Chapter 9

Hinata stirred as light from the gap between the curtains struck her face. She wanted to roll over, stuff her face into the pillow, and sleep until her father ordered her to come for breakfast. It was no use. She was awake. She sat up slowly, and nudged Hanabi's shoulder with her toes.

Hanabi cursed and began to snore lightly once more. Hinata opened her eyes fully. That was not Hanabi. Her sister would never risk the disapproval of their father by being caught swearing. And anyway, it had been many years since Hanabi had slept in the same bed as her.

This was not her room either. No, this was a hotel room. She had come with Sasuke's team, as their hostage, Hinata remembered. They were in Saishe. The city was packed, the hotels bursting, because of the festival. Even thought it was supposed to be a celebration of the harvest, and the majority of Saishe's residents had never stepped foot on a working farm, the city still put out lanterns and stalls and entertainment. They had been hard-pressed to find a hotel room, and by the time they had finally found one in a rather shady district of the town, sleep had been the only thing on their minds. Hinata didn't think she would have ended up sharing her bed otherwise. Now, the morning after, Hinata wasn't feeling as compliant.

She made her way to the window, and lifted up a corner of the moth-eaten curtain so that a ray of bright sunlight shone directly onto Karin's face. Karin tried to roll over, but she ended up falling out of the bed and landing with a loud thump that made Hinata wince in almost-sympathy. Almost. She realized she had never disliked anyone as much as Karin. She hardly knew her, and yet she couldn't stand her. The comments that the kunoichi had made about her yesterday still stung.

As said kunoichi struggled to free herself from the tangle of her bed sheets, Hinata turned her attention back to the window. From here it was impossible to see the city's center, where the festivities were being held. But even in these poorer districts, people seemed happier and more carefree. Hinata felt a longing nostalgic feeling settle over her. In past years, Konohagakure had also taken part in the festival. But now that the village was gearing up for war, that luxury had been postponed.

Two laughing children ran underneath with colorful balloons, their parents trailing contentedly behind, hands locked, leaning on each other. Hinata wished she could escape through this window, and run away as well, but she was trapped. Last night, practically as soon as they had stepped through the city's walls, Sasuke had steered them to a freelance ninja supply store, and bought a freshly made chakra sensor seal. There was a black kanji character branded on the underside of Hinata's wrist now, and it wouldn't go away until Sasuke himself erased it with his own chakra. If Hinata strayed too far from Sasuke, he would know, and it would lead him straight to her.

"You!" Karin shrieked at her and stabbed an accusing finger into Hinata's face. "You did that on purpose," she spat, looking positively demented.

Inside, Hinata quailed from the dangerous look in the other girl's eyes, but she cultivated her expression to be as blank as possible. If anything, this infuriated Karin even more. Luckily, she was spared by a heavy knock on the door. Karin's expression did a one-eighty. She quickly smoothed down her tousled bed-hair, straightened her glasses, beat uselessly at the creases in her travel clothes, and practically flew to open the door.

It was Jūgo. Hinata resisted laughing aloud as she saw Karin's shoulders droop slightly. Jūgo looked a little bemused at Karin's downcast expression so early in the morning. "Er… Sasuke wants you and me to search the city for Kabuto," he said, hesitantly.

Karin nodded. "What about her?" She jerked her head backwards to indicate Hinata. Jūgo's gaze shifted back to Hinata. He seemed to smile apologetically, and then he addressed her directly, over the top of Karin's head. "Sasuke wants you to meet him on the hotel roof."

"Come on," Karin said, and pushed Jūgo out of the doorway. They were gone.

Hinata also walked out into the hallway of the hotel, shutting the door behind her. She climbed the stairs to the hotel roof, wondering what Sasuke had in store for her. She reached the top of the stairwell. The door leading to the rooftop was ajar and as she came closer she heard Sasuke talking with someone. She stopped and activated her Byakugan. It was the snake spy! She listened intently.

"…back later, Jatai," Sasuke was saying. "The Hyūga girl is supposed to meet me up here soon."

"I'll make it quick, Uchiha. I've received some interesting information… about Danzo."

There was a brief pause. "Go on."

"Our informant tells us that Danzo is practically a Hokage these days. He's even taken custody of the Uzumaki boy and Tsunade is powerless to stop him. If you want to avenge Itachi, you should act before Danzo assembles his own army."

"Hn. Do you have any idea where Kabuto is?"

"None, I'm afraid. I could go look for him, if you wish it."

"I'd rather you get more information on Danzou. Make sure the Hyūga is still…enthusiastic about playing our informant. I'm going to make Konoha regret giving Itachi that mission…" Sasuke's voice trailed off.

Hinata clapped a hand over her mouth. She couldn't help it. She had gasped aloud when she heard that, on top of everything, Neji was spying for Sasuke. And Naruto… Poor Naruto had been captured by Danzou! Hinata barely had time to finish that thought when Sasuke's form appeared in the doorway, casting a long shadow of her. She took a step backwards. Her heel met open air as she neared the top of the stairs, and Hinata teetered uncertainly.

Sasuke bridged the distance between them. Bright sunlight was shining behind him, shadowing his face. Hinata couldn't see his expression, only the bright red of his Sharingan. The black snake, Jatai, was coiled around his neck. He flicked his tongue out, once, twice, then vanished in a small cloud of white smoke, leaving Hinata and Sasuke alone.

"How much did you hear?" Sasuke asked, his voice cold.

Hinata quivered and hung her head. "Neji… Neji's spying for you?" Hinata was shocked. If, before this, someone had told her that Neji would betray Konoha, she would have thought they were crazy.

"He's doing it for you. His dear little cousin." Sasuke's voice was heavy with irony. And something else harder to identify: sadness…? Hinata wished she could see his face.

"Is…is that what this is about?" Hinata said quietly. "Are you….upset about I-Itachi's death?"

Sasuke made a noise in the back of his throat like a low snarl, and he moved forward again. Hinata's heel slipped on the edge of the top stairs. She began to fall.

Sasuke grabbed her wrist, pulled her to him, held her there.

A sudden, unexpected gust of wind blew through the stairwell and the door leading to the rooftop slammed shut, leaving them in darkness.

"Konoha deserves to burn for what they did to him." Sasuke's voice was strained with barely hidden rage.

Hinata tried to push him away uselessly. "Wh-what do you mean what they did? What about you? You killed him. He…he sl-slaughtered your family. Why are you destroying Konoha in the name of his revenge?" Hinata's voice was shaking uncontrollably now.

He released her wrist and backed away. "You wouldn't understand," Sasuke said, and in his eyes Hinata once again saw the intense network of chakra vessels. She searched deeper into the red pools of his eyes, noticing absentmindedly that they had widened in surprise.

There! Hinata had found it. Twin chakra nodes, buried in the pupils of Sasuke's eyes. If she applied her Gentle First technique there, would it really deactivate Sasuke's Sharingan?

Without thinking, Hinata drew chakra to her fingertips, and with the unerring agility and accuracy of a Hyūga warrior, darted out and brushed her fingertips lightly over Sasuke's eyes, which had shut reflexively.

When Sasuke opened his eyes again, all traces of the Sharingan had disappeared.

Kiba's eyes widened, and he signaled to Shino, just as Akamaru barked. A moving target, with Hinata's scent on it, was drawing closer. Kiba, Shino and Akamaru stopped their flight through the trees, and stood still on the branches in wait.

"It looks like it might be one of Sasuke's comrades," Kiba said to Shino. Shino nodded. He had already begun to send out his bugs to find out information.

"He's water-oriented. Carrying a large sword. Seems de-hydrated and fatigued." Shino reported in a clipped tone, seconds later. Whoever it was, wasn't far. Kiba sniffed the air, but all he could catch was the scent of saltwater, even though they were very far from the sea.

"Do we have a plan on this or are we just going to wing it? I'm fine either way," Kiba grinned toothily and cracked his knuckles.

Akamaru whimpered a little, and Shino's glasses glinted in the sunlight as he pushed them up the bridge of his nose, like he always did when he was frustrated with Kiba's antics. "I'd prefer a plan. As Akamaru has no doubt noted, our target has a formidable chakra. You and Akamaru will attack him head-on, since close combat is your strength. Try to disarm him of that weapon he is carrying. Meanwhile I will find an opening and enervate the target with my kikaichū."

"Enervate…?"

"Debilitate."

"Uhh…." The Inuzuka exchanged looks with Akamaru. The dog had transformed into a slightly more beastly version of himself in preparation of the battle.

"Just shut up and go. He's here. And remember, we need him alive if we want him to lead us to Hinata."

The target had indeed appeared on the forest floor down below. He was walking with a dejected slouch, huge sword trailing behind, leaving a deep rut behind it in the ground.

Howling ferociously, Kiba dropped down from his perch in the trees, followed closely by Akamaru. They didn't allow the target time to react. Together, man and dog launched at their opponent in a whirlwind of claws and fangs, tearing straight through the purple-clad ninja. The sound was strangely…wet.

When Kiba turned around to assess the damage he had inflicted, he nearly had kittens. There was a gaping hole in the ninja's body where their whirlwind had ripped through. But instead of leaking blood and guts, water was spewing out. It wasn't like a water clone would be, which would have dissolved already into a puddle of water. This man seemed to be made of water.

"Ahh… and I was already de-hydrated." The ninja sighed and turned around. As he did, water began to gather in his wound. It seemed to solidify, then it took on the appearance of flesh once more.

"F-freak," Kiba muttered. Now he realized why the smell of seawater was so strong.

The white haired ninja grinned, his shark-like teeth putting Kiba's own fangs to shame. He hefted the huge sword onto his shoulder, and then attacked, swinging wildly. Kiba dodged it, then clawed at the ninja's shoulder. It was no use. Any wounds he inflicted just kept regenerating.

He's de-hydrated. Does that mean he'll eventually run out of water? Thinking stuff through like this is more Shino's thing! I just need to keep this guy occupied while Shino does his bug thing. Kiba's nose had picked up the scent of Shino's bugs already creeping onto their target's body.

The shark ninja swung again, this time barely missing Akamaru. First things first, that sword has to go. Kiba and Akamaru combined into a whirlwind again, this time completely taking off the ninja's sword arm. The sword fell to the floor amidst a puddle of water. Kiba picked it up with both hands, and with enormous effort, managed to throw it into the surrounding foliage, even as their target's arm grew back. That thing was heavy!

The shark ninja yowled in fury, then attacked Kiba and Akamaru with renewed ferocity. He seemed to have some sort of jutsu that enlarged his arms, turning them bulging and disproportionate. Even with Kiba and Akamaru working together, it was difficult countering the long range of those arms. Shino needed to hurry up. In the span of a second, when Kiba's attention flicked up to where Shino was standing in the shadows, the ninja had wrapped a humongous hand around Akamaru's neck, and pinned him against a tree trunk.

"Are you the real one? Or the clone?" The shark ninja growled. Wood splintered as he pushed Akamaru harder and harder against the tree.

"Akamaru!" Kiba howled, and launched himself at the white-haired boy, only to be thrown back by his other arm. Akamaru, overwhelmed by the pain, transformed back into a dog.

The ninja laughed. "And you think I'm the freak?" He tossed Akamaru away. The dog hit another tree and crumpled to the ground unconscious.

Seconds later, the shark ninja also collapsed, his arms shrinking back to their normal size.

"Took you long enough!" Kiba yelled at Shino, who had dropped to the forest floor.

"Don't bother moving," Shino told the ninja. "Why? Because even as we speak, my kikaichū are devouring your chakra. If they get a little too eager…" Shino let his voice trail off suggestively.

"Bastard…" The white-haired ninja muttered. But he did not move. He had become aware of the miniscule black insects covering his body. "First that Hyūga chick, and now these creepy bugs? Ugh…this is really gross…"

Meanwhile, Kiba was crouched anxiously over Akamaru's body. The dog was still unconscious, and one of his hind legs was twisted at an awkward angle. It must have broken when he hit the tree. Kiba resisted the urge to tear out the shark ninja's throat. He was their only lead to Hinata right now and he needed to stay alive. But with Akamaru's broken leg, how would they reach Hinata anyway? He wished he knew how to heal dogs, like his big sister Hana.

He voiced the problem to Shino and the Aburame sighed. "No choice, we have to go back to the village." When Kiba looked mutinous at the thought of abandoning Hinata, he quickly added, "We can't travel with Akamaru's leg broken. And with this hostage, we'll be able to find Hinata."

Kiba nodded reluctantly. "Wait for us, Hinata," he said softly.

Sasuke blinked in shock. He couldn't believe it. Had she just… turned off his Sharingan?

"What have you done?" Sasuke tried to re-activate his Sharingan, but it was as if his bloodline technique had deserted him, leaving him powerless. He turned to Hinata and was infuriated to find that her lips were slightly upturned into a victorious smile. Her lavender eyes were shining, her face glowing. It was unbelievable.

"Reverse this," he said, emphasizing every word. In one swift movement he had unsheathed his katana and pressed it to her throat. Sasuke smirked when she paled immediately, all traces of a smile vanishing.

"Y-you won't kill me," she gasped. "You need my eyes."

"I need my own eyes more. So reverse it."

"First, t-tell me: whyare you a-avenging Uchi…Uchiha Itachi?" Hinata's frightened eyes were fixed on the blade at her throat. They closed briefly in relief when it was withdrawn.

There was the sound of steel as Sasuke sheathed his katana. "I'll tell you. So do it."

Hinata approached hesitantly, lifting shaking chakra-laden hands to Sasuke's hands. Sasuke retreated immediately, his back hitting the roof door. Hinata withdrew her hands. Her expression was sympathetic, telling him not to be afraid, to trust her. His panic lessened inexplicably.

"Do anything else and I'll cut out your eyes and give them to Kabuto," he said, but he knew it was an empty threat. Hinata approached again. The last thing he saw before he shut his eyes were her dusky lavender eyes, coming closer.

He felt her lay cool, shaking fingertips on his eyelids. "This may h-hurt a bit," she stammered quickly. Before he could stop her she had sent a jolt of chakra into both of his eyes. The chakra ran forcefully through his chakra vessels, removing the blockage. He groaned aloud. The sensation was akin to being hit by a strong water jutsu, but the pressure was focused on his eyes. Chest heaving, he leaned his head back on the stairwell wall and opened his eyes. They were red once more.

For a moment there was just the sound of Sasuke and Hinata's heavy breathing. Then, the silence was broken by the sudden rumbling of Hinata's stomach. Breakfast was late in coming. Hinata quickly released Sasuke and stepped away, hugging her arms around her middle. Even in the dark, Sasuke could see that her face was red with embarrassment. He smirked and walked past her, to the stairs.

"W-wait!" She said timidly. "T-tell me why you're aveng—"

"I'll tell you," Sasuke interrupted impatiently, looking back at her. He turned and began to walk down the stairs. "While we eat. "

Hinata took a deep breath, willed her hands to stop shaking, and followed.

Reviews would be greatly appreciated! I'm glad people seem to be enjoying this so far and I'd love to hear what you think.