Thanks King Kaza and Hinata'sbf for the the reviews. Also Kalluwen for the wonderful input and starfairy14s as always. This chapter is dedicated to my friend Lydia who is currently fighting cancer.
note: I do not own Naruto. In fact, if he and I were to fight, he would probably own me
flashbacks
"thinking"
"talking"
Chapter 4 - Cruel Destiny
by Zynthos
Naruto paced back and forth in front of hospital room 116, in which Hinata and Sakura slept. He couldn't believe that within minutes two of his closes friends had gotten sick. Most people don't expect their friends to drop unconscious, let alone two of them. He thought back to the incident.
Flashback:
"Ino? Is Sakura fainting a good thing too?"
"No… Naruto, something's wrong!"
"Kiba! Go get help!"
"Baka, I can't go get help Naruto. I'm practically crippled!"
"Oh yeah. Wait here I'll go get help."
End Flashback:
After that, He had run to Tsunade as fast as he could. Tsunade had immediately sent out a medic team to bring back both Hinata and Sakura to where they now resided in hospital room 116.
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Hinata awoke from a wonderful dream. The only complaint she had was that she did not receive the kiss Naruto was about to her; she woke up just before his lips could grazed her skin. A sigh escaped her lips.
"I see that you are awake Miss Hyuga." Hinata opened her eyes. She found herself lying on a hospital quality bed, which was exactly where she was. The pale white walls of the room were unforgiving, and the only source of color was the dark blue of the nurse's eyes and the pink of Sakura's hair. Bright light came in through the window, blinding Hinata. The overall atmosphere of the room was definitely not geared towards helping the patient get better. "No wonder Naruto hates being in the hospital". She giggled to herself.
"ano… hazure (miss), how long have I been here, in the hospital that is?"
"Well, let's see…you came here at about 12:30, and it's about 4:30 right now so it's been like… well, you spent the night anyhow."
"Nani!? What happened to the mission, ano…"
"The name's Tsukiko"
"Ok, Tsukiko-san, but what about the mission?" The nurse gave Hinata a quizzical look.
"I don't know about any mission, but there was a guy who wouldn't the room after you got here. We had to force him home."
"Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.
"I didn't get his name" Tsukiko said. She thought for a moment before a wily grin appeared on her face, "Though, he was really cute, now that I think about it." Hinata blushed at the comment, and Tsukiko flashed a knowing smile.
"Ah, I see" the nurse said, a glint in her eye. She waved her pinky which made Hinata blush even darker. Tsukiko's smile widened even further. "I have to get a few things so I'll leave you alone with your thoughts." With that the nurse stepped out the door. Many thoughts flashed through Hinata's mind. "Was Naruto really the one outside the door? He seems loyal enough to do that… He was probably here to see Sakura-san. After all why would he come to see me?"
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Naruto felt like a fool. It was clear everyone knew something he did not, and it frustrated him that he could be so oblivious to things around him. On top of that, his friends were ill. "Ok. Let's go over this once again," he thought to himself. "Everyone was calm when Hinata fainted, but when Sakura-chan fainted Kiba looked worried and Ino nearly peed in her pants." Naruto allowed himself a chuckle at the mental image. "So what are the differences between Hinata and Sakura-chan? Well…" Naruto began to number the differences, "Sakura-chan always punches me for doing something wrong and Hinata never does that. Hinata's really shy, and kind of weird sometimes, while Sakura-chan always speaks up. Oh yeah, Hinata always looks sick, like she's blushing or something… wait, she doesn't seem flushed when she's talking to Kiba, or Shino, or anyone else for that matter. Could she be allergic to me?" Naruto thought about it. "No, that doesn't make sense. Come on Naruto, think… Ok, the only time someone is flushed like that is either when she's… sick, can't be that. Embarrassed, no, I don't think I've embarrassed her in any way. Besides she can't be embarrassed every single time she sees me. The only thing left is that… she…SHE CAN'T LIKE ME!! I mean, come on… wait, why can't she? You know, she's kind of cute when she blushes like that… Naruto! What are you thinking!? You can't like her because… wait, why can't I like her?"
Naruto's thoughts were interrupted by the nurse who had walked out of the room.
"Neh, hazure, are they ok?" Naruto asked, worry very evident in his voice.
The nurse's face softened, "I think they will both be ok. One is already awake. I have a feeling she would really like it if you went in." A sly grin was plastered on Tsukiko's face.
"Really? Thanks". The once again oblivious Naruto gave the nurse a warm smile. He was happy that she had not treated him like a monster like some of the other doctors and nurses in the hospital. Perhaps she was just young enough to be ignorant. Whatever the case was, Naruto was glad for the slight break in his depressed state and stepped into room 116. As Naruto closed the door behind him he heard a soft gasp. He turned around to find a very red girl, half hiding behind her blanket, staring back at him. The awkward silence was finally broken by the Hyuga,
"ano… hi N-Naruto-kun"
"Hey there Hinata. How are you feeling?"
"Ok-k I g-guess… ano, were y-you the o-one th-they had-d to f-force out l-last night?" Naruto gave a low chuckle.
"Yep, I wanted to stay with you and Sakura-chan but I guess visiting hours were over."
"D-do you r-remember how I g-got here?" Hinata asked.
"Yeah… we were at the ramen bar eating lunch, remember?" Hinata thought for a moment.
"oh yeah, I r-remember… Sakura-san, Ino-s-san, and K-kiba-kun c-came and then, and then… you… hugged…" Hinata stopped out of embarrassment.
"Oh yeah" Naruto said in remembrance, "That's when you fainted. Man, I was really worried about you Hinata." The mentioned girl turned an unhealthy crimson color.
"Hinata? Are you ok?" Naruto walked towards Hinata, placing a hand on her forehead. "You look like you're about to faint again." Naruto leaned in closer to the already flushed Hyuga in order to examine her more closely. Inadvertently their eyes met.
Caught in the moment neither Hinata nor Naruto could look away from each other. Some say the that eyes are a window to the soul. If that is true, their souls at that moment were completely in sync. Though one set was a clear, bright blue, while the other an unfathomable pale, both sets of eyes were deep, and yearned to be accepted; by the other. Naruto used the hand he had placed on Hinata's forehead to brush away a few lose strands of hair from her face. Her face had captured him. Both instinctively leaned in towards each other. Hinata closed her eyes in anticipation of something she had long hoped for. Naruto held his breath, letting his emotion guide his actions. It was as if time had stopped. Unfortunately, it had not, as the door opened revealing Tsukiko behind it.
"Oh dear," the nurse exclaimed, the papers in her hand nearly dropping to the floor. "Am I interrupting something?" In shock Naruto and Hinata immediately tried to act as inconspicuous as possible. Their attempt didn't work. The teens' flushed faces told the whole story. "Aw man," Tsukiko joked to herself, "Why does she get the cute guy".
In all fairness, the teens should be commended for their valiant efforts. Hinata had not fainted, and Naruto was doing a semi-convincing job of looking out the window.
"I'll just give you two some alone time," Tsukiko said as she quietly walked back out the door before closing it. "ano, Hinata-chan?" Naruto said trying to escape the awkward situation, "I'll see you tomorrow ok? Say hi to Sakura-chan if she wakes up ok?" With that, the blond hurried to the door stopping only to wave a goodbye. "Hinata-chan… it has a nice ring to it," both thought simultaneously.
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Naruto had to clear his mind. His only solution happened to be his answer to nearly every ailment, Ramen. As he trudged down the well-known path to his second home, Naruto once again allowed his thoughts to wander. "So, is this what love feels like? It's so much different then what I felt towards Sakura-chan. I guess she does have feelings for me, and I for her…" Naruto stopped his trek to the ramen bar "but we could never be together. Her father would never allow it, and who knows how that stupid fox would take advantage of our relationship." Naruto stepped towards Ichuraku's ramen. To his surprise it was closed. He walked closer to the building and knocked on the door. He got no answer; however, he heard a noise inside. Naruto leaned even closer to the door. Someone was crying inside. Naruto tried the door and discovered that it was unlocked. Inside he found Ayame sitting on one of the stools, tears pouring down her cheeks. Her eyes were red and. Naruto immediately ran over to his adopted sister.
"Neh, Ayame-chan. Tell me what's wrong? I can't bear to see you like this." Even with his constant pleading, his only success was in calming Ayame down. He watched her with pity in his eyes. "Here, Ayame-chan, let's get your father to see if we can figure this out, ok?" At the mention of her father the brown haired girl started another round of tears.
"Papa wa- was sniff was kidnapped!" the girl managed to choked out.
"Nani!? Have you told Obaa-chan about this?" The meek girl nodded her head. "Look, Ayame-chan you hold on. I'm going to go talk to Obaa-chan about this. You stay put. Lock all the doors, help will come soon." Again all Ayame could do was nod. Naruto left the building and quickly ran towards Hokage's tower. "First Sasuke left, then Hinata-chan and Sakura-chan got hurt, and now the old man. Why is this happening? Why can't I protect my precious people?
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Hinata made her way to the Hokage tower. After she was released from the hospital, Tsukiko informed her that she was expected by Tsunade-sama as soon as she was well. The Hyuga had personally hoped that Sakura would wake up before she left, but that did not happen. She had also secretly wished that Naruto would come and see her again; however, this hope did not come true either. Thus Hinata traversed down the street alone; the other people on the street ignorant of how troubled the sixteen year old was. She thought back to earlier in the day when Naruto had visited her at the hospital. "Who knows what would have happened if Tsukiko-san had not shown up when she did. Maybe, just maybe Naruto-kun does like me." For now Hinata could only imagine, but she promised herself that the next time she saw Naruto she would tell him how she felt. With new resolve Hinata continued on her way.
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Naruto sat on a bench at the very back of the Hokage's office. His face was completely void of any emotion, something that almost never happened for Naruto. The Hokage looked up from her paperwork and sighed. She wanted to help her otouto in any way she could, but she was only trained to heal someone with physical injuries, not injuries that cut even deeper.
Tsunade had not been very happy about Naruto's intrusion and had nearly punched the unsuspecting blond. She stopped short when she noticed his down-trodden look. Naruto usually didn't share his problems with Tsunade, and so she immediately assumed the comforting mother role, something Naruto never had. She let him embrace her; let him cry on her shoulder. "Obaa-chan," he had said "All my precious people are getting hurt. I'm so afraid. Please… please help me…" He said no more as grief overtook him. The sennin wanted to cry along with her adopted brother, but could not. She had a job to do. She was Hokage after all, and had to be strong for the sake of the whole village. All she could do was hold him in her arms.
"Why? Why must he suffer more? Oh great Kami! If you are so great then why can't you see that this little one is in pain! WHY!?" a tear trickled down her cheek. "No!" she thought to herself wiping it away. "I will not cry. For the sake of my otouto I will not cry. He will face more pain… I will not tell him that Iruka is in the hospital as well, not now…".
After she had sent someone to take care of Ayame at Ichiraku's ramen bar, and assigned a team to find Teuchi she sat down and pulled out some of her long overdue paperwork. She had a million things on her mind and so naturally she got nothing done. Naruto had seated himself on a bench. The only sign that he was alive was an occasional sniff from his general direction. Tsunade didn't know what to say, a feeling she hated, especially when someone close to her was hurting. A knock came from the door. "Come in" The Hokage called in a solemn voice. In stepped Hinata Hyuga.
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The first thing Hinata saw was the Hokage's somber face. She was afraid for a split second but the emotion immediately changed with the second thing she saw, Naruto's depressed figure. Hinata didn't know what to do. She hadn't known what to expect before coming into the room, but it sure wasn't this. She took a step towards Naruto but stopped. With all of her heart, Hinata wanted to run up to her love and embrace him. She wanted to be the one to cheer her Naruto up, but the Hyuga was much too timid to take such a bold action. The tension was broken up by Tsunade's voice.
"I'm glad to see you are better Hinata." Sensing he was listening to something he was not a part of Naruto excused himself from the room. He stopped when the Hokage's voice once again sounded. "Naruto, I want you to stay. You should be aware of this as well." The mentioned blond sat back down on the bench, and was joined by Hinata after Tsunade motioned for her to sit down.
"First" started the Hokage, "I want to let you both know that the previous mission assigned to you was taken by Team Gai. Secondly, I want you to be constantly aware of your surroundings. Someone may try to attack you, and I don't want to be unprepared."
"ano, Hokage-sama, p-please forg-give me f-for ask-king but why a-are y-ou just-t telling us?" Hinata asked.
"I don't want to scare you, but we have reason to believe that both of you are more likely to be attacked then everyone else."
"I see." Naruto spoke for the first time in a long while. "Is this why all my precious people are getting hurt?" The Hokage froze before giving a hesitant nod. "I see…"
"Is th-that all Hokage-same?" Hinata asked.
"Yes. You are dismissed." With that Hinata and Naruto walked out the door.
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Naruto's mind was still a mess when he and Hinata left Tsunade's office, in fact, it was even more confused than before. He glanced to his left where Hinata was walking. Two thoughts became clear to Naruto. One was that he liked, perhaps even loved, the indigo haired, lavender-eyed girl walking beside him. The second was that he could never be with her. "I will not hurt Hinata-chan" He told himself over and over again, trying to convince himself that the two of them would forever be apart. For the first time in his life, Usumaki Naruto wanted to give up. There was only one way he could think of to stop this relationship. The direct approach. When they reached an empty training field, Naruto stopped and turned towards Hinata.
"Hinata-chan?" Naruto began.
"Y-yes N-Naruto-kun?"
"Well… I need to tell you something…"
"Yes?" Hinata couldn't believe her ears. Was Naruto going to say what she thought he was going to? Probably not, but one could always wish.
"Hinata," Naruto stopped to collect his thoughts "stupid" He scolded himself, "the one time I actually need to talk, I'm speechless."
"You're really shy and weird…" Hinata's face dropped. Naruto thought she was weird. "But," Naruto continued, "You're are such a kind and caring person. Please don't take this the wrong way…" Hinata didn't know what to think. "Because I really like you…" Hinata stopped in her tracks. She couldn't believe it. "Naruto-kun likes me!!!" She jumped on top of Naruto and pulled him into a tight embrace. Her excitement was short lived, however, when she felt wetness soaking in to her shirt. She looked up to find Naruto with tears streaming down his face. "But Hinata-chan… I'm sorry… but… but I can't be with you." Time stopped for the young Hyuga. The only sound she could hear was the sound of her heart breaking into pieces. "Why?" she whispered. Naruto looked her in the eye "October 10, my birthday, is a national holiday. It was the day Kyuubi was killed by the Forth." Hinata did not like where this was going. "Please Naruto-kun, stop," She whispered. Ignoring her pleas Naruto continued.
"That day the Nine-Tailed Fox was not killed…"
"Naruto-kun stop…"
"He was too strong to be killed…" continued Naruto
"Please don't," Hinata pleaded
"Instead he was sealed inside a child..."
"Naruto-kun stop! Please just stop!" Hinata shouted. Naruto looked at the beautiful girl in front of him, pity in his eyes.
"Hina-chan, I was that child." Both allowed what had just been said to sink in.
"no… NO!" Hinata tried to run away but stopped when she heard Naruto's voice. Time froze. Nothing moved for what seemed like an eternity.
"Hina-chan?" Naruto finally prodded. Without warning chakra shot out of Hinata. Naruto held his hand up to his face in order to look at the Hyuga who was now enveloped in a white colored aura. Hinata turned around to face the blond. Tears were running down her face.
"THE MAN I LOVE IS NOT A DEMON!!!"
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"Ah, so the agkelos has revealed itself…"
"Wonderful. Everything is going as planned."
To be continued…
-------------------------------------------------AN- There you go. Chapter 4. I hope it was enough fluff for those who like fluff, enough drama for those who like drama, and enough tears for those who like water. If you have any questions please feel free to ask. I'm sure some things (like what the agkelos is) are pretty confusing at this point. I promise I will make sure to make things even more complicated. I'm trying to be as original as possible so bare with me. If you think this is a good start to a fanfiction writing career please tell people about this story. I don't want to sound selfish but I could use all the help I can get. More comments tend to mean more suggestions and the like. If there is anything I can inprove on romance wise, drama wise, or story flow wise, please let me know. For those who want action, be patience. The time will come (I think :P). Until then, sit tight. My beta readers are the always lovely Kovva and Krissy-chan as well as help from Gesakusha. Oh and for those whe were wondering who Kotter was, apparently he was from a TV series called Welcome Back, Kotter. Other then that I do not know (I really did hear it from an old man). Updates may become more infrequent because I have to begin working on my research paper but yeah. That's it.