Wish For Something
A/N: So I'm finally back after a long hiatus! I could waste time apologising (like I always do lol ^^ :D) but I think everyone would much rather read the story sooner! I love writing this story, so, so much. Enjoy, my lovelies!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Written by 10ShizukaYuukiMistress10
He wouldn't forgive her for doing this. Sasuke Uchiha was many things: a lone prodigy. An avenger. The Uchiha survivor. He was one person burdened with countless labels.
Yet Hinata had experienced the compassion she knew he possessed deep down inside. But where was that compassion going to thrive now that she had betrayed him in spite of everything he had done for her?
The disturbing revelation was yet to be answered, leaving Hinata on edge.
She could barely concentrate on what she was doing.
Focus. Her mind urged.
Hinata lowered her head, robotically pushing the thoughts away. Evergreen trees, burly branches and lush leaves flitted past her vision as she sailed through the forest steadily with her unconscious companion in tow.
Rukon was clutching onto her side, still semi-conscious. Hinata's eyes trailed down to the forehead protector secured tightly around his arm.
Their destination was iwagakure the Hidden Stone village. Rukon lived there. Kabuto clearly hadn't bothered to remove Rukon's forehead protector either out of arrogance or ignorance. Perhaps he hadn't foreseen that Rukon would one day defy Orochimaru's evil clutches and return to his village.
Hinata had heard the name of his village only twice. "Don't go there. The law enforcement is so strict that people who've lived their lives there for generations flee. The Stone shinobi are no ninja to tussle with."
Hinata abruptly turned to look back at Rukon, shaking off the last of her thoughts, as he made his first signs of human activity.
"Where are we?" Came his quiet murmur, like he wasn't sure if he was dreaming or not. He looked like a dazed rabbit caught in a pair of blaring headlights.
Hinata slowed down, think over his question. We're currently five miles away from Orochimaru's base. Still in Sound.
"Um... You're awake." Hinata said instead, softly. Then she realised how unhelpful her statement was, and lamented. "I helped you get out of Orochimaru's base. I'm taking you back to your village, Rukon."
Hinata hesitated. "You'll... be reunited with your grandmother soon."
Rukon, to Hinata's relief, didn't seem appalled but instead pleased to hear this news. Relief suddenly flooded his previously clouded emerald eyes. He crouched on his branch, thus Hinata did the same in confusion.
His limp back straightened, and blindingly, too fast for Hinata to comprehend, he had pulled her into his arms for a tight embrace.
S-Should he already be this fit?
"I never thought I'd be freed from that place. It was an unbearable nightmare. Thank you, Hinata, for saving me. For everything."
Heart racing madly, yet not as franticly as it did when she was around Sasuke, Hinata nodded, gently letting go of him.
"Rukon, I-I think there's something you need to know." Hinata's back met the rough surface of the tree trunk behind her. Her translucent eyes rang with seriousness.
"What?" Rukon's green eyes filled with mild curiosity, then confusion.
Hinata couldn't meet his gaze. "Do you recall the experimentations Kabuto did on you?"
Rukon's eyes narrowed instinctively at the name. He promptly gave a distasteful hiss.
"Yes. Of course I can. Few can forget demons like him."
"Well... I think he may have done something to your kekkei genkai. You see, Rukon... I can't detect your hearts. Or heart. There is no evidence whatsoever to support that you presently r-remain with a bloodline limit."
There was a moment of silence. No sound came out of the Stone shinobi.
"What?" Rukon finally bit out lowly, a constrained hatred surfacing. "He'll pay for this..."
Rukon exhaled.
His hand came up to clutch his forehead, brushing against crimson hair. Hinata watched him with sympathy.
"I'm sorry, Rukon... it's just that, I think..."
Rukon finished for her darkly. "... I've lost my bloodline limit to them."
"Y-Yes. You have."
XXX
They continued travelling.
The forests leading up to the Stone village became denser, like it wanted them cornered and sardined. Hinata didn't like the feel of the wind either. She tried to shrug off the foreboding atmosphere, finding herself thinking of Sasuke.
What did this mean? When she wanted comfort, why did her mind automatically think of the Uchiha?
A loud, sharp, cough broke Hinata's out of her musings. Rukon was watching her, in a way that made her blood chill.
She shuddered.
"Are you alright? You look..." Rukon furrowed his eyebrows. "...Lost."
Hinata turned away, straining her Byakugan.
"We're not lost, Rukon, um, we're nearly at Iwagakure."
Rukon looked at Hinata as if she had gone insane. Hinata's eyes widened at the insufferable expression. Rukon was the one having delusions—he'd been semi-conscious for the first part of the journey!—so why did he ask her that in the first place? After all, he was getting better now, so should he still be this confused?
"That wasn't what I said, Hinata. I said you look lost. There's something on your mind. Tell me."
Hinata faltered for a fraction of a second before swiftly masking her shock. Her mind certainly had been on cloud nine a minute or two earlier. Thinking of Sasuke.
The notion alone of sharing this information with the rescued test-subject sent an unsettling tremor down Hinata's spine, for some reason. She didn't think she was ready yet to discuss her situation or other multiple problems aloud concerning Sasuke.
"It... isn't important." Hinata replied evasively. And it was true. Her number one priority was taking Rukon back to his village safely.
It was her mission.
She could sulk all she wanted over Sasuke when it was over.
"The Uchiha." Rukon said suddenly.
Hinata looked up at him.
"I haven't forgot the memory of him unlocking my cell."
T-That's right. Hinata thought. Sasuke had been the one to set the test subjects free. He must have also unlocked Rukon's cell. And Rukon had miraculously managed to find his way to her. Hinata had argued with Sasuke to be at Rukon's defence. She hadn't wanted to leave him behind in there to die alone because he was too weak to save himself.
Hinata didn't regret her decision either. After all, she had to repent in some way for succumbing to all the tasks that Kabuto and Orochimaru had laid out for her all those weeks ago in the custody of Orochimaru's base.
Hinata abruptly snapped back to reality and faced Rukon as he continued.
"It's not every day that I get shown compassion by anyone. The Uchiha was the last person I expected it come in the form of. I'll have to keep that in mind when I return to Stone. We live a compassionless life, Hinata." Rukon said, turning away.
"To tell you how grateful I am for this... would be impossible." He finished, head bowed.
Hinata allowed a ghost of a smile to trace her lips. Her face flushed with colour towards the ground.
"We... um, might need to set up camp soon." She said.
Rukon looked up at her thankfully.
"You're right."
The sky had transformed into a mysterious abyss of darkness in a matter of hours. Their travels would need to draw to a close.
There wasn't far left.
XXX
Hinata woke up to face a pale blue sky. She lay still, caught up in the peaceful and resolute moment.
Craning her neck, jolts of pain worked like clockwork from the Curse Seal in her neck. Hinata ignored this dismissively.
Rukon's motionless form was hunched opposite her, his back against a tree trunk. Hinata was surprised to see him in that position for what it possibly signified. Had he been keeping watch over them all night? Why would he do such a thing?
Hinata found her lips upturning in appreciation, although it wasn't the smartest thing for him to have done, because now they needed to continue travelling and he was still fast asleep.
Turning away, Hinata surveyed the forest, not long before activating Byakugan.
Through her bloodline limit, Hinata noticed two things: the Stone village was further away than she had expected, and secondly, there was a cluster of idle shinobi in the interior forest.
Shaking Rukon awake, Hinata uneasily got them both to their feet.
"I-It's going to take another day to get there, I'd say." Hinata murmured, staring out at the forest once more. "And we have company. I-I think we should get out of here quickly."
"Yes." Rukon agreed. "There must be guards out on patrol. Otherwise, bandits."
Hinata shivered as they took off. She remembered that night all those years ago when she had been kidnapped for her eyes.
They were content for the first four hours until the mortifying noise Hinata's stomach betrayed raised the issue of food. Groggily, Hinata tried her best to remember the last time she had eaten something.
The two of them combined caught two medium-sized fish in a pond after an hour of hunting down the nearest food source; it brought back memories of teammates and missions much like this spent hunting for anything edible. Hinata felt a twinge of sadness in her chest.
"I can smell the Stone village from here. We're nearly home." Rukon said wistfully. He had a faraway look on his face.
Hinata nodded.
After eating, they took a short break before setting off. It was mid-afternoon when the beating sun forced them out of the open, back into the dense forests for shade.
Hinata attempted small talk with Rukon, feeling like she hadn't been amiable enough the whole day at all, but he seemed more set on getting back to his village than the weather or his preferences about it.
XXX
The door opened before they even knocked. Hinata had to do a basic Academy back-flip to swerve out of the way when a flash of white and green met her eyes.
T-This is Rukon's grandmother?
Cringing at the near fatal collision, Hinata deftly rose.
"Rukon!" His grandmother screamed. Hinata's eyes travelled up to the white-haired lady wearing a green dress who held Rukon so crushingly, that even though she was a few centimetres shorter than him, it seemed his crimson head had somehow managed to disappear in her embrace.
Giving a small smile, Hinata got the impression that she was intruding on their special moment.
"We arrived less than half an hour ago. There was a bit of confusion when we found out that you had moved house—there was no one at our home in the old district. But we found you in the end."
"Brave boy!"
Hinata continued to smile, completely oblivious of what was in store for her.
"...Who's this beautiful girl?" His grandmother suddenly asked, looking at Hinata directly in the eyes with her cloudier, greyer ones shimmering in admiration.
Blushing, Hinata rediscovered her old habit of twiddling with her fingers, and all her new-found confidence melted away. "I-I..."
"—This is Hinata. She was the one who rescued me from Orochimaru." Rukon announced proudly.
The evening air was undoubtedly silenced.
"Surely not... she's so... oh... this is very enlightening!" His grandmother said softly, her eyes shockingly intent. For a second, Hinata almost imagined it paring against Sasuke's cool, calculating gaze.
Hinata didn't know what to say in retrospect. She had no time to consider as they were both ushered inside the small, antique house.
"So, you're a ninja?" Rukon's grandmother said, shutting the door behind her as she turned back to face Hinata.
Now that the elderly lady was in better view, Hinata noticed some different things about her. Like the subtle muscles in her arms and her hardened face. And the way she was looking at Hinata so calculatingly.
"Were you once a ninja too?"
The elderly lady's creased face broke into a warm smile.
"That was many years ago, Hinata. I was one of Stone's best kunoichi in my day." She said, still smiling at Hinata.
Rukon sat down, nodding. "My grandmother retired from her profession to take care of me full-time after my parents died. She quit her job and took me in instead, as her own."
"I wouldn't have been able to continue as a ninja anyway, not with the loss of my daughter and son in-law weighing me down." She said softly, urging Hinata to sit down.
The moment Hinata hit the chair, she quickly realised just how drained she was. She felt like she could slip away at any given moment….
Something in Hinata's sluggish movements seemed to stir something in Rukon's grandmother as she surveyed the young indigo-haired Hyuuga.
"You must stay here overnight and rest, poor child. If you've both just travelled all the way from the Sound village, you must be very tired."
"Um... Rukon's—"
"—just call me Pa-san."
Hinata blushed.
"Pa-san, t-that isn't necessary. I should get going..." —To where, Hinata? Back to the Leaf village?— "But thank you for your hospitality."
A low chuckle erupted from the elderly lady.
"Don't kid yourself." She said. "Please. Rest overnight and make certain you know where you want to go next."
Hinata had the feeling that Pa-san meant something much deeper by her words.
Hinata stiffened uncomfortably.
"But—"
"Hinata, take this advice from someone who has had years of experience. Please."
Rukon seemed to be on the same page as his grandmother, especially with the concerned look he was giving her.
Hinata honestly didn't know why she was resisting.
Now that Rukon was safely back in his village, her mission was over.
And where would she go next?
Hinata hadn't thought about that either—or rather, hadn't allowed herself—to think about what would be the next step.
If she went back to Konoha, would they still accept her, the way she was now?
She had a Curse Mark.
There was still a Shinigami's Seal on her arm.
She had entertained the presence of a infamous rogue ninja for at least a few weeks in a small cottage.
She supposedly had this locked-up-and-shackled-down-to-the-last-bolt wish hiding somewhere within her.
How would she be able to tell them all this?
And Sasuke? I doubt he will forgive me for my betrayal, so it must be over. I-I won't be seeing him anytime soon… if at all. I have nowhere else to go to and nothing is holding be back now, so the Leaf—
"Hinata, are you alright? So, what's your decision?" Rukon pried intently.
"I-I'll stay—if that's alright."
—my village is the best option. I-I'm going home tomorrow. The long wait is finally over. Everyone will be…
Hinata wasn't sure when it happened, but her body started falling forwards and her eyes were slowly dropping shut. She distantly felt a pair of arms clasp her shoulders, before her body met the hard surface of the ground beneath.
…t-the same I hope. Naruto must look different now. If he's…. changed at all, I want to see him how he is now. And just as well with Kiba, and Shino, and Kurenai, and Neji, and Hanabi…..
XXX
When Hinata woke up, she was wearing entirely different clothes than the ones she had arrived in.
Um, could Pa-san have…?
The material of these new clothes was faintly worn, but far from deteriorating, and it felt oddly nice to have a change of clothes.
It was a soulful-grey turtleneck dress. The dress was short—it stopped a few inches above her knee—but it was elegant even so.
As Hinata stood up, she soon realised that the dress wasn't simply to please the eyes; it was perfectly suited for the body of a kunoichi the way it's springy material flexed with her fluid movements without complaint and so effortlessly.
Never had Hinata imagined that a dress—something she had clearly underestimated—could do so much!
Hinata opened the door to the room, delicately padding down the silent hallway, where she quickly found the bathroom and slipped in to have a quick shower, before returning to her room once more and dressing back into the agile dress.
Retrieving a comb from her travelling pouch Hinata brushed through damp midnight-blue hair, easing out all the knots. The soothing actions drew to a close a few minutes later.
Fidgeting at the rim of her new dress absently, Hinata's thoughts quickly took a turn for the worst. She found herself thinking about how everyone must have moved on without her in the Leaf village and how things must've changed. She'd been gone for months.
Did they still… remember her? Hinata didn't know if the horrible felling in the pit of her stomach was a mixture of fear, anticipation and maybe, hope?
She had no more time to think. The shoji screen was sliding open, and Pa-san's apprehensive face popped round the door.
"Oh!" She swooned adoringly, "You look so, so—beautiful!"
Face contorting in horror, then quickly exploding beetroot red in mortification, Hinata stood frozen in place.
Pa-san shook her head and folded her arms dominantly. "Innocent girl. Hasn't anyone told you how pretty you are?"
Hinata tried to recall any encounter she'd had with Sasuke where he'd uttered those words, or Naruto, or Shino, but couldn't seem to remember any at all. The only people she imagined might have said it to her at some point were Tenten, Sakura or Ino.
"You don't realise that you make my dress look a thousand times better on yourself than it ever did on me?" She strode over to pull the curtains wide open and glanced back over her shoulder. "And so effortlessly? Hmph!"
Hinata pulled her two index fingers together, turning to face Pa-san with a blush.
"Thank you—for giving me these clothes. I-It's surprisingly agile."
Rukon's grandmother simply winked. She opened the windows to ventilate the room in a flourish.
"Needs airing out because the previous owner was shameful enough to not mention that there was a dampness problem with one of the rooms." She sighed, her wrinkles becoming more pronounced and her age deftly reflecting. "Moreover, I think it's time to go and have breakfast. Rukon must be starv—"
Just as the words left her mouth, the sounds of thundering footsteps and a noisy announcement of, "I'm coming in! I wonder why it's taking you two so long to come down and eat? I'm so hungry I could—" Rukon stopped.
His face broke out into a wide smile.
"Wow, Hinata, you look wonderful in that dress. My grandmother passed that onto my mother before she died. She only wore it once. It was on the mission that her and my father were killed."
The atmosphere in the room suddenly plummeted from melancholy to nostalgic.
Hinata froze. She had felt fine in the dress until now. Now it made her feel claustrophobic. His mother had worn it once—and on the last mission she would ever serve?
"All the more reason for you to have it, Hinata," Pa-san said firmly. "I only pass this dress down to exceptional kunoichi who I think can go far. Indeed, it is sad. The sadness will give you strength."
Wasn't this taboo? The only chance Rukon's mother got to wear the dress and she had died on that very mission?
Hinata gulped, forcibly pushing out the foreboding feelings and trying to ignore how heavy the dress suddenly felt to her frame.
Hinata nodded. "I-I'm ready. We can go down for breakfast." she said, realising how confident and calm she sounded. That certainly wasn't the way she felt inside.
They ate breakfast in silence. Hinata didn't have to look at Rukon twice to know that he was deeply pensive over something. He seemed a bit shallow, even in his grandmother's presence.
They were at the door now, and Hinata was about to leave. The Leaf kunoichi was finally ready.
"So, where have you decided to go, Hinata?" Pa-san asked, in such a warm way that it gave Hinata the feeling that she had someone who was going to be thinking of her. "Remember, you can come back anytime. You are always welcome, dear."
"Konohagakure. The Leaf village." Hinata decided.
Pa-san nodded, but Hinata's gaze was now on Rukon. He finally looked up at her, determination igniting his emerald eyes.
Hinata knew this determination.
She stepped back in instant fear. Not the fear that you might imagine,
.
.
.
.
.
but the fear for someone who is about to send themselves to their own demise.
TBC…
A/N: How was it? It feels so good to be writing (weeellll, correcting lol) again!
Tell me your thoughts!
Things are going to kick off next chapter… !^^ :D
See you!
Note: A special thanks to Saki-Hime, mariawalker112 and RikuDai for your generous reviews, I hope you enjoyed this update!