When Fate and Destiny Collide

When Fate and Destiny Collide
By: maliciousfate

Chapter: Eighteen
"Realization"

My energy, my friends, my chakra, it was gone. All of it. I knew I was getting close to my breaking point as my legs pushed slower and slower. The forest was silent, even the birds knew this was a horrid night. My hand was still clenched around the photo Yuuhi had given me, that was the only thing keeping me going.

The men had left from behind me and I knew they had gone after Yuuhi instead, I used every once of hope I had left to not think of what happened to him. I couldn't allow myself to think of what they could of done to him. I could not

I let my eyes wander to the small bit of sky visible through the trees and let a single tear fall from my eyes.

"Neji, Hinata, Yuuhi...please just hold on a bit longer"

My legs gave a hard shake that sent me to my knees with a scream. My ribs, my legs, my shoulders, all of this was keeping me from the people I needed the most. I needed to fix them or I'd most certainly die right here on this moist ground. The thought left me in shivers.

I grabbed at my shirt tearing the fabric off just under my chest, I took this piece and torn it into three long strips. This was the first and only time I could thank my father for forcing me to learn medical treatments, it was now, laying in the dirt and mud with dried blood crusting to my thick bruises, that I knew without this information I could be in serious trouble.

With a large intake of air I quickly used the strips to tightly wrap my ribs, shoulder, and leg.

I didn't stay on the ground much longer; a sudden rustle in the surrounding bushes set a shock-wave of panic coursing through my veins.

With my teeth on my lip and my fists clenched, I began to half limp-half run through the forest hoping I'd somehow find one of my friends.

I hadn't run much longer then two minutes before another rustle was heard in a closer bush. My breath hastened as I urged my throbbing limbs to move faster and faster.

A twig snapped and no sooner had a leaf sliced my cheek, my body was slowing, and my heart was about to burst through my chest. I felt so vulnerable, so useless. Had my vigorous training given me nothing? Had my months of hidden jutsu learning proved to be just a waste? Was I really this weak after all? Could father of been right from the start?

With my mind miles away and my body trying so hard to run I hadn't seen the tree root putruding from the ground in the path my feet were headed. I unavoidably tripped, crashing to the ground with a loud moan of pain.

"Damnit!" My face was buried in damp dirt that began clogging my lungs with each deep breath I took. My shoulder screamed in pain as my weight was forced onto it and to make things even worse, a louder rustle came from directly beside me. This time I even hear foot steps.

"I've failed you Hinata, Yuuhi.Neji"

Hinata's POV

"Are you sure it's enough?" Neji asked as he helped me shakily to my feet

"Yes, I-I am sure." I tried to sound convincing, but even with Neji's shirt holding my bones in place I still felt the numbing pain. At least I could walk, that much I was thankful for.

"Tsuki, Yuuhi I can only hope you are fairing better then I" Our walk was slow, but it was a progress. I tried to push my leg to move faster my Neji always made me slow my pace.

"You won't be any help when we actually do need to run, Hinata. Rest as much as you can now." He was right, of course, but I still couldn't shake the feeling of danger that was constantly creeping up my spine with ever slow moving step we took.

"H-Hey Neji-" I squinted my eyes trying to see through the thick darkness, "-What is that over there?" I could swear there was something over there, crawling on the ground. It almost looked like an animal- maybe a deer? Neji looked to where I pointed, but trying to conserve his energy as well, did no activate his Byakugan.

"I'm not sure..." Neji broke off, leading me over to the creature. The creature-animal, whatever it was, looked to be in great pain.

We were but a bush away from the creature when it's body finally gave out. With it's final breath it gave out a loud moan that sent a wave of pain straight into both mine and Neji's hearts. Our eyes widened and I released my arm from Neji, allowing him to run to the now know human.

"T-Tsuki?!"

Normal POV

"T-Tsuki?" That voice; it was so comforting, so soothing, so- familiar. I felt as though I could sleep forever as long as that voice kept saying my name.

"I think the pain is actually making me go insane" I squeezed my eyes tightly together as my body began to come into consciousness, bringing with it the pain I wanted to never feel again.

"Tsuki?" There was that voice again. Why did it sound so familiar? Who was it anyways? I couldn't think of the name- but then again it didn't really matter; it was my imagination, it could be anyone.

But then how come I felt so warm? And why was there two heartbeats instead of my solitary faint one?

I allowed my eyes to slid open, giving me nothing but a hazy silhouette of a person leaning over me. I blinked a few times, trying to clear the image. Slowly, two people began to come into view.

"T-Tsuki?" I knew that voice and I knew that face.

"Neji..." I whispered as my eyes began to fill with tears of happiness at the shirtless beauty before me. He wrapped his arms tightly around my body and I tried my best to give him the same affection back.

"Wait- shirtless?" With a flood of heavenly smell It had just registered in my mind that Neji was indeed, shirtless.

A blush began creep its way onto my face, of all the times to be embarrassed it had to be now, when I should be overjoyed in finally being reunited with the two people I needed most.

Neji hugged me tighter, rocking me back and forth in his arms. I was so happy at this moment that I had completely forgetting the pain that Neji was accidentally giving me in squeezing me too tightly.

"Oh my god, Tsuki your bleeding!" Hinata's small voice yelped, making Neji and I to tare apart. Sure enough, trickling down my stomach and leaking through your shirt was a bright trail of blood.

"Ha! " I smiled slightly, after all I had been through, a trail of blood was amusing to me.

"Here, let me help you." Hinata said as she nudged Neji away and kneeled down beside me. She began pulling at her sleeve, ripping it off; just as I had done before.

"Neji." She pipped.

"Yeah?"

"Oh come on Neji!"

"Are you serious Hinata!"

"Yes! Shoo!" After Neji had turned his back to us she pulled up my dirt-encrusted shirt to just above m breasts; but then, stopped.

"W-where did you get this?" She asked quietly as she gently touched my broken rib. I leaned up a little to see why she was so shocked at something I thought to be small. However, when I saw the place where the simple bruise was before, my eyes widened. A small glint of a white was beginning to show through my blackening skin. My rib was poking out of my flesh!

"Damn..." I traced the bump with my fingers. "-It didn't look like that a little while ago..."

"I'm going to perform a healing jutsu on you. It will keep your bone in place for the time being, alright?" I nodded, leaning my head back to the ground. How bad could a healing jutsu be?

"Shiatsu no Jutsu!" Hinata pushed her palms straight onto the broken bone and pushed down hard. I screamed bloody murder making Neji run back to my side in an instant. My scream seemed to last forever, as did the pain.

"Finished..." Hinata said after what seemed like an eternity. She removed her hands from my rib and dropped her head to the ground shamefully. "-I didn't mean to hurt you Tsuki..."

I took in a couple of deep breaths before even attempting to reply to her. I had never thought a pain like that could come from a healing jutsu!

"It is alright Hinata, honestly." I propped myself up onto my elbows. "-Just didn't e-expect it."

"What is that in your hand Tsuki?" Neji asked after a short silence. I opened my hand for the first time in hours allowing the crimpled photograph of Yuuhi's wife to show.

"Its Yuuhi's." I let a small smile form my lips as I remembered how proud Yuuhi was of this photograph. "-He gave it to me when we split up."

"Wait. You two split up?" Hinata looked frightened.

"We had to, or Yuuhi said we did. We were being tailed by Deidara and Sasori, not to mention four more of their men."

"Did you just say Deidara and Sasori?" Neji asked quickly getting to his feet.

"Uh-yes. Why?" I watched him activate his Byakugon and search the forest vigorously.

"Were they wearing black coats that had dark red cloud-like shapes on them?"

A old feeling began to rise in the back of my throat. "Yeah, they did. W-Why, who are they?"

"I-I-" He paused. His eyes turned to Hinata and I, holding the unmistakenable emotion that was slowly building from deep inside me, "-I don't think we are on a mission anymore." There was a sudden rustle from the behind bushes. Danger.

"I think we're bate..."

Danger was putting it lightly...