Wrath of a Woman Scorned

By: EDelta88

Rated M for language, violence, adult situations and concepts, lemons, and graphic imagery

[Insert disclaimer here]


Chapter 17: Hinata vs Karui

"Can I help you with something?" Temari demanded, quirking an imperious brow at the Konoha kunoichi that was very casually walking up to her and her team.

"Hi! I'm Higarashi Tenten and I like your style!" the petite brunette chirped with a jaunty wave. "Want to be friends?"

Temari blinked bemusedly at the other girl. "What?"

Tenten's head canted to the side in confusion, her smile faltering ever so slightly. "I liked the way you handled your match?" she tried, rallying some of her earlier confidence. "I'm a combat specialist too and the boys… well, you probably know exactly what I'm talking about."

"Oh, that," Temari groaned, catching on. "You would not believe the amount of flak I deal with."

Tenten just grinned. "I can guess," she replied, nodding down at what Temari was wearing. "No combat type in their right mind would wear that unless it was out of pure spite."

Temari tipped her nose up at that. "It's a valid statement," she argued. "I don't need practical clothing when I can bat my enemies around like ragdolls without ever moving from my starting position."

Tenten blinked, then started stroking her chin thoughtfully. "I hadn't thought about it that way," she admitted. "But what about when you do have to get physical?"

"Did it look like I was having any trouble?"

"True, but you were showing… quite a bit."

"If anyone gets distracted, that's their problem."

Kankuro leaned into Baki and nervously whispered, "What the hell is going on?" Temari was never this animated at home. Never this talkative. It was… kind of unnerving.

"Trust me, kid, don't think about it," Baki sighed, shaking his head as the digital display started cycling through names. "You're better off just leaving it alone and minding your own business."

Match #5, Arena #1: Hyuuga Hinata vs Karui of Kumogakure

"This should be… interesting," Kurenai muttered, her eyes switching between the blindingly white katana strapped across her student's back and the girl from Kumo.

"You know how to use that thing?" Karui demanded as they made their way toward the center of the arena.

Hinata quirked a brow, seeming bored as she walked beside the other girl. "Would you care to find out?" the young Hyuuga returned frostily.

"I thought you'd never ask," Karui replied, a smirk spreading across her lips as she drew her katana. "Swords only?" she asked, hopefully.

Hinata shrugged in tacit agreement as she mirrored her opponent's actions and drew her blade.

Karui's brow rose toward her hairline in surprise. "A lefty? That's rare," the Kumo girl mused before turning her attention to the sword the Hyuuga girl had drawn. The handle was curved away from the holder, presumably to provide better control with a two-handed grip, and elegantly wrapped in a crisscrossing, pale blue ribbon. The tsuba was simple but elegant, formed from a blue-stained steel of some kind. The blade itself was curved in the fashion more common to Samurai and, most strangely of all, was a brilliant snow-white that glittered even in the poor lighting of the arena. It was clearly meant for swordplay rather than ninja work and with the strangely colored blade it certainly looked impressive. However, while there was no arguing that it was a beautiful piece of work, Karui had her doubts. "Huh, pretty piece," she quipped. "You sure you shouldn't have left it on your mantle?"

"Tsurara," Hinata replied.

Karui blinked. "What?"

"My sword's name is Tsurara," the young Hyuuga replied cooly.

Karui frowned. 'Frostbite?' She'd actually named it? 'What kind of a name is that?' she wondered, her gaze flicking to the sword as a phantom chill ran down her spine.

"Contestants ready?" Hayate asked, looking between the two girls with carefully concealed curiosity.

They both nodded and raised their blades in salute to each other.

"Hajime!" Hayate called, an eager glint in his eye as his hand slashed through the air before he leaped away from the two combatants. As a swordsman, he was incredibly interested in this match.

And… nothing happened.

There was no dramatic sword crossing, no shouts of "En garde!" or any other battle cry. They simply stood there, Karui holding her katana at the ready in front of her in both hands as Hinata held hers in a single hand, her body angled to provide as small a target as possible as she maintained a low guard.

"Well, your form is good, I'll give you that," Karui finally admitted. "But how's your footwork? If I step here…" she trailed off as she circled toward Hinata's back and flicked her blade probingly at her opponent's shoulder.

Hinata's response was simply to parry, stepping smoothly with her opponent.

"Good," Karui complimented, a small smile pulling at her lips. Maybe this little Konoha princess actually knew how to fight! "And if I step again?" she feinted toward her opponent's back again before reversing direction and slashing toward her chest.

In a motion as smooth as water flowing over stone, Hinata took a half-step and twirled her blade, catching Karui's blade and parrying it with ease.

"Very good," Karui complimented, giving the barest nod of approval.

Hinata quirked an unimpressed brow at her opponent before taking a shuffling a half-step forward to deliver two lightning-fast slashes at Karui's sides before following up with a straight stab.

C-clang! Clang!

"Well, that wasn't very nice," Karui drawled as she batted away the jab at her chest that would have pierced her heart.

"You'd hardly be worth my time if such a rudimentary combination actually worked on you," Hinata demurred as she began to circle her opponent.

"Fair enough," Karui replied as she mirrored the Hyuuga girl, stepping so that she was always balanced, always facing her enemy.

Step, slash, parry, riposte.

Feint, jab, maneuver, thrust.

Guard, push, trip, slice.

The sound of clashing steel sang off the stone of the arena as the exchange continued at a lazy pace, both girls probing the other's defenses, searching for flaws or a moment of weakness.

Then the teasing ended, and the duel began in earnest.

Their swords crossed, then again, and again, and again faster and faster as they circled each other until the sound of their clashing blades echoed continuously around the arena.

"Beautiful…" Hayate whispered as he watched, entranced, as the two girls whirled around eachother in a flurry of steel. No, he corrected, these two weren't girls… and probably hadn't been for a long time. These two were kunoichi, trained killers, in peak physical condition matching wit and weapon in a dance of death… to a fellow sword user it was truly a thing of beauty.

Karui couldn't help the smile that crossed her lips as she pressed forward. "Not very smart to give ground so easily," she taunted, herding her opponent toward the wall.

Hinata smiled. It was a subtle, empty thing, mirthless and… knowing. "Naturally-" she agreed just a step before the wall, "-unless you've studied Ataru." Then she skipped back and kicked off of the wall, launching herself into the air. "Which I have!" she quipped, slashing at Karui's face as she flipped over the red-haired kunoichi, reversing their positions.

'Shit!' Karui thought, tumbling under a follow-up slash that gouged a long line in the cement where she had been standing moments before.

Clang!

The two girls locked blades as Karui rolled to her feet.

"Fancy gymnastics aren't going to be enough," Karui hissed, shoving the smaller girl back as she began to rain a combination of blows down on her opponent.

"You are wonderful!" Hinata complimented her with an appreciative smirk as she allowed herself to be slowly backed away along the wall.

Karui replied as she continued to drive the other girl back.

"Who trained you?" Hinata asked, unhurried. With her back to a solid surface, defense was much easier even as she continued to give ground.

"I was trained by the Raikage's brother," Karui answered.

"Ah, that would make sense," Hinata mused conversationally as she was backing up the steps and out of the arena.

"Stop!" Hayate shouted.

Both girls froze.

"Combat is paused," he ordered. "Return to the center of the arena."

"You know, you're not too bad yourself," Karui said as they walked back toward where they had started.

"Thank you, I've worked very hard to become so," Hinata replied, offering the other girl an amicable smile. "Though, I must admit that you are better than I am."

"Then why are you smiling?" Karui asked curiously.

"Because I know something that you do not," Hinata replied, something like mischief dancing in her eyes.

"And what is that?" Karui wondered.

"I am not left-handed," Hinata answered as she retook her starting position.

A chill spider crawled up Karui's spine as she watched her opponent bring her hands together in a rolling motion, grasping the hilt of her katana in her right hand with a gentle ease that had not been present when she had been holding it in her off-hand.

"Keep it in the arena," Hayate warned.

Both girls nodded.

"Hajime!"

Karui rushed forward, hoping to catch the other girl before she could find her rhythm and overwhelm her.

Clang!

C-clang! Clang!

Crang!

Hinata smiled, genuinely smiled as she met the Kumo girl blow for blow.

First one would gain the advantage, then the other and back again, never losing balance and never coming close to stumbling as their battle raged with incredible finesse. And as they continued, their blades and bodies little more than blurs of motion, it became clear that this wasn't a match of gennin anymore.

It was a meeting two blade mistresses just coming into their prime.

This went on for several minutes with Karui becoming progressively more frustrated.

"What's her problem?" Temari wondered up in the stands as the Kumo girl gave a feral smile.

"Haven't you noticed?" Tenten asked.

Temari blinked. "No, what?"

"Hinata is still only using one hand."

Temari whipped around and sure enough, the little Hyuuga was dancing around her opponent with only one hand on her blade while the Kumo girl had been forced to use both in order to match her. "Oh…"

Meanwhile, down in the arena, Karui was at her wits "Will you quit fucking with me!" she howled.

Hinata almost seemed… disappointed. "As you wish," she sighed, bringing her left hand up to grasp the hilt just above the pommel.

It was like watching a dam break.

It was slow at first, a measured shuffle, then steps, and so on until Karui was in full retreat skipping and flipping as she desperately attempted to regain the initiative until she was forced to vault over the railing and into the arena. Tumbling to her feet Karui came up just in time to block an overhead slash that would have cleaved her in twain.

'Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!' Karui thought as she batted away the other girl's blade and almost immediately had to dodge out of a slash that would have gutted her. She was completely on the defensive. Every attack she made was countered. Every defense she attempted was pushed back. Every retreat she attempted was useless.

If something didn't change and change soon, she was going to lose.

Karui lunged, putting everything into a desperate flurry of blows.

Hinata met her easily, blocking with cool precision until she saw an opening and kicked one of Karui's feet out from under her.

Karui just managed to dodge Hinata's follow-up slash but, no sooner had she recovered than Hinata was upon her, blade held in her right hand and slashing toward her neck.

Karui ducked.

Hinata's blade passed overhead but her elbow came down on Karui's head.

Karui rolled, minimizing the blow but Hinata was hot on her heels.

For the last few moments of the match, Hinata mercilessly controlled the flow of the duel until, finally, Karui was just a little too far out of position and, as she turned to face her opponent, found the snow-white blade waiting.

Shing!

With the sound of metal scraping on metal, Hinata twisted her opponent's blade out of her hands and sent it flying before following through with a downward, cleaving slash toward Karui's clavicle.

Karui flinched, her eyes shutting reflexively.

But the pain she expected never came. Only a gentle pressure… and an unnatural cold, like snow settling on her bare skin.

"Victor, Hyuuga Hinata!"

Karui's eyes snapped open in surprise to find the Hyuuga girl resting her blade on Karui's shoulder, millimeters from her corotated artery.

"Good match," Hinata complimented. Then, without further ceremony, she sheathed her weapon and turned to leave.

"Why didn't you…" Karui started, confused.

"A Kumo ninja that keeps their word is a rare thing," Hinata answered, her eyes flicking up to the stands where the rest of Team Darui was watching. "It would be a shame to kill you."

At a loss for words, Karui said the first thing that came to mind. "I appreciate the sentiment, it would be a shame to die."

Then she was gone, returning to the stands with the rest of the Konoha contingent.

Karui for her part felt like an idiot. She might have won if she had used ninjutsu but instead she had gotten her ass handed to her because she wanted to have a good, old-fashioned sword duel.

What was she, a samurai?

"Why the long face?" Darui asked as Karui rejoined her team.

"I let Bee-sensei down," Karui muttered despondently.

"How dull," Darui sighed, shaking his head in disappointment.

Karui reared as if struck. "Wh-what?"

"Kirabi may be a master swordsman and he may have trained you, but even with years more training you will not surpass Hyuuga Hinata as you are," Darui explained evenly.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Karui hissed. Not even with years of training? What kind of bullshit was that?!

"Swordsmanship is a thing to you," Darui expanded. "Yes, it is a passion of yours, but it is a tool in your arsenal, a thing to be used. Hyuuga Hinata… has nothing left but her sword. You can see it in the way she holds herself, in the care she has taken with her blade. To her, it is a way of life, a reason to keep living. There is no difference, no separation between Hyuuga Hinata and Swordsmanship. There is only Hyuuga Hinata."

Karui blinked, glancing across the arena at her opponent now standing with her team and was struck by how the other girl stood just slightly apart from her teammates.

"She looks lonely," Karui realized, too startled to keep it to herself.

"With a blade like that? Hardly surprising," Darui replied.

"What's so special about her sword?"

"It's a rare alloy of chakra-conducting steel from Iron Country. They're rare for two reasons," he explained, looking troubled. "The first is that the metal itself is incredibly temperamental to work with. Most smiths refuse to bother with it."

"And the second?"

"It's exclusively used to channel Yin chakra."

Karui's eyes went wide in understanding. "So, that cold feeling I got from it…"

"Is a reflection of that girl's soul."