Chapter 57


"How is it that the most peaceful days can be the ones where everything changes the most? How is it that after everything changes, the next day can still be totally peaceful?"


An unpleasant buzz woke Shino from his slumber. His eyes opened reluctantly as he sat up, his mind still fuzzy from sleep but his grogginess overruled by the buzzing beneath his skin. His kikaichu writhed with an unusual amount of energy as they crawled through his body, forcing him into a state of alertness at sharp contrast with his desire to continue sleep. A glance at his window told him it was still early morning, the sky outside still that pale blue that hinted sunrise to be less than an hour away.

He frowned as he got out of his futon to begin dressing, silently wondering what had made his kikaichu so unsettled. In the past they'd woken him up during missions when someone intruded on the campsite, but this time their energy seemed far less urgent. Just... uneasy. Pulling on his jacket, he soundlessly stepped towards his door and slid it open, peering into the hallway.

The door to the guest room down the hall was open, shadows stretching against the opposite wall amongst the pale light. Shino frowned, stepping into the hall. "Father?" he called softly. One of the shadows shifted and his father stepped out of the room, nodding at him.

"Shino. Come here." Shino nodded and walked over, glancing at the open door as he approached. ANBU agents milled about inside inspecting the furniture, combing through the drawers of the dresser and unfolding the futon to shake out the blanket. Torune hovered near the door still dressed in his sleeping yukata, his back to Shino but his shoulders tense and rigid as he watched them. Shino's frown deepened at the sight, his gaze flicking back to his father as his eyebrows knit together.

"Father, what is going on?" he asked, and Shibi sighed, placing his hands on Shino's shoulders as he bent downwards. The teen stiffened at the contact, alarm bells blaring in his head at the carefully gentle demeanor his father assumed. Though he'd only experienced it once before, he recognized it as the sort of gesture reserved for comforting someone in preparation for bad news. The furrow in his father's brow just further confirmed his suspicions that something was horribly wrong, and he wouldn't like whatever he heard.

However, even knowing that, he still wasn't prepared for the implications of Shibi's next words.

"Shino, when did you last see Hinata?" he asked, and Shino's mind went blank.


Word spread around Konoha slowly at first, just quiet whispers, but as the day went on it quickly picked up pace. By that afternoon whispers could be heard everywhere about the wayward Hyuuga heiress, the village buzzing with uneasy tension as ANBU combed the streets in search of the missing girl. No one had the exact details, the only information being released that she had gone missing, but naturally that was more than enough fodder for the rumor mill.

Ino hated it.

For once, Konoha's self-proclaimed queen of gossip had absolutely no interest in the rumors currently spreading in the village. With her mouth set in a tight line she flipped the sign hanging on the flower shop's window from "open" to "closed" and locked the door, turning and stalking into the back room. Shikamaru and Chouji sat at the table holding hanafuda cards, but they set them down to turn to her as she entered.

"Closed for the day?" Shikamaru guessed, and Ino huffed, not bothering to suppress her irritated scowl.

"I don't care what daddy says, I'm not working another minute," she declared testily. "Can we go?"

"Sounds good to me," Chouji declared jovially, getting up. "It's lunchtime anyway. C'mon, my uncle told me about this new place down by Yakiniku Q, I really wanna try it out." Ino shot him a dark look but didn't bother snapping about his obsession with eating this time, just followed him and Shikamaru without a word.

None of them had any idea what was going on. That morning she woke up to find her father had rushed out in the middle of the night, leaving Ino to run the shop alone since her mom had already promised to help watch a cousin's baby that day. She'd only found out Hinata had gone missing after the first customer asked her about it, and from there the shift got steadily worse. Her only solace had been when Shikamaru and Chouji arrived with similar stories of their fathers disappearing that morning, and offering to stay in the back for moral support.

Maybe her dad would get mad at her for closing the store early, but she didn't care. Ino honestly, truly, could not bring herself to care a single iota about how mad or disappointed he might be. Three hours into her shift, she just couldn't take it anymore. Customers kept talking right in front of her about their crazy speculations about Hinata, ranging from everything from kidnapping to fleeing an assailant to even attempting some horrible crime before fleeing the village.

It just compounded her own worries, the blonde constantly flashing back to Hanabi's teary panicked visit just the day before crying about the Hyuuga elders.

"What do you mean?" Ino demanded, now all business. "Calm down, and tell me everything." Hanabi sucked in a deep breath as she nodded, clearly trying to calm herself.

"The elders—this morning I heard them talking about nee-chan. One of them said he'd told her to come back by tonight, o-or..." Her voice cracked as she trailed off, genuine horror flashing in her face. Ino frowned as she leaned over the counter, lowering herself to be closer to eye level with the girl.

"Or?" she probed gently, and Hanabi blinked, turning fearful white eyes towards her.

"He said he'd seal her!"

Her mouth thinned at the memory. Ino knew next to nothing about the Hyuuga clan's traditions and Hanabi had refused to elaborate on what she meant by sealing her, but the sheer terror in Hanabi's voice had made the details irrelevant. She couldn't forget the fear in the girl's eyes, genuinely fearful for her sister's safety, and that was enough for Ino.

She might not know what happened last night, but she knew the Hyuuga elders had some sort of blame in this.

Ahead of her Shikamaru suddenly stopped, snapping her out of her thoughts. He turned his head with a small frown, watching Kiba stalk down a street nearby. The Inuzuka didn't seem to notice them, angrily shoving past some passing pedestrians before disappearing from their line of sight. The trio exchanged worried looks, all of them recognizing what had Kiba in such a bad mood.

"Should we go after him?" Chouji asked. "He looked like he wanted to kill something..."

"He always looks like that," Ino offered, but even to her own ears her words felt flat and half-hearted at best. She and Chouji cast each other uncertain looks, but Shikamaru just sported his usual expression of boredom and mild exasperation.

"This is troublesome," he declared flatly, and sighed as he scratched his neck. "Come on, let's just get to the restaurant already. We can't really do anything." Chouji nodded, still looking uncertain, but turned to lead the way anyway. Ino stood still for a moment, casting one last look in the direction Kiba headed.

Honestly, she had no idea how to deal with Kiba. Her dad had taught her how to handle interacting with comrades going through a variety of tough situations, like the death of a teammate or a career-ending injury, but this? She still had no idea what went down with Hinata, just that she was gone. Her father had never covered that sort of situation, especially when it came to people so young. Trying to talk to Kiba now might just backfire and make him more upset.

Biting her lip, she turned and reluctantly trailed after her teammates. Her appetite had totally vanished, but she didn't want to be alone right now.


The mood at the Haruno household could only be described as somber.

Naruto sat on the living room couch with a blanket draped over his shoulders, for once dressed in a simple white shirt and shorts with his eyes red and puffy from crying. Sakura and Masaru sat on either side of him, each projecting as much support as possible, while Sasuke just sat on the armchair with a stiffness to his posture as he leaned forward. They glanced up as Mebuki opened the door carrying a tray with steaming mugs of hot chocolate, a soft if not sad smile on her face as she set it on the coffee table.

"Here, drink up," she told them. "It's a bit warm out for hot chocolate, but there's nothing better than this when you need cheering up."

"Thanks, mom," Sakura said, managing a feeble smile as she reached for the nearest mug. Her mother returned it with a gentle smile of her own before quietly retreating, closing the door behind her to give them privacy. Once she left Sakura's smile slid off her face, looking down at the mug and staring at her reflection in the dark liquid. Solemn silence descended once more as the others on the couch mimicked the gesture, Masaru quietly sipping while Naruto just held his mug with empty eyes.

"You never told us." Sasuke broke the silence, prompting three pairs of eyes to flit his way. His gaze remained focused on Naruto, his mouth a thin frown. "Why didn't you tell us about your apartment?"

The blond blinked slowly and averted his gaze, his bangs falling into his eyes without his hitai-ate to hold them back. "It just... didn't seem important," he said quietly. "You guys had other stuff to worry about, what with Sakura-chan's dad, and you and Masaru..." He trailed off, offering a half-hearted shrug. "Just... I didn't think it was a big deal, I guess." Sakura's grip tightened on her mug, her lips curling back slightly.

"Idiot," she said softly, and she could see him look at her in her peripheral vision. She kept her gaze trained on the chocolate, glaring dully at her hazy reflection. "We're Team Seven. That means whatever happens to you affects us too."

Naruto didn't respond right away, seeming to just mull over her words. "...Does it really matter though?" he finally asked. "My apartment's gone, but Jiijii said I could stay with Konohamaru and his mom. They even got me a bunch of stuff to replace everything I lost, it's not like I had anything special there anyway—"

Crack.

They all stiffened at the distinct crack of porcelain, their gazes simultaneously focusing on Sakura's mug. She could see a sliver of a break extending from where her hand gripped it, barely visible but still there. Biting her lip, she raised the mug and sipped from it, the hot liquid scalding her tongue but the pain going ignored. She lowered it with a small exhale, her face perfectly stony and blank. "Sorry," she said flatly. "Just a bit frustrated, that's all."

The others just regarded her in silence for a moment, and then Sasuke turned to Naruto. "Naruto, you're an even bigger idiot than I thought," he declared bluntly. "Didn't you learn anything back in Wave?"

Naruto squirmed uncomfortably, clearly remembering those tense moments hiding in the cave from Zabuza. Sakura felt herself grow equally somber as she recalled Naruto's near-suicidal proposal to use himself as a distraction so the others could flee, her own response echoing clearly in her head.

"We're a team now. If we leave you behind, you'll just die. What kind of self-respecting ninja would sacrifice a teammate for a gambit we don't even know would work?"

"We're Team Seven," Sasuke continued in the present, his attention trained firmly on Naruto with a steely intensity. "Like Sakura said, that means your problems affect us too. Don't just hide stuff and pretend everything's okay, tell us." His words caused Sakura's stomach to twist, her gaze lowering to her lap once more for reasons she couldn't quite understand.

"It's not just you guys." Masaru spoke up this time, his face surprisingly placid and calm as he sipped from his mug. His eyes told another story though, agitation and distress clearly visible in them as he turned to look at the blond with a frown. "I'm not part of Team Seven, but I'm your friend too. It's not fair to keep something that big from us. We shouldn't have had to find out like... this."

The look Naruto sported could only be described as stricken, his face looking ready to crumble as he stared wide-eyed at the brunet. "M-Masaru," he whispered, his voice oddly choked, and he quickly put down his still-full mug while wiping at his eyes with the back of his arm. He huffed a shaky breath, his arm lowering to rest on his lap. "She—she said she loved me."

The others froze at the admission, their eyes widening. "What?" Sakura whispered, feeling the color draining from her face. Naruto's shoulders trembled as he shook his head, his face looking even more drawn than before.

"When—when Hinata-chan knocked me out, she... she said, 'I'm sorry, I love you. Goodbye.' I can't stop hearing her say that, she was crying when she said it." His voice dropped to a choked whisper, his body hunching forward as he bit back a sob. "I don't get it. If she really cared, why didn't she ever talk to me before?"

Sakura could feel her own heart break into a million tiny pieces as she listened to the miserable blond, her whole being overcome with nothing but pity and horror on her teammate's behalf. Even Sasuke looked stricken by the question, so full of pain and despair, openly grimacing and averting his gaze with a distinct look of discomfort. On Naruto's other side Masaru just frowned and looked back at his mug, his face blank and unreadable.

In the end, this was the core of the issue: Hinata had left, and she had done it in a way that absolutely shattered Naruto's heart. Sakura didn't know whether she wanted to hate the girl or pity her right now. Seeing the way her teammate suffered made her blood boil with rage, but at the same time she knew that Hinata had been under immense pressure from her clan.

Possibly the only advantage Sakura had over her clan-born classmates had been the lack of expectations. Usually, that proved to be a disadvantage since people didn't think a civilian-born ninja could accomplish, well, anything. Sakura herself had likely only been able to keep up with her peers because her parents had been career genin and still retained enough knowledge to help her train outside of classes. But at least she didn't have stodgy old clan elders breathing down her neck about being absolutely perfect.

Ino had told her plenty about how bad the Yamanaka clan could get at times in regards to her training, and even then she had often finished her rants with, "At least we're not as stiff as the Hyuuga." Given how bad some of her stories could be, Sakura couldn't possibly imagine the pressure Hinata must have faced, especially after she fled before her match with Naruto.

If only she'd just told someone, she thought dismally, and then froze as her own words registered, her eyes widening.

"Oh," she said softly, oblivious to the questioning looks sent her way. Suddenly, she felt like a giant freaking hypocrite.

"S-Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked hesitantly, and she blinked, looking over at him and then at Masaru on his other side.

"Masaru, I'm sorry, but could you please leave us alone for a few minutes?" she asked. "I... need to talk to Naruto and Sasuke alone for a few minutes. It's team business."

Masaru looked at her silently, his face still eerily blank and unreadable, but then he dipped his head in assent and rose to his feet. "Alright," he agreed easily, quietly putting down his mug. "I'll take a walk for a bit. Take all the time you need." She offered him a weak smile, feeling a little guilty for kicking him out. But right now, this was about Team Seven.

Once he closed the door she wiped the smile from her face, turning to her teammates with a stony frown. Naruto and Sasuke regarded her with alert looks, both sitting on edge as they sensed the tension she radiated. This was the first possible timing to tell them, when the pain from Hinata's departure was still so fresh. But she didn't think there'd ever be a good time, and she didn't have much time.

'We're Team Seven,' she chanted in her mind, echoing her earlier words. Whatever happened to her affected them too.

She took a deep breath, and forced herself to speak.

"I'm leaving Konoha to train with Lady Tsunade."


Masaru quietly sighed to himself as he ambled down the street, secretly relieved to be out of the Haruno house. Dealing with such high emotions left him feeling drained, and the tensions in the room had been becoming too much. Don't get him wrong, he really wanted to support Naruto, but he'd already spent the whole night doing it. As bad as it sounded, he desperately needed a break.

As he strolled through the marketplace he spied a familiar bun-headed girl walking around the corner ahead, making him briefly perk up. However, his expression quickly dissolved into a grimace when he saw a second figure following her, and he immediately turned around. It had been a while since he'd spoken to Tenten, but he'd rather not have to speak to Neji right now.

Alas, luck was not on his side. He barely made it three steps before he heard Tenten call after him. "Hey, Masaru! It's been a while!" Internally groaning at his bad luck, he wiped off his grimace and put on the most neutral expression possible as he turned around.

"Hey, Tenten," he greeted with a nod and weak smile, trying his best to ignore Neji. "Sorry, I was away on a mission for a few days."

"Really? Lucky." The older kunoichi groaned, sagging tiredly. "We've been on cleanup duty almost nonstop. Gai-sensei volunteered our 'youthful power' for as many jobs as possible, even Lee's starting to get tired."

"You're kidding," Masaru deadpanned.

"I wish. I never thought I'd see the day." Neither did Masaru. He couldn't think of Rock Lee being anything but hyper and energetic. Actually, after a moment's thought he realized that he legitimately could not imagine the mini-Gai being tired. The closest he could get was picturing him walking and talking somewhat normally, but then again, the older boy's overly abundant energy gave Masaru some... reservations, about thinking on it too hard.

"Do you have any work today?" he asked, shelving the thoughts before they could get too disturbing.

"No, we have today off," Tenten replied with obvious relief. "I think most genin do, considering..." She trailed off at this point, her expression falling as she glanced at Neji. The older boy's eyes narrowed but he said nothing, pointedly looking away, and her shoulders slumped slightly in tired resignation. Masaru felt his mood grow a bit darker as he observed the brief silent exchange, reminded once more of Neji's role in the current state of affairs.

He took a step back, rocking on his feet. "Right," he said. "Anyways, it's been nice, but I need to go. Everyone's waiting for me back at Sakura's place, I just stepped out for a bit to get some fresh air while they all talked about some team stuff." Not a complete lie, but Masaru didn't intend to return to her house just yet.

Tenten's face fell a bit, probably recognizing his real reason for leaving, but she seemed to be understanding. "Alright. I won't keep you any longer. But sometime soon come find me for another sparring match. It's been way too long, and I want to see how much better you've gotten."

Masaru smiled a bit at that, dipping his head in assent. "Alright, will do. Later, Tenten." He nodded politely to Neji and then turned and walked away, not looking back. Once he'd turned a corner he exhaled in relief, his shoulders slumping as he continued onwards. He still had some time to kill before he planned to return to Sakura's house, so maybe he could go grab lunch or something. All he wanted was an easy, stress-free few minutes away from all this... stuff.

Alas, that would not be an option.

"Masaru!" For the second time in five minutes he resisted the urge to groan aloud as he turned to face Kiba, the Inuzuka pushing past a particularly crowded section of street as he ran over. Akamaru yipped in greeting at him from atop his head, though the canine seemed a bit more subdued than usual due to his partner's bad mood.

"Hey, Kiba," he greeted tiredly as the other boy reached him, not looking forward to this. Dealing with Kiba had not been in his plans for today. It had been tricky enough just supporting Naruto; Masaru had no idea where to even begin with handling Hinata's teammates. What could he even say to him? 'I'm sorry your teammate ran away because her clan is full of giant assholes?'

Comforting people really didn't come naturally to Masaru.

Luckily, Kiba didn't seem keen on discussing that mess just yet. "Masaru, I need a favor," he said, catching his breath. "And I need you to hold off on questions until afterwards." Masaru inclined his head, intrigued by the wording.

"What is it?" he asked, and Kiba straightened, meeting his gaze directly.

"I need to go to your old house."


And I'm back! Admittedly not much going on in this chapter, it's mostly just showing people's reactions, though there's at least one major revelation here. Have no fear, next chapter will expand on that, as well as cover Hiashi's reactions to this mess.

Also, has anyone here watched Juuni Taisen? Because I might be seven chapters deep into a fan fic for it. I highly recommend watching it if you haven't, I thought it would just be a battle royale-style story that focuses on fighting, but it's actually a lot deeper than I expected. I'm already looking forward to the sequel.

Thanks to Elise142, goofboy96, xXSpades231Xx (Thank you! Also: 1. ...Maybe. 2. Not sure, depends on who captures him. 3. Maybe someday, Tsunade could probably fix it. 4. Small ponytail. 5. Oh, definitely.), Beyogi (That's not exactly how it went down, I'm afraid.), ArturoLJ50, Guest (thank you very much!), and polyptera.