Still don't own it. You'd know if i did. Have fun kiddies, play nice, don't bite, enjoy.
Hidden in Plain Sight
"Good afternoon, Uchiha."
"Godaime."
"I'm going to be straight to the point. Itachi has been sighted in Cloud country. I am not going to allow you to run after him. It's foolish and reckless and you could endanger a number of people including yourself." Tsunade glared at him. Sasuke glared right back. Her look softened a little. "Listen Sasuke, I know you're stronger than you were six years ago. I will be one of the first to acknowledge that. But I can not have your quest for vengeance endanger the Cloud. We're shaky allies at best. If we sent a ninja there, a lone ninja, without official business, there would be trouble. If people got hurt, there'd be war. So, let me state again: You will not run to Cloud and chase him down." Tsunade grinned smugly. "However… if say, a mission were to take you to Cloud… they couldn't argue."
Sasuke looked at her, and she could read a small amount of gratitude and an even smaller amount of hope. Then she dropped the bomb. "Unfortunately, we don't have any missions for someone of your talents there. Sending a fighter as powerful as you would be a very bad plan. You probably haven't heard what's happening over there.
People with bloodlines, specialist ninjas, strong ninjas, high chakra users; they're being sealed." Sasuke started. "No, nothing like Orochimaru. The seals are being removed without problems. The problem isn't the seal. I guess the best way to explain it would be like poisoned needles. Once you've been pricked, removing the needle doesn't do anything because the poison has already gone into your blood. Same thing here. The seal has done something to the victims' chakra, I don't quite know, as none of the Cloud have seen anything like it. The victims can't mold chakra properly; even their blood limits can't be maintained. The allies of the Cloud, which includes Konoha, are sending over medic nins in case there is something that can be done. It's pretty obvious that Hyuuga Hinata is my choice. However she isn't a fighter like you, so I'm sure you can guess how you fit in this plan."
"I'm to protect her." Sasuke shrugged. At least she wouldn't take this as "Sasuke and my romantic adventure".
"Bingo. And if you happen to run into Itachi, that isn't my business. Just remember Uchiha, her mission is the priority. I don't need to tell you that her life is more important than his death. And if you upset my apprentice, I will personally remove your sole means of reviving your clan. Got it?"
"Yes, Godaime. When do we leave?"
"One week from today. I still need to brief Hinata. I don't know how long your mission will be, anywhere from five days to five months, depending. Pack minimally, you'll have an allowance to make up for anything you need when you're there. Full report will be given to you before you leave. Now get out of my office."
"Cloud?" Hinata's expression was unreadable.
"Yeah, they need help. A lot of it. Your kind of help. Whatever the hell is going on over there, they need a medic just like you."
Hinata could have laughed at the irony. Of all the villages…the Cloud was after her Byakugan yet again. Only this time, they would be better if she kept her pearly white eyes. She looked to Neji, as if to see if he got the joke. She could tell by his expression that he did… but he was far from amused.
"Godaime, the Hyuuga are not the family to ask to help the Cloud…"
"Neji! You…" Hinata wanted to be discreet if she could possibly help it. However Neji wasn't going to be very helpful.
"Godaime! You do know that it is the Cloud nin treachery that cost the house of Hyuuga a good man. You do know that Cloud nin tried to kidnap Hinata-sama… after signing a peace treaty. And even if those particular nin were dealt with, you want her to go there. Godaime, do you know what you are asking?"
"She is asking for a medic!" Hinata snapped. "Neji-niisan, I appreciate your concern, but I am Konoha shinobi, and I have been assigned a mission that I will hopefully be adept at. My eyes will be of greater use them in my head, and I can not in good faith decline a mission that will help people. If we must, we can talk to my father, but I intend to go on this mission."
Tsunade looked at the two cousins, those similar yet different eyes locked in anger on each other. "Hyuuga, if you think I would send her anywhere without protection, I'd have to hit you."
Neji forced himself to look at the Hokage. "Godaime, I have no doubt you would send a fitting escort to protect Hinata-sama. But I am more concerned that you would send Hinata-sama at all." Neji looked at his cousin. She looked right back at him. "However as she is determined to go, I trust that she will come back and be able to continue training. Godaime, Hinata-sama." Neji left in a puff of smoke. Tsunade stared at the spot he'd occupied rather regretfully.
"He really is worried about this mission. Maybe I shouldn't send you."
"No, he's not worried about the mission. He's worried about me." He acknowledges that I'm stronger, but apparently he doesn't think me strong enough. Yes, I'm a little uneasy, but I'm not four years old anymore. I am Konoha shinobi, and I will be damned if I let something so long ago affect my nindo. "But I'm not. When will we leave?"
Tsunade looked amused. "You don't want to know who the rest of your party will be?"
"You told Neji-niisan that I'd have fitting protection. I trust my Hokage. So when will we leave?"
"A week from today. Details will be given to you before then. Enjoy Konoha, ne? I have no idea how long you'll be there, but I have a sneaking suspicion you won't be back soon."
"Hai, Tsunade-sama." Hinata smiled at her mentor.
"Good luck with it, Hinata-chan."
"We don't have to use an illusion you know. That takes chakra to maintain, and what if I can't afford that? I have a suggestion." Hinata almost flinched at interrupting the Council, but this chatter was getting her nowhere. Her family looked at her. She fought the whisper of suggestion to stare at the floor.
"What if we just painted it on and used chakra to seal the paint into the skin? Renew the chakra once a week and I won't have to worry about remembering that I'm also maintaining an illusion in the heat of battle. I'll wear my forehead protector over it, no one who isn't looking for the signs will know anyway."
No one spoke. After a few seconds of eternity, Hyuuga Hiashi nodded.
"Alright, this should be enough to support you both and possibly a large dog for a year. Which means it ought be more than necessary, but let's not take chances now. I expect a full report when you get back, so don't slack off. And do take notes. I want to know every little detail."
Sasuke and Hinata nodded, then disappeared into the trees
"Good luck… both of you."
Tsunade sighed for the fifty somethingith time, thoughts unsurprisingly not on work. This time however, it wasn't on the bottles Shizune had confiscated, but rather on the pair she had sent off this morning. Hinata had looked slightly surprised to see Uchiha Sasuke show up at the gates late. While Hinata was trying to find her tongue, Tsunade had told him off for being late. He'd shrugged and said at least he wasn't three hours late. She'd sent them off then, Hinata with the map to the Kumogakure, Hidden Village of the Cloud, and Sasuke with a warning glare. And then they were gone. They ought to be at Kumogakure in four days time, and then… who knows how long they'd be there.
They were cutting through the forest to the main road, leaping from branch to branch. As they are going to be traveling for a while, I suppose now would be as good a time as any to describe our shinobi. Sasuke is really not much different than he was when he was twelve. Still the pale, black haired pretty boy, still silent and stand-offish. He'd gotten better though, a sense of humor that would on occasion show itself, a smile that lurked closer to the surface than it did before. He'd matured well, very well in the eyes of his fangirls. He would never be overly muscular, but he had a lithe grace, like steel cord; strong, deadly, silent. He'd rediscovered the joy of buckles; the appearance of restraint, of holding back, although the confidence boost when girls nearly fell over in dead faints (silent at last) also had perks. Black pants, and a black muscle tee, the Uchiha fan emblazoned on the back. Three bright buckles decorated the strap attaching his weapons pouch to his pants; one long strap crisscrossed his right forearm cloth, a match made its way down his left leg. The decorations weren't of any use, or disuse, but he liked them anyway.
She was only a few inches shorter than he was, with the soft grace of a dancer. Her hair fringed a little past her shoulders, creating a flare of blue black silk when the wind blew. She'd lost the child like roundness, lending a more mature and confident air to her face. Her hitai ate was on her forehead for once. She'd forsaken her infamous jacket, chose not to wear her Chuunin vest, leaving it at home, as a reminder. Instead, black net wound down her arms, fingerless gloves with silver guards protected the backs of her hands. The net connected to a solid black shirt, square cut, to emphasize the hitai ate that did not sit around her neck. She too wore black pants, only the Hyuuga flame on the side of her thighs made the difference. Let us now skip forward a few hours.
The main road had villages scattered along it, they stopped at one for lunch. Hinata pulled out a map, and drew a small x through the village they were in. "We should be in Cloud country in three more days, two if we're quick about it. Tsunade-sama should have sent the Raikage a message by now. So they'll be expecting us in Kumogakure no Sato." She paused, a small sardonic smile playing at her lips. She played with the knot of her hitai ate. "Shall we get moving, Sasuke-san, or would you like some more dango?"
They found getting one room to share while they traveled was a good plan very early on. Hinata insisted they at least alternate who slept on the bed, whenever there was only one to be had. Getting one room had several advantages, it was cheaper yes, but it also meant that neither would be troubled by propositions. Sasuke had been about ready to kill someone the first time they stopped for the night; having asked for two rooms, one for him, the other for his partner, and had been swarmed by would be fangirls. He'd seen Hinata approached by several men; somehow she managed to decline them politely, gracefully without them feeling bad. After that, they'd decided one room would be easier. They appeared at the gates of Kumogakure late on the third night, not too much worse for wear. They were taken to the Raikage, who was amazingly still awake and in his office.
The first thought that came to mind was that the Raikage was… young. She heaved an inward sigh of relief. It meant he had not been in power when the Cloud had betrayed the Hyuuga. She didn't want her past to cause problems now. He was in his early twenties, he reminded her of Shikamaru. He had an air of intelligence and ruthlessness, but that he'd rather not use it if he could possibly help it. Unlike Shikamaru however, it seemed he preferred using a boyish charm that, if one were not on guard, would make one think he was naïve and far too trusting. There were dark circles around his eyes, and they lit up at the sight of their hitai ate.
"You're the Konoha medic nin?"
"No, just her." Sasuke drawled somewhat curtly.
"Ah, a sound tactic. If the medic and her patient find themselves in trouble, you rescue them." He grinned good-naturedly. "I'm Kaemon."
"Hyuuga Hinata."
"Uchiha Sasuke."
"Wonderful to meet you. I refuse to allow such a delicate looking flower to examine the victims, as I can see she is itching to do. Not at this time of night, Hinata-hime."
Hinata blushed, as much at her transparency as at the nickname. "I…"
Kaemon waved aside her protests. "Go, you'll be escorted to your quarters, come here as soon as you can tomorrow morning. I promise you, Hinata-hime, that the patients will not have worsened their condition by morning. Now go get some rest, you must have pushed yourselves to be here a day earlier than expected." The Raikage all but pushed them out.
Their quarters were just that. Theirs. They would be in the same apartment. Two tiny little rooms that just fit the beds and a small table. A main room with two desks. two chairs, a small kitchenette, and a very comfortable looking sofa. Somehow this somewhat more permanent residence together held portent more than sharing one room at inns while traveling did. Hinata felt it, but tried not to let it, or his dark eyes on her back bother her. She chose a room and flopped down on the bed. This is certainly going to be interesting.