"Do you have anything to do with Uchiha Sasuke's disappearance?"

Hinata stared at Ibiki Morino. She had been called to attend the investigation around the criminal's prison break.

"Do you think I would free the man who murdered my father?"

The Interrogation officer gazed upon her for a while, then looked away.

"Thank you for your time. Please keep your men on the search, we need to find him."

The Heiress nodded, then stood up and headed for the door.

Hyuuga men and women were sent out and could be seen at every corner of the village, their kekkei genkai active, trying to trace the Sharingan user.

Hinata had ordered the dispatch of her clan members herself. She was determined to find out if he was still on Konoha grounds or not. And yet, she had been summoned for questioning regarding the sudden escape of the Uchiha.

Her clan's guards had all confirmed she had been in bed all evening, so her alibi was perfect. As for the two shinobi that were guarding Sasuke's cell, upon investigation they had explained that they were on their posts when strange sounds appeared from inside the room where the criminal was held. It had turned out that he had somehow freed himself from the chains and seals, and had attacked them, knocking them unconscious.

Hinata had quickly understood that the Uchiha had used his genjutsu on them, wiping the memory of her being there that night completely.

Konoha was in panic. For the first time in weeks the people of the Leaf Village were so stressed. Barely anyone could be seen on the streets. Everyone made sure to lock their doors and windows, and not go out until sure that it was safe.

Uchiha Sasuke had managed to escape from his prison. And everyone was afraid that he would want to finish his destructive mission.

"Hinata?"

The girl turned around to see Shikamaru. The man rubbed his neck and was looking rather tired. He was the one that had created the plan of search for the Uchiha. And he was the one that had been handling the procedure the last two days.

"Shikamaru-san, are you alright?"

The Nara took a step forward. "I'll be fine. Naruto asked me to let you know that he wants to see you."

She nodded. "I will be right there."

The man nodded as well and headed to the Hokage building, escorting her. The two kept silent. However, she could see the look he was giving her.

The Nara was one of the cleverest men she had ever met. It was normal for him to suspect, and even to be sure of what had happened. And yet, he had not asked her a single question. He could probably see the whole picture, but didn't want to reveal anything, for the sake of her and Naruto. Sasuke was the Uzumaki's best friend after all. Shikamaru valued that.

He accompanied her to the door and turned to her, his dark eyes concentrated on her white ones.

"See you later, Hinata."

He walked away and she hurried to walk in the office. There were no guards there. The Hokage was completely unguarded. Seeing the blond, she understood why. He wanted to speak to her in complete privacy.

The man was sitting in his chair, which was unusual, and only smiled upon seeing her. This was the first time the two saw each other after Naruto had visited her at her house.

"Please, take a seat."

She obeyed, staring at his blue gaze. Silence fell into the room. Suddenly, the man raised his arms, placing his index fingers on both his temples. His gaze was glued to her. It took her only a second to understand him.

She activated her Byakugan silently and looked at him. Her eyes then shifted to the room and she checked the whole building. To her surprise, it was completely empty. Even Shikamaru had exited it and was currently headed back to his home.

Checking thoroughly, she was absolutely sure there was no one, and nothing that could lead to their conversation being heard. No devices and jutsus, no bugs, nothing.

Shifting her gaze back to him, she nodded and deactivated her kekkei genkai.

Naruto immediately smiled. "Thank you."

She smiled back. "Shikamaru told me you wanted to speak to me."

The smile on the Uzumaki's face faded away and he looked outside the window on his left.

"I understand that you and your men have not been able to discover the whereabouts or any trace of Sasuke after his escape."

"Correct. We cannot find him."

The man exhaled. He closed his eyes for a moment, then looked at her, a very light smile on his lips. "So strange… The Raikage has sent troops to look for him as well. Do you think he might be able to locate him?"

Hinata couldn't help but smile. She could see what the Hokage was doing. "I doubt that. The Uchiha has quite the experience in hiding."

Naruto showed his bright smile to the girl. He looked strangely alive. "Ah, such a painful time to become a Hokage," he laughed and the girl followed. "By the way, did those books I gave you help for what you were looking for?"

The Heiress almost giggled. "Yes. I learned a lot from them. They helped me greatly in a certain task I was struggling with."

The Uzumaki nodded. Using Shikamaru's help, he had managed to locate some old books and scrolls that revealed secret locking techniques, jutsus for chakra blocking and different sealing casts upon cleaning the offices of the previous Konoha Council.

There were a few Hyuuga techniques written in as well, which served as a perfect excuse for the Hokage to show them to the Heiress. Coincidentally, it had turned out that those files were strictly classified, as they contained the techniques, used to lock in prisoners.

"Look, I know that… That he is a bastard. He is a murderer. But… I cannot help and wonder if he will be ok."

He stared at the girl and she understood. This was actually a question.

"As I said, I doubt that he will let himself be found. He is a skilled man. It will be very difficult to locate him. Besides, knowing him, he would go far away from here."

"Aah," the Hokage confirmed. "This would make things too hard for us."

"We might never be able to find him," the girl added, trying to sound angry.

The two then stared at each other, smiling brightly.

"Thank you, Hinata."

"For coming here to meet you?"

"Yes," the man laughed. "For that as well."

She stood up. "Well, I will not lie, it was slightly difficult. But I managed to do it after all."

Naruto clearly knew what she meant. He also stood up and walked to her, giving her a hug.

"I understand," he confirmed. "You do have a tight schedule."

He then stepped back, admiring at how beautiful she had become. He smiled and let the girl leave, staring at her and the way her white kimono brushed the floor.

The man knew that she had liked him before. Many times he had wanted to confront her, to take her on a date even. If he'd had the courage to do that, she could be his girlfriend now. But he was a coward when it came to women and relationships.

And he was glad about this. If he had said anything that led to them being a couple, Sasuke could have been dead now. And the crazy Uchiha deserved some love as well.

Hinata came out of her shower and walked to the mirror on the side of her bed. Wrapped in a towel, she stared at her reflection, the events from the past few weeks running through her head.

Four days had passed since she had successfully managed to help Sasuke escape from prison and Konoha without any trace. She was happy that he was safe.

Then why couldn't she sleep? Night after night, she lay awake in her bed trying to forger the image of his face, the feel of his touch. But it didn't work. She had issues concentrating and her poor sister had to help her with the simplest Hyuuga tasks now. Her sibling was starting to get worried for her health and insisted for medics to check her.

But it didn't have anything to do with physical health. The pain that Hinata could feel came from the heart.

The girl sighed. After the fight with the Demon spirit, after defeating it and saving Sasuke, she had felt bad. Dizziness and nausea engulfed her randomly.

The moment she was left in peace, Hinata had activated her Byakugan, staring at her reflection for minutes. Her lower abdomen was where her eyes were focused. If there was a second chakra in there, she would notice it immediately, as little as it was.

But there was nothing.

As first, she had felt relived. Living in the Hyuuga mansion, with white eyes constantly staring at her, a possible baby would have been a huge problem. It was good that she was not carrying a child.

Then why did she feel so sad? So disappointed?

The girl activated her kekkei genkai and stared at the woman in the mirror, her hand going for her stomach. Despite all the drama and problems that would have followed, she would have been glad to have Sasuke's child.

She sighed and walked to her bed, sitting on it. Her palms cupped her face and she tried to breathe.

She missed him. She missed him too much.

His onyx eyes, his pale skin, his messy hair and his gorgeous lips. The way he touched her. The smirk on his face that appeared every time she blushed.

The way his Sharingan flickered, on and off, the night they had spent together in that small forest hut. The amazing way he lost control of his kekkei genkai when having her.

She took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, trying to ignore the tears she could feel on her fingers. The Heiress knew she was the key to making sure no one would ever find him. Together with Naruto, the man could finally be safe…

Hinata leaned back and let her back hit the bed, her damp hair wetting the silk sheets.

She had let him go. She had no other choice, she had too many responsibilities here. Her clan, her village, her friends… She finally had everything that she had ever wanted.

But she felt dead. Completely numb inside. The time she had spent with the Uchiha had shown her a different way of life, the life of adventure. Of constant surprises. She had managed to learn so much from the man, and had realized so many things about herself that she had been hiding deep inside all her life, only for about a week time with him. For the first time in her existence she had felt so alive.

The Heiress couldn't do this. She couldn't live a life of boredom and monotony, not after what she had experienced with Sasuke. Especially when she knew he was somewhere out there. Alone.

The man was an idiot. He was reckless and too impulsive to care for his well being.

Laughing, the girl sat up and dug her fingers in her wet hair. How could she had let him run away alone?

Hinata jumped on her feet and threw the towel on the ground. The doors of her wardrobe were slammed open and she roamed inside, finally finding what she was looking for.

She pulled a pair of black pants and a black shirt from a bag. The same ones Sasuke had gotten for her back when they were in the Western lands. She had managed to patch up the battle holes on the clothes, and had washed them properly. This was actually the best fighting outfit she had ever had. Her baggy jacket was not suitable for battling. And traveling long distances.

She also managed to find that cloak the man had given her, that was made of this strange material that was both light, but kept her very warm. Putting it on, she hurried to tie it neatly on her neck.

The girl checked herself in the mirror again. She smiled. This made her feel better. Tying her hair in a ponytail, she headed for the small desk in the other end of her room and roamed through the documents on top of it. Finding a blank sheet of paper, she grabbed it and quickly took a pen.

A few minutes later, she stared at the letter, addressed to her sister, with sadness. But she knew she would understand.

Opening the window of her room, the girl jumped out and merged with the shadows. She knew how to leave Konoha unnoticed. And she knew how to go to the Western lands.

Note:

There will be one more chapter.