Exaltation.
A/N: Yes, I'm still enjoying my vacation!! XD Hurray for freedom! Whoopee for a Maths-free week!! And thank-you for the reviewers:) I'm glad most of you liked it, I was kinda unsure about it… Well, hope you'll like this chapter too!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto & Co, and I'll probably never do… (Wow! That rhymed a little! Who could've thought I was a poet? Lol)
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Chapter five.
"Uhmm… I-Itachi-san?" Shyly she looked up, trying not to blush as the other glanced her way. Nodding, he signaled for her to continue. She got the hint and spoke, struggling a bit while searching for the right words.
"That n-night… Wh-What happened… Did I…"
He interrupted her stuttering, already knowing what was troubling her. "No, you didn't hurt me… Don't feel guilty, Hinata." He heard her letting out a breath that she apparently had been holding for a long time and sighed inwardly.
That girl…
…always worrying about others, about useless things. If he didn't know better, he would say that she was weak. Worthless. Pathetic.
Luckily Itachi knew better.
He glanced another time at the fidgeting girl beside him, before directing his gaze upon the long, devious path before them; they had yet to walk a few miles before reaching their destination for that night.
Hinata seemed to know this. Although he sensed that she was beginning to feel exhausted, she didn't complain. Actually, beside those few words she had murmured just now, the girl had not spoken since they had left.
Although he knew that she was shy, the former Uchiha thought that it was still a bit peculiar. But before he could voice his thoughts, she already spoke before him.
"I-Itachi-san… W-Will you p-please pro-protect me…?"
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Hinata was worried.
What had she done?
The previous night… What had happened? Itachi-san didn't seem to care, but she could sense a trace of worried ness deep down in him, something he hardly ever was, let alone showed it.
She was scared to ask…
… But she had to know. She needed to know if he was mad at her.
Before they would come.
"Uhmm… I-Itachi-san?"
Her companion turned his head slightly to her direction, signalling he was listening. After a curt nod she gulped and regained her voice, trying to speak up without stuttering.
"That n-night… Wh-What happened… Did I…"
She couldn't finish her sentence for he interrupted her, as if he had guessed what she was trying to say. "No, you didn't hurt me… Don't feel guilty, Hinata."
A weight was lifted of her shoulders and she exhaled deeply, a shy smile forming on her lips. Itachi wasn't mad at her…
It made her happy.
He didn't hate her.
He cared for her.
But would he save her another time?
The stone that had been lifted from her heart seemed to come back, even heavier than before. As she felt his eyes on her Hinata began fidgeting, an old childhood habit that she never learned to abolish.
She sensed an increase of his concern and silently began to panic. What was wrong? Did he know about them, who would come soon? She didn't … tell him, did she?
She couldn't. It wasn't allowed.
But she wanted to ask him something, though. That simple question that was on her mind for such a long time now. She hoped it wouldn't provoke his suspicions any further.
"I-Itachi-san… W-Will you p-please pro-protect me…?"
Hinata heard him blink. She knew it probably would be a strange question for him, but she really needed to know, before…
A slight rustle was heard.
Closing her eyes, Hinata tightly held Itachi's cloak.
It was too late for his answer.
But she still hoped he would care for her.
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"You can leave now."
The other man nodded and turned around, walking to the door seemingly calm. An outsider wouldn't see his nervousness, but if one would look better, he could see a single drop of sweat travelling down his temples. As he closed the door, he leaned slightly against the door.
Damn…
That boss of his…
He would rather jump off a cliff than to say it out loud, but his employer had more mood swings than his pregnant girlfriend would have from time to time. And they were more violent than hers, too.
Frightening, really.
The man shuddered before walking away hastily, wanting to get away as fast as possible before the Uchiha would be back to his normal bad tempered self.
At least he got his phone back. Everyone who worked under him knew that their boss couldn't cooperate well with the modern technique of nowadays.
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"You can leave now." He followed the man with his dark eyes as the other left the office. After the door was closed with an agile sweep, the Uchiha leaned back in his chair and smirked.
Everything would be solved soon now.
Nara Shikamaru was one of the best detectives that walked around on this shitty planet. Surely, he would have solved this 'case' in a couple of days.
Yes, it was just a matter of time before he would have his beloved flower back.
No one who could stop him.
Not even his brother.
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He blinked.
What a silly girl. Why would she ask him such a question? She knew just as much as him that she was probably the only living creature on this planet that earned his concern from time to time. But maybe she knew, but didn't realize it, though…
But before he could ponder more about Hinata and her odd thoughts, a faint rustle of leafs was heard.
Although Itachi didn't display the image of someone suspicious, he took his tantō nonetheless while listening very carefully to his surroundings. Beside him, he felt Hinata clutch onto his cloak as if her life depended on it. So she had heard it too. Or had she already known, even before the surrounding had begun? Well, that was not his main concern now.
Itachi estimated with how many they had encircled him and the frightened girl, while he calmly kept on walking. Those fools had truly no idea who they were up against.
The sound of someone moving was noticed. He smiled inwardly. That pathetic creature had just ratified his own fate.
With one swift move a knife was suddenly thrown into the direction of said pathetic creature.
A choking sound was heard, right before a body fell out of the tree Itachi had aimed at. Hinata gasped as she saw the body laying awkwardly, blood forming a puddle beside the head and the knife sticking out of his throat like an obscure body part. Squeezing her eyes closed, she abruptly turned away from the appalling sight.
"You can come out now…" the man beside her called indifferently, apparently not caring that they were surrounded by a group of strangers who were definitely up to no good. Putting an arm around her, he pulled Hinata closer to him. Her eyes widened a little, but upon sensing his arrogance she smiled.
'Itachi-san is too confident sometimes…'
Although worried, she wasn't really afraid anymore now that Itachi had let her know that he would protect her. So she even dared to look up as two men jumped out of the woods around them.
Her barely gathered trust was smashed into tiny pieces as soon as her opal eyes met hazardous green ones.
'Oh no…'
Those eyes…
…they told her a story she didn't want to know.
Go away, please…
Hinata ducked even further under Itachi's arms while burying her face into his cloak, wanting to disappear from that place. Trying to escape from those eyes.
She tried to suppress a shiver, but failed miserably.
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Itachi felt the girl beside him tighten her grasp as she looked into the eyes of one of those punks. He didn't quite understand why she was afraid. She was as safe as one could be, here with him. He glanced at her as she shivered, before looking back at the redhead in front of him.
Said redhead was staring intently at Hinata, which pissed Itachi slightly off. Just slightly. Well, it didn't matter. The boy was going to die anyhow. Looking at what only belonged to him was another reason to finish the foolish brat off.
Suddenly a pair of light green eyes was glaring at him very dangerously.
Itachi, being his normal stoic self, stared back just as imminent.
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The gunshot came as fast as the light. The man next to Hinata suddenly pushed her out of the way, so that she wouldn't get hurt unintentionally. With a soft shriek she almost fell onto the ground, but was held by an arm. Sighing from relief she slowly looked up, expecting to see the dark eyes of her companion.
But instead of black, jade-green orbs looked back at her with indifference.
Hinata gasped with horror as she realized that she was held by the same young man who was glaring a hole in her head a few minutes ago. Struggling to get free, she found herself locked into the tight grasp more and more. Not able to escape, she could only look with wide eyes as he slowly lifted his free arm, a gun blinking in the evening sun.
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Seeing the bullet heading to him from miles away, the used-to-be-Uchiha dodged it effectively and pushed the girl out of the way in the process. He wouldn't be too happy if she were to get hurt.
Sensing someone behind him, he turned around and simply stepped aside. The other stopped and extended his foot for a low-blow, but Itachi grasped the neck of the man and bend it, causing it to snap. Upon hearing the sickening crack, he smirked slightly. But that faded as soon as he felt a sudden pain at his abdomen. Looking down, he was surprised to see a rather large gap, thick blood gushing out of it and staining the leafs that lay on the ground.
How strange.
He hadn't seen it coming. He didn't even hear the shot.
Damn.
That boy was good.
Putting a hand on the wound, he turned around. Coughing once, the red liquid seeped from his lips, leaving a single trace behind as the drops travelled to his chin.
Showing no sign of discomfort, Itachi looked straight at the man who was holding a very afraid Hinata in his arms now. He still didn't move a muscle as the other lifted the gun once again, aiming at his head.
"Let her go." The words hung in the air for a while. Hinata ceased her struggle to get free and fearfully glanced at Itachi, as if she saw that he was dying.
He almost smiled again. How ironic.
The other, however, didn't seem to listen as he put his index finger on the trigger. It was then that Hinata seemed to have her voice back.
"Pl-Please… Please, G-Gaara-san, let h-h-him be…"
The redhead, whose name apparently was Gaara, froze in his movements for a few seconds upon hearing his name.
A few seconds was all that Itachi needed.
Another tantō was flying rapidly into the direction of the creature who had dared to hold her.
The sound of something sharp thrusting itself deeply into flesh echoed through the silent forest.
Hinata shrieked, and this time very loudly, as a few centimetres away from her a knife was sticking out of the stomach of her capturer.
The gun fell onto the ground with a low THUNK as pale fingers closed around the hilt of the tantō and pulled it out with a sickening, cracking sound. The knife was turned a few times in front of the eyes of the one who held it, before slowly nearing his lips.
A tongue was protruded and licked off the red fluid of the stained blade. Lips smeared with thick blood were moulded into an appalling sneer, as the boy looked up from the knife to the man a few meters away from him, while grinning viciously like a predator.
Itachi didn't move a muscle as the redhead licked off his own blood of the knife. He didn't even move as the same knife was thrown back to its rightful owner, hitting target silently.
Before his world went black, Itachi made a silent promise to Hinata.
He would save her.
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End of chapter five.
A/N: All right, please don't kill me! I'm not really good with fighting scenes… -grins sheepishly- This entire chapter was probably very vague, I'm really sorry for that. But it'll all become clear in the following chapters. :) Hope you still liked it! Well, I'm off, I'm going to get some hot coco now. :3