Hey guys and welcome to another chapter of Demonic Love. Sorry for being a little late (even though I haven't got a set schedule). I've been ill for the past few days so it's slowed me down quite a bit. But I'm back now and everything is all right. Now then, let's get on with the thanks.
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-animefangirl4.799 - Here you go. You wanted more, here it is. Hope you enjoy.
I apologise in advance for any grammar mistakes, repetitiveness and poor writing. And I also don't own Naruto or it's characters. I'm just using them for the story. And any OCs that you see in this story are mine.
In and out. In and out. Hinata could only watch as Sakura was only doing those two things, laying in one of the beds in the nurse's office. It had been almost an hour since she, Tenten and another student had taken her here and school was well finished by now. Tenten had offered to stay with her, but she kindly declined the offer, telling her that she'd be fine by herself and told the brunette to go on ahead.
The sound of the office's door, opening and closing, went through the ravenette's ears and she turned to look. It was Yūhi Kurenai, and she had her hand on her hip, looking at Hinata with a confused look.
"My, you're still here Hyūga-san?" she asked the girl in surprise. Hinata simply nodded her head and turned her gaze back to the girl in the bed. The teacher smiled, even though the younger girl couldn't see it, and made her way towards the bed the pinkette was lying on. She peered at the girl.
"She looks much better than when she first came in here," the nurse commented, placing her hand on the girl's forehead. "And she doesn't have a fever of any kind. So I'd say she'll be fine." The red eyed woman then set her eyes on the Hyūga girl. "Why don't you take a little walk, stretch you're legs and get some fresh air?"
From that suggestion, Hinata shook her head side to side. "I want to be here when she wakes up," she said.
Kurenai was about to protest, say something that a teacher would say in this sort of situation, but when she saw both the girl's hands clasping the sleeping girl's, taking out from within the cover, she stopped herself. Instead of a lecture, she smiled, and went to grab her chair that was near her desk. With it, she sat down next to the ravenette and spoke to her in a gentle voice, trying to not startle her.
"Hyūga-san," she said, "can I ask you something?" The girl reluctantly teared her eyes away from Sakura and white pools met red. "Are you... in love with Haruno-san?" The younger girl's eyes widened from those words, and her cheeks instantly went red.
"I-I... Well..." the girl stuttered, trying to come up with something to say.
"It's alright," Kurenai reassured, "you can tell me. Haruno-san is fast asleep so it's just the two of us here." Hinata's gaze turned away from the older woman, looking at the floor for a moment, before she returned her white gaze to the girl with the cherry blossom name. After a beat, the girl gave Kurenai a nod, indicating she was right.
She had a good feeling really. The way she had come into her office, with Hiramatsu and another student. Tears had been storing up in her eyes, trying her best to not cry. And now, seeing the way that she was holding on to pinkette's hand with a slight tremble that you could easily miss if you didn't look hard enough.
"I see," she said. There was a long pause. "Have you told her yet?" When the girl shook her head again, there was complete silence.
"Is it strange?" Hinata asked, breaking the quietness of the room, her eyes still on the sleeping girl. Kurenai gave the ravenette a quizzical look. "For a girl to fall in love with another girl?" When the question was asked, Hinata was, again, met with only silence. A long silence with no reply. Maybe it is strange after all...
"I don't see anything wrong with it," was what the nurse said. Hinata's eyes widened, not expecting that sort of response and turned to look at the older woman. "You love who you love. You can't stop your heart from doing that." Kurenai then smiled. "I was the same when I was you're age."
"You were?" asked the ravenette, to which the woman nodded.
"Back when I was in high school, there was an upperclassman that I liked very much," she began, sitting up in her chair, crossing her arms and legs and gazed out the window. "I was only into men back then, but thanks to her, that all changed.
"She was beautiful. Intelligent. All the boys in school were gawking at her and I lost count how many had confessed to her, only for them to be turned down," Kurenai continued. "I remember that I was jealous of her. Jealous of the fact that she had all of the boys looking at her. So I decided to confront her about it... And that's when I found out about it."
"Found out about what?" Hinata found herself asking.
"I found out the reason why she refused all those confessions from those boys," Kurenai said, then turned to Hinata with a smile. "It was because that she only liked girls." The ravenette's eyes widened even more, surprised from that outcome.
"That was the same look I gave her when she told me." Hearing that, Hinata looked away and a blush stained her cheeks from being caught by her embarrassing expression. "I didn't know what to say back then, so I remained quiet. And she must have took my silence as something because she suddenly prostrated herself in front of me.
"She begged me not to tell anyone, her voice choking when she asked me that. And did you know what I said?" The girl shook her head. "I promised her that I wouldn't, and the look she had on her face, after I told her that, made my cheeks heat up and my heart skip a beat. She smiled, like I had never seen before, and hugged me tightly, thanking me over and over again. And on that day, we became quick friends.
"FRom that day on, we hung out together, went shopping, looked at all the cute things that the stores had. And I realized that the more I hung out with her, the more that I started to feel weird. Every time she casually held my hand to take me to other places, my chest would tighten. When she hugged me, my heart would swell with warmth. And little by little, I soon realised that I was slowly falling in love with her."
"So what did you do?" the ravenette asked again, her grip never leaving the pinkette's hand. Even though she was invested in her teacher's story, she was still aware of Sakura. "Did you tell her how you felt about her?" Kurenai smiled at Hinata, but the answer she gave was not what the ravenette was expecting.
"I never did," she replied. "I was scared. Scared about being rejected by her, so I kept it quiet. I didn't want to ruin what we had then, and worse, make things awkward between us." There was a short pause, the red eyed woman letting out short sigh. "That's what I thought... then."
"Then..?" Hinata repeated.
"It was at her graduation. After months of agonising it, I couldn't keep my feelings to myself any more," Kurenai closed her eyes, hiding any emotion that was being shown in them and stood up. She walked up to her window and put her hands inside her coat's pockets. The setting sun's rays made the older woman's hair glow a slight purplish colour, in Hinata's eyes.
"So, once the graduation ceremony was finished, I tried to find Senpai and tell her how I really felt about her. I searched and I searched, but I couldn't find her, so I asked one of her friends and they told me that she had went to the roof after the ceremony had finished," the nurse continued. "Finding out where she was, I made my way to the roof. I could remember my heart pounding hard in my chest for each step I took on those stairs towards the roof.
"All I could think about was how I would tell her, and worry about what would happen if I did. When I finally got to the door, took in a deep breath, and then opened the metal obstacle. That's were I found Senpai..." Kurenai opened her eyes and looked down. "And she wasn't alone. There was another girl, in her arms, and they were both... kissing one another."
Again, Hinata's eyes widened, not expecting those turn of events. "Sensei," she whispered. "I'm sorry."
The teacher turned her head and gave the ravenette a confused look. "Why are you apologising Hyūga-san? Surely not to feel sorry for me?"
"But...?"
"You're very kind Hyūga-san," she said with a kind smile. "But she made her decision, as did I. My only regret was not telling her my feelings sooner."
After that, there was a long silence. Neither person said a word. Kurenai went back to looking out the window, watching the few remaining students, most likely from club activities, leaving the school grounds and heading home. Meanwhile, Hinata was thinking on the teachers story. That was when the question came to mind.
"Sensei?" she called out. "Why did you tell me all that?"
Before the woman gave her reply, she lifted her arms over her head and stretched her limbs. "Because you remind me of me when I was your age," she said, placing her arms back down her side and then, after a moment, walked back to the younger girl and sat down. She gave Hinata a look of seriousness. "Which is why I'm going to give you some advice: Tell her. Tell her how you feel before it's too late. Because you never know what's around the corner."
"Sensei... I-" Before the ravenette could get a word in, both she and Kurenai saw, from the corner of their eyes, Sakura stirring in her sleep. Hinata was immediately by her side "Sakura-chan!" And at that point, Kurenai closed her eyes and smiled, and then stood up from her chair.
"I think I'll leave for a bit longer. See if there's anything that needs doing." The nurse made her way towards the door, placing her hand on it. Before she could go through it, however, the Hyūga girl called out to her again, stopping the black haired woman and turned her head back. "What's wrong, Hyūga-san?"
"Well... I'm just wondering if you still like girls?" she asked, and then suddenly, her cheeks instantly became inflamed, her white pools finding the floor more interesting. "I mean, are you still a l... l..."
"My, my, Hyūga-san. Are you asking your teacher if she's a lesbian?" Hearing that, the ravnette began to stutter her response. The redness in her cheeks increasing in volume. Kurenai smiled and laughed a little, putting the girl's worries at ease. "I'm just joking, Hyūga-san. And to answer your question, I'm bisexual. Even though I like girls, I still find men attractive."
Hinata gave a nod to her teacher, her body clearly telling Kurenai that she was relieved that she wasn't angry. "Take care Hyūga-san," the nurse continued. "And think about what I said and have no regrets." And with those words, Kurenai proceeded to slide the door open, went through and closed it behind her, leaving the two girls alone.
When she was out of the room, the older woman let out a sigh and smiled.
Now then. I wonder what Asuma is doing now.
When she saw her one eye open, Hinata was washed with a wave of relief. The ravenette called out to her, gently as to not frighten her, and she watched as her emerald gaze turn from the ceiling to her.
"Hinata...?"
"Are you alright Sakura-chan?" the girl asked. Sakura didn't say anything, but gave a nod confirming that she was, indeed, all right, before she slowly sat herself up. She wobbled when she did, and Hinata immediately left her seat and sat on the bed instead, grasping the younger girl's shoulders. "Careful!"
"I-I'm alright," said Sakura. "I'm just exhausted from-" Suddenly, the pinkette bore an expression of pain and her left hand flew to her eye-patch that hid her demonic orb. The ravenette began to worry once more.
"What's wrong Sakura-chan?!"
"It's... my eye," she spoke through gritted teeth. "It feels like it's on fire..."
Not getting any other explanation, Sakura removed her hand and used it to grab the thin material. With a quick tug, the piece of cloth came off with ease. What Hinata saw then shocked her. Her eyes were wide and a sweat dropped down her back. When the pinkette turned to her friend, she noticed the older girl's expression and began to worry herself.
"Hinata?" she called. Why was she making that face? "What's wrong?"
"Y-Your eye..." was the response she got, which only confused her more. Without a word, the ravenette abruptly stood up from the bed and made her way to the nurse's desk. She began to rummage through the draws, and after several seconds of searching, found what she was looking for.
Hinata picked up a hand mirror and with it in hand, made her way back to the pinkette. Like before, without saying anything, the ravenette held the hand mirror, face-down, toward Sakura. The pinkette looked into the other girl's pools of white, hoping to get some sort of answer. But when she didn't get one, her gaze turned to the mirror and not a second later she took it.
That was when she saw it. She now knew why Hinata looked shocked. And now she herself was making the same face. The reason for it was that her left sclera, the white of her eye, was completely black. Her demonic eye now looked more like the eye of that other girl.
And as she continued to stare at her reflection, Sakura could have sworn that she heard that cackling laughter of Izanami in the back of her mind.
Yamanaka Ino was walking the streets of Konohagakure. It hadn't been long ago since she had been at this very place, but the two places were completely different. The city of Konohagakure that was in the mind of Haruno Sakura, was completely devoid of life. Save for one person. But just thinking about her for a moment sent shivers down the girl's spine. And even though everything looked the same there, Ino very much preferred the real world's Konohagakure. There was no psychotic doppelgänger trying to torture her here.
But what was all of that anyway? she questioned in her mind. Who is Haruno Sakura? A demon? No, she couldn't be. She doesn't have a demonic chakra. But if that's the case, then what the hell was that thing inside of her? Damnit! There's only more questions and not enough answers!
As she was walking, taking care not to bump into anyone during the rush hour period of Japan, the blonde Demon Hunter noticed a little flower shop come into view. It was next to a bookstore across the street from her and, with curiosity getting the better of her, and most of all to get a breather from everything that had happened today, the girl decided to go over and see.
When she was in front of the store, and got a closer look, she noticed that the shop had a variety of flowers in store. They had the likes of Roses, Tulips, Daffodils, even Daisies. There were many more types of flowers and there were plenty combinations for a bouquet. She could even imagine some right now.
Nostalgia had started to set in Ino's mind as she saw the many flowers on display. She began to remember the good times of her childhood. The times before she had begun to learn about the demons that plague the world and becoming a Demon Hunter. A special time. A time when her big sister was still alive.
"Onē-chan! Onē-chan!"
A very young Ino was running around in her big home, crying out her big sister's name as she tried to find her. Her mother and father had gone out somewhere on a mission with some of the other Yamanaka clan members, so that meant that she was all alone in her big house. Except for her big sister, who the girl was trying to desperately find. She had first checked her sister's room to see if she was reading a book. When she came up empty, however, she decided to look elsewhere.
She had checked the living room, the kitchen. Her parents room. And even checked her own room, but still came up empty. She checked and then double checked and even triple checked. But for the life of the little girl she couldn't find her sister anywhere. Worry had begun to set in her little mind then. What if her sister wasn't home? The girl shook her head at the thought. Her footwear was still near the entrance, which meant that she was still in the house somewhere.
So, she gave it some thought. And that was when it hit her. There was only one more place that she hadn't looked yet. So, with the destination in mind, she walked toward the wooden door, near the kitchen, that lead to the veranda. It was closed, and since it was made of wood, she couldn't see through it. Thinking that this was the only place she could be, Ino grasped the door firmly, and with all of her strength slid the door open.
The sun's light blinded her for a few moments once the door was opened, but once she blinked a few times, and could see, there in front of her was the person she had been looking long and hard for. Her big sister.
She was kneeling down on the grass near the flower bed of their backyard, wearing a traditional, purple kimono, and her shoulder-length brown hair, which was normally let down, was tied in a ponytail so that it wouldn't get in the way of whatever it was that she was doing. Joy filled Ino's chest, and tears had started to gather in her eyes, as she finally found her sister and called out to her from the top of her lungs.
"Onē-chan!"
The girl stopped what she was doing and turned her head to face the little blonde. Her blue eyes met Ino's own blue pools and when she saw the girl, a gentle smile appeared on her face. There was a sheen of sweat on her forehead and her bangs, that would normally frame her face, were damp, but in the blonde's eyes, she was still the prettiest girl in the Yamanaka clan. And she was her sister to boot!
"Ino-chan!" she called out happily. "What's wrong?"
Without even answering her question, Ino cried out her sister's name once more before she ran towards her, the tears that had been gathering up, were now flowing down like waterfall. When the little girl was close enough, she flung herself at the older girl and clung onto her for dear life.
"W-What's wrong Ino-chan?" her sister asked. She placed the trowel that was in her hand on the grass next to her and wrapped her arms around the small frame in front of her. "Why are you crying?"
"Because!" Ino shouted. "I thought I was the only one in the house and I got scared!"
"Ahhh, I see," the other girl spoke. "I didn't tell you were I would be did I?" The brunette then began to stroke Ino's blonde hair, hoping to sooth the younger girl. "I'm very sorry I scared you, Ino-chan..."
The younger Yamanaka gave a nod of her head, telling her sister that she was forgiven and clung on tighter. When she was finally reduced to sniffles and hiccups, the older girl gently pushed on Ino's shoulders so that they were now meeting eye to eye.
"Better?" she asked, using her thumb to wipe away any stray tears that were still on her younger sister's face.
Ino nodded her head again. "Yes," she said, then turned her attention to the flower bed next to her. "What were you doing to the flowers, Onē-chan?"
"I was tending to them," she says, also turning her blue gaze to the flowers next to her legs.
"Tending...?"
"That's right," she nodded. "I was making sure that they were still healthy, by giving them some water and making sure they weren't damaged in anyway." The little girl nodded again, telling her sister that she understood what she meant, and the blue eyed girl smiled even more.
"Did you also know, Ino-chan, that flowers aren't just for smelling and looking nice?" This time, the blonde shook her head no. "They each have a name. And each of these names has a meaning. For instance..." The older girl looked at the flowers before her and when she saw one, she pointed at it.
"You see those flowers there?" She pointed toward a bunch of flowers that had a lot of pink petals with white edges at the end of them. "They're called Chrysanthemum, and in the language of flowers they mean cheerfulness... Which is what a certain someone needs right now!" The older girl suddenly grasped her little sister into a tight hug and began to tickle her. Ino had started to laugh uncontrollably and tried her best to try and beat her sister with the same enthusiasm.
But it was no use and after a while, the blonde girl told her sister that she gave up. Both girls were stuck with their giggle fit for a good while until eventually they had calmed down. The older girl then pointed at the small flowers, that had white petals and yellow pollen in it's centre, further down the flower bed.
"And those flowers are called Daisies," she told Ino, "and they mean innocence and hope."
"Wow," the small blonde said in amazement. "You know a lot Onē-chan!
Her sister chuckled, using her hand to cover her mouth as she did. "Thank you, Ino-chan," she said. "Say, would you like to help?"
"Can I?!"
"Of course!" The older girl took the watering can that was also next to her and held it in front of the little girl. "Can you go and fill this watering can for me?"
The blonde took the watering can with a bright smile, and with a "Sure!" coming out of her mouth, the little girl ran back inside the house to do what her sister had asked. When she came back from doing the task, Ino helped out her sister, with the flowers, for the rest of the day. The two sisters smiled while they worked, all the way to the time their parents coming back and Ino telling them about her day during dinner.
Ino's eyes began to blur with tears from that little fond memory. When she felt the her tears roll down her cheek, she used her bare arm to wipe them away and shook her head afterwards. Now wasn't the time to be nostalgic. Besides, that memory happened a long time ago and it doesn't change the fact that her big sister was now no longer in this world.
"Are you okay my dear?"
The blonde's eyes widen with surprise from the sudden voice and turned her head to the left. Standing there was an elderly woman, with an pink apron wrapped around her front. Imprinted on it was a flower. The old woman a had look of concern on her face and Ino probably guessed it was because she had been seen nearly crying.
"I'm fine," she told her, standing up tall. She then faced the woman and bowed her head. "I'm sorry for being an inconvenience."
"I-It's quite all right deary," the old woman said in a fluster. "P-Please raise your head!"
The blonde did what she asked and stood back up, her back straight. She turned her head away from the person in front of her, out of embarrassment, so she was now facing the store's window. That was when she noticed that something was taped on the other side of the transparent object. It said in big, bold letters: HELP WANTED
"Help wanted...?" Ino said out loud.
"Ahh, I see you've noticed," the woman spoke up. "As you can see, I'm not getting any younger, so it's getting harder for me to run this flower shop by myself. And, it's not as popular as it used to be, so there isn't much business. I've had half a mind to shut down the place. But I just couldn't do it." There was a long pause. "You wouldn't happen to be interested, would you my dear?"
Again, Ino showed a surprised expression on her face, turning her gaze back to the woman. Her kind eyes were looking into the Demon Hunter's, and they were full of hope and expectation. If she was honest, somewhere deep inside, the girl was half tempted to actually do it. But that was when the other half of her kicked in. The only reason why she came to Konohagakure in the first place was because she needed to find the cowardly, pink haired girl who was with Yamanaka Yukiko during her final moments.
She had thought that Haruno Sakura to be the one, but after the incident that happened with the psychotic Izanami, she doubted that the pinkette was that person. She was able to hold her own, so there was no way that girl could have been the one. And since she had come to that conclusion, it was time to move on. There weren't many pink haired girls in this city so she would have to go somewhere else.
Coming to that thought, Ino was about to tell the elderly woman that she couldn't do the job, but a sudden spark flashed through her head and almost immediately after, she felt demonic chakra. A strong one at that.
"Is everything alright my dear?"
The old woman's voice brought Ino back to her senses and she realized that she was still standing in front of the flower shop, and most likely making at serious expression as well.
"I'm sorry," the blonde apologised before she took a step. "I need to go." She then walked past the woman and was about to sprint, before she was called out again.
"W-Wait!" the woman cried. "What about the job?"
She stopped and turned her head so that her blue eyes could meet the older woman's. She gave the woman an answer, and was even surprised herself for the answer she gave her. "I'll... think about it." And that was all she said before she ran, leaving the elderly woman and the shop behind.
She ran into an ally that was near where the demonic chakra was coming from, and, once she knew that there was no one around, made a few hand signs. She began to concentrate chakra to the sole of her feet and in a few seconds, blue aura had begun to surround them.
With that finished, the blonde jumped onto the wall that was in front of her and thanks to her chakra control, she was able to successfully stick on the hard bricked material. Not wasting time, she ran up the wall and once she was on top of the building, she leapt from the top of it, to another one. She continued to do this, until she came upon the rooftop that the demonic chakra was coming from. A six story building with a water tower, which was surrounded by a metal net fence.
Ino looked around the deserted roof and saw that their was no one there. Where is it? she asked herself in her thoughts.
"Are you looking for me, Demon Hunter?"
The blonde girl turned her gaze toward the voice, near the water tower, where she saw a shadowed figure on top of it. Going by the persons figure and, even though it was slightly rough, by the sound of the voice, it was no doubt that it was a woman. Said woman suddenly jumped down from the water tower and landed only a couple of feet in front of Ino. She could now see who this woman was, and was surprised to see that she almost looked the same age as the blue eyed girl.
The girl was fair skinned, and had a slender build. Her long, untamed, dark pink hair, which went past her shoulders, was kept in check by the hat she was wearing, which was black with pipe-like stripes and bandaged sides. The clothes the girl wore consisted of a tan tunic with elbow-length sleeves, underneath she wore a black shirt and had skin-tight shorts. She also wore, on her arms, black arm-warmers, black open toed sandals with leg warmers that were calf-length and which were covered by bandages.
Finally, around the girl's waist, was a purple, rope-like belt that was tied into a bow, inveterately. Her brown eyes narrowed sharply, and a smug smile appeared on her lips.
"Fucking took you long enough to get here," she said. "Maybe if I'd killed someone, would that have gotten you here faster?"
Without hesitating, Ino summoned her sword, Masemune, from cherry blossoms, and grasping the scabbard with her left hand and the hilt with her right, she quickly took a fighting stance. "Who are you?!"
"A bit rude don't you think bitch?" she questioned. Ino wanted to laugh. This girl swore, twice, and she was the one being called rude? "Not like it'll change much, but my name's Tayuya. And I know who you already are, Yamanaka Ino."
Ino tightened the grasp on her weapon, her blue eyes becoming ice. "How do you know who I am?!"
"Wouldn't you like to know," the girl called Tayuya teased.
"If you're not going to tell me, then that's fine," Ino said, crouching a little. "Because you'll be dead anyway!" And with that, the blonde Demon Hunter leapt from where she was and charged at the bad mouthed girl. She found it weird that the other girl wasn't doing anything to defend herself, but she didn't care. She was going to end this with one stroke of her blade. Thinking that thought, Ino unsheathed her katana and swung at Tayuya.
"Yamanaka Yukiko."
The blade stopped just an inch from Tayuya's throat. Ino's blue eyes went wide when she heard that name come out from the other girl's mouth. The hand that held the blade started to shake as she spoke her next words.
"How...?" she asked, her wide eyes becoming icy once more, her glare strong. "How do you know that name?"
Tayuya kept smiling. Not even fazed that she had a blade near her throat. "I know that, and many other things," she replied. "I even know about the person that your looking for. The girl that was with her when she died."
At this, the blonde's heart began to pound, hard. She couldn't believe her ears. The girl in front of her, knew the answers that she was seeking. Answers that she had been searching for, for a long, long time. The Demon Hunter was that shocked by the news, that she didn't register that the pink haired girl had pushed her blade away with her finger.
"I take it that you not attacking me, means that you want to know the information I have?"
Saying that brought her attention back to reality, she didn't raise her sword, but her guard was up more. "Why should I believe what a demon says?"
"You don't," Tayuya responded, leaning forward so that their faces were close, brown eyes meeting blue. "But you're dying to know what it is, aren't you. I can tell." The fair skinned removed her face from in front of Ino's and began to circle around her, until she was behind the blonde.
"Come on Yamanaka~" Tayuya placed her arm around Ino's shoulders and the girl just looked at it. "Don't you want to know about the person that ran and left poor Yukiko to die?"
She was torn. Her Demon Hunter instincts were telling - no - screaming at her to not believe whatever this girl was saying and just kill her. The chakra coming from the girl next to her was no joke, so it would take a lot of time to do but it probably could be done. But if Tayuya was right, and Ino does kill her, then she would be no closer to the truth than where she was now. While she was contemplating on what to do, the demon girl placed her lips near the blue eyed girl's ear.
"So what will it be?"
There was a long moment. For Ino it felt like an eternity. But after a while, Ino closed her eyes and not a second later, her Masemune disappeared into cherry blossom petals. She then turned her blue orbs to brown, which showed mischief, but at that point, the blonde didn't care any more.
"Tell me," was all she said and to which, Tayuya smiled.
"Very well," she said, her smile now turning into a grin. "But instead of me saying it, let me tell you in a different way."
Before she could ask what she meant by that, the bad mouthed girl took Ino's chin between her thumb and fore finger and placed her lips forcefully on the blonde's. Her eyes widened and her mouth opened up in shock and the next thing she knew was that the other girl's tongue had slipped into Ino's and she took her tongue with hers. The Demon Hunter's eyes closed and she grabbed the girl's arm, as the forceful kiss intensified and just as she was about to run out of breath, a series of images instantly ran through her mind.
Ino's grasp in Tayuya's arm lessened as the images came and went. And after a couple more seconds, the pinkette removed her lips from Ino's, a string of saliva attached between the two pink appendages. Tayuya chuckled when she saw Ino's eyes open, and saw that they had grew dim. Her blue eyes held no emotion in them. The light had all but disappeared from them.
So then. Let the fun begin.
It was the next day, in Konoha High, and it was the end of school as all the students began making there way home. It was quite noisy as all the students making there way through the building were talking to one another, asking what their plans were or seeing if they wanted to do anything after school. Hinata and Sakura, however, weren't joining in on those conversations.
As they too were walking through the corridors, the ravenette was lost in her thoughts. Her mind kept on remembering the events of yesterday, of when she and Sakura were in the nurse's office. After both girls found out that the pinkette's demonic eye's sclera had become black, the ravenette had asked the pinkette how it happened.
Sakura was reluctant at first, but she then probably remembered the promise that they made back when they had saved Tenten, and slowly told her everything. She told her that the blonde Demon Hunter had used a technique to transfer her mind into hers. She also told her about Izanami, a psychotic being that lived inside Sakura, and how she managed to save Ino from her clutches but in the process of doing so, nearly got killed herself. She had rely on the full power of Amatarasu to survive. And because she did, her demonic eye had become what it was.
If it wasn't for the fact that she knew about the demons, she would have thought that Sakura was crazy and needed help. But she did. And she knew that everything that the pinkette had told her was the truth and right now her brain was trying to process all the information.
"Are you okay Hinata?"
The sound of Sakura's voice brought the Hyūga girl from her thoughts. She gave the younger girl a smile. "I'm fine," she replied.
"You still thinking about what I told you yesterday?" There was a short moment before the ravenette gave a nod. Seeing that, the pinkette came to a quick stop and she grasped Hinata's hand. The ravenette, surprised by the action, looked at the younger girl confusingly.
"Everything is alright Hinata, I'm still here," she told her, her emerald gaze serious and strong. Stronger than Hinata has ever seen before. "It'll take more than Yamanaka and the being inside of me, to bring me down. So trust me, okay?" She gave Hinata a gentle smile after that, and it made the girl's chest feel warm inside.
"Okay," was all the white eyed girl said. She quickly interlaced her fingers with the pinkette's, before the girl could do anything, and got closer so that their arms were practically touching. Sakura blushed hard at how close Hinata had suddenly become and for a reason that she couldn't explain, she began to have butterflies play within her stomach. She was embarrassed, but the smile that was now on the girl's face was worth it and both girls made their way toward the shoe lockers as they were.
When they got to their destination, both girl's let go of one another, Hinata almost immediately missing the contact of Sakura's hand. The ravenette went up to her shoe locker and replaced her shoe-like slippers for her outdoor ones. The pinkette was about to do the exact same but someone calling out to them stopped her from doing so. They both turned to see that it was a teacher, but not just any teacher. It was Kurenai that was calling out to them.
"I'm so sorry," the older woman apologised. "I know that you're heading home, but would it be alright if I borrow you for a moment Haruno-san?" Both girl's gave the black haired woman a quizzical look, so the teacher carried on further. "I've got some paperwork that I need to deliver to the faculty office. But the thing is that there is a lot of it and I would need to make several trips if I were to do it myself. I've heard that you're quite good in manual labour and I've got a date tonight, so you would be doing me a huge favour!" The woman then bowed her head. "Please help me!"
Sakura's sweat dropped as she saw a teacher bow her head and she slowly looked towards Hinata's direction for some support. But the girl just smiled her natural smile and said, "Why don't you help her out?"
"Are you sure?" Sakura asked.
The ravenette nodded. "Don't worry about me. I can just wait in our classroom until you finished."
Hearing her consent and suggestion, the pinkette gave a nod and turned back to Kurenai. "Then I guess I'm all yours for the moment."
The teacher's head sprung back up and she clasped Sakura's hands with hers. "Thank you, Haruno-san!" she cried with glee. "Now not moment to waste. Lets go!" Hinata watched, from that point on, the nurse drag her demon friend away and she waved as she did, until they were no longer in view.
Well then, I guess I'm going back.
The ravenette went back into her locker and retrieved her shoes and sat down. Not a second that she did, did she feel like someone was behind her. It couldn't have been Sakura. She knew that the pinkette was fast, but not that fast. So it must have been another student. Before she could turn around to see who it was, a cloth was suddenly pressed on her face, covering her mouth and nose and she smelt a strong substance coming from the fabric. And as she sniffed it in, her consciousness slowly began to fade.
Sakura-chan...
The pinkette was the last thing she thought of before she fell unconscious.
Sakura let out a long, tiring sigh. She had finally finished helping out Kurenai-sensei, and she couldn't believe how much work the nurse had. If she thought demons were bad she was wrong. Not only did she have to go back and forth, from the nurse's office to the faculty office, she also somehow managed to get herself caught with the other teachers who needed help with a few things as well, like help Asuma-sensei with some photocopying. I can smell smoke on my uniform And she helped her homeroom teacher, Kakashi-sensei, get some coffee. Do students really get drinks for their teachers?
But now, after an hour, she was finally done. She was finished, and she was now making her way to class 2-B to meet with Hinata and then the pinkette would be heading home. When she got to where she needed to be, the demon girl opened the door and called out.
"I'm sorry it took so long Hinata," she said. "I had to..." Her words trailed off when she realized that there was no one in the room. "Hinata?" she called out again, but all she got in return was silence.
Finding it weird, the girl left the classroom and decided to go to the gymnasium. Maybe she wanted to see Tenten and she couldn't blame her. It was an hour after all. But that didn't work either. When she got there, there wasn't a single sign of the girl. Finding it strange, Sakura made her way towards the naginata side of the gym and spoke to Tenten who was sitting down on a bench, wiping sweat off her forehead.
"Hinata?" Tenten said when the pinkette asked if she had seen her. "She hasn't come by here, and the last time I saw her was when class ended."
The pinkette's stomach began to tighten in knots. For some reason, she felt something wasn't right and with a quick goodbye, Sakura began to look around the whole school. She started off with the nurse's office. Nothing. She then went up to the roof. Nothing there either. The girl then went to each of the other places in the school. The library. The art room. The music room, and every other classroom that the school had. But she still got the same result. Nothing.
She soon found herself back to where she had last saw the girl herself. At the shoe lockers. Where could she-?! That was when she saw it. Sakura saw something white sticking out of the her shoe locker. She narrowed her eye and made her way towards it, taking it when she was close. It was a small piece of paper, and written on it was:
I've got something precious of yours.
Come and find me.
I know you can.
Once she finished reading what it said, she noticed that there was something at the back of it, so she turned it around. Her heart practically stopped at that moment, and her emerald eye widened. She now knew why she had that strange feeling from before. On the other side if the paper was a picture. And what it contained made the girl's hand ball up into a fist.
It was Hinata. She was laying on her side, her hands bound behind her back, and she was unconscious. Her wide eye lowered and the light within it disappeared, making the girl look cold and dangerous. Blood had started to hit the wood beneath her feet as balled fist's nails were digging into the skin. She could feel the eye behind the eye patch burn, but for a different reason. But quite frankly, Sakura didn't care. What was more important now was getting her precious friend back.
And make the person that took her pay.
And that's another chapter finished with. The next one might be the last chapter of the Ino arc, but if not the second to last. Once the Ino arc is finished, I'll be asking the views for something, so stay tuned for that.
Thanks for reading as always and please leave a review and tell me anything that can help improve the story or my writing. Also constructive criticism is also very appreciated.
Thanks again, and see ya next chapter!