Chapter 4

Neji ran desperately through the streets, searching for where Naruto had gone. He, of course, checked Ichiraku Ramen first, then went to the training grounds where he met up with Lee who was doing vertical push-ups. Neji approached him as he was breathing heavily.

"Lee! Have you seen Naruto!" asked Neji urgently. Lee stopped his push-ups and stood back up on his feet, whiping his forehead.

"Nope. What's wrong Neji? You seem upset." said Lee. Neji turned around quickly and clenched his fist.

"Never mind me! I've got to find Naruto!" said Neji. Lee seemed confused about why Neji was looking for Naruto, but decided that it wasn't his business and went back to doing push-ups. After searching around the village for Naruto, someone pointed out to him where Naruto lived, and after following their directions, Neji arrived at Naruto's house.

Naruto looked up at the moon in the night sky inside his bedroom and sighed. Was he really such a danger to everybody? What if it wasn't just Hinata? Sakura? Kakashi? Iruka? Naruto had so many people that he cared about, and he couldn't bare to think of hurting them just by being who he was. Naruto looked down in his hand and gripped a kunai tightly as he lifted it to his neck. The world would just be better without him. If he left, then the Nine-tailed Fox would no longer exist and everyone in the village could live happier and easier without the fear of the Seal on Naruto's stomachd breaking. Naruto had made his decision. Naruto was going to kill himself, to put an end to this meaningless worry. He counted to three in his head. One-two-thr-.

"No Naruto!" yelled Neji as he burst in through the front door of Naruto's apartment with his Byakugan activated. Naruto stopped his kunai right before he was about to strike and looked at Neji, seeming confused.

"Oh, Neji. What are you doing here?" asked Naruto. Neji came over to Naruto quickly and looked at him in the eye.

"Just what do you think you're doing, Naruto!" asked Neji. Naruto looked at the knife in his hand as his eyes showed no emotion except sadness.

"Haishi was right. I'm just a monster. I don't deserve to live." said Naruto. Neji's face turned angry as he slapped Naruto across the face. Naruto dropped his kunai and looked at Neji, completely stunned.

"Naruto, if you do that, think about what Hinata would do without you. She would cry forever, and I can't have you making my dear cousin cry." said Neji. Naruto looked down again and clenched a fist.

"Neji, I'm doing Hinata a favor. If I hurt her at all, because I'm some kind of monster, I don't know how I could live with myself." said Naruto. Neji's face continued to remain angry.

"If Hinata cared about something like that at all, she wouldn't have even been with you in the first place!" yelled Neji. There was a deep silence in the room as Naruto thought about how to respond. Before he could though, Neji spoke again: "Hinata always admired you for being better than everyone else. Not by skill or physical features, but by heart. Hinata admired you for your courage, and your ability to never give up. You gave her hope to be able to change herself to become a splendid ninja, and a splendid young woman. If you end your own life now, think about what that would make Hinata think." said Neji. Naruto continued to sit in silence as Neji waited for him to respond.

"She... really looked up to me like that?" asked Naruto.

"Of course she did. With out you, I'm not sure what Hinata or a lot of other people would do. We have all been touched by you in a way that has made us better people and ninja, Naruto. Please, don't throw your life away in fear of hurting your friends. We all care about you, for being who you are." said Neji.

"And Hinata?" asked Naruto.

"Her too. Esspecially her. She hasn't said it to you yet Naruto... but she really loves you! She would do anything to be with you, even defy her own father's wishes. That's why you can't just give up like this. If you really care for Hinata, then you will forget about what Haishi says and go see her!" said Neji. At that moment, Naruto could feel his head start to hurt as his heart began to beat a thousand times a second. A moment later, Naruto's eyes opened up and he looked to Neji, seeming confused.

"Wait... what just happened? And why are you in my house! Oh my gosh, what the hell did you do to my door!" yelled Naruto as he saw Neji in his apartment with his door busted open and down on the floor.

"Now now, I can explain." said Neji. Naruto calmed down and listened to Neji. "You may not know this, but you were under the influence of a very powerful genjutsu used only by the Hyuga Clan leader. You know how the Hyuga specialize in internal damage while in combat?" asked Neji. Naruto nodded.

"Yeah, I remember that." said Naruto. Neji nodded and continued. "Well, Haishi uses this one special technique called

"Mind's Eye Monopolization Technique" or MEM Technique for short. Its a genjutsu that can only be used by someone who has the Byakugan and is a member of the main branch family. It can be used to control people by making them think a certain way or implanting a false memory in their mind. This memory or thought can be used mainly to control a person, or to make them commit suicide." said Neji.

"And I was caught in it? When?" asked Naruto. Neji shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm not exactly sure, but I know it happened sometime durring your talk with Haishi. He said that you were a monster and that you could be a potential danger to Hinata." said Neji. Naruto crossed his arms and glared at the thought of Haishi and Byankugan staring him in Atthe face.

"How did I get out of it?" asked Naruto.

"I'm not sure how I got rid of the technique, but I was just trying to make you see reason by explaining how you would be hurting everybody by killing yourself instead of being alive. I also said that-"

"-That Hinata really loves me? I... I think I remember that part." said Naruto. Neji smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, she does." said Neji. Naruto stood up from his bed and cracked his knuckles.

"Well then, I guess I better go and pay Hinata's dad a visit." said Naruto confidentally. Neji stopped him before he was able to leave the door.

"Wait a second Naruto! There are some things you should know!" said Neji as Naruto stopped in his tracks. "At night, the Hyuga Estate is heavily guarded by members of the Hyuga family. If you just march right up there, I have a feeling that Haishi will send the guards after you. Instead, why don't you use your head and sneak into the house like the ninja you are." said Neji. Naruto nodded.

"Okay, so where would be the best way to get inside without being noticed?" asked Naruto.

"On the east side of the estate, there are fewer guards that patrol their. If you're lucky, you can get in without any kind of trouble." said Neji.

"Okay, now is there a window or something?" asked Naruto. Neji thought about it and then nodded.

"Yeah, Hinata's room is on the east side of the building and when you get past the perimeter, you can get in via Hinata's window. Just hope that it isn't locked." said Neji. Naruto nodded and after grabbing a few supplies, along with his headband, Naruto left over the rooftops of the village toward Hinata's house. He moved, like a silent breeze into the night...

Naruto stood on a roof top thirty feet away from the Hyuga estate, looking around for any guards that were in sight. Only two guards and they were both at each end of the house. Naruto could make it easily. Gathering a small amount of chakra, Naruto jumped from the rooftop, over the perimeter of the outside gate, and landed next to a tree in the Hyuga estate. He looked around a little bit longer and then looked up to see Hinata's window. But when he looked up, Naruto's heart began to beat quicker than before. In Hinata's window, Hinata had her arms crossed as she leaned out of the window sill with her hair blowing gently in the night. Her eyes were filled with tears, as she thought about Naruto and where he was. She moved back into her room and was about to shut the window and lock it. Right before she did though, she heard a noise. She looked down and saw Naruto, magically appear before her.

"Hinata!" yelled Naruto in a whisper voice. Hinata's face lit up immediately as she clasped her hands over her mouth to keep her from shouting his name. Tears started to fall from her eyes again as her face was red as a cherry.

"N-Naruto!" said Hinata in a similar voice. Hinata backed up to give him permission to enter into her room, and it was only a quick jump up to her window for him to get inside. Once inside, Hinata raced into Naruto's arms and squeezed him as tight as she could. Naruto's arms enveloped her similarly as he looked down at her. "I thought... th-that you didn't want to be w-with me anymore..." said Hinata. Naruto grabbed her hands instantly and looked into her eyes.

"Yeah... it was your father. He used his Byakugan on me and a genjutsu called MEM Technique. He... He was able to control me into thinking that you wouldn't want to be with me because of-" Hinata stopped him from going on any further with her lips on top of his. It was so sudden, Naruto hardly even knew what had happened to him. Hinata pressed her lips hard against Naruto's, making him respond. It was a sweet kiss, but filled with as much passion as Hinata could muster. When Hinata stopped, Naruto looked at her almost completely dazed by her beauty and powerful kiss.

"I-I don't know about you... but I've been wanting to do that ever since we got back from the village. And I... I will always be with you, no matter what happens!" said Hinata. Naruto was on the verge of tears himself as he pulled Hinata into a hug again, breathing in the scent of her shiny black hair.

"I promise, Hinata: I will never leave you." he said. Hinata moved her hand up to Naruto's cheek and pulled it close to her, allowing them to kiss again; both of them crying.

"Well isn't this a terrible sight." said Haishi. Hinata and Naruto could feel death in the air as Haishi saw them embraced in eachother's arms. "The beast of the hidden leaf village was supposed to have already died. I guess that my MEM Technique just didn't do the trick." Haishi stared at Naruto with an uncontrolable fury in his eyes. Hinata gathered her courage and tightly grabbed Naruto's hand as she faced her father.

"Father! I want to be with Naruto for as long as I can. No one has ever made me happier before, and no one has helped me more than Naruto has." said Hinata. Naruto nodded.

"That's right! I have never had anyone love me before, and to have someone as nice as Hinata with me, I'll do whatever I can to make her as happy as she has made me!" said Naruto. Haishi had had enough of this senseless preaching, and activated his Byakugan.

"I won't hear anymore of this! Naruto Uzumaki, you are no longer welcome here!" yelled Haishi as he gathered chakra into his palm and then sent it forward towards Naruto and blew him away through the wall and through the glass of Hinata's window and sent him flying fifty feet away from the Hyuga estate. After recovering from the attack, Naruto saw as Haishi ordered the guards that were with him at the time to take Hinata away and place her under house arrest. Knowing that there was nothing Naruto could do right now, he ran away from the scene, planning how he would get Hinata back.