Chapter four – Mending


And here we are, the fourth chapter. Hope you're enjoying the story! Almost halfway through the daily chapters until I return to something resembling normal. 'The Substitute' will be updated soon too, just need to warm up my writing a little bit first, haha.


After their enounter, Naruto left her alone. He didn't look at her, didn't talk to her, didn't mention her. Thankful that he was no longer after her but also feeling the need to apologize for what she had done to Sakura and Ino, Hinata decided that she would approach the two girls after school. First though, she would need to talk to Temari and Tenten in order to get them to go with her. She didn't know who did what, but Naruto had after all mentioned that they were involved.

"S-so what d-do y-o-you think?" Hinata asked, facing her two "stupid friends" – as Naruto had called them - in the corridor by the lockers. Temari and Tenten looked at each other with looks of confusion, then burst into laughter.

"You're kidding, right?" Temari could barely speak between her hysterical laughter.

"I swear, you're so fucking stupid sometimes!"

When they sobered, Temari wrapped an arm around Hinata's shoulders and started walking. "You know, let's go and apologize to them! Lead the way!"

"A-ah…" Hinata got a bad feeling in her stomach, laughing nervously. "Ab-about that…"

"I can just write to them." Tenten took her phone up and started texting. I didn't think they would be so easy to convince, but I suppose that saves me some trouble…

Tenten and Temari exchanged glances behind Hinata's back, then started making their way towards the cleaning shed behind the school.

"By the way, Hinata, your hair really looks nice now that you have it let down." Tenten said, caressing the strands by her face. Hinata flinched, but tried to mask her growing distrust in their intentions.

"Yeah, you've even decided to apologize for punching Sakura as hard as you did! Even Tenten and I were impressed." They laughed again, but it was starting to feel like they were laughing at her.

When they arrived at the meeting spot, Sakura and Ino were already waiting for them. Clearly terrified, the two girls were pressed against the wall with their heads low.

"Now Hinata, what did you wanna tell them?" Temari pushed Hinata forward with more force than she expected, causing her to stumble in front of Sakura and Ino. They made eye contact for a split second, but the two girls were quick to look away in fear.

"I-I…" Hinata said, straightening herself and looking back at Temari and Tenten. "We w-wanted t-to apologize…"

"Yeah, we're soooo sorry!" Temari exclaimed, clearly overdramatizing her words. Tenten laughed, then proceeded to take out a cigarette and light it.

"Yeah, we're just so sorry, you know we didn't mean anything bad, right?" Tenten said, glancing at them from the side and holding the cigarette to her mouth. "We were just showing you… What was right and what was wrong, right Hinata?"

"U-um…" Hinata looked back at them again, her uncertainty growing. What is it that they're planning? Weren't we going to apologize?

"I-it's okay…" Sakura whispered, clearly just saying what they wanted to hear.

"So you won't tell anyone?" Temari asked, but it sounded more like a threat. Sakura nodded vigorously in response and Temari continued. "Great!" She patted Sakura on the back, then chuckled at her awkward response.

"Come on, we're friends! Right?" Tenten grabbed Ino by the shoulder, to which Ino flinched.

This isn't an apology! Hinata furrowed her brows. They're just threatening them not to tell anyone!

"No." Hinata's voice was suddenly confident again. "We came… To apologize."

Sakura and Ino both looked up at her, eyes full of surprise at her words. Temari and Tenten, on the other hand, did not look happy.

"What are you saying, Hinata? We obviously just apologized." Temari let go of Sakura and took a step towards Hinata, who tried to remain tough in the face of her not-so friend.

Suddenly, Tenten grabbed Ino by the hair and shoved her to the ground.

"Ah!" Ino let out a small shriek as her bare knees hit the gravel. She made no move to get back up however, her head hanging low in fear of what might come next.

"Wha-what are you doing?!" Hinata stepped forward to help Ino, but Temari quickly got in between them and grabbed Hinata by the collar. Huh..?

"I knew you've been acting weird, but this is getting ridiculous. Have you just been acting like this to fit in with us, hm?" She closed the distance between their faces, her eyes glaring into Hinata's own. "And now you're suddenly gonna try to act like you had nothing to do with us?" W-wait… Is she turning on me?

"I-I… I know… That I can't ignore what happened, so I w-wanted to begin by apologizing."

"Cut the bullshit, you stupid bitch!" Temari smacked Hinata across the face and threw her to the ground in a fit of rage. "Who the fuck do you think you are?!" This is not how it was supposed to go…

Hinata looked up at Ino and Sakura, who stood with their eyes shut tightly as if trying to disappear. The fear in their body language reminded her of herself when her father would yell at and hit her. They had been bullied before – to what extent she didn't know – but she knew that this wasn't the first time. The only thing I can do is try to prove to them that I won't do it ever again. I need to make things right, even if I'm going to someday return to the real world and allow the other me to return to her original body. Maybe… Maybe, if I can make this right, she'll also change for the better.

Temari kicked Hinata several times while she lay on the ground. There's no point in fighting them, if I just let them get their anger out, they'll leave me alone.

"Please… Stop." Sakura's tiny voice could barely be heard between all the kicking. Temari paused her beating and looked up at Sakura.

"What, you want some too? Your pretty little face could use some imperfections." She started to walk towards Sakura, but was stopped in her tracks when Hinata grabbed her ankle. "Huh!?"

Temari pulled her ankle away, then pressed her foot down on Hinata's forehead and smirked. "You're one stupid bitch, you know that?"

Tenten laughed and pulled out her phone to film.

"D-don't hit them." Hinata whispered, a hint of blood seeping from her split lip after failing to shield herself from some of the kicks.

"Oooh, okay." Temari grabbed Hinata by her hair and forced her to stand. "So you want us to hurt you instead? You think you can redeem yourself that way?" Hinata winced in pain but held her tongue.

"Are you planning on telling on us, is that it?" Temari held Hinata's face close to hers. "Huh?" Hinata shook her head vigorously. I couldn't even if I wanted to!

"Tenten, why don't you burn Sakura's face with that cigarette of yours?" Temari smirked and turned her head to Sakura. Tenten giggled and complied, smoking her cigarette once before letting go of Ino and grabbing Sakura by the hair.

"Stay still…" She slowly raised the cigarette to Sakura's face. Sakura braced herself for the pain, desperately whispering for her to "please stop".

No, I can't let her do that!

Suddenly, Hinata straightened her palm and smacked Temari flat in the abdomen with an enormous force, causing her to go down on the ground in an instant. "Agh! What the fuck!?" Temari screamed in anger and pain. Hinata then grabbed her arm and twisted until all she could do was scream helplessly.

"Stop." Was all she said to Tenten, who had paused in her movements at the sound of Temari's screams. She immediately did as Hinata said and moved away from Sakura. Hinata let go of Temari, allowing Tenten to run over to her and help her up.

"You fucking bitch!" Temari yelled. "You're fucking crazy!" But Hinata stood her ground, her brows furrowed in determination.

"We'll be back for you, you fucking whore." Temari spoke through gritted teeth, her expression undeniably that of sheer hate. She limped off with Tenten supporting her weight, leaving Hinata alone with Sakura and Ino. As soon as they were out of view, all three of them collapsed underneath their weight.

"A-are… Are you o-okay?" Hinata asked, looking over to them. Sakura and Ino exchanged glances, then looked at Hinata somewhat uncertainly. After a moment of silence, Ino was the first to speak.

"Why did you help us?" She asked. "You've always hated us…"

"I…" Hinata lowered her gaze in guilt. "I-I'm sorry… I just… Wa-wanted to make things… Right…" Her voice grew smaller and smaller until it was barely a whisper. Can I even ask for that much?

Footsteps approached her until they were right in front of her. A hand reached out to her and Hinata looked up to see Sakura smiling kindly down at her.

"… Thank you." Tears welled up in Hinata's eyes and she slowly took Sakura's hand, returning the smile. "You've… changed. Thank you for helping us."

Ino joined in, trying to lighten the mood. "And you can fight!" Sakura giggled half-heartedly, still trembling.

"Yeah… Maybe they'll stop bothering us now."

"So… You really don't hate us?" Ino asked, glancing at Hinata, who shook her head in response and wiped some blood from her mouth.

"I re-really don't… And I'm so sorry for what I-I did to you…"

"I mean, you never hit us… Unlike them." Ino's voice trailed off. "We thought you just kinda looked like you were in a place you didn't wanna be."

"Yeah, you never looked like you belonged with them." Sakura chimed in. "I'm glad you took that step!"

"O-oh…" Hinata responded, surprised. So I didn't do anything to them? Why did that Naruto-san say that he saw me then? Not that it matters… I was still bullying them. But maybe I wasn't such a bad person after all… But didn't Temari say that I hit Sakura? Did she make that up?

"You should go to the nurse's office though, they really beat you up. Can you stand?"

"A-ah, I'm okay. I'll be alright." I've taken way worse beatings before, but I can't exactly tell them that.

Eventually, Hinata parted ways with Sakura and Ino and even though she'd taken a beating from Temari and Tenten, it seemed like their so-called "friendship" was over and she really did get to apologize for bullying her two classmates. Things somehow worked out, after all.

She did however get quite a lot of looks from people on the train along with the most lenient scolding she'd ever received from her father for not calling the police and letting her ex-friends get away with what they did. Nonetheless, Hiashi patched her up and cried several times on her behalf while she kind of just sat there and appreciated his concern, still not quite accustomed to his kindness and empathy. He'd told her to not get into fights anymore, but that he hoped that "the other guys" looked worse than she did.


~The next day~


When Hinata entered the classroom, everyone was talking about Sakura and Ino looking beaten up among themselves. Ino's scratched up knees garnered quite a lot of attention, with a group of people around them asking if they were okay. Hinata's knees and face were covered in bandages, and while many looked in her direction, a mix of pity and fear in their eyes, no one dared to ask her if she was okay.

In the following days, Temari and Tenten had blocked her on snapchat and completely ignored her existence. They turned their backs on her, but at the same time didn't bother her. For obvious reasons, Hinata was back to being the main topic at the school again after the rumors about her being abducted and replaced by an alien copy had just started to die down. People in her class had started to avoid her because of her wounds, and some teachers called her in for a meeting with her father to discuss her school image. Sakura and Ino didn't mention anything about the fight. Neither did Temari or Tenten. The boy named Naruto had given her a hard look when she'd first entered the classroom the day after the fight, probably because of how terrible she looked, but he paid her no mind afterwards. She ate her lunch quietly at her own desk and dedicated most of her time thinking.

Perhaps the Hinata that originally lived in this world wasn't as different from her, after all. She seemed to be just like any other high schooler who wanted to fit in, but ended up with the wrong crowd. She also thought about what was happening in her original world back home in Konoha. It wasn't that she missed it, but did she die at the bottom of that cliff, or had they switched bodies and she's now living Hinata's life? The thought of it terrified her, the other Hinata didn't deserve to suffer like she had. She had been surrounded by love just like Hinata had always dreamed of. Well, at least from the person who mattered the most - namely her father and sister. She really couldn't ask for anything else except for forgiveness from those she had hurt.

Then she started to think, what was she supposed to do now? She was stuck in some strange place where she had everything she could have ever wished for, but life continued anyway. She had studies and a potential future in a new world, but she already had everything she wanted. Should she try to go back?

The bell suddenly rang, waking Hinata from her thoughts.

"Okay, that's it for today. Don't forget to hand in your form for the field trip next term. Your exams are coming up too. Also, don't forget to attend the meetings with me next Wednesday, you'll be…" Kurenai-sensei, as she was called, continued to talk, but it only brought Hinata back to thinking about what her purpose here was. Should I be studying and preparing to live here? I don't know how long I'm allowed to exist in this world. Can I really get used to this life and accept it as my own?

It had started to rain outside, but never had it even come close to raining as hard as it did that day when she escaped from home. The droplets pattered against the open windows and a student hurried to shut them.

Kurenai watched the rain outside, then turned her attention back to the class. "Hope you've brought umbrellas." As everyone began to stand up, some groaned about the weather, others simply laughed it off and joked about how the mentioning of exams causes the rain to come.

"Hyuuga, I'd like for you to stay behind if you have time." Kurenai called out amidst the talking, her voice gentle and reassuring. "I'll be quick." She finished, a small smile on her lips. Hinata nodded in response and remained in her seat.

Once everyone had left, Kurenai quietly approached Hinata and took a seat in the chair next to hers.

"I've noticed that you don't talk to your friends anymore. Are you alright?" Hearing the concern in Kurenai's voice, Hinata lowered her gaze and let out a small sigh.

"I-I'm alright…"

"I know it might be out of my place to say something, but I think you did the right thing. Your grades have also improved. If you continue like this, you might actually make it into a decent university." She reached out a hand and placed it on Hinata's shoulder and cast her a reassuring smile. "You're smart. You can do this."

What a kind person… I've never had anyone believe in me so much.

"Anyway, if you need help with anything, just come to me in my office or talk to me when you see me. I'll be around." Kurenai finished, standing back up and heading to the front of the class to retrieve her things. "I'm not the only one rooting for you, there are others as well who know that you're trying."

Hinata just nodded instead of saying anything.

"I'm sure you'll make friends soon enough. You'll see."

Hinata nodded again, then excused herself and made her way to the shoe lockers. Even though the time she'd spent with Kurenai-sensei had seemed short – only a few minutes or so – Hinata was surprised to see that the shoe area was entirely empty when she got there. She replaced her outdoor shoes with her indoor ones, then headed over to the genkan to put them on. They're all probably celebrating finishing their exams.

As she struggled to put her sneakers on without untying her shoelaces, Hinata watched as the weather outside slowly worsened. The rain grew louder and the rumbling of thunder could be heard in the distance.

"Just my luck…" After all the trouble father went through to remind me to take my umbrella, too. As the rain began to pour, Hinata failed to hear the sound of footsteps approaching behind her.

Lifting her bag above her head as a makeshift umbrella, Hinata took a deep breath, opened the door and ran out of the school towards the gate.

Behind her remained a figure, a transparent umbrella in his right hand. He looked down and the umbrella and sighed, knowing he hadn't possessed the courage to offer it to her.


Another day… Hinata's woke up and found that she was in the same bed as she'd slept in for the last few weeks. The framed photos, the window with the skyline of Tokyo and the warmth of her bed with newly-washed sheets had already started to feel familiar to her. The faint smell of rice and fish gave her the motivation she needed to sit up and get dressed. Just as she was stepping out and about to greet Hiashi, she saw that he was seated at the foot of a small shrine that he had opened, his head bowed and his hands interlaced in a praying position. His eyes were closed and he seemed to be making a wish. Inside of the shrine was a photo of her late mother.

"I don't know what happened to our wonderful dear Hinata… But I've never felt such a close connection to her as I have these last few weeks… You would be so excited, she's like she was when she was just a little girl. She lets me hug her and make her bento boxes, and she is so good with Hanabi, she takes care of her and puts her to bed when I fall asleep too early. She's also stopped coming home with wounds on her knuckles and… And…" He let out a long, sad sigh. "I just… I hope that she's happy. If I can wish for anything, I would wish to just be allowed to hold onto these moments for a little longer."

Hinata lowered her gaze to the floor. Father…

She took a deep breath, stepped back into her room and then made a noise to make a presence known before opening the door and heading straight to the bathroom. Hiashi scrambled to his feet and shut the shrine in a hurry, turning around to greet her.

"G-good morning Hinata!"

"Good morning, father." Hinata cast him a warm smile before entering the bathroom and beginning her skincare routine. He didn't seem to notice.

She didn't seem to notice…


~Later in school~


Kiba propped his feet on his desk and let out a long sigh after their math lesson.

"Man I don't know, I just think it's kinda old to be hating on Hinata these days, she seems pretty kind." He said, glancing over at the meek figure as she struggled with her phone.

"Hm." Naruto opened the window and stared out beyond the school gates. "I don't like her, and I see no reason to change that."

"You're just dwelling on the past, people change." Kiba put his feet back down and turned to Naruto. "Seriously, what is it that you hate about her so much?"

"…" Naruto hesitated. He knew that the reason why Hinata was so beat up that day was because she had gotten into a fight with Temari and Tenten. Sakura had told Kiba that Hinata had actually defended them and apologized for what she'd done. On top of that, she was showing up to all her classes, studying and didn't hang out with people like Temari and Tenten anymore.

He cast Hinata a glance and saw that she was sitting alone in her chair while everyone else was talking to one another. She didn't seem to mind though, instead focusing on reading the chapters for next lesson and looking quite into it. I should think about apologizing myself, for what I said to her.

"Whatever dude." Kiba said, picking in his ear with his pinky finger. "You can dwell on shit, but I'm actually gonna try talking to her."

"Be my guest." Naruto replied while running a hand through his hair, trying to seem indifferent. Why does the thought of him talking to her bother me? Probably because everyone's letting go of everything so quickly. She's a little nicer now, but so what? Should we just forget how she used to be? Yeah, that's definitely it. Seeing Naruto's reaction, Kiba let out a small 'tsk' and rolled his eyes.

"By the way, you've been in such a sour mood lately. It's like you want to hate her. Don't you have anything better to do?"

"Get off my back, Kiba."

"Just sayin'."

"Okay class, while you were talking, I wrote up your new seating placements. Come and get your number, pick up your desks and chairs and get a move on." Kakashi-sensei was as monotonous as ever as he spoke to the class. "Also, someone needs to help move in the gym materials later today. Next gym lesson will be indoors because of the coming rain."

Everyone groaned at the mention of "help".

After getting her number, Hinata began moving her desk towards the window. As soon as she placed her desk on the floor, she proceeded to retrieve her chair and seat herself in her new spot. Next to her, someone let go of their desk with a loud bang, and Hinata immediately turned her head in surprise.

"Oh, it's you." That disgusted tone. That blond hair. Those blue eyes.

Hinata turned her head back and looked outside of the window instead. On the outside it appeared like the perfect "cold shoulder", but on the inside she was panicking.

I've never done that to anyone before, let alone a guy! I can't believe I did that! He's going to hate me even more now!

"O-kay…" Somewhat taken aback, Naruto cocked a brow and redirected his attention to the front of the classroom, locking his hands behind his head and stretching his feet out underneath the desk.

At a distance, Kiba and Choji were watching them. "They really don't get along."

"Remind me why though?" Choji asked quizzically. "I mean, all the reasons he had for not liking her are gone."

"That's what I'm saying!" Kiba wanted to embrace his new desk partner. "It's like he's just made it his thing now!"

"I mean, she's really cute, too." Immediately after saying this, Choji dropped the chip he was about to put in his mouth. "Oh!"

"Yeah, I said the same thing and Naruto went all like-" Kiba changed his expression and voice to one mocking Naruto. "No, she's not."

"Hahahaha, that was a perfect impression of him!"

"Hehe, I've been told my impressions are top-notch…" Kiba smirked, rubbing his nose proudly.

"I can hear you, you know…!" Naruto pursed his lips, then threw a piece of paper at them.

"Well, that solves the first candidate. Thank you, Uzumaki-san." The class burst into laughter at Kakashi's words, while Naruto moaned in annoyance and cast his two friends a death glare.

"Secondly…"

"I hear Hinata wants to." Temari suddenly spoke up while looking at her nails nonchalantly. Immediately the laughter died down and everyone started to mumble to themselves and friends.

"That was unnecessary..."

Naruto watched in the corner of his eye as Hinata sank down into herself. Well, it's not like I wanna work with you, either!

Just then, someone unexpectedly spoke up.

"I can do it instead of Hinata." Sakura suddenly raised her hand, followed by Ino.

"I can help too." Hinata's head shot up and she looked over at her female classmates in surprise.

Why would they…

Kakashi tilted his head in confusion. "Suddenly everyone wants to be with Uzumaki-san… We really only need two though, and I'd say that Hyuuga-san and Uzumaki-san need to learn to get along better, so let's keep the original plan. Understood, you two? You should work on your communication – all you ever do is fight."

"But sensei-" Sakura tried to protest.

"That's final." Kakashi ended the conversation and moved onto the class without allowing any more interruptions. Naruto and Hinata briefly made eye contact before quickly looking away from each other.

Why do we keep running into each other… Hinata sighed to herself. I just want to live a normal life in this world without him in it…

Why do I have to work with her again… Naruto crossed his arms and furrowed his brows, a bitter frown forming on his lips.


Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Who could the figure with the umbrella have been, I wonder?