Thank you for all that reviewed, favorited and followed! Sorry for being so late in the update, I won't make promises anymore, except the one that I'll finish this story :P

Yeah, I love GaaHina moments too, but don't know if I'll put some, I actually really liked in the manga how Gaara saw himself in Sasuke and I do think he might have a part in his road to redemption.

Hope you'll enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 11

Sasuke woke up with a small headache. But a familiar smell invaded his nostrils before he opened his eyes, and the soft feeling he felt under his right hand and the warmth around his whole body slowly made him understand the boundary he had overstepped last night.

"Guess I am some kind of drunk after all…" He grumbled to himself. Hinata lay asleep near him, her face so close to his he could hear her breathing. He didn't dislike the situation, and from the looks of it, she didn't either. It wasn't bad after all to have someone to wake up to.

Despite not really wanting to, he slid off the bed and got up. But as soon as he moved, Hinata slowly woke up. Her eyes were sleepy and as she raised to sit down on the bed, Sasuke noticed she was wearing a silk violet nightgown with straps that put her… assets in good value. Of course she wouldn't sleep all the time in her ninja attire (although he would not have been surprised if she did), and kunoichi's never knew when they would have the comfort of a nice bed, so they usually took every chance to enjoy it. Her bosom rose as she yawned and Sasuke realized he had been staring. Lucky for him, she was a slow riser.

"Did you sleep well?" He asked her, trying to hide his smirk while he put on his clothes.

"I-I did, and you?" She answered back slowly opening her eyes. He was already fully clothed. "Not very hangover?" Her question wasn't a taunt or a reproach but just simple concern.

"No. But I did drink a bit too much last night. What's your excuse?" He leaned down to gather the clothes he had thrown down last night.

"Excuse for what?" She didn't understand. Her confusion only amused him.

"I was drunk that's why I got into the bed with you. What's your excuse to not have moved me?" He teased her, and it worked. She immediately stuttered.

"I-I-I!" She tried to protest, to tell him it was for him she had let him stay.

"Nevermind." He dismissed her with a wave of his hand. "I'm ready and heading out. Keep yourself busy until I receive an answer from our employers or Kakashi." And he went out.

Hinata hugged the sheets to her chest and exhaled loudly. So early in the morning and she already felt exhausted.

Sasuke found an isolated ground a bit far from the city. He scanned the surroundings to make sure no one would observe or interrupt him. He didn't want anyone to see his struggle.

It was time to face the truth and train. With one less arm he had lost considerable amount of power and certainly flexibility. His sharingan still had many uses but copying a jutsu without being able to do the hand signs would be very difficult if not impossible. He was lucky to have lost his left arm, so he didn't have to get used to a new dominant arm.

First, the basics. His shuriken and kunai throwing had only been a bit disturbed due to the shift in weight but with just some throws he found his balance. That was a good start. Next, some taijutsu. The problem is that his mass center was all messed up, and he kept having the reflex of trying to move his left arm which only brought some pangs of ghost pains. Sasuke cursed and tried again. He kicked the tree with all his strength, and it was powerful, but he didn't have the equilibrium to chain another attack next. It was frustrating, but he would get there.

"Let me help you." A soft voice said from behind him. He'd been growing accustomed to her presence and was so concentrated that he didn't even notice when she'd approached. He turned around and Hinata was there, wearing her usual baggy lilac clothes and looking a bit uncomfortable.

"Did you follow me here?" He asked, not very happy.

"N-no!" She denied, taken aback. Hinata did feel a bit guilty by invading his training but she felt it would be better for him to train against someone than just a tree. He needed to find feeling and stimulation, just repetitive segments would not do him much good. "I was 'looking' around the city to see what I could do and I saw… you."

"I don't want your help. Leave me alone." He said curt and short and turned his back to her. At the same time, he wanted to punch himself for being rude.

"It would be easier for you! It's more stimulating and it'll train your reflexes. And I can paralyze your left shoulder so you won't feel pain." She replied.

"No. Leave." He didn't want to be seem like that, to be seen in such a vulnerable state.

"N-No. We're a team for now. We're not supposed to do things each their own." Despite her slip stutter, Hinata was determined to stay.

"Do you really feel it's okay to crash another person's training like that?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow, trying to appeal to her guilt.

"Hmm… Didn't you do the same when we were younger?" She almost answered with a smile. In spite of his annoyance, he almost spit out a laugh at how right she was.

"Fine. Let's do this. Start with my shoulder." He said and took of his shirt.

"Y-you don't need to take it off." Hinata said, blushing a bit. He noticed she was trying very hard to avoid looking at his torso.

"I know." He could punish her in other ways.

She slowly approached him and activated her Byakugan and concentrated chakra to her fingers. "Ready?" Sasuke nodded. "Okay. Don't worry, the paralysis will wear off after a few hours."

"Just do it, Hinata."

The way he said her name, and how close they were, made the Hyuuga shiver and remember when he kissed her in the forest before the war. It was a weird feeling. She didn't know what it was yet she couldn't help but want more. "What am I thinking… focus!". Sasuke was a complex person, but even after all his efforts to put a distance between him and anyone else, she felt she knew him actually quite well. And she wanted to know more. However, he was so cold! And all he liked to do was tease her. Everything about him confused her.

"There." She said and took a step back.

Sasuke winced a bit, it was an even weirder sensation, but after her finger pricked, there was no pain. His left side slouched a bit, but without much weight, it didn't change much.

"Ok, come at me." He told her.

Hinata hesitated at first, but she knew that it would only insult him so she quickly picked herself up and lunged forward. Sasuke parried her strokes at first but it easily threw him off balance, he could barely throw some of his own without giving her too many openings. The exchange of blows was becoming rough for him, so he put some distance by kicking himself away and landing with his right palm on the ground. As soon as he felt in control, he moved left to tour around her and see how much speed he could manage. Hinata threw shurikens around to see if he could dodge as well, and he did with ease.

He threw a kunai and as she dodged it he jumped up in the air to attack her from above. Hinata's focus was on him, but Sasuke had attached a thread to the kunai he threw earlier and with a swift finger movement made it come back towards Hinata. The girl noticed it but too late and she wasn't going to dodge in time the blade aimed at her stomach. As he noticed it, he stopped it and brought it back to him while landing in front of her.

"Always be aware of your surroundings." He scolded her.

Hinata was ashamed. She had not been concentrating enough. She had taken it lightly, too focused on Sasuke's movements and recovery to think about the fight. She should know he didn't need her to evaluate himself, he needed her to be a good opponent, or at least a decent combat partner.

"Are you ready to take this seriously?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Y-Yes!" He brisked her away from her thoughts. Hinata pinched her cheek.

.

.

.

They trained for a long time. They took small pauses, but Sasuke's stamina was almost as amazing as before, his time in the Konoha center not having affected much. Hinata was having a hard time keeping up, but it was less fatiguing since Sasuke's style wasn't very aggressive, yet.

Both always stopped short of giving a huge blow. Hinata had been right, it became much easier for him to react to attacks than he had originally thought. His paralyzed shoulder didn't burden him a lot and at some point he became unaware of it. It was a band-aid for now, but important for a good start.

"We – should take a real break now." Hinata panted after they stopped their last exchange. "I brought food."

Sasuke was washing his sweat away with a towel. Now that it was almost noon, the sun was hitting hard and the temperature had gone quite up. He wondered how the Hyuuga girl was not sweating buckets with her coat and her long pants. Under the light, he noticed glints shining on her skin. She probably wanted to stop because the heat was getting through to her. It must be.

"Okay." He sat down and took a huge sip in his bottle of water, his torso exposed and the towel around his neck.

Hinata rehydrated herself as well, and from her bag took out two wrapped boxed lunches. It contained 4 medium sandwiches and some fruits. Sasuke took his fill, and they both ate in silence. It was rewarding to have a good rest after a nice séance.

After a while, Sasuke spoke up only to say "Thank you" Without ever raising his eyes from the ground.

Hinata looked at his awkward expression. He was this embodiment of a manly handsome and confident ninja, but at times like this he was just an awkward kid who didn't know how to express himself. She tried to hold her chuckle, but he heard it as she said "You're welcome, Sasuke-kun."

"They are advising us to start by staking out the north-east entrance. Apparently, some bodies were found there, and the other investigators didn't use that information so they might not be very careful about that spot."

Sasuke's hawk had come back with an answer. There was not a lot of information, but now they could finally start their real work.

"Let's go then." She acquiesced.

.

Staking out was never much fun. You had to stay as put as possible, concealing your presence while waiting for something that might not even happen. Hinata and Sasuke were both crouched towards some bushes several meters away from the spot they wanted to surveil. Sasuke only needed his ears to perceive movement and then alert Hinata to use her eyes to see what was going on. They were close to one another and that proximity, his heat, made Hinata uncomfortable. It was her best self-control to not move or twitch. Sasuke on the hand was calm and unmoved.

Suddenly he tapped her hand twice, it was the signal they had agreed on.

"There are two men disposing of a body. Do we stop them or do I see where they go next?" She whispered.

"We wait."

The Konoha ninjas patiently waited out when the two were finished and then followed from afar the two men. They had come from the deep within the forest. Once the entrance of their hideout was identified, Sasuke and Hinata captured them.

"How many inside?" Sasuke asked using his sharingan to make him talk.

"Around a dozen." The man answered, under the genjutsu. He was so weak it had been easy to get him talk.

"What are you doing down there?"

"Lab experiments." His answer made Hinata wince.

"On humans?" Sasuke wanted to certify.

"Yes."

Sasuke's face showed disgust. He unsheated his sword and was about to plant it when Hinata's hand stopped his right arm.

"What are you doing Sasuke?" She asked.

"The mission." He answered without blinking and not even looking at her. Despite not needing it anymore, his eyes were red as blood.

"This is not the mission. It would be an execution. They've already been neutralized, they pose no threat." She said trying to make him sheath the sword.

Sasuke weighed her words. She was right. Even when he was in Orochimaru's lair he avoided killing when he didn't need to. The sound ninjas were all ruthless killers yet not even then he had wanted to commit murder. He had changed too much. Could he still come back? His hand hesitated. I am here to at least try. He looked into Hinata's pale eyes. They reflected the moon. Her look was determined to stop him.

His grip wavered and he hesitated. "I'm sorry, you are right." Hinata blinked twice when he apologized. It was the first time he actually said it out loud to her face. Sasuke Uchiha rarely ever apologized and admitted he was wrong.

He turned to the two hostages and threw then a bloodlustful look. They both instantly fell in a powerful genjutsu. "This way we're sure they won't be trouble anymore. Leave them here. Let's go." He was in the mood for a carnage.

Hinata followed him in. It was an underground passage to a subterranean hideout. The man they had interrogated had opened it with a sand jutsu. Hinata was about to ask how they should proceed with so many enemies but Sasuke just went ahead, and as silent as a snake, he sneaked up onto every enemy they crossed. Hinata didn't have to do anything. Only his skilled taijutsu was enough. He had learnt a lot from Lee. Once he had knocked them down, he did the same as the first two to neutralize them. He stopped in front of a door.

Hinata put her hand on his arm to attract his attention. She used her Byakugan and raised four fingers. Four enemies. Sasuke looked back. He had indeed run across 8 others on the way there. Hinata pointed to their locations. They decided he'd take care of both on the right and she, the left. On three they lunged.

The ones Sasuke had were quite skilled, but Sasuke easily dodged every attack thanks to the faculties of his eyes, and Hinata seemed to be holding her ground against the other two. These ones were better than the ones they ran into before. Sasuke finally finished both of them and turned around to see Hinaat face the last one. But suddenly, she turned to him and threw him a shuriken. He avoided it but was confused.

"What the-?" Sasuke was about to ask, but one look in her eyes and he knew it was a jutsu. In a split second she had been brainwashed. He was good, the Uchiha smirked. But he was better.

"I-?" Hinata shook her head confused. She turned around to face her enemy. "What did you do?" She asked.

"He has a bloodline. Powerful brainwashing. But seems to work only for the most recent memory." Sasuke explained as he approached. The enemy had tried to move to the door but once he saw Sasuke's pupils he had frozen in place. "That's how the others didn't report anything. He must've given them different memories and explanations. Unlucky him it doesn't work on me." Sasuke said as he captured the man.

"I see… It makes sense." Hinata said.

They questioned their prisoners and investigated the place. They found 3 people captive who told them the most important bits of the story. They were ninjas injured during the war. The man in question had presented to them as a medic-nin but them captured them and brought them there. In the confusion of the Zetsu's, they had most probably been declared dead and that's why no one searched for them. The man, called Thorus, was trying to conduct research using the white zetsu's DNA but all of his trials failed in death for the guinea pigs. Once he started to run out of subjects, he and his underlings moved to kidnapping the people from the village.

Hinata wrote a detailed report with their findings, brought first aid to the captives and they called the village authorities to deal with the criminals.

As Sasuke sent his hawk to the Kazekage, Hinata said:

"This was a simple mission in the end." She stated.

Sasuke simply nodded.

"I wasn't much help after all." She ended up saying out loud. He had almost done everything himself. She had been useless.

Sasuke stopped moving.

"No, you helped me. You stopped me from killing." He said serious. Hinata looked at his back.

"Your arm had stopped before I did. You hesitated yourself Sasuke-kun, I just stated why." She said and touched his arm gently. "Don't be so hard on yourself. You are not the awful man you think you are." She said.

"Even if I do this?" He asked as he turned to face her and kissed her fervently.

Hinata hesitated before accepting it. She placed a hand to his cheek and the other on his back, as if he couldn't be close enough. It was like she had been waiting for him to do it this whole time. And she let herself go on his arms. This feeling was insane. Her heartbeat was skyrocketing, her body was all hot, and him... It was him. His lips were moist and the sensation of them against hers was the drug she didn't know she craved.

Sasuke had been trying to hold back this whole time, but he couldn't anymore. Everytime he smelt her scent, everytime she touched him… It drove him crazy. He couldn't focus. His calm exterior only contrasted with the turmoil she made him feel. He caressed her hair as he tried to be more gentle and more controlled.

As their mouths separated they were both panting.

"I don't know why you came on this trip with me, Hinata" she shivered as he said her name so close to her ear, "but I can't stop myself from doing this kind of thing." As she swallowed from listening to him, he removed his hand from her hip and moved away. "If you don't want to, better tell me now." He said as he moved past her.

Hinata grabbed his hand before he left the room. "I-I don't think I dislike it." She said staring at the floor in front of her before she let go. Sasuke almost smiled and caressed her hand before leaving to use the hotel baths. He needed a good cold shower before anything.

End of chapter 11

Author's note:

I don't have anything to add. Read and Review if you like!