(A/N: HI! I feel terrible that my chapters keep getting shorter and shorter. But that doesn't change the fact that they will be this way for this update, and probably the next one too. Track is killer on my free time, and most of that (very little) free time is spent doing school work or at my church (neither of which I can or want to [respectively] give up). So I hope you don't mind rather short chapters for now. I promise that they'll get longer again as soon as track season is over and I have more time to sit at home and type without falling behind on my work, kay? (:
Oh! I almost forgot to tell you guys! HAPPY APRIL FOOL'S DAY! (I didn't play any pranks, although I seriously thought about telling you guys I was going to give up this story in an author's note chapter, then post the actual chapter later.)
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, nor do I make a profit off of this. This is just practice for what I hope to be a future career.)
Mysterious Captivation: Chapter 24
Despite the fact that the coastline was significantly warmer than the inner land, there was still snow piling onto the beach. "Kisame-san, where is the exporter for whom we are searching?" The ex-Hyuuga woman asked.
"We should be approaching his home shortly. It's a rather large house at the edge of a harbor, where he stores his ships when they're not in use."
Hinata made a sound of acknowledgement, glancing down at the beach from the tree line. "I've never seen so much snow in the sand before," she murmured softly, shifting her eyes to see the Hoshigaki's reaction.
Though he allowed nothing to cross the high-set cheekbones of his face, his yellow eyes sparkled with something that Hinata would equate with amusement had her partner been someone else. "Then again, I've never been on the coast this far north. It's beautiful."
Her partner nodded, cracking a smirk in her direction. "Very true. Beautiful and deadly are the best combinations. After all, who would suspect something as beautiful as snow would cause such a painful death as hypothermia can?" The moment the words left his mouth, he sent a fleeting look toward the girl.
Two bright flares of chakra made their way into her active Byakugan's line of vision, and she frowned. She motioned for the older man to slow down and stay quiet, gesturing in the direction of the approaching ninja.
Suddenly, she halted her travels altogether and gaped at the chakra signatures in a manner befitting a koi fish.
Kisame, apparently noticing her stopped progress, moved closer to her to quietly question, "Are you okay? What is it?" Despite his rough voice that easily carried across distances, he was a surprisingly good whisperer, Hinata noted inanely.
"It's my father; he's one of the ones who is out there," she responded, her voice and eyes devoid of emotion as she spoke of the man who had raised her until her mother had died.
She saw him tense as though he thought she would run to her father and throw herself at him, begging him to bring her home. She saw her partner flash a look of pity, mixed with something she couldn't identify, in her direction.
"I'm not going to leave your side, Kisame-san. It hurts that you think I would abandon you for this man after I didn't want to leave with the boy who was my first love," she confided, forcing a playful laugh into her voice and knowing that he wasn't fooled.
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How long until she realizes that we're here? Hiashi wondered to himself. He had caught sight of his daughter and another missing nin several meters back, but he didn't want to unduly alert them to his presence, so he continued to move toward his destination.
Curious as to their destination, he made certain to keep track of their movements. They seemed to be heading toward the same place that he was, though he was not sure what business they could have with the exporter of Hyuuga goods.
I wonder if she's showing him how to get there so that they can raid Konoha's supplies, he thought, then shook his head. Hinata had never been this far north on the shoreline before, so she didn't even know the exact location.
Had she stayed in the Leaf Village, she would have been taught about imports, exports, and all of the harbors used by the Hyuuga. She would have been educated in the business side of the family, rather than just the ninja side. His daughter would never have had to bloody her hands again once she became the Hyuuga Clan leader.
Instead, she had abandoned her friends, family, and home for the sake of murderers, crooks, and liars the likes of which she had never met in her life. She had abandoned everything good for all that is bad.
She left, and now she had to spend the rest of her life with crimson covered hands, as a weapon to the most destructive organization the ninja world had ever seen.
Hiashi shook his head. "Hyuuga-sama, what do you see?" A person to his right touched his sleeve, finally getting his attention through the movement.
"It's nothing, Shikamaru-kun. I thought I saw something, but it was just a raven."
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Said young man frowned suspiciously, but allowed the Hyuuga leader some privacy of thought. It couldn't have been easy to lose a daughter, an heiress, and his dignity all in one short span of time, especially not when he was rejected by his daughter for mass murderers. How embarrassing.
The Nara wondered why he was chosen to accompany the Hyuuga Head to the harbor in Omeishu. He was connected to Hinata, albeit not closely attached to her, but enough to cloud his judgment should he need to kill her.
Why did Tsunade-sama tell me to come with Hyuuga-sama? Is it because I can think calmly in the middle of a battle, or because I'm rational where this man wouldn't be?
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"Please cease your pacing so I can think, you idiot!" The purple eyed man shouted toward a blonde man.
The two were sitting in the lounge, one pacing back and forth in front of the couch, and the other attempting to read a book on pagan religions while sitting on said couch.
"Well, forgive me, Hidan. I know you couldn't care less for anyone but yourself, but some of us have people we care about!" The blonde quipped. "I have a friend out on an assassination in a cold climate when she has just gotten over being sick!"
Hidan's eyes narrowed, thinking of his last confrontation with the young woman. He had been harsh, but it had been necessary. She needed to learn her place in the food chain of the organization.
Just because she had made 'friends' with Deidara, Kisame, Konan, and through her, Pein, didn't mean that she was instantly the favorite of every Akatsuki. She had to be reminded that when those four weren't around to protect her, she was fair game to be fought and harmed just like the rest of them were.
He was suddenly brought back to earth as Deidara finished asking him a question.
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As Deidara watched Hidan's expression, he knew that the silver haired man was hiding something about Hinata from him. "What did you do to her?"
"What?"
"What did you do to Hinata," he repeated, anger creeping into the edge of his tone.
"Nothing more than she deserves, Blondie," Hidan smirked, enjoying himself as he watched the ex-Iwa nin get riled up.
"Tell me what you did to her right now, you obnoxious fool, or I'll make sure Kisame knows that you hurt her."
"Ooh, I'm so frightened of you. Let me tell you everything!" Hidan laughed, throwing his head back in amusement.
"Or he could make sure I know," a very feminine voice quietly asserted from the doorway of the lounge.
"Ah, Konan. I wondered if you would ever leave your room. I haven't seen you since we moved from the old hideout," Hidan smirked, steering the conversation away from the ex-Hyuuga heiress.
"You obviously haven't looked very hard then," she gave him a blank stare, then spoke again. "So tell me, Hidan. What did you do to Hinata that has Deidara so fired up at you?"
Beginning to feel uncomfortable with the turn of events, Hidan opened his mouth. Before he could speak, however, Konan interrupted him. "And don't presume to lie to me, either. I will find out one way or the other, and you had best be telling the truth."
Hidan scowled, looking from the woman to Deidara. "Fine. I yelled at her in the hall for waking me up at one in the morning!" He gave in, shouting. "Are you happy now? I told you."
"I have a sneaking suspicion that you are not telling us the whole truth; don't you, Deidara-san?"
He nodded his head, and Hidan sent a scathing look to the blonde. "Fine, I threatened her," he began, recounting an edited, kinder version of his last conversation with the Hyuuga girl before her mission. "Now, I'm leaving, and don't bother coming to look for me. I have a blood offering to Jashin-sama that I need to make." Hidan stalked through the room, snapping the book shut and slamming it on the couch's side table before throwing the door shut behind him.
Konan and Deidara were left alone.
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The Uchiha made his way carefully to where Naruto had told him the old Akatsuki hideout was located. From there, he would call upon one of his summons, possibly one of the Uchiha summons. A cat would be perfect for stalking prey, though not as helpful as a dog would be.
Nodding carefully upon entering the clearing before the building where the Akatsuki hid for many years, he began to mutter, "Boar, dog, bird, monkey, ram!" He shouted the last syllable, slamming his hand into the ground.
A puff of smoke rose from under his hand as a large house cat began to groom itself. "Hello, Sasuke. Long time no summon." It seemed to smile, it's sharp teeth revealed like fangs beneath it's rough nose.
"Do you remember the scent of Hyuuga Hinata?"
"The Hyuuga heiress who visited the Uchiha complex all those years ago, when it was still thriving, each year for your birthday?" The cat asked. "Of course I remember her."
"Would you be able to track her scent from here? It's a bit over a week old, so it may be rather faint."
"I'll see what I can do," the cat said, grinning once more at the thought of helping its summoner.
While the cat worked, Sasuke decided to explore what he could see of the hideout. It seemed like a Shinto shrine, almost. Ornate, beautiful, and the colors were just as awe-inspiring.
However, it was not the building itself, nor the beauty of the pieces around it, nor the ruin of the walls or ceilings that caught his eyes.
It was a stone placed at the head of a patch of freshly turned dirt. Morbidly curious, he thought he knew what it was.
He approached, breathing deeply through his mouth, and knelt by the gravestone. He read the inscription:
R.I.P.
Uchiha Itachi, 24
Beloved by his Akatsuki family
Sacrificed by his village
May he finally find his peace
Unexpected tears sprang to his eyes. He wondered how the village had sacrificed his brother, and how he could have been beloved by the Akatsuki. The words Akatsuki and family should never be used in the same sentence, especially not in this context. It's an oxymoron!
The only person alive who could answer his questions was the one person he least wanted to talk with. She was the one person he hated more than anyone else on the planet, but she was the one who knew his brother best, so she was the one with whom he would have to speak.
He growled to himself, then heard his summon meow. "I've found her scent. It's very faint, and mixed with so much blood I can barely smell her, but I think I can follow her scent to wherever she is now."
Sasuke nodded, stood, then bowed his head to his brother's grave. "I will not give up my vow of revenge," he said with conviction as he took to the trees to follow the cat.
(A/N: Well, here it is. This chapter of MC. I hope you enjoyed it so much more than I enjoyed writing it (and I always enjoy doing that!) (: Have a great day, drop a review if you'd like (because I would like you to do so, and it's always nice to hear from you all), and I'll see yall in three weeks!)