Hello all! Thank you for making it this far! Things are picking up as I think of more and more fun twists and connections.
I'd love reviews so if you have a couple minutes I would love some feedback.
On to chapter 6!
Crystal like laughter filled the halls of the Hyuga compound. Hanabi just looked at her older sister with an annoyed look. Yet Hinata would not stop laughing. She held her stomach as her chuckling shook her body.
"Oh, Hanabi, that, haha, that is the silliest thing I've ever heard! What's gotten into you?" Hinata choked out as she tried to catch her breath.
Hanabi didn't want to break her sister's heart. But the evidence was pretty incriminating. As soon as the Hyuga jonin had reported about the young pink-haired girl in the interrogation department Hanabi had sent out her spiders to collect proof. She was nearly beside herself when the DNA chart had been placed before her. The hero that had once saved her life and the lives of everyone in Konoha had become her enemy. Hanabi folded her arms over her lap and looked up at her sister with a sobered expression.
"Hinata, I do have evidence to prove this accusation." Hanabi disclosed. The younger Hyuga nodded her head towards the envelope sitting on the polished wooden table between the two sisters. "It isn't much but I do feel you must confront Naruto and find out the truth."
A bit of the humor in Hinata's eyes dulled as she looked at the offending envelope. The ex-heiress made no move to take the envelope. Rumors had been flying around Konoha about their captive; the girl was a demon, she was the world's greatest beauty, she was a hideous beast, she had killed 1,000 people. The rumors were running rampant because no one knew the truth. Now the truth was staring Hinata in the face and she did not want to deal with it.
Hinata looked up at her sister, "How do you know this is even legitimate? This could be anything. What Hyuga looked at this? Perhaps-"
"Hinata." Hanabi interrupted and Hinata stilled. She sighed deeply, "Stop looking for an escape. You need to face this. Here." Hanabi picked up and handed her sister the envelope with a slender hand.
There was no humor in Hinata's demeanor now. She hesitantly accepted the offered envelope. Hinata lifted the flap and pulled out a packet of papers. In her well manicured hands were two sets of DNA tests. One was for Sakura and the new girl. And the other was one comparing her husband's DNA with the same child. The thick print of 99.9% chance of relation swam in her vision. "It's not possible." Hinata whispered. Dark thoughts circulated through her mind. Did Naruto? No, he wouldn't! But Sakura and he use to… That was so long ago though! Wait, how old is the girl, could it be that before we…? What will I tell the kids? Where will I-
"Hinata!" Hanabi chided.
Hinata looked up at her sister shocked. Her sister's appearance was blurred by the tears now spilling from her moon like eyes.
"Calm down. Breath." Hanabi coached.
A ragged breath filled Hinata's chest as she remembered to breath at her sister's prompting.
"Good. Now, we need to figure what the truth is." Hanabi directed her sister.
"Yes, you're right." Hinata agreed as she tried to center herself. Her rampant emotions began to cool. Reason began to take back control. "There has to be an explanation. Naruto and I have been married for years. We love each other. So there is nothing for me to worry about. I'll...just… ask him about it." She said to herself more than to Hanabi.
Hanabi watched her sister closely. The older Hyuga sister seemed to be pulling herself together. She wiped away hot tears and cleaned herself up.
"You're going now?" Hanabi inquired as Hinata stood.
"Yes. This is something me and my husband need to work out. Together." Hinata said and grabbed her purse. She walked to the doorway before turning back to her younger sibling. "Thank you for always looking out for me Hanabi." And with those final words Hinata was gone.
Hanabi slouched in her chair. She let her head fall back against the cushioned armchair and sighed. Not for the first time she wondered what her life would have been like if Hinata had demanded to remain as the Hyuga Heiress. She let her mind imagine different possible life scenarios if just that had happened. But only for a moment until a tattooed Hyuga entered the room as she regained her composure and posture.
Three kuni landed into the thick trunk of a pine only inches away from Bolt's head. He ducked lower and summoned two shadow clones. The first took off into the open field sprinting as fast as it could. Bolt watched as two kuni pierced the shadow clone's back and he fell forward in anguish before disappearing in a puff of smoke. But now he had her. His opponent was hidden in the tree tops watching her prey below. The kuni had given her position away.
He turned around and nodded to the second one. The shadow clone climbed slowly through the bushes as to not be detected.
Bolt then jumped up, grabbed two of the kuni embedded in the tree, and threw them as hard as he could towards Sarada's hiding spot. He watched as she jumped to avoid them. She leaped to the next tree and continued running along the tree branches, just like he wanted.
As she stepped across one thick branch the shadow clone Bolt had sent out earlier jumped up and tackled her. The two tumbled through the branches until Sarada landed on the hard ground in a puff of smoke. She rolled back over just in time to see Bolt running at her with a crackling chidori running up his arm. In an instant the sharingan activated in her defense.
Bolt screeched to a halt and sent a spray of dirt towards the youngest Uchiha.
"You cheater!" He accused.
Sarada stood and started to brush herself off. "Me a cheater? Ha! Look who's using the chidori! We said no family techniques!" Sarada fought back.
Bolt watched his girlfriend's eyes slowly fade back to their usual black color. To this day he still loved watching her Sharingan come and go. "Well, the chidori isn't my family's technique so it doesn't count."
"What? How does that make sense? It's a family jutsu! We never said that it was okay to use them as long as it wasn't our own family's."
"We never said it wasn't okay to use other family's techniques!" Bolt countered.
Sarada just stared at the young Uzumaki with an unamused look plastered over her face.
Bolt laughed at the girl's lack of enthusiasm with his reasoning. "But I'm not wrong." He sang.
"Uh-hu...well I still cry foul." Sarada said walking towards her knapsack of supplies. From it she pulled two bottles of water, one that she tossed to Bolt. He caught it mid air with his left hand.
"Oh no, I had you. It was a clear win in my favor. Doesn't that make it three weeks in a row?" Bolt asked pretending he didn't know that it was exactly three weeks.
"Fine. You have my full support future hokage." Sarada said sarcastically.
"Why, thank you, loyal subject." Bolt boasted.
"Alright, alright, don't push it." She warned. "Why did we even start this stupid agreement?"
Bolt gulped down some ice cold water before answering, "As your future hokage I can tell you that it was because you thought you had a chance of beating me to the title of hokage. But if the results of today are any indicator, I have the position in the bag."
"Why you!" Sarada chirped before rushing towards Bolt. He burst out laughing as she tackled him to the ground. The young couple rolled across the ground until they came to a stop with Bolt hovering over Sarada.
He smiled down at her lovingly as he ran his fingers through her long hair. "You'll win next time." He assured her. "And then I'll be the one supporting you."
"At least you know." She teased while smiling back at him.
Bolt's expression softened a bit as he leaned down. His eyes drifted over Sarada's lips as he crept closer to them. He was only inches away from her now and his whole body warmed with the anticipation of it.
"Bolt." Sarada whispered in protest, though she still closed her eyes and didn't turn her head.
And then it happened... an interruption.
"HEY LOOK! THERE'S BOLT AND SARADA!"
Bolt groaned and rolled off of Sarada, who sat up quickly and fixed her glasses.
"You still have a lot of training to do if you think you're going to beat me with moves like that." He said loud enough for the approaching trio to hear. He held out a hand for the blushing Uchiha and helped her to her feet.
"Training again?" Chocho asked with just a hint of skepticism in her voice. Only Sarada seemed to notice though.
"We've come to train too. Since my mom has been getting on my case lately. She says I need to be ready if there is another attack on the village. I need to be able to do my part, she says." Inojin explained.
"It's just troublesome, if you ask me." Shikadai complained.
Sarada, now in control of the redness that had crept across her face, joined in, "Well, we still don't know much about what happened. Have you guys heard anything?"
"My father won't tell me anything. But he does ask me to play Go with him a lot more now. I have to play with him a couple of hours every night. It's annoying." Shikadai informed the group.
"Mom won't tell me anything either. And my dad just pretends he has no idea what is going on but I saw him pack a bag this morning. I'm pretty sure he's been sent on some mission." Added Inojin.
"At least your parents are involved! My parents don't do anything interesting. Man, I totally got the short end of the stick!" Chocho whined.
Inojin turned towards Bolt and Sarada, "What have your parents told you?"
"Nothing!" Sarada huffed. She didn't understand why her mother wasn't sharing things with her like she normally did. Hadn't she proved herself already?
"All I know is that they've got some girl locked up somewhere in Ino Sensei's department." Bolt added the only piece of news the group actually had.
"Well, they have to tell us something, eventually. Right?" Chocho surmised.
"Mom!" Hanami squealed. "I knew you would come looking for me! Please tell me you remember who I am." She stood and skipped up to the barrier that held her in a small but neat room. In it was a small stone bed, a toilet and a desk and chair set. On the desk were three books in a messy heap. It was better accommodations than most prisoners received. Ino was being nice to this young girl.
Outside of the barrier was a single seat facing the room. Sakura stood behind it looking at the eager young woman. They had cleaned her up. Her long pink hair was clean and tied back in a single braid. She wore a simple beige one piece that had a string to tie around her slender waist. She was barefoot though. But what Sakura noticed most of all were the large round blue orbs that sucked her in. They were Naruto's eyes, and this young girl had them.
Hanami's initial excitement seemed to diminish when she got no answer from the older woman.
"So you don't remember me." Hanami answered for Sakura. A dark shadow seeped into Hanami's brows as they furrowed together. It lasted only a second until Hanami became more determined than ever. She looked back at the pink haired kunoichi standing opposite her. "Would you feel more comfortable if I called you Sakura?" she asked.
Sakura was surprised by the question and couldn't help but feel grateful for her consideration. "I think I would like that. Until we figure out the truth." Sakura circled the chair and sat in it. "I would like to find out exactly what the truth is, if you wouldn't mind helping me piece things together."
"I would like that very much, mo- Sakura." Hanami corrected herself.
"Can I ask you some questions?"
"Of course." Hanami answered.
Sakura leaned back and thought about the list of things she, Shikamaru, and Ino had planned out. It was best to start of simply first.
"Where is your brother?" Sakura started.
Hanami instantly clammed up. She wasn't to sure if she could trust the mother that had forgotten her. "Nearby." She answered vaguely.
Sakura frowned. She would have to get the girl to warm up to her a bit first before she started asking the tougher questions.
"How old are you?" She tried again.
Hanami relaxed, "I turned 18 a couple of months ago."
Sakura nodded. "And how long have the chakra attacks been happening for you?"
Again Hanami second guessed Sakura's motives. But Hanami thought better of it. Telling Sakura would only help solve this mystery. "About a month before my birthday. I think they may have to do with why everyone has forgotten me."
"That could be." Sakura conceded. She paused and took a good long look at the girl before her. "You know, I get it. It must be hard to trust us, me, right now. But we do want what's best for you. We're going to do everything in our power to figure this all out. So, I'm going to ask that you trust me. That you tell me about your brother and where I can find him. Just maybe with the two of you we'll be able to figure things out sooner. So, what do you say, can you point me in the right direction?"
Hanami searched the older woman's green eyes for any signs of foul play. But all she saw was her mother's face. So after a few moments she gave in, "I can't sense him very well, with this barrier and all, but I get the feeling that he is near the Valley of the End."
Sakura looked back at the two-way mirror behind her. Hanami followed her gaze.
"Is Aunt Ino in there?" Hanami asked.
Sakura decided she could also be honest with the girl this once. "Yes. She's been keeping an eye on you. She'll let her husband know where to look for your brother."
Guilt washed over Hanami like a huge wave. She wondered if she had just betrayed her brother. Sakura watched the emotion evolve on the girl's face.
"We won't hurt him." Sakura reassured the captive.
"I really hope so." Hanami said still not entirely certain she had done the right thing.
Sakura fought off the sympathy welling in the pit of her stomach.
A soft knock echoed through the hokage's office. Naruto looked up from the computer screen he had been staring blankly at. "Come in." He allowed.
Hinata stood in the hallway staring at the door knob in front of her. With all the courage she could muster she grasped the door handle and pushed her way into her husband's office. Inside Naruto sat alone as though he was waiting for her. When she came up to his desk he stood.
Naruto inspected his wife. She did not seem mad, but her eyes were puffy and he knew she had been crying. She was trying so hard to not worry him by staying strong in his presence. He strolled around his desk and grabbed her elbow gentle.
"Hinata, I know you went to Hanabi but I-" Naruto started.
"I trust you." Hinata blurted looking at her husband's face for the first time.
Naruto stood speechless.
"I trust you, Naruto. I know what kind of man you are. And I know there is some sort of explanation to all of this. And just like I have done since our wedding day, I will stand by your side. No matter what." Hinata declared.
There was nothing else to do, Naruto hugged his wife tightly. He placed his strong arms around her waist and back and held her as close to him as he dared. "Thank you." he whispered into her soft hair. Hinata returned the gesture and hugged her husband.
"I promise we'll get to the bottom of this." Naruto said with his chin resting on the top of Hinata's head.
"That's some pretty intense pink hair for a boy. You should probably dye it so people don't mistake you for a girl." Sai said facing the young man camped out in the ruins of the Valley of the End.
The young man just growled angrily. "What do you want, old man?"
Sai watched the boy closely. It seemed as though the intruder had made some sort of makeshift camp in the ruins. There was a bed roll laid out on a smooth flat boulder. A couple of bags were tossed together with supplies in them. And a couple of dead rabbits hung from a nearby tree. The young man must have been here for a while. The boy himself seemed to be in good shape. He was tall, though not as tall as Sai was. Shaggy pink hair hung messily against his forehead. He wore a black sweat suit that had red striping along the sides. The jacket sleeves were pushed up and it was unzipped revealing a white t-shirt underneath. Sai did notice that there was some healing bruises along his arms.
"We've been looking for you." Sai finally answered.
"How'd you even get past my traps?" The boy inquired. He turned to face Sai completely and began to study him with expertise.
Sai ignored the question and continued. "We have your sister, Hanashi."
"It's Hanami." The pink haired boy corrected. But the look in his eyes was one of slight panic and anger.
"And what's your name?" Sai tried to stall with his hands behind his back. In his fist he was fiddling with a tiny scroll. With his expert skill he drew a messenger mouse and called it into being. The small creature darted down the back of his leg and began it's sprint towards the village.
"Hanako." The boy answered simply.
Sai giggled. "Girl hair, girl name, you're sure you're not Hanana's sister?"
"It's Hanami. And they thought we were two girls when we were born because of the pink hair." Hanako answered annoyed. He fiddled with the flap of his kuni pouch.
"Okay. Okay. So you're Hanako. Well, I am-"
"I know who you are, Sai." Hanako cut in. Hanako lowered into a defensive stance. "And I would appreciate it if you would let my sister go. She doesn't even know what's going on."
"And what is going on?" Sai asked while putting a hand on the blank scroll hanging on his hip.
"Don't worry about it. I'll fix it all. Just let my sister go so she can go home. She has no part in this."
Sai turned his head to the side and asked, "And just where is home."
Hanako stopped. He seemed almost perplexed on how to answer the question but he finally answered with, "From a different truth."
"A different truth. That makes no sense. You must be as crazy as your sister." It was all Sai needed to say to push Hanako over the edge. The boy lunged for the artist ninja with a blade in hand. It shined in the light as it made contact with Sai's own kuni. The clang of metal on metal rang out and echoed against the valley's walls. Sai pushed away from Hanako's blade and landed a few feet away. But it was only a moment until Hanako was back on top of him with another blade. With his other hand he made seals. Appearing next to him was a shadow clone that kicked at Sai's stomach. The older nin did a flip backwards to get out of the way of the strike.
"One handed seals. That's pretty impressive." Sai said in his monotone voice.
"That's nothing." Hanako declared and in a flash performed another set of lightning fast seals.
Suddenly behind Sai grew a tree at a rapid pace. It's branches soared over Sai's head and snaked around his body. The leaf ninja tried to grab his ninja tools in time but could do nothing with his arms pinned against his sides. He wiggled in the tree's grasp helplessly.
Above him, out of the tree's trunk, appeared Hanako. He raised his fist with kuni in hand and plunged it down towards Sai's chest.
So there we have it. I hope you liked the chapter. Again, if you have time let me know what you think so far. I'd really appreciate it!