CHAPTER 3
HEY GUYS! IM SO SORRY THIS HAS TAKEN SO LONG, BUT I'VE FINALLY FINISHED THE NEXT CHAPTER.
SORRY, CAPITALS MAKE ME HAPPY, SO IM WRITING IN CAPS LOCK. DEAL. WITH. IT.
Okay, okay, I'll stop.
Anyway, I'm really sorry guys, but I've been having some serious technical difficulties that really haven't gone away. Anyone who has been trying to contact me, sorry, I can't get in contact with any of you guys, because my internet connection went all Houdini on me. So I'm really sorry, I've been trying forever to get anything to work, and then my phone plan ran out, and.. urgh. Haha, my life is so muddled. What terror I must go through! (note: Sarcarm)
anyways, guys. This is Chapter 4. I should stop talking, so you can get reading.
Enjoy.
And Review.
But mostly Enjoy.
No, review.
CHAPTER 3
** DEMON COUPLE **
** DEMON COUPLE **
LAST TIME:
"Aaawww… Who would've guessed! Naruto! A romantic!" Ino laughed.
"Hey! What are you trying to say?"Naruto complained.
"Sorry, Naruto. But I cannot imagine you as a romantic." Ino smiled.
"I am too romantic! Aren't I, Hina-chan?" He turned to Hinata to back him up.
She smiled gently at him, "You have your moments."
Naruto rolled his eyes at her, "Yeah, whatever. You know you love it." He said with a grin.
She laughed, looking up at him, "Well, I can't really deny that now can I?"
"Four more people in the gang," Shikamaru mused to himself, "This is a good thing." He chuckled, "We might finally be able to get somewhere. Especially with your new skills added to the group."
Naruto grinned, "Does that mean you're gonna finally explain what's going on, here?"
"Might as well get it over and done with." Shikamaru sighed, "Ino, you like to talk. You explain it."
Ino grinned.
** DEMON COUPLE **
** DEMON COUPLE **
"You might want to take a seat." Ino smiled, gesturing to the only open space in the small lounge room. It was quite the surprise that all six of them lived in such a small house, but Hinata had seen more people living in less as she was walking the village with Sahana not even an hour before.
The house was small, and the lounge room not equipped to hold all ten that were now occupying the small space. There was a large TV centred on the edge of the wall, opposite three consecutive couches. Two single-person recliners were on the edge, a large three-person couch sitting comfortably in the middle.
The house was also decorated with paintings on the walls, some flowers – courtesy of Ino – but no pictures. It looked plain, like a hotel room that no one actually lived in, that was just used for sleeping and staying purposes.
Shikamaru was seated in one of the single-person recliners, Choji in the other, whilst Kiba, Shino and Lee were on the three-person sized couch. But there was always room for more. Naruto, Sasuke and Sahana could comfortably sit on the couch without causing everyone to get squished, so Hinata opted to sit on the floor at Naruto's feet, instead of causing the group uncomfortableness. She didn't mind of course, especially when Naruto started to massage her shoulders that were placed at his knees.
Ino smiled at the sight, flipping her long blonde hair over her shoulder and grabbing a chair form the kitchen so she could locate herself in front of the TV, in front of everyone's sight, so they could see her as she started talking. She sent a small smile over to Choji, seeing herself and her boyfriend in the way Naruto and Hinata were acting. Who knew they would be so cute together? Ino had always known Hinata and Naruto were a perfect match, but given their differences – his confidence, her shyness – she assumed there'd be some issues. But apparently they'd just levelled the other out. Hinata becoming more confident, Naruto less loud and blunt.
"So," Sasuke started, snapping Ino out of her thoughts, "What's going on here?"
Ino sighed, leaning back into the wooden chair before her eyes locked onto the new members of the household, "Something none of us had expected."
Everyone's attention was on Ino as she started to speak. Most people already knew what happened – hell, they experienced it – but politely watched as she explained to the four who didn't. "It started to actually happen about a year ago," Ino sighed, eyes glazing over as she sifted through her memories, "But things were going on way before that."
Naruto's eyebrows raised, "What? I was here a year ago! I didn't notice anything."
Ino sighed, "Neither did we. But it was creeping up on us, and we didn't know it, but we were on the verge of a civil war. I'm sure you all know of Danzo?"
Hinata's eyes flashed with recognition, "He came to the Hyuuga Compound a lot when I was there, he was a repulsive and vile man. I sensed no good intentions coming from him."
"What about him?" Sasuke asked, vaguely recalling the man but wanting Ino to continue.
Ino glanced at Sahana, who was just observing and listening quietly, "He was one of the village elders," She supplied for the quiet girl, "And he was planning something," - glancing over to Hinata - "Apparently for a long time. If he frequently visited the Hyuuga compound when you were around – that was over four years ago – he had to have been planning this for a while."
Shikamaru nodded, "Which is probably the only reason why his plan worked. He had put a lot of time and effort into it."
"Anyway, he had been training his own shinobi," Ino continued, "Shinobi with no emotions. He taught them to fight ruthlessly, and called them ANBU from the 'Root' division. There were many of them – thousands – that he had under his control, who were loyal to him, and hid them all from us for so long. I have a feeling Tsunade-Sama was suspicious of him, but even she couldn't stop him."
Sahana was engrossed in the story, "So he got his Root ANBU to attack you?"
Ino shook her head, "Not quite. He was smart, and knew we would be able to take him. So he enlisted the help of our most prominent, strongest clan in Konoha."
Hinata's eyes widened and she gasped, "The Hyuuga. My family turned against Konoha?" She was shocked, "I mean, I understand the main family, but the other Hyuuga were all very loyal to Konoha – to me. They would never-"
"They didn't." Ino interrupted, looking over Hinata sadly as she slumped against Naruto's knees in confusion. Naruto put a hand on her shoulder – where he had just been massaging – and held her comfortingly. "The Hyuuga... Hinata, the main branch are a group of vile repulsive beings. But I'm sure you know that."
Hinata's eyes widened in realisation, "They.. th-they didn't do anything to the branch family." She shook her head, denial crossing her stunning features, "They couldn't. They were never that harsh. Only to me. They were only bad to me." Tears were now clouding her vision, "No. No."
Ino sadly looked upon Hinata, "They used the cursed seal on them. So they did as they were told," Ino quickly looked away, too fast. They all knew she was hiding something.
Naruto pulled Hinata onto his lap, "What is it Ino? What happened?" He held Hinata tightly, his eyes locked on Ino, "It's okay, we can take it, we're strong."
Kiba spoke up from his chair, knowing Ino wouldn't like to bear the bad news, "Some of the Branch Hyuuga... they were defiant. They were loyal to Konoha, to Tsunade-Sama, and even with the seal on their heads they would never betray their village."
Sasuke's eyes widened, and he placed a firm hand on Hinata's shoulder and squeezed gently, a name slipping off of his tongue, "Neji..."
Naruto's eyes widened, and his arms tightened drastically around Hinata as she let out a choked sound. Sahana looked over to Hinata quietly, not knowing who this 'Neji' was, but the look on her closest friends' faces, she knew they were close. Hinata especially, Sahana noticed as the girl sobbed loudly against Naruto's chest.
Kiba and Shino watched their ex-teammate cry with pain, they knew Hinata would take that news badly, but there was nothing they could do. Ino, was almost crying by just seeing the scene in front of her, and Choji and Shikamaru were looking remorseful.
"T-Tenten?" Hinata asked quietly, hiccuping and trying to calm down her sobs, "Sakura?" She listed the other two that weren't with the current group. "W-Where are they?"
Ino sighed, "Tenten... she went for revenge after Neji... She-she," Ino paused, knowing the group had realised what happened to their weapons specialist, "And Sakura, w-well, that'll come later on in the story." Ino turned away, wiping all the tears from her face and gaining her composure. "So, the Hyuuga joined Danzo, and they staged an attack."
"A very strategic and well thought-out plan, I might add." Shikamaru took the floor, giving a small glance to Ino telling her she didn't have to continue, "The first thing they did was take out our Hokage, our Queen." He discussed using chess-terms for better understanding – and so he wasn't so emotionally connected to the story.
"Granny Tsunade? She's gone?" Naruto froze, and this time Hinata was the one to comfort him when a large wave of grief encompassed him.
Shikamaru didn't nod, but the look he gave Naruto was agreement enough, "Then he gave all the remaining shinobi an option: to join him, or go against him."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed, "Sakura joined."
Shikamaru nodded, "So did a lot more people than I had expected. It seemed as though Danzo had gained the trust of a lot of people over the years. But over half of the remaining leaf village shinobi and kunoichi remained against the Danzo campaign, and that gave us hope. Hope that we could win this.
"Then it was deducted that he had the whole Hyuuga clan under his fingertips, and we were severely outnumbered. Before we knew it, we were in the middle of a civil war. And our side, we had no leader. Danzo's groupies – all of the ninja that had joined him – they went for the ones that were threats. He went for clan leaders that wouldn't join him, the ones with the highest authority over others. The ones that could prove to lead our side." Shikamaru sighed, "My father, many of the Naras were killed, Yamanakas," He glanced sadly over to Ino, "Inuzukas, Aburames, Akimichis. They went for ANBU level ninja, and ones that showed potential."
Kiba looked towards Shikamaru, picking up the story quickly from there, "The fight didn't last long. It turned into a slaughter, and we were losing. We hadn't expected this, and we couldn't win. So the remaining shinobi went into hiding, smart enough to know that we couldn't win this – not yet."
"Then Danzo formally became 'Hokage', and brought out his 'rules'."
"Oh god." Hinata held a hand to her head, feeling a headache pounding on the tips of her fingers. "Just, can we take a break for a second? I can't take this all at once." She said quietly, apologetically.
Naruto glanced at her sadly, "I'll get you a glass of water."
Lee shook him off, "It's okay, I'll get it. You just comfort her," Sounding strangely sober for himself.
Shino glanced around the room, "I believe we would all enjoy a short break before continuing. It is a lot of new information to withhold, and a lot of wounds to reopen to us who already know the story." Shino stated, seeming his normal stoic self with the exception of the loud buzzing noise coming from him.
Sahana gave Sasuke a tight hug, knowing past his stoic demeanour, he also felt pain for the loss of all these people he once knew. His feelings only came out in the tightness he held Sahana, as if she would fade away at any moment, and silently promised to himself that he would never let that happen.
Lee came back with the glass of water, and gently passed it to Hinata, who gave him a hug of gratitude. Lee smiled reassuringly, and the large group disbanded momentarily, Choji going up to get food, Kiba holding Ino tightly in his arms, Shikamaru leaning against the windowsill to look up at the clouds and Shino seated with his thoughts, with only the buzzing around him to show he wasn't a statue.
Naruto grabbed Hinata tightly, his warm hands on her chin, looking deeply in her eyes, "I love you." He whispered the only reassuring words that he was sure of after such news, and she kissed him gently.
"I love you too," Hinata whispered, her eyes filled with compassion and determination. Naruto's eyebrow twitched in confusion when he noticed that gleam of determination in her eyes, but his eyes were quick to follow their example, the same look filling his own. He was going to help his village.
"We'll get through this," He whispered to her.
Hinata looked deep into his eyes, silently begging for the truth, "Alive?"
Naruto nodded sagely, "We're not going down," He raised his voice as his determination multiplied and he looked around the room, where he now had everyone's attention, "None of us. We will fight back. This is our village, and they have no right to take it from us. Besides, we can't go down yet, there's so many things left for us to do in life," He gave Hinata a meaningful look.
"Like finally have the guts to propose?" Sasuke grinned, breaking the saddened atmosphere.
Naruto grinned at Sasuke, "That's exactly what I'm gonna do. I'm going to propose to Hinata, we're going to get married, and I'm gonna finally have a family."
Sahana smiled at him, "You already have a family."
Kiba grinned, "That extends to all of us."
Naruto's eyes sparkled in happiness, "Well, that's what I'm gonna do, regardless."
Choji grinned, "I'm gonna find a nice girl, who's a good cook, and we'll have our own restaurant, with the best food in all of Konoha."
"All of the world," Ino corrected, with a kind smile directed at Choji, "I'm gonna design a whole kunoichi fashion line! Become a strong ninja well-known throughout everywhere with people buying my brandname clothes, and live a happy life with my family." She glanced at Kiba.
Kiba grinned, "With lots of ninja dogs." He added with a laugh, "And I'm gonna start a nin-dog school!"
Lee's face brightened with the much happier environment Naruto had created, "I'm going to create a dojo! I will teach all the youthful children the arts of taijutsu and self-defence for civilians who don't want to be ninjas but still need to learn to protect themselves!"
Shikamaru smiled at Lee, "Because civilians should still be able to defend themselves," he agreed, then thinking up his own dreams, "I'm gonna take over the ranch, marry an average woman, that isn't too demanding, and live an ordinary ninja life."
"I'm gonna find new species of bugs," Shino spoke up, "From all over the world, and teach future Aburame children the ways, and learn knew jutsu for my bugs, make them stronger, more reliable."
"That's the spirit," Sahana smiled at everyone in the room, "I'm gonna learn more medical-jutsu, look after my spiders. Learn more about venom and become as strong as I possible can, living a long happy life."
"With me." Sasuke grinned at her, "And I'm going to rebuild the Uchiha clan, make sure no-one will ever become so focused on power as Itachi and I had become. And finish Itachi off..." Sasuke glanced around the room, "But I won't do it alone. I'll have my friends by my side."
Hinata smiled shyly at everyone, "I'm going to become a ninja everyone can be proud of. I-"
"We are proud of you, Hina-chan." Naruto smiled at her sincerely.
She smiled back half-heartedly, "I'm going to prove everyone that I'm not worthless, that I am capable of being a ninja, and I'm going to help people. I'm going to help my clan, save the branch family and proudly become an Uzumaki, the wife of the greatest Hokage ever."
Naruto grinned happily at her.
"The greatest of all the Kage ever." Ino corrected with a smile, "We have these futures in front of us, and we will go towards our dreams, because all of these dreams are worth working towards. We'll dream big, and we'll beat Danzo, just so we can make these dreams become true."
Sahana nodded, "Because, you know what? We deserve it. We have worked hard, and we deserve it."
"We're strong enough to make it happen, and we will make it happen." Kiba smiled.
Shino smiled underneath his collar, "With the strength of teamwork, perseverance and determination, we are capable of anything."
"Oh, and don't forget skill, we'll probably need that too!" Kiba laughed.
Shikamaru rolled his eyes, but smiled. He was happy the recent additions came into their home, they gave the group something they hadn't had for a while. Hope.
And sometimes, that was all you needed.
"... So, what are these 'rules' that Danzo created?"
Oh, right.
** DEMON COUPLE **
** DEMON COUPLE **
END OF CHAPTER 3
:)
I LOVE YOU.