Chapter 15: First Night In Suna
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The weather had changed in the last few weeks as the first frost of the year set in. The soil was slightly frozen and the trees were mostly bare, with little to no leaves left on them. It was that time of the year in which several breeds of bugs were projected to go into hibernation.
Shibi Aburame accompanied his son to the Forest of Death, to do their weekly check on their new breed of bugs, it was essential to take inventory, to make sure the bugs had enough nutrient levels before they hideaway for the season.
"It has come to my attention that your contract with the Hyuga clan will be expiring soon," Shibi said as they both made their way towards their destination, the hibernation grounds.
"To think it has almost been a year since then," Shino glanced up from his clipboard. He felt a little apprehensive about how time seemed to fly, yet he hadn't been able to keep Hinata away from trouble. "Yet I have a feeling it will be this year in which Hinata will be needing our protection the most..." He was sure Kiba felt the same way.
Team 8 was unofficially disbanded when Hinata ascended to her position of power. And a little before that, Hiashi had posted two job openings as Hinata's guards. His father, Shibi, had approached Shino and hinted that taking on the job would strengthen the existing bond the Aburame have with the Hyuga, thus as a sign of goodwill, Shino went for it.
"Is there trouble brewing inside the clan?" Shibi asked. He crouched down to part some grass as he checked in between the wet, yet frozen leaves. The leaves seemed to have small bite marks meaning the bugs were indeed eating, a sign of health.
Shino's silence was all Shibi needed as confirmation.
"Then do your best to bring honor to our clan." Shibi said, as he took out his clipboard to check off a box, next to the word 'Nutrient supply'.
Shino was aware that ever since he became close to Hiashi's oldest daughter, during their genin days, his clan has done nothing but profit, as they would constantly have huge amounts of donation and support in their research endeavors, such as the one they were performing at the time.
There was a time he detested how his father had taken advantage of the situation, but eventually made peace with the fact that as long as his feelings to protect Hinata were genuine, he shouldn't feel guilty about the added perks of being close to her.
"I will."
After checking the temperature, weight, size, gender, and chakra level of each bug, the two-headed back towards the village.
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As the day went on, both Kiba and Shino had been summoned to appear before Hiashi. They were dressed in their winter garbs, opting for a large dark cloak over their Anbu uniform.
"You both have done remarkably well with protecting my daughter, and the elders, and I would appreciate your continuing servitude. Should you decide not to remain my daughter's protector, I won't hold it against you. You two will still be rewarded greatly for your secrecy." Hiashi said to both men, as they stood across from him, inside his office.
Kiba frowned behind his mask, mentally drained from the experience of having to keep their position a secret. He had initially applied for the job when it first became available with the belief he would continue to hang out and be close to Hinata, like old times. However, part of the contract stated they keep their identity a secret to not anger other clans, since being close to Hinata meant being privy to certain Hyuga secrets that others would die to know about. Being that Shikamaru Nara already knew, Kiba saw no point in hiding it.
"I don't mind renewing the contract I have with you, but I think it's about time we update some of the policies," Kiba replied, as he glanced from Hiashi to Shino, before continuing. "I want Hinata to know that it is us behind these masks. Sometimes it's hard to do our job when she sees us as strangers,"
Hiashi remembered a time in which he felt reluctant to hire Hinata's previous teammates, believing they had only applied for the position to fool around. But upon passing their Anbu exams with extraordinary results, he knew the two genuinely cared about his daughter's well-being. However, it would never come close to how things used to be when he had Neji around.
"I'll run the idea by the elders and then get back to you," Hiashi replied. "Anything else?"
"Yes," Shino replied. "We're aware it is our duty to accompany Hinata to Suna. However, we would like to be hired as her old teammates as opposed to going as her guards."
"Permission granted."
When the meeting was over, Kiba patted Shino on his shoulder and congratulated him on his awesome idea.
"Dude, way to go! We get to celebrate Hinata's birthday and spend some quality time with her. This trip is going to be so amazing. The old team is back, baby!"
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Shikamaru sat on the edge of the rooftop's tower, on a short smoke break. His eyes surveyed his surrounding, as everywhere he looked, there appeared to be some sort of Christmas tree and holiday-related decoration. He could faintly hear the Christmas music nearby as he toyed with the idea of asking Kakashi for additional days off, so he may travel to Suna, to spend it with a certain woman that wouldn't leave his thoughts. Every time he opened his mouth to try to ask Kakashi about it, he would immediately close it, unsure of how the Hokage would react. Her birthday was sneaking up, and so far he had little luck at getting his request out.
"Hmm," Shikamaru said out loud, to himself, as if having some sort of epiphany. "Manipulation, huh," He put out his cigarette, already knowing what his next play was going to be. Part of him still wasn't over the incident that led to his suspension. He wanted to find a way to get back at Kakashi for his attempt at manipulating him.
When the shadow user reentered the office, he stopped by Naruto's desk, prompting the blond to look up from his spot. The office had gone through a holiday transformation, during his suspension, as it was decked out in holiday colors.
"What's up Shikamaru?" Naruto asked as he put the ink brush down, and moved it to the side. He had been in the middle of writing a message to Sasuke.
"Hinata-chan's birthday is coming up on the 27th,"
"Already?" Naruto almost asked his best friend why he even knew that piece of information, but was distracted very quickly by other thoughts.
He stood up from his chair to pace about. The idea of throwing Hinata a party was already brought a smile to his face. He loved social gatherings.
"Let's plan a surprise party for her, and invite everyone," With Hanabi absent, it seemed like that was the right thing to do. Naruto figured Hinata must be feeling lonely.
"That's the thing," Shikamaru began. "She already made plans for Suna," He said casually, his eyes, ever observant, awaited for the reaction he had hoped for.
"Suna!? This is great!" Sasuke and Sakura were also there!
Shikamaru had to dodge Naruto, as the blond nearly walked through him, while quickly heading out the door in a hurry. He slowly followed behind Naruto as the blond disappeared inside Kakashi's office. Shikamaru took his place far back, by the wall, with his arms crossed, to watch the scene unfold before him.
"Oi, Kakashi-sensei, clear our schedule for the Holidays. Something came up,"
"And what exactly came up?" Kakashi asked, dryly, while his eyes remained immersed in the document before him. Naruto went on to explain that he wanted to spend the holidays over at Suna. During his explanation, Naruto paused, as if finally remembering Temari.
"Wait, are you okay with seeing Temari again?" Naruto asked his best friend.
"My relation with Suna is completely cordial," Shikamaru said vaguely as he remained rooted in his spot, by the wall.
"Tell me, why should I approve this vacation time?" Kakashi finally glanced up from his paperwork, his eyes narrowing, since he was well aware of who else was going to be in Suna.
Hinata Hyuga.
"Come on, Kakashi-sensei, Shikamaru and I promise to be on our best behavior for a whole year." Naruto pleaded while his body was almost sitting on top of Kakashi's desk.
Kakashi swatted Naruto away from his paperwork, and let out a sigh before his eyes turned completely serious when looking at his apprentice.
"Leave the room. I need to talk to Shikamaru in private." The Hokage had been made aware, by some spies, that a verbal altercation had occurred late at night, outside of Nara's residency. It was reported that Hinata Hyuga and Shikamaru Nara may be involved in some kind of way.
His guess, the two were romantically involved.
"But what about Suna?" Naruto asked.
"I'll give you an answer later,"
When Naruto left the room, Shikamaru slowly closed the door to the office. Kakashi's eyes immediately landed on the shadow user, who was looking as disinterested as ever. The Hokage knew better than to believe Shikamaru had no role in Naruto's sudden request.
Well played Shikamaru, Kakashi thought to himself.
"If I agree to this," Kakashi began, slowly.
Noticing Shikamaru's eyes momentarily lit up, Kakashi found himself placing extra emphasis on the word 'if'.
"I said if I agree, there are some things I want to make clear. I'm choosing to remain neutral here, I'm not on anyone's side. However, know that the Hyugas are big on abstinence, so I ask that you please reframe from laying a finger on their precious leader. I don't want you doing anything to make me regret the decision of agreeing to this, meaning eloping is also out of the question. I'll have you get turned into a missing-nin with a snap of a finger if you ignore the last one."
Shikamaru rolled his eyes.
"The faith you have in me is astronomical."
"Let Naruto know that I plan on having you two work twice as hard as soon as you get back from your trip,"
Pushing himself off the wall, Shikamaru left the office with a grin on his face.
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It was nighttime when Shino, Kiba, and Hinata arrived at Suna. As the three walked down the streets, they followed a female guide that was there to lead them to their hotel.
Kiba and Hinata looked around, awestruck in a tourist-like kind of way, for Suna was strikingly beautiful at night.
The lights illuminated the entire surrounding, engulfing each sand structure in warm hues of colors, giving the impression each building was made out of gold. However, something stood out right away, Suna's lack of red and green decorations. They forgot that the people didn't celebrate the same holiday as Konoha.
"Look Hinata!" Kiba said, as he grabbed her by her shoulder and turned her towards the direction he referenced. A large structure depicting Gaara had been built to honor all the great things his ruling had brought to the village.
"Gaara-san sure is loved by his people..." Hinata said with a smile on her face.
Letting go of her shoulder, Kiba proceeded to link his arms with hers, as they huddled close to Akamaru and Shino. When they approached the luxurious hotel from a distance, the three appeared to be equally excited, while Shino remained unreadable.
"There's one thing I think I might've forgotten to mention." The female guide said over her shoulder. "There's a no dog policy…" The guide said as her eyes trailed to the massive Akamaru.
"That's not a problem." Kiba said before turning to Akamaru. "Well, you heard the lady, Akamaru!"
Upon command, the massive dog transformed into a copy of his master. After doing so, Akamaru joined Hinata's free side, also linking arms with her.
Laughing nervously, the guide decided that they were technically not breaking any rules since the dog seemed to be able to morph into a human form. Thus, she decided to look the other way.
"May I borrow a messenger bird?" Hinata asked the guide politely.
"Sure, we'll set you up with one as soon as we reach the hotel." The guide replied.
When they entered the hotel, the foyer had a beautiful large floral centerpiece in the middle, right across from the receptionist's desk. Upon hearing Hinata's last name, the staff immediately talked her out of getting small hotel rooms. And with little convincing, the staff was able to upgrade her to a private mansion located nearby.
Kiba and Hinata were static.
After Hinata had sent a message to her sister, they headed over to the mansion. They passed landscapes of pools decorated with flowers and greenery. There were small lazy rivers, waterfalls, and lagoons, no doubt artificially created for tourism purposes.
"It's going to suck when we leave," Kiba complained as they removed their shoes before entering the large mansion.
"Agree," Shino replied.
The three split up to explore, before meeting back up at their starting point. Since she was the birthday girl, they voted for Hinata to pick her bedroom first, before they each picked their own. Being the thoughtful human being that she tended to be, Hinata had decided to let Kiba have the biggest room since he was sharing living space with Akamaru.
"My little sister got back to me, she said she'll be dropping by tomorrow," Hinata mentioned casually as she settled down on a sofa, holding a small scroll in her hand. Hanabi and Sakura were Gaara's special guests at his mansion, thus the distance between them wasn't far at all, since Gaara's mansion was located close by.
"That's great, then I'm guessing the party starts tomorrow?" Kiba said as he entered the room with Akamaru in tow.
"Where did you find that?" Shino asked Kiba, as their wild friend seemed to have three empty glasses in one hand, while Akamaru followed him around with three bottles of wine in its arms.
"This place has a bar." Kiba's chin pointed towards a specific direction of the said place before he proceeded to pour a drink for each of them.
"I did miss you guys…" Hinata lamented, as the three clinked their glasses and took a sip.
"We know." Kiba settled next to her, leaning his head on her shoulder while holding the drink in his hand. "This is going to be a great vacation." Kiba contemplated, happy to be away from Konoha, and away from his undercover duty as her guard.
Hinata pushed Kiba away playfully as she complained about him being too close. Shino ignored his friends, as the two began to tussle in the background. Shino flipped through one of the pamphlets he had picked up earlier, and his eyes became engulfed in the ad which read 'How Insects Adapted To The Desert, A Must-See Tour For Bug Lovers'.
"I think I'm going to explore on my tomorrow," Shino said out loud as he showed the ad to the group.
Hinata glanced from her spot, which had been the corner of the sofa, after successfully pushing Kiba away with her feet.
"Are you sure you want to go alone? I can ask Gaara-san to set you up with a guide."
"I'll find my way around town on my own," Shino replied. "It's more fun that way."
"Okay, if you say so. Well, I'm going to get ready for bed." Hinata said while taking her drink and one bottle in hand. She was ready for a shower.
"Good night Hinata!" Kiba called out as she disappeared up the stairs.
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It was hard to get rid of the sand.
This was something she came to discover as she thoroughly rinsed the sand off her hair, and even then she had a feeling she would keep finding traces of it.
Hinata grabbed a bathrobe for the sake of modesty, to cover her long, white, silky nightgown. She slipped into the balcony, located right outside her bedroom, to do some reflection.
She approached the balcony railing with the same bottle and glass in hand. She opted to place the bottle of wine by her feet, before leaning over the balcony railing.
She sipped some wine, slowly, as she stared ahead at the night sky. The breeze partially air-dried her damp hair.
"Shikamaru-kun…" She sighed his name into the night while recalling how ridiculously crowded this trip had suddenly become. Kiba and Shino's unexpected addition meant she would probably end up spending less time with Shikamaru. Part of her felt relief since she wasn't sure what would've happened if it just had been the two of them, alone, on this trip. There wasn't a second where she couldn't stop thinking about Yoshino's words. She still felt angry with Shikamaru's mother for saying those hurtful things, and for going as far as forbidding her to see Shikamaru. Right after the incident, Hinata had sent a letter, asking him what their next step was supposed to be to get Yoshino to be on board. His response had been to give his mother some time to recalibrate and adjust to the change in her plans...
"I guess I'll deal with the drama when I get back..." This might worsen when Yoshino finds out that Shikamaru decided to follow her to Suna.
Hinata immediately reacted when a figure dropped from the sky, landing behind her. When she let go of her drink, it plummeted to the ground as she gracefully settled into a fighting stance. The glass of wine, along with its content, immediately had been captured by a purplish hand that belonged to a humanoid samurai.
By then, her byakugan was active.
Although Hinata had registered who it was, her ninja reflexes immediately sprung into action as she twirled around to strike the person.
Her first and second strike was caught, her fists redirected, as the figure managed to spin her, pinning her hands behind her back. The person pressed her body forward, against the balcony railing.
"And here I thought you've gotten rusty," The muffled voice teased her, as he spoke close to her ear, earning a gasp from her, reacting to both his closeness and the revelation of him finally having two arms again. He had only been away from the village for almost a month. What changed?
When he let go, he proceeded to take off his mask as Hinata turned around to meet his eyes. She was not used to seeing him in a Suna uniform, and the mask seemed to hint that he was accepted as part of Suna's special squad, similar to how Konoha had their Anbu rank.
"Uchiha-san?" When she spoke his last name, it ended up coming out as a question. She couldn't get over the fact that Sasuke had accepted a new arm from Suna, but not Konoha.
The formality bothered him, for Sasuke had essentially been acting as Hanabi's guardian, going as far as to exchange letters with Hinata, just to let her know how her sister was behaving. Sakura wasn't as reliable when it came to the teenager, since she would dote on her and let her get away with almost everything. Now that he thought about it, both Sakura and Hanabi tended to act like little kids sometimes.
"Sasuke," He corrected her. "Just Sasuke."
When Hinata parted her lips, she imagined herself speaking his name, but for some reason found that she didn't feel comfortable doing so.
"Okay, but..." Her eyes trailed to his arm. "Why now?" She asked.
"It's easier to protect others if I have two hands,"
Sasuke recalled an incident in which Hanabi got attacked by a giant scorpion monstrosity, while on their trip to Suna, and found that he could've been more useful and efficient in protecting her if he had two arms instead of one. In the end, it had been Sakura doing most of the protecting. The whole incident opened up his eyes about how stupidly egotistical he had been for rejecting the arm in the first place.
"I see. Well, if you have come to tell me how much trouble Hanabi-chan has given you," Hinata began, with a small smile. "Then I believe it,"
His response had been a chuckle, since Hinata wasn't aware of how close to the truth she had been.
"She's nothing I can't handle, or did you forget I used to deal with the dobe?"
Hinata giggled behind her hand. Eventually, silence filled the air, as both of their eyes trailed to the glowing humanoid samurai, which still held her drink in its hand. Sasuke retrieved the drink, before dispersing his summon.
Hinata reached out, expecting him to return it to her. Instead, she watched him stared off, in contemplation, before twirling the glass and tilting it to a particular side.
"I heard Naruto-kun is arriving tomorrow..." Hinata said, deciding not to address his behavior. She had forgotten how annoying he tended to be.
"And so is Nara," He said with a knowing look. This seemed to earn her glare. Was this Sasuke's way of hinting that he knew about her and Shikamaru? He did work as her spy, so it wouldn't be too farfetched to assume he might've seen something he had not made her aware of.
"Why are you here?" She finally asked.
Sasuke walked past her, when he was reminded of his purpose. He had been doing a nightly routine of watching the village's perimeter, when suddenly he had felt that distinct flicker of chakra that could only belong to her. He figured she had gotten a little arrogant, for she hadn't even bothered with hiding her chakra. What game was she playing?
"Someone who knows your ex is lounging nearby. And you've foolishly made him aware of your presence. I imagine he might reach out to you soon. He goes by the name Toneri."
Hinata almost groaned. She vaguely remembered Toneri announcing he couldn't make it to a few clan meetings, and now she knew why. Was Toneri there to see Gaara's older brother? Either way, the last thing she wanted was to mingle with a distant family member, who was also an 'elder', while on her supposed vacation.
"I was merely letting my sister know that I had arrived, and why do you suspect Toneri-san?"
He explained to her how Toneri was a figure who used to constantly pop up around her ex, back when he had been hired to be her spy, which automatically made Toneri a suspect on his list.
"I don't quite trust him," Without breaking eye contact, Sasuke brought up the glass to his lips, taking a sip from her drink.
"Hmm, father said something similar about him," Hinata said as she approached him, yanking back her empty glass from him.
"You're not in Konoha right now, so try to stay out of trouble," As he said those words, an image of a blushing Sakura and a grinning Hanabi came to mind, as he thought about how he already had his hands full of making sure he was constantly protecting those two from random weirdos or stalkers. Thus, he had enough people to worry about. Though part of him doubted anyone would try anything since the world's strongest Shinobis all happened to be in one place.
"Thanks for the warning,"
Sasuke brought his mask back over, to cover his face, signaling the ending of his unofficial meeting with her.
She watched him leap off, seemingly disappearing and blending into the night. After his departure, her eyes trailed toward the empty glass in her hand. She could see the small print of where his lips had drunk from, it overlapped with hers.
"Kami, please help me understand," She muttered lowly to herself. "Why is Uchiha-san so annoying?" She was fed up with his mind games and his antics. It was almost as though Sasuke...she couldn't finish that thought, as she had accidentally kicked the neglected bottle of wine by her feet. She picked it up from the floor, bringing it back inside with her.
After finally settling into bed for the night, Hinata lay awake, filled with new worries related to Toneri's mystery. Willing the negative thoughts away, she naturally conjured up memories of Shikamaru. She couldn't wait to see him tomorrow.
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Edited: 3-16-2021 x.x
Edited: 9-24-21 too
Edited: 9-8-22 grammar and stuff, and title too.