Sealed
XVIII

Author: Ms. Trick

Note: Reviews make my life. No seriously.

Chapter 18

"Their security really is laughable, isn't it, Sasori-danna?"

The puppet-master merely swished Hiruko's tail through the tall grass. The outer wall of Konoha was spread about two hundred yards in front of them and a pair of chuunin were languidly patrolling alongside it in the afternoon sunshine.

Hidden by the sleeves of his cloak, the mouths in Deidara's hands wetly licked at his palms in anticipation.

"We'll wait until nightfall," Sasori growled.

"Mmm. The one-tail won't stand a chance. And if we're lucky, we might even be able to land our hands on that nine-tails jinchuuriki that's been giving Itachi trouble, yeah."

"You talk too much."

Kabuto had never seen Orochimaru this angry.

Enraged howls and the violent sounds of furniture being obliterated emanated from the snake sannin's gloomy quarters. Biding his time in the corridor, Kabuto was already calculating the third best candidate for Orochimaru-sama's next body. The first was Sasuke-kun, of course, and the second had been Hinata-chan, but with both those options out of the picture for now, he needed to start thinking ahead.

The scream of some misguided servant and then the wet sound of bloody limbs splattering to the floor reached Kabuto's ears. The medic-nin merely pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, wondering who had been brave or stupid enough to approach Orochimaru-sama right now. In the state the sannin was in right now, Kabuto wouldn't be surprised if even he was attacked upon entering that room.

Sasuke's abrupt return to Konoha had been a nasty blow, though not entirely unexpected. Orochimaru had only smirked at the time, confident that the Uchiha's perfidy would be a temporary crisis of conscience. Because he knew Sasuke; he knew he'd want more power at some point because Itachi was still out there and Konoha couldn't offer the kind of power Sasuke needed to complete his blood mission. Orochimaru could give him that power.

Sasuke-kun's marriage complicated things far more than anticipated, Kabuto mused sullenly. He mulled over the progress of the Akatsuki's hunt and wondered if discussing that with Orochimaru-sama would improve his mood at all. After all, should the Akatsuki obtain Sasuke's demon-wielding husband, it wouldn't be outlandish to assume Sasuke would return to Orochimaru's fold, desperately searching for the power necessary to get him back.

Kabuto allowed himself a grim little smile before slowly approaching Orochimaru's quarters, his glasses glinting in the candlelight.

Opening the window was a good move on their part, Kakashi thought to himself as he took in the scene.

Naruto and Sasuke, still looped with bandages but thankfully both in clothes, were dozing on the hospital bed nearer to the door. Their limbs were flopped over each other's sleepily, like a pair of puppies, as the curtains fluttered in the light breeze.

Despite the open window, Kakashi could still smell the sex, but he attributed that to his remarkably good nose. Looking at the two ninja on the bed, their powerful muscles relaxed and their countenances unguarded, the jounin couldn't help but reminisce back to his first day as their teacher. He had restrained himself from scoffing at the wobbly-legged genins he had been assigned, which took considerable effort as he had been saddled with a weak and lovesick little girl, an antisocial brat with a superiority complex, and a wild child who never stopped to think and wasn't used to looking out for others in addition to himself.

Maturity's a weird thing, Kakashi thought, mentally appraising the abilities of his students now.

"He's not leaving," Naruto snickered. "Maybe we should stop pretending to be asleep."

"An excellent idea, Naruto, as the Godaime will be in here in a few minutes," Kakashi commended.

Sasuke stood and stretched gingerly, keeping much of his weight off his injured leg.

"Where're the others?" Naruto queried, rubbing at his eyes.

"In the hospital," Tsunade's voice supplied.

The men in the room turned to see her leaning against the door jamb with her arms loosely folded.

"Everyone?" Naruto asked, worry clear on his face as Tsunade approached them.

"Neji, Chouji, and Kiba will all need a few days to recover. But Gaara and Lee haven't returned yet. And Shikamaru, Sakura, and Temari obtained little to no injury."

"And Hinata?"

Sasuke nearly cringed at how much Naruto's heart bled. The blonde's concern was so bare in his voice. If Sasuke was into introspection, he would have realised that his irritation stemmed from Naruto dropping his defences without a moment's thought. Sasuke himself had learned the harsh way what happened when the whole world knew what you cherished.

But Sasuke avoided in-depth introspection when it came to being irritated with Naruto. So he just tch-ed and glanced out the window.

"Yes, she's also in the hospital under firm custody. The protective seal will be re-cast around Orochimaru's mark as soon as she's strong enough. And she'll be marked with a locator seal too," Tsunade said, her hazel eyes sliding to meet Sasuke's.

Naruto looked between them, confusion furrowing his brows. For a second he forgot about Hinata.

"Locator seal?"

"Seriously?" Kakashi deadpanned.

Tsunade blinked and resisted the very un-Hokage like urge to smack her palm to her forehead. Sasuke rolled his eyes and reached down to tug at the leg of his sweatpants. He raised it, revealing a few inches of pale skin and a dark, intricate tattoo of black kanji that wound around his ankle like a snake.

"How long has that been there?" Naruto yelped.

From the vexed look Sasuke gave him, Naruto concluded that it had been there for quite some time. Indeed, the clean edges indicative of a fresh seal were long worn. Naruto silently fumed at his lack of awareness. How did he not notice a seal on his lover's body?

Returning to a standing position, Sasuke lengthened his spine and met the Godaime's gaze.

"The blame cannot lie completely on Hinata's shoulders," he stated clearly, bringing Naruto's attention back to the kunoichi's predicament.

"Yeah!" He blurted out. "She's way too nice for this to have been just her!"

"Even nice people get desperate, Naruto," Tsunade sighed.

"He's right in a way. Orochimaru's seal is deadly because it puts his idea into your head, and it sounds real, it makes sense. You believe it's your own, because it sounds like your own, but it's actually your idea infused with a murderous intent that wasn't there before."

The blonde woman kept her gaze even but critical as she studied Sasuke, weighing this information. She pondered about the merits of the knowledge this teenager could provide her concerning her former team mate. She didn't doubt that Sasuke had told her everything relevant to the immediate situation, though if she decided to be harsh, she could rebuke him for not providing this information before this incident occurred.

She considered the heavy, heavy possibility of requesting a mission for Sasuke that would not only risk his life but the village's. Was bringing down Orochimaru worth such a risk? Tsunade closed her eyes, too exhausted to come to a conclusion today.

Despite the volumes of thought, all she said was, "Thank you, Sasuke. I will take that into consideration."

"You knew?"

"Of course I knew," Ino snapped, snapping her platinum ponytail over her shoulder.

"What are you going to do?" Sakura asked, tired but curious.

She sat on the linoleum floor in the shadow of a hospital bed, her arms around her knees and her prickly best friend beside her. Both their backs to the wall, they stared out the window opposite them when they didn't want to meet the other's eyes.

"I think...I'll stick with Shikamaru."

"Despite--"

"Yes, despite it!"

Sakura nodded in acceptance but her eyes were dull and pensive. Ino sat up a little straighter as she watched Sakura stare into space.

"Man," Ino said, her tone now softer, "You really liked Temari."

"I still do," Sakura whispered, her chin sinking onto her knees. "I thought she liked me too. Could that have been an act?"

"I doubt it," Ino said, shifting uncomfortably on the floor. "I bet she likes you too. But I mean, you knew she wasn't a lesbian. I kinda didn't think you were, what with the whole Sasuke thing."

"Even if we're not lesbians, I thought she'd at least have the respect to..." Sakura swallowed. "I didn't expect it to be so..." She paused again and her eyes found the window lit by the late afternoon "...I didn't think it could hurt this much."

"It might still work..." Ino proffered.

"No," Sakura stated calmly, her posture and tone regaining some strength. "No, I don't think it's going to. She doesn't like girls."

"And you?"

"I don't know. I liked her. I liked Temari."

"Like you liked Sasuke?"

Sakura went quiet and Ino took a moment to rub her thighs, which were going numb.

"Not...exactly like I liked Sasuke. Being with Temari was like having a really great girl friend that I was allowed, um, go further with."

"That's not really life-partner material though, is it?" Ino commented without spite.

Sakura made a small noise of agreement and then a resigned sigh escaped her lips. Ino extended her long legs and then stood, reaching her arms over her in a great stretch. The light pouring in through the window like honey bathed her in warmth and she turned to look back down at Sakura still curled up in the shadows against the wall.

Ino held out her hand and Sakura took it with little hesitation, allowing the blonde to haul her to her feet.

Neji looked down at his cousin's pale face, blocking out the sounds of the IV drip standing guard next to her bed. Hinata's inhales and exhales were deep and even, the breathing of someone under sedation. This was nothing like the choked and bloody wheezes that had wracked her after her defeat at his ruthless hands in their first chuunin exam.

His eyes rested on her clammy but unblemished forehead and a realisation flared up in his poised consciousness: how weak he'd been...had Hinata truly desired to defeat him, all she would have needed to do as a member of the main family was activate the seal on his forehead. The pain would have rendered him unable to complete the match.

Surely the thought had crossed her mind, Neji thought, a frown forming. Hinata's intentions to improve herself were truly noble if she'd face him without even considering using the one thing guaranteeing her to win. A rare grimace graced his lips and he gently tugged the crisp white sheet up over her shoulders until the cotton edge was brushing her chin.

What had happened to that noble, shy girl? He wondered, smoothing the sheet's edges as he contemplated just how much Hinata had suffered in silence and just how far she must have been pushed to seek out someone as vile as Orochimaru. Impulsively, he reached out and brushed three fingertips across her left cheek's red Inuzuka marking and in his mind, promised his cousin that she would not have to suffer in silence any more.

Then he turned and quietly left her side and then the room. The two jounin guards on either side of the door kept their eyes on him as he exited and strolled down the hallway towards the imposing figure of Hyuuga Hiashi, who was standing icily at the corridors' intersection.

The clan head was also spotted by Naruto's blue eyes. Approaching from a different direction than Neji, the blonde's gait picked up a hint more speed. Sasuke let himself be tugged in that direction due to the odd, barely-touching two-fingered grip Naruto had on his hand.

"Calm down, dobe. It's not like Hinata's going anywhere."

"Yeah, yeah, you're worried too, you cheat. Otherwise, you wouldn't have argued so hard in her favour in front of the Old Lady."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and grumbled, "It's only because I don't want her actions to reflect badly on me."

As they got closer to Hiashi's white-robed figure, their hands instinctively drifted out of the other's and they then noticed Neji standing tensely in front of his uncle.

"No, she must suffer the consequences of her actions the way her new family dictates. I'm not going to simply march in there and grant my forgiveness. I'm not going to visit her," Hiashi droned.

"You probably should," Neji intoned coolly. "She did this partly because of you."

Naruto's skin prickled as he caught the end of the two Hyuugas' conversation and the frosty staring match that entailed. Hiashi turned without any hurry and casually strolled away from Neji, whose anger only found expression in his clenched fists.

"Naruto. Sasuke. If you'll excuse me," Neji said shortly, bowing in acknowledgement before also taking his leave.

"Man, intense family," Naruto mumbled. "No wonder Hinata went off the deep end. I betcha Kiba's family would be scary to live with too. I mean, Hana-nee-chan's awesome but their mom! And all those big dogs. Ne, Sasuke, where's Hinata?"

"I imagine she's anywhere except behind the door where the two ninja are posted as guards," Sasuke drawled, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Naruto stuck his tongue out as he walked backwards away from the dark-haired ninja. He spun on his heel when he neared the door and saluted the two jounin on duty. They nodded briefly and Naruto jauntily marched between them. Sasuke casually made to follow but then Naruto re-emerged with a baffled look on his face.

"Hey, I thought you said Hinata was in here," he inquired, scratching the back of his head.

The pair of guards suddenly snapped to attention and pushed past Naruto into the room, only to find an empty bed and an open window with the curtain swaying in front of it.

"Shit!" One of them bit out before they both raced from the room.

Time sped up and Naruto suddenly found himself jogging alongside Shizune as well as he could with his injuries, frantically checking every room in the hospital for the missing Hinata. He yelled her name into every door he could open (including janitor closets), all the while his breath was a little shorter than it should have been.

When they got to the staircase, a harried Sakura and Ino reported that they hadn't found her either but had roped at least eight other people into searching. Then the four of them raced in opposite directions, Shizune and Naruto clambering down the stairs.

Where? Where? Where? Naruto thought, his thoughts scurrying away from him. Home? Would she go home? Not Orochimaru?!

He zipped down the ground floor and joined several others leaving the hospital in order to expand the search. He ran panicked in the direction of the Hyuuga compound before skidding to a halt and turning towards the part of town where the Inuzukas lived. He tried to keep up his usual pace but when his gut began to pulse uncomfortably, he slowed to a jog and pressed a sweaty hand into the bandages loosening around his middle.

The huge Inuzuka house finally loomed into sight ahead and Naruto noticed Tsunade's blond head immediately. The Godaime was standing by the large, wooden entrance gates with her arms crossed. As Naruto drew near to her side, she turned and looked at him and he saw a smile playing at her lips.

"Hospital garb is in today I see," she commented wryly, eying his outfit, which consisted of strained bandages and sweatpants.

Bamboozled, Naruto "Huh?"ed at her sartorial humour and felt even more out of the loop when she merely smiled wider. He opened his mouth to yelp out the news of Hinata's absence when he glanced past the Hokage to see Kiba's mother, Inuzuka Haekoe, shifting her weight awkwardly on the wide stones of her front walk.

The reason for her discomfort was on the ground in front of her, kneeling with her forehead to the ground. Wrapped in her hospital gown and trailing bandages, Hinata was repeatedly begging forgiveness of her mother-in-law. She bowed again and again, her dark hair falling a little more over her shoulders each time.

Now Naruto knew why Tsunade was smiling and he felt happiness and relief bubble up inside him. Hinata desired the forgiveness not of the Hyuuga, not of the father whose cold treatment had driven her to Orochimaru, but of her new family. She begged forgiveness not out of tradition, but out of her heart.

"...for not only being disloyal to the village but to you, Inuzuka-san, and your family. Forgive me. I will work harder than ever before. I will be a good daughter-in-law and a good wife to your son. I will provide you with as many grandchildren as you desire--"

"Alright! Alright!" Haekoe yelped, her face flushed from the show of formal subservience. "Get up already! This is getting embarrassing."

Laughter spilled out of Tsunade and Naruto, the tension so vivid only seconds before dissipating into the golden evening.

Author's Note:

Um...don't hurt me? I'm SO sorry I've neglected my writing for the last six months. Let me put it this way: my boyfriend and I just celebrated our 6 month anniversary and no, it's not a coincidence. But I promise I'll do my best to finish "Sealed" and continue "Akatsuki's Brats" because even though sex in real life is awesome...Naruto is still kinda orgasmic. ;)

Thanks A MILLION CUPCAKES to: Hasamaki, Kyorose, Heaven Cobra, Tirra Lirra, VescaWithoutWings, Gonrie, Mistress of Sadikus, KaiPhoenix, pixiegirl100, Clemen, Adi1, michelerene, coldfront, TimeForTea, arisa0, Nikotehfox, dustori, FREAKSHOW1, Kai'sgrl, Teldra, Arella no Renyel, Akako-Chan, sydneydallas, yin-yangwinds, Animartchic, cypher away, MayIFall, kikilani555, stormseaker, Hidden behind the words, StoicSol, x-Xanti-x, tazzy186, Mumsi, Kyuuka-koinu, shyalchemist, Insane Author, SoSickOfNyQuil, and DemonEclipse.

Ant Power – Wow, thanks so much! Hope you got some sleep in the end. ;)

CherryShadowZ – Heh, well, Koori was kind of completely oblivious at the time. And as for the loophole, I'm going to go ahead and call that my best work. Because I'm really not fond of labeling the uke and the seme seeing as Sasuke and Naruto are both rather seme personality-wise, I think. Thanks so much for the reviews!

Alley-Oop – "Out of It" was NaruSasu, I believe. And "Akatsuki's Brats" may turn out to be NaruSasu, though like I mentioned in the comment right above, both Naruto and Sasuke are such complicated characters, it's tricky to just say NaruSasu or SasuNaru. And thanks majorly for that comment on the lemons. They're tricky to make sound original just because it is so easy to fall back on clichés. Good to know I'm making some headway. Heh, again, thanks so much!

db's cache – Ouch. Though I have to admit, I appreciate the honest criticism. You pointed out some really key errors, and you were specific, which is helpful. I'll work on improving my writing but you better put your money where your mouth is and write something fantastic of your own. Again though, thank you for taking the time to properly critique my story.

Emerald Gaze – Thanks so much for all those reviews!

Eks – Thanks for giving my story a chance. :) Much appreciated, of course!

Hardcore Heathen – That review made my day. Seriously. And you're dead on with the end of semester crap--way too time consuming.

deep breath Geez...maybe I should ask you guys to review less. lol

-Ms Trick