Last Time:
Ichiro was silent.
"Silence? Really?" Minato said.
Kushina rolled her eyes as she stepped pass Ichiro and took a seat on the couch beside Kakashi. "You should've told him what he wanted to know Ichiro," Kushina said as Kakashi and Obito stood to their feet and pulled Ichiro to his feet while Minato began unbuttoning his white collared shirt.
"Wait! Minato, just wait!" Ichiro began to plead as Minato carefully laid out his shirt on the nearby table and remove his wedding ring. "You don't have to do all of this!"
"Oh, I'm not doing this because you decided to stay silent," Minato answered as he made his way back over to Ichiro and held his head up. "I'm doing this because you spit on my shoes."
Opposites Attract: Chapter 15 – "The lengths at which one will go…" (Part 1 of 5)
"What happened yesterday evening at our ball was indeed, quite upsetting," Hiashi spoke firmly with a straight back as he stood before the press wo ad gathered on the steps of Hyuuga Enterprise that morning. "But I would like to inform you that that young man – who shall remain nameless – is doing much better and receiving the necessary treatment before he is released from the hospital."
"Do you have any idea how Styx could've gotten in in the first place?" one reporter shouted over her colleagues.
"It could have gotten in in any number of ways," Hiashi began. "All the security footage from last night has already been turned over to the Konoha City Police Department and through their investigation, I'm hoping they'll be able to find the perpetrator and get them off the streets as soon as possible. Styx has been plaguing Konoha City for weeks now and it can only get worse from here."
"And what about the money for charity?" one reporter called out. "Last night's ball ended before any bidding or donating could be done; how do you plan to account for last night's losses?"
"There is already a plan in the works for holding another Charitarian Ball before the year is out; this time in collaboration with Namikaze Minato of The Sannin Group and Uchiha Fugaku of Uchiha Incorporated. And that is actually the conference call I need to be on soon so if you'll excuse me," Hiashi waved to the press before turning and making his way up the rest of the steps and heading into the building.
On the other side of the First Ward, Minato muted his TV as the impromptu conference ended and switched back to their respective anchors in the studios. He tossed the remote down onto the sofa beside him and checked his watch. "So," Minato made his way over to his large L-Shape desk and took a seat in his plush desk chair before making eye contact with his son, "do you want to tell me why you're here and not in school?"
Naruto sat silently for a moment. He noticed his father's bandaged hands, some blood seeping through them but despite that, his father went on as if nothing were wrong. He cleared his throat and adjusted his green and black plaid tie before straightening his back. "What happened last night?"
"Last night?" Minato repeated, his confusion believable.
"After you and Okaa-chan left the party," Naruto clarified and saw Minato's eyes darken ever so slightly. "You haven't been to sleep, have you?"
Minato sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Naruto-kun," he crossed his legs and propped his head up on his hands, "your mother and I had some business to handle that involved Watanabe Baji. And things ran a bit longer than we had originally anticipated so no, I haven't had a chance to sleep yet. I hoping today doesn't require too much of my attention so that I can sneak away and go to bed."
"You're not telling me everything," Naruto pointed out.
"You're right," Minato agreed. "I'm not telling you everything because this situation has become much more serious than I originally thought it would be. Watanabe Baji is a dangerous man and I would prefer if you kept your distance for the time-being. Once the situation is handled, your duties within Whirlwind will continue as normal."
"My duties shouldn't have to be altered in the first place," Naruto argued. "I'm supposed to take over after you decide to step down; you can't just decide that I'm not allowed to participate in this. Whirlwind is just as much my family as it is yours and if we're being threatened, I want to do everything I possibly can to make sure we're safe. Baji not only threatened Sakura but he threatened Hinata," Naruto explained, his fist clenching around his slacks, "I can't just let that go."
"I'm fully aware of what Whirlwind means to you but there will come a time when you have to let your own child sit on the sidelines and out of the way for their own safety," Minato spoke firmly and Naruto clenched his teeth. "I don't doubt Baji said some things about Lady Hinata that rubbed you the wrong way. And I certainly don't doubt he said some things about Sakura-chan that make you want to wring his neck and watch the life drain out of his body. But you need to understand that you can't just go chasing after him simply because you're angry. It'll lead to mistakes that'll leave you scarred or even dead."
"So, you really expect me to just stand by and do nothing?" Naruto questioned.
"Exactly," Minato said with a smile, the light returning to his eyes. "In the meantime, you need to start looking at cram schools. At least look at three to five of them that can help you on your college entrance exams," Minato advised as he shifted his eyes to his computer monitor. "I know you're looking at Konoha City University and you're going to need to score pretty high on that entrance exam if you're going to get in. I'm sure Sasuke-kun and Hinata-chan are willing to help you study but I would feel a little more comfortable if you attended a cram school. Also, don't forget that you're also taking the entrance exams for Fire Country University and The Land of Tea and Honey University."
"Yes sir," Naruto muttered before standing up and snatching up his satchel.
"Please, go to school," Minato called as Naruto began to make his way to the door. "Second period is going to start before you get there, you can probably make it by third? I'll let you skip third but you better be there by the end of your lunch period and stay for the second half of the day, understood?"
"Understood," Naruto answered as he waved the back of his head.
"When I get home tonight, we'll get everyone together and head over to Ichiraku," Minato said as he dialed a number on his desk phone. "It's been a while since we saw Teuchi-san."
"Sounds good," Naruto replied as he opened the door. "Have a good day," he said politely and left out the office before his father could respond. He let out a heavy sigh and scratched his head in frustration.
"Young Master," Anko called and pulled Naruto out of his momentary frustration, "do you need me to call anyone to come get you?"
Naruto shook his head. "No, it's fine. I drove here."
"Ah, I see," Anko said before smiling at Naruto. "I never got the chance to thank you for watching Kosuke-kun for Kakashi-kun and I last night. We really appreciate you doing that for us."
"It was nothing, really," Naruto said slightly embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his head. "I'm just glad that you and Kakashi are alright. Sakura-chan and I were worried since you guys were out late. Iruka-senpai said that you all didn't get in until four this morning?"
"Ah, yeah," Anko confirmed with a little bit of a nervous laugh. "We were all out a bit later than we had originally anticipated but everything worked out in the end. But you really don't have to worry about us."
"If you say so," Naruto said. He noticed that Anko was about to say something more before they both heard a ding come from her desk phone. She slid her chair over and pressed a button before answering.
"Yes, Vice Chairman?" Anko spoke professionally considering the setting.
"Naruto-kun," Minato sang, a bit of irritation in his voice, "go to school."
Naruto stiffened and quickly turned on his heel and marched to the elevator. He caught the next one going down and as the doors closed, he could see Anko giggling. He smiled and rolled his eyes, a bit of relief coming over him at the sight of his family being all right after not knowing their condition all last night. And, for a brief moment, he was okay with being left out of the Watanabe Baji situation. A brief moment.
"There you are," he spoke calmly despite their location. "I was wondering when you were going to come down from your father's office. To be quite honest with you, I almost went up to his office myself."
Naruto stood there quietly, his blood boiling at the sight of Watanabe Baji standing there in the parking garage and leaning against Naruto's car. Standing just a few feet away from the teens spotted a little over a week ago at Zabuza's club, all of that snickering and chatting amongst themselves as though it wasn't a serious situation.
"What are you doing here?" Naruto questioned.
Baji stood up and smiled. "I wanted to speak with you about something. As you know, your father isn't exactly the easiest person to speak with since he has that whole, 'holier than thou' persona about him that he practical oozes when he's the other Namikaze Minato."
Naruto clenched his teeth and fist.
"Wait? Would you know anything about the other Namikaze Minato?" Baji questioned aloud. "I suppose you wouldn't, there's no need for you, his son, to see that side of him. The side that made him famous in the first place and the side that keeps him in his position of power when it comes to the Dark Side of things."
"My father probably already knows you're here," Naruto warned.
"I don't doubt that for a second," Baji said with a simple shrug. "But like I said, I'm not here for him, I'm here for you. I just needed confirmation on something; I'm sure you can help me with that."
"Confirmation of what?" Naruto questioned.
"Let's see," Baji thought for a moment before snapping his fingers a couple of times, the girl Naruto recognized as Tayuya hopping off the car they more than likely arrived in and scurrying over to him. She pulled a tablet from the backpack that hung off her shoulder and happily handed it off to Baji. "Ah, here we go. Hyuuga Hanabi. Her birthday is March 27 – that's the day before Sakura's – and she's a seventh-grade student over at Konoha City Academy at their middle school. Seems to be an outstanding gymnast, champion chess player, champion flute player, overall quite the outstanding young lady but that's to be expected from a Hyuuga I suppose. They've always marched away with sticks up their asses for as long as I can remember. She's the younger sister to Hyuuga Hinata, correct? The cow-chested young lady who performed the other night?"
Naruto remained silent.
Baji chuckled. "Thank you 'Young Master.' That's all the information I needed. I just wanted to make sure we were aiming for the right girl before I picked up someone who wasn't going to be worth anything to me."
"What're you talking about?" Naruto questioned as he tried to march over to Baji but was stopped by the young men who accompanied Tayuya.
"I wonder how far Hyuuga Hiashi would go to make sure his daughter was returned to him safely?" Baji questioned.
"Don't you touch her!" Naruto shouted and was held back by Kidoumaru and Jiroubou, the two of them snickering as they forced Naruto to his knees.
"Oh, don't worry, she's not my type," Baji squatted down in front of Naruto and pat his cheek. "I just need her for a little bit of leverage against some powerful people. You know, you'll be surprised what people will do when they're pushed to the brink of desperation. You see, Hyuuga Hiashi is the kind of man who relies heavily on image but before that, he cares deeply about his daughters. You can say it's because they're his flesh and blood, his family, his lifelines but they're really just there to carry on his legacy and represent him. Now, if I were to kidnap Hanabi, his last hope, he'd be desperate to get her back because there's no way he can get his wife pregnant again to get another heir and he's not willing to hand everything over to his nephew."
"What do you mean his last hope?" Naruto questioned, his heart racing.
Baji smiled and held up his tablets, pictures of Hinata and Naruto together covering the screen. "When I say his last hope, I meant his last hope. Seems the eldest Hyuuga Daughter is a bit disobedient and I'm sure he's not going to be too thrilled once he sees these pictures. Ah, and it's already too late, I emailed them to him already from a private account. He should be opening them after his phone conference with your father and Fugaku."
"You've been following us this whole time?" Naruto shouted as he tried to pull away from Jiroubou and Kidoumaru. His eyes focused on the picture on the night of the Kurama Festival when he finally confessed to Hinata. "You creep! If you think for one second you'll win, you're wrong!"
"Oh, but I've already won," Baji explained. The two of them could hear sirens in the distance and a sadistic smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. "Have you got her?"
Naruto's eyes widen. He tugged harder and watched as Baji nodded and wore a proud expression on his face. "What did you do?"
"Just picked up my leverage is all," Baji answered. He lifted Naruto's face so that their eyes met. "You might want to make your way to Konoha Central Hospital. Seems the extraction got a little messier than anticipated and there's been an accident."
"Young Master!"
Naruto could hear Yahiko's shout in the distance followed by the sound of running. "Yahiko-nii!"
"I guess that's the end of our visit," Baji stepped back from Naruto and watched as Kidoumaru and Jiroubou released Naruto for a second before the lot of them began to kick and stomp on Naruto. With the delay, Baji used the time to climb into a nearby car and pull out of the garage. Once he was clear, the lot of them climbed into a car of their own and were out before Akatsuki came onto the level they were on and make it to a bloody and beaten Naruto.
"Young Master!" Konan was the first to reach Naruto as she knelt beside him and helped him sit up. She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and held it to his forehead.
"Itachi, Kisame, go to the security suite and see if you can get their license plates," Yahiko requested as he tucked the handgun he'd been carrying into his back belt and pulled his shirt down over it.
"You two were supposed to be watching him," Nagato scolded Deidara and Sasori, the two of them looking slightly embarrassed.
Deidara folded his arms and looked away. "He slipped out from under our watch and before we realized it, we didn't know where he had gone."
Sasori opened his mouth to speak but quickly pursed his lips when the elevator doors opened and Minato stepped off. They all bowed respectfully and made way for Minato as he made his way to Naruto who he careful looked over before letting out a sigh of relief.
"Seems like your injuries aren't too bad," Minato said as he wiped some blood from the corner of Naruto's mouth.
"I have to go to Konoha Central Hospital," Naruto demanded as he began to stand.
"Central Hospital?" Minato repeated as he stood with Naruto. "Why would you need to go there? Your injuries aren't bad enough to need that serious of medical attention. Naruto-kun, slow down a second."
"Hinata's there!" Naruto shouted.
To Be Continued…