I'm really sorry for the delay... please enjoy... and review...
Disclaimer: Nah man... don't own Naruto...
Chapter 12 – Strength
"Why did you call me here?" Naruto stood in the Hokage's office in the middle of the night with his eyes on the floor. The nurses had told him that the Hokage wanted to see him as soon as he had woken up. "I should be with Hinata right now."
Tsunade sat behind her desk with her hands pressed together in front of her face. "Naruto, I need to ask you a few questions."
"I DON'T CARE!" Naruto yelled as he lifted his face to meet Tsunade's. Tears were streaking down his face. "I WANT TO SEE HINATA! I DON'T…" his voice suddenly lowered, "I don't… even know how she's doing." Tsunade could see the sadness on his face. His eyes went back to the floor as tears continued to fall.
Tsunade had been taken aback by his screams. She was used to Naruto's yelling but this was completely different. "Naruto…" she wanted to stand up, to comfort him, but she knew she couldn't. "Hinata is doing fine…" Naruto lifted up his face again. Tsunade was glad to see that the sadness on his face had been replaced with a look of slight relief. "Her body became overloaded with chakra. By all accounts, she should be dead…" Tsunade instantly regretted saying this as Naruto's face turned white.
The small jolt of joy that Naruto had felt dissipated as he realized that he was responsible for Hinata's condition. "It's… it's all my…" Naruto looked down towards the seal on his stomach, "It's all my fault." He fell to his knees. His face looked blank.
Tsunade rose slowly from her seat and walked over to Naruto. She stopped in front of him and placed her hand softly on top of his head. "Naruto, it's not your fault. Hinata knew that she was not to use the chakra sharing technique if she saw your red chakra." She knew that telling Naruto this would not change how he felt. "Naruto…" she bent down so that they were face to face, "Hinata is going to be just fine." Naruto's eyes met hers, "."
Naruto stared into Tsunade's eyes for several quiet moments, "I want to see her…" His words were barely audible.
Tsunade smiled and nodded, "Ok, but first…" she straitened her body and pulled Naruto up to his feet. "I need to see your wound." Naruto's eyes widened. In all his worry about Hinata he had completely forgotten about the hole in his chest. He felt no pain, it was like the hole wasn't even there. All he felt were the bandages wrapped around his chest.
"Why do you need to see it?" Naruto wondered out loud.
The softness that had recently filled Tsunade's voice left immediately, "Just do it Naruto!"
Naruto removed his jacket and hastily pulled the bandages off his body, "There, you happy?!" Naruto yelled at Tsunade as he raised both arms up to the sides of his naked torso.
Tsunade stared at Naruto's chest, "Interesting, so it must have been the demon's regenerative powers that kept Hinata alive." Tsunade turned and walked back to her desk.
"Huh?" Naruto was confused. "The demon's powers?" Naruto looked down at his chest; there was no wound. Where the chakra kunai had left a giant hole in his chest was now unscarred skin. "How…" Naruto felt his chest and there was absolutely no pain. He looked back at Tsunade.
"Naruto…" Tsunade spoke from behind her desk. "Visiting hours are already over at the hospital, but I've informed the nurses to let you stay with Hinata as long as you want. I hope you know this means that…" Naruto had already ran from the office.
Naruto had not left Hinata's bedside for over 2 days. His eyes were red from crying and his throat was dry from apologizing to Hinata over and over. He sat hunched in his chair softly stroking the top of Hinata's limp hand. Staring down at her face, Naruto wished she would open her eyes. "Hinata," he whispered, "I love you…" He closed his eyes.
What Naruto felt the next moment sent a shock through his entire body. Hinata's body shifted in the bed so that she was facing Naruto. His eyes shot open to see a soft smile form on Hinata's face. "Naruto-kun…" her eyes slowly opened to meet his, "I love you too." She reached out and put her hand on his cheek.
Naruto sat frozen for several moments just staring at Hinata; this was the first movement she had in 2 days. He placed his hand over hers as tears started to form in his eyes once again, "Hinata, I'm so…" Hinata slid her hand out from between Naruto's cheek and hand and placed two fingers over his lips to quiet him. Still smiling, she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up in one fluid motion. She pulled Naruto out of his chair and into her arms. Both of their eyes closed as their lips met for the first time in what seemed like forever.
After several joyful moments, Hinata pulled away and looked in Naruto's eyes, "Everything is okay, Naruto-kun." She was not lying; she, like Naruto, felt no pain in her body. She grabbed both of his hands and took a small step back, "But I need to know…" she knew that this moment was not the best time to ask, but she had to know what happened. Naruto's face sunk as he knew exactly what Hinata was going to ask. "What was that, Naruto-kun?" Naruto's head dropped and his eyes hit the floor.
Naruto always knew that he would have to tell Hinata about the demon inside of him one day, but now he had no choice. Not taking his eyes off the floor he started to tell Hinata all his knew. He told her how the Fourth had sealed the nine-tailed fox demon in his body and how Jiraya had taught him how to summon its power. He told her how he lacked total control over the demon and if he every got too emotional he'd lose complete control and the demon would take over. Upon hearing this, Hinata's last memories raced through her head. She remember speaking with a voice that was not her own and not being able to control herself as she killed Olen; the demon must have taken over her body. She realized that Naruto's hands were squeezing hers rather tightly and when his eyes finally met hers his face looked fearful. "Naruto-kun," she smiled at him, "I guess that means we'll both have to learn how to control the demon."
Naruto's jaw dropped, "You…" his grip tightened even more around Hinata's hands, "You want to learn to control it?" Hinata could tell that he wasn't expecting her to say that.
"Well I have to, don't I?" Naruto's grip loosened and a confused look flashed across his face.
"It doesn't scare you? You're not going to leave me?" Naruto finally expressed the fears that he had about telling Hinata about the demon. His eyes were wide.
"Of course it scares me." A sharp pain shot through Naruto's body as he feared the worst, but the smile from Hinata's face did not fade and she was still holding both his hands. "But Naruto-kun, I'm not going anywhere," his eyes grew even wider, "unless it's with you." Naruto pulled Hinata easily into his arms as his fears disappeared into sheer joy. They remained locked in each others arms until the nurses arrived to check on Hinata.
"Naruto…"
Naruto's eyes remained on Hinata's still body; he did not need to look at the new visitor to identify him. He stayed quiet refusing to acknowledge the intruder.
"Naruto… how is Lady Hinata?" The visitor remained in the doorway. Naruto remained silent. He knew that Neji did not really care about Hinata's health.
All was quiet in the room for several tense moments. Naruto's anger started to build and he could keep quiet no longer. He turned away from Hinata for the first time since he had arrived, "What do you want Neji?"
For a split second Naruto thought he saw a slight look of grief on Neji's face as he looked upon Hinata's body, but that look was instantly replaced with his usual emotionless expression. "NarutoHinata's father wants to meet with her when she awakes."
In his anger, Naruto could hardly control his voice, "WHAT!" His scream echoed though the dark room. His eyes quickly shot back to Hinata; his rage died. "Why?" he asked quietly.
Neji paused for a second, "I do not know." He turned to walk out the door. "I'm sorry Naruto."
Naruto woke up in a cold sweat. This morning was the first morning that he awoke next to Hinata in his own bed, but this was not how he had pictured it. He sat up in bed and looked down at the still sleeping Hinata. She looked just as she had for the past two days in the hospital bed; asleep and peaceful.
Naruto swung his feet over the edge of his bed and placed his hands on his knees. 'What am I going to do?' he thought to himself. The answer came to him almost as soon as he asked the question.
"Naruto-kun…" Hinata said in a happy but tired voice. She turned to face him in the bed and placed her hand on his back. She had just opened her eyes so things were still blurry but she could immediately sense that something was wrong when she felt the sweat on his back. "Naruto-kun…" her voice was normal now as she sat up. Her hand moved from Naruto's back to rest upon his shoulder.
There was a short silence. "Hinata…" Naruto paused. He knew what he had to say. "You need to see your father." He could feel Hinata's hand fall from his shoulder. He turned to face her and saw a strange look on her face, she looked half stunned and half confused. Naruto knew that she should go, and he feared that if he stayed any longer he might ask her to stay. "I'll be waiting for you, Hinata." He turned away from her and stood up. He left the room, leaving Hinata sitting alone on the bed.
As Hinata's eyes followed Naruto out of the room she suddenly felt alone. She did not want to tell Naruto that when she was asleep in the hospital it was not Naruto she was dreaming of, nor was it the battle that had taken place. All she had dreamt of for two nights was seeing her father standing in front of the Hyuuga gates staring back at her. 'Why does he want to see me?" she thought to herself. She stood up and looked around the room.
This was Naruto's room, but she had learned to accept this apartment as her own. She had felt more at home in this place then she had ever had at the Hyuuga Complex, but she knew that she had to go. She walked to the closet, dressed slowly, and leaned over Naruto's balcony. She stood there wondering if going to see her father was the right thing to do.
Hinata took one long look back at the hallway that Naruto had disappeared into hoping that he would come back into the room; back to her. She knew that if he did come back she would not want to leave, so she forced her gaze back over the balcony. She jumped out of the room and onto the rooftop. Trying not to cry, she jumped from rooftop to rooftop towards the Hyuuga complex and after a short time landed by the open gates. She stood by the gates trying to remove all traces of fear and sadness that she knew were etched on her face.
Slowly, she entered the complex and took in her surroundings. Although she had called this place home for so long, it all felt so foreign; like she had not lived here in her current life, but in a previous life instead. She walked towards where she knew her father would be waiting and stopped in front of the doors to the main chamber. After only a brief moment, the doors opened.
Standing in front of Hinata was her sister. Hinata had not seen her sister for a while so her sudden appearance brought a smile to her face. Hinabi, however, did not return the smile. Instead, she gave Hinata an emotionless look and turned to return to her father's side.
Hinata tried to remain calm, but as she walked slowly to the center of the room her heart started to race. She turned to face her father, but her eyes were on the floor. "Hinata…" Hiashi's voice was not loud, but it seemed to echo though Hinata's head. She forced her eyes up. On the far side of the room her father was kneeling in the center with Hanabi on his left and Neji on his right. Although the sight of the three Hyuuga were enough to force her eyes back to the floor, before she did she noticed an ANBU black-op sitting in the far left corner behind Neji.
Hinata had to force the word out of her mouth, "Hai." She didn't know what to expect next and her heart raced even faster as she braced for the worst.
"Hinata," although she had not heard her father's voice in some time, she could feel a slight tenseness to his voice. "I have been informed…," he paused as Hinata lifted her face to meet his, "… that your skills have improved." Hinata looked into her fathers eye's, but he, like always, was not looking directly at her.
"I do not believe it." Hiashi continued as Hinata's fears were confirmed and her face scrunched into what she knew would become tears. "But…" Hiashi's voice was louder than before and Hinata tried to regain her composure as she looked back at her father, "I have allowed you to prove yourself." As he said this, Neji got to his feet, somewhat reluctantly.
Hinata watched Neji as he walked towards her and stopped about 10 meters away. He formed his fighting pose and waited. Hinata knew she should not show fear, but the words escaped her mouth, "Neji…" He did not respond, nor did he attack. He stood there, as if hesitant to move.
A brief moment passed as Neji stood in front of Hinata posed to attack. Hiashi broke the silence, "Hinata, you will prove yourself against Neji… NEJI!" he yelled out. Neji lunged towards Hinata.
Hinata cradled her head in her arms and closed her eyes. Just as Neji was about to strike, she cried out, "NARUTO!"
Hinata fell to her knees, but the strike from Neji never connected. Her knees felt damp and she opened her eyes. As she looked around she quickly realized where she was. Once again she was in the dark room with the giant gate. She quickly got to her feet and ran to the gate. Hinata wrapped her hands around the bars and yelled out, "WHERE AM I?!" The last time she had been here she had lost total control and that was something that she never wanted to experience again.
Hinata was pulling at the gate's bars when she heard the familiar voice. "Hinata?" She turned around and ran into Naruto's arms.
"Naruto-kun," Hinata spoke through her own tears. "Naruto-kun…" she repeated as Naruto felt the circulation to his head cut off from Hinata's arms.
As Hinata's surroundings became clear to her, the thought of her father, sister, and Neji disappeared. She released her hold on Naruto and pushed him away. She looked into his eyes and saw a confused look on his face, as he too noticed their surroundings. "Naruto-kun, where are we?"
She noticed Naruto looking around the dark room. "Hinata," his eyes hit the watery floor, "this is where I go to meet the fox-demon. I think this is my mind, but…" his eyes squinted towards the giant gate. He had always seen at least a faint red glow from behind the gate, but there was nothing, "… the demon isn't here. I think we are in your mind right now." His hand reached over and touched the inscription on his back. His eyes went back to Hinata's as she too felt her inscription. "I think this inscription connects us more than we thought."
Hinata thought back to the last thing that passed through her mind before she arrived in this place. She remembered being scared and screaming out his name, "Naruto-kun, I needed you. I…I called out for you. I needed you to be with me."
Naruto's eyes grew wide, "Hinata I needed you too. Before I arrived here, I was running towards the you. I just wanted to be with you." Naruto looked around the room again quickly as his eyes returned to normal. "I think that's why we're here."
Hinata tried to piece together what Naruto was saying, but as she thought about why they were in this room together she remembered where her real body was. "Naruto-kun, Neji-san is about to strike me. I'm so scared." She grabbed his hands.
"What?" Naruto looked startled. "Why?"
Hinata looked into Naruto's eyes. He knew she was scared. "Because," her eyes went from Naruto's to the watery floor, "my father told him too. I think…" she looked back to him, "I think he's testing me."
Naruto's startled look faded. "Ha." He laughed, "Hinata why are you so worried." A look of confusion crossed her face. "You can take Neji." The smile remained on his face.
"Wha…" Naruto tightened his grip on Hinata's hands as Tsunade's words rang through his head, 'She's very strong Naruto, and she has you to thank for that.'
"Hinata, you are strong. I know it and soon your father and Neji will too." Naruto looked into Hinata's eyes and she could tell that his words were sincere. Without trying, Naruto always said just the right thing to make her feel better, to make her feel strong. A soft smile crossed her face as Naruto's confidence flowed through her body. "Now go and show them." Hinata gave him a nod and with that the dark room, the giant gate, and Naruto all disappeared.
As Neji neared the defenseless Hinata, he reared his right arm back for a strike to her head. 'One solid strike and this should be over quickly. I'm sorry.' he thought to himself. As he swung his hand forward, he was surprised to see Hinata's arms lower revealing a sly smile on her face; a look he had never seen before from her. His momentary surprise did not stop the speed of his attack, but he was no match for Hinata's speed.
Hinata had watched Neji train many times and knew his fighting style well. With a speed Neji had not seen from her, Hinata caught his right wrist with one hand and shouted out, "SHEILD JUTSU!" She knew Neji's next attack.
"Wha…" Neji looked down at his left hand as it lay flush against Hinata's chakra shield. The entire room remained still for a long moment broken only by Hanabi, who let out a surprised gasp. Hinata jumped back from Neji to gain some separation.
Neji's eyes remained on the spot where the chakra shield had been. Slowly, his face lifted to meet Hinata's and his usual emotionless demeanor replaced his confused look. "Obasa…I apologize." Neji's eyes remained on Hinata as he spoke to her father. The words seemed to float through the room through the otherwise silent room.
"Lady Hinata, you have improved." An unusual smile crossed Neji's face, "I would be honored to fight you." The sly smile remained on Hinata's face as she formed her Jukken stance and awaited his attack.
Neji eyed Hinata's stance, one that she had developed after training with Jiraya and Naruto. 'A new stance,' he thought to himself as his enjoyment over the upcoming fight seemed to intensify. He quickly formed his stance and lunged at Hinata again.
After what seemed like an entire battle, Neji was worn. Every attack he had tried Hinata either blocked or dodged, but she had yet to strike him. After an unsuccessful combination, Hinata again created separation. Neji took the chance to express his thoughts through heavy breathes, "Lady Hinata, why haven't you tried to strike me?"
Hinata remained in her stance a good distance away. Her breathes were calm and controlled as she spoke, "I do not want to hurt you, Neji-san."
Neji's face formed into a smile once again as he laughed softly, "Lady Hinata, I need to feel your strength." He formed his stance again and lunged.
Hinata again blocked and dodged his attacks, but this time when she had a chance to strike she took it. Neji had attacked with a straight right to her chest, but she had easily deflected his attack leaving his chest open for attack. In a less than a blink, Hinata forced both chakra filled palms into his chest pushing him back several meters.
The pain forced Neji's eyes to look down into his chest. Before he looked back up it was too late as Hinata was already standing in front of him in her stance. "SIXTY-FOUR PALMS STRIKE," she yelled out. Neji felt like he was in slow motion as he felt all of Hinata's 64 jukken strikes against his body, followed by a closed punch to his chest.
Neji's body was sent flying back, and landed on the ground unable to move. He lay staring at the ceiling. He was caught between the feeling of losing and the sense of Hinata's strength. As he lay there, Hinata rushed to him and knelt beside his downed body. The feeling of losing instantly vanished as he looked into Hinata's worried face, "I'm sorry, Neji-san. I didn't want to…"
Neji looked into Hinata's face and smiled, "Lady Hinata, you have gotten much stronger." Hinata pulled away slightly, stunned by his remarks.
"HINATA!"
The loud yell startled Hinata as she turned her face from the fallen Neji to her father. She slowly got to her feet. "Hai," she spoke with confidence. As she stared at her father, he turned his face to Hanabi and whispered something inaudible. Hanabi rose to her feet and walked to the door. She slid the door open and disappeared.
"Hinata," Hiashi did not rise to his feet, nor did he show any change of emotion, "we have much to discuss... when you return." He looked back at the ANBU black-op in the corner and gave him a slight nod. The ANBU ninja rose to his feet and walked towards Hinata.
Hinata had the utmost confidence in herself thanks to Naruto, but the sight of an ANBU ninja walking towards her made her shiver. The ANBU ninja stopped several meters from Hinata and she instinctively moved into her Jukken stance. A slight laugh escaped the ANBU's lips. "I am not here to fight you, Hinata," he spoke as he reached for his mask.
"HINATA!" Hanabi had been sent to bring Naruto from the gates to the main chamber and he rushed towards Hinata at the very sight of her. He stopped only inches away and jumped in front of her in his fighting stance. "Who are you?" Naruto eyed the ANBU ninja.
The ANBU ninja paused with his hands on his mask. "Good, both of you are here." He lowered his mask and revealed his face. "I am Risho… and I've been sent to teach you some control…"
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I will get the next chapter out soon... promise...