By: CrystalinElf
Chapter 6
Blood.
Something was wrong.
Very, very wrong.
She stood in a field of roses that stretched as far as she could see - each flower in perfect bloom
and shining darkly with the crimson liquid. The smell of roses and blood mixed in the air
assaulting her senses, and she trembled violently with the effort to stay upright, when her
body wanted very much to fall to its knees and rid itself of everything she had ever eaten.
Shadows twisted at the corners of her vision, menacing figures that seemed to be people who
were both human and animal, ranging from snakes to cats to wolves to spiders and other
things she couldn't make out. She couldn't see them when she tried looking at them; she
could only see them with her peripheral vision.
She knew that the shadows didn't like her, and felt that a couple would have liked to kill her.
She had no idea what they didn't try to do just that. Her mind shied violently away from
trying further to comprehend the shadows and she fell to her knees, blood instantly
soaking through the thin fabric of her nightgown.
Warm blood.
Hands clasped her mouth as she realized just how fresh the blood must be, to remain so warm.
Several people must have been violently murdered here for there to be so much bright red
blood.
And yet…
She saw no bodies.
The lack of any bodies frightened her even more. She willed herself to be strong, to stand back
up, and to not cry. Her body refused to obey, kneeling stubbornly in place as tears slid
down her cheeks.
A chill breeze ruffled her hair and dried her tears as they fell, and the flower in front of her
began to glow. Slowly, the petals of that flower turned black - not black as though the
flower had died and rotted, but as if the rose had simply been black to begin with.
The breeze seemed to bring with it an eerie laughter and as she continued to watch the black
rose petals fell off the flower, blown high into the air by the breeze. Her sight now directed
upwards she trembled even more at what she saw.
A malevolent pair of eyes - at least what she assumed were eyes - watched her from dark red
sky. The eyes were darker shade of crimson that the blood soaking her clothes, but
crimson nonetheless. Three black specks (that she thought looked like commas) seemed
superimposed over each eye and were whirling about in a slow circle.
Slow, heavy footsteps seemed to echo from the behind her.
When she turned to look, the sound coming nearer with each passing second, all she saw was a
small boy about her age, with limp black hair and empty black eyes. He looks like Naruto-kun
she thought, except for his hair and eye color.
She reminded herself that Naruto was an Uchiha now, and despite their promise to meet again
someday and play she seriously doubted that he would want to play in a field of bloody roses.
Still…
"Naruto-kun?" she called out softly, hoping he would reply before the invisible person the
footsteps belonged too decided to appear before her.
Her thoughts on the boy's identity seemed to be correct. At the sound of the name he looked up,
empty eyes focusing on her before taking on a strange gleam she thought was hope.
"Hinata-chan?"
At her nod he smiled sadly. "You're a strange girl Hinata-chan. I didn't think you'd want to
come and play in a place like this. Can't you feel they want to kill you?"
She forced herself to stand once more, hands becoming bloody as she used them to help push
herself up. "I… didn't choose to come here Naruto-kun. I don't know where we are, why
I'm here, but I'm scared. I know a lot of people had to have died, recently, for this place to
be so… so…"
She couldn't finish the sentence and started to make her way to Naruto.
As she stumbled along her clothes developed little rips in them, as though invisible thorns were
tearing them. She could feel something pricking at her arms and face and was unsurprised
to find her own blood trickling along her skin.
She shuddered at the unpleasant feeling.
"Naruto… I'm scared."
And his behavior wasn't making her feel the slightest bit better. He simply stood there, watching
her, as though he was waiting for something to happen.
Perhaps he had. As she watched him, a visible red chakra wrapped around Naruto and
extended behind him, nine tendrils of energy that looked like tails. He still wore that sad smile,
and suddenly he didn't have tails made of chakra, he had nine real tails waving gently
behind him. She was close enough to him now that she could see the way the fur laid,
coppery and white.
Then he had pointed ears as well, coppery like the tails, and she knew deep down that they were
a foxes ears. Then his smile showed pointy teeth, and he seemed like a totally different person.
Within seconds a pony-sized fox with nine tails was standing where Naruto had been.
She froze in place, staring at the fox with a sense of foreboding…
And then the footsteps were THERE, resounding painfully around her.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Hyuuga Hinata jerked awake with a suddenness that left her confused and disoriented, then stiffened as
she realized she wasn't alone. Her father was towering over her, face set in the usual look of
displeasure that he always wore when he looked at her.
The footsteps she had heard in her dream must have been his.
"You're awake, good. Get showered and dressed, then come to my study." Hiashi wasted no time in
delivering his message and promptly left, leaving a staring and confused Hinata in his wake. Her
dream had left her feeling uneasy, and she knew suddenly that whatever her father wanted to talk
about couldn't possibly be good for her.
Still, no one disobeyed Hyuuga Hiashi, not even his daughter, and in moments she was scrambling about
the room to grab the clothes she would wear that day.
She would ponder the rest of her dream later.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Pale early morning light streamed through the windows of Hiashi Hyuuga's private study, casting an
angelic aura about his daughter. The girl stood in the middle of the utilitarian room, hands clasped
before her and eyes downcast.
He noted the slight tremble in her shoulders with a frown and repressed a sigh. Hinata's persistent
timidity and lack of confidence was annoying beyond all measure, and he knew what he had to tell
her would only make her worse.
How had he ever produced such an un-Hyuuga like child?
He shook the thought away before it could fully form. He did not need to be thinking about such things
at the moment; instead, he should be preparing for the tears he was sure would come soon.
"Hinata. You have been training with me for three years now, and still you have little proficiency with the
family taijutsu. Neji is branch member of the family, and already he far surpasses you. You are ill
suited to be the heiress of the Hyuuga legacy."
He paused for a moment and studied her. She was trembling more now, though anyone who didn't
know her wouldn't have noticed. Still, that was all she was doing. She made no noise, and was
not crying as he had expected.
"Your honorable mother is pregnant once more, and as you are so unsuited to carry on the legacy of
our ancient clan, we will be placing our faith in this child to make up for your failures."
He paused, assessing her emotional state. She hadn't begun crying as he had expected; instead, she
continued to stare at the floor mutely. Shrugging mentally he continued.
"In a month the Uchiha clan's family competition will take place. There are a couple children within the
Uchiha's that is your age, and several more only a year or two apart. You will be betrothed to
one of those children. If a girl wins, you will be betrothed to whichever boy under the age of 10
who did best. Understand?"
Still no tears from the girl.
Then, "Yes Father, I understand. I'm apologize for my unsuitability and will try harder not to embarrass
the family, or my future husband."
Something was wrong. Hinata was a quiet girl, one who tried to give her father whatever he wanted to
hear to he would be pleased with her, but never like this. Her voice was emotionless, almost
devoid of life…
"Hinata…"
"May I go train now Father?"
Hiashi was taken aback, staring at her in surprise. Not that she knew, since her eyes were still
downcast, but…
"Yes."
A small nod, and the girl most unsuited to be a Hyuuga exited the room, leaving her father stunned and
unexpectadly worried.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
"What's an interfamily competition?" Naruto asked, looking questioningly at Itachi as he used a kunai to
deflect another shuriken that Itachi threw at his head. Their mother had mentioned the event over
breakfast, but had not elaborated. He wondered if she expected him to know the answer on his own.
"Just that," came Itachi's reply, along with three more shuriken. "Everyone in our clan gathers together
once every two years, if missions allow, and we compete against one another to find out who
strongest person in the clan is."
"Every two years?" This time he caught the weapons aimed at him, and threw them back at Itachi.
"Ah. The last competition ended right before you joined us. We're divided into categories, based on
shinobi level or age; whichever applies best to the person involved. Since you're in school, you'll
be placed with the genin, and anyone else attending school. Sasuke will be with the kids not
attending school if he's well again by then, and I'll be in with the chuunin. Father and Mother will
be competing as jounin. Everyone in our family are shinobi, so no one is left out."
Itachi also caught the shuriken, and threw them back at Naruto, an exercise they'd been at for an hour
already.
"Bet Sasuke won't like that. Of course, I'm assuming he'll be better in two weeks, and having me in a
category ahead of him will probably have him setting traps for me for a month," Naruto
commented as he caught the projectiles.
"Probably not. Doesn't help that his hair is still pink after two years of trying to wash out whatever you
put in his shampoo." Itachi smirked slightly.
"I? I did nothing!" Naruto protested, looking perfectly innocent. "He obviously likes pink hair!"
"With red tips?"
Naruto grinned at the sardonic tone in Itachi's voice and pocketed the shuriken. Long habit had
established that after an hour of shuriken throwing, the two would switch to Naruto dodging various fire
elemental jutsu that Itachi was working on, and then Itachi would help Naruto with his henge
jutsu.
After two years, he was still having trouble keeping his tails hidden, those these days one was far more
likely to show than all nine.
"Also, those who win their division of the competition get to fight against the winner of the group
stronger than him. So Sasuke may get fight you, you may get to fight me, and I may get to fight Father,
or whoever wins." Itachi motioned for him to stop. "No jutsu practice today, I sense your yearly
visitor is here."
"Oh, really? Mirra-san is later than usual." Naruto hugged Itachi before trotting out of the room to meet
his yearly visitor, and called over his shoulder, "I'm sure you'll win!"
Itachi smiled to himself, before leaving to visit Sasuke. If his adoring brother were to have a hope of
being able to compete against Naruto, Sasuke would need encouragement to make him feel
better.
The boy always managed to become ill at the oddest times.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
To Be Continued:
I haven't slept all night, and suddenly several plot points clarified in my head. Yay for me! I'm slowly
making the chapters a little longer, and adding the random things that suddenly come to me
(Hinata's dream was not planned; I dreamed it myself, and decided to put it in.)
Feel free to suggest a title for this chapter, and every chapter from now on. I'm abysmal at naming
things, and have given up trying.
I'm taking submissions of names, ages, and abilities, if anyone wants to be written into the 'family
competition.' There won't be too many people participating, but everyone who submits at least a
name to me will get mentioned.
I'm still working out the details of how the clan gets annihilated, as well as what happens to Naruto,
Sasuke, and Itachi, but I think things are turning out well.
Also, I'm looking for a beta reader, preferably someone who also writes and posts fanfics, but mostly I
need someone who will take the time to point out everything I do wrong, without fear of hurting
my feelings. Email me if you're interested =)
Thanks for reading minna! Please review ^_^