Pain's agonised laugh seemed to clash against the evening hum of Tokyo nightlife. "So this is the power of the Kyuubi. It's a pity it's wasted on y—"
He was cut off by the tightened grip around the column of his throat, black spots beginning to polka dot his vision.
It was that stamina of his; that relentless vitality that kept him fighting, trampling wherever he liked. In another world he might have made a good teammate on his killer squad; with his dark hair and ferocious expression he could even pass as Itachi's cousin.
He glanced at the beaten guards clustered around them in the alleyway before taking in the heaving of his killer's chest and limbs. If there was any consolation for this mess, it was the fact that he sure as hell hadn't gone down without a fight.
"Wow. This is a fantastic proposal, Hinata. Keep up the good work and you could be put up for promotion again."
She smiled, bowing politely before his desk. "Thank you, Kou-san."
"I never would have thought someone with your...background could be so efficient. It's a pleasant surprise." It was unclear whether he was referring to her primary gender, her status as the disinherited Hyuga heir, or her designation. Regardless, the backhanded compliment did not alter her expression, and her bow remained rigidly formal. "Thank you."
She continued through the motions of polite small talk with her supervisor, then exited his office, heels clacking as she strolled to her desk to gather her things.
When she had first presented, Hinata had been an extremely sensitive Omega tumbling into multiple heats each month, and she had often fainted from overstimulation caused by scents. But over time she had come to realise that her designation suited her just fine. She did not have the charisma required to become the next Hyuga head and unlike Neji she was too compassionate to engage in the shady dealings of the subsidiary yakuza business; as an Omega, she had been automatically disqualified from many expectations early on and freed from the pressure she often felt within her family, which took a weight off her shoulders.
Being born a Hyuga had also given her immense privileges others may not have had. As soon as her secondary gender was confirmed, she had been transferred to an expensive Omega-only school, allowing little opportunity to be harassed by Alphas, and by graduation had successfully incorporated an arsenal of tools to help her dissolve into society and live independently. Her heats had metered out, and were now an infrequent disruption in her life, only descending two or three times a year for brief two-day stints.
With a limited social life, she had dedicated her free time to her work, rising slow and sure through the ranks of the accounting department to become deputy head at the age of twenty five. It was gratifying to know that although she would never become the next CEO, she had at least earned a steady life for herself, something that not many omegas could say.
The wind rustled her face mask lightly as she stepped out of the glittering skyscraper, hopping from foot to foot in thought. It was that point in the year when summer was still clinging onto the air, but the chill of autumn was beginning to filter in. Perhaps she could take a stroll home instead of the subway...
She walked down the entrance steps, beginning the walk through the Tokyo after-hours streets. A victim of overtime culture, the city remained bustling with people even at such a late hour, and salary workers buzzed about, impatient to get home.
It was a little chaotic, but somehow calming too. Sometimes she felt like a leaf drifting in the air, guided only by the strength of the breeze. It was as if she woke up each day to kill time; to divert her attention before some seminal event occurred in her life.
She had just stepped in front of the alleyway when he crashed into her.
"Ano...excuse me—"
She started, awkwardly trying to hold the tall man upright. She looked down at her blouse, and cursed inwardly when she saw it was now splotched red.
Her arms tried to push him back but he was a brick wall, chest firm and unmoving against her frame. She sighed warily, not wanting to draw attention to herself. The one day she decided to walk home she had to deal with a half naked, injured drunk.
"Excuse me sir...please...let go of me. You're injured."
He grunted in response, stumbling further forward until his nose nudged along her neck, pausing at her scent gland. She felt the air there sweep into his nose as he breathed her in, his own scent diffusing into the air as his chest purred in satisfaction.
Smoke. Sandalwood. His scent was thick around her, making her knees fold despite the fact that she was both wearing a face mask and on premium suppressant medication. It held a certain familiarity that prodded at her, but recognising individual smells were more of an Inuzuka clan speciality.
Alpha. At her murmur he drew back, fingers curling away from her arms. In a momentary daze she blinked, not immediately understanding she had spoken aloud. She had not experienced such a visceral reaction to an Alpha in years, had believed her inner Omega had been rendered mute.
Now that she could assess him properly, she took in the marks on his cheeks; shaggy hair drooping past his ears; slightly tan skin.
"Naruto-kun." She gasped.
He had grown up. Presented. Shed the baby fat from his face, those distinct birthmarks of his resembling curious battle scars rather than feline whiskers. Where before there had been a negligible height difference between them he was now an imposing, hulking shadow over her form. Though dishevelled, his suit was exquisitely tailored, and she could see its fabric pull taught over his toned shoulders as he struggled to breath.
His silence seemed to convey nothing but vague disappointment. He said nothing as her wide eyes roved over every part of him, quietly questioning his black hair - she remembered him being blonde.
It was the first time she had seen him since the day she had presented in school. Did he remember her? Did he know that she had once believed they were true mates?
Even in his state, he was so guarded she felt unsettled; his flat blue orbs would not give anything away. How much could someone change in ten-odd years?
On any other day she would have shoved the man away and skittered off the rest of the way home. However something in those cold cerulean eyes stirred her foolhardiness.
Deciding to help him, she led him to take a seat on the curb as she flagged down a taxi.
The doctor stood before her scribbling away on his clipboard. She could tell he was an Alpha - the faint smell of burnt
coffee tingled at the back of her throat - and he was the type of Alpha who clearly felt omegas were good for one thing and one thing alone. His lips made the shapes required to give an update on Naruto's status, but his eyes showed dismissal. He must have thought giving her an explanation was a waste of his time.
"Well, he's resting now, but he only had minor injuries. What he's suffering from is exhaustion." Her brows crinkled. "But there was blood all over him. It even got on me!"
The doctor laughed at her naivety. "Yeah, there was blood all over him. It just wasn't his."
She was taken aback. Had he been in a fight?
"Anyways, as you are not his immediate family, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. We'll take it from here."
Her lips parted, then clamped back together tight in frustration. It seemed he was going to make her beg. "Look, I know him. We went to elementary school together. Can I please just...check on him? To make sure he's okay?"
She cast him a long look, hoping something in her colourless eyes would resonate with him. He stiffened a little, then relented with a long exhale. "Fine. You can take a look at him through the window to his room. Just stop doing that...thing with your scent."
Hinata balked, unaware she had been emitting signs of distress. Just how frazzled had the whole experience made her?
She tailed him as they walked through various wards until they reached their destination. Peering through the glass frame, she could see Naruto in his bed, the various tubes and wires connected to him making him look like food trapped in a spider's web. The visual did not sit right with her.
She glanced up at the doctor to her right. "How long will he have to be like this?"
"Not long. He should be back on his feet in another day or two."
She turned back to Naruto, saying nothing. He was making minute movements with his fingers in his sleep, as if
responding to their words.
Then he let out a breath, shifting to lie on his left side, and through the open backside of his hospital gown she finally
saw it. The intricate head of a fox roaring across his spine against a field of mottled grey clouds of smoke. That tattoo...it couldn't possibly mean...
"He's yakuza." The doctor supplied for her. "We looked into his identity using the wallet we found."
Her next breath was shaky as it was expelled from her lungs. She could not say she was a stranger to organised crime - after all, that was the unofficial area of focus for the subsidiary that Neji controlled. A yakuza didn't become a kumichou without breaking a few ribs here or there. What made her apprehensive was that the Naruto she had helped was now a stranger. A stranger who happened to be her Alpha.
She shook her head, hoping the reality check would dull her rising blush. To think she had thought they could be mated! This was above her now; getting involved with the yakuza would be nothing but trouble. "I...thank you. For letting me check on him."
As she re-adjusted the strap of her handbag, an indifferent look descended over her face. There was no use dwelling on the past, no matter how it nagged at her. "I'll be on my way now."
Obito scanned Menma's form. Even swaddled in the cot, his muscles remained tensed in anticipation of battle, hinting
at the frightening strength he held within. "I see you're feeling better."
Menma merely scoffed, sapphire studs glued to the grey morning skyline outside.
"They found Pain's body. Konan and a few other lackeys were heavily injured, too. Good job."
He paused, waiting for a reply. When he did not receive one he pushed on. "The Akatsuki will be weakened. They
won't be able to interfere in our plans."
"Aniki." His voice was crusty with its recent lack of use, and he had to cough a few times to sooth his throat. "The
girl...who is she?"
"The one who brought you here?" Obito guessed. He had already investigated this himself; as a potential witness she
may need to be dealt with. "They say she had long dark hair and colourless eyes. She didn't give a name but I'm assuming she's a Hyuga."
An itching sensation was beginning to develop at the base of his neck, where his scent gland rested. His fingers yearned to scratch it, but he could not expose himself in front of Obito. He was a perceptive Omega, and the slightest tell would raise alarm bells.
She had known him...from before. He remembered that much. There was only one Hyuga who could make his react like this, reduce him to a shivering pool of Alpha instinct.
He connected eyes with Obito for the first time since he had arrived. He would deal with this himself, the way he had every other obstacle in his life. Even if the voice in his head telling him to claim her as his own increased to a deafening crescendo.
Children were always creative in their methods of torment. The latest game in the Academy had been one designed to filter out those with an Omega designation, and make a mockery of their station.
Naruto, an Alpha, had been the first in class to present. As such, he had also been the first to realise that something was off about the quiet girl at the back of the classroom.
She had always been strange, following him around in devotion like a golden retriever bringing back a tossed stick. But now she was even shiftier, self-consciously rubbing her hands over her arms and passing out when he entered the classroom.
To pick out the Omega, all you had to do was reach out for the nape of their neck, and observe their reaction.
Naruto waited until they were alone after school, on the final day of their assigned cleaning duty.
She was a mess: dropping chalk from the board which would require more sweeping, bumping into desks which would
require more arranging, skin a furious red that would not go away.
As she turned to brush yet another broken piece of chalk into the dustpan, he reached out to brush the pads of his
fingertips against her soft, ivory nape—
His hand stung with the force of the slap she aimed at him. She was panting, flushed, quivering and all of a sudden she
was all he could smell. Milk, honey and something musky, particular to her alone, that he realised he had been scenting for some time. Something within him swelled with pride at his Omega's response. She wanted him, was ready for him. She needed him.
It was the clang of the broom against the floor that calmed his thoughts and tempered his spreading pheromones. She had run away from him, left the classroom.
Hinata did not show up to school the next week, or a single day after that. They said that she had presented as an Omega, and transferred to an Omega-only school. Life went on for Naruto.