Summary: With an innate soft heart, she aided an adversary. He was cynical, believing "The end justify the means." How can she reply back that what he believed don't justify her means? ItachiHinata
Disclaimer: If I own Naruto… probably, I won't be writing a fic.
Authoress Notes: Sorry for the Looooooooong Wait! And sorry if there are words that I mixed up with another word which I know a very big mistake that I made but bear with me since I'm not beta-ed. Yes, I got this phrase from Dashboard Confessional's Vindicated. Yay! I love the band! And I know you do so, ne? And I've got the widest range of infos about Hinata and Itachi! Hurrah! And purple1's fic 'Dead Butterflies' always motivates me to continue writing. I like her metaphoric ending. Ugh! I really like Angst like I wanted to call myself angst-mistress (but that sounds terrible)!!! And so do you, ne? Hopefully… Just ignore this crap. On with the story!
Chapter II: Another ProspectiveHe gradually opened his eyes. There were flickers from the soaring embers turning into a dust he witnessed through haziness until it got focused. Underneath it was his black cloak hanging on a branch, washed and unstained, dried along the heat. Furthermore, the scenery were from before, flooded trees and bushes surrounding and the firmament was still dark, the sun seemed to appear that it didn't like to show up. 'Where am I?' He always liked to gather thoughts solely for himself. Twisting his head a little from the left, he met a pair of purplish orbs glistening through the night, soft as she rested her sight unto him.
"You're finally awake." She was sitting on her slanted legs next to his pathetic state. "Enough rest and you'll recover sooner. I had closed the wound but it doesn't mean that it has completely mended." There was a fabric on her hand that she soon lifted up, setting on his impassive façade. It was cold and damp that stroked his flesh, wiping the smears on it. The least he could expect, else the unexpected –to be touched. Nonetheless, the exterior never reacted.
"If I may ask, what had happened to you? You were wasted when I spotted you and the wound on your rib… that was not some ordinary weapon, which caused it. While, partial of your chakra didn't stream the channel well." She said meekly.
Her hands trailed upwards after his cheeks, moving the raven tresses out of his face. A leaf mark of Konoha grazed on his forehead protector likely of hers. "All men are bad and ever ready to display their vicious nature whenever they may find occasion for it." He spoke seeing those widened eyes as if what he answered was a fitful one that came straightforwardly to her question.
Her hand halted and clutched on her rising chest. "What do you mean?" She was more than shock and averted her eyes just not to lock with his. 'Is it I or you?' The statement he said was puzzling nevertheless.
Was that he thought about her? "In your opinion… I guess… demo…" After these, what she would do to this stranger? Surrender him to authorities? That was a probable answer. She needed not to fight this man and that was an advantage. She never liked the idea of fighting against anyone. A pacifist? Indeed.
But that wasn't really on her mind in the first place, for the first time she caught of his sight. What was all running along her head was…to help. "Don't…" She halt like 'was this a good idea' she asked herself, like what she would say would still be contemplated? "Misunderstand me." She composed herself, turned her back and left, leaving the man with his prized silence.
The sun had not yet fully stretched his boastful rays as she moved along. As she strolled amidst the rifting bushes she passed on, a shrub of wild berries she familiarly spotted. She knew it by face but not by name. Through Shino, she had been aware of what was edible, poisonous and the not. The foliage rasping in accordance as she moved towards then knelt down. Those were like of plums and of colors of mauve appealing to the sense of sight. She picked one and bit some. It tasted sweet yet somehow sour. 'This is perfect'. She pulled out several then returned. Her lips curved into a smile. 'He might be hungry.' She would catch some fish after –she decided.
Upon returning, his eyes were closed and had a normal breathing, still lying and her gray coat was folded underneath his head like a pillow. He was asleep. The bonfire was already left cold. She bended over soundlessly to place down the berries on the hollow part of his straw hat next to him. Then, that was the time she had taken a good look at the stranger he aided. His face was a canvass of nothing in stillness but she had felt a feeling of grief and sorrow encasing him. It was more than meets the eye.
Through closed eyes he asked, lips parting to speak. "You should've left me." Surprise and shock mingle while heat reached her cheeks that were left unnoticed by him. "Naze?" His voice was low in tone.
"Because…" Her mouth agape but she tried to answer, a truthful answer coming from her heart. "I can barely watch a wounded man." It came out plainly.
Of crows his eyes as soon as he tilted his head and stared deeply at hers, yearning to find out the intentions further than truth. "Sou ka?" Either way, he won't fall to a foolish trap he considered as one. However, a fool could answer foolishly yet somehow honestly. Whatever it was, he hissed, "The end justifies the means."
"I'll come back later." She stood and left once more. He needed rest rather than someone who could cure the sickness he wrapped himself around. 'The end don't justify the means.'
The birds greeted, humming along, singing and playing a blithe tempo, restless and free as she approached the fall thoroughgoing. A smile sketched on her visage. Some birds flew a little on the verge of her presence, curious about the maiden. As the water reflected her, she wasn't surprised at all. Her hair was messy and a twig had jammed in and mire was stuck on her legs. She had been busy right from the start, day and night. Maybe she should need a bath, she felt dirty anyhow.
The sun had slowly peeped in as she undressed and dumped her clothes in a pile. The trees and boulders had helped her to ease her uneasiness of bathing outside home. She descended, sinking on the surface.
Enjoying the abundance, she swam back and forth yet still her body was submerged, concealed. After a while, she cupped water on her delicate hands, which reflected the sky on top of her. The sky was all azure and thin. Then she splashed it into her face, feeling the pleasant coldness that stroked her face, giving her a feeling of delight shown in her curved lips.
At that moment, there were rustles she heard that made her to halt, sensing someone was watching her. 'Byakugan!' Her dangerous eyes were levitated to look for intruders. This was an unfortunate time. The fall agitated the stream and she was amidst it so she swam gradually boulder-to-boulder to hide her bareness until she could reach her clothes.
"OH! You're a disgrace for Konoha, ero-sennin!" She swung her head, hearing that familiar voice. "OI! Stop looking at her!"
"Stop it, you annoying bug!" The man's voice was comparably larger and taking it into account, he was irritated as being pushed. "If I know you love watching as well! So shut up as I gain another data!" Then, a grin. "This will make my book a best-seller!"
"OI HINATA! THERE'S A DIRTY OLD MAN WATCHING YOU!!!"
"I said stop it!" And then two men popped out from the bushes, rolling, squeezing and pinching each other's heads.
In a swift, she hugged a boulder and her eyes turned normal accompanied with shock as heat rushed over her cheek. "Jiraiya-sama… Na—Naruto?" She blinked. The certain one blinked as well. This was too embarrassing to see him with this situation. "What are you doing here?" She blurted out with eyes abruptly shut. Thinking wasn't an option in this kind of circumstance –being witnessed by the man you loved since eight. Her eyes were shifting side by side just not to get locked with his sapphires.
"Well, I—uhm…" The blonde averted his eyes out of her and instead looked up at the sky. Scratching his scarred cheek, he stuttered, "We—II… Weee are—"
The wind tossed back the man's odd white mane out of his face. His face was serious while his eyes were curved, resting down on the sole woman while a drool slipped from his mouth, which was ajar. "Alright! I'll say it instead." He took a step forward and another step until he was at the end of the line from the stream. "There was a missing nin on the run. He was probably still on our territory with his wretched condition. So be careful lady. I prefer you to get back home." With that, he finished but still writing something on his little notebook. He did not care even if his nose was bleeding.
"OI QUIT THAT!" The lad kicked the grinning Jiraiya's butt to move along. He yelled with closed eyes, almost an earsplitting speech, "We need to find him before all is lost!" then pulled the sannin, who was constantly complaining "Wait I'm not yet finished!" which echoed along the forest. "If you found a black cladded man, knock him down and be quick to get back home! He's dangerous and remorseless as he is!" He shouted as he waved a hand and the other, grabbing his mentor, and jumped tree to tree away from her.
"Oi! Tell me, do you have something for her?" Jiraiya shoved Naruto's hand and composed himself onto a sturdy branch as he asked.
The shorter one was then caught in silence, speechless with the question as if it was more than a Math question to think about. Seconds after, he had replied. "She's a friend." And without any signal, he leapt all of a sudden, and the man smirked like he knew what this would be in the end.
She returned. Tints of red onto her cheeks were still noticeable. Five fishes were pierced through shoots of a branch she held on her left hand. He had been awake and alarmed therefore he knew that the nins came, continuing to hunt for his head. "Jiraiya gets lost whenever he is exhibited with his weakness. Thus, you had not given a chance to speak about the stranger you aided." He had been able to sit up straight, leaning his back on a tree.
He had grabbed and wore the cloak from its post while the katana was not at all spotted next to the hat. The only unexploited was what she exploited from him –the hat which she settled some. The berries weren't touched at all. Completely untouched and like before since she left and bathe. She was beginning to think that this man could barely trust someone. She expected this. It was expectable because trust was the hardest thing to gain from somebody. However, she never anticipated or so. She never did. Hers was all but assistance. Nothing more, nothing less. This was something she should not tell him about, to explain and elaborate like it would be relevant for his essence and as if he would believe her.
On the other hand, if she had told Jiraiya-sama and Naruto about him, there was a tendency he would fight and they would fight even behind his poor situation. The sole answer was to fight. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth –this was what many men believed in.
She instead moved towards the pile of ashes and coaled logs, rekindling the bonfire. He then concluded that what he thought was right. Wasn't silence meant yes? If it was, he gripped the hold of his katana, ready to unsheathe and slid it in her throat if she makes a wrong move. But… why was he waiting for her answer? It turned out that what she would say was significant for him. 'Iie.' But why? He killed all those who were related to him therefore he had no one to care about and no one cared about him but this woman… what did she do to make him feel this?
She then stood after thrusting the sticks with individual fishes on the soil, to be blazed and cooked over. "I hope we'll meet someday, somehow… not as adversaries but as mere acquaintances." She faced him with natural grace.
"Sayonara." A smile she lastly imparted before turning her back on his stern features. And that was the most delightful thing he ever received from someone in his damned life.
Authoress Notes:
Hey, see that underlined statement of Itachi? Actually that's Niccolo Machiavelli's! Great isn't it? à what I meant about that was still the phrase. And ohthis is the end. Quite abrupt but I decided that that's all I will likely to squeeze in my brain since I made this an OOC. Actually this is almost oneshot if not for this second chappie –Just around midnight until morn, it's not even called a day.