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Hmm yes, I'm kind of surprised I even updated at all... Yes, I can feel the annoyed stares you all are sending me through your computer screens. Anyway it took awhile but here it is, the long awaited chapter 8. Now I'll hopefully plow through the rest of the story so I can stop worrying about updating all the time... but then there's that other fic... GAAHHHH!
Not sure if this chapter was good or not since I just wanted to update already... oh well, enjoy!
Chapter 8 Escape
"I'm getting married tomorrow, I'm sorry Gaara."
Gaara remained quiet for a moment for which seemed like eternity to Hinata, it was as if he was waiting for her to burst out laughing telling him she was just kidding. She could hear the wind blowing softly through the trees around her.
"What did you say?" he said quietly, his eyes dead serious.
"I…" Hinata said looking away nervously; she didn't have the heart to repeat it so she just answered the question that was probably swimming around in Gaara's mind, "I'm not… joking," she said her stomach clenching tightly. A voice inside her head screamed for her to just shut up already but she ignored it.
"I…" she continued but Gaara slowly turned his head around distracted. Hinata peered over his shoulder to see Neji standing twenty feet away with a less than content look on his face. His stance was still and tense, like a rat that just caught sight of a poisonous snake.
"What are you doing here?" Gaara accused him coldly. Hinata knew that this wasn't going to be good.
"Funny, I was just going to ask you the same thing," Neji replied, his eyes narrowed suspiciously. Neji approached them warily, Hinata could hear his footsteps echoing as if doom itself had taken on Neji's image. She wondered if she had lost her mind.
"What the hell is going on?" Neji asked angrily looking straight at Hinata. "What are you doing with him, Hinata?"
"….Ano…" Hinata said fearfully, trying to come up with pleasing response for both of them but could conjure up none. She clenched her hands tightly.
"She's coming with me," Gaara told him, taking a step in front of her signaling to Neji that Hinata was his.
"Are you kidding?" Neji asked with a smirk on his face, "Hinata and I are getting married," he said, those words stabbed Hinata in the stomach. Neji you idiot… She didn't Gaara to hear it from Neji.
"Is… that true?" Gaara asked. His pale green eyes bore into hers searching her for enlightenment. She didn't want to lie but she didn't want to tell the truth. Reality couldn't be escaped and dreams only hid reality's ugly face.
"Ye-Yes," she responded in defeat, immediately seeing the betrayal in Gaara's eyes she lowered her own in shame and self-loathing. Gaara don't be mad.
"I…" Gaara spoke suddenly but she didn't dare look up at him. "I'm sorry I came back," Gaara said his usual steady and reliable voice was shaky and unsure. Guilt surrounded her, squeezing her heart. Her fingers tingled as the tears began growing in her eyes. She clenched her fists together trying to stop herself from crying but already it was too late. "I'm sorry." She looked up at him fearfully, afraid of what she would see. He averted his eyes.
"I won't bother you again," he said in a low voice, he turned around and with a neat step he took off right before her eyes.
"Gaara please wait!" she yelled desperately, about to run after him. She couldn't take it anymore. She hated it, she just wanted everyone to be happy, she never meant to hurt anyone. Even she pitied her useless efforts in trying to do the right thing.
"Hinata stop!" Neji's arms locked around Hinata's shivering body, embracing her tightly. She froze, flinching at his touch.
"Let go Neji, please!" she cried, trying to break free as she watched Gaara fade farther and farther away. "Neji!"
"Hinata, our wedding is tomorrow! Doesn't that mean anything to you?" Neji asked angrily. He paused, sighing sadly and holding her tighter "Can you not feel my heart breaking?" he asked her, his voice shaking in anger and sadness. These words surprised her, did Neji really feel so strongly about her.
It never used to be that way, before Neji never thought anything about her, he used to see her as nothing but a temporary figure in his life. Someone unimportant given an important title, someone who he was just waiting for to vanish. When did this change happen?
Can you fall in love with someone you used to hate?
A quiet breeze softly caressed her face; she could feel Neji's heartbeat on her back hers too beat alongside his in unison.
The anguishing rhythm to a broken melody.
"Is there no way for all of us to be happy?" Hinata asked quietly.
"We will be, that I promise you Hinata," Neji said softly. Hinata remained quiet. "Do you really dislike me that much?"
Why was he always like this? What happened to the Neji she once knew? The once confident, self-reassured Neji who knew what he was doing, all that she saw now was a naïve fool who was trying to clip her wings and lock her in a cage, just like her father.
She had realized not too long ago that she no longer wanted to be apart of that world anymore, maybe that was why she was once so attracted to Naruto. The grass was always greener on the other side, his world was filled with a fiery golden light, hers was filled with a gloomy dim fog, and forever she felt she would have to follow orders blindly, struggling day after day. No, she refused to be there anymore.
Maybe that's why it was impossible for her to stay with Neji, to completely open her heart up to him and actually fall in love with him. Together they can never be happy.
"Neji, please let go," she said again, this time more assertively. "You can't force me to fall in love with you."
Gaara, Gaara, GAARA! Why does she love Gaara? That homicidal, moral-less monster! Neji didn't understand and frankly he had no intention to understand what the hell she saw in that freak.
He smelled his smell in Hinata's hair, his stench in her clothes and lingering on her skin. Her mind was tainted by his words and her lips defiled by his kiss.
"Please Neji-niisan!" she said again, his whole body was already numb from his futile effort in trying to keep her with him. He watched as she broke free away from him heading in the direction Gaara went.
She didn't even look back.
"Hinata…"
"Gaara!" Hinata yelled, her Byakugan activated, searching for him desperately. Why did he leave? It was already getting dark. She stopped panting for breath at the village gate. She wiped the perspiration off her forehead before wiping her tears of frustration from her pearl-like eyes.
Almost as soon as she was about to give up, there he was standing ten feet from her bearing a surprised yet relieved expression on his face. The sight of him warmed her up; she smiled and ran towards him but stopped when a pang of shyness rushed through her.
"Hi-Hinata!" He didn't expect her to come looking for him but the fact that he stayed and waited meant the he had hoped she would and for that she was glad.
The darkness surrounded them, the sound of crickets could be heard as they both stood there silently staring at each other. Everything felt almost surreal.
"What about your fiancé?" he asked quietly, resenting the question immediately.
"He doesn't matter anymore," she replied, "Gaara," she said looking up at him pleadingly, "Please take me with you!"
"Are you sure?" he asked her warily, this wasn't a decision that one should make spur of the moment.
"If I don't go now Gaara, I might never be able to see you again," she said sadly, his hand slowly traced the outline of her sad face; her eyes glowing dimly under the shimmering stars stared back at his. She could see their breaths intertwine due to the cold of the night. In a moment she wouldn't forget, their lips met under the dark sky for a kiss that sealed a promise. She decided that she wanted to be with Gaara. It was her choice, no matter right or wrong it was hers alone and she will follow it.
"Hey Lee, have you seen Neji lately?" Tenten asked. It was a completely bright and sunny day contrasting with the events of last night.
Neji felt no need to announce his presence; he was sitting on the sturdy wooden branch atop of a tree five feet away from his female teammate.
"He's up there sulking," his very green and lively teammate Lee told her pointing upwards. Tenten glanced up at him for a second and then turned hrt attention back on Rock Lee.
"I can't believe it! Runaway lovers!" she squealed delightedly, "I love these types of things, so dramatic and touching," she said wiping a fake tear from her eye. Neji swore that Tenten had been around Lee for too long. "And it's Gaara-san and Hinata-san too!" she exclaimed excitedly. Neji winced at the sound of Gaara's name.
"Tenten," Rock Lee gave a hinting cough.
"Oh sorry Neji," Tenten said sticking out her tongue. "I won't talk about it anymore."
"Talk about it as much as you want, I'm going training," he said and dropped from the tree landing gracefully on the soft green grass. His two friends watched him as he walked off.
"We're here if you ever need anything at all," Tenten yelled as she watched Neji leave.
It seemed as though the news of Hinata's leaving with Gaara was an exciting event, he heard people in the street giggling about young love and rooting for them. It disgusted Neji to no end.
He saw nothing beautiful or happy about it.
He wanted to get her back but he was afraid of what would happen to him and to Hinata. Maybe he's just making things worse, should he just accept it and move on? He knew these same thoughts probably ran through Hinata's own mind.
Sakura had just finished helping Tsunade with some paperwork since she had some free time and stumbled upon Hyuuga Hiashi yelling at the Hokage. She leaned in closely at the door trying to eavesdrop.
"I demand you send a team to retrieve my daughter at once!" Hiashi said slamming his hands on her desk facing her without any intention of backing down. His eyes gleamed with anger and frustration.
"What's the hurry Hiashi?" Tsunade asked trying to keep her cool and not start flinging objects in a frenzy.
"What's the hurry?" he repeated back in disbelief. "Hinata is my daughter, I'm not going to allow her to run away from this village, especially unmarked!" he said angrily.
"Is that all?" Tsunade said angrily, "You just want to make sure you protect the Hyuuga bloodline?"
"Hinata no longer matters to me, she has shamed all the Hyuuga by running out before her wedding day. The Sand deserves a weakling and imbecile like her," he said coldly.
Sakura dropped her papers and rushed in glaring at him. "Hinata is not weak!" she argued furiously, "How can you even say that about your own daughter?"
"That's enough Sakura," Tsunade said rubbing her temples in frustration.
"But Tsunade-sama!"
"I will send someone to find her, she is a missing-nin after all," Tsunade said. "Uzumaki Naruto will do," she said standing up. Naruto was her favorite to send out on petty missions and if it was Naruto there would be a less likely chance of Gaara killing him and Hinata actually coming back.
"Uzumaki Naruto?" Hiashi said confused, "I do not doubt the strength that boy has but can you please send someone more reliable for this mission?"
"Fine, Sakura will go too, she's a very reliable girl," Tsunade replied. Sakura stared at her shocked. She was going on this mission too? She didn't want to be the bringer of bad news to Hinata and the last thing she wanted to do was fight Hinata and Gaara to bring them back.
"But-!"
"Sakura, this is a mission. Do not disappoint me," Tsuande snapped strictly.
"H-hai," Sakura said bowing before quickly walking out the office. "Forgive me Hinata-chan…"
Gaara noticed that Hinata was continuously growing slower; she looked plagued with insomnia and stress. He couldn't help but worry about her health.
"We'll stop here," he said stopping, he caught glimpse of her exhausted expression.
"I'm fine," she said giving him a small reassuring smile but she stopped to rest anyway. She dropped down to the ground, leaning against a tall sturdy tree. He watched her, her eyes closed, her eyebrows knitted and her labored breathing going in and out of her slightly parted mouth.
Gaara silently sat down a few feet away from Hinata. Her eyelids parted, her white eyes gleaming curiously at him, catching his stare. She gave him a shy smile and looked away. A familiar pain stung in his chest, it felt like he just did something terribly wrong.
They had been traveling all night and now that day had broken across the sky a search party was most definitely coming for Hinata, he also didn't doubt that there's one from the Sand looking for him too. He knew that once they caught up to them, they would be separated. Hinata would be taken back to her village and Gaara to his.
"Gaara…" Hinata said quietly. He turned his head to show that he was listening to her. "What are you thinking about?" she asked him, "You always seem to be deep in thought."
"Where do you want to go?" he asked her, changing the subject slightly.
"It doesn't matter to me," she replied, "Weren't we going back to your village?" she asked him.
"That's fine then," he replied hesitantly, not sure if heading back to the Sand was the most ideal choice to make, "Are you ready to go?"
"Yeah," she smiled, seeing her happy made him a bit more relaxed.
Gaara stood up and held his hand out to help her up. She reached out and grasped his hand, he lifted her to her feet easily. "Thanks," she murmured while brushing the dirt off her behind.
He couldn't help but feel rather guilty, seeing her so hopeful. She really had faith in him, now if only he felt the same.
"Naruto! We have a mission!" Sakura yelled spotting Naruto at his usual training spot. He gaped at her a little surprised.
"Sakura-chan, a mission? Together, alone?" he asked confused. Tsunade usually never gave them missions together ever since she found out they've been dating.
"Yep!" she replied.
"What's it about?"
"Remember I told you that Hinata left with Gaara the other day?" Sakura said, Naruto nodded slowly. "Well… our mission is to-"
"Bring back Hinata?" he finished for her. She nodded, "Damn, I was hoping I wouldn't get that one," he said. She watched Naruto as he stretch his arms out towards the bright blue sky. He gave a frustrated sigh and dropped his arms back to his side, "I guess it can't be helped."
The two raced through the forest with Pakkun in front of them.
"Say, Naruto," Sakura said inspecting his face, she noticed now that Naruto was older it was getting more difficult to figure out what he was thinking. "You know… you and Gaara are very similar," Sakura said.
"Mmm… like the demon thing?" Naruto asked.
"There's that, and the whole acknowledgement thing," Sakura said. "Maybe that's why Hinata likes Gaara," Sakura guessed.
"I never really thought of her as the type of girl to like someone like Gaara, I mean neither one of them speak that much…" Naruto said thoughtfully.
Suddenly Sakura began to doubt the relationship of Gaara and Hinata, they had absolutely nothing in common to talk about and neither were social butterflies or anything. Maybe they just got together in the heat of the moment and after the moment is gone they'll just realize that it was one big mistake?
"Hey how close are we?" Naruto asked Pakkun.
"I'm not close enough to tell but we're definitely on their trail," Pakkun replied.
"Let's pick up the speed," Naruto advised Sakura, she nodded.
Neji found himself in Hinata's room, her bed was neat and made, and her room was plain and clean, very typical of her. Then suddenly out of the corner of his eye he saw something sparkle in a partially open drawer. He stepped closer for a better look and reached into her drawer and pulled out a necklace.
"This gem style is foreign," he said inspecting it, he wondered where and when she bought it or received it; he had never seen it before. He slipped it into his pocket, if he ever saw her again he would return it to her, it looked like something one shouldn't leave behind.
Next chapter should come earlier than Chapter 8 (heh...) since I already started writing it. Anyway leave a comment if you will or not, or flame me or whatever you want... I'm a (somewhat mediocre) writer, don't think I can't handle it!. (after a week of moping)
