Chapter 14:Miyuki's Funeral.
Sat astride the giant form of Shun, her vision stretched to its full circumference, her breathing short and quick as her nerves started to get the better of her, Hinata jumped as a far off bell struck in the distance. Her eyes automatically focused on some tower, and she cursed in her head, forcing her vision back outwards, into the disc its should be in. She froze, seeing a Ninja out of place, and when she zoomed in on him, she sighed as she saw him merely kicking away a cat that had startled him.
She stretched her vision out to it's reaches, and did a radar scope of the entire city. She swallowed as she saw a few suspicious gangs, but none in the vicinity. She did a check underground, and flashed through all the houses, in the nearer buildings, before flicking back to the full circumference. She felt her Chakra fall away incredibly quickly, as she tried to achieve the full extent of her vision. She Took a deep breath, and her vision radar-ed out again, and her heart leapt as she saw one of the suspicious gangs on the move towards their stretch of city they'd marked off.
"Units, area 241, gang of suspicious characters, moving in an easterly direction, towards the Plaza" She said quietly into her microphone in her mask. She watched with pride as 3 Ninja reacted to her command, and streaked off to head off the gang. Her nerves quietened, as she felt the power at ninja reacting to her every word instantly. The radio crackled,
"Suspects apprehended" he vision flickered to the gang. Her brow furrowed as she watched the goings on. The Ninja were stood in front of the gang, but, they weren't hostile.
"They put up a little resistance, and we've injured one" it sure didn't look like it though, "but, they have ran back" as he said it, clones were created, and they were sent running back the way they came.
"Noted, over" Hinata replied, and turned her intercom off. Her radio crackled again.
"They were lying?" Kosuke's voice, low in her ear asked.
"Yeah, they didn't fight the gang, and the ones sent back were clones. Ninja number's H-44, N-12 and M-70" She whispered back. Kosuke nodded, and whispered into his private intercom.
Hinata watched as a ninja from the hundreds of the hidden ninja she couldn't see before, and even could not be seen or found without Byakugan quickly, moved fast, even faster than the first 3 ninja, and apprehended the 3 ninja, and the gang. Hinata gave a sigh of relief, and scoped her vision around again. She gave out a few more orders, which were responded too with haste. She smiled to herself, and retracted her vision to normal for moment, blinking rapidly, as tears streamed down her cheeks, as she hadn't blinked in a while.
They were about a third the way down the road, and music, sweet sweet music, was playing from somewhere behind her. She shook her head slightly, trying to shift her weariness, and turned her face a fraction, ingesting a ninja pill. Her chakra gave a massive boost, and she activated her Byakugan again, then she froze in fear.
She flung herself backwards off Shun, landing on the cart with the coffin on, drawing her sword, and blocked a ninja's sword, who's camouflage had no effect on the Byakugan. The man suddenly disappeared, as Kosuke's secret police quickly disposed of him. Hinata returned to Shun, a moment later and not 5 seconds had passed. Asa didn't even flinch.
She took a deep breath, and began whispering feverishly into her intercom. Somehow, they'd figured out that she was the key, to the Amaya's vigilance, and had moved in while her chakra had deactivated. Plus, there must be someone very close in proximity to her, giving out orders. She looked at the troop of elders and generals with her Byakugan, turning her head to avoid the blind spot, and her eyes focused on a scarred man, who was looking off to his right, and up into the rooftops. He made a tiny signal, catching the light with a ring on his index finger. Her vision snapped to the ninja's on the rooftop, and they began to move out of line with the pre-arranged movements.
She suddenly realised with a pang, that these were different Ninja from what they had originally been, and she took a deep breath, turned her intercom off, and relayed all the information to Kosuke and Shira, ignoring their whispered cursing.
"General Arashi, he's on our list of suspicious people within Amaya. It would make sense" Kosuke said, and he sat up straight, making a signal with his hand.
They were now two thirds the way down the main street, and the Plaza could be seen clearly ahead of them, as of yet empty of spectators. Hinata cast her gaze far around her, then she searched the Plaza.
"Ah, Kosuke, the Plaza. There's horsemen and women in there. They don't look like ninja, but, they're there" she informed him, but he waved away her comment.
"Miyuki's family, from the pastures outside of Kirigakure" he said, and turned to look at Asa. This was a signal for the congregation to stop.
Asa and Shishio were on their feet in seconds, Sakura and Shino behind them respectively, both fully clothed in the Amaya gear. Asa Handed Kumo to Sakura, who quickly bundled her up close, and strapped her in, leaving her arms free. Shishio let go of Tsuyu, and pushed him behind him, and Shino placed a hand on his head. Kosuke nodded, and pulled off his mask, dropping it to the floor, and urged Shun on. His mask gave a resounding snap under Shun's hoof, and an identical one came from Maiha as she broke Shira's mask.
This, was a challenge. A challenge for anyone planning an attack, that they were ready. The Ninja congregating on the outskirts on her vision, however, showed that they were not intimidated. When Hinata told Kosuke this, he simply nodded, and flung the over cloak to his uniform off, and unsheathed hid sword, placing it across his lap. This was signal for everyone to do the same. It was risky. Doing this meant that it became clear to everyone that Hinata and Sakura were indeed women, and what build, shape and hair colour they were. They both, however complied, and unsheathed their borrowed weapons, Hinata placing it across their lap, Sakura holding it down at her side, the point almost touching the sheath of Asa's sword.
Hinata's fear suddenly kicked up, as she felt her Chakra splutter, and her vision flicker.
"Kosuke, I'm about to take the second pill" she said, and Kosuke's hand tensed on his grip.
She took a deep breath, and waited, until her Chakra had spluttered out of existence, and chomped down on the pill. As her Byakugan faded back into her vision, she was surprised to see all of the ninja, like, all of them, had immediately advanced on her deactivation. She shouted, breaking the deathly silence, making everyone jump at the sudden noise.
Then pandemonium broke out. Shun reared, screaming, not used to so much noise and movement. Hinata easily blocked about ten different Ninja that were solely intent on getting to her. Sakura was easily dodging ninja after Kumo, and Asa was in a blind rage at any Ninja who dared target her. White Shun was stood at peace, Kosuke had disappeared, Shira was protecting Shino and Tsuyu, and Maiha stood with The white Shun, nickering in fear.
The crowd of people lining the street stood perfectly still, with the addition of weapons, forming a deadly barrier. Kosuke's Secret police were flashing all over the place, taking on the more skilled, while the regular Amaya Ninja were taking on the more Regular ninja. Hinata, who was desperately trying to keep her Hyuuga talents down, and to not let the enemy ninja knock away her mask, was struggling with all ten of them.
She was proud, however, with Black Shun, who has so far managed to cripple 3 enemy ninja after her, by rearing and kicking out his legs with deadly force. She gave out a loud cry of pain, when she felt a blade scrape her back. She jumped out of her saddle, and out into an open space, holding her blade out, her chakra throbbing through her chakra highways. The Ninja left from the original 10, at least 6, stood in front of her, all with varying forms of swords. From scythe types, to Falchions, and Scimitars, broadswords long swords, and a sword that looked like giant versions of a serrated bread knife.
"Little girl, just give yourself in to us. We already know everything about you" the one with the bread knife said, striding forward. He seemed horribly familiar to Hinata, and she felt like being sick. It came flooding back to her, that this was the ninja the man in the alleyway had given her to. Someone inside the Amaya Compound must've let him get free. She wondered for a moment if he'd realised who she was. She felt her anger and resolve harden in her chest, and she straightened up, ignoring the flaring pain in her back, and raised her sword to him.
"Little piece of trash" she said, lowering the pitch of her voice, "Just give yourself in to me. And I swear, I'll let you be male the rest of your life" she said, the threat evident in her voice. The sleazy ninja merely laughed, and threw himself at her. She just sighed, blocking his sword, and twirling around him, rather like a dancer. He just wasn't skilled enough to keep up with her. She laughed evilly, revelling in the joy of overpowering someone. She knocked his sword away, and appeared behind him, grasping his shoulder, and kicking as hard as she could into the middle of his back.
A sickening crack resounded out in the now silent courtyard, as the man, he didn't even scream or shout in pain, simply collapsed to the floor, his limbs useless. Hinata froze. She really just viciously murdered a man. Quite literally with her bare hands. She tried to justify her rage, that this man had kidnapped her, but that didn't stop how ill she felt.
"Agent, return to the War horse Shun" Kosuke's voice ordered, and Hinata whirled round, to see that the battle was over. Everyone had watched her kill that man. She looked back to where the man lay, and saw he'd disappeared. The Secret police had already disposed of him and his blood. She checked all the ninja. General Arashi had disappeared, all traces of him, and many ninja were missing, but, their places were being filled even as she watched. She looked up, to see enemy Ninja on the far side of the Plaza. She flitted back to Shun's back, hissing as her back bled and seared in pain.
Hinata looked at the people on the other side of the giant golden fountain with pure hatred. Regardless, of Amaya's actions, and the way they have treated them. Those men, were responsible for Hinata's pain, and for Miyuki's death. And they had the insolence to attack.
"Kosuke. That man I killed recognised me. He was the one to handed them over to that rape house" she said, venom lining her voice. "Let me take my mask off. Please" she said, her nails digging into her palms, making them bleed.
She looked at Kosuke, and could see the indecision in his face. He slowly nodded, and sighed, facing forward, taking a deep breath, readying himself to shout. Hinata however had other ideas. She tightened Shun's reigns suddenly, and urged him forward. She felt all eyes turn to her, as she made Shun trot with pride into the Plaza. She quickly gazed around with her Byakugan, and doubled over, fiddling with her mask, but, not taking it off. She made Shun stop, and looked out across the plaza, before coolly leaning an inch forward, so a kunai whistled past her harmlessly.
"You, the arsehole traitor on the roof, I-19, get your skinny arse down here and try that again, will you!" she bellowed up to the roof, and she could see the fear evident on his face, before he disappeared from her vision, as the Secret police easily disposed of him. A shuriken, this time from the crowd of enemies across the fountain, came whirring towards her, she turned and flicked it away coolly, but, it swing back round, a product of some Jutsu, and aimed for the back of her head. She leaned forward, and it grazed the back of her head, cutting through the leather strap holding her mask in place.
She lifted her head, a scowl on her face, as her mask dropped away, and her hair tumbled out of its bind. She immediately reached up with her sword, and cut a foot off the end of her hair, leaving short like it was when she was young, so it didn't get in her way. She felt her anger rage inside her, as an war cry erupted up her throat.
Her heels dug into Shun's flank, making him scream and rear up into the sky, while she bellowed brandishing her sword.
"Filthy cowards!" she cried, cutting off bits of her clothing, allowing easier movement, as Shun's heels crashed on the pedals. He continued to rage and buck.
"You wont even dare come near me! You're all so frightened! Filthy cowards, with no respect, that's what you are!" she said, and grabbed her fallen mask, throwing it to the floor with such force, it shattered on the floor.
"Be away with you! And let us bury this poor woman in peace! Its bad enough that you were responsible for her death, but you have and insolence to disturb her funeral! Disgraceful! What did your mothers teach you as children, huh? HAVE YOU NO MANNERS?" she finally bellowed, and Shun screamed out, trying and failing again to throw her off.
"SHUN, STOP!" she shouted, and the horse immediately stopped moving. He flicked his ears, to show he was listening, but, he didn't move another inch. She could feel her command over the might horse Shun cause a ripple of discern through the crowd of Ninja, but they didn't move.
A Ninja suddenly materialised 3 metres ahead of her, on the low wall of the fountain.
"Little lady, we know all about you know, you certainly have a way with horses" he said, a sick grin plastered across his face. Hinata looked at him, her face expressionless. She suddenly displayed a small look of hurt, as Shun went forward slowly. When she was a few feet away, Shun's head lowered in front of this man, so Hinata could look him in the eyes.
"You, my good man" she said, and her expression suddenly turned to hatred. "HAVE GOT NOTHING!" she shouted, and Shun leaped forward, his hooves' connecting with them mans chest, as he leaped over the low wall, crushing the man easily. She urged him on through the water, realising this wasn't the most brilliant idea, since she was in the water country. She rode on anyway, speeding towards the crowd, water splashing vertically upwards beside Shun's massive body. The water around her, suddenly rose, and tunnelled around her, towering over her threateningly.
"SUITON: SUIRYUUDAN NO JUTSU!"
Hinata looked over her shoulder, to see Kosuke stood in the middle of a swirling tower of water, which quickly formed into a dragon. He stood with a ferocious look on his face. The water around her dissipated, and Hinata looked forward again, to see a furious Ninja stood at the head of the crowd. She shouted, as Shun neared the edge of the pool, and aimed for him.
"COVER HER!" she heard Shira's voice call out, and the secret police appeared running beside her, through the water, and Shun leaped easily over the low wall, and thundered towards the crowd.
Now, you must realised the situation here. Here, was a deranged woman who just snapped the back of a fully grown man, and crushed another with her horse, with jagged, wild hair, water, sweat and blood pouring off her, on top of a fierce, very large horse, with blood splattered all over it from the people he'd crippled, with a towering dragon of water behind her, being closely backed up with shadowy figures of extremely skilled ninja. It was a frightening sight, and the enemies didn't stick around long enough to see the fate of their ninja boss at the hand of this woman.
In the end, Hinata couldn't kill the man, she pulled Shun off to the side, and slashed down his back, a scar identical to her's, and he collapsed, as the dark police force sprinted past her in chase of the retreating Ninja. Hinata, breathing heavily, close to fainting, looked up to see Kosuke release the jutsu. He was furious.
She groaned, and pulled Shun's reigns round. Kosuke flitted forward, and bellowed at her,
"K-94, you get your sorry ass over here now, before I drag you by your newly cut hair!" he spat out, and Hinata sighed but didn't move.
"I'm not under your jurisdiction Amaya-san, I will not accept any punishment for my actions" she said, puffing herself out. Kosuke looked at her, alarmed for a second, before his face turned sour.
"K-94" he began, his tone warning, as he reached for his sword. "I swear to god-" he was cut off by explosive cry, and the sounds of galloping.
A younger version of the White Shun, galloped in, with a young man sat bare-backed upon him. "My dear cousin, you do anything to this girl, and I swear to god, I'll kick your ass" he said, but without venom. Kosuke stopped, and Hinata watched the indecision pass across his face again.
"Remember where you are, Kosuke-san, this is your mother's, my auntie's funeral. Leave it be" he said, with all the wisdom of an old sage. Kosuke's eyes connected with Hinata's.
"Mask up, I'll speak with you later" he said, and disappeared, only to reappear next to Asa, very far away, back at the entrance to the Plaza. Before Hinata couldn't even let out a sigh of relief before an applause erupted from the horsemen and women, the ones who were Miyuki's family, then it stretched to the entire crowd.
Hinata, who was exhausted, gripped her reigns tightly, and urged Shun forward to thank the stranger.
"Miyuki's Nephew" she called timidly, and he turned. She was momentarily phased by his striking handsome looks, as he pulled the gigantic white horse round to face her.
"Ah, K-94 I believe, my name is Natsuo Maiha" he said, his voice loosing the hardness in which he spoke to Kosuke with. "I thank you on behalf of all of Miyuki's Family, for doing that. This funeral was too boring for her anyway, they should know better than to throw a silent funeral for Miyuki" he said, and grinned at her.
Silence fell across the whole street, as the Secret police returned, talked briefly to Kosuke and Asa, before disappearing again. Kosuke, who had hauled himself back onto the White Shun, urged the cart forward again. Hinata, who agreed with Natsuo, thought it was a shame that Miyuki was being remembered in silence. She brought Shun up beside Natsuo, and she filled her lungs, and sang Miyuki's lullaby at the top of her lungs. Everyone turned to her again, and she felt her embarrassment rise, and her voice faltered, until Natsuo's deep harmonising tones joined in with her high sweet ones.
Miyuki's family immediately joined in, urging their horses into step beside Miyuki's cart. Hinata, feeling slightly lightheaded, continued to sing, as the procession stopped in front of the Fountain. Kosuke jumped off Shun, and into the water, not bothering to stay atop it. He placed his hands in the water, muttering, before performing hand signs faster than Hinata could keep up, even with her sharp eyes. He suddenly threw his hands into the air, causing the water to explode up around him, making birds of water take flight into the air.
Hinata followed Natsuo, who urged his white horse to jump lightly into the fountain, and to walk through it. They joined the procession, and Yamato, who suddenly appeared from wherever he had been, knelt down where Miyuki had rested as she entered labour, and made a single white flower burst out the cobbles, and grow bigger, taller than it would've naturally. The people nearest them, still singing Miyuki's lullaby, pointed in amazement. Kosuke turned, and looked up to the sky.
"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!" he said, and threw his hand up to the sky. Hinata knew this technique, and it was a water explosion technique, but, he didn't aim it at the fountain. Hinata looked up, to see the mist above them, suddenly thrown outwards, revealing a twilight sky, with stars just beginning to appear. Hinata, who had stopped paying attention to her singing had begun to sing her lullaby, which was very similar to Miyuki's. The people around her immediately changed in according to her version, and they gathered closer to the chariot as the lamps of Kirigakure began to light up of their own accord, as the light faded. Hinata stretched her back, her voice dying away as her throat became sore and dry. She swayed in her saddle, as pain exploded across her back from the deep gash there.
"K-49? Are you alright?" a far away voice whispered to her. She nodded before, her vision spun, blurred, and she gripped on tightly to Shun's mane of long hair, and she fell sideways.
Kosuke, during all of this, felt like he was having several minor heart attacks throughout the entire time. He'd watched, helpless to aid her, as Hinata defended herself from ten men, before she got hurt, and had to escape. He felt his gut turn over, as he watched the fear in her eyes when she recognised the man who had handed her in.
He felt absolute fear for her as she went forward, and bared herself to her enemies, provoking them. He had to sit there, and not move, not act to help her, again, when her mask came free, and Shun, with all his power, tried to dislodge her. He was actually scared, for her, and of her, when she started screaming at his enemies. But, when she actually crushed than man, admittedly Shun did it, but she made him. He couldn't hold himself back as she stupidly ran into water.
He threw himself off of Shun, and sprinted forward, frantically performing hand signs, as a tunnel of water appeared around her. He threw all of his chakra into the water, to get greater control over it. He had to fight to get control, but, as he did, he shouted out the command, and pulled the water from around her, and into a dragon, ready to attack.
He tried to convey how unhappy he was about her running into danger when she looked back, her jagged uneven hair, flying out everywhere, but she ignored him. His fear for her life raised as she was still galloping towards around 30 ninja in a crowd. The shout to back her up erupted from his throat before he could stop it. He watched in horror, thinking she was going to brutally murder some more men, but, she just delivered a gash to the head man.
When she turned to look back at him, his worry for her quickly turned into anger, and he immediately made her into just another subordinate in his mind. He was brought back to reality by his cousin, Natsuo, a farmer, but, a viscous fighter, and was like a male version of Miyuki.
He stood now, looking into the sky, and feeling like he's calmed down enough to talk to Hinata normally again. But when he turned he couldn't see her. He scanned the crowd in a panic, and noticed Natsuo had disappeared too. He watched as the young Shun, with an empty saddle, was walking with purpose by himself off towards the dimly lit side of the plaza.
Kosuke slipped off without anyone noticing to follow Shun. He snuck up on the horse, and leaped off to the top of a low building, and looked down on Natsuo, carefully placing Hinata onto a bench, his white horse standing patiently off to the side. Kosuke's heart leapt as he noticed Natsuo was covered in blood that wasn't there before. Kosuke leapt down beside him, scaring Natsuo, and place his hand on her head.
"Kosuke! What do you think you're doing?" Natsuo demanded, and Kosuke remembered that Natsuo didn't know.
"Shut up Natsuo" he said, tiredness coming through in his voice. He knocked his intercom on.
"Yuuna, can you come here please" he said, and Sakura could be seen running towards him, from the other side of the plaza. "Quicker please, we have a situation" he growled, and she disappeared, and appeared next to Kosuke, and Gasped as she saw Hinata. She knelt down, and began to heal Hinata. Kosuke stood, and turned his steely gaze on Natsuo.
"You've seen nothing, Natsuo, you hear me? These two girls, you don't know them. This is terribly important, and you have to listen carefull-"
"Kosuke, there's an eavesdropper" Hinata's weak voice called, and she pointed to the roof.
Kosuke swore loudly, and launched himself up, and chased the man about 3 metres before, he kicked out and broke the man's shin, making him crash to the floor, where Kosuke killed him swiftly, before returning to Natsuo.
"Now, I've just killed that man. I don't even know if he was a spy or not, but, he was listening, so he was a liability, on my side or not. Now, Natsuo, I love you, and you're my family, so, I'm trying very hard not to kill you, but, I will hit you so hard, you wont even know yourself any more, if you breath a word about the girls you've met this day. Please promise me that" he said, and let his desperation come into his voice as he looked up into the striking face of his cousin.
Natsuo's face softened and he nodded, as Hinata dragged herself up from the bench, healed. Kosuke nodded, and swooped down, kneeling in front of Hinata.
"Yuuna, Natsuo, go back to the festival. We'll be with you presently" he said, looking hard at the bench. Sakura protested heavily, but, Hinata merely waved them both away.
"Hinata" Kosuke said, and paused, before heaving a sigh. "you scared the absolute shit out of me today" he said simply, before looking at her, as a small smile graced her face.
"Don't you put yourself in so much danger again, my heart can't take it! I must've had about 5 heart attacks in the last half hour" he said, and his shoulders drooped. Hinata giggled, and patted Kosuke's hair,
"Calm, Kosuke, I'm alright" she said, smiling to him. Kosuke looked at her, then suddenly shook his head as if revolted by her.
"Hinata, you broke a man's back today" he said, looking at her. Her eyes flashed hurt.
"And does that have anything to do with you? He would've killed me" she said, drawing herself in. Kosuke pulled back, "of course its to do with me, he was the only one killed today" he said, and Hinata gawped at him
"He was not, there were many men that your special police took out" she accused,
"But, I gave them orders not to kill. I did not want lives wasted on my mother's funeral day" he said, his voice gentle. Her eyes were drawn to the floor.
"and that man on the roof?" she said in a small voice.
"I need to protect the bigger mission" he sighed, and looked at the girl in front of him.
What had made her like she was now? A broken soul, who effortlessly, and without hesitation, killed a man who had hurt her. This kind of thought process was what a person native to Kirigakure would do, not the sweet timid girl from Konoha.
"Hinata, what happened?" he asked in a low voice.
Her pale eyes snapped to him, a hard quality to them, and he suddenly made the connection to her and the other Hyuuga's he had met before. That odd stony look, of affront, as if every word you were saying to them caused them great offence.
"I happened, Kosuke. I was so…angry I just, couldn't stop myself. I had to react. I wanted to shout and scream, and to hit things, and break things, and to use my power to its full deadly potential, those men, made me feel so worthless and trapped, and I've been coiled up inside myself, ever since my mother died, I can feel it now. Every word my father's ever said to me, the beating my cousin gave me in the Chuunin exam, every fucking mission where I've failed miserably, its just added to my own inner frustration, and I just snapped" she said, and placed her face in her hands.
Kosuke remembered this well. He, too, had had his moment of complete and utter frustration, and has unleashed it in anyway possible.
"Hinata, next time you feel like that. Come and find me, I'll help you get rid of it. But, don't release it on people. Never on a person. My father taught me not to take your anger out on people, because being a ninja means you can break a person easier than you can if you were just an ordinary human" he said, and Hinata nodded.
"I know Kosuke. Oh, what's wrong with me Kosuke?" Hinata groaned, and suddenly flung her arms round him. Kosuke stiffened at the contact for a second, before relaxing and pulling her in tight.
"Its not you, Hinata"
"Its this country."