DOWNFALL OF THE LIGHT
Chapter 8: Midnight Apprehension
Disclaimer: (Takes out a 9mm Assault Rifle and holds in a shooting position) I will only say this once, I DON'T own Naruto or Warcraft 3, you got that? I'm not going to lower this rifle until you get it!
"...": Speech
'...': Thoughts
Scenario exchanges are mentioned in bolded italic brackets. Why am I listing it this way you ask? Because this website fxxx things up big time, that's what!
AN: Not much needs to be said here, this is gonna be one hell of a long chapter! For those who wanted Wave Country... it's decided that I won't write it. It's way too troublesome to write since this isn't the original Team 7. I need to get to the Chunnin Exams as soon as I can. It should be the next or the one after, it wouldn't be too long now. THANKS again for your reviews, they are always appreciated. Man, are my chapters getting longer and longer or what? Someone's gotta stop me at sometime or I'm really gonna lose it. Anyway, hope you all like it. To those who wanted action, expect that in the exam, okay? ENJOY!
(Naruto's POV)
I returned home one night nearly collapsing on the futon in a completely exhausted manner. No, I wasn't tired physically, I was drained mentally. Who wouldn't after an immense amount of work and yet my body still seemed to be miraculously in tact, I suppose this wasn't something I should be ranting about. Tonight, I had a dinner with Sasuke and Sakura... well, it was more of a forced thing. They were at my door several hours ago and dragged me out of my houses demanding that I must be present. It was a drag indeed. I would explain more but it was something we were talking about during dinner that was still stuck in my head. If you don't know what today was, it was already mid July. 1 month or more has already passed by ever since Sakura and Hinata broke their rivalry for me. That point, a lot of things have happened between Team 7 and it also involved a certain member from Team 8, Uchiha Sasuke.
For the past month or so, things have been cool to a certain extent. I have trained the girls since Kakashi was now more of the official helper/assistant of Jiraiya-sensei for his Icha Icha Paradise collection, this news was still fresh in my mind and I couldn't help but to feel a bit irritated. Kakashi has been really missing in action these days, my team found him at the women baths writing down info about naked women for a several times already, he always made up stupid excuses that would resolve complete harassment from either Sakura or Hinata. I never bothered even moving a muscle, it wasn't worth it.
Hokage-sama has agreed that I would lead the team myself since he knew I had skills to become even a jounin. Of course, he just told Hinata and Sakura that I was the perfect leader, they seemed to buy it but I knew Hinata didn't. I could tell she sensed something was behind it, I was glad she didn't catch what it was completely. Did I feel troubled to see her like that, to be honest, I did but I refused to allow myself to feel any sort of unnecessary emotions. If I was leading the team myself now, what I wanted were more challenging missions. However, the Hokage explained that we still had to do some more D-missions before we reach the real deal. Knowing D-missions were a complete waste of time and effort, I made a promise to them saying I would train them myself and bless them some of my techniques. With a smile on both their radiant expressions, I was happy to see both girls reacted very positively to my offer. Hinata nearly kissed me on the lips but let's not talk about that right now.
I knew their weaknesses well from the first day I met them, both of them had enough for me to deal with. Sakura was full of flaws. No chakra capacity, no stamina, no ninjutsu, no taijutsu... when I remember how she fell to the Mana Burn, I knew she was very weak physically. Sadly enough, I didn't know what kind of strengths my pink hair sister had. However, I knew I could deal with it while Hinata's major problem was her self-confidence. It was hard for me to deal with but I decided to have patience. I knew Hinata was good at taijutsu, she had a lot of talent in ninjutsu, mastering the Mana Burn in 6 hours was all I needed to state that fact confidently, very good control of chakra... I didn't know how much chakra she had, I could safely say she had a lot in her to spare. I knew Hinata's greatest enemy was herself, her lack of self-confidence would be her downfall.
I first trained them using the tree climbing exercise to test out their control, it was a basic, something that Jiraiya-sensei tested me on when he needed to know my chakra wielding capabilities. What surprised me there was the fact Sakura did it no problem as well. At that instant, I knew her chakra control excelled even mine. That was when I needed both of them to travel up and down the tree until they got tired, this part would tell me how much chakra they had within themselves to use. To be honest, I wasn't really surprised when I saw Sakura on her knees after she walked up for 15 minutes or so while Hinata took nearly an hour. It didn't matter to me though, both strands could be improved before I taught them my stuff. The next portion of their training was a very old fashion method, doing daily drills non stop until they completed them. Everyday, I would ask them to do a 8km jog or run, 250 push ups, 250 sit ups, 150 squats, 250 jump rope, 250 punches and kicks to a log until it made a decent enough dent. I needed to improve their stamina levels since the logic was that if you had a lot of stamina, your chakra capacity should never be such a drastic difference. I believed in that as well.
We had been doing missions and training at the same time for the past month if it was D-missions since we could never afford a day without getting any stronger. To be more precise, the missions for the first two weeks had been crap after crap. Before Kakashi abandoned the group, he justified that that was what all genins began with. The logic behind it was that we would have basic experience before the actual real deal, as if I would ever believe that. If it really was as successful as predicted, Sakura and Hinata wouldn't be talking to me all the time during our tasks. In my class of normal missions, the only time we had the chance to communicate would be before the mission and possibly call for assistance. Goodness gracious, I wasn't born to put up with this shit.
C-missions were different, they actually took more effort to complete and it really helped Hinata build up her self-confidence since all of them involved battling. The only way you had more confidence to do things was if you did it often. So the more they trained and participate in real life combat situations more, it was only natural they won't fear it if they had decent experience. That logic worked for me, it also worked for them. After about 2 weeks of intense training, I knew both of them were ready to take on the training of my Hidden Techniques. Their stamina and chakra levels increased by at least triple, my eyes never lied once, I could sense their improvements by just looking at them.
(General POV: Flashback)
"Hinata-chan, Sakura-chan," said Naruto with a bright smile on his face. Both girls looked at him with interest, they seemed really curious at what he had to say. "It has been nearly two weeks... what do you girls say if I started to teach you some new techiniques?" Both girls nodded happily in agreement while he gave them a smile in return.
"It's about time you taught us something, Naruto-ni-chan!" exclaimed Sakura as held his hand gripping it really hard on purpose.
"That would be nice..." said Hinata timidly. The Death Knight took a short glance at them again giving them a warm smile. He observed their bodies to make sure they were physically fit to do this. By the look on their more built arms, he knew they were very prepared for the next challenge. However, Naruto was a little too focused at what Hinata was wearing at that time. It wasn't anything revealing or seductive. She still wore her dark violet ninja pants with her kunai holster equipped to her right thigh but without that gray jacket.
'Kami-sama, there was a girl underneath that and she was attractive...' thought the dark shinobi in awe. She was wearing a purple tank-top, her forehead protector on her neck and she also wore a pair of black fingerless gloves. He was pretty sure it eased her pain somewhat when she tried to use the gentle fist on the log Naruto assigned to attack. Naruto grinned to myself when he thought she couldn't have picked a better day to wear less clothing, more of it would be to her disadvantage since the training would be even tougher starting from this point. She obviously blushed when she saw him look at her even though he had his blindfold on.
"What are you looking at, Naruto-kun?" asked Hinata as her blush was more visible.
"Nothing," replied the half demon genin lying.
"You don't like what I am wearing?" she asked with a red face. "I could change it..."
"No, don't do that." he said with a chuckle. "I was just thinking you couldn't have picked a better day to wear that thick jacket of yours, that's all." Sakura immediately punched me playfully in the arm while Hinata looked at me with a confused expression. He simply smiled at her innocence.
"What do you mean?"
"Today I would be teaching you new abilities, it would be very draining so there's no need to wear too much."
"What makes you so sure we're ready, Naruto-ni-chan?" asked Sakura doubtfully.
"My eyes told me you guys are."
'His eyes told him?' thought Hinata catching every word he said. Then something clicked into both girls' heads at the exact moment, his eyes, they nearly forgot about his eyes. He was also wearing a blindfold, it was the perfect time.
"Naruto-ni-chan, would you tell us something about your eyes?"
"What about my eyes?" he asked rather dumbly on purpose. "Don't think I'm blind just because I am wearing a blindfold."
"If you're not blind, why do you wear one?" questioned Hinata leaning closer to him. "I've seen your pupils turn completely teal... it looked demonic..."
"We are just worried, Naruto-nichan..." said Sakura in a caring tone. "We won't force you to tell us if you don't want to."
"Sure, I'll tell you," said the silver hair boy with a grin. The girls blinked their eyes twice trying to make sure if they heard right, that was the first time they heard the boy agreeing to their terms this sharply. Deep down he knew that he would have to tell them about this ability anyway, he knew he couldn't hide it forever, they had the right to know. Hinata was giving her all her attention and so was Sakura, it was surprising. "About my eyes," he started with a cough. "It's just an advanced bloodline ability." The heiress' eyebrow raised a little bit while Sakura had no idea what he was talking about.
"Advanced bloodline ability?" asked a confused pink hair genin.
"Yes," he explained. "They are a special type of techniques that can be only passed down by blood. Hinata-chan has one too. Her bloodline limit is the Byakugan. Her ability is one that is passed down to people with the Hyuga blood in their veins." Sakura then understood a bit better.
"What's your ability, Naruto-kun?" asked Hinata coming even closer to the boy as if her body was reacting on her own.
"It's called the Unholy Sight. Some people would call it Sight of Divinity or Dedication."
"Why do people call it two opposite names?" questioned Sakura a little lost.
"It all depends what people see this eyesight as. You see, my eyes see plenty of things. But the primary focus is to see demons." Hinata's eyes widened a little when she heard the word demons, her curiosity grew. "Enabling to see demons, I use this sight to hunt them down if I see one. Not only that my ability granted my eyes to see this evil, I could read people's thoughts if I want to and I could also detect both chakra capacity and chakra levels from anyone I desire. Finally, I could see through things but it's nothing compared to the Byakugan. When the Byakugan could scout something at the radius of 3 km or more, my eyes could only see things 20 metres closer and maybe a little more."
"That doesn't tell me about the divinity and the unholy part though."
"Of course, like I said before, it's all based on personal opinions. Some people would believe it's divine since it could be used to destroy demons while some will think that the damned and unholy could see their own kind." His tone now was a depressed one. "My clan members are a reckless bunch who took these eyes for granted... what a bunch of fools..." he continued bitterly.
"Naruto-kun..." whispered Hinata holding his hand softly.
"Thanks Hinata-chan..." he said reluctantly removing his hand from hers. To the heiress, it seemed he didn't want to feel her touch at all. However, the most wanted thing right at that moment was the feeling of her soft hands. He felt guilty pushing her away, he had no choice, he couldn't fall in love with Hinata and that was reality. He accepted the fact, but he couldn't risk it.
"Naruto-ni-chan... I'm sorry that people think of your clan like that as unholy people..." said Sakura sadly.
"It's okay, Sakura-chan," said the Death Knight putting the best smile on his face. "It really doesn't matter what people think about my clan. All of them are already dead. It's hard to really feel sad for something that you never had or experience before. If these eyes are the only thing that they gave me, I'll make good use of it."
"Naruto-kun..." whispered Hinata trying to hold his hand again. However, the boy pretended he didn't know and stood up so her hand wouldn't brush his. A sudden feeling of sadness rushed onto the Hyuga girl, she felt like crying. When Naruto took a glimpse at her, he knew what he said really didn't satisfy her, he knew she still had a lot of questions in her mind. Moreover, the despair expression certainly didn't make him feel any more relieved. He then took a look at Sakura, her expression wasn't a pleased one either. However, it wasn't Naruto's explanation that upset her, it was what her brother just did. The Death Knight then explained why he wore a blindfold from time to time, he told them it was for training. To be more precise, it was training to have a much clearer vision in seeing both demons and have a more magnified view of things. Sakura was happy to know more about his secrets while the heiress had something deep in her mind that she desperately wanted to ask.
"Do you have a demon within yourself, Naruto-kun?" asked Hinata suddenly with a demanding expression in her voice. Even though it was soft, he sensed she wanted a response whether he liked it or not.
"I don't know," answered the Death Knight. He knew he was a good liar, nobody saw through it unless he faked it. "I'll say this... the Uzumaki clan members do seal demons to their children and what not. They do it when they are about 3... but I never had any parents to begin with... I really don't believe that I do." As if he didn't knew, that would be the very last thing he would forget. He couldn't afford to lose both Sakura and especially Hinata at such a vulnerable stage, he knew they weren't ready to accept the truth. He was a Death Knight, a human with demonic corruption, not everyone could just let it pass by casually. The expression on the Hyuga girl's face told him she wanted to know more. However, if he continued, the training would never start. As he changed the subject again, one thing was in the lavender-eyed girl's mind.
'Naruto-kun... what are you still hiding from me?' she kept asking her self. 'You hid something that was your advanced bloodline ability... Am I not worthy of your trust?' The girl began to feel depressed. 'I trust you with my life, I trust you with everything... why are you still so closed up? Can't you see that I love you?'
"Hinata-chan," said Naruto snapping his fingers in front of her. "Are you here?" The Hyuga girl suddenly woke up from her thoughts and blushed when she saw her lover right in front of her so unexpectedly.
"I am... sorry," she answered meekly while the boy sighed.
"What kind of techniques will you be teaching us, Naruto-ni-chan?" asked Sakura breaking that awkward scenario. That question interested Hinata as well.
"Maneuvering and agility techniques." stated the dark shinobi with a grin. Both the girls' faces darkened a bit, it was obvious why.
"I thought we would be learning some offensive moves, Naruto-kun." said Hinata shyly. She did have a point. Of course, he had his reasons behind it.
"A good ninja is a cunning ninja." Naruto explained justifiably. "A cunning ninja must learn quick movement. Not just quick, but both swiftly and unexpectedly as an element of surprise. This is the first step. However, the first moves you will know from me are both evading techniques." The duo in front of him paid close attention to his words. "I want Hinata-chan to learn Blink while Sakura-chan will learn the evasive move called Phase Shift. Don't worry, I will pass down more offensive techniques later on this week or beginning next week."
"How long will it take us to know it?"
"I'll say around a several days at most, not too long." He then explained what each technique's purpose and effect, they had to know the basics before the real practice began. (AN: If you forgot what these moves do, please read the Jutsu List to check it out.) "You guys can tell these are perfect moves for any assassin."
"Are these the same techniques you used on Kakashi-sensei?" asked Sakura curiously. He simply nodded.
"Can you demonstrate some of these moves in actual combat, Naruto-kun?" suggested Hinata politely. Once again, she made a very good point.
"Sure," said the silver hair genin in his preferred taijutsu stance. "Come and attack me."
"But... what if I hurt you?" Hinata felt nervous while the boy gave her a warm smile.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. Sakura, watch closely." The last words sounded more of a command but the pink hair girl didn't object, it was for her own good to observe carefully. With Naruto giving her encouragement, Hinata went into her Hyuga stance without hesitation. She suddenly dashed at him with a high agility charge, his eyes widened as her dramatic increase in speed. 'Looks like the 10 day training really paid off,' thought Naruto happily for his friend. He took a step diagonally to avoid her incoming palm but to his surprise Hinata took a small slide to catch up with him. That surprised Naruto indeed, she learned how to fight even more effectively within such a short amount of time. He had no time to think since her attacks came in volleys. He quickly shifted back and forth to dodge all her attacks. If any of those hit him accurately, he knew he would be in deep trouble. Knowing he had to show both moves to them, he decided to announce it.
"Hinata-chan," he called as he tilted his head to avoid another palm strike. "Pay close attention to this." He then gathered chakra throughout his body at an incredible pace as his opponent prepared herself for another attack. As her hand reached close to him, she was surprised that Naruto disappeared for she hit nothing but air. At that next second, Naruto appeared right in front of her gripping her wrist telling her to stop. Sakura was amazed at what she just saw, her face brightened up by a drastic amount. Hinata's eyes twitched, she was stunned. She knew at that moment if that was an actual battle, she would've been killed already, that one second change was all he needed to prepare for his critical attacks. As the Death Knight loosened his grip on her, the Hyuga girl grinned a mischievous grin. She suddenly twisted herself a little bit to give a spin kick to the Death Knight's right waist. However, he quickly formed a seal with one hand (AN: Thanks to a certain someone of course) to make himself vanish making the girl kicking nothing but air. At that instant, she saw Naruto already 10 meters away from her. She knew he used Blink to evade.
"That was amazing, Naruto-kun..." said Hinata timidly with a blushing face.
"Watch this carefully, Hinata-chan, Sakura-chan." He then formed the same hand seal quickly in less than a second. In a flash, he was behind the Hyuga girl with his runeblade already at her side ready to cut. Of course, he stopped so no unnecessary damage would be dealt. Both female genins twitched in absolute fear but luckily they calmed down when they didn't sense any killing intent in his actions. "There you have it," he said sliding his blade back into his sheath. "I hope that was a good way to tell you how to use those moves effectively. But there is one thing you should know."
"Whatever could that be?" asked Sakura.
"The speed of forming hand seals," He stated with a smile. "In actual battles, you would need to know how to form seals quickly so your jutsu would be used quicker than your opponent. Trust me, that one second could make a difference. I'll show you." The boy then made the seal of the Kage Bunshin so fast that the girls didn't even catch what he was forming. Being a shinobi for nearly 8 years, he had to have plenty of tricks up his sleeve.
"You don't expect us to form seals that fast do you, Naruto-kun?" questioned Hinata with wide opened eyes.
"No, silly," he answered with a slight laugh. "I would need you to be fast, not that fast yet. It does take practice after all. Anyway, let us train." To the Death Knight's surprise, he found out both of them were talented learners. Their development was definitely a lot quicker than he imagined. Within 2 days, both Hinata and Sakura mastered their attacks and with perfect control. Nowadays, Hinata would use that technique to play tricks on her beloved Naruto-kun while Sakura could only use hers when she had to. With their moves mastered, Naruto felt proud and didn't feel any hesitation to teach them more techniques.
(End Flashback, Naruto's POV)
The training period lasted until now and it was still going. By the time another 2 weeks to 3 weeks went by, both of them have learned 5 different Hidden Techniques from me. I was shocked to see them improve so much in such a short amount of time. I was proud to be their teacher, I felt that I did a really good job at making them grow. I knew they felt more confident about themselves, I was happy for them, very happy indeed.
Hinata now had the Byakugan, Gentle Fist, Mana Burn, Blink, Fan of Knives, Immolation, Shadow Strike and the passive ability Evasion. (AN: All these are in the Jutsu List, I'll demonstrate these techniques in the Chunnin Exam for certain. If I explained more of the training process, that would be real dull. If you play Warcraft 3, you would know what kind of ninja I made Hinata and Sakura to become. They also know the moves they had in the Anime and Manga) Sakura on the other hand knew the Phase Shift, Mana Flare, Wind Walk, Mirror Image and the passive ability Critical Strike. Both of them have turned into excellent cunning ninjas with a lot of potential that still needed to be unlocked, they really made me proud more than they could imagine.
Aside from just training and missions, I had my life to deal with for the past 5 weeks or so. My relationship with Sakura has been really good. We got to know each other a lot better. We were now like true brother and sister. Nowadays, I could read her looks like a book but unfortunately she didn't have the ability to do that to me yet. It didn't matter though, as long as she felt I was important in her life, I would treat her the same way. If anything happened to Sakura now, I would never forgive myself if I had the power to stop it. She was family to me. After the two girls stopped bickering with another ever since the rivalry ended, they became very close friends. They talked a lot more, joked with another and even teamed up on me from time to time to make my life a little bit more difficult than it should be. I didn't mind too much, I was just glad I had that conflict out of my system. Friends were important, it really changed Hinata by a lot. She was cheerful and smiled a lot more often willingly. It wasn't like she never smiled before, it was just whenever she smiled to another person other than myself, it felt fake. However, little did they know I had another problem rising already.
My problem was Hinata... or rather my problem was myself. Even though I said she smiled genuinely... I still sense a bit of sadness in it. I knew I could heal the sadness if I wanted to, but I refuse to. I knew why, I just ignore it and pretended nothing was going on. Deep down she was depressed, I knew why but I never took action on purpose. She was sad because of me, she was upset because after I accepted Sakura as my sister, I began to avoid her. She still saw me everyday and did stuff together but I knew deep down I needed to get away from it. I enjoyed her company too much, I couldn't allow myself to feel more attracted to her everyday despite how much I wanted to be with her and see her joyful face every morning. Hinata still came to my place a several times each week to have breakfast together and each time she came by, she would be slightly more seductive than the last. There was one time she was so close to me that she nearly kissed me... I was lost in her trance and my body almost acted on its own. I snapped out of it and stopped her from continuing, I could tell she was very upset. I loved her, I didn't want to accept it but I couldn't deny it. Knowing who I was, a half demon and many other secrets that could never be revealed, I need to forget her.
I couldn't allow myself to fall in such a dangerous trap called love, I needed to get away from it. However, she was persistent, she didn't want to make herself disappear from my vision, she always wanted to be by my side. I loved her presence but I decided to ignore it. Not the ignore that I pretended I didn't know what she was doing when I clearly did, but literally ignore her. I no longer reacted to her touch, I even pull myself away from her when I found myself liking the situation too much which was almost immediate. Hinata soon realized what I was doing but didn't know the exact reason for me to do it in the first place. She became depressed and wanted to know more about me so she would understand me better. It wasn't like she didn't understand me, I had to admit she was the best person I know that truly knew who I was besides Jiraiya and Rin. I had to forget her, but seeing her so upset because I am there pained me so much... I didn't want to do this to her but I need to. My fate was sealed ever since my decision in becoming a Death Knight because of my selfish choice in wanting power. This was my curse, my punishment and I have to live the rest of my life carrying this. If I fell in love with Hinata, her life will forever be ruined, I will never forgive myself if that happened.
My actions didn't go unnoticed by Sakura, she knew what I was doing. Sakura was sharp, she knew I had affections for Hinata but I just never admitted it. She had nothing against that, it was my decision but she couldn't understand the fact why I started to avoid Hinata. I knew Hinata had been talking to Sakura ever since they became close friends, I'm sure Sakura knew how she felt. That led back to what happened earlier today, why Sasuke and Sakura were at my door.
(Flashback, General POV)
"Sasuke, Sakura-chan... what are you guys doing here?" asked a surprised Naruto when he saw who it was at the door of his apartment. "You guys want to come in to have something to drink?"
"No thank you, Naruto," said Sasuke bluntly. "I was wondering if you want to have dinner with us?"
"You guys are together now?" asked Naruto raising an eyebrow.
"No," replied Sakura. "We are just friends..." 'For now!' shouted Inner Sakura.
"I'm kinda busy right now..." said Naruto obviously lying. "I want to sack up about this time."
"I don't think we are giving you a choice," said Sasuke with a little more force. "You are coming whether you like it or not." Naruto gave a confused look before the two genins dragged him out of his apartment forcefully. Soon, they were at a small restaurant nearby and decided to have a little chat. The looks on Sakura and Sasuke were not a pleased one, Naruto felt a strange uneasiness between him and his friends.
"So, you two told me to come and you just expect me to sit here and have dinner without saying a word?" asked Naruto. "What do you guys want me here for?"
"I'm sure that you know, Naruto," said Sasuke. "Don't tell me that you didn't know."
"You do know Hinata-san has been very upset lately, right, Naruto-nichan?" asked Sakura worriedly.
"Is it any of my business?" questioned Naruto with a small glare while he took a zip of tea.
"What the hell is wrong with you lately, Naruto?" shouted Sasuke not believing what he just heard.
"Don't you care about her?" added Sakura demanding for a response.
"She may be upset, what could I do?" Naruto asked returning the question to them. He wasn't angry with them, he was mad at himself for seeing Hinata so down.
"What do you mean what could you do, Naruto-nichan?" The Death Knight could tell his sister was ticked. "She is upset because of you! You have been ignoring her on purpose! How would you feel if your best friend suddenly just decided to turn away from you? How would you feel? Answer me."
"I would feel happy for them." Stated Naruto. "I would respect their decision."
"Naruto, I don't know why you are doing this to Hinata-san," said Sasuke quite annoyed. "If you have something that you don't want to share, fine with me, but I can't stand it to see Hinata-san so down."
"You two are the best of friends, why do you want to do something now to destroy it now?" asked Sakura.
"You think I want to?" retorted Naruto. "You think I want this to happen?"
"If you don't want this, why did you start this?"
"I have my own reasons... I can't tell you..."
"I have no intention of knowing your reason of doing this," began Sasuke. "But... you really shouldn't avoid her like that, that's not something I thought you would do."
"I don't think any other way would do..." stated the Death Knight sadly.
"Is it because you like Hinata-san?" asked Sakura.
"I told you I don't like her that way... I just like her as a friend..." lied the silver hair boy with guilt. Sasuke and Sakura didn't buy it at all, they knew he was hiding something.
"If you think she is just your best friend," said the Uchiha taking a zip from his tea as well. "You wouldn't treat her this way. If you only thought of her as a friend, you should be treating Sakura the same way as well."
"I don't know how you feel about Hinata-san, Naruto-nichan," said Sakura seriously. "But don't do this to her, it pains her so much to see her best friend no longer the same person without telling her why. Please talk to her... I am begging you."
"I'll consider it." stated Naruto calmly.
"Don't consider," demanded Sasuke. "Do it." The Death Knight relutantly agreed to their demands and soon their meal arrived. Even so, none of them really had the appetite to eat. Instead of wasting the food, they ate but didn't say a word to each other. Silence was a much better company than words. When they finished their meals, Sasuke left immediately since he had a mission to Wave country the next day while Naruto walked Sakura home. By that time, the dark warrior was already exhausted.
(End Flashback)
The next morning came by quickly as a flash. The Death Knight woke up with a small concussion, he didn't even know why his head hurted this much that morning. He decided to push it aside for now since he had bigger things to deal with. After his daily routines, he had a quick breakfast as he gathered chakra to get his rundblade Nightshadow to his hand. However, he felt a sudden pain in his head as he attempted to generate chakra. He didn't know what was going on, it felt strange but it was familiar somehow. 'I haven't had this feeling for a while... the last time I had it was... like last year...' he thought as he held his head with a bit of trouble.
'You okay, my little dark one?' asked the boy's master who suddenly appeared in his mind.
'Kyubi-chan...' whispered the Death Knight breathing heavily. 'What's happening to me?'
'Relax, Naruto,' she said stroking his back slightly. 'It's just that your corruption has deepened to another level. It'll be okay.'
'You don't mean that...'
'Yes, your body is now able to handle more of my techniques. I allowed this to happen after you learned every technique I could bless you at the moment. I am impressed that you learned Unholy Frenzy, Cripple, Meteor Fall, and Devour Magic in such a short amount of time.' said Kyubi happily and proudly.
'Thanks for your encouragement... Kyubi-chan...' panted Naruto weakly.
'You okay, Death Knight?'
'No... I'm not... how long would this pain end?'
'You need to rest for the day or two, it should be fine tomorrow.' explained Kyubi trying her best to make him feel better.
'I got missions today, Kyubi-chan. I can't just not go because of a mere sickness.'
'Looks like you have to skip today's mission, your health is more important.'
'Fine... I'll listen to your advice...' said Naruto in defeat as he moved his body back to his futon and nearly fell asleep immediately. 'What happens if I'm not there... Hinata-chan and Sakura-chan wouldn't like it though...'
'Worry about yourself a little more than others, Naruto,' said the fox lady a little annoyed at her apprentices persistent attempts. 'You're in no shape to go anywhere right now.'
'And who's fault is it for making my body this weak?' asked the boy giving a glare.
'I'm doing this for your own good, my little dark one. Now, don't think of anything now, just focus on getting better, okay?"
'As if there's anything else for me to do...' he stated in exhausion but before he could finish that sentence he already fell into a deep. Kyubi stroked his cheek a little bit with a smile before leaving his mind. 'You really shouldn't push yourself so much, Naruto...' thought Kyubi with a smile. 'I know you care for the girls but I really don't think you should train so hard until 3 in the morning every night...' With that thought ended, the demon fox then disappeared leaving her apprentice to rest.
(Naruto's POV)
I had no idea how long I was out for but whe I opened my eyes slightly, I could see three figures standing outside my room in the hallway. It was clear to me that they were chatting. At that time I still had a terrible headache, my body didn't grant me the energy that I required to get up or even the energy I needed to catch their attention. I observed my surroundings, it looked familiar, of course, I was in my room. As I tried to focus at who was outside my room, I realized that it was my team with Kakashi. For once he was doing his job right and not being such a pervert, somehow in my head argued that his presence may not have been for a good cause. I banished that thought immediately and decided to be such a suspicious individual. I glanced over to the girls and they seemed to be guilty of something while Kakashi certainly looked worried. I wanted to listen to what they were talking about or even how they entered my apartment to begin with. I didn't care too much though. Knowing them, I knew they would tell me when I felt better. My body ached every second the moment I was awake, it would be the best for me to fall back asleep.
I woke up suddenly from my sleep that seemed to last only for a several minutes. The reason was that I felt warm, a little too warm. I also felt a sweet, comfortable suction on my neck. It felt really good, that alone could complete my day. I allowed my mind to drift back to sleep but unfortunately my curiosity took the better of me once again. I wanted to know what was keeping me this warm. As I saw navy blue hair when I tilted my head slightly, I clearly knew it was Hinata. Due to my dulled senses, it didn't hit me until 2 seconds later. My eyes widened in shock and fear.
'Why the heck is she sleeping next to me right now?' I panicked in my mind. Without further argument, the only possibly was that it was her who was giving me that feeling on my neck, she was kissing it every time she took in a breath. I didn't even know why she was here, what the hell happened while I was asleep? This was such an awkward situation to be in, I was completely lost. I glanced at her again and realized she was under the covers with me sleeping ever so peacefully, I could feel her warm, soft and smooth hand holding mine as she moaned pleasantly. She was in such a delicate and vulnerable situation, I could kiss her and do anything to her.
'NO!' I yelled in my head breaking all inappropriate thoughts. 'I can't do that, I'm not a pervert like Kakashi or Jiraiya! I refuse to allow myself to sink to their level.' Even with that thought in my mind, she suddenly did something that made me melt. She unintentionally leaned her head towards mine while mine was quite close to hers. Our lips locked, my eyes widened in surprise and mostly shock. I was glad she didn't seem to realize at the moment, I was saved. However, my signs of relief immediately faded as she opened her eyes. Her eyes widened as well. At this point, I knew I had to get myself out of this situation and I had to do it FAST! I attempted to break away but somehow her hand pulled me back to her without much effort to continue the kiss. She deepened it without a second thought, I could nearly pass out. Moments later, my still stunned body awkwardly broke the lip lock when I had no air left within me, Hinata on the other hand showed disappointment. I immediately sat up with a very hot face since a lot of my blood was rushing to that area. I had to leave, it was too much for me to deal with.
"I... I... I..." I was stuttering on my words horribly. My mouth wasn't even functioning the way I want it to, things couldn't get any better than this. "I am getting hungry... I think I'll go get something to eat." In truth, I was getting hungry but the main reason was to get out of there ASAP obviously. I finished my sentence quickly as I prepared myself for an immediate evac. However, Hinata then embraced me passionately not wanting me to go, not wanting me to leave her alone. As soon as she snuggled her head on my back, my heart suddenly sank.
"Please stay with me, Naruto-kun... please..." she begged as she started to sob on my shoulder. My inner self told me to leave her but my body reacted otherwise once again. The first time was in the park, the second time would be this. I simply hugged her back with the same or more passion that she gave me while my mind was thinking of every possible curse I knew, which was undoubtedly a lot. "You finally hugged me back, Naruto-kun..." she whispered soothingly in my arms. A sudden feel of guilt dwelled within me when she said that, it was true, I haven't hugged her for a long time. I may see her nearly everyday but I truly missed her.
"Don't cry, Hinata-chan..." I told the crying girl in my arms while caressing her back. I had no idea what to do. I looked at the clock next to my futon, it was a little bit past midnight. Then something hit me. "Hinata-chan, why are you still here? It's really late." I asked as politely as possible trying not to pressure her.
"I was worried about you..." she sobbed a bit softer. "Kakashi-sensei told us you had a high fever... he said that your body seemed to be lacking rest for some time."
"Lacking rest?" I asked as she nodded. "You mean about me training every night until 3 in the morning?" She nodded again and began to punch me in the arms. At the current state I was in, every punch seemed to hurt. "What are you doing, Hinata-chan? It hurts you know..."
"You made me so worried, you jerk!" she exclaimed while punching harder on my wasted body. "You didn't show up at the bridge 2 days ago, you didn't even tell me you were sick! When we came to your place and no one answered, I thought you were dead!" I was surprised when I heard I was out for 2 days.
"I'm not dead, Hinata-chan..."
"How would I have known that? Your face was pale and you didn't even wake up until now! How could you not take care of yourself? How could you make me worry like that?" She was in complete control, I didn't have the power to retaliate at all. With my defences collapsed, I just took every blow.
"Hinata-chan..." I said no louder than a whisper. "Why were you sleeping next to me just now?" The in control Hinata suddenly turned back into her old self, timid, shy and began to play with her index fingers again as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. "Why?" I asked again.
"You... you were looking cold, Naruto-kun..." she explained timidly. "You were shivering when you were asleep... so I wanted to make you feel warm since you were sick. I didn't want you to get cold..." Her words touched me more than she thought it did.
"But knowing that I am ill... what if you got sick too?" I questioned her with concern.
"I think it's worth it to see you better." Hinata replied with a smile. That was the same reason that I did it for. I sacrificed my daytime so I could see their happy faces when they became stronger. Of course, I haven't been doing such a good job at making Hinata smile, I have made her depressed.
"Hinata-chan..." I sighed a little before continuing. "Why do you care so much?" That question alone made her flush a little bit. "Am I someone who deserves this kindness?" She nodded honestly.
"You are, Naruto-kun..." she replied with a sincere face.
"Why?"
"Because... I..." I could tell she was hesitating at what she was going to say. Deep down I got a strong feeling of what she was going to say, I didn't want to hear it. As much as I did, I couldn't bare to hear it.
"Don't say it, Hinata-chan..." I said in a low voice.
"Naruto-kun..." she continued not listening. "I... I..." 'Don't say it...' I thought praying that she wouldn't say it. 'Hinata-chan, I beg you please don't say it!' "I love you. I've been in love with you for a long time. Naruto-kun, I am in love with you." She said it.
My face darkened with dread. 'What have I done?' I thought with guilt and grimace. 'I've made Hinata-chan fall in love with me... a demon!' This was the greatest mistake I've made in my life! I can't love her back, the people would hate her for being with a demon. Her words were stuck in my head, spinning and repeating like a curse in my head every second. More I thought about it, my body seemed to shatter like glass. How could these three words of true passion hurt so much? I can't accept it, I could never accept the fact that she was in love with a demon. As much as I wished this was all just a dream and I can just wake up and never need to think about it again, I knew this was reality. I was trapped, trapped between emotions. After many emotional breakdowns Rin and I experienced, I have never felt this one before, hopeless romance.
"Hinata-chan, I..." I tried to explain myself but she silenced me with a finger on my lips.
"You have the same feelings for me too, Naruto-kun," she said both lovingly and heavenly. "I know you do." Her words struck me like piercing arrows searing through my body. Every thing she said, every word was true. I love Hyuga Hinata, I knew I fell in love with her the first day I returned to Konoha. I never wanted to admit it... no, I didn't want to accept it because of who I am, I thought a person such as myself would have enough self control to know that a demon can never fall in love with a human. I could be friends with one but never love one due to my damned reality. I couldn't accept her love, I really want to take her hand and say the same three words that escaped her lips just now. However, destiny wasn't so kind to me. The curse of the decision was something I must live with, my life belonged to the damned. If I was a Paladin, I would say the three fateful words. But reality will always tell me I am a Death Knight.
"Hinata-chan... you don't understand..." I muttered in a low voice not using the three words. I wanted to tell her how much I loved her but there was no way I could. I wanted to embrace her after her confession. I wanted to tell her too. However, remembering what I am brought me to the same conclusion.
"I've hid my true feelings from you for all this time," she said with tears. "I love you with all my heart, the day we reunited at the park... I knew I loved you. You have been so close to me that it pains me not to see you. You've taught me so much, I've known you for as long as I could remember... I trust you with my life. You are my inspiration of my life, Naruto-kun... I know you love me too, like you... my eyes can see that too... Naruto-kun, I don't care if you are flattering me or you really mean it... can you say I love you?" Every word shot through my corrupted heart, her words meant so much that I couldn't use words to express. At that moment, I truly wanted to say I love you to Hinata and it wouldn't be just a mere flatter. Instead, my face darkened.
"Hinata-chan, you can't love me..." I muttered coldly breaking the embrace forcefully. The girl looked at me blankly. "I'm not worthy of your love."
"Yes you are, Naruto-kun!" she said with passion. "Don't ever say that."
"I'm only speaking the truth." I continued sadly.
"What are you saying?" she asked trying her best to hide her pain from me.
"There is no such thing that you can't live in this world without someone else," I said emotionlessly. "I can, so can you."
"Naruto-kun... do you mean that?" she asked me with hidden sadness. I knew she couldn't believe what I just said. I simply nodded without meeting her eyes.
"Yes." I replied with much emotional pain throughout my body. "I have to go..." I started to get up and leave but she held my arm tightly not allowing me to go. What made her want me so much? "Hinata-chan, let go." She shook her head violently which made me feel another deal of pain.
"I won't let go... I can't lose you! Why won't you admit it?"
"What is there to admit?" I spat back bitterly. "I adore you more than you can ever imagine... fate has just never given me a chance to feel the same way..." Believe me, I hated my destiny, the Death Knight has caused me nothing but pain. No matter how many times I comforted Kyubi, no matter how many times I justified how great a Death Knight would be, when it came to love, your chance is absolutely nothing. Paladins were humans, Death Knights are demonic, that was the hard truth of reality, my damned destiny.
"Naruto-kun..."
"Forget about me." I stated as a demand. "Find someone worthy of your love." However, Hinata then hugged me tightly making my heart melt.
"The person I love is you, you will be the only person I will ever love... please don't run away from me... are you willing to let me go?" I could never let her go, I want her to be by my side until the day I die. I do love her.
"Hinata-chan, listen to me," I broke the hug and looked into her pearl like eyes, they were beautiful. "You'll regret the day you love me, you'll regret the day I love you in return. The villagers will hate you, they'll despise you and reject you like they rejected me. Your family would never see you the same way. You'll be living a life of eternal darkness..." 'Like me...' he added in thought bitterly.
"I don't care what the other people think!" shouted Hinata. "I'm willing to sacrifice anything to be with you. You are better than life itself, I'll never give up, I'll find happiness with you, I know I will."
"Don't be so naïve, Hinata-chan," I said. I loved Hinata for being so faithful. I didn't know how she knew I loved her, were my actions that obvious? I never did anything over the boundaries, I always remained neutral. I'm sure Hinata knew me too well, she knew what kind of actions were my signs of love even though I want to express it to her like a human being would. "You can't love a Death Knight, Hinata-chan."
"Yes I could, Naruto-kun."
"No you can't, the Death Knight isn't what you think it is. You think it's just a knight who obeys his master because they grant them power? I'll tell you, that's only half true. The reason Death Knights came to be is because they were too weak to fight the demon within themselves. A lot of members in my clan became these traitorous warriors, when you get infleuenced by your demon, it will tempt you into giving you power. In exchange is a very high price of your mind and forever loyalty. Death Knights are half demons, half humans..."
"You have a demon within yourself, Naruto-kun?" she asked not showing fear, but concern.
"Yeah..." I answered with a dark face of sadness.
"Who is it?"
"The demon fox Kyubi who attacked Konoha nearly 13 years ago. My father, the 4th Hokage wasn't able to destroy it. Rumours have been passed down to the children that the damned demon was killed. It was made law by the 3rd that no one would tell the children who the demon was. As you can see, the adults who survived the great battle 12 years ago clearly know that the beast was alive, it was alive deep within me. I'm sorry that I lied earlier but you should know that the 4th died sealing the demon, yes, I was born with the Kyubi. That's the reason why everyone hated me, why I had no friends, why parents refused to allow their children to even come near me. They feared the demon and never bothered trying to see the boy who was bleeding inside. It was clear to me why the villagers revolted one night, their reason was Kyubi. If I die, Kyubi, my master will die with me, they could care less of a little boy with nobody in life, ending his life wouldn't be much of a problem. They feared I would let Kyubi loose, they wanted me dead. I was pursuited to death for something beyond my power to stop, for something I never wanted. Old man Hokage always reminded me that the 4th wanted me to be Konoha's hero and I always will be. Despite how much I want to believe that, that wasn't what the villagers believed, they believed that the 4th gave the demon another chance of life. The Uzumaki's key specialty is to seal demons, you know that?" Hinata nodded paying very close attention to what I had to say. "Knowing such a powerful demon living in such a small boy without the parent's guidance, all the villagers thought I would become one of them, they were afraid of it."
"What were they afraid of?" she asked me with her voice trembling a bit. I finally looked at her closely, she looked shocked at what she just heard but I could tell she wasn't scared. I wondered why.
"Death Knights," I answered with a flash of my teal eyes. "Hinata-chan, no demon or human would like to be used as a backup tool in life. The fact is that the demon is sealed within a Uzumaki member like a prisoner, it would always want out. Knowing the demonic seal can't be broken that easily, taking control of the human's body was the perfect solution. It made no difference for the demon, they would still have their abilities but just in a different form. Of course, the beast would make offers such as power to tempt the human. In exchange, their loyalty is theirs."
"What kind of loyalty?"
"They want you to be their servant forever." I stated bluntly.
"What if you refuse their demands?" asked Hinata wanting to know more.
"You won't, Hinata-chan. At that time, your mind would belong to the demon. Yes, you still control your body but your values and morals would be identical to the demon's. Paladins were sent to hunt down these Death Knights and none of them came back alive. Death Knights aren't that hard to recognize, Hinata-chan, their demonic corruption turns their hair silver, lifeless skin colour and dark vampuric runeblades that are enhanced with dark hidden magics. I am a Death Knight who possesses one of the most powerful demons within. The admirable Naruto to you had fallen to the demon's temptations at the age of 6. Kyubi wanted me to be her successor. I accepted this change willingly, I've become what my father hated most, I've become what the village feared most, a powerful Death Knight. The village hates me, they will hate you too..."
"I don't hate you, Naruto-kun," said Hinata as she cupped my cheeks with her soft, gentle hands. "I'll never hate you..."
"You will sooner or later," I returned her kind words with my cursing ones. "I'm a demon, I'm a monstrosity! I made you fall in love with a demon, the demon everyone despise! I..." She then embraced me again making me stop completely.
"Is it so hard to love me?" she asked nearly crying.
"If I'm a demon, I can't allow my feelings to ruin your life..." I answered not looking into her eyes since I was at the stage of trying to control my own emotions.
"You're not a demon, Naruto-kun," she told me kindly as if she understood me completely. Forget the as if, she did understand me completely. I looked at her watery pearl eyes, it looked like they were sparkling, it was beautiful. "Why are you saying these things? You're loving, caring, encouraging, sincere, determined, strong, supportive, considerate, understanding... there are so many good qualities about you that I could talk about it all night. If you are a true evil Death Knight, you would've never taught me the Mana Burn or the other stuff that you taught me and Sakura-san. You would've never considered being friends with me or Sakura-san if you were evil. Why aren't you a missing-nin and serve your master then? That's because you are Naruto-kun, you aren't a tool that is just used for a mass destruction. Even if you are a demon, you are a demon I love, I will love you always." She then buried her face in my chest still in a passionate embrace. "I love you, Naruto-kun, I want you to know you are worthy of my love, you will always be Naruto-kun in my eyes..." I felt like crying at the spot, her words completely destroyed my cold shell.
"You don't regret loving a cursed person?" I asked holding her close.
"I think you are wonderful, Naruto-kun..." she replied slightly seductively. Then I had to smack myself mentally, how could I have been foolish not to accept her love when she was true, wholehearted, sincere and faithful. Hinata loved me with all her heart and yet I failed to see that she would never leave my side whether I was a demon or human. It was all because of my foolish self pity. It was time to set things right.
"Hinata-chan, I think there is something you want to hear," I whispered in her ear since she was so close. "I love you." I finally said it, I knew she was the girl for me. Tears began to flow freely on her face as she tightened the passionate embrace we were still in. This time, I didn't hesitate to hug her back with equal emotion.
"I wanted to hear that for so long..." I smiled at her genuinely and attempted to kiss her forehead. However, she didn't want me to do that, she allowed her lips to brush onto mine. My eyes widened since I was too lost in my own thoughts, I couldn't believe I accidentally kissed her on the lips again. In reality, it was Hinata who took on the initiative when I thought I was making a hasty decision. She was enjoying that kiss, she pushed herself towards me to deepen it. She was leading this obviously, I was too shocked to do anything other than to enjoy it, she then put her hand on my cheek to make the kiss more passionate.
I found myself lying on my futon with her on top of me somehow, Hinata's lips were still on mine kissing me ever so smoothly and sweetly. She took complete advantage of this situation knowing she waas in control. I had a strange feeling as if she did this plenty of times in the course of her life. I didn't care, all I wanted was her. However, my eyes shot wide open when I felt her tongue licking my lips desperately wanting entry to my mouth. Her eyes opened and pierced into mine with a demanding declaration. She wanted more, she loved this moment as if it was better than life itself. I reluctantly allowed her tongue since I still didn't know what to do, I know I loved her but I was never trained to deal with this. When I found out what her tongue was doing in my mouth, one thought was in my head, I could get used to this. I then put my hands on her firm yet narrow waist and pulled her closer to myself as I miraculously got back up into a sitting position.
This time, I needed to scout around. Her eyes opened with surprise as she felt my tongue brushing her lips slightly, her eyes told me she was satisfied by my action. What surprised me was that she allowed my tongue to enter freely, of course I'm not going to refuse such an offer. Her mouth was sweet, it was definitely the best thing I ever tasted. It was better than her cooking, better than ramen and nothing else could even compare. She moaned pleasantly into my mouth which made me felt like I could kiss her even more passionately. As I kept going, she skillfully pushed herself to me again to get onto top of me giving the most passion and love she could possibly offer at that instant. I loved her and she loved me. At that moment, I felt everything in the world was beautiful, I have Hinata... the best girl I could ever dream of was in my arms, she would never abandon me, she was mine. With that in my head, I could never stop loving her. When she found herself on top of me again, all we could do was to embrace passionately into the night.
AN: OKAY, this was amazingly long! I should really just stick with 7000- 8000 words... not 10000! Eventually, I am going to die because typing. Don't worry, I'll still be alive somehow. If you think that romance was a little short... trust me there will be more where that came from (Tries very hard not to think of anything bad!) I will apologize again if there wasn't enough action. If you have any questions you want to ask since I might not have explained some of the parts too well, please feel free to ask because I want to make things clear as well. I rushed this chapter somewhat but not a whole great deal. I was surprised I actually wrote this in 2 days, I thought I would take at least 3. By the looks of this, I think I would need one more chapter before I could make it into the Chunnin Exams. There are 2 authors that I have to thank: DreamWalker 3 and Crimson-Strike. Guys, you story and encouragement really made this story that much better. Hope you all will wait patiently for the next chapter, I am quite worn out... MEDIC! I need a medic!