A/N: Thank you so much again for the wonderful reviews, follows, and favorites! I love them all! I'm sorry if it took me a while to update.
Dear Guest, yes this story is still in-progress. I planned to update every week, but my computer died last week, hence the late upload. Thank you very much for your patience. :)
I do not own Naruto.
3. She has… worms.
The bright sun generously showered its rays to the recovering village of Konoha. It was another peaceful day, and the villagers were once again working hand-in-hand to help rebuild their home. The dark days were over, and they could now peacefully enjoy the feel of cool summer breeze. Some children ran through the grass fields, catching dragonflies, while a few others gathered under the shade of a tall tree, listening as their sensei talked about the incredible heroes of Konoha. Above that tree was a nest where a small little bird was beginning to learn to fly. It jumped from a branch, flapping its little wings, and after a few tries, it soared up high in the sky, together with the other birds…
Only to lose its consciousness, as a dark enraged aura hit the poor little bird when it unfortunately passed by the Hokage's office window. It descended very fast from a high altitude, but was saved just in time by its loving mother's pair of wings, and the birds lived happily ever after.
'Oh, what a lovely day!'
Tsunade wished she could say so herself, but reading Tenten's report about their previous mission only promised one hell of a headache.
She read the report up to the last period, and she swore she heard a vein popping. She rubbed the bridge of her nose, and her fierce brown orbs landed on the two subjects that Tenten failed to mention on her report.
"I'm very sorry, Hokage-sama. I only found out this morning." Tenten bowed, quivering from Tsunade's scrutiny.
Konoha's fifth Hokage just waved it off and took a deep breath as she continued to massage her temples. Only eight out of sixteen scrolls retrieved- the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique scroll missing, and the others shredded to pieces by what Tenten described on her report as "countless small wind-blades", which on Tsunade's conclusion was just Naruto having his fit of severe cognitive deficiency.
About half of the ancient kinjutsu scrolls lost. A severely broken ankle. A ruptured deltoid muscle. A massive abdominal injury that required one whole day to fix. And as if these weren't enough, their only lead to a group of rouge ninjas was beheaded by one of her subordinates. All these things, then add the two casualties standing before her. Tsunade concluded the mission a failure. She could feel her blood boiling, and the anger radiating from her body was probably scaring those nearby, particularly, small birds. Just a little more raging chakra and the office walls would start to crumble.
"Take it easy, Tsunade-sama." Shizune smiled nervously.
Tsunade felt her head throb as she imagined herself in the hot seat, once she reported it to the Alliance, but she held the thought, for she had to address a problem quite more emergent and literally facing her.
'A body switch. Is this even possible?' A question she asked but knew the answer to. In fact, she fell for it once, when she was still a genin. He furrowed her brows, thinking of the possibility. 'Could it be...?!' She looked at Tenten's report again- sixteen scrolls were stolen, but she knew the archives had only stored fifteen. 'Impossible. How would that even get there? That scroll should've been burned years ago.'
"Shizune!" Tsunade called.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama?"
"Give me a list of all the scrolls stolen from the archives."
"Right away." And with that, Shizune left the room, but first, made a mental note to order a new office table and a few bags of cement for the walls.
Tsunade turned her attention to Naruto, who was staring at her with his new pair of pupil-less eyes. "Naruto!"
The call made him flinch. He met her cold stare and frowned, anticipating a day-long jeremiad from the Hokage. Or since he killed their supposed hostage, it could probably last for a week.
"Do you recall anything before you passed out?" Tsunade continued.
Neji asked a somewhat similar question before, and now that he thought about it, he remembered he was thinking. He was thinking about something. Or someone. He unconsciously reached for the tips of his long dark hair, his fingers enjoying the softness it felt on his touch. He glanced sideways to that certain someone and jolted when Hinata looked back at him with a soft blush on her face. "I remember.." But Naruto decided to skip that part for now. "I remember creating several shadow clones, and we," He gulped. "subdued the enemy with rashenshuriken."
"Subdued?" Tsunade spoke with clenched teeth. "You cut his stupid head off, Naruto."
"Yeah, that's what I'm trying to say." Naruto scoffed.
A loud thud caused by strong fists crashing against the surface of a wooden table made all four shinobis jump, and they all stepped back when Tsunade stood from her chair.
"Do you even realize what you've done? You totally screwed up the objectives of the assignment, you idiot!"
"What was I supposed to do then? He hurt Sakura. Tenten's out of weapons, too. That creep even tried to kidnap Hinata!" Naruto reasoned.
"Hey, Naruto!" Sakura elbowed him gently, reminding him of who he was talking to but was hesitant to punch him in the beautiful face he was luckily wearing.
"Don't you know the word 'capture' or 'restrain'?" The wooden table creaked as a slight protest to the pressure Tsunade had put against it with her hands. She grabbed a book, a dictionary coincidentally, ready to throw it to Naruto's face, when Hinata suddenly spoke.
"Hokage-sama," Hinata bowed her head down as she continued. "Please.. It was all my fault. I was the one who deviated first from the team's plan, and all this resulted because I selfishly acted on my own. Please don't be so angry to Naruto-kun. He only thought of saving us. If there's someone that needs to be punished, it should be me."
"Hinata.." Tenten watched her with sad eyes. She made a quick glance to Naruto, who wore the same sad expression as Hinata tried to take the fall for him.
The room stayed quiet for a while as the Lady Hokage contemplated the situation and slumped back down into her chair. She let out a deep sigh and once again rubbed her temples. "Shinobis these days." But their generation was no better, so she decided to just let everything slide for now. It would be hard to explain how a possible lead to a group of thieves hunted by all nations suddenly died, but she would think about dealing with the Alliance later.
"You both know that this won't go unpunished." Her eyes darted back to Naruto upon hearing a loud 'hmpf' coming from him, but she just continued. "But I'll have you deal with that after you two fixed yourself. Now, to address another serious matter, do you remember anything important that could have lead to this?" Her expression continued to be stern.
The four shinobis stayed silent for a while thinking for an answer, until Tenten remembered a very faint memory of something that had happened during the fight.
"Hey, Naruto. Before you struck that man with your rashenshuriken, did you notice if he used another scroll? If my memory serves me right, I think I saw him unroll another one and perform a hand seal."
"Now that you mention it, yeah, I think I remember something like that happening. But he's dead, right? That means, if this is a kinjutsu, it should be reversed, since the person who casted it is already dead! Doesn't that explain why I'm still alive?" Naruto answered, talking about the dispelled Devouring Chakra curse.
"Not all jutsus work like that, Naruto." Sakura explained, remembering the things she learned from reading jutsu books as part of her training with Tsunade. "Some jutsus' effects stay even if the user is already dead, which I suppose is the case of this kinjutsu."
Tsunade's eyes were sharp as she listened to the conversation, which was interrupted for a moment when Shizune returned to the room and handed Tsunade the list she requested.
"Thank you, Shizune." Tsunade read through it, scanning the list thoroughly.
"Sorry, Tsunade-sama, but I have to go back to the archives to check Nana-san's blood pressure. I'll be back soon." Shizune left, seeing Tsunade nod.
Brown eyes continued to scan the list. They went wide, seeing something that should not be there. "It can't be.."
"W-What's wrong, granny?" Naruto noticed the surprise in her eyes. "Is it really serious?"
"That scroll should not be existing anymore." Tsunade found four pairs of eyes staring back at her with so much apprehension. "It should've been burned years ago."
"Then, why is it still here?!" Naruto asked.
"I am asking the same question myself."
"Can you tell us what kind of kinjutsu that was, Hokage-sama?" Sakura asked curiously.
"It's a nameless technique that switches the souls of two living bodies. It wasn't created as a kinjutsu to begin with. Its effects do not fall under the criteria for a kinjutsu, that's why I'm pretty surprised it was in the archives. It was originally created as a prank, so that the user of the jutsu can, well, 'take advantage' of his victims by switching bodies with them." The words emphasized to get the real meaning across.
"What kind of sick person would develop that kind of prank?" Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and blushed as he felt how wonderfully soft his new body was. He crossed his arms tighter.
Tsunade watched Naruto's lewd expression with such disgust that she couldn't help but throw a paperweight aiming directly to his head. But he avoided it. 'Lucky bastard.' She thought. "That's not important now, is it?!"
"So, it isn't that harmful, then?" It was Tenten's turn to ask a question.
The Hokage made a quick glance at Hinata and said, "It won't be. But we can never be too sure, for that technique was only used once. The chakra system may still be disrupted, since there is no harmony with the mind, soul, and body."
"Wow granny! How come you know too much about a technique that isn't that popular?"
"Well that's not important, either." Tsunade answered quite coldly.
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama. But it doesn't seem to make any sense. Neither Naruto nor Hinata was the user of the jutsu. It was the enemy. How come Naruto didn't switch with the Octopus-guy?" Sakura asked.
"Good point, Sakura. But just like I said, this jutsu required two living bodies. Naruto might have killed the guy right after the seal was finished, so Naruto's soul was switched with someone who's still alive."
"And I'm thankful for that! I can't imagine myself living with tentacles all over my face! That's just gross! But then, why Hinata?" Naruto asked confused.
Tsunade gave him a teasing smirk and she gazed very quickly at Hinata that only Naruto noticed. "Do you really want me to answer that, Naruto?"
"I guess," Naruto felt his ears hot and looked away, scratching the tip of his nose. "T-That's also not important."
Tsunade grinned slyly.
"H-Hokage-sama, how do we, umm, switch back now that the caster of the jutsu is already dead?" Hinata's fingers continued to fidget uncontrollably.
Despite knowing fully well the situation, the leader of the Hidden Leaf couldn't help but to still feel amused looking at Hinata and Naruto acting so out of character. She had never imagined seeing an ultimately shy Naruto and a Hinata Hyuuga who was tactless and lacking social grace, but now they were standing right before her in her office. And though it was kind of entertaining, Tsunade admitted that the condition they were in would definitely affect their performance as shinobis. She sighed, not knowing how to answer Hinata's question.
"For now, you can start by searching for Kabuto." Tsunade answered.
"K-Kabuto..? Why him?" Naruto frowned at her weird response.
"So that he could Edo-Tensei that stupid squid back to life and make his decomposing ass undo the jutsu for you!" If this were a different situation, Tsunade would have laughed hard at her poorly thought out joke. They all just looked at her with their eyebrows raised in disbelief.
"Was that supposed to be a joke, Granny? Because that's definitely not funny!" Naruto barked.
"Oh yeah? Well then next time, use your head first before you rasengan someone in the head!" Tsunade was about to sprung up on her chair once again but decided to calm down. "I can't believe I'm having this kind of conversation with you. And you, I don't remember calling two Hyuugas in my office."
They followed where Tsunade's fierce eyes were darted and turned around to see Neji at the door.
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama. I don't mean to interrupt. I just…" Neji hesitated for a moment, thinking that he should've done this privately with the Hokage alone, but he needed Naruto to know. He continued, seeing that the Hokage was waiting. "I would like to request something, Hokage-sama, if it won't be too much."
"N-Neji-niisan.." Hinata gave him a worried look.
"Huh? What's that, Neji?" Naruto asked curiously.
"If it's possible, Hokage-sama, I would like to ask if we could please hide this incident from Hinata-sama's father."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, but remained silent.
"Neji-niisan!" Hinata shyly protested.
"Why, what's wrong?" Tenten asked, curious of the nature of her teammate's request.
"My uncle, Hiashi-sama, only recently re-acknowledged Hinata-sama's strength to be the heiress of his position as the clan head. He had finally seen what Hinata-sama was really capable of. In fact, he is going to start training her tomorrow." Neji went on with his explanation.
"That's great, Hinata!" Naruto remarked, which caused Hinata to blush slightly.
"It is. But if Hiashi-sama learned that not only did she fail a mission, but was also compromised more than what he knew about, she might again lose his confidence and her chance to regain the position of an heiress."
"You mean, you want Naruto to act as Hinata? That's ridiculous!" Sakura said.
"Your uncle is not stupid, Neji. Even if you hide him the truth, he'll surely notice the difference when he starts training a fake Hinata tomorrow." Tsunade pointed out.
"Hey, I'm not a fake!" Naruto exclaimed.
"The first part of the training only requires a few sparring sessions with me. I'll make sure he won't notice."
"THAT is the just the first part, Neji. We don't even know how long the curse will last." Tsunade was starting to lose her temper again at how complicated the situation was becoming. "Why are you so persistent?"
"That's… That's because I believe in Hinata-sama's strength. I've seen how hard she worked just to be acknowledged by her own father. And I want to-" But Neji was cut-off.
"Neji-niisan!"
They turned their heads toward Hinata, who remained quiet until now. "Thank you, Neji-niisan. But it's alright. I really don't mind. It's enough that father acknowledged that I can be strong, too. Hanabi-chan, she's stronger, more decisive. I-I think that… my sister will make a better clan head." Hinata smiled softly and looked down trying to conceal the sadness that's bound to be evident in her face.
Neji's face remained apathetic as he watched his cousin's faltering confidence, his clenched fists stayed hidden under his sleeves.
The room stayed quiet for a while, until Naruto spoke up. "I'll do it!"
"What?!" Tenten and Sakura said in unison.
"Are you out of your mind? How will you pretend to be Hinata? You don't even know how to be Hinata. You can't even use the Byakugan!" Tenten blurted out.
"I don't care! Hinata worked hard for this, and she deserves a chance to reach her dream. That's why I will definitely help her!" Naruto said, remembering how he also wanted to be acknowledged and achieve his dream of becoming a Hokage.
"Naruto-kun.." Hinata felt her heart pounding, and despite the things that happened, she felt happy.
Tsunade shook her head as she felt another headache coming. She couldn't believe how complicated things were becoming- from her problem with the alliance to dispelling a jutsu. Now she also had to deal with the Hyuuga's familial issues. This was getting very troublesome, so she decided to finally wrap things up. "Why are you kids so damn hardheaded? Naruto, Hinata. I'll have Shizune research about this jutsu. Expect me to summon you once again, once she finds something out. And you, Neji.."
Neji stood in attention, expecting to be reprimanded by the world's strongest kunoichi.
"Do what you seem fit, BUT you didn't come to my office to ask my help about this." Tsunade gave him a look reserved only for someone like Orochimaru when he tried to destroy Konoha. It was fierce enough that, for a moment, Neji forgot he was capable of breathing.
"Y-Yes, Hokage-sama. Thank you. I am grateful." Neji said as he wiped the sweat that formed on his forehead.
"Good boy! Now, you're all dismissed." Tsunade grinned widely.
They looked at each other surprised at the sudden change in demeanor of the Hokage, but just shrugged it off and headed towards the exit where they met Shizune who just returned from the archive room.
"Oh you're leaving already?" Shizune said as she scanned the room checking for any cracks in the walls and pillars, or if Tsunade's table was still in one piece. "Oh great! No unneeded repair expenses today." She smiled happily as she closed the door. She walked towards Tsunade who's slumped over her table looking very exhausted.
"What's wrong, Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked, handing her another document she found at the archive.
"It's just the start of the day and I'm pretty beat. What's this?"
"These are the descriptions of the stolen scrolls. It seems that Naruto and Hinata's curse wears off once the moon is full, which is two weeks from now." Shizune explained. "Nana-san lent it to me as thanks for the medicines I gave her for her blood pressure. I'm surprised to see that Jiraiya-sama's scroll was included. I thought you said The Third burnt it years ago?"
"I thought so, too." Tsunade frowned, scolding herself inwardly for forgetting that her late master was one closet pervert, too.
She could still remember waking up one night aghast when she saw herself in Jiraiya's body, and that her own body was running naked in one of the forest in the Land of Sound, where they stopped over for a D-class mission. Jiraiya refused to return her body, but did so when she threatened him that she would literally rip his balls off with her own hands if he didn't. Jiraiya was able to save his twin testicles in exchange for a few broken ribs, swollen eyeballs, and dislocated shoulders. Their sensei, the Third Hokage, confiscated the scroll, labeling it as a kinjutsu, because of the 'harm' it could cause the user. And by harm, he meant being violently castrated by a deranged female victim. According to Nana-san, the Third thought of burning the scroll, but saved it for 'future' (lewd) purposes.
Tsunade's fist was curled into a ball, but soon found herself smiling, remembering the old days. But the smile quickly disappeared and her heart suddenly felt heavy. Maybe she wouldn't mind falling victim to the jutsu once again, if that meant seeing her sensei and a very good friend once more.
oooxXxooo
"Thank you, Neji-niisan, for what you said back there." Hinata said as they threaded the quiet road of Konoha. Sakura and Tenten went their own ways, leaving the three of them to walk home together.
Neji glanced sideways to his cousin, who unfortunately was still inside Naruto's body, and a small smile crept to his face.
They had been walking in an awkward silence for a while now, with only a few small talks about the weather to break the ice. "I'll see you in the compound, Naruto." And with that, Neji walked off and left the two of them alone.
"Hey! Where the hell are you going?" Naruto shouted. "What's wrong with your cousin?"
Hinata blushed realizing that she was walking alone with Naruto, under a setting sun that looked incredibly romantic.
"Um, I would also like to thank you, Naruto-kun. You don't have to do this for me. I'm sure father would understand." Hinata said blushing a little more.
Naruto scratched the back of his head, feeling embarassed. "No need to thank me. I should be the one thanking you for saving me back there."
"I-I don't think I saved you, Naruto-kun. I only injured myself and fainted, and the switch really wouldn't happen if I didn't run after him by myself."
"No! No! If you didn't do it, I think I would've done something more stupid and have myself killed without getting any scrolls back. You're really brave, Hinata. I owe you another one. So let me do this. Somehow I feel responsible. Let me carry some of the weight for you."
"T-Thank you, Naruto-kun." Her face turned another shade of red that would make tomatoes jealous.
"But really, Hinata.." He paused. How his voice suddenly sounded forlorn caused Hinata to look at him in the eye. "You should stop risking your life for me."
Hinata just stared at him silently and bit her lip unsure of what to say. "Is it… Is it because you can't like me back?" She said in almost a whisper. Hinata compared it to receiving gifts from someone you knew you didn't have feelings for- you would soon feel the guilt itching, not wanting to receive anything anymore.
"Huh?" Naruto stared back.
"Ah, I-I'm sorry! I didn't say anything!" Hinata said, frantically waving her hands.
"Oh, alright." Naruto didn't say anything else.
They continued walking in silence, until they reached Naruto's house, where Hinata would stay while Naruto was pretending to be her at her own house.
"That's my room right there." Naruto pointed to the opened window on the second floor of an old building. "I didn't know this'll happen, so I didn't do any cleaning. Sorry."
"That's alright." Hinata said still looking a bit sad. "Thank you, Naruto-kun for letting me use your house."
"No problem. I'm going to stay in yours anyway." He grinned.
"I guess I'll go, then." Hinata marched towards the stairs and turned back hearing Naruto call her name.
"Hinata!"
"Y-Yes?"
"There are cup noodles in the cupboard near the sink. Feel free to eat them, if you like." Naruto closed the distance to them once again, close enough for him not to shout.
"Thank you, Naruto-kun. See you soon." She resumed her steps going to the stairs, when Naruto called her again.
"Hinata!"
"What is it Naruto-kun?"
"The stove, you have to turn the knob twice for it to work. I haven't bought a new one, yet, sorry." His grin still plastered perfectly in his face.
Hinata's lips curved upward, and she felt her ears warm.
"That's not a problem. Thank you, Naruto-kun."
She turned around, when Naruto called her one last time. This time it was louder and sounded more urgent.
"What is it, Naruto-kun?" Her smile slowly disappeared as she saw Naruto looking at her seriously. There was a slight tinge of red on his cheeks that Hinata couldn't understand the reason for.
"It's not like that." Naruto swallowed hard. "It's not like that at all."
"W-what do you mean?"
"It's not because I couldn't like you back. You are remarkably likable, Hinata. You are kind, pretty, and strong. I don't want you to risk your life for me because… I don't think I will be able to handle it. I don't want to see you getting hurt, and I don't think I can forgive myself if anything happens to you because of me. You're important…to me…that's what I'm trying to say, I guess." Naruto looked away from the intensity of Hinata's gaze and scratched the tip of his nose. "Okay, that's it! I have to go!"
Naruto ran so fast that in a matter of seconds, he disappeared from Hinata's line of sight. Hinata was left standing still at the bottom of the stairs, where she stayed for a few more minutes, pondering about what Naruto just said. She took one deep shaky breath and proceeded to the stairs. She almost fell, missing the third step, but it's fine. That moment was her happiest, and she wouldn't mind falling down the stairs and hurt herself just to know she wasn't dreaming.
He hadn't told her he liked her yet, but she was already on top of the world.
oooxXxooo
"Good evening, Otou-sama~~~ I just got home from the hospital. I was hurt pretty badly during the mission, but I'm fine now~~~"
Neji closed his eyes, shaking his head, at the gruesome sight of Naruto poorly impersonating his cousin. Naruto was exaggeratedly fidgety, and his voice, although sounding like Hinata, was like a cat trying to find a mate.
"I'm sorry, Hiashi-sama. Hinata-sama, she has… worms." He looked apologetically to the Hyuuga clan head darting him a questioning look.
"Worms?" Hiashi raised an eyebrow, but his face continued to be stern.
"Yes. He, I mean, she developed them from eating raw sea creatures during the mission." Neji swallowed hard, when Hiashi turned his gaze to Naruto.
"My stomach hurts~~ I think I need some rest. Goodnight, Otou-sama!"
And with that, Naruto rushed toward his new room with Neji following behind. The clan head missed the burning rage in Neji's eyes, for Hiashi turned around and called to the maid, telling her to cook the fish thoroughly.