Author's Note: So, this is a story that I just started thinking about when one of you lovely readers suggested that I start another NaruHina fanfic! This one is called Exorcist if you remember the title from my NaruSaku days.
Exorcist: Chapter 1 – Smile
She rubbed the back of her neck as she continued to listen to their professor give his lecture on the advancements that Exorcist have gone through since the beginning. She noticed some of her classmates were already asleep and she could tell their professor didn't care considering that all of them had gone out and maintained a Demon Gate and prevented it from expanding before higher level demons could escape. She could hear snickering coming from behind her from the group of girls who had been bullying her since she was five.
"Looks like she discovered concealer to hide the Mark of the Devil," one of the girls whispered, all of them laughing louder now.
She looked at her hand and noticed the concealer on her hands. She blushed and quickly wiped her hand clean with her handkerchief before letting her hair down to cover what she'd exposed.
"If you don't mind keeping it down ladies, I'd like to continue with my lecture," their professor looked back at the girls, all of them stopping immediately. "Hinata, do you mind explaining what happened at the first opening of Hell's Gate please?"
She stuffed her handkerchief into her bag, "The first opening of Hell's Gate happened twenty-five years ago when the Nine Tailed Demon Fox Kurama descended on Konoha, his master Kushina Uzumaki on his back. Together with their army of demons, they destroyed fifty-percent person of the center of the Exorcist Community; they would have destroyed more if it wasn't for our Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze coming in and stopping the attack all together."
"And what happened with Minato Namikaze after that?" their professor questioned, all of his students looking at him considering that Minato Namikaze was a touchy subject for most Exorcist of his generation, some more than others.
She swallowed, "He disappeared…Kakashi-sensei."
"Right," Kakashi folded his arms. "Minato Namikaze disappeared after he managed to not only wipe out what remained of the army on the outside of the center of the Exorcist community but also managed to force Kurama back through the gate. No one knows exactly what happened to him after that, all we know is that a body was never found. Now, the second opening of Hell's Gate, Sakura if you don't mind."
Sakura pulled some hair behind her ear, "At the second opening of Hell's Gate fourteen years ago, all of the Tailed Beast escaped. Eight of those nine picked host that we now call Jinchuuriki who serve as the bridge between Humans and Demons. There were rumors that a boy was spotted on top of Kurama while in Konoha but there are no pictures to prove that. Other rumors say that it was Minato Namikaze himself because of the blonde hair and that he had reverted back to being five but like I said, those were just rumors."
"Thank you Sakura," Kakashi stood up from leaning against his desk. "We've gone fourteen years without an opening of Hell's Gate and no major issues with the monarchy in the Demon Realm. After each of these attacks we lost a lot of good men and women but we gained useful information in our fight against Demons. As of now, both governments have learned to stay out of the way of one another as a peace treaty was made after that attack and we gained the necessary bridge to connect our two Realms: the Jinchuuriki."
"Sensei," one of his students raised his hand. "Why didn't the ninth demon pick a host that night?"
"No one knows for sure why the ninth didn't pick a host," Kakashi shrugged. "Some would call him a free spirit; others say he was prevented from entering the host of his choice or that he already had one at the time of the attack."
"Sensei," the girl behind Hinata raised her hand. "If that's true, then why does Hinata have the Mark of the Devil on her back? It matches perfectly with the one in the text book that belongs to the Nine Tailed Demon fox Kurama?"
"Instead of being her host maybe she's his whore?" her friend said aloud, all of them laughing together.
"I guess you would know a thing or two about being a whore, wouldn't you Miyazaki-san?" Sakura smiled and everyone else laughed in response.
"What was that Forehead?" Miyazaki stood up and snarled, her eyes focused on Sakura.
"Ladies," Kakashi cleared his throat and both girls sat back in their seats. "Thank you, I would like to avoid having to pay for damages in this room again," Kakashi looked at his tablet. "You're all free to go for the day. Don't forget to study for your exam this Thursday and don't forget to train for your physical evaluations this weekend. Some of you may not be returning to Alpha Class if you continue to slack and not give your all at evaluations."
"Yes sir," they all said in unison before seeing him wave his hand, his signal that he was done and that they were free to leave.
Hinata sighed and began to gather her belongings.
"Hey Hinata," Miyazaki quickly sat on either side of Hinata with her friends. "Why don't you come with us somewhere for a little while. We want to talk."
"I have to be somewhere," Hinata felt her hands begin to shake like they always did when Miyazaki and her friends came this close to her.
"Oh come on," Miyazaki's partner in crime Minami pouted as she linked arms with Hinata. "It shouldn't be too bad if you come and hang with us a little while right?"
"She said she's busy," Sakura walked over, all of Hinata's bullies glaring at her. "Leave Hinata alone and go bother someone else."
"It's no wonder you can't get a boyfriend Haruno," Miyazaki saw Sakura flinch. "With an attitude like that, it'd be a miracle if you ever get married."
"Beat it!" Sakura watched as all the girls stood up and left the room laughing. She sighed and looked at Hinata, "You would think that after we all graduated high school that they would quit with their antics right?"
Hinata nodded quietly and looked down at her concealer covered handkerchief. Sakura noticed and took the handkerchief away, "Sakura-chan?"
"Come on," Sakura adjusted her bag on her shoulder. "I need to teach you how to put on concealer that won't rub off that easy."
Hinata gave her a small smile, "Thank you Sakura."
Sakura smiled back and left the classroom with Hinata. She could see people were glancing at the two of them but most of their eyes were on Hinata. Hinata kept her head down as she walked, their stares making her uncomfortable still despite them doing this to her for the past fourteen years. Sakura was one of the few who didn't treat Hinata different after Hinata received the Mark of the Devil that was only a small crest on the back of her neck at first but every year the crest developed a partner on October 10th; the fifteenth addition hadn't shown up yet.
"Hinata," Sakura saw Hinata look up at her. "Don't worry about them okay? You're one of the best Exorcist in the world, don't let a set of eyes discourage you okay?"
Hinata nodded in agreement. It was true that Hinata was a part of a group of top tier Exorcist and had been since she was in high school but of course all the credit for her hard work and development over the years went to her Mark of the Devil. They said she was using Demon Magic to enhance her abilities and climb the ladder in the Exorcist world, none of them believing her claims of training for hours and hours on a day to day basis just to keep up with her classmates.
"Are you going to the vigil?" Sakura questioned and immediately regretted asking because of the look Hinata had on her face. Every year they held a vigil for those who died during the first and second opening of Hell's Gates. Hinata had tried to show up for the first vigil on the one-year anniversary and was chased out by grieving families, their wounds still fresh after a year.
"I'm staying home," Hinata forced a smile. "There's no need for me to go to the vigil."
"Right," Sakura sighed and linked her arm with Hinata's. "Don't get too upset tonight okay? I can come by after I leave the vigil and we can sit up and watch movies while eating ice cream?"
"You don't need to do that," Hinata waved her hand. "I know that Ino's throwing a party tonight so don't skip it because of me."
Sakura sighed, "Hinata, I really don't mind skipping out on a party to hang out with you. Ino's just going to end up making out with Sai the entire time. And then there's Tenten and Neji, Karui and Chouji – which I still don't understand how that happened – and a bunch of other couples. And then Ino said she invited a bunch of single guys and I really don't want to deal with getting hit on the entire night."
Hinata giggled, "I feel like you're skipping the party more for your benefit than mine Sakura-chan."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Sakura smiled. The two of them stepped outside and they could see a group of girls huddled together, all of them red faced and gushing over something they were looking at. "What's going on?"
Hinata tried to look with Sakura but there were too many girls in the way for them to see. She felt Sakura push herself up by using Hinata's shoulders and when Sakura came back down, her face matched those of everyone else in the crowd.
"Get out of here," the girls turned and could see Kakashi walking down the front steps with several other teachers behind him. "Class is dismissed for the day, head home."
"Kurenai-sensei?" Hinata saw Kurenai was behind Kakashi and noticed how she glanced at her and back at whatever the crowd of girls were gushing about. It was the first time Kurenai had given her that look and it worried her, "Something's not right."
"Hinata?" Sakura looked at Hinata and noticed how she clutched the blue stone necklace around her neck and began to breathe heavily. "Hinata what's wrong?"
flashback
"You're a monster! Why can't you just die to pay for the sins of the demons you court?" a woman threw water on Hinata, an angered look on her face as tears streamed down it. "You don't deserve to live!"
Hinata could only sit there in shock as that woman was joined by others who yelled the same thing if not worse things. The water being thrown turned into dirt, then trash, then rocks. She hadn't cried yet but the longer she sat there, the worse she felt and the best she did to try and keep herself from having them see her cry but she was only five. When she began to cry and scream, the crowd stopped and looked at her with horrified faces.
She continued to cry and scream. She was in pain from the rocks that hit her. She was in pain from what people were yelling at her. She'd been in pain from being branded as an outcast for something that wasn't her fault. She was in pain from the burning that was against her back that started at the back of her neck and seemed to travel down to her shoulders.
"She's summoning a demon!" one person shouted. "Kill her before it manifest!"
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Hinata opened her eyes and saw someone new standing in front of her. He was a giant compared to her five-year-old self and she saw his spikey red hair was tied back, his hands in his ripped jeans with chains hanging off them and black leather cuffs around either wrist. He wore a white shirt underneath a black vest and from what Hinata could see, he wore a smirk on his face and a confident look in his eyes.
"Who are you?" one man shouted as he stepped forward despite his knees shaking.
"You can call me a guardian," he licked his lips and the man took a step back. "You've made her cry so I can only think of one way on how to repay you for that cruelty."
Hinata sniffled and watched as a young boy about her age landed in front of her. She recognized the head full of blonde hair and three whisker markings on either side of his face, his blue eyes shining just as they'd done the first time they met a year ago, "Naruto-kun?"
"Hinata," he pulled her up from her knees and spun around in a circle with her. He giggled and grinned until he stopped and the two of them sat back down again, Hinata's back to the people who'd just been yelling at her. He wiped her cheeks and saw her blush a little, "Don't cry."
She sniffled and nodded quietly.
"It looks like your mark spread again," Naruto smiled and saw Hinata look at him in confusion. "I can't explain it. But like I said a year ago, I'll be back for you."
Hinata felt Naruto pat her head and she suddenly felt better. She sniffled and felt Naruto pull at her cheeks. She patted his cheeks and whined, "Naruto-kun."
Naruto let go and saw Hinata blush at the sight of his grin, "I have to go now."
Hinata looked at him in confusion and watched as Naruto was picked up by the taller man. She looked up at him and saw Naruto sat on his shoulder, "Don't leave me alone."
"I promise to come back," he pulled the necklace he had around his neck off and handed it to the man who's shoulder he was on.
"Keep this," he leaned down and saw Hinata hold out her hands to accept the necklace.
"We should go Kurama," Naruto pat his head. He looked down at Hinata, "Hinata. Smile."
Hinata looked up at him and saw Naruto was grinning down at her. She smiled up at him.
flashback over
Sakura sighed as she continued to hold onto Hinata's hand and watched as some of the top medics in Konoha continued to try and purify the Mark of the Devil on Hinata's back but every time they touched her with Holy Water or any form of Pure Magic, Hinata would scream from the intensified pain.
Hinata bit her lip as she clenched Sakura's hand tighter at the latest application of Holy Water to her back. She was already crying and she'd already torn the sheets from pulling on them too hard. She'd already passed out from the pain twice and despite that, they still tried to purify her Mark of the Devil.
"Sakura-chan," Hinata's voice came out choked and she saw Hinata look at her, "please."
Sakura nodded and looked at the medics, "Can we stop this already? It's clear that it's not going to be lifted through simple purification and she's already dealing with enough pain."
The medics looked at one another before they all looked towards the door. Sakura looked up and watched as the best Purifier in the history of Exorcist walked into the room, "Tsunade-sama?"
"Sakura," Tsunade smiled at her and then looked at Hinata's back, steam rising from where they'd placed Holy Water over her mark and burns in other places that they hadn't healed yet. She stood there staring at Hinata's mark for a while before waving her hand, the medics from earlier quickly leaving the room and shutting the door behind them, "Sakura, can you hold Hinata down please?"
"What are you going to do?" Sakura stood and watched as Tsunade pulled a vial off her belt and pulled the cork out from the top of it. "Tsunade-sama you can't do this to her. She's already been through enough."
"The mark is still spreading and if we don't stop it then it's going to kill her," Tsunade held the vial over Hinata's back before looking back at Sakura. "Now hold Hinata down."
Sakura looked at Hinata and saw the pleading look in her eyes. She then looked at Hinata's mark that was starting to spread to her arms and further down her legs, "I'm sorry Hinata." Sakura put her hands on Hinata's shoulders and she watched as Tsunade poured the liquid from the veil directly along the markings, Hinata's screams more piercing than they were before.
Hinata tried to move but the liquid seemed to be burning into her back. She couldn't hold back her cries and screams of pains as Tsunade continued with her purification ritual. Without thinking, she screamed out one name, "Naruto-kun!"
Sakura looked at Hinata in confusion before she was knocked back and hit the wall next to her. She groaned in pain and held her head as she waited for her vision to clear, the blurry figure of a tall male with black hair approach her. She clenched her eyes shut and shook her head before she opened them again to see the tip of a sword inches from her neck.
"Hold."
She watched as he stopped the blade from entering her neck, the tip of it barely touching her skin. She looked up at him and noticed his pitch black eyes that matched his hair, his face expressionless as he stood there with a sword to her neck. She looked pass him and saw someone who was about the same age as the male in front of her, his hair short and blonde and his eyes bright blue with whisker markings on his cheeks, a concerned expression on his face as he looked down at Hinata.
"Don't touch her!" Sakura shouted and felt the tip of the sword press against her skin.
"Hinata," he kneeled and moved some hair out of her sweat covered face. He noticed how heavily she was breathing and he felt a slight sense of relief when she looked at him, "I told you I'd come back for you didn't I?"
Hinata looked at him for a moment before closing her eyes, "Naruto-kun."
To Be Continued…
