Chapter 2 : The Search Begins
Getting ready was the easy part. Although Kakashi gave us two hours to prepare, I'd already been prepared for this day for a long time. I made two brief stops on the way back to the apartment, the first to retrieve freshly sharpened kunai, and the second a new pair of boots, the previous pair having been worn out from all the training exercises.
Opening the door to my room, I grabbed the backpack that sat against the wall, unzipping the front, and starting to pack. Of course I had my usual kunai and shuriken, but I'd done more than just sit around over the last seven months. I pulled a box out from under the bed, riffling through the newer weaponry I'd begun to collect.
Although my gun was an older weapon of mine, I did in fact add it to the collection I'd been piling into the bag, knowing it would come in handy. If we were running the chance of facing Orrochimaru, I would need every trick and move I had. Zipping up the bag, I stood, swinging the strap over my shoulder. With a swift kick to the box it slid right back under my bed, hidden from any prying eyes.
One hour. I still had one hour left until the others would be gathering at the gate, my patience already wearing thin. As I closed the door to my room, my eyes drifted to the folded piece of paper laying on the kitchen table, the words etched more deeply into my thoughts than the ink itself. In the seven months that passed I'd only thought of her, consumed by my constant worry over her safety. I sound like that idiot brother of mine.
Reaching for the paper, I stuffed it into my pocket roughly. Vash was an idiot. Always acting like a foolish child, moving through his life with that flippant and carefree attitude. For that he'd always be an idiot, but, perhaps just maybe, there was more to these humans than what I'd originally thought.
Thoughts and memories twisted and turned across my mind, my eyes drifting towards the living room floor, the faintest memory of Hinata forming in my mind's eye. She used to always sit there in the middle of the floor and brush through her long hair. I lowered my head slightly, my attention turning to the picture that rested against the small table in front of me, unable to resist picking it up and gazing at the image.
Shortly before Hinata had gone missing, she'd convinced me to go out for a walk around the village with her. We were near the base of the mountain at the time, my back facing away from her when she'd asked a another who was nearby to take our picture. I had turned around just as the flash had gone off, my face twisting into a permanent scowl of irritation though it'd changed drastically when I'd first seen the picture.
Hinata had rushed up to stand next to me, her body pressing against my chest, a smug smirk plastered over her face. It would have made for a rather cute picture, had it not been for that scowl. Placing the picture back down against the table, I turned towards the door. Next time, it will turn out better.
I heard a click as I turned the lock, and heading for the gate. It was almost time. I still had a while before the rest of the group would arrive, but there was little else for me to do now. I'd even packed an extra set of clothes, just to be on the safe side.
"Knives!" Pausing, I turned to face the figure that was approaching me. Vash. What could he possibly want now? "I heard you got a new mission." I tilted my head just slightly, still amazed at how Vash had come to accept the ways of the village. Of course, he was still Mister 'Love and Peace', but something about the village had grown on him, or perhaps it was him that had done the growing, though only a little.
"Yeah."
"Is it a lead on Hinata?"
I couldn't help cocking an eyebrow at the inquiry. "It might be." I saw him hesitate, his posture becoming more tense as a nervous yet worried expression began to spread over his face. "Why?"
"I heard about Orrochimaru." And there was the why.
"Ha! If you think he can beat me you're mistaken. How can you see me as lower than these humans?"
"I-uh-wasn't.." I sighed deeply. Was he really planning to lecture me now? "Just.. be careful. Come back in one piece."
Wait. Was he.. wishing me luck? As if I really needed it. I gave a smug grin "I was planning on it." Turning away from my brother, I continued towards the gate, Vash remaining in the street as he watched my retreating back. If he thought I was going to turn away from this mission, he was sorely mistaken.
"What's taking him so long!?"
"Knock it off Naruto!"
I stopped a few feet short of the gate, shifting the strap of the pack as I stared at the two ahead of me. Naruto and Sakura were already present, both waiting, though not at all patiently. Was I running late? I glanced around the area briefly. Kakashi isn't here yet.
"So. You're all here early."
My head snapped up quickly, twisting to the side to stare at the man who had snuck up behind me. "Kakashi."
"It's about time!"
"Shut up Naruto!"
"I had a feeling you all would be here ahead of schedule. Is everyone ready to go?"
I didn't need to look back to know that the other two were nodding at the same time I was. I could sense it. We all had a mutual enemy, a goal to follow, and someone precious to find. With a final nod, Kakashi headed out the main gate, the rest of us following behind him.
For Sakura and Naruto, it was a chance to find their friend, Sasuke. It still eluded me as to why they kept bothering to chase after him. The way I'd heard it, he'd chosen to go to that man, to Orrochimaru. Perhaps there were just some things I didn't understand about them.
For me however, Hinata had been taken away from me. Stolen, and I was not going to lay down and take it. Not by a long shot. Orrochimaru would pay.
