Chapter 19: Their Curse

A/N: Hey…. I'm sorry I took wayyy too long to get this written up and edited. I've hit a large, colossal writer's block and it is really, absolutely killing me with this story. I'm just not so sure how to write the things I want to write. Reading and Reviewing might…might just help *hopeful sounding* Well, anyway, please do enjoy!~

The sound of metal clashing against metal echoed resounded through the otherwise deadly silent Chunin Stadium. Up in the front row, a small boy with short, spiky blond hair started to fidget in his seat. A half hour had already passed since the battle between the two Hyuugas and their partners began. The boy kicked his feet around, accidentally hitting the raven-haired Uchiha beside him.

"Ouch, you idiot!" the other small boy growled, glowering at the blond who grinned back at him sheepishly. "Sit still and just watch...dead-last..."

The blonde boy's sky blue eyes flared, "shut up, you jerk. It wasn't that hard! What are you complaining about?!"

"Naruto..." the small boy scratched the whisker-marks on his cheeks as he turned to the side with a shameful smile. Naruto could've sworn that his mother's bright red hair had turned into flickering flames of fire. It felt like her deep violet eyes stared straight through him when he met her eyes and he couldn't help but cringe back slightly. "Don't kick people sitting beside you, understand?"

The Uchiha smirked. 'serves that idiot right...' he thought to himself. However, at that moment, a voice to his other side caught his attention.

"Sasuke..." Slowly, the young boy turned around to face his usually amiable mother. There was a light smile on her face, but he could tell it was not because she was happy with him. This was the kind of smile that told him a scolding would come soon. "Be nice..."

Sasuke gulped nervously, as did Naruto. The two boys looked at each other for a second, but quickly looked away, not wanting to meet the other's faces. "Yes, mommy..."

Tokuma jumped backwards, the ties on his shoulder-length bangs had come undone, making stray brown strands of his hair hang in his eyes. His clothes were bloody and torn apart and fresher scratches started to drip blood. He staggered backwards, as a small girl jumped forward to attack the weapons specialist who was preparing to unseal and fling more weapons at the boy.

Just as he was about to fall from the still-throbbing pain in his head, his wrist was caught by his older cousin, "stop this Tokuma. Forfeit, or else I will." He spoke softly so only the boy he had caught could hear.

"Get away from me!" With a sluggish swing of the knife in the younger's hand, Akito was forced to flip away from the shining blade. He watched as Tokuma staggered back a bit, clutching his now-messy hair.

A single kunai flies over his head, lodging itself at the younger boy's feet. He leaps sideways with a chakra-enforced jump just as the throwing knife explodes. Almost at the same time, Lili brings her armored forearms up to block a kick thrown by a much taller Kazue. The small Hyuuga rolls on the ground, scraping up her frail, pale arms; once she hit the ground, Kazue wasted no time to throw two kunai tied to a thin copper wire. With a deep breath and a single-handed tiger seal a blast of fire shoots from the weapon specialist's mouth, racing down the thin wire towards the kunai lodged a few feet away from the tiny Hyuuga just as she looks up.

"Katon: Karyuudan!* "

Lili closes her eyes as the fire creeps towards her quickly. 'Tokuma-nii!'

"Lili!"

The fire explodes when it reaches the kunai, engulfing the tiny girl's form entirely with fire. When the pain of burning doesn't reach her skin, Lili pulls her arms away from her eyes to find herself shielded by a dome of water. In front of her, with his arms on the ground, Akito has his eyes closed in concentration.

"Suiton: Amekyuu! * "

With a burst of chakra, the sphere bursts, showering the arena with rain. Tokuma pushes himself up from his knees with a pant, he growls angrily, muttering under his breath about his older cousin being a show-off. He clenches and unclenches his fists before glancing up to see a girl about as old as Akito watching them with her milky-white eyes. Her thin fingers gripped the metal railings tightly where she stood beside her Chunin team. She was biting her bottom lip as she watched the two boys exchange blows. Strands of her black and brown hair had fallen free from her low ponytail, but her long bangs were held back behind her ear with a small, red rose.

~3 years prior to the Chunin Selection Exams~

"You move your arm this way," A 12-year-old Akito sighs as he watches 10-year-old Tokuma struggle with the Gentle Fist form. "You need to relax, Tokuma. Really, being that stiff will get you nowhere in a fight, even with your Byakugan."

The brown-haired boy frowned as he dropped to the ground. He pounds his fist against the soft grass while his eyes watch the white clouds float by in the clear blue sky. He feels a presence above his head, so he flips around on his stomach to see his older cousin lying with his eyes closed. "Say, Aki-nii, has this ever hurt you?" Tokuma asks softly as he pokes the older's bare forehead. Beneath the boy's dark bangs, the Hyuuga Curse Seal was an extremely pale green, as if the mark was fading away.

"No."

"Really? Will it hurt me?"

Akito opens his milky lavender eyes staring into his cousin's. He reaches up with his index finger to poke Tokuma's small nose. "Let me tell you something, Tokuma. Something my dad told me."

The brown-haired boy ruffles the back of his spiky hair, letting the older sit up to face him. "Hmm?"

"This seal–" he points to the pale green mark on his forehead. "–wasn't made to curse us. It gives us the great responsibility to protect our family members who are a part of the Main House. Our brothers and sisters in the other house trust us with their lives."

He almost chokes on his words as he remembers his father. Akito had always believed his father when he said that, even now. But, when he died, Akito started to question that belief.

Akito's uncle, his father's older brother, was, and still is, a part of the Main House. He watched as his brother willingly accepted the Hyuuga Curse Seal and was alienated from his friends in the Main House and later, he did nothing when he was killed.

About five years ago, Yuuki, a member of the Main House, was sent on a diplomatic mission to the Bloody Mist Hidden Mist's ANBU massacred her escorts and took her hostage as she approached the village. Yuuki had been ready to take her own life, but the Fourth Mizukage threatened to invade and destroy Konohagakure if she did.

Back in the Hidden Leaf, disputes between the Hyuuga Houses flared. At one of the Clan meetings, which had turned into a heated debate, Akito's father stood up and volunteered to rescue Yuuki from the hands of Kirigakure alone. His older brother made no move to stop him from rushing into such a suicidal mission.

The entire rescue mission was going well until the two Hyuugas arrived on the the Fire Country's Eastern shoreline. Lying in wait wasn't the Hidden Leaf shinobi on border control, but an ambush team of Kiri-nin who attacked them as soon as their feet touched the sand.

Yuuki and Akito's father had fought back to back, the fact that they were from different branches of the family didn't matter to either of them. However, time passed and their chakra was beginning to drain out, but the army of Kiri-nin didn't seem to be diminishing in size. In the very end, Akito's father sacrificed himself by holding the Kiri-nins back as Yuuki reluctantly fled back to Konohagakure.

Not once had his uncle showed any sympathy towards Akito for the passing of his father, and he would always loathed him for his decisions and the ones he never made.

Tokuma had a certain look on his face that told Akito that he didn't believe this. "But, your uncle–"

"Akito! Tokuma!" The two boys turned to see a girl, about Akito's age, running towards them in a ceremonial kimono. Her long, black and brown hair was tied up in intricate braids that curled around the crown of her head and fell back on her shoulders in loose strands. Her head was topped with an elaborate array of jewels on her headdress, making her hair sparkle as she approached them.

As she got closer, the girl tripped and before Tokuma could even step up to catch her fall, Akito's stronger arms caught her. "You should be more careful, Miyako," The darker-haired boy helped her stand upright. Miyako wasn't very tall, about up to Akito's chin, but a little taller than Tokuma. "You look beautiful," Akito spoke softly, his eyes were closed, and a light pink tinted his cheeks.

Tokuma frowned, when Miyako averted her eyes shyly while blushing furiously. A few moments passed and she caught the younger Hyuuga's eyes. "Tokuma," a smile raised the corners of her lips. She pushed herself away from Akito gently and took a few steps towards Tokuma who was looking at her nervously. His hands nervously clenched and unclenched three times before he stuffed his hands into the deep pockets of his off-white pants.

"Uhm...hi," Miyako bit her bottom lip, a habit which showed her nervousness. Her hands held her elbows in the long sleeves of her kimono as she spoke. "My mom... Uh..wanted to know if you two would like to join us for dinner..."

"Sure!"

"I'd love to!"

The two cousins exchanged looks in surprise. A smile crept up Akito's lips and he turned to Miyako, "So I guess we'll see you tonight?"

The girl nodded, fiddling with the long sleeves of her kimono. "7 o'clock, we're heading for barbecue so dress casually!"

And in the next moment, Miyako was gone in a swirl of purple flowers. Akito kept staring at the spot that the girl had been standing before with the same, content smile on his lips. Something hard hit his shoulder, snapping him out of his daze. Tokuma had punched his shoulder, turned around and started to walk off.

"Come on, Akito," his voice was nowhere near as content as the older Hyuuga looked. "Let's go."

"Hurry up, Aki-nii!" Tokuma was lying down on his cousin's bed with his head propped up on his right hand. Instead of having his long bangs tied at the ends and his long, brown hair tied in a low ponytail, he had left his hair undone.

Akito stood in front of his mirror, stuffing his hands in his pockets just to pull them out again and brush strands of his short, black hair away from his face. "I'm almost done, Tokuma, ever heard about this very useful thing called patience?"

"But you've been standing there doing the same thing for the past three hours..." the younger Hyuuga narrowed his eyes. He sits up and slides off of the bed with a sigh. "I'm gonna head over."

When the older didn't answer, Tokuma turned around at the door to see him rush into his closet. The young Hyuuga pouted before closing the door and heading out. When he got outside, cold drops of water hit his bare arms and he flinched. Looking up at the sky, he could see that the sky was overcast with dark gray clouds, not even a single patch of blue sky was visible. Tokuma crossed his arms and started off towards the restaurant.

As he walked, the air became chilly despite being summer. A few more droplets hit his arms causing Tokuma to shiver at the cold water. Rubbing his arms, he shut his eyes and let out a long sigh.

"Why the long face, little boy?"

Almost jumping at the voice, Tokuma's eyes snapped open and saw that in front of him was a young kunoichi, standing in front of him with a soft smile. Tied around her neck was a glimmering hitai-ate with the village symbol of the Hidden Mist. The girl was standing a few feet in front of him in the middle of the empty road. Her long black hair made her pale skin look almost a ghostly white and her large brown eyes stared at him with a certain curiosity that confused him.

The girl explained that she was on a mission with a friend and was just passing through the Hidden Leaf. The two of them walked down the foggy, empty street without a moment of silence. Tokuma found it strangely easy talk to her, and, suddenly, he found Miyako as the center of their conversation.

"Maybe you can meet her? I'm sure the two of you would be good friends," Tokuma grinned as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I'm going to meet her right now. I could... introduce you two."

"That sounds great," the girl looked distant, her fingers were absentmindedly picking at the blue-green nail polish that matched her sleeveless kimono. A second later, that distant look was gone, replaced by a wide smile, "I'd love to meet her–"

"Tokuma!"

The two of them turned to see Miyako, dressed in a loose-fitting, flowery dress underneath an umbrella. With her free hand, she waved to them and started to walk over. A rather tall man suddenly came into view from behind her as if he were cloaked by the mist. His face was covered by the dark hood of his cloak and bandages around the lower half of his face. As he approached Miyako from behind, his hand reached up to grab the handle of the large sword strapped to his back.

Time slowed down drastically and before he could yell out a warning to her, Miyako had the man's large sword at her throat and Tokuma had his own mouth covered. Although the sword looked extremely heavy due to its size, the man seemed to have no problem holding it up with one arm. When he tried to remove the hand on his mouth, Tokuma's arm was twisted behind his back. He winced at the uncomfortable position while he tried to sneak a peek at his attacker mist seemed to thicken, and soon Tokuma had a hard time just looking at his toes.

"Don't move..." the girl whispered. Her voice continued, but Tokuma felt his consciousness slipping from him. The last words he could remember before he blacked out were: "You never met me... "

When Tokuma opened his eyes again, he found himself staring at a pure white ceiling, dotted with tiny holes. Somewhere off to the side, he could hear a very consistent beep... beep... beep. The white bedsheets gathered around Tokuma's tiny waist as he sat up. A small tube connected his wrist with a small, whirring machine on the bedside table. Inside the machine was a container labeled "Chakra." With one more look around him, Tokuma could see a closet directly across from his bed, baby blue curtains covering an open window and a stack of machines on the other side of the room. He was in the Konoha Hospital.

"...Tokuma..." His eyes turned to the exhausted-looking boy standing in the doorway of the room. The short, black hair sticking out in different directions made Akito look like he had just gotten out of bed, but he was wearing his shinobi gear. He wore a dark green hoodie and black pants with a kunai holster tied to his right thigh. The utility belt he wore around his waist still seemed several sizes to big, but since it was his father's, he always wore it anyways. There were two swords strapped to his left hip and underneath his dark bangs gleamed the forehead protector that he had received when he had graduated from the Academy.

"Aki-nii..." Tokuma stared at his cousin in confusion. "Where... where are you going? Another mission...?"

From his bed, the younger Hyuuga could see his cousins clench his teeth and let out a deep breath, a sign that something bad had happened. Akito took a step closer, resting his hands on the end of Tokuma's bed.

"Miyako..."

"Miyako? What happened?! Where is she? Is... is something wrong?!" Suddenly, Tokuma felt a hard tug on his chest and his head started to throb. What was he forgetting? He had a feeling it was something important and that he should've known. However, for some reason, he could remember nothing with his worry clouding over his thoughts.

"She was... she was kidnapped about a block away from the Hyuuga Compound. You were found there... unconscious and bleeding, leaning against a wall."

'Unconscious and bleeding...?'

With a glance at his bandaged arms and a touch of his wrapped up forehead, it made some sense. Before he could even ask for anymore, the older boy continued,

"You've been out for a good five days and even the Yamanaka couldn't get any information out of your head about what happened. Apparently, you've forgotten. You have no memories of that time."

"Where are you... going?"

Akito looked up, his pale, lavender eyes locking with Tokuma's. There was a certain drive in them that told him that no one would be able to stop whatever he would be doing next. "I'm going after her."

The two of them stared at each other in complete silence for a minute. Then Tokuma realized that it was actually really dark. He didn't know exactly what was going on now. Had the adults been too busy arguing to send someone after Miyako? Shouldn't she be their priority since she was a member of the Main House? Little did young Tokuma know that just three nights before, the entire Clan had pushed this matter aside due to the sudden kidnapping of the Clan Heiress. Both houses were currently debating on what to do since the treaty with the Hidden Cloud had just been signed, but the ambassador, also the kidnapper, sent had been killed by the head of the Main House when he retrieved his daughter. Since Kumogakure demanded to have the Clan Leader's head due to this incident, there has been unrest and discourse between the two houses.

Without much thought, Tokuma started to get out of bed.

"What are you doing? You're still injured!" Akito hurried to his cousin's side when the younger was ready to pull the chakra tube out of his wrist.

Tokuma looked up into the older's eyes with the same intenseness as earlier. "I'm going with you."

"No you're not! Look at you, you're in no shape to be running after her. Stay here and rest, I'll–"

"No!" Akito looked a bit taken aback by the harshness in the younger's tone. In their silence, both Hyuugas could hear a shuffling down the hall. They had caught the attention of the doctors and nurses staying overnight. Both boys stared into each others eyes, a voiceless debate between the two boys as the steps grew louder. The beeping from the machine on the side seemed to get even louder and both boys cursed the annoying sound.

The doctor sprinted down the hallway with a few nurses trailing behind him. There weren't supposed to be any visitors at this hour. Also, even though he had been a floor below, the yelling voices echoed down the otherwise silent halls–he had heard Tokuma declare that he would go. As they got closer and closer to the Hyuuga patients door, the voices seemed to die down. By the time he opened the door forcefully, the doctor could see no Hyuuga lying in the bed. The machine that had been measuring the boy's heartbeats had died down to zero and the cords that measured it, along with the tube that fed the boy chakra, were lying on the messily tossed bedsheets of the patient's bed. The room was void of anyone, but the doctor and his nurses. The moonlight shined down on his patient's bed as if mocking him as he cursed the rash Hyuuga boys.

Katon: Karyuudan - Fire Style: Fire Dragon Bullet

Suiton: Amekyuu - Water Style: Rain Sphere