Disclaimer: Blah blah blah I don't own Naruto blah blah blah
Thank You's: I would just like to shout out a great big Texas Thank You to Blackraven615, Jester of Fools, Moon-Baby, HeartBrokenHinata, Midnight Blue 08, Anotamous, and MinnieMouse8990 for all your wonderful reviews. You guys inspire me....
Note: Everything that you have read so far has had purpose and sometimes double meaning. Word Choice, mannerisms, dialog.....Hope you like it.....
Warning: I'm going to be messing with the Naruto timeline just because I can....This chapter is going to be a little jumpy. Just so you know, italics are flashbacks. Yeah if you are confused, I'm sorry, hopefully you'll get it though. Oh and some OOC-ness
Part Six: Covert
She pressed her forehead into the rough bark of the tree, tears sliding down her cheeks in silent trials. Indigo locks curtained about her face, some trendils sticking to the sweat that lined her brow.
17 years old and still the bane of her fathers blood; the stigma of the Hyuuga clan; the stuttering wallflower of Konoha. Always overlooked and under appreciated.
It was the moments of silence she dreaded the most. When the whispers and memories would sizzle to life. The relentless, incessant echos of all those who seemingly spat on her very existence.
'Give up. You are not suited to become a ninja...You are weak...' -Neji
'Do as you like with her. A defect who is even weaker than Hanabi, someone five years her junior is not needed in Hyuuga....' -Father
'You're so weird, Hinata....' -Naruto
She felt the approaching presence seconds before it burst into the clearing. Hinata spun away from the tree, her hand delving into the pac on her leg, gripping the kunai handle and bringing the knife in-front of her in defense.
Ivory locked with crimson before the stranger's eyes rolled into the back of his head, body collapsing into unconsciousness. In the pale light of the moon, Hinata took a hesitant step towards the crumpled figure.
Two fast moving silhouettes sped along the Konoha rooftops, one carrying what appeared to be a third party. Expertly executed genjitsu allowed them to travel undetected, their chakra seemingly invisible to all those who patrolled the city at night. Hinata nodded to her companion, shifting the dead wieght of her sister in her arms, focusing a small amount of chakra into her legs. With one great leap, she cleared the Hyuuga compound walls, the veins around her eyes pulsating with power, ever at the ready.
She allowed her knees to bend, landing in a crouch so her legs would cushion the force of the impact. Chakra-fused momentum sprung her forward into a dead run towards the upper-floor window on the right side of the Main-Branch building.
Hinata raced through the forest undergrowth, her lavender eyes blazing in the pitch dark of the heavily canopied wildwood. She paused to catch her breath, leaning against a nearby oak for support. Her clothes were soaked with sweat causing them to stick to her uncomfortably. Closing her eyes she let her head fall back against the trunk of the tree her labored breath coming out in harsh pants.
"You're still to loud, Hyuuga."
The cold edge of the kunai pressed against the soft flesh of her pale throat resulting in a slim trail of blood to curl down the width of the blade. Opal eyes snapped open just as the weapon was pulled away, leaving her to fall to her knees. Hinata looked up and bore into the apathetic pools of sable.
She didn't know why he hadn't erased her memory of that night three months ago. He knew that she knew he could have; should have. And yet, here they were. An unspoken pact of silence forged between the forgotten heiress and the traitorous heir. Unspoken but not ungrateful. Two nights out of the week she would slip away from the compound and meet him in the same clearing. She would heal him, he would train her. A small movement brought her out of her reverie, again she drew her eyes upward from the foliage beneath her palms.
Sasuke Uchiha held out his hand for her to take. Hinata slipped her own into his, and together they silently made their way back to the small meadow where she had once saved his life, and where he continued to change hers.
She lay her sister down on the rumpled sheets of the small futon. Hanabi stirred, watching her sister remove her shoes through slitted eyes.
"You don't have to do that." Hinata smiled tenderly in the dim light of her sisters room, her nimble fingers working on Hanabi's sandal buckles. A calm silence fell over the pair, the younger Hyuuga's eye's never left her sister's peace-filled veneer. "I saw you die...." She whispered agilely into the stillness. Hinata's eyes softened as she sat on the edge of her sisters bed. She took Hanabi's hand in hers and squeezed as if reassuring her sister that she was there, alive and breathing.
"That scene was not meant for your eyes." The blue-haired kunoichi explained quietly. "You were supposed to be training with Hiashi."
"Father decided to cut our time short for some odd reason. When I followed him to the hospital I felt your charka nearby. It was so faint..." She trailed off, looking up to meet her sister's eye, her own glazed in curiosity. "How did you do that? You completely stopped your chakra flow, I checked with my Byakugan. No one can do that." Hinata shook her head and grinned.
"Are you sure you're willing to take this assignment, Hinata?" Tsunade asked over her templed hands. Topaz eyes stared fixedly at the kunoichi before her, searching and scrutinizing every single muscle twitch for any sign of hesitation or misgiving. Hinata's confident gaze did not waver. She was 2 month's away from her eighteenth birthday and had been secretly training with Sasuke for over 8 months now, not without the Hokage's permission of course.
Before Hinata could give her answer, said Uchiha spoke from his relaxed position, near the large window looking over Konoha. His onyx eyes narrowing at the Hokage.
"Do you disapprove of my choice?" Topaz orbs hardened and slid over to the 'traitor.' It had been nearly two years since he came crawling back to Konoha, literally, with a deal of pardon in exchange for information. He was a stubborn bastard then, even tittering at the brink of death, and he was still a stubborn bastard now.
"Personally," Tsunade barked, "She has nearly surpassed Sakura in her medical training, her chakra control is possibly the most impressive out of the rookie nine. Her taijutsu has steadily improved with your help. On top of that, I haven't heard her stutter for four month's now and if by some miracle," The Hokage paused winking at the now blushing Hyuuga before shifting back to the Uchiha, "She somehow manages to put up with your ass. If anything I say the last one alone makes her more than qualified."
"Hn." Sasuke nodded looking back over the night shadowed streets of the Leaf. Tsunade rolled her eyes frustratingly at the response before turning back to Hinata.
"There's just the question of pulling it off." The Hokage leaned back in her chair thoughtfully. "It's got to be more than believable, especially since you're the heiress for one of the strongest clans in Konoha, whose Kekei Genkai is nearly impossible to fool."
"Poison." Came Sasuke's single word answer, shooting Hinata a small glance. The blue-haired nin took this as her signal to expand.
"I've been experimenting on the effects of certain lesser known herbs. I've figured out to freeze my chakra system entirely, but I'm lacking the adequate components for shutting down major bodily functions without the minor side effect of death. The Hyuuga library is limited when it comes to medical material."
"I've got just the thing for you." Tsunade stated obviously proud of herself for some reason or other. The Hokage reached into her shirt and pulled out a small key dangling on a thin chain around her neck. She proceeded to lean down and unlock one of the many drawers of her desk, pulling out a thick grimoire sporting the Aburame family crest. "They lent this to me for research purposes when I first became Hokage, I haven't had time to return it."
Sasuke snorted in mocking disbelief.
"Anyways," Tsunade narrowed her eyes, "What I've discovered is that the Aburame clan has a certain fetish for entomology. Go figure, right? Well, I was flipping through here, and I came upon a passage from a man named Shiro Aburame who observed something interesting about this type of water-bug species specifically aboriginal to the north east corner of the Wind Country. I forget the specifics, but according to him the bugs were able to play dead when hunting, even going so far as to stop blood flow. After years of obsessive research, he was able to find out that it was a culmination of nearby plant life the thing ingested that allowed this to happen." She pushed the book towards the nervous looking Hyuuga.
"Make me a list of all the herbs and plants that you might need, and I'll have Shizune order them in. If anyone asks what you are doing, tell them you are researching for me." The blond medic genius continued.....
"That is a story for another time. Now," Hinata stood up, grabbing the edge of Hanabi's blanket to pull it over the sleep-heavy chuunin. "Get some sleep. You'll need after all that imbibing tonight." She chided disappointingly with a stern glare.
"You're not going to heal my hangover?" Hanabi pouted lamely. "Not even for old-times' sake?" Hinata lifted a perfectly sculpted brow.
"I think I'll let you suffer this one out. What kind of older sister would I be if I didn't let you learn from your mistakes?"
"A good one..." Hanabi grumbled tugging up the covers to her chin. "Will you come and visit me?"
"Now, how would it look if a supposed dead Hyuuga waltzed into the council room asking audience with her sister?" The medic-nin tilted her head for the wry glance.
"Okay, write then." Hinata sighed at her sister's orneriness.
"What part of the word dead are you not comprehending?"
Hanabi crossed her arms and proceeded to sulk childishly. "Will I ever see you again?" She murmured picking at the small fibers of her blanket. The elder Hyuuga reached forward and placed a hand on the youngers' head, running her fingers through the chestnut locks in a soothing motion.
"Now that, I can guarantee. Whether it's this life, or the next, I will see you again." Hanabi nodded understandingly, forcing her face down as to not watch her sister leave.
"Good-bye Hanabi." Said teenager looked up to see her sister sitting on the ledge of her windowsill.
"Good-bye Hinata." With one last smile, the ex-heiress pushed herself off into the swallowing dark of the outside.
Hinata paused for a moment before jumping back over the wall. She through one last glance at what acted as her home for the better half of 19 years.
"You accept the consequences of this mission."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
She shook her head, there was no time for regrets now. Vaulting over the wall seemed far easier without the added weight of another person. She landed stealthily in the back street that ran in-between the Hyuuga compound and the second wall of Konoha's inner barrier.
"Ready?"
Hinata felt the corners of her mouth twitch at the familiar low rumble.
"Ready." She answered truthfully but couldn't help glimpsing back once more at the warm electric glow that emanated from the heart of the Leaf. Strong though, surprisingly lithe arms curled around her waist, pulling her back into an equally powerful chest. Sasuke nuzzled his nose into her hair, breathing deeply the scent of mint and roses. Leaning forward, he placed his cheek against hers.
"You can still say no." He sighed, his breath fanning across her face causing it to warm in the cool night air. "Go back, protest to the Hokage to free you from the Hyuuga, become a full-time medic, be happy."
"Without you?" She turned to face him. His face half hidden in the shadow cast by the towering wall they stood beside. Hinata shook her head lifting a hand, finger tips whispering against the pale skin of his cheek. Onyx eyes closed, relishing in the warmth of her touch.
"Last chance, one word and you can end it here, now." She smiled lovingly, opal eyes sparkling in the starlight.
"What if I don't want too?"
End Part Six:
A/N: Well we are almost at the end. Just the epilog and then it's done!
I just wanted to give you a taste of what happened in the past and let you connect the pieces for what happened. That is part of the mystery. I realized that this story is from the perspectives of those who were in Hinata's way. Hence the title 'In The Way.' The people that surrounded her looking in but were actually between her and her goal. Each playing a specific role to give you insight to what they perceived happened. You may not like it, but I kind of do but that's probably because I know what really happened.
Belostomatidae- is an actual family of insects also called 'Toe-biters' Asian's eat them sometimes. They can play dead, but just not to the extent of which I portrayed them. It's called creative license people!
Feed Back is the Food of the Gods....