By Airen Hitomi
Chapter One: A Dying Clan
Gai watched Tsunade, confident of success. Until her face fell, that is.
"I'm sorry Gai-sensei," she told the man. "There were…complications. The bones slivers have been grafted to the bone, but the muscles will not re-knit. Rock Lee is dying of blood loss. I have placed a stasis jutsu on his body until something can be done. The jutsu is only effective for two weeks, at which time, he will die."
Gai stared at Tsunade with a shocked look on his face. He had been so sure… He felt a comforting hand on his shoulder. Kakashi, his eternal rival, was worried for him. Gai was worried for himself also. If nothing could be done, Rock Lee would die, and Gai would die with him.
The, inexplicably, Gai's face brightened. "Never fear, Hokage-sama!" he told Tsunade, who looked stunned at his sudden good humour. "It was a difficult procedure. No one blames you for failing." He struck a good-guy pose as he continued. "I will find a cure for Rock Lee in the next two weeks, and you will administer it to him. Konoha will not lose the greatest Taijutsu master it has ever seen." With that, Gai was gone, in search of an impossible cure.
"There's nothing I can do," Tsunade moaned as she paced in front of the ever present Shizune. "The only one person with skill enough to fix this that I know of is that young disciple of Orochimaru's. It's useless!" She flung herself at the couch, large breasts bouncing as she landed with a thump.
"Tsunade-sama," Shizune interrupted the Hokage's bout of self pity. "I've been looking over the histories of Konoha and I know something that might help." Tsunade looked at her assistant with hope-filled eyes, and waited for the other woman to continue.
"The Izumi clan…" Shizune began, before Tsunade interrupted her. "…would be amazingly useful if they weren't all dead." Shizune held up her hands for silence. "There's a discrepancy in the records about the time of the final Kyuubi attack. Some of the children may have survived."
Tsunade looked at Shizune, amazed. The Izumi clan had been the greatest healers in Konoha. Most had been better even than Tsunade herself. If one had survived, Rock Lee would be saved. "Go on."
Shizune went to the record cabinet to retrieve the relevant file before continuing. "Despite their amazing healing abilities, the Izumi clan was unable to heal the infertility that affected almost all of the last generation. It was most likely caused by a jealous rival clan. There were only ten remaining members of the clan when the Kyuubi attacked their estate. But the records only account for eight bodies being found in the wreckage. It is possible that two of the children survived and left Konoha."
Tsunade arched an eyebrow. "What if the children are unable to use their healing abilities?"
"Well, Hokage-sama, neither are children anymore. The elder, Naoko, lacked any real talent in healing jutsus, but at fifteen knew most everything his parents had to teach him. His eight year old sister Suki was proving herself to be a genius of the clan. If they are alive, they will be able to heal Lee-san."
"But now arises the problem of finding them," the Hokage responded, her eyes half-lidded in thought and concern.
Hyuuga Neji was informed of his teammate's condition the following day when Gai-sensei approached him, dropping to his knees in a begging pose.
"Neji, my genius student, I require your assistance in the healing of your great teammate Rock Lee who is at this moment dying of blood loss." Neji looked at Gai impassively. He was not the sort to get worked up over the misfortunes of others. He waited silently for his sensei to continue.
"The Hyuuga family must have a very extensive library, but I am unable to convince your uncle to allow me access. I am sure the key to Rock Lee's cure is in that library." Neji remained silent. It was true that the Hyuuga's did have a very large collection of books and scrolls, many of which contained advanced healing techniques, but Neji believed that if Tsunade had failed in healing Rock Lee, then it was Fate that he should perish.
"Sensei," Neji began, with the barest hint of the respect due his Jounin instructor. "Hiashi will not allow anyone besides a member of the main Hyuuga house into that library. It is useless." Gai's face fell, and he stood. But then, as always, he brightened.
"Very well," he replied with a slight grin. "It was unlikely that the indifferent Neji would rise to the cause, but I am sure his kind cousin Hyuuga Hinata will be delighted to help save the youthful and brilliant Rock Lee." With that he was gone, in search of the timid Hyuuga girl. Neji felt a tiny flash of sympathy for his cousin.
Hinata was at that moment with Naruto at the Ichiraku. She had offered, in a very timid and stuttering way, to treat the boy to ramen after witnessing Naruto being beaten around the head by his pink haired teammate, who had been released from the hospital earlier that morning.
Hinata was happily daydreaming about the blonde shinobi declaring his undying love for her, while Naruto was happily scoffing down ramen, when a blur of green and orange disturbed them. Hinata let out a surprised squeak as Gai appeared besides them, causing Naruto to choke.
"Hinata-chan!" Gai proclaimed loudly, causing Hinata to squeak again and hide behind Naruto. Her cousin's exuberant sensei unnerved her.
"Hinata-chan," Gai repeated in a quieter voice. "I am in need of your assistance. I seek a cure for Rock Lee, who is at this moment dying from blood loss. I am certain the information Hokage-sama will need to save him is in the Hyuuga library. Neji has refused to aid me, but I am sure you will not do the same."
Hinata watched the man, pale eyes wide with fear and confusion. In her debilitating shyness, she was unable to say anything. It was Naruto who responded the Gai. "Why can't you use the Hokage library, or the Uchiha's. I'm sure Sasuke-bastard won't stop you."
Gai momentarily directed his attention to Naruto, which Hinata was thankful for because his burning gaze disturbed her. "No, no, no," Gai told Naruto, smiling and shaking his head, treating Naruto as if he was a stupid five-year-old. "I am sure the answer is in the Hyuuga library. It is something my heart is telling me, and I must trust my heart to save my beloved Rock Lee." Hinata and Naruto both looked away as tears poured down Gai's face.
Hinata backed away a bit, still behind Naruto, as Gai got down on his knees, hands clasped before him, begging her. "Please, Hinata-chan! I need your help. Rock Lee will die without you." As he watched the girl, tears still staining his cheeks, she nodded. "H-h-hai Gai-sensei. I will help L-lee-kun." Her face flushed red, and before Gai could jump up and hug her, as it was clear he was about to do, she spun on her heel, racing out of the ramen stand. Gai and Naruto watched her fleeing figure, Naruto still with ramen hanging half out of his mouth.
Hinata respected Rock Lee. The boy had been useless at everything, she remembered, but now he was one of the best Genins Konoha had, with a skill level on par with the two geniuses Hyuuga Neji and Uchiha Sasuke. Hinata admired Rock Lee for his ability to change himself. She wished she could work as hard as Lee-kun, and she did not want him to die.
And so, in the dead of night, Hinata snuck into the Hyuuga library. She was allowed to be there, so there was no real need for her to be so sneaky in entering, but she knew her punishment for being caught removing scrolls would be severe. She dreaded her father's wrath more than anything in the world.
Hinata managed to make it into the library unnoticed, but the light she saw in one of the aisles told her she was not alone. She struggled to mask her chakra, hoping the other person had not noticed her, and crept slowly toward the area she knew housed the healing scrolls.
"Hinata-chan," a voice muttered, causing her to squeak and jump in surprise. She spun quickly to face the speaker, her face dead white in fear. "R-r-reizo-sama," she squeaked, her voice just above a whisper. The Hyuuga man watched her as she looked down at her feet, trying desperately to hide her fear. I'm allowed to be here, she chanted to herself. He doesn't know.
"What are you doing here Hinata-chan?" Reizo asked, looking at the young girl with a mixture of kindness and curiosity. Hinata looked up at him for a brief second before her eyes found the floor again. "Reizo-sama, I…I…I lost by book," she lied quickly. "My mother used to read me stories when I was little and I've lost the book. I thought p-p-perhaps someone had moved it h-here."
Reizo looked at her dipped head and smiled. "I hope you find what you're looking for Hinata-chan. "With that, he turned and left the library.
Hinata let out a sigh of relief, before hurrying to the healing section. She withdrew the first few she found, wanting desperately to be gone. She used her chakra to transform the scrolls into children's books, and tucked them under her arm as she returned to her room. She fervently prayed that the scrolls would help Lee-kun.
TBC...
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, there you have it. It's a lot longer than the prologue, thankfully. I know my Gai is a bit off, but he's a difficult character for me to write for. Naoko and Suki are going to be major characters in later chapters, so if you don't like original characters, stop reading. But, please don't. Bye X)