Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Chapter 8: The dangers of stalking
Hinata Hyuuga was a frustrated girl. She had taken to stalk-… err observing her secret crush, but somehow he managed to escape her with increasing frequency. Her admiration of Naruto had started at the beginning of her second year of the academy. Naruto had already joined the academy more than one year prior to her, but had failed advancement two times already, thus landing him in her class. Upon entering the class he had immediately started to quarrel with their teacher because the man disparaged his dream of founding his own clan. It had set the tone of their academic career.
Some teachers were constantly denigrating Naruto's efforts and sometimes crossed the line to outright sabotaging the boy, but he avoided rising to the baiting and simply worked harder. Despite the constant pressure to fail he managed to keep his grades acceptable, if on the lower end of the class. She wished she could do something about it, but the one time she brought it up with her family she had been told in no uncertain terms to stay away from the boy. Needless to say, she never mentioned him again in her family's hearing.
Naruto had no one to help him or to rely on except for Choji whom he seemed to know from before the academy and lately Shino, and still he kept the determination to become something great. Oh, how Hinata envied this determination. Her father was becoming colder and colder to her, and the elders openly called her a failure as she struggled to keep up with her training exercises. They focused increasingly on her little sister Hanabi who despite being five years younger than her showed great promise. The height of humiliation had occurred when her father pitted them against each other a few months ago and the little four-year old had defeated her. Now, no four year old girl no matter how thoroughly trained would be able to defeat someone five years her senior in an open spar, but it had been more a contest of who could execute the forms of the Gentle Fist better. She had failed that contest miserably. Somehow, the traditional forms just never seemed completely right to her, and she had to actively work against her body to perform them. And it showed. After that disgraceful event her father had formally revoked her nomination as clan heiress, but omitted naming a replacement. The Hyuuga clan had kept quiet about it, meaning everyone outside the clan still thought of her as the heiress.
For now, the title was left in abeyance. The talk was to name Hanabi clan heiress and relegate her to the branch house, but no decision had been made. It didn't seem likely for the matter to be decided in the foreseeable future as some elders were using the opportunity to attempt to usurp the position for their own immediate family. The Hyuuga main house consisted of ten family lines that each was continued by a single heir for each generation. Superfluous siblings were branded with the caged bird seal and relegated to the branch house. The only escape lay in marrying the heir of a main house family, upon which the seal would be modified so that only the main house spouse could trigger the more unsavory functions. Like pain or death.
The day after the lost contest she had been more depressed than usual. Usually she had been escorted to and back from the academy by a branch house member, but after the loss of the title apparently no one bothered anymore. Combined with her father's growing indifference towards her actions she had a lot more unsupervised free time on her hands. Occasionally she would be called for further training, if one could call the humiliations she suffered at the hands of her clansmen training. Hinata never managed to perform to her instructors standards, no matter if the instructor was her father or any other clan member.
In desperation Hinata had taken to secretly following the one bright star in her life around and observed Naruto for hours while he trained. It gave her some small solace seeing a person like her who was called a failure stand up against his fate. If only she could talk to him! But she was far too shy to approach him on her own. The few times he had tried to talk to her she had been so overwhelmed with emotions that she stammered some nonsense and ran away, or on one particular occasion had fainted. Naruto was gone when she awoke, but she had learned later that he had been apprehended by a teacher for 'assaulting the Hyuuga heir'. No serious punishment came of it, but it served to further her embarrassment. Her lack of emotional control was one of the points of criticism she had to constantly face from her clan, and now it had created trouble for her object of admiration.
It didn't help that she found him attractive and had developed somewhat of a crush. Her body reacted in funny ways that served to further unbalance her if she was near the blond boy. She was developing early and had the most womanly body of her age group. To hide her growing chest she had begun to wear an oversized jacket. She was only too aware how the bodies of every other girl and boy looked, as she couldn't help but to see them naked when she activated her Byakugan. It had been especially bad at the time when she was just developing the control over her eyes and the damned things kept partially activating randomly, showing her the cross-sections of things and people around her at the worst possible times. At least Hinata didn't believe any amount of blood and gore could frighten her anymore after she had seen the insides of everyone for several days. The temptation to use her special powers to check her contemporaries (and some of the more attractive members of the older generation) out was increasingly hard to resist. She indulged far more than she probably should, especially since her clan frowned on such 'perverted' behavior.
Sometimes she wished to have a female friend to talk about such things, but all the girls in her class were after the Uchiha heir since the end of the first year of the academy. Hinata simply couldn't stomach the constant fawning over the boy who in her insignificant opinion was a brooding, arrogant, unmitigated asshole with a haircut looking like a duck's ass, not that she would ever voice that view to anyone. The girls from the branch house always treated her with icy formality, making a friendship or talking about intimate things unfathomable; while there were no girls in roughly her age group in the main house at the current time. All the other main house families had only male children in her generation. She wasn't that close to her sister, who was too young to understand such matters anyway.
The closest she had come to a talk about boys were the lessons of Aunt Chihiro which consisted mainly of phrases like 'do your duty for the continuation of the clan' and similar things, while the instruction at the academy was purely technical with some focus on seduction. Not that she or any other clan heiress would ever be asked to perform seduction missions, such a thing was simply not done to owners of a bloodline or really anyone who had some political clout. Hinata had simply no idea how to deal with the veritable storm of emotions that raged inside her. The behavioral training of her clan prevented most of it showing, but didn't really help her coping with the emotions. Sometimes she even thought bottling them up in the Hyuuga way made it worse.
Back to the present, she was again following Naruto after the academy closed for the weekend and determined not to lose him this time around. How the boy managed to escape her seemingly without being aware that she was following him eluded her. After he had eaten a meal at his favorite ramen stand (two pork, one beef and one vegetable ramen), Naruto headed to the outskirts of Konoha.
'Perhaps he wants to train again?' she thought.
That thought brought memories of earlier training sessions to the foreground, where she had watched Naruto. Suddenly the idea of her observing him training without his clothes via her bloodline entered her mind. The image was almost enough for her to lose concentration and start a fainting spell.
'Where did that come from?' Hinata wondered.
Abruptly she realized that she was about to lose track of her crush. That was unacceptable. She quickly reduced the distance between them. Today he wouldn't escape her rightful admiration! Naruto seemed determined to make following him difficult and she had to resort to her byakugan several times to avoid losing him. He wandered through back alleys, used several shortcuts she hadn't known about and gave her a good workout in general until he finally entered a small grove that was secreted behind several abandoned buildings.
Hinata was too winded to pay much attention to her surroundings and simply followed him into the grove. As soon as she entered the sounds of the village disappeared. After about a half a minute walking amongst the trees on a winding path she became suspicious. It was simply impossible for that many trees to fit into the small grove she had seen. Confused she stopped walking and looked back at the way she had come.
It wasn't there.
A few meters behind her the path abruptly ended at a thicket of decade-old trees and undergrowth. Even her footprints stopped there and didn't continue underneath the trees, as she discovered when she activated her byakugan for a short look around. As she shifted her attention forwards she noticed that Naruto was nowhere in sight anymore. She took a few careful steps forward and looked back again.
The distance to the wall of foliage was the same as before, even if the positions of the trees to the side of the path clearly showed that she had moved. Suppressing the beginnings of a panic attack Hinata conducted a few experiments. She confirmed that the plants were indeed solid and not some kind of illusion. That she couldn't detect anything suspicious with her byakugan ruled out genjutsu. As soon as she didn't look anymore the path behind her simply vanished. The environment in range of her bloodline stayed the same until she deactivated her enhanced sight, then it changed in the blink of an eye. It remained in the changed form even if she immediately reactivated her byakugan.
Someone or something obviously wanted her to stay on the path. Not ready to give up she tried to force her way beyond the foliage at the end of the path. It was a thoroughly unpleasant experience as branches scraped her limbs and leaves flew directly in her face. After a few dozen meters she saw some light shimmering through the leaves. With a final push she left the dense barrier of plant life behind her… only to stand once again squarely on the forest path she had just left. Repeated attempts on the sides of the path yielded identical results. If she used her byakugan the damned path would appear before her almost as soon as she lost it out of her sight, no matter that she had clearly seen it located to her back only moments before.
Finally resigning to her fate, Hinata decided to follow the path wherever it led. She didn't know how much time passed, but the narrow path ended abruptly. One moment she was still walking on the path, the next she was standing in a free space between large trees that looked similar to those in the forests outside of Konoha. When she turned her head, the path had completely disappeared. There were only huge trees in all directions with mist swirling between them. At least the underbrush was far more open then before and only consisted of some bushes or young trees here and there and not an almost massive wall like before.
Because the mist made it impossible to properly orientate herself, she took off in a random direction. These woods seemed very strange to Hinata. The forest before had been dense, but aside from the inescapable path normal.
Here she felt as if something was watching her warily, and several times the creaking of the trees seemed almost like whispers. Somehow the trees looked grey and hostile, with thick patches of black lichen hanging from the branches. The mist grew denser and denser, until she could hardly see the ground between her feet. It was like the mist was alive, and several times she could almost feel invisible fingers touching her body while the whispers of the trees grew louder. At one time she saw a pair of glowing eyes on the edge of her vision, but when she turned her head towards them nothing was there aside from swirling mist. Her heart thumping loudly, she continued on her way.
Without warning the mist ended. Hinata was now walking through a forest flooded with sunlight that shone through gaps in the canopy high above her, but this time she could see the bank of fog behind her that she had just left. She felt a gentle pull in a specific direction and decided to follow it. After all, where else would she go? Hinata didn't have the slightest clue in which direction Konoha was.
Had the first set of woods been normal and the second set creepy, these ones were different still. The colors were brighter; the plants looked healthier; the multitude of animal sounds that had been missing from the first two woods indicated a lot of animal life. Somehow, this forest felt more real and alive than any forest she had visited before in her life. She felt her nervousness melt away and even slowed her pace to enjoy her surroundings.
Finally the trees grew sparser and she reached the edge of the forest. Hinata gasped in surprise at the sight that presented itself. Before her stretched a wide field dotted with a myriad of shimmering flowers in all colors that she could imagine. Some rocky outcroppings and the occasional bush and tree were scattered through the field. And in the distant center of the field she spied a familiar blonde shock of hair, standing before the largest of the rocky spires.
Unsure of what to do, Hinata hid behind one of the larger trees to observe the situation some more.
"You know, it's not nice to spy on other people inside their home."
The girl jumped as the voice sounded directly by her ear. But as she wildly looked around, she saw nobody near her.
"Come closer, don't be shy." sounded the voice again.
Now close to the edge of panic Hinata backed away and was about to escape back into the forest.
"No, no, we can't have you running away, can we?"
Hinata cried out in surprise as she lost the ground beneath her feet. For a moment she hovered a short distance above the ground before she was pulled to the distant figure at high speed. She felt a peculiar weightlessness as she floated above the field, almost but not quite clipping the flowers with her feet. When she reached the center of the field, she came to a sudden stop. The unknown force gently set her down and she managed to stay on her feet.
The boy before her had his back towards her and seemed to observe something above the spire. She tried to find what he was looking at but saw only empty sky. As she shifted her attention back to the boy she noticed the strange grey cloak he wore and definitely hadn't worn while she was following him. The fabric seemed to flow and glitter like some mixture out of mist and light.
"N-N-N-Naruto-kun?" she stammered.
Abruptly the boy turned around and met her gaze, causing Hinata to gasp in surprise. What normally were two fairly normal eyes of the deepest blue were now solid pitch-black orbs with some dots of light slowly moving inside them.
The voice from before spoke."I fear Naruto is currently not in possession of this body, but you will meet him shortly. Now look into my eyes, child."
Hinata wanted to avert her gaze, close her eyes or do anything to not have to gaze into these black depths, but to no avail; she was unable to move or even blink. Deeper and deeper she stared into the abyss with the whirling stars of light. The blackness grew and spread out over her entire field of vision and she was falling… falling…
…
…
"...ake up, Hinata-chan." she heard a voice penetrating the darkness and felt someone shaking her shoulder.
Hinata abruptly opened her eyes to see some mossy grass directly before her face. Sitting up, she recognized Naruto standing close to her and looking at her worriedly, this time with his usual blue eyes. Surrounding them was a quite normal looking meadow bordered by woodland. She quickly got to her feet.
"N-N-Naruto-kun, w-w-w-where a-a-am I?" she asked.
Naruto sheepishly scratched his head. "Well, after you didn't stop following me around and I wasn't able to get a rational conversation going we decided to take some extreme measures. This is the place where my parents live. Oh, and my mom wants a word with you." he said and pointed behind her.
Turning around, Hinata came face-to-face with an elephant-sized fox with gold-red fur that stared directly into her eyes. Absentmindedly she noted the nine tails whose tips were visible from her perspective. For what seemed like an eternity she stood frozen, neither the girl nor the fox making a move. Finally, the fox had enough of the staring contest and proceeded to use its tongue to give the stunned girl some very wet full-body licks. After a few good licks she started to giggle because of the tickling sensation, which prompted the fox to intensify its assault. Eventually the fox backed off, and she had finally time to get her laughter under control and remove the worst of the spittle from her face. It was then that she felt a hand on her shoulder. Twisting her head she could see the hand belonged to Naruto.
"You're in luck, it seems mom likes you."
'Naruto-kun is touching me.' This thought drowned out every other thing in Hinata's head. Combined with the newly fanned emotional turmoil caused by Naruto's proximity it was enough to overload the poor girl's brain, with a predictable result: Hinata fainted.
Naruto blinked. The giant fox blinked. Both stared at the unconscious girl at their feet.
"You know, kit, that was unexpected. I would understand fainting when facing me abruptly or receiving the tongue treatment, but just from you touching her? I begin to suspect there is something deeply wrong with your little admirer."
Naruto was alternately gazing at Hinata and his hand as if the latter had become some weapon of mass destruction. Finally he lifted his eyes to look at his mother.
"Yeah, you're right mom. I say we take her into the house and have dad examine her mind later. From what I've seen of the other girls' behavior that's definitely not normal."
Youko used some of her tails to gently pick the girl up and placed her on her back. The pair began slowly walking in the direction of the cottage.
"You know, she is very cute." Youko remarked after a while.
Naruto rolled his eyes. "Please mom, I hardly know her. In the whole time I was in class with her we have spoken perhaps a dozen times. That is if you can me trying to speak to her and she stammering something count as conversation."
"Still, you need some female companionship. Choji and the boys are nice enough I suppose, but you really should get to know some girls."
"I so don't want to have this conversation; I'm nine for magic's sake. Why do you try to hitch me up with every girl I meet?"
"Now, now, the nice ramen lady and the Kurama girl are hardly the majority of Konoha's female population. And I've never suggested for you to mate with them, only for you to get to know them a little better."
The blonde boy snorted. "Yeah, right. At least you didn't suggest for me to try and woo Sasuke-teme's fan club away from him."
The giant fox got a thoughtful expression. "You know, that isn't a bad idea at all. The Uchiha obviously doesn't value them, so he shouldn't object too strenuously. Why, especially the Yamanaka girl looks like she'll be quite a hottie in a few years. If you're lucky you could land a nice little threesome with her and Hinata-chan here."
Naruto stopped with a gob smacked expression and opened and closed his mouth several times without uttering a sound before his face grew red and he began spluttering incoherently. Roaring laughter filled the air and seemed to further fluster the boy. Finally he managed to compose himself and muttered "Bad ero-kitsune, I'm too young for such things."
"Too easy, kit, too easy. But enough with the teasing. Now tell your old mother, how was your week?"
The boy's face brightened considerably because of the changed topic of the conversation.
"Last weekend I managed to find a Mountain Country birch in the woods, they are really rare here in the Land of Fire. A whole copse of them in fact, I think the Shodaime must have planted them or something. The academy was boring, just stuff I already knew. Oh, and Mizuki tried to teach me a wrong taijutsu stance that would have left me wide open in certain circumstances. Boy was he frustrated that I kept doing the right one. Later that week I found a new merchant willing to buy the pelts I gathered. There I met this old woodsman and he said…."
Chatting amicably, the pair of boy and fox with one unconscious girl in tow continued their walk through the meadows towards their home.
With a soft sigh Daiki finished the examination of the sleeping girl's mind. Ethereal silvery tentacles retracted from the inside of Hinata's head back into his hands. He rose from his kneeling position besides Hinata's resting place on a pile of furs and took his customary place at the main table while shaking his head.
"That bad?" asked Youko who had changed to her human form and was already sitting at the table.
"You have no idea. It's like her father and the rest of her clan are determined to make every wrong decision possible and destroy the poor girl and then have the gall to say it was her own fault." he answered while holding his head in his hands.
The following silence stretched for some time until Youko asked "Won't you tell me the details?"
Daiki sighed again and fixed his mate with a serious look. "I will, but you have to keep this to yourself. No telling Naruto the details or teasing the girl. It will be hard enough to get her to open up without some untimely comment that causes her to close up again. After we have established some trust we can help her work through her problems until the girl becomes at least halfway functional."
Youko nodded in understanding. "That's why you sent Naruto for a walk. It's probably for the best, I agree."
Daiki launched into an explanation. "Basically, Hinata is a very kind girl who suffered immense psychological damage at the hands of her so-called family. The memories of her early childhood are somewhat fuzzy, but I was able to understand everything. Her life is practically a series of traumatic events. It begins pretty much on her third birthday, when her cousin was branded with that slave seal the Hyuuga use. Before that event she was close to her cousin, but his branding destroyed that. A short time later some shinobi from Kumo kidnapped her. Although the attempt was unsuccessful in the end, the aftermath cost her uncle his life, making the rift between the girl and her cousin unbridgeable. He blamed Hinata and the main house for the death of his father. Some of the older generation blamed her too, as if a three year old could have done something against an experienced shinobi. When she was around five years old her mother died shortly after the birth of her sister, who was pretty much her last pillar of support. Since then she had nobody really supporting her."
"It didn't help that she did badly in the excessive training regime she had to go through, which drew the ire of her father and the clan elders. Before her mother's death it was already bad, but after that it grew infinitely worse. I couldn't find a single memory where her sorry excuse for a father or really anyone else was smiling at her or applauded her for a task well done or even acknowledged her efforts, only a steady stream of disdain and calling her a failure. That culminated a few months ago in stripping Hinata of the position of clan heiress. Incidentally, that was when she began to follow Naruto around." He continued after a short pause. "The girl doesn't have anyone she can trust. The main house members are obvious in their contempt, but there is more. I don't think she herself is consciously aware of the fact, but even most branch members I could get a read on despise her. They see her kindness as a weakness that the branch house can exploit should she ever become clan head. The efforts of the clan elders are estranging her from her little sister who she loves dearly by pitting them against each other. The poor child had her self-confidence completely crushed, is chronically depressed and suffers from a crippling shyness for fear of making some mistake. Her stutter is a symptom of that. She has latched onto her admiration of Naruto like a lifeline. If she hadn't done that she would probably be suicidal by now. He is basically the only bright point in her life."
"Her situation is made worse by the fact that she seems to possess a greater emotional depth than the typical Hyuuga. Their traditional behavior code only suppresses the emotions, but hers are too strong for that and cause all sorts of problems when bottled up. Because Naruto is the only point for emotional release she has, she is regularly overwhelmed when she comes in close contact with him. That is what causes these extreme reactions like the fainting. She also had a very early start into puberty which magnifies her emotional problems. By the way, some of her thoughts are remarkably naughty for a nine year old. If she can get over her shyness you two should get along famously." Daiki said with a wink. "Someone with a personality type like Hinata here needs a lot of affection and support. Her clan doesn't provide that. Still, she is more psychologically resilient than one would think. Should Hinata get some people she can trust she would be able to make a recovery given time, although it would take several years before the main issues were resolved. Most likely there would still be some lasting damage though; those humans are not the best when it comes to preserving their mental health."
The pair sat in silence for a few minutes, digesting these insights. Finally Youko asked the questions that had been bothering her.
"What is Naruto to her?"
"Our son is her paragon. The admiration she harbors for him for his determination in the face of an unfavorable world borders on obsession. Additionally she has an increasing crush and some amount of physical attraction. I'm certain they will develop a deep friendship if given the chance, but if it will grow into something more is impossible to say at this time. Even if it does, there is no guarantee that it would be permanent. They are both too young to be certain."
"How does she factor into the plan?"
"She could be a very valuable asset. Given appropriate training, the girl has it in her to become one of the greatest kunoichi of this age. In light of my discoveries while examining her mind, I no longer think it the best course of action to simply brainwash her into a more functional state and wipe the memories of our encounter. The results would be suboptimal; to really make use of her we need long-term exposure. Unfortunately, we will have to establish a genuine emotional connection to the girl to make that happen."
Youko looked repulsed by that, and a swirling red aura became visible showing her distress.
Daiki took his mate's hand into his own. "I know you don't want to forge any more emotional bonds with mortal humans, especially ones from Konoha, but I believe it necessary. In all the possible futures I have seen, the girl fell far short of her potential. What small part she managed to unlock on her own would be too little too late to be of any help to our plan. We have to include her regularly in this world at the edge of dreams to gain the necessary time with her to change that, and I can't reuse the method I used to bring her through the seal too often. It would be too dangerous to our son. We need her to develop her own connection to us."
The red-haired woman looked torn between different emotions. Her aura whirled chaotically, with images beginning to flicker and die in the air. Hate for Konoha, desire for family, fear of losing loved ones, aversion of letting a mortal close to her true self, worry about Naruto, cold calculation regarding their future; all that fed into the formation of an intense but highly localized whirlwind around her. Daiki left his place at the table to embrace Youko from behind and whispered in her ear.
"There is another reason. I discovered that the byakugan is the last vestige of a divine heritage, making a new plan feasible. It would enable me to create a second anchor for this world beside Naruto, and you would be able to take possession of her body occasionally. You can't do that with Naruto because of the seal. The only other possible candidates would be other Hyuuga or the last Uchiha because of his sharingan, and I doubt you would want to go anywhere near him." Youko shuddered in disgust while Daiki stopped his speech for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "There is another matter. Someday Naruto will be ready for the confrontation, and he will have to choose which aspect of his heritage to follow. The odds are he will choose us. In time, I believe it possible for Hinata to follow the same path."
Youko's eyes widened at that and she turned her head to look into Daiki's eyes for confirmation.
Her mate nodded. "Yes, it is possible for her to join us forever, either as adoptive daughter, or perhaps as daughter-in-law should she develop a permanent bond with Naruto. Furthermore, it really is in the best interest of the girl. Without our intervention it is almost certain that she will lead a completely miserable life."
Both looked at the peacefully sleeping girl for long moments. Ever since her ascension Youko wished for children. She figured it had to do with her new connection to the domain of life. When she was the Kyuubi it had never felt the urge to procreate, more precisely it hadn't even been able to. The problem was that she wasn't able to create genuine new life while imprisoned by the seal and cut off from the world at large. At first after her metamorphosis the urge had seemed manageable, but then they had been forced to act to save Naruto in a drastic manner before they were ready. In a very real sense she had given birth to the new Naruto, and ever since the urge for more children had grown stronger. If she had another child to mother it would ease that pressure, even if the girl in question would be more or less adopted. The issue was that she didn't want to get close to a mortal that would die after a few short years. She had seen from the acquired memories what the passing of their mortal children did to some immortal beings and she was determined to avoid that pain. The uncertainty if Naruto would choose to remain with them was bad enough, even more because he didn't know that he had that choice. But if there was a chance to join young Hinata permanently to their family it took neatly care of most issues.
'Blast it, he did it again. How does he manage to convince me to doing things his way so often?' she thought.
"You have a way with words, my love. So be it, I will allow the little Hyuuga to join us. In exchange, I want your cooperation in destroying every shred of love Naruto may have for Kushina."
Daiki sighed. "Do you truly hate that insignificant mortal that much?"
"You should know better than anyone that I still retain a large part of the Kyuubi's hate and rage, even if the amount isn't that much anymore in comparison to the other parts of my being. She willingly let me be transferred from my first container into her, thereby earning her a place on my list of eternal hatred. Right there with the Sage of Six Paths, Madara Uchiha, Hashirama Senju, Mito Uzumaki and Minato Namikaze. Even if she is long dead, I will make her suffer by letting her shade know that I took that which was most precious from her, her only child's love."
"You do know that this is quite petty?" her mate asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm now a goddess; I can be as petty and vindictive as I like, especially to those I consider enemies. Forgiveness isn't one of my domains." Youko answered with a sniff. "That said; I want to be Naruto's only mother in his heart, not share that with some mortal wench."
This time Daiki's sigh was even deeper. "As you will, I will aid you subtly in that endeavor instead of simply going along with it. There are no guarantees though, and I will never lie or omit truths."
"Good, but I want… additional compensation for giving in so easily." Youko said before she licked her lips seductively.
Daiki gave her a deep kiss. "That's my naughty little vixen. I shall see what I can do about your demands, my lady."
Things were about to escalate into a full-blown make-out session when Naruto returned. Upon seeing the people he considered his parents kissing passionately he reacted predictably.
"Ugh! Get a room you two, I don't need to see you two snog the living daylights out of each other when I'm here." he said while averting his eyes.
Both adults stopped kissing but didn't leave the embrace and laughed. "Aww, is my little Naruto-kun disturbed by a simple display of affection? You should take notes, you know. In a few years you will be thankful for every bit of knowledge in this particular field." Youko teased good-naturedly.
"Yeah, right. Now, what's the matter with Hinata? Did you find out why she is so strange?"
Daiki sat back on his chair and gestured for Naruto to take a seat before he launched into an abbreviated explanation.
"Basically, her family treats her very badly and has been doing that for years, traumatizing her. The girl has serious confidence issues and is very shy. She has chosen you as her shining hero she wishes to emulate because of your determination to succeed. Her clan doesn't want her to have any contact with you, but their surveillance stopped recently for the most part. She would make a very good friend if you manage to pierce her shell. We will be keeping her around and try to help her. I suggest you get to know her better." Daiki winked at him. "At least here she can't really run away from you."
"Isn't it incredibly risky to bring Hinata here? What if she talks?" Naruto asked, pointedly ignoring his father's insinuation.
"She won't be able to talk to anyone about anything that happened, I made sure of that. If our plan doesn't pan out I will wipe some of her memories so that it never happened from her perspective. For now, we let her sleep. I think it best if I handle her alone after she wakes up, though. Oh, that reminds me, we need more space now." With these words, the walls shifted, enlarging the room somewhat and forming a second alcove at the side of Naruto's.
Hinata slowly awoke, but kept her eyes closed for the time being. She felt warm and content while she was on the edge of sleep, and soon enough she would have to face the cold world again. Then the memories hit; her following Naruto, the strange woods, the ebon eyes… the giant fox. She opened her eyes only to find herself staring at an unfamiliar wooden ceiling. Getting up, she saw that she had slept in a very soft and fluffy bed with her clothes neatly folded on a stool beside the bed. Empty shelves and a wardrobe were the only pieces of furniture besides a dressing table. A fur curtain separated her alcove from another room with light seeping in on the edges.
Quickly she got up and dressed before entering the room behind the curtain. A wooden table with several chairs stood in the middle of the room, while a large stone fireplace took up most of the space of one wall. A stone workbench and several cupboards that held tableware and cooking supplies occupied another wall. Multiple furs covered the floor and empty spaces on the walls. Two windows let light into the room and four doors led to somewhere else.
To the side of the alcove she had woken up in another one was visible. Hinata decided to take a peek. It was virtually identical to her own, with the exception of there being a normal table instead of the dressing table. An obviously well-loved and slightly worn fox doll rested on the table, and the shelves were filled with a whole menagerie of wooden animal figurines. Before she could enter the alcove to take a closer look someone behind her cleared his throat. Whirling around, Hinata saw a leather-clad dark-haired man with yellow eyes sitting at the formerly empty table who eyed her with a friendly expression.
"Good morning, Hinata-san."
"G-g-good m-morning." Hinata immediately recognized the voice. It was the same one that had spoken to her in the field. "W-Where am I? W-Who are y-you?"
"You are currently in the world at the edge of dreams, our home and prison. You may call me Daiki. I'm Naruto's adoptive father, you are in our home and we brought you here because of your stalking of our son."
'Naruto's… adoptive father? That cannot be, I know he lives alone.'
Then the rest of the words registered. The man knew that she was stalk-… err, following Naruto, and that probably meant that Naruto knew too. She went completely pale before a blush spread over her features. "I…I…I'm…I'm" she stammered, trying to get some justification out.
Daiki raised his hand to stop her words and sighed. "We can't talk like this." Hinata blushed more strongly and watched the man retrieve a cup out of one of the cupboards and fill it with a mix of several liquids from different flasks. After mixing it thoroughly, he returned to the table and placed the cup containing a light blue liquid before her. "Drink this, it will calm you down and enable you to speak normally."
Having no realistic other options, Hinata carefully took a tiny sip. The mixture tasted like blueberries, and she could feel the edge of her nervousness melt away. Encouraged by this, she slowly emptied the cup. The effects became noticeable almost immediately. Her inner turmoil calmed, and for the first time since the death of her mother Hinata felt at peace. The inner tension she had felt so long wasn't there anymore; it was as if the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders.
Her host had watched her carefully the entire time and obviously noticed her relaxing. "Very good, now we should be able to talk."
"Thank you. What was this?" Hinata asked. Suddenly her eyes widened. She hadn't stuttered!
"A very high-powered calming draught. Unfortunately it only lasts for a few hours and has bad side-effects if consumed too often. Now, about your situation…"
They talked for hours about everything that came to mind. Insignificant things at first, likes and dislikes of both of them. Slowly Hinata opened up and talked about her admiration of Naruto, and a bit about the problems with her family. Normally that would never have happened in a conversation with a stranger she had just met, but somehow she wanted to tell the man everything. Even after she felt the calming effect of the potion lessen she continued talking. It just felt so good to able to speak with someone who listened patiently and didn't obviously judge her every word.
"Why didn't you simply talk with him? Naruto told us that he tried several times to get you to open up?"
Hinata tried to find the right words. "I wanted to, but I… just couldn't. Every time he is near me I become light-headed and lose the ability to talk. Sometimes it's almost enough to make me faint. Observing him without him noticing makes me feel better."
Daiki laughed. "Well young lady, you should know that Naruto was aware of you following him around and watching him from the beginning. It was driving him quite crazy. Our son likes to hunt, but he doesn't like to be the prey."
Her mouth formed a silent O before she blushed a deep, deep crimson and lowered her head. "I'm sorry." It should have been obvious from the start, no one could escape her so often and being unaware of the fact that he was being followed. Now she would have to stop every contact with him.
"You don't have to be sorry. Just stop stalking him; he has nothing against you joining his circle of friends."
Hinata's head snapped upright so fast that she almost dislocated her neck. Hope blossomed inside her heart. "Really?"
"Really. I will help you with your problems, enabling you to talk with him normally. He has already said that he has nothing against you."
Hinata had tears in her eyes. "Thank you so much. I don't think I could live without his presence."
It was only then that she truly noticed how much she had said, far more than she should have to a man she just had met. Normally she would have panicked, but thanks to the potion she stayed calm. Did it really matter? The man had treated her friendly and wanted to help her to be able to talk to Naruto.
Daiki smiled at her. "Your secrets are safe with me. I won't tell Naruto without your consent, and it isn't like I talk with anybody else from the outside. Now, I think it best to teach you some meditative exercises to calm you down without resorting to other measures. Naruto and my wife will return in a few days, by then you should be ready."
"Days? How long have I been here? My clan will be looking for me."
"They won't. Time does flow much quicker here than in the normal world. It's still the same afternoon you chose to follow Naruto, you will have lost perhaps one or two hours when you return." Daiki assured her.
The following days were very strange for Hinata. After her host had shown her the cottage and surroundings she spent most of their time learning mental exercises. In contrast to her previous experiences with her clan and father Daiki never got upset with her if she didn't understand something at first or had problems doing some specific exercise. He let her help preparing their meals, and Hinata found that she enjoyed it much more than usual. At home most meals were cooked by servants, but as part of her ninja training she had learned the basics of cooking and often prepared something for lunch break. Time passed quickly, and the day neared when Naruto and his mother were about to return.
Hinata was nervous. Her formerly non-existent emotional control had improved noticeably. She still wasn't sure if she could manage to talk to Naruto, but she was better than she had been. It was a sunny afternoon, and she was still doing exercises under Daiki's supervision when he called her to stop. "That's enough for now, Hinata. Naruto and my mate will be here soon." he said while pointing into the distance.
When she got up from her sitting position Hinata indeed saw Naruto quite a distance away coming towards them. At his side walked a woman with red hair that she supposed was his mother. As they got closer Hinata could make out more of their features. The woman was simply the most beautiful female she had ever seen. From her face to her impressive bust size to her legs, every inch of her body seemed to scream perfection. Both Naruto and the woman wore some mix of leather and sturdy clothing.
They waved when they came closer, and Naruto ran ahead of the woman to tackle Daiki with a hug and a cry of "Dad!" The man didn't even rock slightly from the impact and whirled Naruto around before setting him back on his own feet. "Welcome back, son." Then Naruto turned to her. "Hello Hinata, it's good to see you back upon your feet."
She only managed a weak "H-Hello N-Naruto-kun." in reply before lapsing into a nervous silence, but apparently it was enough. Naruto favored her with a smile that made the blood rush to her head. Using all her newly developed techniques she let the emotions wash over her without losing control. Meanwhile Naruto was talking at high speed to his father about the things he had done in the last week. His stream of words was interrupted when the woman reached them. Instead of saying anything she simply gave Daiki a deep, passionate kiss. Hinata felt once again blood rushing to her cheeks simply from watching them kiss. She didn't remember her parents doing that in such a… passionate fashion, but that could have been due to the Hyuuga traditions of emotional restraint. When the kiss ended the woman turned towards Hinata.
"Good afternoon Hinata. I'm Youko, and it's nice to see you taking my presence better than last time."
"S-Sorry, do we h-have met?" Hinata asked, slightly confused. She was sure she would have remembered the woman.
Her answer prompted Youko to laugh. "Of course we have met. Don't tell me you have forgotten the giant fox who greeted you here?"
Things connected inside Hinata's mind. 'A fox with nine tails… this world is a prison…' Her eyes widened. "A-Are you the K-Kyuubi?" she blurted out.
"I think it better for us to take this conversation inside." Daiki interrupted.
A short time later they all sat around the table in the cottage. Daiki launched into an explanation, occasionally aided by Youko or Naruto. Many things were revealed that she hadn't known about. Naruto's status as a jinchuuriki and what that entailed; the fact that he considered the Kyuubi as his adoptive mother and that Daiki had come to free her, but had been trapped as well behind the seal; the animosity of many of the villagers and some instructors; their doubts concerning Naruto's upbringing and the Sandaime's motivations; the existence and practice of magic. It ended with their claim on divinity.
"You a-are what?" Hinata asked disbelievingly.
"I think it's easier to show you." With these words Youko began to glow in a golden light, and Hinata felt an all-encompassing warmth penetrating her. Images drifted through her mind. A forest full of life… the sun at noon… endless green plains under a blue sky… When she was about to lose herself in the unfathomably great presence the images ended, and Youko was back to her normal human form. "Convinced?"
Hinata nodded weakly.
"Now to the reason we brought you here. We want to help you, Hinata. While your… following of our son has made him quite nervous, we would like you to become friends. He's lonely in the outside world, and I think he would appreciate your help." Daiki said.
"For now I just want to keep my true abilities a secret and become a good shinobi. Can I trust you, Hinata?" Naruto asked.
"I w-will keep y-your secrets, Naruto-kun." she stammered. There was no way she would throw this opportunity to get close to him away.
This caused him to smile. "Thank you, Hinata-chan."
The following days were quite enjoyable for Hinata, even if she still was largely unable to talk with Naruto in a normal fashion. Living with Naruto's family was simply fun. They taught her all sorts of new things while never uttering a sharp or disparaging remark. While she did her own exercises she watched Naruto doing some chakra control training that seemed completely unfamiliar. One day he did something different.
Naruto made some hand seals and shouted "Bunshin!" With a large puff of smoke a clone appeared, but it looked sickly and had trouble moving. With a sigh Naruto dispelled it after he let it walk a short distance. "Dammit, it still doesn't work correctly. How much more have I to improve my control?" The frustration was evident in his voice.
"Just keep trying son, one day you will manage it. The clone just now was better than the one a month before, which in turn was a far cry from the dead things you produced at the beginning." Daiki comforted him.
Naruto seemed to appreciate it. "Thanks dad. You're right; someday I will have good enough control to pull it off."
It was so different from her own experiences Hinata could only gape at the scene. If she failed at some clan training exercise her instructors never bothered to encourage her further. They always acted as if they expected her to fail. She was glad for Naruto's sake that he had people he considered family. Still, at the same time she felt an ache in her heart. Why couldn't her family be the same?
Unfortunately her good time came to an end when Daiki informed her one day that she and Naruto would return to the normal world the coming night. Training that day was finished early, and they spent most of their time playing together. It was clear to her that Naruto didn't really want to leave but was resigned to it.
'No wonder if he has to experience that every week' she thought.
When it became night Naruto said his parents goodbye. Hinata was nervous. How would they return? What if it wouldn't work? She voiced her concerns to Daiki, but he had an answer ready.
"You simply go to sleep normally, when you wake up you will be back outside. There's nothing that can go wrong." Daiki assured her.
Youko was still talking with Naruto before embracing him and planting a kiss on his brow. Naruto gave his mother a squeeze before retiring for the night into his alcove. After he had closed his curtain his mother approached her. "Goodbye Hinata, I look forward to seeing you again in a week." Youko said.
… and then she hugged her. Hinata had never been hugged since her own mother died all these years ago. At first she stiffened, but Youko radiated such a comfortable warmth that she soon relaxed. The embrace seemed to never end, it was almost a shock to her system when it happened.
"Sleep well, Hinata."
Still off balance, she managed to bow to Naruto's parents before staggering into her alcove and bed. It took her a long time that night to find sleep. The sensation and warmth of the embrace seemed to linger with her. She hadn't known how much she had missed it.
Hinata's eyelids fluttered open when she was hit by the rays of the evening sun. Blinking, she sat up. Under her hands she could feel a bed of soft moss. To her side, Naruto was already up and stretching. When she got up, she could see that their resting place had been deliberately arranged at the edge of the field under the thick branches of a mighty oak which was the largest she had ever seen.
The last weeks had been easily some of the best of her life. Not only had she finally been able to speak to Naruto without stammering too much, his adoptive parents were friendly towards her. In fact, they had treated her more nicely than her own family ever did. It was a disconcerting thought because both of them were not human, his mother freely admitted to being the Kyuubi.
"Come on, Hinata-chan. We have to get back or you will be missed by your clan. I can show you around the sanctuary some other time."
"Y-Yes, Naruto-kun."
She quickly got to her feet. With a last look at the beautiful field of flowers she followed Naruto and caught up to him. Soon, the barrier of mist came into view. A few steps before entering the mist, Naruto stopped and turned towards her. "I have to lead you through the mist, without dad to control it you won't be able to find the path. There are things you don't want to meet. Just take my hand, Hinata-chan."
Hinata could feel the blood rushing to her head, but she complied and managed not to faint, even if she didn't trust her voice in this moment. That was already a marked improvement over her past behavior, she noted in the back of her mind. Naruto led her purposefully through the mist; apparently he could orient himself without problems. A short walk later and without any transition they stood on the winding forest path. Soon enough they exited the small grove of trees inside of Konoha.
"It's time for us to part; I still have things to do. I guess I'll see you Monday at the academy. Take care, Hinata-chan." Naruto said with a smile.
"T-Thank y-you, Naruto-kun. G-Goodbye." Hinata answered before she made her way home. The guards at the entrance to the clan compound eyed her with a look somewhere between disinterest and vague contempt. Apparently no one had even noticed that she was running late.
The first day home was uncomfortable. The second day was more so. By midweek she was completely miserable. Hinata had thought that she was miserable before, but that had been when she hadn't experienced first-hand how full of love Naruto's family was. They were everything her own family wasn't. Caring. Encouraging. Compassionate. All she got from her clan was icy indifference at best and open contempt at worst. Or outright hate in case of her cousin. Hinata wondered why she had never really noticed the looks of disdain that were leveled at her by her clansmen.
'No, that isn't right. I noticed them. I just didn't want to see.' she thought.
When she finished one of the irregular exercises she was required to do on the fourth day with great difficulty she didn't get a single sign of approval, not by her instructor nor by any of the watching people. In fact, she heard quite clearly a 'failure' or 'disappointment' from several of them when they talked with each other. Hinata couldn't help but remembering how different Naruto's father had acted towards her while he taught her the basics of emotional control. Each successful step had earned her some praise, and problems had prompted encouragement and additional pointers. Here she had none of that.
At the academy things continued pretty much as normal, but she managed to exchange a few civil words with Naruto. They had to make changes gradually; they didn't want anyone looking into their situation too closely. Besides, she still got incredibly nervous when he was close to her. Her new exercises helped her in a way the Hyuuga ones never had, but it was still a far cry from enough.
On her last day she counted the minutes until she could visit Naruto's parents. Her home situation felt simply unbearable, she needed someone to talk to who accepted her. It was the easiest thing in the world to make her own way to the secret grove and meet up with Naruto after the academy ended. The walk on the winding path was noticeably shorter than she remembered.
When Hinata voiced this observation Naruto had an answer ready. "Oh, that's right. I needed some more time to reach the center of the sanctuary to let dad take over and simply closed the exit of the path, just as I left the entrance open until you entered. It's one of the security features I have some control over. Without someone opening it you could have been trapped on the path forever, but I think dad has plans to grant you access on your own."
The zone of mist once again required Naruto to lead her through, but they took some detours in the enchanted forest as Naruto gave her a tour. It was truly the most beautiful forest she had ever laid her eyes on, with some unique species of plants that she had never seen on her limited excursions into the woods around Konoha.
Finally they reached the large field at the center of the sanctuary, and after a few encouraging words Naruto went rigid for a moment when he ceded control of his body to his father. This time the abject horror when staring into the ebon eyes was absent, though she still felt somewhat uncomfortable. Once again the blackness spread over her field of vision and she lost consciousness.
Her second visit was even better than her first one. Naruto left sometimes with either his mother or father for up to a day to somewhere, but at every time there was someone there for her. She was at first hesitant to interrupt them in their own activities, but Youko dispelled her concerns.
"If you have need of us we make time for you. If I'm doing something that can't wait I will tell you. There's no reason to fear that someone will rip your head off if you speak at an inopportune moment."
Youko reinforced her statement by embracing Hinata. She had come to crave these hugs and all the other little gestures of affection that slowly increased in number with time. Daiki never hugged her, but sometimes he put a hand on her shoulder. Occasionally Naruto took her hand, especially when he wanted to show her something and he practically dragged her with him. It only served to further emphasize the difference between Naruto's family and her clan. She couldn't remember the last time someone besides her deceased mother had shown her some physical affection.
One evening about two days before they would have to return to the waking world when Youko and Naruto were away on some unspecified business Daiki approached her with a serious expression. "Hinata, there is something we need to talk about."
"Y-Yes, Daiki-san?" Hinata wondered what this would be about. Surely not some more completely unexpected revelations? Maybe it was about her improving emotional control. She had managed to initiate and hold several conversations with Naruto without stammering incoherently, and she grew steadily better at living with her emotions. The trick was balancing them correctly instead of simply suppressing them like her clan had taught her. If she let them out in a controlled fashion they were much easier to weather and no longer constantly threatened to overwhelm her.
"It is a somewhat complicated matter concerning this world and the way you enter it. I have to explain a bit for you to understand the problem properly. You already know that the Kyuubi was sealed into Naruto. Imagine a walled shaft in a lake leading into the depths as a representation for every human. In the specific case of my son the Kyuubi rests inside of the seal at the bottom of the shaft. The walls are part of Naruto's mind and soul, but his main consciousness sits like a plug in the shaft, blocking the way to the surface for the sealed Kyuubi and keeping the seal closed. What I did was creating a bubble in the water outside the shaft and anchoring it inside Naruto's soul with several entrance points that pierce the walls, both for Naruto's consciousness and the Kyuubi. Are you with me so far?"
Seeing Hinata nod hesitantly, he continued. "Now part of my wife still rests inside of the seal lest it collapses and kills Naruto, but her mind is here. Additionally I am able to pull Naruto here for a time. When I take possession of his body to act in the waking world I have to do that around and through Naruto's consciousness, which is quite stressful to him and can even become dangerous. I can bring him here without that, but it still causes some amount of stress."
"C-Couldn't you just send some power through the connection for Naruto to use?" Hinata interrupted him.
Daiki looked thoughtful. "That's actually an interesting idea; I will have to look into it. Anyway, the more power I have to channel the greater the danger becomes. The problem we have now is that bringing you here is extremely difficult and dangerous. It will only be possible one more time before I have to stop doing it."
Hinata felt like someone had emptied a bucket of ice water over her head. She had just found people who accepted her, and now she was about to lose them again. After a moment of shock she dejectedly said "I understand."
"No, I don't think you do. There is a way for you to continue visiting us." Daiki said before Hinata could slide into depression.
She immediately perked up. "Really?"
Daiki nodded. "I would have to create a second anchor of this world inside you and form a connection. You wouldn't need to visit the sanctuary every time; I could pull you in independent of your location." He raised a hand to forestall her giving her consent immediately. "There is a cost. The strain for each visit would be one your mind instead of Naruto's. He had years of training to alleviate these problems, and you don't. That means you would only be able to visit us perhaps two times per month instead of Naruto's four, and your visits would be shorter." He stopped for a moment, obviously considering his next words carefully. "But the most important part is something different. For me to be able to create the connection you would have to pledge yourself to us. 'Us' in the sense of our divine nature. You would have to accept us as the highest possible authority, superseding your clan, the Hokage and even the village as a whole as long as you live. Now, we don't plan on using that authority against your will, but once given you wouldn't be able to withdraw your consent. It is a leap of faith, giving yourself completely in our hand." Daiki stood from his seat. "Think carefully about it. You have still a lot of time, I only need to know your decision at the time the visit after next would take place."
The time between visits to Naruto's parents was agony. All the little signs of affection and appreciation she had grown used to in the weeks spent in the world at the edge of dreams were painfully missing. She came to dread each minute she had to spend in her clan's presence. The looks they gave her were arguably the worst part.
The cold, disinterested look of her father, occasionally showing signs of disappointment.
The hostile looks of the other main house members, making it painfully clear that they thought of her as a disgrace to the Hyuuga.
The disdainful or disgusted looks of the random clansman, sometimes sprinkled with envy of her main house membership.
The hateful gaze of her cousin Neji, a boy she loved like a brother.
And worst of all, her little sister Hanabi who seemed to lose slowly every little bit of respect and affection for her, a process instigated by the clan elders.
She was forced to face the truth; she could no longer close her eyes to it. Her family with the possible exception of her little sister didn't love her. They wouldn't shed a tear if she just happened to die. It hurt. It hurt so much she sometimes thought her heart would shatter. The difference between what a family should be and what her clan was in reality was so big that it seemed unbridgeable. Hinata had noticed it before, yes, but it had been never so painfully clear just how large the gulf was. The hours she had to spent with her clan went by like in slow motion. Increasingly often her thoughts returned to Naruto's father's offer. Could she trust someone she hardly knew completely? Was it worth it?
Her next visit began with a surprise, namely that Youko and Daiki wore the form of foxes. It needed some getting used to, but in the end it made no matter. The two changed their form like other people changed their clothes. If one form was more suited to a task they wore it, only to change in the next moment.
One evening when they sat before the fire on the furs Daiki allowed her to lean against him. She was already very tired because they had wandered through the forest all day long and wasn't really thinking clearly anymore. Daiki's fur was just so warm, soft and fluffy that she couldn't help to snuggle up to him as closely as she could. She absentmindedly noticed Youko's and Naruto's amused expressions, but didn't pay them any mind. A fluffy tail wrapped around her, and she promptly grabbed it and didn't let go.
The next morning Hinata woke in her usual bed.
'Did I only dream that?'
Her question was answered when she met Daiki at the breakfast table. "Good morning, Hinata. I hope you liked using me last evening as your personal cushion."
"Did… d-did I r-really use you as a p-pillow?" Hinata asked.
Daiki chuckled. "I don't mind, I have been used as an oversized cuddly toy by Naruto often enough. I admit I was a bit surprised by it, but it isn't anything for you to be ashamed of. The greater ability to cuddle is one of the perks of our fox forms."
Hinata really shouldn't have been surprised by this, but she was. The Hyuuga emphasized proper behavior to such a degree that simply showing physical affection towards her father when other people could see them was simply unthinkable at her age. Even when her mother was still alive he had rarely allowed that. She needed to think.
In the following days she observed Naruto's family closely. She made note of their behavior, of their support for another. The shows of affection, be they physical or merely spoken out loud. The gentle teasing, the encouragement. The interest they expressed for each other's wellbeing.
They were everything a happy family should be. Everything she wanted for herself. Everything her own family wasn't, and probably could never be.
And they were willing to include her on a permanent basis.
A day before she had to leave again she approached Daiki. "P-Please tell me what I would n-need to do if I should accept y-your offer."
She had a week to think things over for a last time.
The starry sky was completely breathtaking. That was Hinata's first thought as they entered the center of the sanctuary after their trip through the woods. It was her first nightly visit, and she had never seen the sanctuary by night before. She had been able to cover for her nightly absence from the clan compound by pretending to have a sleepover with Yakumo Kurama. She had met the girl only for a few times, but she was a good friend of Naruto and would cover for them. Yakumo thought that she was interested in animals like Naruto, and that he was showing her some nocturnal animals in the woods. Not that Hiashi, her so-called father, seemed to care what she did.
Hinata had accompanied Naruto to the sanctuary like the last two times, and they had watched some pretty nocturnal animals to make their excuse actual truth, but she wouldn't immediately follow him into the world of his parents. Today was the day of her decision. She watched as Naruto closed his blue eyes. Once again the strange cloak of mist and starlight appeared from nowhere, wrapping around his body. When he opened his eyes they had become the familiar ebony orbs of his father.
"Good evening, Hinata. I assume you have made your decision?"
"G-Good evening. I have." Hinata took a deep breath. "I…I accept your offer."
A gentle smile lit the face of Naruto's possessed form. "Then come with me." After walking a short distance they reached a small hill surrounded by an irregular circle of stones ranging from knee-high to two times as high as a man. "I prepared this place for this occasion. Enter the circle and stay on top of the hill. I will tell you when the time is right. It will take a while. You remember what to say?"
Hinata nodded and ascended the hill. After that she had to wait, but she was patient. Even at night the sanctuary was beautiful. It was a full moon, and there were countless white flowers in full bloom. While quite different from the multi-colored ones they served to exude a serene atmosphere. It was around midnight when the moon reached its zenith, and she felt something change.
The moon and stars grew brighter, illuminating the woods and field with their gentle light. She could see shadows without source sliding along the ground all over the place. Naruto's body stood at the edge of the circle with a look of utmost concentration on his face, his cloak billowing in a wind she couldn't feel. Banks of mist appeared and disappeared randomly, reflecting the moonlight. An alien presence pervaded everything, filling the air with power and magic.
"Now Hinata. This is the time and place for your decision."
A last moment of doubt clouded her mind, but she shook it off. She needed… no, wanted this. She still loved her family, but they didn't love her back. The last week had been proof enough for that once again. Hinata wanted to love and be loved. If her family was unable or unwilling to provide that, she would choose a new one who did. Naruto's company was an added bonus. A determined calmness settled in her mind.
"I, Hinata Hyuuga, hereby willingly grant the Lord of the Starry Night and the Lady of Light access to my soul." Something mysterious and powerful was resonating with her voice, and she knew that her words here and now had power. "To forge a bond that transcends this world I bare myself before them. To fashion a link of affection and love I open myself to them. To weave a tie that only death may break I submit to their power. So do I say and so may it be." A feeling of finality settled over her as the last words were spoken.
The glowing mist covered the grounds outside the circle like a churning ocean, some parts forming abstract shapes that where somehow very hard to look at. In the far distance she could see the mist forming a barrier around the sanctuary taller than the great wall of Konoha. The scent of the myriad flowers grew stronger as they released a steady stream of glowing pollen. Glittering dust floated down from the celestial bodies above, engulfing everything as far as she could see, dancing in the moonlight. She could feel her skin prickling slightly wherever some of the dust hit her.
'Stardust' she thought.
Suddenly she lost the ground beneath her feet. Higher and higher she soared, until there seemed nothing to exist in the world but the dancing stardust and the eternal firmament with the bright moon above her. Star- and moonlight formed softly glowing tendrils that partook in the dance, drawing slowly closer to her. Hinata gasped as the first one made contact with her sternum. A brief vision of a land of eternal night flashed before her eyes as the ethereal construct entered her body.
More and more tendrils came closer and caressed her body before plunging into her, her clothing and flesh no obstacle to the incorporeal things. Whispers from beyond the stars entered her mind, and Hinata gave herself completely into the hands of the Lord of the Starry Night. Deep, deep inside her, at the very core of her very being she could feel his touch. Searching. Changing.
It was light as a feather and at the same time heavier than a mountain.
It was full of life like a forest and empty like the void between the stars.
She felt pain.
She felt ecstasy.
Then Hinata felt nothing at all aside from a warm golden light that encompassed her completely.
In the world at the edge of dreams, Youko and another version of Daiki stood at the edge of a clearing. Both could feel the world around them shift and tremble to its very foundations when the changes occurred, but only Daiki really knew what they were about. Youko had a great deal of power over their prison, yes, but only because Daiki had granted it her. His current avatar had nothing human about it, it was taller than all the trees around them and completely made from darkness, churning silvery mist and strange moving and glowing symbols that constantly changed their form and color. Tendrils of shadow and mist formed and dissolved in a steady dance all over the hulking form, making seemingly arbitrary movements. Occasionally a beam of light would shoot out from somewhere inside the mass, only to disappear in thin air. This world was his creation, and only he was able to make the necessary modifications. Space and time twisted and turned while he worked, until at last the trembling stopped. Grey mist appeared from nowhere and formed a great cloud in the center of the clearing. Quickly the cloud grew smaller and denser at the same time, finally forming an archway.
With a pulse of power, the mist coalesced into stone. The space inside the archway shimmered like hot air until a sound like thousands of tiny glass objects breaking resonated through the clearing. Instead of the shimmering air the whole space under the archway was now occupied by a single smooth mirror-like surface. A silvery-grey tentacle wriggled through and gave a wave before disappearing back into the mirror.
Hundreds of voices spoke in a chorus. "It is done. You may enter the pathway."
Youko seemed nervous for a moment before a look of determination settled on her face. Her human form dissolved into strands of light that flew straight at the mirror, only to disappear as they reached it.
The dance of the stardust ended when sunlight exploded outwards from the hovering form of the girl, bathing the field and woods in daylight. Soon the storm of light subsided and the young female was lowered gently to the ground. For a few moments, she simply stood silently with closed eyes and inhaled deeply the fresh night air. Then she opened her eyes, and examined her surroundings and borrowed body from golden glowing orbs. After she had completed her inspection she made her way down the hill to the figure that had waited patiently at its foot. Her first steps were a bit unsteady, but soon she walked as if she had been born in this body. Both of them made their way to the central spire in silence while Youko was still acclimating to her new body.
"Ah, it feels good to be able to walk the earth again, even if this body is much younger than I would prefer. It has been much too long since I could do that, at least without being controlled by a sharingan." Her expression grew predatory and became full of malice, a quite unusual sight on the face of one Hinata Hyuuga. "I will burn this pathetic village and all that oppose us to the ground… slowly. All shall bow before the power of the Lady of Light." she said before beginning to laugh maniacally, gesturing with her hands. A few bright sparks danced across her fingers but died almost immediately, causing her to stop laughing and make a face. "I can't do anything useful in this form, can I?"
"Not for a long time, no. I think you are currently experiencing somewhat of a rush, but it should subside soon. It was a great work of divine power, but hopefully the mist barrier was enough to keep anyone from noticing. If we begin training the girl now I estimate around three years until her mind is stable and the pathway established enough to route any meaningful amount of power through her. It will be only magic though, not chakra. Besides, I don't think Naruto would appreciate if you destroy the village now." Naruto's body settled down on the moss, his back to the stone spire. Youko sidled up to his side.
"Spoilsport. Well, nothing we can do about that now." They watched the stars together in silence for a time until Youko spoke up again. "Hinata is practically hugging the protection I cast to protect her mind while I use her body. What did you do to convince her to swear allegiance to us?"
Daiki snorted. "All things considered, it was pathetically easy to get Hinata's consent. In the first few days simply talking with her while exuding an aura of trustworthiness got her to open up. From then on things practically took on a life of their own with only a few prods of emotional manipulation here and there. I didn't even have to resort to more intrusive methods, just showing her our family and offering her a place in it combined with magically making her look at her own clan truthfully was enough. We had just to be ourselves." He cocked his head thoughtfully. "Though I do confess I used a lesser version of something I saw a dark god use long ago. It was a quite nasty curse, makes the victim question his beliefs, morals, faith, just about everything. With a bit of persuasion one could convert practically anyone to anything. I believe it was used mainly against authority figures and priests of other gods."
"And you used something like this on timid little Hinata?"
Daiki shook Naruto's head. "No, of course not, that would be too extreme. Just a lesser version that caused her to question the traditions of her clan and the love of her family. The funny thing is that it wouldn't have worked if they had shown her even the tiniest bit of affection. Four weeks without anything like that; it would bring anyone to the conclusion that her family doesn't love her." He began stroking the cheek of Hinata's body. "And now she is ours."
Hinata's features morphed into a fearsome grin. "Ours to love. Ours to teach. Ours to form. She will be great and beautiful. Great, beautiful and terrible."
Far, far away, in a place no mortal mind could fully comprehend, something awoke from its fitful slumber amidst a world of bones and darkness. Its sleep had grown ever lighter for the past six years, and now the threshold was reached. The being had slept for a long time, with only an occasional foul dream touching the mortal world. As it spread its awareness towards the world of humans it felt gleeful anticipation. Apparently the world had recovered since its last visit, and life teemed again everywhere. As it began to exert its influence on the more susceptible minds it could hardly suppress the eternal hunger. Soon it would feast again on the souls and life of mortals.
Author's notes: My thanks to my reviewers. And another chapter finished, I hope you'll enjoy it. It is even the longest one to date. Originally I didn't intend to make it solely about Hinata, but the words just kept flowing.
So long.