Warning: NaruHina ahead, y'all. :D Also, this chapter's hot off the press… meaning it hasn't been looked over very thoroughly. So any mistakes should definitely be reported. Kthnx!
Prodigals
Chapter 09
Frustration of the Situation
"Fine! I'll be going then."
She turned on her heel and started to walk away. Sasuke was watching her leave with no emotion on his face. His eyes were trained on her back as she form became smaller and smaller in the distance. Five minutes later, her form blurred; she was long gone.
"What the fuck was that?!"
He didn't know when it happened, just that suddenly, Naruto was in his face, and he looked really pissed. Sasuke, in contrast to the blonde's concentrated anger, was floating in a state of semi-denial and disbelief. He hadn't really thought – he knew that his words were harsh, but he hadn't wanted her to just – go –
A large hand latched on to the front of his shirt, a hand he barely recognized as Naruto's own, and pulled him even closer to the blonde than before. Angry, red chakra pulsed from his teammate as Sasuke idly traced the whisker-marked cheeks with his eyes. Yes, this was definitely not happening. A simple dream. Naruto's canines really weren't growing at an alarming rate, and his eyes weren't turning the color of plum wine, the vibrant blue having been pierced with hellish scarlet –
His head met the hard wood of a tree some distance away, one of the few in the landscape. Sasuke barely registered this. Hinata was gone. As he endeavored to think of anything but his missing partner, the pain came like an electric shock.
"Ow." A droplet of blood slid down his face. A shadow fell over him slowly. His vision was colorfully spotted at the moment, so he could only recognize his teammate by his halo of blonde hair, outlined by the sun, and the pulsing energy.
"I don't know what you did. But whatever the fuck it was, she'd better come back."
The steamed Naruto stomped away, intent on Rasengan'ing some trees into dust to work off his excess anger. Sasuke continued to drift in his world of non-reality, his subconscious mind wondering how badly he had screwed things up this time.
-
The next few days were a grey blur of pointless action for Sasuke. Since they had escaped together, they'd been separated before, but always with the intent to meet up again soon. It didn't look like that was the case here. Hinata had been his best friend for the past – almost four years, soon. They'd been through just about anything two people could do together, barring intercourse. She was – Hinata! He'd been such an imbecile – of course, to admit that to anyone but himself was not an option.
For Naruto, it was a constant attempt to keep himself from attacking his best friend. How the man could have been so incredibly idiotic was beyond him! And this was the genius of their graduating class? There was no hope for the rest of them, then.
"You don't mind if I lie low here, do you?"
"Do what you want, ero-sennin. What you do is no business of mine."
"Oh, lighten up! I'll even help you with your mission."
"You don't have to."
The gloomy tone hadn't left Naruto's voice. Jiraiya grimaced. This was getting really frickin' ridiculous.
"Sure I do! I'll even teach you a new jutsu…"
"Not interested."
Jiraiya choked on his next breath. "WHAT? Where is Naruto? What did you do with him?!"
"Oh, ha ha," said the blonde sourly. "I know you mean well… but honestly… could you just leave me alone?"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"She's going to come back, Naruto."
"…I have to go on patrol. See you later."
Hinata panted heavily, leaning on the newly-won prize of her last fight. She felt a flicker of pride – her infamous opponent was out cold and missing a limb, while she had gotten away – well, not exactly clean, but close enough. She probably wouldn't even need to use Gobi's chakra to heal her wounds. Her clothes though, were getting to be pretty tattered.
Humming lightly, she made to stow her prize away in a summoning scroll but halted when her ears caught the sound of a rustle in the bushes behind her.
"Helloooo? If you've come for a fight, you should just show yourself," she called out lazily.
A man? No, just a boy, a teenager. He was glaring at her and her spoils angrily.
"Where did you find that sword?!"
It seemed that Naruto's urges to kill or at least maim him had faded significantly. The glaring didn't stop, however, and neither did the cold shoulder. It had seemed so unimportant when he was in the Academy and had done the same to the blonde – but being on the other end was tougher than he had imagined. He felt his guilt at his childhood jerk-ness toward Naruto added on to the guilt he felt because of Hinata. Wow, he was a jackass.
Jiraiya spent his time keeping Naruto company and attempting to cheer the blonde up, to no avail. Naruto spent his time doing his duties above and beyond high-quality standards, because since Hinata had left and he was pissed at Sasuke, that was all he had to do.
It had been one week since Hinata's departure.
There wasn't tension so much as there was – unused energy, Sasuke mused. What he had mistaken for tension was actually all the hyperactive liveliness that Naruto usually used in abundance which was now just sitting there. It was getting to be unbearable.
Naruto and Sasuke were retiring to their room after a long day of patrolling and investigation. There had been no new kidnappings so far, but there had not been much progress in the way of discovering where the other children were. Their mission was at a stalemate, which only added to the frustration of the situation.
"I need a word with Jiraiya," mumbled Naruto when they had reached their door. "I'll be back in a bit." Naruto moved down the hall toward the room that Jiraiya had paid for, not wanting to go back to his own room just yet. He hadn't slept at all since Hinata had left.
Sasuke stifled a sigh as he entered – they were very uncool, after all, and he still had some of his reputation to maintain – and immediately stiffened.
He was not alone.
Sliding into a crouch, he made his way silently around the corner. Whoever it was must've been particularly stupid, because they'd fallen asleep in the very room in which they'd been snooping, thought Sasuke disgustedly as he stood up. Buried under the covers and blankets of Naruto's bed, they looked rather harmless. Honestly, who was dumb enough –
Unless…
"Hinata!"
Her eyes snapped open as Sasuke ripped the comforter away from her, grinning. "You're back!"
"I was sleeping, you know that?"
"It's been awful without you –"
"Is that a grin on your face? What happened?"
"I can't believe I was such an idiot!"
"…wha?"
"Look, what I'm trying to say is, I'm sorry. I was a jackass."
She looked at him for a long, hard moment. Then her hand flicked toward him as her Byakugan blazed.
"Kai!" she near-shouted, slamming a fistful of chakra into his chest. He hissed in pain and stumbled backward, then grinned again, though it was strained. "It's really me, I promise!"
"Is this a mind control jutsu? Have you been brainwashed?" Hinata wasn't talking to Sasuke so much as going through the possible explanations for his current state – that is, grinning and apologetic. There was no trace of a joke in his eyes, just – happiness?
"Sasuke?" she managed, looking up at him. His smile was a bit faded, but still there – prominent on his usually scowling face. "Was it really that bad without me?"
"Yes," he said firmly.
She smiled shyly, reminiscent of her younger self. Her cheeks were even slightly pink as she gazed up at him through her lashes. It was nice to be missed.
"Sorry I ran away, it was really childish."
"Sorry I said what I did, I was being an idiot – and I was just worried about you."
"I know." She looked up at him. "Best friends?"
"Best friends forever."
There was a moment of silence as they looked at each other awkwardly.
"Umm…"
"This never happened."
"Right."
-
"So how long've I got?" asked Naruto, observing his teacher coolly. Jiraiya sighed. He had just spent the better part of an hour doing some tests and examining Naruto's seal. The results helped to narrow down the possible outcomes, but not significantly. "I'm still not exactly sure… I'm inclined to say longer rather than shorter, but who knows, with chakra like the Kyuubi's. If you use a substantial amount of its chakra anymore, you'll be bringing yourself closer and closer to death, I know that for sure."
"Well, that's not altogether a bad thing, right?"
"What?"
"I mean, let's face it. I house the most feared demon on the planet, the one who killed the greatest Hokage Konoha has ever seen – no, the greatest Kage in the Godaikoku, period. So many more people will be safe once I'm dead. There will never be a chance for the Kyuubi to break free, or for me to lose control… because I just won't be there." Naruto's tone was matter-of-fact, almost amused, as if he was talking to a small child and attempting to explain a difficult topic. The Sannin huffed angrily.
"If you're going to talk like that, I don't want to see you," he said sharply. "Go and get some rest – I don't think I can be around you without breaking your face in."
Silently, with that little smile still on his face that made Jiraiya queasy, Naruto exited, heading to his room with the hope that he could get a couple hours of sleep tonight.
He opened the door to the room he shared with Sasuke and heard the shower running. Rounding the corner of the small entryway in which he had removed his shoes, Naruto paused. Had Sasuke left the shower on? Because it looked like someone was curled up in the bed.
"Sasuke?" he called out.
"Yes?" came the muffled response from within the bathroom. Naruto narrowed his eyes and pounced. The person underneath him froze instantly and he held a kunai to where he approximated his or her throat to be. A set of pale, dainty fingers gripped the top of the comforter and pulled it down to reveal the identity of the intruder. He stared at her for a minute.
"…Hinata…"
"Hello," she said, as meek as her twelve-year-old self as she looked up at him. She tucked a bit of hair behind her ear and looked away from him, but he contorted his body so that he could still look into her eyes.
"I was… really worried about you," he murmured. "Please, look at me."
"I'm sorry," she said. That familiar blush was creeping up her neck to stain her cheeks – this was still Hinata. The thought softened the hard line of his mouth into a soft smile. The blush deepened from pale to dark pink.
"I'm sorry," she repeated. "I didn't mean to leave, I was just so upset at that idiot. What he said…" She trailed off weakly. It still hurt.
"What did he say?" His mellow tone and soft demeanor instantly vanished. "I'll make him wish he never said it," Naruto promised darkly.
"What he said… will stay between us, I think," she said, wincing. "Things said in anger are the most true, I think that's why it hurt me so bad."
"I don't care if it was true or not, Hinata. I just care that he hurt you, and I don't want anything to hurt you. Not now, not ever."
"In our line of work, that sort of thing is unavoid –"
"I don't care!"
The kunai dropped to the floor with a loud thump but neither of them paid attention. His hands went up the sides of her face and the pads of his thumbs brushed over her cheeks. Her face heated as his show of tenderness.
"I've never had this sort of feeling before, so I can't explain it very well," he said lowly. "I've never really known anything about…people. Always been clueless like that. And I really don't know anything useful about the opposite sex from my teachers, who are all horrendous perverts… all I can do is try to explain what I feel about you… that every time I look at you, I feel like – like I'm going to be okay, because somebody cares – really cares - for me, since the very beginning, when almost everybody else hated me. And that if anything should ever happen to that completeness that you give me, I'll shatter into a million pieces and nobody'll be able to put me back together. I can't lose you, Hinata. Not after just finding you!" he finished hoarsely, breaking away from her shocked gaze. He laid his head down next to hers, staring intently into the comforter of the bed.
"Naruto…" she said, so soft he almost missed it. Her fingers raked through his bangs gently and he turned his head to look at her.
"I know it's quick, Hinata, I know that you just got back and you probably aren't –"
"Are you sure that I'm what you want?" she asked him. For the first time in several years, she dropped all of her defenses and just looked at him with all her vulnerabilities bare. Her eyes were both full of mysteries and yet so very open to him. She really wasn't like all the other Hyuuga…
"I don't want you to decide a few weeks from now that I bore you, and that it's over, because I couldn't take that. Don't break me, Naruto. Please. Make sure this is what you want before we take this any further." Her lips trembled.
He looked hurt. "Hinata…"
"Please," she begged him. "I've cared about you for so long… if you…if you were to…gods, I don't even know. Just… take some time for me, okay?"
"If that's what you want, of course I'll respect your wishes," he said suddenly, rolling off of her to lie on the bed next to hers.
"Naruto…" she sat up and leaned over him. Her hair fell like a curtain and tickled his cheek. "Don't think I don't want this. I do, more than anything," she finished with a bit of a purr. Leaning down with her lips pursed, Hinata brushed her mouth over his own, sweet and feather-light. He stared at her. She smiled beautifully.
"Goodnight!" Hinata said with a yawn as she curled up right next to him. Her forehead was pressed against his ribcage gently; he could just barely bend his head and he would have buried his nose in her hair.
"'Night," he replied, both amazed and confused at this wonderful turn of events. Within minutes Hinata's breathing had deepened sufficiently so that he assumed she had fallen asleep, and Sasuke emerged from the bathroom.
"Gee-ez," he said. "Could you take a little longer next time?"
"Shut up…jerk…" said Naruto dreamily, not really paying attention to him at all. All his thoughts were currently revolving around the brunette beauty lying next to him.
"Took you two long enough. She's only loved you since she was eight years old."
"Ye – what?!"
"Man, she's been head over heels for you since our third year in the Academy," said Sasuke.
"That long?! I thought – maybe just before she'd left –"
"You underestimate your denseness and her shyness," the Avenger told him plainly. "Why do you think she could barely speak a word to you without fainting? Because she was afraid of you?"
"Well…yeah."
"Dumbass," said Sasuke, almost affectionately. "Try not to act too much like a lovesick fool. I may vomit."
"Oh, poor widdle Sasu-kins! No need to be jealous, I'm sure Sakura-chan will fall into your arms sooner or later…"
"…"
"Cat got your tongue?"
"…I'm afraid I haven't the faintest clue what you're talking about," Sasuke said disdainfully, bending down to hide his tiny blush. "But I'm sure I should be offended." He pulled the other bed away from the blonde, forcing him to wrap his arms around Hinata so that she wouldn't fall and hit her head. Naruto glared at Sasuke with his own blush.
"What are you doing?" he hissed quietly, trying not to wake Hinata up. She was stirring restlessly, pressing closer to him, which made him extremely nervous. It was simultaneously a nice sort of nervousness and a guilty one, because while it was quite enjoyable for him physically, mentally, he knew that Hinata didn't realize what she was doing or the effect she was having on him, so it felt like he was taking advantage of her somehow. That feeling of guilt was amplified by the state of their fledgling relationship – new. Delicate. Tenuous. Not at all ready for something so physically intimate. Never mind that they had been in this position several times two weeks previously.
"Being affronted by your commentary, I've decided to put some distance between us," said the Avenger with a smirk. "Goodnight."
Naruto did his best to keep his embrace innocent and then attempted to sleep.
When Hinata woke up the next morning, she was alone. She also had a pounding headache.
"Uggh…"
"Good morning, sunshine."
"Screw off."
"I see somebody's in a mood!" Sasuke said with a smirk. It was unseen, because Hinata refused to poke her head outside of the covers.
"Do I need more descriptive language?" she rasped out, as if suffering a hangover. "Fu –"
"No need to get vulgar. A little overindulgence, then?"
"…go 'way…"
"Expend a bit too much of a certain chakra?"
"…let it go…"
"Are you, perhaps, suffering as a result of your idiotic – wha!"
Hinata sat on his chest, cutting off his airflow and glaring at him with tired, angry eyes. "If you don't have a solution to my awful migraine, shut the hell up. Also, I still don't regret what I did, so don't expect me to fall for your little self-serving guilt trip, got it?"
He nodded, slightly blue in the face. She leaned back on her knees, releasing some of the pressure. "Good. Now get Naruto and Jiraiya-sama in here while I wash up. We've got a lot to talk about."
-
Hinata emerged from the bathroom just as Naruto and Jiraiya entered the room, her partner trailing behind. Sasuke frowned at her.
"What happened to your other clothes?"
"Got ruined," she said simply. "This outfit was kindly borrowed to me."
She was wearing a halter dress made of tough, black material that shined a bit in the light. It zipped up the front and stopped at the middle of her thighs; underneath that was a full mesh bodysuit. She was also wearing short black boots and black gloves.
"'Got ruined'? That stuff was custom-made, very hard to –"
"Look, I was in a fight or two and my clothes were unsalvageable, alright? Geez, mom."
Sasuke grumbled under his breath but left the problem alone. For now.
"Anyway, I stopped at the monastery, Sasuke, and I managed to pick up some things that may help us."
"Did you see –" He stopped midsentence and looked away from her. "Never mind."
"Did I see who?"
"I said never mind."
"Did I see jackass Iwagetsu? Why yes, yes I did. He was just as much of an ass as he always is. Thanks for your concern."
"Why do you hate that man so much?" Sasuke asked, scowling at her.
"Well gee, I don't know, just maybe it's because he combines all the things I hate about the men in my life! First off, he believes that Fate is unalterable, so that's my father and my cousin; second, he's possibly the most sexist man on the planet, which is my father and cousin again, and even a little bit of you, Sasuke dear; and finally, he's a pervert of the worst form, which is just too many men in my life to think about right now! And you'd think – you'd think – he'd have the goddamn decency to do all of these things separately, but no! They all culminate in the most humiliating, degrading, and infuriating three seconds of my life when he blatantly gropes me, says that Fate made him do it, and then tells me to make him a fucking sandwich!"
Sasuke paused, taking in her features – the nearly-clawed hand digging into the wood of the table, the dark violet tint that was slowly blooming in her eyes, the tightness of her face – and then looked at her strangely.
"When did that ever happen?"
Hinata, both hands now in her hair, tearing at it furiously at the pure injustice of the mere thought of being in that man's presence, face flushed angrily, turned to stare at him. Her eyes were wide in her utter disbelief, mouth hanging open ever so slightly. Without a sound she leapt at him.
"AAAARGH!"
"Do-these-work?!" she yelled furiously, staring into his eyes and shaking his head. "What-is-so-great-about-them?!" She punctuated each work with a firm shake.
"What the hell, Hinata!"
"I don't understand why Orochimaru would want these useless things!"
Naruto and Jiraiya were both laughing as Hinata assaulted him. Both had been the underappreciated males on their team, so to see a genius get what was coming to him was hilarious.
"Ah, closure," said Naruto with a smirk. "How does it feel Sasuke-kuuun? That was me every day of the Academy and beyond."
"You know what? You need to get over this, Hinata! We have a mission to do!" the Avenger choked out as Hinata throttled him. She paused and removed her hands so that they hovered over his neck ominously. She continued to glare at him fiercely and she coughed lightly.
"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted with the memories of a man that I loathe – thank you, Sasuke – I managed to get some information that could possibly relate to our little problem."
She threw down several yellowing scrolls on the table. Sasuke picked one up gingerly. "These are from the restricted section! How did you get your hands on these?"
"Magic, what do you think? I took them. Comes with the territory, you know? Remember that whole ninja thing?"
"But – you know what Iwagetsu said about them – they're –" Sasuke trailed off and looked away.
"Cursed?" she finished, sounding supremely disdainful. For the first time, Naruto found he could compare her to most other Hyuuga. Her stance was haughty and her voice was cold. "You, my friend, are putting too much stock in the tales of old and senile people. You seem to have a problem with that."
"Cursed?" Jiraiya raised an eyebrow in question.
"Yes… since I, um… liberated these scrolls without permission, something really awful will happen to me in the next week." She turned to glare at Sasuke, who was avoiding her piercing Byakugan gaze. "Ever since Uke-chan here had a, shall we say, 'divine experience', he's been taking everything those stupid monks say to heart with a dangerous passion."
Naruto choked on his own spittle. "Uke-chan?!" Truly, this was a woman after his heart! He grinned at Hinata, laughter quickly overcoming his tightly-pursed lips.
"Well, you can't say Sasuke without the uke, ne?"
Sasuke was glaring furiously into a corner. Hinata only ever used that one when she was really, really upset about something he did or said. So he decided to lay off the subject of her curse for a bit and wait to be vindicated. When something dire happened to her in the next week, he would be sure to give her that condescending smirk he had perfected. After all, he had learned the hard way to take whatever the monks said seriously.
"Whatever," he said, turning away slightly. "Can we just get on to your amazing theory?"
"Patience is a virtue, my dear friend. Now, I'm going to ask both of you to suspend your disbelief for a moment while I explain what I found at the temple and why it is probably related to our problems here," she said speaking specifically to Jiraiya and Naruto as she opened a particular scroll.
In it were old drawings made in fading ink along with descriptions. The first drawing looked like a raccoon; he recognized the second as a kitsune. The third was unfamiliar to him - a humanoid shape but a bird-like head with a ridiculously long nose, much like a beak.
"The three major shapeshifters of old religion," said Hinata. "Tanuki, kitsune, and tengu. Tanuki are most common, tricksters of the petty sort. Kitsune and tengu, however, are in a league of their own. Powerful illusionists and often at odds with each other."
"You're saying all of this like they're all still wandering around," said Naruto, clearly skeptical. Hinata raised an eyebrow.
"Are you honestly going to look me in the eye and say that there are no kitsune running about?"
"What do you mean?" he asked, not rising to her bait at all.
"Please don't insult my intelligence," she said coolly. "I've known about the Kyuubi's true fate since I was ten years old, and I don't appreciate people talking down to me, least of all about that."
"You – know?" he asked her, nearly stuttering. She nodded.
"And so does Sasuke. Of course, it took him much longer, but he managed it eventually," Hinata replied airily, as if it were no big deal. And while it was important to know, Hinata knew that whether or not Naruto had the Kyuubi, he was still Naruto. In the long run, it wasn't really important at all. At least, not in a negative way.
"Back to the topic at hand," she said after a moment, Naruto having been cowed sufficiently so that she could finish her explanation.
"Over the centuries, their brutal rivalry developed into something else entirely. As the tengu became more prone to protection than destruction, and became the servants of the gods, they were called upon to check the powers of the kitsune, as if they were demons. Of course, not all of them are. But no distinctions were made, and the population of kitsune suffered heavily because of it. There is a long-standing hatred between the two groups. Naturally, even one who houses a kitsune will suffer their wrath, should he be brought to their attention."
"And what has all of this got to do with the situation here?" asked Jiraiya. Having seen much more than Naruto, he was more than willing to believe in what she was saying. "I believe everything you're saying is fact, but how does it relate? Are there tengu roaming here?"
Hinata selected a different scroll. "This is the legend of a certain infamous tengu, an archrival of the Kyuubi, who hated the youko – a corrupted kitsune – with such a passion that he began to attack the beast at any given opportunity despite innocent bystanders being hurt. Of course, this didn't go over to well with other tengu, because their primary purpose nowadays is to protect. So they sealed him away in a mountain range…"
"So you're saying that this tengu is sealed away in this mountain range," Naruto said, obviously having regained his nerve. The skepticism was back.
"Well, until I said the word Kyuubi, there hadn't been an earthquake in these parts for several hundred years. Not to mention that my Byakugan couldn't see through the mountain range, which is quite suspect."
"Can the Byakugan normally see through a mountain range?"
Hinata flushed and looked away. "Um…"
"Hinata's special," said Sasuke, trying to relieve her discomfort. "So special that giving away information on her powerful Byakugan is considered an SS-class crime," he bluffed easily.
"And you'd know all about those," muttered the blonde. Sasuke glared at him. Hinata diffused the situation by putting a hand on each of their shoulders.
"Now, now children, let's act our age," she chided gently. "There's still one more thing we haven't covered. The kidnappings."
She pulled out another scroll, as yellow as the first two. "Of course, if there is a way to seal something away, there is a way to bring it back. A corrupted tengu requires a very… dark sacrifice."
The light dawned in Sasuke's eyes and his face took on a grim cast. "Humans. Whoever is behind this needs to sacrifice humans to summon the tengu. That's why they're kidnapping children."
Jiraiya frowned darkly while Naruto swore. "Well, it's the most logical thing to do," said the older man, looking off into space. "Children are the most vulnerable population, aside from the elderly, but there aren't that many elderly in Tsuchi."
"Why?" asked Naruto. Jiraiya looked down. "The Great Ninja Wars decimated a lot of their population…those people would be getting into old age about now."
They all were silent for a moment before Hinata spoke again. "If this really is our problem, we've got a lot of work to do yet, among them being a mass evacuation order Ukiyo-no-Urami."
"Where can they go? That is, if any of them choose to leave," said Sasuke. "I don't think they'll be waiting at our beck and call to do whatever we ask."
"I agree. There's nothing we can do about that. All we can do is inform them of the dangers of staying and hope for the best. I suppose the ones that do go will have to make temporary camps a few miles toward the border."
"Why do they have to be evacuated in the first place?" asked Naruto. "I mean, we should be able to wrap this up before our mastermind manages to summon the tengu, right?"
"We can't take that risk. Right now we have no idea of where the captives could even be or who is behind all of this. If they should die before we get there and the tengu is summoned, the best way to reduce civilian casualties is to evacuate them in advance."
"I just don't see how we can do that."
"Who the hell are you? Get a grip, Naruto!" Hinata tossed her hair over her shoulder and started to roll up her scrolls. Sasuke smirked.
"Yeah, we can do this… believe it."
Hinata seemed caught between making a face and laughter. In the end, she decided on both. "Oh you," she said affectionately, pinching his cheek. "Alright boys, pack it up, we've got stuff to do!"
"He's not here, I don't know where he's gone," said Akemi. For the first time since they'd met the girl, she wasn't being outrageously flirtatious and hitting on all three of them with abandon. In fact, she looked nervous – maybe even scared.
"He's been missing since late yesterday," said Akeno, coming up to his sister and laying a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"Could we talk to your mother or Megumi-san please?" asked Hinata, trying to be calm and set an example. Akeno nodded. "I'll take you to mother, Akemi will take you to obaa-san."
Akemi, even in distress, latched onto Hinata's arm and stared up at her with puppy dog eyes. "You'll come with me, won't you Hinata-san?"
"Of course, Mitsuhide-san," said Hinata formally and was quickly tugged away, Sasuke striding after them to make sure that Hinata wasn't molested in the interim of their separation.
"Please, come with me," said Akeno, bowing politely to Jiraiya and Naruto, who nodded in return. He swept away into the house, making the slight tremble in his posture almost invisible. Akeno led teacher and student down twists and turns, through hallways that were not at all familiar to Naruto. Finally, when the blonde had approximated their position to be under the center of the house, they stopped in front of a wooden door in the Western style. Akeno tried the knob.
"It's locked."
"I can break through, if it's easier…" Naruto offered.
"You can't. It's steal reinforced. And anyway, I know the passcode…"
He rapped twice and sharply on a wood plate to the right of the door that was a slightly darker shade than the surrounding wood. After a few seconds, the plate moved forward, held erect by a thin metal rod which twisted around so that a small panel of numbers revealed itself to them. Akeno leaned over the panel and quickly typed in the code; within seconds, there was a click as the lock the wooden door was opened. He quickly grabbed the knob and opened to reveal another door, this time one that was steel. It slid open for him.
Inside was a spacious bomb shelter complete with mini-bar and four chez lounges. Miyuki was sitting on one, not reclining, with her head in her hands. She was sobbing quietly, and only looked up as they approached her. Springing out of her seat, she dashed toward her son and took his hands in hers.
"Akeno! Are you alright? Has anything happened? Is something happening? And why did you bring these two here? You know what your father – well, I guess that doesn't matter anymore," she choked out, wincing when she mentioned her husband. "He isn't much of a father anymore…"
"Miyuki-san, I need to know what's going on here. Where is your husband? We need to order an immediate evacuation of the city, and at this point, only he has the authority necessary to –"
"He did it!" She burst out suddenly, eyes bulging and hair flying around pitifully.
Naruto stared for a moment. "I beg your pardon, ma'am, but –"
"Akechi…all of this is Akechi's doing," she whispered quietly. "The political turmoil, the poverty of Urami and the prosperity of Ukiyo, the kidnappings! He's behind it all!"
"Mother, you are far too stressed out! Please, take some –"
"I am not taking any damn more medication! That's how your father's been keeping my dumb!" she hissed at her son, throwing off his concerned hands. "Akechi is going to do something foul with those captives, I just know it! Please, please, please, Naruto-san, you need to find them!"
"Alright, alright, calm down," said Jiraiya, radiating authority. "Tell us what you know and we will help."
The older ninja stood like a rock. His calming presence clearly had an effect on her. Taking several slow, deep breaths, Miyuki quieted her sobs. "Okay. Okay. Okay. I just…I…I'm okay now. My husband has gone absolutely insane! I don't even… I – argh! He said something about Tengu Mountain Range, told me and the kids to stay inside the house, preferably the shelter, and then he took off."
"How did he go? Was there some other route besides the obvious one? Do you have any idea where he's holding the captives?" Naruto said urgently.
"Hold your horses, brat. You've got to take a situation like this slowly," counseled Jiraiya. Naruto glared at him as if to remind him that time was not on their side. He looked straight back, unchanged.
I know, Naruto. I know. But she needs time. Her world is falling apart. Akechi is her version of Sasuke.
The blonde backed down. At least he had expected Sasuke to snap… but Akechi had seemed so well-adjusted! He was so normal! Why in the world would he want to summon a tengu? He had everything – political power, wife and kids, money, respect… what else did he want? What did he hope to gain by doing this?
"The captives, the captives… no, I haven't the faintest clue where he's keeping them," she wailed piteously. "But… but… he said he had made another passage, one that he hadn't told me about it previously…it's in the house somewhere, and it leads right under the mountain, he said… there could be a-a chamber, or something where he's holding them!"
"Thank you so much," Naruto said as he smiled reassuringly. "I'll be back. In the meantime, I'd suggest that you and your kids, as well as Megumi-san, stay down here in the shelter. There could be a lot of movement in the earth around here soon."
"Akemi – she's still up there –"
"I'll make sure she's escorted here safely. Now, please don't move from here, alright?"
He looked at his teacher. "Let's blow this joint."
They rounded the corner and arrived at the spot where they felt Sasuke's chakra signature. He was standing in front of what looked like a large hole in the floor. Megumi was standing off the side guiltily while Akemi was looking down at the hole, frightened beyond belief.
"Naruto."
"Sasuke! Where's Hinata?"
"Megumi told us about a passage that led directly under the mountain… apparently Akechi's been keeping her quiet with money for some time now after she first discovered what she was doing… anyway, we went down the passage and it led directly to a sort of subterranean chamber – all the kidnapped people are being held there. Me and Hinata are taking the kids back one by one and using genjutsu to cover their absence. That place is teeming with Iwagakure ANBU –they're in on it as well."
"Ahh, fuck," he swore. "You help Jiraiya with the evacuation, I'll help Hinata –"
"No way. This is a subtle job that require genjutsu in case you didn't hear me, and that's not exactly up your alley is it?"
"He's got your number, kiddo."
"Shut up and stop double-teaming me!"
"Besides, your kage bushin will be the most useful for evacuation. You need to help with that. We've got it under control here for the moment."
"And what about these two?" said the blonde forcefully, even though he knew it was a lost battle.
"Didn't I just tell you how can you do everything and more? You know, kage bushin? Have a clone take them somewhere safe," said Sasuke, as if it should have been obvious. And it had been. Naruto's stubbornness had prevented his realization of this truth.
"'Ello!"
Hinata's head peeked out from the hole. On her back was a child of about four, who was severely starved and obviously maltreated. He trembled at the sight of the three male ninja.
"Hostage one, returned," said Hinata firmly, pulling herself up and setting the frightened boy down next to her.
"Do we really have the time to do this on a one-by-one basis?"
"That's the only way we can do it, Naruto. Any greater use of chakra and the ANBU would be all over us. So, one by one it is. Momomaru-kun is the youngest of all the children there, and his grandfather is Sanada Yukiro," she said matter-of-factly as she stood up and handed the boy to Naruto. "Find him in the evacuation, alright?"
"And what about the others?" Naruto said reluctantly after a minute, finally giving in.
"That'll be Sasuke's job – getting the rest of the kids to a safe zone."
"They can stay with us in the shelter," Akemi volunteered suddenly, voice quavering. "It's not big, but it's safe. And the closer that…dad… comes to doing – whatever – you're gonna need a safe zone quicker and quicker, yeah? They can stay in our shelter."
They all stared at her. Then Hinata smiled and walked over to her.
"Thank you so much, Akemi-chan," she said warmly. "You'll have saved many children's lives before the night is out, I think." Leaning in, she gently kissed the stunned teenager on the cheek.
"Well, I'm off again!" Hinata said, jumping down the hole and landing silently. "By the way, the jump's about six feet when you do come down!"
Naruto, Sasuke, and Jiraiya listened to the almost non-sound of her footsteps fade away. They weren't listening long – she was too good for that. Akemi smirked without warning.
"She totally wants me."
"Don't get your hopes up," Sasuke warned her, smirking with equal arrogance. "She's practically committed." He pointed his chin at Naruto. She pouted.
"Alright then!" Naruto said a little too loudly. "I'll take Momomaru-kun with us to start the evacuation, okay little guy? Sasuke, you can take Megumi and Akemi to the shelter, at least one of them knows where it is. Let's do this thing."
He and Jiraiya took off at full speed; Naruto could feel the little boy clinging to his shirt.
"So you and the Hyuuga girl are really going out then?"
"…sorta…"
"Congrats! Nice one, she's totally –"
"Just. Stop. Now."
The evacuation was a tough process.
Many residents were stubborn or committed to their property, afraid this was a 'Konoha scheme' to steal their land. Naruto refrained from pointing out – with much difficulty – that the land in Konohagakure was much more useful than their own.
Thankfully, however, many of the residents were also able-bodied people who were able to move well without aid from other people. That made the process quicker. Naruto saw Sasuke a couple of times, a few kids piled on to his back or being held in his arms until he reunited them with their families. Instead of staying for the praise, like Naruto knew he himself might've, Sasuke stepped back, accepted their praises politely, and sprinted off full-tilt to help Hinata again.
Finally, after at least an hour and a half of herding people out of the city toward the border, everyone was mostly evacuated from the town proper, if not from the surrounding area. He made his way back to the house of Akechi as Jiraiya continued to lead the people to the border, where they could be at least a little safer from the destruction of the tengu.
Naruto raced down the hallways, heart pounding, ready to take real action against the direct perpetrators of the crimes. Finally, the gaping hole in the floor of Akechi's home was visible and he flung himself inside, still landing with all the grace and silence of an expert shinobi. He slipped down the hallway as fast he could without making too much noise; near the end it widened out, and he could see the glow of torches up ahead. Slowing down, he pressed his body against the rock and inched his way to the end of the passage, hoping to catch a glimpse of what was going on.
Naruto made it just in time to see a maniacally-grinning man run his ANBU-issue katana through Hinata's throat.
I'm evil, eh? :D
Note: In a sexual relationship, the seme is dominant and the uke is submissive. What can I say, Hinata just loves emasculating the Avenger. :D
Note II: A lot of the stuff about tanuki/tengu/kitsune is real, but a some of it is bs that I made up for the sake of the story. For example: the kitsune-tengu rivalry is made up to fit the story. So, if you have any questions about the validity of my mythology, review/PM me so I can clarify.