I present to you the longest chapter of this fic. Only the first half of the chapter has been reviewed by my awesome editor and I haven't had much practice with fight scenes, so do what you will with that information. You can find more sasuhina fics under her profile, Mercy 825.

I'm hoping that this will be the second fic I can finish properly. There is only one more chapter left and I have a good bit of the final chapter written. When I have the time, I will try to edit this chapter.

Enjoy!

Hinata's sudden stop snapped Sasuke's attention from the blur of greenery and the beads of sweat that threatened to drip past his neck and get absorbed by his shirt.

It was a nice shirt which had cost him a pretty penny. The entirety of his paycheck from the Land of Waves mission plus three D-class missions, to be precise. The fabric was pleasant to the touch, softly brushing against his neck when he moved, and yet it also had mesh armor sewed on the inside. It was that armored structure that allowed the signature high collar of his clan. The fact that it was fire resistant was a plus.

He hoped it wouldn't maintain a permanent stink the same way Naruto's jumpsuits reeked at every moment, even if they were freshly washed. With a shake of his head some of the hair returned to its original spot— not plastered to his skin.

As Hinata's hands sped through a flurry of signs, he raised a hand (let's stop) and halted on a nearby branch. After taking a very needed gulp from his canteen he offered what remained to Hinata and she took it with a light smile though she wasn't facing him. He felt her gaze land on him for a moment and then disappear into the distance.

In the back of his mind, a voice screamed in outrage as he took note of her cool condition in spite of the jacket she sported. Perhaps that was how Sakura felt when he and Naruto out performed her in every spar. No matter how much she cheered him on and berated the blond, he didn't miss the frustrated gleam in her eyes.

Sasuke sighed. At least Hinata was comfortable and that meant he could afford to be distracted by the irritating way his sweat melted into the shirt. She would warn him of any danger without fail.

"I remember there was a lake around here, we can refill it in a bit," he said as she returned the canteen. He lightly waved it around and his eyes widened a fraction when he heard the slush of water in there. Why was she so damn generous? "You need to drink more, I'm not carrying you all the way back."

Instead of relaxing her features or uttering a word of approval, Hinata's bloodline limit remained activated and her lips slowly thinned as she tilted her head to the side. Her thoughtful gaze shifted into a cold frown and as if heeding her sudden change in demeanor, birds stopped chirping and the languid rustling of leaves stilled.

Even the forest animals were ready to hide.

Almost simultaneously, he felt a vague sense of unpleasantness in his stomach and her wariness invaded his system. He clenched his jaw and curled his hands into fists before releasing them, brushing against his kunai pouch. The chill in the air… not quite killing intent and yet something in his blood hummed with excitement.

Someone was looking for a fight.

Hinata swiveled towards Sasuke but her gaze was fixed past him. "Three shinobi are approaching. Hostile."

That was all the prompting he needed to pull out a kunai and step to her side. From there it would be easy to cover each other's backs. As she spoke the last word, branches in the direction her head was tilted cracked before the three figures made an appearance. Only one stood at the center while the other two remained on more distant branches.

Clearly not a squad; a real one wouldn't tolerate such vain behavior.

"Good afternoon, my lady," the man at the forefront said casually with a small bow and Hinata's frown deepened. Whether it was simple mockery or a threat to alert her that he knew of her status as an unsealed Hyuuga, his agitated chakra system promised a skirmish. "You may not know me but I know a bit of you so I will allow you an out." Not once did he glance in Sasuke's direction. "You have until I'm done with the Uchiha kid to make your escape."

Such eloquence and poise clashed with his burly appearance. Sleeveless mesh armor revealed bulky arms that could surely snap their necks in an instant. The fact that he did not bother to cover up with more armor was a good indicator of his confidence at least. Wild blond hair, reminiscent of Naruto's, indicated no care for physical appearance but it was clear that the man's chakra reserves were daunting and he knew it.

Sasuke's eyes flickered to Hinata before she offered an imperceptible nod.

They launched themselves to each shinobi that stood back in a terrifying show of synchrony. The dull thud of bodies hitting the ground echoed in the unnatural silence of the forest. It was a nasty fall. Her Byakugan confirmed their slowly diminishing chakra— life force. For a moment Hinata was inclined to pity the poor animals that fled the area out of fear of their carelessly oozing chakra, especially the man before them.

As she and Sasuke surrounded him he narrowed her eyes. Either his chakra control was not great, or the man was simply making a show of his vast reserves to intimidate them. Sasuke leaned more towards intimidation tactic as his clothes put a spotlight on his raw strength and his shaggy hair made him look feral. Regardless, he was clearly on a different level from the other two shinobi.

In spite of that, he and Hinata were natives of Konoha; trees were a second home to them. They needed to keep the fight amongst the leaves, where he wouldn't have the advantage of being comfortable with the terrain. Glee threatened to reflect on Sasuke's face as his fingers curled around the handles of a pair of kunai. For once he had a competent partner to back him up; this was not a fight he would lose.

With that in mind, he launched himself to the man with a barrage of punches and kicks that were blocked with apparent ease. Sasuke jumped back to a higher branch and threw a pair of blades.

As predicted, they were easily dodged. "Don't make this harder than it has to be, kid. You can't even aim properly."

Hinata's eyes flashed with recognition and she soundlessly inched away to higher ground the second the blades landed on bark. Rather than hang exploding seals on the handle by standard shinobi wire, he wrapped them around the handle and under the usual kunai wrap.

Much more discreet and effective.

Sasuke raised his hands to form a sign and gave him the same smirk that would drive Naruto crazy and delirious with vengeance. "I didn't miss."

The bark where the kunai landed shattered instantly and after a few seconds the sound of larger branches and pieces of wood hitting the forest ground could be heard. Smoke covered the area and Sasuke did not relinquish the advantage of high ground and a smokescreen. If their pursuer was dead Hinata would've said something already. Instead, she remained carefully hidden.

A soft breeze dissipated the smoke around the edges of the cloud and Sasuke caught sight of a tan coat. A moment later he felt his branch faintly folding against Hinata's weight. She gently tugged his sleeve and moved away to a tree with dense foliage. Follow me.

When she was confident that only he would hear her she murmured, "It only got his arm— the dominant one, I think."

"Disoriented?"

Hinata's lips formed a grimace. They were very chapped and for a moment Sasuke was tempted to force the almost empty water canteen into her hands. She seemed dehydrated. "Not really. Let's hide and surprise attack."

Instead he gave her a silent nod. There was a lake nearby, they could get all the water they needed once they finished off their stalker.

Hinata vanished from his sight as quickly as she had appeared.

The man was smart, Sasuke would give him that. He acknowledged that he wouldn't be able to fight properly against the all-seeing white eye in a cloud of smoke, so he didn't go after them even if he must've heard their vague whispers. Not enough to make out their words, but enough to pinpoint their general location.

The distant sound of metal against metal made him acknowledge Hinata's smarts. She was well-equipped to fight in the conditions he created for her. While their stalker suffered the impediment of losing much of sight amongst the smoke and the full usage of his dominant arm, Hinata was in good health and her eyes allowed her perfect vision.

Sasuke approached the sounds of fighting carefully. Metal screeched against metal and a dull thud marked a missed target. Right now he would be a liability to Hinata if he were found.

As the smoke thinned out more, he observed the fight with the aid of the Sharingan. While the man appeared to be a brute he was able to avoid Hinata's palms with surprising grace. A rouge Jōnin, perhaps. What caught his attention were the deflective maneuvers the stalker used with Hinata. He wasn't actively trying to decommission her, but he occasionally threw in a few strikes that she struggled to parry when she wasn't able to avoid them.

He had seen enough.

Sasuke landed on Hinata's branch before throwing himself on the stalker's branch. "Switch!"

He could take the brunt of it and Hinata could end it with a well-placed palm strike. Hinata seemed to get the message because she fell back immediately. It was then that he noticed a well-hidden limp as she landed on another branch and disappeared in the foliage. Sasuke's gaze followed their stalker's gaze to where Hinata had vanished.

He knew she was injured.

Sasuke furrowed his brow. He stepped into the man's field of vision, hiding the foliage from which Hinata retreated. "Your fight is with me."

His expression turned grave. "That it is. She made the right choice to leave you."

Sasuke withheld a scoff. Hinata may be mousy at times, but never a coward or a traitor. She said teammates made up for each other's shortcomings and so far she had proven herself true to that philosophy.

The man sped through a series of signs that Sasuke recognized as a prelude of some sort of raiton technique. Without verbal warning, lightning shot from his mouth and destroyed the branch Sasuke was on.

Even if the strike did not fully connect, pain flooded his senses. His fingers twitched involuntarily and shurikenjutsu was abruptly out of question. He could accidentally hurt Hinata or risk an opening if he failed to land his mark. Too risky. It would take time to analyze whether he could regain stability or if it would gradually worsen.

From behind the man, Hinata appeared and shared a look with Sasuke. Cover for me, she seemed to say and he was only too happy to comply. The tremors running down his legs would not stop him from ending that man. "Pathetic," Sasuke sneered as he landed a kick on the man's abdomen.

Not quite with as much force as would've liked, but the man staggered back, taking a wheezy breath. Hinata took advantage of the distraction and swung two palms forwards, her fingers only managing to graze his back. It was enough. Their stalker's wheezy breathing turned bloody and he fell to one knee.

"Your lungs are wounded," Hinata announced from a safe distance. "It's only a matter of time before they give in. Leave us."

The man laughed with difficulty and his eyes gained a crazed glint to them. "What an honor, to fight against the ultimate taijutsu."

Sasuke's breath caught in his throat as the man pulled a kunai from his boot. He just suffered a fatal blow, did he not? He staggered forward and sweeped the blade at her arms. Hinata kicked it out of his hand. With the momentum from the kick she spinned and landed another kick on his ribs.

The man gasped but held his ground. A hand shot out and grabbed Hinata by the collar of her jacket, pulling her off the branch. Her feet kicked air and her hands curled around his arm. Almost immediately his fingers uncurled from her jacket and his arm fell limply to the side.

Hinata's body hit several branches, but she safely landed on a lower branch. Her face tensed with pain and she started taking shaky breaths. She was trying to not make a sound that reflected her agony. Blood dripped from her leg and Sasuke clicked his tongue. So the stalker did manage to cut her before he got there and she kicked away the kunai.

Sasuke zeroed on the man. Hinata rendered his non-dominant arm useless, struck his lungs, and his own explosive tag damaged the man's dominant arm and yet he was still standing tall. He somehow managed to fool Hinata's Byakugan. Or perhaps she underestimated his raw strength. He was sure that his chakra was mostly composed of yang energy, physical energy. Even when Hinata landed a Jūken strike, he would be able to withstand it.

He and Hinata were in trouble.

Once again Sasuke's eyes, now red, flickered to hers. It's your call, he seemed to say and her mind quickly formed and discarded possibilities.

They could run, but the man before them had very much proven his ability— the agility— to keep up and overtake them. Sasuke's body still suffered the occasional tremor of the previous raiton strike and she had one injured leg herself, running was definitely out of question. The nearest outpost with Konoha's shinobi was beyond her sight range and thus not a secure option.

If one of them stayed to distract him, by the time the other returned, they would most likely be dead or worse— stripped of their bloodlines, because why else would a rogue shinobi attack a pair of Genin on what was not even an official mission. Losing a bloodline limit was a fate worse than death.

Both had to stick together for a shot at survival. Hinata's all-seeing gaze focused on Sasuke for a split second before returning to the man. His fire jutsu was useless in a flammable forest and even beyond the forest, it would be ineffective unless they were able to expand its range or concentrate its power. She had no fire jutsus or oil in her arsenal to help him.

Her only jutsu that could complement his would be…

Hinata released her fists as she took a deep breath. An exhale. She rested her back against the trunk. "How do you know me?"

"Your good deeds precede you," the man said as Sasuke landed on her branch. He took a step to hide her from the shinobi's line of sight. He was the healthiest between the two of them; he had a better chance of surviving another scuffle.

"What good deeds?" Hinata murmured as her eyes seemingly glazed over with pain. Internally, her heart flared with warmth at Sasuke's movement. He didn't consider her deadweight if he bothered to protect her. "I'm a kunoichi."

As she spoke, Sasuke limited himself to observing their opponent.

"It's not the life a child like you should have. Too kind." It was all the man offered to say before his semblance darkened. "This is your last warning, Hyuuga Hinata. Leave. I can guarantee that your Uchiha partner won't return to your village to accuse you of desertion."

Sasuke risked a glance at her. Despite appearances, it wasn't her face which was the most expressive part of her, it was her hands. Small hands littered with calluses and relaxed into Jūken formation in spite of her seemingly glazed eyes.

When she turned away from the man and ran, Sasuke followed without question.

Neither of them had the energy or agility to avoid obstacles. By the time the sparkling water of the lake Hinata mentioned earlier became visible the shrubbery and trees had thinned out, she had several leaves and a couple of twigs caught in her hair.

Never before had he seen her look so… unkempt. Back when she was forced to spar in the academy, there was never a hair out of place. Even if she was a disgraced child of the Hyuuga clan, she was still a member of Konoha's shinobi nobility and her taijutsu reflected as much.

Hinata jumped from the final tree in sight and landed on the water. A completely open field where there was nowhere to retreat, nothing to use to their advantage. Sasuke hesitated before following her. He had trusted her before and reaped good results. She must have a good reason to lose the advantage of fighting in the trees.

"You know a fire jutsu, right?"

He tilted his head curiously. Where did she hear that? "I do."

"When he approaches, we'll lure him to the center of the lake," she said between breaths. Sasuke was reminded of his parched throat and aching limbs all of a sudden. Surely she was in worse conditions than him. This was the lake where they would've rested if only for a few minutes and refilled the canteens. "Torch him from as far away as you can."

As if their thoughts summoned him, their pursuer landed on the lake. The water around his feet rippled violently, but he didn't seem concerned with the possibility of sinking. For a moment Sasuke was reminded of Naruto and his inability to control massive chakra reserves.

"It's a pity that it has come to this," the man said mournfully and Sasuke rolled his eyes. I call bullshit. The man approached them with slow and decisive steps.

Beside him, Hinata fell to one knee and rested her palms just above the surface of the lake. Water rippled around her hands. She was doing it on purpose, Sasuke figured as he approached their stalker. All he had to do was trust her.

He took a measured breath and his hands raced through a series of signs. The man's lips thinned and his methodical steps turned into a sprint. Before he could reach Sasuke, droplets of water bolted towards the man.

No, not droplets— water needles, Sasuke realized with a small crazed laugh. He had an inkling as to what Hinata's plan entailed now. Not that would deny her, he was willing to admit it was a brilliant idea. Flames enveloped the man and the air hissed as steam obscured Sasuke's vision.

Piercing screams frightened birds from their nest and the fish the languidly swam under their feet disappeared. It was only the three of them on that lake.

Sasuke maintained a steady stream of fire and the screams grew louder. Hinata aimed the water needles everywhere the man tried to flee to and the steam followed him at every pace. From the corner of his vision, he could see Hinata rising to her feet, albeit unsteadily, and pulling out a kunai. With a quick flick of her wrist the screams came to a stop.

Hinata fell to her knees and this time there was no plan to her actions. Her shoulders shook with desperate breaths and she rested her forehead against the scalding water.

Sasuke quickly wrapped one of her arms over his shoulders and helped her to her feet. "Do you want to burn yourself?"

Hinata laughed weakly. "I thought we were going to die."

"Yeah, no shit, Hyūga." He offered her a small smirk and let her collapse on the grass, far from the edge of the water. He let himself fall beside her and observed her. She probably never used such large amounts of chakra in one go and she was facing chakra exhaustion. "I thought your family was not big on learning elemental justsu."

She turned her head to face him. "They're not. I just… I wanted to learn something, you know? I'm not good at taijutsu, so I thought that maybe… maybe I could be good at something else."

That was probably putting it lightly. Even if her expression was serene, her eyes reflected a despair that reminded him of his own. The inability to catch up, no matter how hard they tried, was a dark pit with no end. Only the eternal sensation of falling, falling, falling… "I'll teach you my jutsu when we get back."

A smile crossed her lips and this time it was genuine. It had to be. All of a sudden it was difficult to breathe and even if her forehead and hands were red from the boiling water, her face scratched up from her fall in the trees, and all sorts of leaves and twigs were bound to her wild hair, it wasn't… an unpleasant sight.

His gaze dropped to her lips. It was the closest he had been to her since the start of their absurd assignment. He would need to refill the canteen for her in a bit and then maybe get her a chapstick when they returned to Konoha. Strawberry would suit her.

Her smile slowly vanished and he snapped alarmed eyes to hers. What's wrong?

"I messed up," she said quietly and her dejection returned in full force. "I'm sorry I wasn't careful, I didn't mean to be a hindrance."

Sasuke's mind slowly processed her words. They were both alive thanks to her idea. How was she a hindrance, why was she sorry? "Explain."

"I lost the map."

Sasuke slowly blinked. "You don't have the map?"

A guilty nod. "This wasn't part of the assignment, I'll tell Kakashi-sensei and surely you won't be penalized."

"Who do you think I am?" Sasuke smirked and flicked a leaf out of her hair. He then pointed to his eyes as they flashed red. "We have a backup."