A/N: Ok, so, there's going to be... one more chapter after this... unless I decide to fix something and make it an epilogue... Anyway, it's not every good, and I don't really like how un-hyper Nikki is, but... she'll get better... I promise (ish). Well, here is the suckish chapter anyway!
I cried on that cold, dark night outside the hospital. There I sat on a lonely bench, alone, as I mourned over my horrid, tragic loss. My heart broke that night, and I wondered if it could ever be fixed. For I had lost someone precious to me, my own mother, the woman whom without I would have never been born. They had found out what was wrong with her. She had an infection from a cut she had accidentally made from a bra hook. A bra hook. I couldn't believe how stupid some doctors could be sometimes...
As I sat there, I remembered all the times that she had been there for me. Like at my sixth-grade play of a Midsummer Night's Dream. There was only one boy in the class, so I had to play a boy... But I was brilliant, if I do say so myself. Anyway, Jason was the only guy in the class, and he was to play Flute, whom in the play within a play, must play the role of Thisby. Thisby is a woman, so we made him put on lipstick, wear a frilly, lacy dress, and stuff toilet paper down his shirt. He did a hilarious job, speaking in such a squeaky voice, it was almost impossible to understand, yet at the same time you knew what he was saying. If that makes any sense at all. I only remember one of his lines, which made everyone explode into laughter, since he totally overacted it: "Asleep, my love? What?! Dead, my dove!!" I guess this was how I felt about my mother. Is she asleep? Wait... she's dead?!! Well, in the end of the play within a play Thisby ends up killing herself over the death of her lover, Pyramus. Of course, I prayed that I wouldn't go that far, but you never know... things happen sometimes...
I cried myself to sleep on the cold bench, so hurt that I was unable to move. One of the nurses, feeling sorry for me, offered me a ride home, but I told her that my father was home and that he was hurrying over. Which wasn't exactly true... I had tried to call him, but he didn't answer, so I gave up. I was actually planning to live on my own. Of course, if anyone found out I'd have to be sent away to Japan, which isn't so bad. But I wanted to be alone, to try and figure out why I couldn't remember three whole months of my life. So I sang.
"Nothing, that's what I see, in this plain world circling me. Empty, where shadows lie, and people bleed from a single eye. Darkness, away we run, since no one's waiting for the return of sun. Black, the color of night, the hidden moon fills us with fright. Truth is no longer here, this world of hate makes our lies clear. Broken, that's what we are, for we can't help it if peace is too far. Waiting for peace restored, but still we remain with the darkened world." I sang the song over and over again, until I fell asleep. And then... I dreamed of blackness.
I awoke with a start, seeing a wall or grey. Wait... where was I? is this... heaven? No, it's too drab and unhappy to be heaven. Is it hell? Why am I in hell? I've been good!! Oh... wait, it's just the bench. I've been sleeping here for ten days now, or maybe more. I've lost count. People walking by pay no attention to the poor girl sitting alone on the bench, grieving the death of her closest family member.
It was night when it happened, when a faint bit of memory returned to me. I was of course sitting on the bench, nibbling on a piece of bread from the pack of Sarah Lee white bread that I had bought at the store. I was running low, I noticed, eating it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It suddenly began to rain, lightly at first, but then poured down from a bucket in the deep black sky. Perhaps the heavens were crying for me. No, who would cry for a little, pathetic girl? Her mother, yes, but her mother was dead.
As I sat there, embracing the rain, a cold wind picked up, blowing around everything in its path. A magazine hit me smack in the face, but I ignored it, peeling it off on hurling it into a puddle. That is, until a picture caught my eye. That ninja boy, with the blonde hair... Why did he look so familiar? A memory... of that boy smiling down at me... and then... his lips on mine. Who was he? Where were these memories from? I couldn't answer that. I pulled the magazine back up to my bench and looked at the picture, tracing every detail of his 2D face. Us dancing... us laughing... us crying... all of these memories flooded into my head, but no voice to place with it. Why? Why couldn't I remember? I wanted to. The memories brought me a sort of warmth, his face a sort of comfort. Oh, how I wanted to see him, to see the real him. His whole being filled me with a desire to see him, to find him. But how? A voice told me, but yet it was silent. I couldn't hear, but somehow I knew it was there. What was this feeling? Why did I want him? Was it... love? Did I love him?
Thanks Nikki-chan. Without you, I might not have made it this far. You're awesome. I don't see how you do it. You don't even care that I have the Nine-Tailed Fox inside of me. That means a lot. Thanks.
I needed a name, just one name... just to know his name would fill me with a bit of content, enough content to keep me going for a while longer. I strained my brain until it hurt, collapsing into the cold puddles surrounding my bench, my home. I screamed to the heavens, begging them.
That means a lot. Thanks.
"Just a name!! Please, give me something!! I want to know!! I want to know!!" I screamed, hurt, angry, alone. Then came the lightning, causing me to jump out of my torn, dirty shoes. God, it hurt so much, this hurt in my heart. I hated this place. "I want my place!! I want peace! Make this pain go away!! Make it go away!" I cursed at the heavens, my voice strained so that it came out as a croak almost. God darn it, I wanted answers. So many questions scattered my mind: Why did my mom have to die? Who is that boy that I feel so many strange emotions for? Where have I been for the last three months? I want answers so bad that I'd almost give up my life for it!!
Do you really want it that bad?
I thought about that. Would I really give up my life for a few answers? I lingered, thinking about it. The voice remained in my head.
Well... do you? I can make it possible... Cus I'm awesome like that.
Joy... she's back. I swear, she gets on my last nerve sometimes... but... if she could do something like that, get me the answers...
MAKE UP YOUR MIND ALREADY!!
Um... well... what do I have to lose? My mom's already dead, my father's all the way in Japan, and I'm living on a bench eating soon-to-be moldy bread. So... yes, I guess I want to...
Alrighty!! Then hhhheeeerrrrrrrreeeeee we go!
Blackness was what came next, followed my immense pain. My bones cracked, and I felt like some unbearable force was yanking my limbs apart. I whimpered, then let out a long, loud roar. When I woke up, the pain had disappeared, and I felt like new, almost refreshed. But where was I? It looked like a bar, but with... ramen.
Suddenly realizing that I was starving, I scrambled up and rushed over, ordering miso pork ramen. The man smiled when he handed me my ramen, and spoke. "I love your hair, such an interesting color. Is it natural?"
What was he talking about? My hair's black... how is that interesting? I fingered a strand, and was about to tuck it behind my ear when I noticed that it was actually NOT black. Instead, it was green. I began to freak, even more when I noticed that my katana was lying across my back, until a little blue creature flew around my head and landed on my shoulder. It looked a bit like a tiny dragon, except it was furry. It looked up at me with the most gorgeous violet eyes I had ever seen. It was so cute. But still... what the hell was it?
Nikki, meet Kaori. Kaori, meet Nikki. Okay, now that we're all friends, I'm going to have to get a move on with restoring your memory. You see, the reason you forgot everything about this place is because when you travel to different dimensions it sometimes scrambles up brain cells and crap, and the longer you stay, the more scrambled they become. Of course, you don't really notice until you get home. Sometimes, when you're only there for a few minutes, nothing happens. But if, lets say, you stay there for three months, there are certain side effects that might take place, such as temporary or permanent amnesia, hair loss, and rashes in uncomfortable places. Luckily, you only suffered from temporary amnesia, so I should be able to bring back your memories with a little kick. All you have to do is make physical contact with the object of your desires, located here. To find it, just follow Kaori, cus I don't feel like giving directions. But I will tell you that object's name. It's Uzumaki Naruto and he contains the Nine-Tailed Fox that once terrorized the Village Hidden In The Leaves. Bring back any memories?? Any at all?
I thought about it. The Nine-Tailed Fox... I'd heard that somewhere. Wait, I remember now.
Thanks Nikki-chan. Without you, I might not have made it this far. You're awesome. I don't see how you do it. You don't even care that I have the Nine-Tailed Fox inside of me. That means a lot. Thanks.
But where had I heard that? I couldn't remember... I strained my brain until it was about to burst, but still nothing!
Kaori suddenly looked up at me for a moment, then hopped off my shoulder and glided to the ground. "Chikai! [near]!!" she said in a cute little high-pitched voice, then scampered off with me right on her heels, after paying the ramen man and finishing my meal in one long gulp. Suddenly I spotted two men in funny black coats with red cloud-type-things covering them. They wore funny hats, and one of them carried a big sword covered in bandage-like-crap. They seemed to have caught me staring, so I turned away quickly. They gave me a sort of chill, and I didn't like it. They suddenly walked over to me, and I backed up a bit, Kaori ducking behind my legs. One of them spoke.
"You, girl. Have you heard of the Nine-Tailed Fox?" his eyes... they were red, with a black pinwheel-shape in the center.
Something in those horrid eyes told me that I should lie, that he was up to no good. So I shook my head back and forth. "Nope! Never heard of it! Never in the history of history of my life have I ever heard of the Nine-Tail Foxy Thingy-Ma-Jig What-Cha-Ma-Call-It." I blabbed. The man shot out a hand and grabbed my throat.
"I'll repeat myself. Have you heard of the Nine-Tailed Fox?" he said, his voice harsh and grating. I gasped for air and cursed under my breath, nodding quickly. Rats, I was loosing more and more oxygen. His eyes bore into mine, and my heart, out of fear, skipped a beat. "Well, do you know where I can find he who carries it?" he asked, glaring. I nodded, and he released me, causing me to fall to the ground.
I gulped in air, and sighed, rubbing my aching throat. Great... I had faced death right there. "His... his name is Uzumaki Naruto... Um, I don't know where to find him though... I'm sorry." I said, ducking to avoid another surprise attack that he might launch.
The other man started to walk off, and after a moment of shooting a piercing stare at me, the man with the scary eyes did too. I let out a voosh of air, suddenly remembering how to exhale. Kaori was still hiding behind me, but I coaxed her out enough to lead me to wherever we were going.
We arrived at a quaint little house about five minutes later.
My hands were shaking as we approached the small house. I was nervous. I was sad. I was broken. My heart had been ripped out and torn to pieces. I had to find something to cure it, to mend when was confounded. As I turned the knob, Kaori rubbed against my legs, encouraging me to hurry up. Trying to get it over with, I threw the door open. It hit the wall with a bang. I heard a voice.
"Who's there?" It was a boy. The voice sounded familiar, I just couldn't remember. I didn't answer, just pursued deeper into the familiar-yet-unfamiliar house. "Hello? Who's there?" Still, I remained silent, turning corners, and the voice grew louder. "Whatever... I guess I'm just hearing things."
As I rounded another corner, I came face to face with someone recognizable, though I didn't know whom. Was he Naruto? It seemed most likely that yes, he was. I cautiously reached out to touch him, to see if he was real, but he jumped back, his eyes wide, a kunai grasped in his hand. "Who are you?" he asked, trying, yet failing, to hide his edginess.
Once again I didn't answer, just began my way towards him. I wanted to speak, but all of my words were choked up in the back of my throat. He made signs with his hands, so quickly it made me dizzy, and suddenly there were at least 1... 2... 3... 20 of him surrounding me, all grasping kunai knifes. What to do... fight? I had my katana with me, so that was a big possibility.
I thought about my other options and realized that that was probably the best one I had to go on, so I drew my katana swiftly, taking a battle position and brushing away the hair that was hanging in my face, hiding my eyes, and then swiped away some imaginary spit on my lips, I locked onto the blue irises of the boy whom I figured to be the real one, for he had just stumbled back in what seemed to be shock. Recognizing some hidden feeling in my eyes, perhaps? Dang... that's so cheesy!!! Or maybe it's just the fact that I always do that when I'm fighting, be it Tae-Kwon-Doe or just playing around with my katana... I'll go with the second one. I then spoke.
"Are you Naruto?" I asked, though I was already quite sure that yes, he was indeed Uzumaki Naruto. He nodded, confirming my suspicions, and his clones suddenly disappeared in a puff of smoke.
He took a step toward me. "Are... are you... Nikki-chan?" he asked, and I shot him a puzzled look.
"I guess so... My name's Nikki, at least." I replied, choking on my words. Tears were starting to well up in my eyes as I spied the compassion lurking in his stare. Then, without warning, the tears poured out like waterspouts, and my legs started shaking, warning me that at any moment they could give way and I would tumble to the ground. I hadn't cried this much since... never. Even when my mother had died I had managed to choke most of the sobs down. But now...God, it hurt so much just to be around someone that I could hardly remember, yet felt so many deep feelings for, compassion, affection, warmth... love.
Naruto rushed over to me quickly, catching me before my knees completely gave out and I collapsed to the floor. I fell into his outstretched arms, my loud cries dimming down as he wiped some of the wet, salty tears away with the sleeve of his orange jumpsuit. As his fingers made contact with my cheek, memories began to flood in, good and bad, some of Konoha, some of my friends, some of my enemies. And then there was the kiss, my first real, wanted kiss, and it was with him, the boy I felt so much love for. I looked up at the blonde-haired ninja and hesitantly moved my hand to his cheek, stroking it softly. He was real. "Naruto-kun..." I murmured, and his eyes locked into mine, knowing that I was indeed whom he referred to as Nikki-chan, even though I had once again changed my appearance.
'Hina, are you there?' I called in my thoughts.
Yeah... what, no "Mayonnaise Girl" today?
'When am I leaving this time?' I asked, ignoring her sarcasm.
Why? Do you want to leave all of a sudden?
'No. Never.' I replied, and I could somehow feel a soft smile spread across Hina's face. If she had one, that is...
Then you're in luck. You're not leaving for another hundred years.
I thanked her silently, then raised my face to his, pressing my lips softly to his mouth. I then smiled and buried my face deep into Naruto's chest, inhaling the sweet scent of ramen that I had missed so much. He wrapped his arms around me, encasing me and stroking my hair. The tears were long gone by now.
Suddenly, as we embraced, the door flung open and the two men from earlier burst in. Having regained my memory, I now knew who the hell they were. I released Naruto and scooped up my sword, glaring at the two Akatsuki members as I pointed my katana angrily at them.
"Itachi and Kisame..." I hissed, "Don't you even think about touching him. You'll have to get through me first." I threatened, blocking Naruto, who was jumping to his feet. Kisame chuckled and grabbed his sword. Great... dudes with big swords were never fun. I had learned that with Zabuza... maybe I should work with my other options: ninjutsu and genjutsu. I still had that secret special awesome jutsu that Naruto had taught me a while ago. I still hadn't revealed it to anyone except Naruto.
Naruto stepped forward, hands at the ready, looking set to fight, but I shook my head and pushed him back gently. This was my battle. He started to protest, but I shot him a pleading glance, which seemed to calm him. He moved back a few steps, getting out of my way.
"Let me handle this one, Itachi. She'll be dead in seconds." Kisame spat, a vicious smirk across his face.
I set my hands in the sign of Tora [the tiger], restoring my chakra. Ah... that felt nice. "You wish... You're the one that's going to be dead, Fishy Face!"
A/N: Why is it so long??!! It's over 3,000 words!! I tried my hardest to make it shorter, but I couldn't find a good place to stop it at... ^.^; Sorry... Reviews make me happy. Almost as happy as slasher films do! So review, perhaps?? 3