbing the stairs. The boy was obviously unharmed and he had been holding back. Maybe he could get a bit of information on him? It was always a good idea to have a plan ready. The fact that he would leave the presence of his excited brother was just a bonus.
Having made his mind, he approached his target. He would probably be the most talkative, judging for his display a few moments ago. Kankurou waited to talk with the blonde boy until after Naruto gave a small container of healing cream to the red eyed jounin and asked her to give it to Hinata. The red eyed jounin nodded and took it. Kankurou smiled to himself. He guessed it was the gesture that was important. The girl right now would be under the care of a real team of medics. A mere healing salve wouldn't make any difference. 'Nice guy. I like him'. Kankurou decided.
Kankurou broke the ice with a cheerful statement. "You're a funny guy… I like you."
Naruto raised an eyebrow. Was that an insult? A smart retort came to his mind, but antagonizing possible enemies in a chuunin exam wouldn't be a good idea... Naruto settled for scratching his head, adopting his clueless persona and thanking the face painted puppeteer. "Gee, thank you…"
Kankurou hesitated a moment, and decided to go directly to the heart of the matter. "Oh.. Is about to that Neji guy, but…"
Naruto anger flared momentarily at the mention of that name, and quickly understood what that the puppeteer wanted information about Neji. Naruto would have gladly given all of the pale eyed bastard secrets if he did know them. But Naruto had practically no idea about him, except what had Kakashi said during the match. But as far as he knew, that was common knowledge around Konoha, so he couldn't give the guy anything substantial. He told Kankurou the truth. "I don't know much about him… "
Naruto's words were cut by the examiner, who announced that the next match would begin shortly.
After a loud yell of relief from the bulky Akimichi, Everyone in the room was fixated in the words that appeared in the electronic panel.
Gaara Vs. Rock Lee.
END CHAPTER
AUTHOR NOTES: Okay, this is getting ridiculous. I though that at this chapter I would have finished the preliminary and moved on into really original stuff, but I guess we have to suffer for another chapter of it.
To the guy who said that Kiba was out of character for not using his dog. Read the manga. Really. Kiba did do that.
To everyone else, thank you.
This chapter had been delayed for several factors, including writer's block and my loss of interest in the Naruto's manga recent events, starting from Kakashi having the Mangekyou, and ending with Sai…
