Come Full Circle

By Airyo

AN: Funny thing. For this chapter, I listened almost exclusively to one song: Hanabi by Ayumi Hamasaki. I looked up the lyrics later and it turns out that they fit surprisingly well for most of the second arc. This was not intentional, but now you have your recommended reading song. Warning: I am one those people who prefers pretty instrumentals to accompany all the destruction and chaos.

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SCROLL 21: Three-hundred and fifty-nine

Hinata fell into an odd juxtaposition of schedules. Mornings were filled with the hectic details of preparation for the attack on the Akatsuki. Afternoons were spent lazing about and poking fun at Hanabi as she pored over seals.

"I don't understand!" Hanabi was growling as she kicked sand onto her latest failed attempt at a storage seal. "How is something stupid like this supposed to help me fight?"

"For one thing," Hinata couldn't help but quip, "they teach patience."

The younger girl just shot her another glare before pouncing back on her seals with renewed vigor. Hinata couldn't help but smile. Somehow, even bitter old kunoichi can liven up when torturing younger siblings. Hanabi had relaxed around her surprisingly fast, quickly reverting to the bratty little thing she used to be now that she was sated with the promise of getting stronger.

"Do you need me to show you t-"

"NO!"

"-he use in a spar?"

Hanabi immediately perked up at the magic word.

"Spar?" Hinata nodded, vaulting to her feet from her comfortable spot in the shade.

"Give me a moment and I'll even let you close my tenketsus."

"All of them?" Hanabi sneered. "Don't mock me. My taijutsu is perfection." Hinata calmly drew a seal on her arm with a mix of ink and her blood, her hands glowing with chakra.

"I know it is. That's why I'm doing this." She blew on her arm until her lines were dry. "Okay, close me. Then we can spar."

Hanabi didn't spare a second before pulling off a perfect 64 Hands of Hakke. Hinata gasped under the harsh impacts, reeling as she fought to maintain her balance. Even as her littler sister stepped back, Hinata felt the rising numbness in her chakra coils.

"Remember, stop when I say stop. I'm just proving a point," Hinata warned. Hanabi nodded eagerly.

"Begin."

Hanabi started for the side, instead of charging in headfirst. She was learning. Hinata sloppily parried the sharp jabs. If felt like her entire body had fallen asleep as she stumbled about. She made a note to train more without chakra enhancements.

When her body began to burn from the lack of chakra, Hinata leaped away from Hanabi, taking the chance to bite her thumb and smear blood down her sealed arm. Violet chakra burst into her hands, just enough for a mild explosion to throw Hanabi on her rear.

"We can stop," Hinata called a bit redundantly. Hanabi snarled as smoke curled up from the ends of her hair, but she obeyed.

"You could have just told me how useful stored chakra is," the younger girl snapped as she patted her singed hair for lingering flames.

"I could have," Hinata agreed easily. "But it wouldn't have been as fun."

A snicker broke through the training area. Hinata tried to activate her Byakugan before remembering that her tenketsus were still closed. Hanabi, oddly, did not seem surprised.

"Sorry, Kaeru-chan, Hanabi-chan," Naruto said with a laugh as he dropped down from the high branches of a tree. "I had to find out about the storage seal mystery."

"Why does he know we're here?" Hinata asked Hanabi suspiciously.

"Hanabi-chan told me," the blond offered cheerfully. "You're very nice to your little sister, but you shouldn't tire yourself out."

"Tire myself out," Hinata mimicked sarcastically as she looked at said little sister with narrowed eyes.

"I needed more sparring partners," Hanabi replied with a haughty sniff. "All you do is teach me stupid seals. Even I need a break."

"But Naruto?" Hinata had to ask.

"He's the only one who doesn't give advice." Hinata could understand that. Anyone else who would be willing to help spar would only judge Hanabi and regale her with useless tips. She just shook her head in defeat.

Naruto just laughed too loudly and scratched the back of his head.

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Some hours later, after Hanabi had just limped home, Naruto and Hinata decided to head over to Ichiraku's for a late snack. Strangely, Naruto didn't immediately dive into ramen heaven when they were served. He stared into his bowl for a moment before turning to Hinata resolutely.

"Hinata-chan, why do you hate Konoha so much?" It was hard to look into Naruto's eyes when he was being so serious. He had actually put up a privacy jutsu. Hinata cupped her hands around her bowl, taking in the warmth that burned her cold fingers. It was like being Naruto. Sometimes, it was hard not to take in his obnoxious radiance and actually want to shine with him.

"Are you sure you want to ask me that?" she asked.

"I love Konoha, even for her faults." It was also hard to look at him when he was being so damn sincere. Hinata felt ashamed as she remembered exactly how the villagers treated Naruto. These same people had regarded her as solid gold. She almost wanted to be proven wrong by Konoha, just to see the reason for Naruto's unwavering loyalty.

"Does Konoha ever think of her soldiers?" she asked. "When you and I are deemed useful, we are the very stars. When we weren't..."

"There were still people who loved us," Naruto finished for her.

"People or ninja?" she countered.

"People. Humans," he emphasized. "who are caught between what is best and what is right. Who make mistakes. Who can learn from them."

She shook her head.

"It's easy to be dazzled by the beauty of humanity when you put it that way," Hinata said. "Not everything is forgivable."

"Specifically what?" Naruto demanded. "What has Konoha, or any of us, have done that is so hateful?"

"Don't judge me by your standards for yourself," Hinata sneered. "You might be able to naively forgive and forget, and love and be loved by sheer determination. I am not so strong. I can only be betrayed so many times before I must protect myself." Naruto didn't reply immediately, choosing instead to study her with steady blue eyes.

"Your ramen is getting cold," she remarked. To mark her point, Hinata took a rudely loud slurp of her own. He obediently took a small mouthful and swallowed.

"How did I betray you?"

Hinata had not expected him to ask her this. She froze, mouth pursing as she weighed her responses. Every accusation sounded so stupid when condensed into words. She cursed herself for still caring what he thought.

"Tell me, how quickly did you forgive Sasuke when he returned?" He frowned at the turn of topics. Hinata pressed on. "Just answer my question - I have a point to make."

To her surprise, Naruto did not burst into a speech about loyalty and love, with rays of determination and optimism shooting out of his eyes. His shoulders drooped, and his eyes reflected the full brunt of his difficult life.

"I haven't completely forgiven him yet."

Hinata just stared at him blankly, unsure if she could listen to her ears.

"He betrayed everything I believed in when he left. I can't just say 'Good job, bro!' welcome him back like that. Did you think I let him off easy? Especially after you delivered him to us against his will?"

He knew about her involvement? Naruto was sticking explosion seal after explosion seal on her. Hinata shook her head, as if to clear the cobwebs in her mind.

"Of course I knew," Naruto explained at her flabbergasted look. "Sasuke told us as when his jaw healed -"

"His jaw was broken?" Hinata did not remember Sasuke being so badly injured.

"I might have punched him a little," he admitted in a sheepish way that gave Hinata the idea that "a little" was a blatant understatement.

"That bad?" she asked with a small snicker. Sasuke had needed a sound beating, though she had felt odd pummeling someone unconscious and made do with leaving him in an uncomfortable position at Konoha's gate.

"That bad. Kicking his ass helped a lot." Naruto was smiling at her tentatively, prompting her to immediately wipe away her own smile.

"Well, I didn't expect Sasuke to be so open about it."

"I think he felt that he owed it to you."

"Owed it to me?" Hinata repeated derisively. A small part of her hurt with the realization that Konoha waited six years to even bother with her.

"Sasuke thought your situation was similar to his. It took a while for Jiraiya a few months to make the connection between shy Hyuuga Hinata and the ruthless Chitsuki-hime." That was still over half a decade. She brutally shoved the sensation to the back of her mind, preoccupying herself with another odd fact.

"Sasuke didn't know that I was Chitsuki-hime," she challenged. It had been real shock on his face when he saw her during the battle of her capture.

"Your identity was classified. His clearance wasn't high enough. Only Tsunade-baba, Ero-sennin, Sakura, and I were allowed to know." He stopped speaking, letting Hinata think through his words. What he said absolved Sasuke, even if he had been under the delusion that he'd been helping her by revealing that she was still alive. But that didn't excuse anyone else.

"So that whole show at my grave with Team 10 was just a show?" she snarled.

"NO." Naruto objected so forcefully she fell silent. "Don't you dare piss on your genin team that way! That was not a show for them; that was the only way they could make sense of all the shit you put them through."

"You could have stopped that," she snapped back defensively. The pain of being abandoned was welling back like old pus. "The four of you knew I was out there." She slapped her money on the counter and pushed back to leave.

"Dammit! Come back here!" Naruto shouted as he hurriedly paid for his own meal before running after her. She shrugged him off when he tried to grab her wrist.

"Don't make me hurt you," Hinata warned.

"What did you mean by that? You didn't want to be brought back here."

"No, I did not," she answered unhelpfully. Naruto continued following her doggedly, waiting for her to explain. Her feet led them to Training Ground 3, where Hinata stopped in front of one of the training posts. She stared at the dark shape in front of her, and then blasted it to wood shavings.

"I am powerful," Hinata stated, her voice bitingly clear even with her back turned to Naruto. "I was a part of the most powerful organization of missing-nin known to the world. I've mastered seals, enough to ruin Orochimaru's cursed seal and enough to weaken my family's Soft Hand style. I was the teammate of the notorious Uchiha" – here her throat tightened her words into a growl – "Itachi. I defied every fucking bastard that thought I was a failure of a ninja."

"I know –"

"Shut up!" Hinata barked as she whirled to face him. "You want to know why I asked about Sasuke? You want to know how you betrayed me?" Her shoulders were shaking as she clenched her fists to her thighs. "I admired your spirit, when you so bravely faced a village that hated and sabotaged you every step of the way. You had everything against you and yet you thrived. I had everything, yet I couldn't even pass a simple Chuunin test." She deflated as she spoke. The sore memories had siphoned away her fury.

"Hi—"

"I'm not finished," Hinata said tiredly. Naruto closed his mouth. She unclenched her fists, staring at the faint shapes of the calluses on her knuckles in the moonlight.

"You were perfect, Uzumaki Naruto," she murmured. "I believed I could change when I watched you." Her pale irises shifted to refocus on him as her expression changed to one of chilly detachment.

"And I thought that you, of all people, could be on my side. That you might understand my choices. But it turns out that you're just like any other ninja of power – you rule by force. It was so easy to take Sasuke in when he's a genius, isn't it? I bet it was even easier to accept Itachi back into your ranks! But Hinata wasn't even worth a second glance until she was good enough to make it into the Bingo Book. I had hoped that I wasn't just a pawn to you." She watched as his eyes darted to her forehead.

"But Tsunade-baba ordered it."

"And you followed it. Kami-sama, I can't believe I tried so hard to save you."

"Save me?" She gave him a flat look.

"Gaara decided to magically protect his soul himself when they were extracting the One-Tail," Hinata said sarcastically. Naruto looked mildly cowed by this revelation. He remained silent for several moments before speaking replying.

"We delayed the Council's order as long as we could after they found out the Chitsuki-hime was from Konoha. They informed Hiashi when we captured you."

"The Council wasn't wrong."

"No, we were. I'm sorry. We should have worked harder to keep the Council from finding out about you." Hinata blinked at this ready confession as Naruto continued. "Ero-sennin found you less than a year after Sasuke was returned. He reported that you were actually thriving, even happy. Itachi and Kisame treated you better than the Hyuugas ever did. Ero-sennin even suspected that they might have intentionally let him spy on you. I thought the best thing for you for was to let you be."

Hinata stared at the blonde.

"You're lying," she hissed as tears filled her eyes. The world blurred. "You are lying. While you were spinning your fables, did you forget that I left to become a part of the Akatsuki? The organization that aims to rip out your soul for the Nine-tails? And how is sealing me the "best" for me?"

"You were trying to save me," Naruto reminded gently. "And the Council would have sealed you to someone far more cruel."

"You didn't know that," she gritted out. She ground her teeth in the effort to hold back her sobs. They had given her six years of freedom.

"If I can believe in Sasuke and Gaara, why can't I believe in you?"

Six years. Half a lifetime, when she had first run away. And she repaid it with hatred.

"Why can't you?" Hinata repeated, with a sob interrupting her chuckle.

"I'll admit, I did doubt you for a while when you first came here, after attacking my friends. But you are a good person, Hinata."

"Kaeru," she correctly half-heartedly.

It was impossible not to take in Naruto's obnoxious warmth. He was the sun to her moon, and even now, he shone for her.

She reached towards him, and he stepped forward hesitantly.

"Naruto…"

CRACK!

The blonde toppled back onto his butt with a yelp, clutching his face in shock. Hinata stood over him, tears still running down her face. She was smiling brilliantly.

"…thank you, for everything." she finished truthfully. Then, smirking slightly, Hinata massaged her sore knuckles. "And you were right about forgiveness. It get easier after you break the offender's jaw."

"And that's how you broke his jaw?" Hanabi crowed with delight after Hinata had relayed an edited version of the events a few days later. Hinata nodded, feeling slightly uncomfortable at her little sister's undiluted joy (for a Hyuuga) when the owner of said injury was sitting right next to them.

"I think I deserved it. Sakura-chan certainly agrees since she only healed it enough so I can talk," Naruto said good-naturedly, his voice muffled by the swath of gauze around his face. Hanabi just gave him a strange look that resembled a mixture of the classic you're-an-idiot look and I'm-not-sure-if-I-should-be-impressed look.

"At least he's accepting his punishment like a good boy," the younger Hyuuga said condescendingly.

"You realize that I can break yours, and we'll have a matching set," Naruto grumbled.

"You wouldn't dare. My big sister will blow you up," Hanabi sniffed smugly. Hinata considered withdrawing her protection, but Hanabi had come such a long way in accepting her own strengths that Hinata only nodded in agreement.

"I've been working on some new seals that uses the victims own chakra to detonate. The stronger the person, the bigger the explosion," she added. Naruto glanced down at his bellybutton and gulped. Hinata brushed back her bangs and slid to her feet.

"Hanabi," she said. "Let's spar again."

Naruto stood, eyes suddenly intent as he stared at her.

"Kaeru-chan. Your seal?" he said questioningly. Hinata patted her forehead with a sinking realization that she'd forgotten to cover it today. Her seal had been gradually fading, thanks to Kankoro's help with his chakra strings. It'd been more difficult to transfer a living seal to an inanimate object like wood.

"It won't be gone until well after the attack," she assured Naruto defensively. The blonde shrugged easily.

"About time," he commented. "We actually only hoped for six months, tops."

"What?"

"We thought you'd have a special hatred towards the Caged Bird Seal, given your history. I thought maybe, by now, you wouldn't hate Konoha so much." Naruto gave a sheepish grin, looking slightly sad.

Hinata, for the first time in a long while, was speechless.

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A few days later, the Godaime summoned Hinata to her office.

"Hokage-sama," she greeted with a curt bow. While Naruto's words had helped soften her regard of Tsunade, she had still played Hinata for a fool.

"Kaeru-san," the Hokage replied just as cordially. "You are well?" She wasn't asking about Hinata's feelings.

"My wounds are completely healed – I'm ready for the attack." Tsunade nodded, lacing her fingers under her chin.

"Good. I brought you hear to speak about just that. I saw the formations you helped Intelligence hash out." She gestured to the scroll spread out over her desk. Hinata nodded warily, waiting for Tsunade drop whatever bad news she had.

"I'm afraid I must forbid you from confronting Uchiha Itachi." Hinata frowned, though she remained silent to wait for an explanation.

"It's for your own good," Godaime added, looking like she was developing a headache. Hinata had no doubt that Naruto had already parroted their entire conversation to Tsunade.

"How so?"

"It's clear to anyone you have a close relationship with Itachi. You'll have conflicting interests."

"So would Kisame. And I would have a better idea of his fighting style than another ninja." Hinata looked pointedly at the triangle labeled with the shark-man's name, which was in the cluster around the square with Itachi's name.

"Their relationship was different." Tsunade pinned Hinata with a hard look, daring her to counter with a lie.

"Itachi trained me," Hinata finally replied. Naruto, and even Konoha, she could begin to forgive. But she had trusted Itachi exclusively, and he sold her out to Konoha for a possible haven. She needed to fight him.

"And he would know exactly how to defeat you."

"I've improved in the past year," Hinata replied calmly, but firmly. Tsunade reached into her desk and pulled out a sake jug. After a long swig, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand before turning back to Hinata.

"Kae—no. Hinata. Can you really pretend not to know? From all accounts, it's clear that Pein has taken possession of him. That thing out there is not Itachi anymore."

Hinata looked down, unable to fight when faced with such an ugly truth.

"There are still elements of him left," she finally said softly. "I've done it with Gaara – maybe I can do it for-."

"My order remains the same," Tsunade said harshly. "Especially after hearing you talk like that. Pein will use any little soft spot for the original against you. Understood?" Hinata took in a breath to speak.

"Even with our agreement, you are still a ninja of Konoha until at least after the demise of Akaktsuki. You are not to confront the body that was Uchiha Itachi, understood?" Tsunade cut her off. Hinata let out a breath, and nodded.

"Understood, Hokage-sama." She didn't wait to be dismissed.

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Just days before the scheduled attack, Hinata dreamed of him.

"What are you doing?" he asked her.

Hinata looked down and hugged herself, doing everything she could simply not to break. It was the time he'd visited her in phantom form at the hospital when she'd first been captured. One of the few pure, sweet memories she had. She'd struggled for a long time not to remember this one.

"Go away. You're not real," her dream-self said. Hinata echoed the sentiment. It was easier to push Him aside when she was apathetic.

"Please..." she murmured. "Just go awa-"

"Hinata, look at me."

She made a sob of a gasp. His voice was beautiful in hindsight. Unlike the crude not-Him that unlocked her memory seal. She needed to disregard him. All her precious memories, if she wanted to break away from him.

"Need I repeat myself?" he was scolding. "The Akatsuki does not give up what belongs to it."

And then, so softly that she couldn't quite tell whether it was real or not, came his next three words.

"Nor do I."

But Hinata did, and she couldn't help the tears that welled in her eyes. She relived that burst of joy at his words, the shy warmth as he kissed her, the vast yearning after he was gone.

Then she recalled that he was already gone. Pein had replaced him.

Hinata awoke trembling.

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The attack squads reached the Akatsuki hideout just as the sun began to rise. Team 7 perched on a tree overlooking the location of the hidden entrance, alert for the signal. Hinata unfurled her seal scroll, poised to draw blood from her thumb. The corresponding seal had already dried on the rock face of the lair.

The call of a mourning dove sounded three times, long-short-long. Hinata bit down hard and smeared the mess of crimson across the entire surface of the scroll as her other hand flipped through a blur of hand seals. The rock barrier crumpled into pebbles with a cacophony of grinding stone. When the dust had cleared, 10 squads of Konoha and Sand ninja formed a semi-circle around the single Akatsuki who had appeared

"Deidara!" Hinata recognized. But this Deidara had shocking orange hair and piercings lining his eyebrows. He summoned his giant bird with a wave of his hand and leaped on top of it. He easily evaded the multiple jutsus several ninjas shot at him, and even returning the favor with enormous spider bombs. Sakura jumped into the fray, searching for the already injured. The rest of her team was forced to follow when one of the spider bombs scurried up their tree, detonating seconds later.

Hinata discarded her used scroll as she fell into a roll from the force of the blast. Taking a second to slip out another seal scroll, she drew a line of blood down it to activate it. Gaara's sand was ready when she charged directly for Non-Deidara, forming steps for her to dart up to his bird. At the last moment, she tossed the scroll at him and jumped back, barely escaping the fluttering clay doves. The scroll careened through the air haphazardly to wrap around the flying bird's neck. It glowed menacingly, sucking out enough chakra to make the bird falter for a moment.

It was enough. Gaara's sand rushed in with vengeance, crushing one of the bird's wings. Non-Deidara flipped off his dying steed, only to be met with Kakashi's Chidori. A plume of smoke engulfed them as Non-Deidara returned the greeting with another bomb. Several squads moved to support the Copy-Nin, disappearing into the cloud.

Hinata performed the customary seal for her Byakugan as three more cloaked figures emerged from the hideout entrance. She recognized the dark shapes – none of them were Itachi. Good. It was easier to forget him when she was fighting. Hinata pulled out one of the larger scrolls while the other ninja distracted what looked like Kakuzu, Hidan, and Zetsu. She flicked away the new scab on her thumb, letting new blood well up, and threw her scroll into the air. It unfurled like a long ribbon against the dawn sky and Hinata followed, drawing her hand down the neat rows of ink. She hit the ground running, the length of the activated scroll now tangled around her glowing arms. Sakura and Sasuke flanked her, gathered the chakra for their own attacks. Naruto joined them moments later, directly behind Hinata.

With a grunt of effort, she hurled out her attack in three concentrated blasts of chakra as she let herself fall to the ground. Her teammates smoothly blended into the shadow of her attack, with Naruto jumping smoothly over her. The squads distracting the Akatsuki parted for Team 7 smoothly. Hinata to watched the missing-nin's bodies jerk with the double-onslaught. While nothing more than very concentrated chakra that took her days to amass, her attack had been infused with enough killer intent that even they should pause.

If they were still themselves.

Hinata watched as they shrugged off the chakra as if they were small annoyances. Non-Hidan entrapped Naruto by his blood even as Non-Kakuzu blasted Sasuke with one of his own attacks. Non-Zetsu had surrounded Sakura with his spore attack and she cried out as her meager chakra was sucked right out of her. Hinata struggled to get back on her feet, limbs still weak from expelling so much chakra.

"Soupy, take a break." Kisame carried her away from the thick of battle. She tried not to notice how gently he handled her even as he rushed.

"Sakura," she panted out.

"Already on it." He disappeared into the swirl of battle.

Hinata fumbled for a soldier pill, her fingers shaking with the effort. A nearby explosion shook her balance, and the soldier pill slipped from her fingers. Hissing with frustration, she dug in her pack for another and shoved into her mouth gracelessly. The bitterness curdled her tongue as she felt new chakra lick her coils. Team 7 was still holding on, with the help of the rest of the squads. She took out another scroll.

"Hina-chan, how lovely of you to show up."

Hinata whirled around with a snarl. Non-Itachi smirked at her with too many teeth. She never how much she hated orange on a person until now. Her scroll was unrolled so quickly it seemed to float before her as Hinata activated it. Violet chakra swathed her hands as she attacked, having just decided to disregard the Hokage's orders.

He swatted her away like a fly, unaffected by her jutsu.

Hinata crashed to the ground, bouncing and rolling helplessly to slide to a stop several meters away. She panted with effort as she forced herself to leap to her feet. It took her precious seconds to reorient herself. Her ponytail had come loose, and her hair stuck to her sweaty face, hindering her sight. Just as she could refocus her eyes, Non-Itachi teleported right in front of her.

"I've missed you," he purred as he kicked her in the back. Hinata fought to breathe as the air passed by her too quickly when she was sent straight upwards. Non-Itachi reappeared next to her, with a hard elbow to the gut that brought her crashing back down toward the earth. Moments before she hit the ground, Non-Itachi hovered before her, Mangekyo Sharigan swirling in her vision.

Caught in a cruel cycle of their last meeting, Hinata was incapable to minimizing the damage of her impact with unforgiving rock. Unfortunately, she did not pass out, and when his genjutsu released her, she awoke to only more pain. He stood over her, a demonic smile on his face.

"You're…" she gritted out through the blood gurgling at the back of her throat, "not…Itachi." He threw his head back and laughed. Good. Amusement gave her time to recover. It was hard to breathe with half of her body under a layer of rubble, but it hid her furtive movements. She slowly flexed each finger as she reached for her seal scrolls pouch, relieved to find only one broken.

"Not quite, Hina-chan. I'm still fighting." She thought heard real Itachi.

"What do you mean by that?" she sneered even as she forced her hands to form the proper seals. He knelt over her, resting one hand over her throat. He squeezed, tightening his grip in a maddeningly gradual way, as he leaned over to whisper to her lips.

"It means what it means. But I will win." That was the fake.

"No, you won't." Hinata lunged up and bite down hard on his nose. As he stumbled back in surprise, she rendered the stones holding her down to dust and wrapped two scrolls around his right arm in one swift movement. One of them was a version of the seal she'd originally designed for Naruto. The other, her strongest explosion seal.

She activated both.

The force of the explosion blew Non-Itachi back. He landed in a crumpled pile. Hope pushed her forward when sheer will failed her. If he was unconscious…

"HINATA!"

She turned to see a battered Naruto supported by an equally beaten Sasuke. They limped to her, an identical triumphant glint in their eyes. Behind them, she saw Kisame gently carrying a weak, but living, Sakura. That was all she needed to see to know that Akatsuki had fallen.

"We did it! We got the bastard Pein!" Naruto was laughing as he threw up an arm, only to accidentally knock both himself and Sasuke off balance.

"DOBE!"

They toppled over with a crash. Hinata's lips twisted in effort not to giggle at the ridiculous pile of limbs of two Konoha's most powerful ninja. But the need to check back on Non-Itach pressed in the back of her mind. She glanced back to where he had landed…

There was no one there.

"Maybe not," she choked out.

"Hinata?" She knew her face had collapsed under the force of her pain. Tears began to trickle down her cheeks. A small part of her had hoped all this time, that there was something left.

"Itachi's truly gone," she whispered. "If…If he was still in there, my seal would have expelled Pein. The separation would have knocked him out." Her legs gave out under her and she fell to the ground, hands covering her face to try to hide her grief in vain.

She'd failed to save him.

Pein was still out there.

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Two months later…

"Are you sure?" Naruto and Hanabi stood over Hinata as she packed her things. Her forehead protector and ANBU uniform lay conspicuously on a chair.

"I've already signed the papers," Hinata said firmly as she zipped her backpack. "I've kept my promises, so the Godaime must keep hers."

"I can void them just as easily when I become Hokage," Naruto offered.

"If not, I can destroy the evidence," Hanabi added. Hinata smiled sadly at them. She'd purposely chosen a departure time when the people who knew her were occupied elsewhere. Yet, somehow, these two still managed to show up.

"Naruto, thank you for everything. You should concentrate on finding Pein. Hanabi, I've left extensive scrolls on my seals. All you need is some more practice."

"That's not the point!" the younger Hyuuga snapped. It was good to see her this bratty. Childhood befit her little sister.

"Do you still hate Konoha?" Naruto asked stridently. Hinata looked at him and smiled.

"No," she replied. "We all have our goals. But I can't share Konoha's."

"Be a civilian here," Hanabi suggested. Hinata shook her head as she hefted her pack onto her back.

"There is nothing for me here."

"What about the Hyuuga?" Hanabi challenged. "Don't you want to change it? Don't you want to help me?"

"I haven't been a Hyuuga for a long while, Hanabi."

"But aren't you still my sister?" Hinata couldn't look her in the eye, and Hanabi pressed her advantage. "Do you want another girl to go through what you went through? Don't you want to banish the Caged Bird Seal? I…I can't do everything by myself!" Hinata touched her bare forehead thoughtfully, but she still resolutely started for the door.

"Hinata-chan, what would you do out there? You signed an agreement of non-competition," Naruto moved to block her way.

"I can –"

"Forget it, Naruto!" Hanabi snarled as she swiped the back of her hand across her cheeks viciously. "She's just running away again. That's what that coward always does when she's faced with a problem. She runs away. From Hyuuga, from a little pressure, from everything. Let her run away to her little hole in some stupid mountain. I don't care anymore! I hope she rots!"

Hinata elbowed her way past Naruto. She stood with her back to the two, fighting to keep back her own emotions.

"You're just a little scaredy-cat!" Hanabi continued, her voice watery. "I wished I never had such a weak sis—"

"Stop gloating, imouto."

"Huh?" Hanabi stopped her tirade intelligently.

"You may have finally won against me, but it doesn't give you the right to gloat." Hinata turned with a small, shy grin. "Naruto, I won't fight for Konoha, but do you think she has room for a seal's specialist?"

She didn't try too hard to dodge their hugs.

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AN: And, there's only the epilogue left! OMG! Thank you so much to all my readers. You've supported me though the long and arduous (and extremely fun) process of this story, and I'm finally done!

I've essentially done the seamstress's equivalent of stapling the dress together and tying it up with a gigantic red bow to distract everyone. I know I haven't been the best at explaining what the hell is going in my story, but if you have any lingering questions, please review and ask. I'll try to answer them all in the epilogue. Should I include a small recap?

Much love until the next chapter.