Chapter 9
"Do you mind if I cut in?" asked Ariko.
Kakashi looked down at Hinata and noticed that she seemed to be flustered by Ariko. She agreed and proceeded to withdraw from his arms but he felt himself tightening his grip. He had been enjoying the dance.
Despite his displeasure Hinata walked away from them and threw a look over her shoulder at him almost apologetically. Probably for abandoning him to his ex (not technically yet) in the middle of a public dance floor. He sighed inwardly mentally steeling himself for what lay ahead and held out his hand to Ariko. She grasped it firmly and instantaneously placed her other hand on the back of his neck, as they had done so many times before when they danced together. He felt inklings of guilt seep in as he realized that she might get hurt by the news of his engagement.
They swayed together in harmony which he normally would have enjoyed. But he looked around to see if the guests were observing them. For the purposes of this mission this didn't look good. Ariko is a passionate woman, if he were to break the news to her here she was likely to make a scene. He pondered his options as they swayed together and finally closed his eyes in defeat trying to enjoy the dance until he could get her out of this crowded scene to talk.
Her tall lithe figure was familiar to him, she fit against him nicely and she was as beautiful as ever. Everything would have been great if not for the fact that a familiar spark was missing. Plus he suddenly found her perfume to be overwhelming. He looked discreetly around missing Hinata.
He could see from his peripherals that she was by the refreshment table. She had picked up a snack and a glass of sake and settled herself into a spot where she could watch them. He didn't know why, but her attention pleased him and he smiled gently until Ariko got even closer and tilted her head into his face as if trying to lay her cheek against his in affection. He moved back from her putting some distance between them and she looked him in the eye displeased.
"What is going on, Kashi" she asked sharply. "You show up in my country without a word... that I can understand. But you show up with that girl who looks like a child and everyone is saying that she is your fiance. What is going on?"
He definitely disagreed that Hinata looked like a child but voicing that opinion wasn't particularly helpful right now. "Not here" he said, looking at her meaningfully. The dance was finishing to a close so he skillfully spun her to the corner of the dance floor looking for an opportunity to slip away to a private area. He threw one last look at Hinata in case she was watching them to give her a cue that he was okay. But he watched her being led to the dance floor by the young and attractive heir of the Kawazaiwa clan. His eyebrows furrowed in displeasure but he didn't stop to think why the sight of Hinata dancing with someone else displeased him. Instead he turned sharply and disappeared in a flash followed by Ariko. They were skilled shinobi so the exit was seamless.
The Mizukage's compound was located in a remote area of the town and there was a dense layer of woods surrounding. Ariko and Kakashi walked deeper into the woods only stopping once they reached a secluded area.
He had never ended a relationship before... so he found himself wishing now that he had given this a bit more thought during their trek over here. He hadn't anticipated running into her this soon, she was almost always dispatched on missions. Just their luck he supposed. He also realized his thought patterns about breaking it off with a woman he spent the last 5 years in a relationship of sorts with was very cold and calculated.
Well...he wasn't known as a bastard for nothing, but his gut still twisted and churned with some absurd sense of honor. Perhaps there was still a heart buried somewhere inside of him.
"Well Kashi" she stood in front of him with her arms crossed "'I'm waiting".
"Ari..." he started helplessly, "you know I've enjoyed and valued our friendship immensely over the years. I know we have a casual relationship and neither of us were exclusively seeing each other… but I still feel guilty you had to find out about Hinata like this. For that I am really sorry".
She arched her eyebrow, "So you are actually engaged to her?"
"Yes," he said simply.
Her mouth dropped open and she gaped at him for a few seconds before continuing on with a scoff, "What the hell Kashi! How is that possible... I have never met a man who was as against marriage as you are. If I had known you were going to change your mind I would have pursued that option with you myself" she said heatedly.
Kakashi swallowed nervously at that... well, this was awkward. Yes he definitely did not want to get married but it seemed like her feelings for him have grown beyond what he had realized.
"Ari... Hinata and I were assigned on a mission together about two months ago. We got to know each other very well over that time and we fell in love. It's not something I planned on... it was sudden and took me by surprise too. I'm really sorry for any pain I caused you. She is the heiress of the Hyuga clan so we had clan issues to work through the last few months before we were able to get engaged so I didn't have enough time to write to you before getting assigned this mission. I figured we could talk in person".
She stared at him standing still, strong and silent and he caught the glimmer of tears in her eyes. Shit! now he truly felt like an ass. Making a remarkable women like this cry was low. He wanted to go and hug her because she looked so alone. But he held himself back.
"I see. Were you caught in a compromising position or something with her?" she tried to ration. "Were you forced to get married, I just don't get why you would suddenly change like this? And how could you fall in love with her over one mission when we've been together for over 5 years? I guess you never felt anything for me all along!".
He was astonished that the calm and rational woman he knew her to be was acting like this. "Ari... I thought we were clear that we had a casual arrangement, I knew you were seeing other people too" he said in a gruff voice now confused.
She stood still as a rock for a few more seconds before dropping to her knees crying. He couldn't leave her alone like that anymore so he went to her wrapping her up in his arms while she clung to him. They stayed like this for some time.
By the time Kakashi dropped her off at home and made it back to the gala it was late. His mood had also soured quite a bit. Watching Ariko cry like that had taken a mental and emotional toll on him and that he wasn't used to. Even though he was in the middle of a mission all he wanted to do was crawl into a bed and sleep. He couldn't find Hinata at the soiree and assumed she must have gone back to their room. Feeling defeated he headed back to their suite to find her. But she wasn't there... crap… Where was she?
He headed back to the Mizukage's compound in a rush. Once he got there he checked the dance floor, inside the dining area, by the pond, by the forest side, inside the library, in the ladies lounge (he peaked), and eventually he found her sitting in a secluded flower garden overlooking the mountainous terrain. She was alone and he breathed a sigh of relief seeing her safe. He put out a hand to steady himself against the tree trunk next to him. For the normally stoic Kakashi this night was proving to be very trying.
He watched her from a distance for a bit trying to regain his equilibrium. Her hair that had been pinned into a bun allowed him to see her long and elegant neck. Her Kimono looked luminescent on her and from the way she was sitting, he could see the gentle dips and curves of her figure. Her face was turned up and the gentle string light decorating the garden bounced off her highlighting her beauty.
He silently crossed to the bench and sat next to her. "I've been looking everywhere for you".
She gasped and turned to him flustered "I'm sorry Kakashi, I slipped away from the gathering for some fresh air…" she paused looking at him gravely "how did it go?"
"Rough" he said slouching. The weight of the situation and the guilt of hurting Ariko sinking even deeper. "I thought it was a casual arrangement for her, but it seemed like she had read a bit more into our relationship than I had thought. That was the first time I had to break someone's heart like that".
She placed her hand on his shoulder as a gesture of comfort and squeezed and he turned to her grateful for the support. He nodded indicating to her that he was going to be okay.
"I'm sorry that this mission has created such a mess for you" she whispered. "I found something interesting though when I was walking over here." She explained while reaching into the pocket of her Kimono. "I found this parchment on the ground. It seems to be a torn piece of paper but it has this symbol in it that I haven't seen before. A circle with a swirl pattern inside and a line drawn across it."
He took the small piece of paper she handed over and looked at it thoughtfully… well this was interesting. "Thanks Hinata, I will look into this," he said as he tucked the note into his pocket.
She stood up and offered him her hand. "You look exhausted. Come on let's go back to our rooms and get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day". Her face was serious indicating she meant business. He interlocked his hand with hers as they quietly started walking back to the compound in a comfortable silence.
After they got to their rooms she gently removed his mask and undid all the ties to his robes slipping his clothing off his shoulders. He was confused as to what she was doing but was in no mood to continue their lessons. He was about to speak up when she pushed him towards the washroom insisting he have a quick wash.
He followed her directive and had a shower after which he slipped into the bed. Hinata tucked him in tightly and started turning to leave.
"What are you doing? You are supposed to be sleeping in here".
She slightly tensed and turned to him. "I was thinking maybe to give you some space tonight, I can sleep on the couch".
He scoffed "Obviously not, that's not necessary. You better wash up and come right back, I won't sleep until you do".
She nodded and left to wash up. It was about 30 minutes later when she too slipped into the bed and true to his words he had waited for her to settle in beside him before he drifted off to sleep.
.
.
The next day Hinata woke up confused as to where she was. Upon taking in her surroundings the events of the last few days came rushing back to her. She wrapped her robe securely around herself and walked to the kitchen as she smelled coffee. Kakashi had put a pot of coffee on. He seemed to be in the shower so she made herself a cup of coffee and stepped out into the terrace to look at the misty landscape. She was so absorbed in the scenery that when a pair of strong arms wrapped around her she jumped.
Good thing most of her coffee was done.
"Did I scare you?" Kakashi asked with amusement. Hinata relaxed and snuggled deeper into his chest tucking her head next to his. He smelled incredible like sandalwood.
"Hmm" she said in the way of a reply. They stayed like that for a few more minutes before Kakashi kissed her on the cheek and gently reminded her they are due at the summit for breakfast soon. She rushed to get ready while Kakashi started preparing for the meetings ahead.
Hinata opted for a simple black dress today that was fashionable but also business like. It was a fitted gown that had three quarter sleeves and ended right below her knees. She paired the dress with a dainty necklace and black pumps. She looked at the simple silver band that was her engagement ring (for the duration of this mission) a bit pensively before slipping it back on for the day.
When they arrived at the summit they met dignitaries from Kirigakure as well as some of the other nations who had been at the party the night before. There were also a few new people who had gotten in this morning. After some light chit chat, they moved on to have breakfast before breaking off into smaller working groups.
They spent the morning in a room with officials from Kiri identifying the Bilateral and Multilateral agreements they would need to look at during this trip. Kakashi had already marked up some documents and given them to her, which she reviewed as he was overseeing the correct identification of all the agreements to be in their scope of work for the week.
When lunch came Kakashi was pulled off into a conversation by a group of ministers. They seemed to be old friends of his so Hinata surveyed the buffet alone trying to figure out what to grab for their lunch.
"Hello there, I don't believe we've met" came a gruff voice. Hinata looked up suddenly noticing that someone was standing next to her.
"Hello" she said with a deep bow recognizing from the robes that this had to be an important person. "I am Hyuga Hinata. Nice to meet you".
"Nice to meet you, I am Hirohito Jun, one of the Daimyo under the Kirigakure territory".
Hinata's mind raced trying to place him but she couldn't. Unfortunately this man gave her a very uneasy feeling and she suddenly wished Kakashi was close by.
"I hear that you are soon to be Hatake Hinata?"
Hinta smiled hopefully with what looked like excitement before replying "Yes, Hirohito-sama I am engaged to be married to Kakashi-san".
"Ah what a rascal, I never thought Kakashi would get married" said the older man with a calculating look in his eye, "But I suppose you are no ordinary girl eh?" he continued with a glint in his eyes as he looked her up and down leeringly.
Hinata shuffled self-consciously not knowing what to say.
"He's been carrying around with one of our Kunoichi for god knows how long, but this is auspicious news indeed".
Hinata felt her stomach churn unpleasantly as she struggled to decide what to say and as her awkwardness grew she felt her smile become fixed on her face. Thankfully a familiar arm soon draped around her waist and she felt herself relax.
"Hello Hirohito-sama" Kakashi said in a chilly voice. Just from that tone she could tell Kakashi was no fan of his.
"Ah Kakashi, Hello, Hello, I was just getting acquainted with your lovely fiance here" at that Kakashi's hand tightened around her waist almost protectively.
"I wanted to invite you both for dinner at my house tomorrow, a few of the dignitaries from other nations will be there too". This was a prime opportunity for them to continue their investigations so they gladly accepted the invite. And the Daimyo slinked away with no further comments.
"Are you okay? he's not the most pleasant man to talk to...".
"A-ano yes I am okay, here I made us a lunch plate. Since you aren't allergic to anything I grabbed a little bit of everything." Hinata stammered. Despite her words of reassurance she had been very much shaken by Hirohito-sama.
Kakashi smiled and grabbed the plate from her hands as they walked off to find a spot to sit. They spent a pleasant lunch hour chatting about various things that had happened in the morning. She hasn't been a part of negotiations of this nature before so she had a lot of questions for him and Kakashi was patient in answering all of her inquiries. Before they even realized the lunch hour was done and they were to be in separate meetings for the afternoon. Kakashi gave her a quick kiss, a masked kiss of course, before he went to find his meeting room.
Hinata had a little bit more time before her meetings started so she went to a nearby boutique to grab a few pajamas that was appropriate for the chilly climate here. In the end she bought a silk printed pajama pant with a soft pink top and another fleece pajama set because of how cozy it looked.