Chapter 5: Meeting The Three Yaban
They continued to glare at each other in silence, blood lust seeping from both men. Hinata's breath became ragged as she stood there between them, their hostile expressions causing her to shiver. She felt like weeping, hiding, closing her eyes, anything that could help get her out of this situation. She briefly scanned over Naruto, her eyes having to inspect twice the distance because he had gotten so tall. Hinata noted that his blonde, disheveled hair was shorter and his sapphire eyes were hard-edged and sharper. His shoulders were large and his body was heavily packed with muscle and strength. Naruto's presence made her feel feverish and disoriented as a strange mixture of emotions engulfed Hinata. The sound of Tamaki's footsteps interrupted Hinata from her thoughts as he stood directly behind her.
"We are kind of bus—" His words came to an abrupt halt. Hinata turned just in time to see Tamaki's eyes flutter into the back of his head as his body fell limp to the floor. A pair of red eyes met Hinata's own as she lifted her palms to strike. Before she had a chance to react, the red-eyed man had the tip of his sword centimeters from her neck.
"Naruto, I thought you said she would be alone." The red-eyed man said with a severe disapproving look. His sword was still positioned in front of her throat.
Tears filled Hinata's eyes. 'Who was this man and why was Naruto with him?' She felt betrayed and imprisoned; her body became heavy. Too many emotions were overwhelming her with such force that she nearly blacked out. Her eyes, the Byakugan in which they are praised, couldn't even see through her tears.
"Ohh, looks like we've interrupted something." A voice cooed.
Hinata felt another presence behind her, but didn't move for fear that the red-eyed man would kill her. A woman came into Hinata's line of sight, resting a hand on the man's sword and lowering it. Hinata's jaw would have hit the floor upon seeing this woman at any other normal circumstance; her beauty was unparalleled. The woman began inspecting Hinata with a quizzical look on her face. 'What was going on!'
"You were right, Naruto." The woman said while using her fingers to push her pink, uncut bangs out of her face, revealing a diamond in the center of her forehead.
Suddenly, everything fell into place for Hinata, the red-eyed man, the beautiful girl with the diamond. 'Yes, yes, these were Naruto's friends and accomplices; they are The Three Yaban! But why were they here?' She turned her head and glanced at Naruto, his eyes still fixed on an unconscious Tamaki on ground. She wanted an explanation for all of this. Naruto's face suddenly turned to meet Hinata's, startling her. His eyes were unreadable and his face remained stiff.
"Sasuke, drop him off somewhere in the village and use Genjutsu to wipe his memory of us." Naruto uttered quietly while pointing a finger at Tamaki. "Sakura, take Hinata to her room, I'll be guarding the entrance." Naruto turned to leave, but Hinata's hand gripped his shoulder.
"Naruto…" He turned around and stared at her, his face still rigid. This was the first time she had felt more worlds apart from him than ever. She released his shoulder and stood there like an idiot, tears making their way down her cheeks. She was too exhausted to speak or argue at this point. A gentle hand grabbed hers and gradually pulled her away from Naruto's icy glare. "..Y-You're S-Sakura..?" Hinata murmured.
"Shhh, just get some sleep, Hinata."
Hinata looked up to see Sakura's hand with two fingers extended, a green glowing light emitted at the end of them. Her fingers touched Hinata's forehead….
Hinata woke with a jolt from her bed, the events from yesterday still fresh in her mind. She jumped from her bed, got dressed and ran out the door. There was no one there, the air was still as if three highly dangerous ninja's didn't just break into her house. She ran outside and searched with her Byakugan, but was unsuccessful. 'They probably left already' She felt her eyes tearing up again as a result of not being able to do anything for her friend. She was a truly pathetic and worthless friend. 'Why can't I reach through to you, Naruto...' Hinata continued to walk forward, lost in self-pity and recollecting past encounters with Naruto.
"Hey!" A feminine voice called out her.
Hinata looked up and didn't recognize her surroundings, she must have walked farther than she realized. The woman with pink hair and large emerald eyes stopped in front of her. "Y-You're still here?" Hinata spoke softly.
"Yes, we were just picking up a mission from the Kage, but we will need to lay low at your place for a couple days until we get the signal to strike."
Hinata looked incredulous at Sakura. "How?! How are the Kages giving you missions? They have bounties on all of your heads!" Nothing was making sense to Hinata anymore.
"Hrrmmm…" Sakura threw her hands in the air and shrugged, "We have a mutual agreement."
Hinata shook her head, 'Naruto had some explaining to do.' Hinata noticed Sakura was looking at her with interested eyes. "D-Do I have something on my face..?"
"Ohh..no honey, I'm just curious about you," Sakura said as she gave a soft laugh.
Something Sakura said yesterday night slipped in Hinata's mind. "Yesterday, you mentioned Naruto was right about something? What did you mean by that?"
Sakura gave a gleeful smile as she put a hand on Hinata's shoulder. "Naruto had accidently blurted out that you were gorgeous, I was just confirming what he had said," she snickered. Sakura then shot an amusing look at Hinata's red face and giggled. "By the way, Naruto is, hmm..how should I say this? Uhhh, hurt." Sakura's eyes narrowed as she became more serious.
'Huh?' "Where is he hurt? Will he be okay? I-I need to go to him!" Hinata moved forward while gently pushing Sakura to the side.
"Argh, you're hopeless, the both of you," Sakura sighed. "He's not physically hurt, Hinata. Lets get you back home, you and Naruto have a lot of catching up to do!" Sakura grabbed Hinata's hand and led her back through the forest.
Hinata was nervous to see Naruto again. His dominant demeanor and penetrating eyes were intimidating to say the least. Hinata was unsure if even her Byakugan could perceive what his could. And the other man… Sasuke. Hinata shuddered as the thought of him and his red eyes. She remembered her body feeling heavy when her eyes came into contact with Sasuke's, like she had just ran hundreds of thousands of miles. She assumed he had used his eye prowess to make her feel completely helpless the night before.
Hinata saw them in the distance talking, Naruto with his arms crossed and Sasuke leaning against her house door. As the suns beams came down across their faces, Hinata had to do a double take. Naruto had grown to be a fine and attractive young man, his short hair suited him well while his muscular body fit nicely in his black and orange clothes. The dark haired man beside him was attractive too, in his own eerie, mysterious way. Both men looked her way as she slowly decreased the distance between them. She stopped in front of them and looked at the ground, her hands fidgeting nervously in front of her. "G-Good morning!" She stammered. What the hell was she supposed to say.
Sasuke spoke first, "We need to use this house for a couple of days before we set off again. Will that be a problem?"
"N-No, n-not at all!" 'Like she had any choice.' Hinata took a glimpse at Naruto, his face had relaxed and his lips were curved into a slight, doleful smile.
"And I trust you wont tell anyone that we're here?" Sasuke's tone carried a warning that made Hinata gulp.
"Absolutely not." Hinata had no intention betraying them, betraying Naruto. Hinata felt a tinge of guilt plague her, but she was confused as to why.
Sakura intervened, shooting Sasuke a stern glare, "Sasuke, we should probably get going to set up Barrier Jutsu's around the perimeter."
Sasuke nodded in agreement, "Yeah. Naruto, keep watch here."
Hinata watched as they both took off at blistering speeds through the forest. 'Barrier Jutsu's? Was there someone following them?' She turned to see Naruto staring at the ground with a bored yet despondent stance. She wasn't quite sure how to approach him or even what to say. The atmosphere had shifted and became awkward and tense causing Hinata's heart to beat faster. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Naruto seemed to be aware of her internal struggle and his eyes flickered at her, calling out to her, testing her, probing her. She continued to stare back, not because she wanted to, but because his eyes wouldn't let hers go. 'Naruto, ever since I was a little girl, I've wanted to be by your side. To protect you! But you were always gone and I was trapped, confined to this corrupt Shinobi system. But let me make it up to you! Please….'
"Do you love him?"
His deep voice surprised her, but his question staggered her as she thought for a moment. 'What? Love?' She reeled her mind, trying to figure out what he meant. 'Was Naruto referring to Sasuke? No, it can't be, that would be too far of a stretch…'
"I don't know w-what you're talking about, Naruto. Please te—"
"The man inside your house last night, Hinata."
'OH.' His words felt like a thousand bee stings. Hinata had completely forgot about Tamaki and the physical night they shared. Her body went limp as shame immersed her, but for what purpose? Why should she feel shamed for doing what was natural? The stringent, yet aggravated look on Naruto's face started to worsen her thoughts. She wanted to know what he was thinking, what he felt, why he was barricading himself. She had not deceived anyone, how could she, she was single, nonetheless, she was tormented. Her eyes winced as she fought to bring back tears. Why was she over-thinking this, it was a simple question. 'But it's the principle of being asked such a question,' she thought. 'Why should he care? He has no right to ask after being gone for so long'
"Naruto, I-I-I.. err." She stammered, trying to hold back her half sob. 'I'm pathetic.'
Naruto relaxed his hands on his head and gave a forced smile. She yearned for that smile, even if it was unnatural.
"The reason I ask, Hinata…" His words fell short as his face met hers, the admiration he retained just for her was visible in his eyes once more, giving Hinata warmth.
"I don't want you to give yourself to someone that isn't special to you."
Hinata's eyes widened as she remembered what Naruto had said long ago to her. 'Don't give away things that someone special made for you.' She looked down, embarrassed that she didn't understand before. Naruto was alone, but he knew the importance of someone you can call special more than Hinata did. She realized now why she felt indignity in her actions with Tamaki. She realized now why Naruto wanted to know. She realized now, that she really didn't love Tamaki.