Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
Chapter 17
Ane-sama stormed into the room with all the grace of a hurricane making land. Her father looked up and pursed his lips at her gruff behavior but said nothing and shooed away the Branch lad who served as his secretary. The younger man skittered out of the room as quickly as possible, no one lingered in the Honorable Wife's presence when she was in such a mood. And these moods were usually the cause for such sudden visits to her Father's office. She stood with her arms angrily crossed over a slightly protruding stomach, nearly tapping her foot in impatience while she bit her tongue to keep from spilling her words in front of the outsider.
The door had barely slid shut and she was already snarling. "He's doing it again, Otou-san! How can I hold up my head when he is openly betraying me with no shame whatsoever?! What good is being the Honorable Wife if my husband is the one continuing to dishonor me!"
Satoshi grits his teeth as he clears the documents from his desk, one time during a particularly lively tantrum Ane had swept all his papers from his desk, spilling ink on everything. The father did not blame her for her outbursts, in his mind they were all justified, but he would rather not risk being victimized by the venting of her frustrations. And who would not be frustrated by the blatant affairs of a husband who possessed a young and beautiful wife?
"You are the one with the title, you are the one Branch members bow to," her father attempted to console his furious daughter. He had learned long ago that her quick mind came with a quick temper. Ane had been a singularly driven girl from a very young age, and when denied her desires she could be particularly pernicious. He was certain Kami Herself had heard more than an earful of complaints over the injustice of her lack of male progeny. But when divine intervention and opportunity failed to heed her demands, Ane forced her own will upon fate. During her youth It was rather worrisome to witness as her parent, but the way she tenaciously set about executing her plans as an adult, Satoshi would easily admit no small amount of pride for his daughter. She was the apple of his eye, and were she a boy he knew she would have been a fierce shinobi. As it was, he would never hesitate to use his position to offer her any advantage he could provide. But right now, he could only give her simple words of comfort. "The woman is nothing," he placated her, setting aside his brush and pushing his inkwell away to safety before finally giving her his undivided attention. "A distraction. And now this child will seal your place."
Ane clicked her teeth in anger, feeling her father was being dismissive of her concern with his even tone and smooth answer. She hated that her Hanabi would most likely be easily set aside for this younger sibling, simply because it possessed a penis. The headstrong mother had seen to it that the incredibly sharp and bold girl was given the best available early training for one who potentially would be the Head of the Clan. No woman had ever held such a position, but if anyone could do it, it would be her firecracker disguised as a sweet little girl.
"I shouldn't need another child to maintain my position!" Ane paced back and forth across the stately decorated room in her agitation. "I was chosen by Himself to be by his side! I have given him a child who is more than worthy of his succession, if he would just stop long enough to see her. Hanabi already has twice the potential that other girl had at the same age. She may only be four but her spirit is that of a born leader. This babe is purely to ensure that Hiashi has no excuse to set me aside." Turning to face her father she was slightly gratified to find him nodding his agreement to her convictions; he had been the one to arrange for a few of the tudors that Hanabi had begun to study under after all. Ane relied on his connections to expand her reach outside that of just the occupants of the compound in order to ensure her daughter would be surrounded by the best minds.
Satoshi had been a valued member of the Hyuga council since before she was even born, and the position had allowed them to establish a level of prestige amongst the Branch family that was nearly on par with Hizashi. His respected rank and frequent mingling with the Main family was how she had managed to be present at that fateful tea with Hitomi-sama, which had sparked the thought that propelled all her plans. No one questioned the presence of the esteemed council member's daughter by the koi pond when she had caught Hiashi's eye years ago.
Years that seemed more like eons ago. The bliss of their new marriage had quickly fizzled out with Hiashi's disappointment regarding Hanabi. Ane would never admit out loud how much she had loathed her daughter for the first few days after her birth. The child was the cause of so much pain, physical and emotional, that the immature mother had nearly rejected her offspring out of spite. But then she actually stopped to see her face, and in her keen eyes and small rosebud lips, her silky straight chocolate hair, she had seen herself reflected back to her. And Ane had realized with a jolt that this wasn't just any child, this was her child, her flesh and blood, and she found her heart being pulled into a level of love and devotion she had never imagined existed outside of herself. Suddenly all her plans expanded to include not only the preservation of her place in Hiashi's life, but Hanabi's place in the Hyuga Clan. Since then Ane had made everyone who came in contact with the child treat her as the heiress and future leader that she knew her daughter would be.
Satoshi was already shaking his head at his daughter's worries before she finished her statement. "The council would never allow Hiashi to create another scandal such as what he did with Hitomi. The backlash from the event guaranteed as much," her father couldn't help the pleased smile that twitched at his thin mouth. The small role he had played in assuring that the Kumo Nin would have no problems gaining access to the little heiress was not a wasted effort, setting in motion a favorable chain of events that even he had to admit was surprising. "His leadership is already wavering within the clan. He is almost completely dependent on Hizashi to maintain control of the Branch side."
"Too dependent by far," Ane grumbled and briefly winced, bringing a hand to momentarily rub her lower back. She stopped wearing a path into the rich rug with her pacing and leaned a hip against a polished table, her restlessness causing her to distractedly pluck the petals off a flower in a ridiculously expensive vase. "I don't trust that man. I feel like he looks at me like a teacher looks at a wayward child."
Her father frowned her words and her idle destruction of his office as he stood to come to her side.
"Ane, sit. The midwife has threatened to put you on bedrest if you don't calm down. Fretting over the thoughts of foolish men will only cause you more trouble."
She huffs but allows him to lead her to a nearby chair where she ungracefully flops down, tossing a cushion onto the floor when it didn't sit against her torso just right. "It's not just the affairs," she sighs, rubbing her unblemished forehead in distress. "Tadao has been pressuring me as well, he wants me to run away with him. Fool. Where would we go?"
Satoshi snorts at the ignorance of the dimwitted but loyal Branch guard who he knew his daughter had needed to use in order to give the ironically incapable Clan Head any hope of 'continuing his line'. "You have told him no, surely?"
"Of course! Almost. Argggh," she tosses her head back against the high backed chair. "It was never supposed to be like this. It was only supposed to be the one time, and then I would have a son and I could forget all about him. But after all the..." She waves a hand through the air, trying to use the flippant movement to disguise the lump in her throat that always appeared when she thought of her lost children, gone before they ever drew breath. "... well, it just was so much easier to ensure his loyalty and his silence of I let him think we loved each other." While the frequently inebriated chunin would never hold her affection as a lover, Ane found his devotion quite flattering, and had allowed him to carve out a small soft spot in her heart with his ceaseless worship of herself.
The father stared hard at her, trying to determine if there was any reciprocating feeling betrayed on her expression. Her face was weary, a small line had formed between her frequently drawn brows, making her look older than her twenty-two years. The physical and mental stress of four miscarriages in nearly as many years had taken their toll. She was still young, but the glory of her youth had long since dulled. Satoshi frowned deeper with his growing ire for the arrogant Clan Head who had taken the bright young girl and turned her into a prematurely aging woman. Hiashi was ruining the entire clan from the inside out with his irrational obsession with his legacy, combined with the prideful belief that he could do no wrong and deserved to be denied nothing. If this child was not a boy, he dreaded the thought of what the man might do to his daughter, to his granddaughter. Their whole position within the complex hierarchy of the Hyuga was in that selfish man's grasp. Satoshi would do anything to ensure the safety of his family and their hard earned place in the upper echelons of rank. His daughter had sacrificed too much, he would not allow her to suffer any more.
Ane sighed deeply as she rubbed a spot on her abdomen, "I just wish they both could go away. Those men do nothing but complicate my life. Hanabi and I would be better off without either of them."
Her father tapped his hand on the edge of his desk thoughtfully. His eyes resting on the stack of documents with the neatly written minutes from the last council meeting. The chunin exams were coming up, and the Hyuga had two applicants. These things were always a busy time for shinobi, but this year the exams were being held in Konoha, so the whole city would be feeling the strain of hundreds of travelers squeezing into its walls. So many people, so many shinobi, so many foreigners, surely it would be plausible for someone to slip through the cracks of security, and the head of the Hyuga clan would be an obvious target that no one would question as the prey of an assassin. Especially if said assassin could be pinned down as a disgruntled Branch house guard with an unhealthy obsession involving the Honorable Wife?
"Leave it to me," Satoshi reassures with a thin smile, his cunning pale eyes crinkling. "You focus on caring for your children, and I will do the same."
Sakura patted down her bangs over her slightly larger than normal forehead, still conscientious about her broad attribute even after all these years. She had really hoped that puberty would do her a favor and let her grow into the thing, but alas, her teenage body remained lacking in more than one area, in her opinion. She shifted the bento off her lap and straightened her new skirt over exposed creamy thighs, hoping that what she lacked in curves she could make up for with her long legs and tall black boots. Over the years she had attempted multiple methods of gaining the attention of a certain Uchiha, and today she planned to try a new tactic.
As the weary members of Team Seven entered the village, the pink haired girl perked up from her spot on a bench where she had not-so-patiently been awaiting their arrival. Quickly trotting over to greet Sasuke as he straightened from signing his name on the ledger page, the usually aggressive girl blushed cutely at the sight of her long time crush. "Welcome back Sasuke-kun," she chirpped and swiftly held out the box of food to him. "I thought you might be hungry after your long journey, so I made you some onigiri with pickled tomatoes on the side." She flashed him her most pleasant smile which she had practiced in the mirror until it was perfect, all the while internally screaming for him to accept her offer and finally acknowledge her feelings.
Naruto leaned down to whisper in Hinata's ear, "Do you think she got Shino to bug him again? How else would she know when we would arrive?" Hinata side eyed her friend and elbowed him playfully.
"Oh stop," she chided. "I think it's sweet how those boys help her out with her unrequited love."
"It's creepy. Literally," to emphasize his point the blond teasingly tickled Hinata's head with his fingertips, mimicking the crawling of a swarm of beetles through her hair. "Shhh!" she hissed, but grinned as she slapped his hands away. "I'm listening!"
Sasuke ignored the loud whispers of his eavesdropping teammates and clicked his teeth rudely, still irked at the fawning admiration the pink haired kunoichi showered him with after all this time. Most of his hoard of fangirls had eventually gotten the hint to back off after his repeatedly terse responses to their declarations of love, or just flat out avoidance of them. But this girl, along with that other loud blond, (what was it about that hair color that made them so obnoxious?) insisted on continuing their pursuit of his nonexistent affections. Looking down his fine, straight Uchiha nose at her wide green eyes and hopeful expression, he pretended his stomach did not just grumble at the mention of homemade food.
"You're so annoying," he muttered under his breath, but he knows she heard. Not waiting to see the way her shoulders sag in defeat, he turned to continue on his way, only to come face to face with a steely-eyed Hinata. She grimly crosses her arms, and he swallows hard when he sees the veins of her bloodline throb threateningly across her temples. Her mouth twitched with that tight smile which scarily reminded him of his mother when he sassed her about his chores, not that he would ever admit that to his teammate in a million years.
"I know you didn't just rudely dismiss a girl who was kindly offering you a gift," she says in a sing-song tone that doesn't hide the steel underneath it.
Sasuke hunched his shoulders and scowled at his teammate, his bottom lip just barely protruding in a hint of a pout. But experience has taught him that it's best he comply before she progresses from 'maternal glare' to 'knuckle cracking threat', and so he turns back to address Sakura, whose mouth is hanging open in shock at how quickly he heeded the Hyuga's unsaid command. He stiffly accepted the bento, pulling it out of her limp grasp, and grumbled out a politely phrased thank-you before stalking away.
Sakura blinked slowly as she watched him slip around the corner where Kakashi just disappeared, absently bringing her tingling fingers up to her warm cheek. Snapping back to earth she suddenly lunged at Hinata and gripped her hands in a vice-like hold."Teach me your ways!" she demanded in an awed tone.
Momentarily speechless, Hinata gently tried to pull her hands back, awkwardly forcing out a sheepish laugh in an attempt to relax the fangirl whose eyes were nearly turning into hearts.
"Simple," Naruto cut in, "don't pine after assholes." Succeeding to free herself on the second attempt, Hinata flicked his forehead dead center without even turning to look, and gave the desperate admirer a sympathetic smile. "Maybe later Sakura-chan, we have a long debriefing ahead of us." The pink haired girl deflated a little but elicited a promise from the Hyuga for a 'girls date' with a few of the other kunoichi before leaving the pair to catch up to their team.
"Take it easy on her," Hinata scolded as they quickly move toward the Hokage Tower, "Sakura-chan honestly likes him."
Naruto scoffed at her sentimental view of the very one-sided love affair, "Teme doesn't deserve her devotion, why he probably chucked that bento in the nearest trash can as soon as he was out of sigh—"
His statement died on his lips as they rounded the corner to find Sasuke cramming the last bite of tomato into his mouth. He was in the midst of greedily licking his fingers when he eventually noticed their matching smug expressions, and promptly pulled his middle finger out of his mouth to grumpily flip them off.
Unable to resist an opportunity to tease the reluctant Romeo, Naruto proceeded to chase his red faced teammate through the streets, bellowing his taunts at the top of his lungs as Kakashi obliviously sauntered on, masked nose buried in his smut, completely unaware and uncaring of the disruptive behavior of his wild genin. Hinata is just about ready to shake their Sensei back to the present when she heard Sasuke's shouts change in tone, and hurriedly turned back from stalking the gray-haired jonin to locate the place where she now heard the sounds of what seemed to be a more serious fight erupting.
Skidding to a stop next to Naruto, she sees he is frowning at an older boy in a black hooded bodysuit whose face is covered in garish purple war paint and angrily threatening Sasuke for knocking him on his ass. The two aggressive males are quickly allowing an accidental collision to escalate into a shouting match barbed with scathing insults. Hinata anxiously notes the increasing number of disdainful looks being cast their way, most of which skim over the Uchiha to settle on her best friend. She places a hand on Naruto's arm, intent on whispering a quick plan to separate the two angry boys, but pauses when she sees he isn't looking at them at all, but had his blue eyes sharply focused up into a tree near the side of the path.
Naruto had noticed the foreign hitae-ate on the other guy with the weird cat hoodie, and used the distraction of Sasuke's temper tantrum to reach out with his senses and get an idea of the unknown shinobi's chakra. But upon opening his mind, he was hit with a massive wall of killer intent that had the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end and sweat beading across his forehead. Immediately honing in on the source in a nearby tree, the jinchuriki had forced himself to endure the oppressive weight of the monstrous chakra in order to try and dissect its corrupted nature. What he found had him rapidly retreating back to reality and instantly clamping down his own chakra to nearly negligible levels just as the enigma in the canopy called out to the other boy below.
"Hime," Naruto whispered harshly, "use your Byakugan on that guy up there and tell me what you see." Hinata instantly goes on alert as she hears the tremor in his voice and feels the tension in his frame, flaring her chakra up into her eyes. Easily zeroing in on the signature above them, she stiffened and hissed sharply through her teeth. "His coils are massive, almost as blinding as yours," she murmurs, blinking as though she is staring into the sun. "His network is strained though, like its fighting to burst out of his body, and the flow of it is...flawed." Hinata quickly deactivated her bloodline and rubbed a hand over her face as she hunted for the words to describe the dangerously overwrought channels. "Yours is like an intense maelstrom, whirling in a coordinated spiral throughout your network. His is...wilder. More chaotic, like...like..."
"Like a rabid animal," Naruto finishes in a grave tone, and Hinata does not miss the way his hand fisted over his abdomen. Her eyes widened as she connected the dots between the involuntary gesture and Naruto's train of thought. Could there be another person like Naruto-kun? Turning an even more alarmed gaze back up to the tree, she pondered the tumultuous mayhem of the ninja's chakra compared the thrumming rush of her best friend's. No, she decided firmly, whatever similarities they may share, that person was nothing like Naruto-kun.
Almost as if he sensed their scrutiny Gaara's head snapped their way and they fully bore the brunt of his piercing gaze. The eerie teal orbs seem too vibrant for his black ringed expression. The shocking red color of his hair was reminiscent of the bright warning hues sported by poisonous animals. Naruto cannot suppress the surge of emotion conjured up by the unbalanced expression of emptiness and frenzy in those eyes. There's something about them, behind the hard shell, a hollowness that reminds him of his own forcefully repressed childhood. Something inside him recognized this person, but it's equally at war with the intense instinct to flee. Deep in his mind he feels a low growl rumble through his subconscious, and he knows the kyuubi is wide awake.
Before he can further contemplate his inner demon's reaction, the redhead called out from his high perch, "Kankuro, leave them be, he is too strong for you." His tone was flat, no emotion betrayed in the expression on his face, but other Nin immediately obeyed, nearly cowering in reply to the low command. The overly fearful response had all three members of Team Seven immensely suspicious of the pale, fatigued boy who hopped down to lightly land in front of Sasuke. Completely ignoring the rest of the restless group he approached the uneasy Uchiha until he was glaring straight into his frowning face. A sudden maniacal gleam lit up the bright teal eyes. "Strong indeed," he crooned in a deep voice, his malicious smile widening as he tilted his head as though lending an ear to a whispered secret. "Mother cries out for your blood. I will fight you and once again prove my existence."
Sasuke fought to keep his body from betraying his alarm, forcing the sneer on his own face not to waver. "Your mother is no concern of mine, I have no intention of allowing you to spill so much as a single drop of my blood."
The cork of the large gourd strapped to the shinobi's back began to rattle as though some creature was trying to claw its way out. Sasuke's hand went for his ninja pouch, ready to defend himself from the attack he felt sure was coming, when a female voice called out, "Gaara! Save it for the chunin exams! There is no point to brawling in the streets when there is nothing to be gained with the victory."
All eyes except those of the slightly crazed ninja shifted to the pig-tailed blond who was rapidly headed toward him. She quickly approached and laid a gentle hand on his thin shoulder, talking to him the way one would address a frenzied animal, with a soft lilting tone that was almost condescending with its sweetness. "Remember the plan, Gaara. We fight for Suna, not for ourselves."
The words seem to have the intended effect, and the gourd slowly ceased shaking as Gaara cast one last murderous glare to Sasuke before abruptly disappearing in a sandy shunshin. As soon as he was gone the older girl lashed out at the remaining boy, choking him in a fierce headlock until his face was nearly as purple as his war paint. Naruto and Sasuke looked on in sympathetic horror, Hinata looked impressed.
"I apologize for the behavior of my brothers," she grits out between clenched teeth, barely breaking a sweat despite her struggling victim's flailing arms. "My name is Temari, we have just arrived from Suna for the chunin exams."
Still greatly put off by the aggressive display, the boys merely gawk at her, leaving Hinata to be the one to respond. Instantly transforming from dirty genin to regal Hyuga, she easily assumes the role of level headed conciliator. "Not to worry, Temari-san. I hope your stay goes smoothly. We must be on our way to an appointment now. We will see you again at the exams."
While they had trudged along the dirt roads back to Konoha from the Land of Waves, Kakashi-sensei had discussed the upcoming exams with his team, explaining that he felt confident in the strength of their individual abilities, but that they could only advance as a coordinated team. His emphasis on teamwork as a key component had all three genin contemplating their potential for success. They had grown by leaps and bounds since that day of the bell test, but the tension between the two alpha personalities of Naruto and Sasuke frequently led them into trouble, causing them to be overly reliant on Hinata or Kakashi to maintain peace in order to successfully complete a mission. After the 'event' on the bridge, they were more divided than ever. Hinata's confident statement confirming their participation in the chunin exams was more of a bluff than the three wanted to admit.
The two kunoichi bow stiffly to one another, with Temari forcing the trapped head of her brother to bow with her, before each turn to make a quick disappearance.
"That was just creepy as all fu—" Hinata slaps a hand over Naruto's mouth and grabs a nearly snarling Sasuke by the uniquely tall Uchiha style collar he wore and hurriedly drags them off before they can cause more trouble. The three catch up to Kakashi, who has continued on without pause, nose stuck in his book and completely ignoring his surroundings yet accurately dodging obstacles all the same.
"What's gotten into you?" Hinata hissed as she released Sasuke, who twisted away from her grasp and yanked at his stretched collar. "Of all the people to start a staring contest with, you pick that guy? Something is wrong with that kid, his own siblings seemed afraid of him!"
"You got that right," Naruto huffed. "His glare could cut glass, even compared to crazy eyes over here he looks one stubbed toe away from going bezerk."
"Do not insult the Uchiha!" Sasuke was getting dangerously close to reaching his limit of bullshit today. He was tired, he was angry, and now his teammate was insulting his bloodline? This idiot better shut his mouth before I—
"Oh-ho! Did the emotionless bastard suddenly get his feelings hurt?" Naruto rubbed his whiskered cheeks in a taunting motion of a crying baby, pouting in an exaggerated way.
The line was crossed, the fire was ignited, and Sasuke was sick of holding back. "I'd rather be emotionless than a murdering lunatic!"
"The fuck did you just call me!?" the jinchuriki growled as he pushed past Hinata with red flashing in his eyes.
"You heard me, freak!"
A vicious fist fight erupted between the irate teammates, both screaming such extreme insults that nearby civilians were scattering for cover. Their uncontrolled anger had them locked in fierce combat, staggering into an alley, knocking over trash cans and sending a cat running for its life. Hinata sighed, running her hands through her greasy bangs in frustration. All she wanted was to get the damn debriefing over with, collect her pay, and hit the onsen for a long hard earned soak that made her skin prune. But no, these boys of hers had to choose this moment to finally put all the unsaid fear and resentment out into the open.
The thought of interfering crossed her mind, but despite the temptation she simply posted up at the entrance of the narrow lane, ensuring that the brawl stayed confined to the small space. Some people just had to work their problems out in their own way, and if this juvenile exposition fixed the destructive divide growing between her teammates, Hinata would gladly allow it.
This fight had been brewing for a while, tensions had been high the whole way home between the two genin. Naruto's sulking over Sasuke giving him the cold shoulder had grown into a bitter frustration which caused the jinchuriki to retaliate by pestering his teammate to the point of torture. Naruto would say anything in an attempt to get a reaction out of the stoic Uchiha. The judgmental ostracism had triggered Naruto's childhood tendency to crave even negative attention over nothing at all. Hinata had tried to coax Sasuke into verbalizing what was on his mind, but he was not one for therapeutic chats about his troubles. So the wounded hearts of both boys had continued to fester.
At least they are just sticking to their fists and not using chakra, Hinata thought, grimacing as Sasuke swiftly landed a brutal kick to Naruto's left side that he was unable to block. The blond allowed the momentum to carry him to the wall where he planted his feet and launched himself back at his teammate, bowling them both over onto the filthy street.
"Protecting my teammates does not make me a freak!" Naruto growled as he pulled back to deliver a full power punch straight into his opponent's jaw.
Sasuke saw the hit coming and was able to twist away but Naruto had anticipated this and grabbed him by the shirt, sweeping his legs out from under him.
"I never asked for your protection!" the fuming Uchiha yelled as he fought for the upper hand on the cold concrete. "I'm not some weakling who needs a savior every time I get a scratch!"
Naruto tried to smash Sasuke's face into the stale water that puddled beneath a rusty rainspout, twisting his arm painfully behind his back. But Sasuke was able to roll away and kicked the blond in the chest with the full force of both feet.
"I never thought you were weak," the blond wheezed. "I'm your teammate dammit, not your babysitter! I only did that because I had no choice," Naruto charged back at Sasuke, head down like a wild bull. They collided in an exchange of powerful blows, dodging some and landing others, a frenzy of bruising attacks and blocks. His outrage mounting, Sasuke abandoned his perfect taijutsu form and grabbed the bright orange jacket, flat out head butting Naruto with such might his vision momentarily blanked.
"How do I know you're not lying?" he shouted, reflexively activating his Sharingan to cancel out his blurry sight. "How do I know that you're not gonna snap one day and slaughter us all? How can you be so sure you have control over that, thing?" Throwing his body weight forward he is somehow able to seize the dazed genin by the throat and pin him to the filthy alley wall.
"Because I'm not just showing off," Naruto choked out around Sasuke's vice-like grip on his neck. "I'm not out to prove my power or test my abilities. I want to be stronger so I can save my friends, not hurt them. I will never forget that. I will never betray you."
Sasuke's red eyes spun as he sneered into Naruto's face, "what makes you so sure you won't lose control? What makes you so different from a genius? From a man who was supposed to protect me, his younger brother, but instead slaughtered my entire family in a single night of wrath and judgment! What gives you the right to declare that you can control your demonic beast but the fucking strongest Uchiha to walk the Leaf since Madara himself couldn't control his own mind and destroyed the legacy of an entire clan with his insanity?! Tell me, Naruto! Tell me how I can ever trust anybody ever again!?"
Throughout the rant Naruto's eyes had never left Sasuke's face, never flinched away at his anger, never shifted to the side in shame. He met his black gaze, met his intensity, bore his anger and shared his burden. He brought up a hand, not to the shaking grasp around his throat, but to Sasuke's chest, bumping the knuckles of his fist over his teammate's heart.
"Because, despite our differences, we have forged a bond. You, me, Hime, Kakashi-sensei. We have fought together, bled together, we are stronger together." Sasuke's teeth were bared in a grimace that was as much composed of pain as fury. His breath was hissing sharply through his clenched jaw, his eyes squeezed shut to fight the tears that threatened.
"We are a family. A fucked up one, but a family I wouldn't trade for anything," the blond hoarsely continued. "The families we were given have been taken away. This is the family we have created, and you are my brother by choice. I will protect my forged family to my dying breath, and I never go back on my word."
Sasuke's hand slid away, his head falling to his chest as his shoulders shook. His knees buckled, splashing in the stagnant water of the isolated street, and Hinata was instantly at his side, gathering him up in an embrace that supported his wounded body and heart. Naruto knelt on his other side, wrapping an arm around them both, holding his team, his family, together. And in that dark alley, a rift was mended.
Somehow dodging yet another meandering civilian despite only having a single eye exposed, and buried in a book at that, Kakashi blinked up at the Hokage Tower, somewhat surprised that he had arrived already. Nothing like a good book to pass the time, he mused contentedly as he turned to escort his genin to the long overdue debriefing.
"Holy Hell! What happened to you guys?" he yelped at the sight of the three filthy shinobi who reeked of sewage as they calmly sauntered into the building. Naruto merely grinned in response, crossing his arms behind his head as he passed by the stunned sensei. Sasuke just grunted as usual, but couldn't hide a small smile that looked morbidly out of place with his left eye swelling shut with a gnarly purple bruise. The jonin gaped after them, nearly missing Hinata until she snatched his book from his loose grip.
"Oi! That's mine!" he cried as he lunged for the precious paperback, only to freeze when greeted by a palm that danced with deadly chakra. Hinata smirked and spun around to climb up the stairs to the Hokage's office. "And now it's mine until the debriefing is done. You need to give your full attention to the mission report, remember Sensei?"
Kakashi pouted at her back as he jammed his hands in his pockets in response to her patronizing tone. "FINE, but there better not be any pages missing when I get it back!"
