Heya,
Full disclosure, this chapter was meant to come out like- a week and a half ago. But as a friend once told me: "When it rains, it pours, and Zeus pisses like a racehorse…"
That was a bad analogy.
Anyways, I'm currently doing a lot of stuff in the background to hopefully help further improve the speed and quality of chapters, hopefully while maintaining a reasonable amount of personal time for myself; please be patient while I get back into the swing of things and iron all of this out. Hopefully I'll be in a position to talk more about it all in the coming chapters.
Anyhow, I'll save the rest of my yapping for the end of chapter. Let's get right into it:
Team eight's usual haunt had been chosen by Kurenai specifically for its high forest-density. It was an ideal location, both to best challenge her team's tracking abilities amongst myriad sounds, smells, and terrain to parse through; but also to best refine their proficiency with her favorite tool for mobility.
The tree-climbing exercise was a skill that jonin were instructed to teach their kids right out of the academy; personally, Kurenai thought it was one that oughta be made a staple within the academy's curriculum.
In addition to its use as a training model for the intermediate refinement of one's chakra control, it also served as a highly versatile source of mobility, not just within the dense forests of Konoha, but amongst any and all kinds of verticality. Thus, tree-climbing was a technique that Kurenai drilled relentlessly, alongside the water-walking technique that she'd taught them right before the Chūnin exams.
Right now, the fruits of that strict tutelage was well on display; Team eight's training area had become chaos, the violent racket of her team's constantly translating combat extending out past the immediate grounds and beyond.
Kurenai observed with a keen eye as her three students -four, if you included the Inuzuka boy's ninja hound- clashed with one another, their free-for-all spanning in such a fashion that she had to move with them to keep observing.
Kiba's coordination with Akamaru had only improved as of late. Seemingly, Naruto's upset against him in the preliminaries had been the first kick in the pants that he'd needed to get himself fully into gear. Their close call with that Gaara fellow in the hospital, then again during the invasion- all of it had served well to improve both his focus and work ethic; though, the incessant attitude on that boy as of late was something she could very well do without. Even Hinata seemed easily irritated with his snark, as of late.
As for Shino, she had first feared that the loss of his hive would prove damaging for him, and while it was certainly a rather sore pain point for the Aburame youth, he was pleasantly surprising her- that setback was seemingly turning out for the better; Shino now seemed more keen to expand his arsenal beyond just the use of his family's parasitic insects. Even now, with the boy once again playing host to a fresh, budding colony, his mind remained open to refining his ninja skills overall. In particular, his growing interest in shurikenjutsu and the use of a wider range of ninja tools were proving to be a worthwhile investment.
The four clashed yet again in their free-for-all, Kiba and Akamaru rushing with a laser focus to corral Hinata and Shino both. Two kunai 'clicked' into Shino's waiting palm, the duo of knives puncturing the air between him and Akamaru. The tiny dog wove around the first blade as it embedded right ahead of him, then lept off it to go airborne, climbing the body of the second incoming weapon as it flew like a set of stairs; his lunges took him above, bypassing the guarding shape of Shino in favor of ricocheting off the trees above. Akamaru's tiny footfalls 'clacked' against the bodies of wood, searching briefly for an angle before joining his master by flanking Hinata.
She was ready for them both, though.
And that was the most curious development of the three, huh?
Kurenai marveled at her female student's growing proficiency as she warded both combatants off. Hinata's byakugan effortlessly kept track of all three opposing combatants, taking stock of the incoming Inuzuka pair, while also noting Shino, who had procured a folded sickle and chain from the inner of his coat and began to cautiously approach. Her hand-movements were swift, working in tandem with clean footwork as she whipped around with blinding speed to respond to Kiba and Akamaru's conjoined savagery.
She was a formless streak as she flew from object to object, curving herself around a branch and planting her palms to redirect herself; her motions took her into a drawn out backflip, where she spiraled twice before coming down neatly atop a much larger, sturdier foothold. The Inuzuka pair were hot on her trail, bouncing from tree-to-tree to keep her in their sights; Kiba and Akamaru both landed on either side of her, with the former making the first lunge.
Hinata intercepted Kiba's opening jab without even looking; her fingers pressed at his wrist and twisted, forcing the attacking boy to spiral out with a yell as his body careened past her. At nearly the same time, Hinata lashed out in the other direction, slightly pivoting and snatching the rapidly spiral-lunging Akamaru up by the scruff of his neck. His momentum stopped on a dime, with the sudden, jarring erasure of movement stunning the dog. Completing her pivot, she reared forward and launched the dog like a pitcher; Akamaru ripped through the air like a bullet, colliding with audible impact against Shino's shoulder just as he-too entered the battle, and before he could do more than wind his chain once. He dropped the tool with a grunt, stumbling briefly before falling to a knee alongside a whining Akamaru.
Kurenai blinked slowly, eyeing the thin duo of senbon that the girl had hid within Akamaru's shadow, both stabbing into Shino's thigh and sapping the strength in his leg.
Where had she learned to do that?
Shino recovered well, and Hinata leapt backward, giving a wide berth to the shaky brace of shuriken that Shino tried to return her way. At the same time, his kikai worked to swarm her, but they were still a bit sluggish, not yet fully coordinated with each other nor to their new master's whims. Hinata continued to flit away with haste, all the while weaving their clumped approaches; a tilt of her body allowed a mass to fly right by, and her fingers danced across her reach to subtly disable the tiny stray soldiers that tried to take her back; they fluttered harmlessly toward the ground level, paralyzed, but alive.
It was not just her skills that had improved. There was a growing surety to her movements that alone had pushed her to a new level entirely.
Kurenai had seen the signs of her improvement from the very moment she'd taken her on as a student and seen the girl leave her father's influence. Without Hiashi breathing down her neck, Hinata's abilities were so much easier to see. But even still, no matter how much she seemed to improve, Hinata's own lack of faith in herself had often stunted her regardless, even in spite of Kurenai and later Shino and Kiba's encouragement.
Hinata often second-guessed herself.
Hinata rarely experimented with her abilities.
Hinata never struck first.
Kurenai knew well just how defeated her student often felt, often giving up on skills or practices long before even trying them… Recently though-
Hinata lashed out as another set of shuriken came her way, lightly-wreathed fingers intercepting the path of two incoming throwing stars and deflecting them both in different directions; one of them whirled back twice as fast, scraping right past Shino's cheek; the other just barely missed Kiba, who jumped just in time to avoid a perforated foot.
Recently, the Hyuga heiress had begun to experience a rather huge spike in her progress.
When she had first fallen to Neji, Kurenai had worried that would be the end of her ninja career. The ache in her chest as her poor girl collapsed at Neji's feet, face-down in a pool of her own blood-
She didn't care if he had apologized to the girl; she didn't care that he was a mere boy; Kurenai would never forgive that boy for that. For the fear he had caused her, the worry that her dear student might not wake up from her surgery…
But Hinata had beaten the odds, not only surviving, but making a full recovery and then some! That would have been enough for her sensei, but then Hinata had taken it a step further; bit-by-bit, she seemed to uncurl herself, like a flower steadily learning to bloom. Kurenai had found her smiling more, occasionally even exchanging jokes among her peers. But more than all of that, she had begun to exhibit a hunger to improve that Kurenai had longed to see but never quite dared to hope for, for her.
Of course, she knew well the subject of the girl's rather stupendous spike in growth.
Naruto Uzumaki.
Whether they were working together or even just through his presence alone, Hinata seemed to dig into a well of potential that not even her own sensei had ever suspected she had. As a paren- well, as a sensei, that filled her with pride just as much as it shamed her to admit that she had sold the girl so short.
Hinata made a short leap to the side, bracing her hands and footing against the ground to twist and slide as she cut under Kiba's lunge; she glided across the grass, her maneuver taking her directly into Shino's space before the boy could do more than blink. A palm lashed out, clapping directly into his chest with enough force to completely crumple him. His body began to swell, but Hinata was already on the move to evade the resulting dispersal of angrily buzzing insects that rushed to swarm her in the boy's place. Her soles dragged across the ground, kicking up a thin trail of splintering wood and Hinata twisted again, this time ejecting a swirl of chakra that whipped around and threw her harassers off her trail.
But not just that- the wooden shards she kicked up blew away, suddenly refashioned into improvised projectiles that forced Akamaru to abort his fresh attempt at flanking her; Kiba's companion-animal drew back with a whine, taking cover behind a wide-eyed Shino, who had to work overtime to deflect the shower of puncturing debris.
As she regained her momentum from her glide, Hinata perked up again, whipping around to block a haymaker from Kiba, using her elbow. The boy's snarling face melted into a grimace as his knuckles popped painfully against the impact, and Kurenai chuckled at the expression.
Naruto Uzumaki- he had proven good for Hinata, inspiring within the girl a well of confidence and self-agency that Kurenai could only cherish. Now, budding within a once skittish girl, was a remarkable young woman who was well on her way to becoming a phenomenal kunoichi.
But there were some growing pains, it seemed. While Hinata's combat prowess seemed to shoot for the stars and beyond with every day that passed, the girl's mood seemed at an all time low, since she had returned from Tanzaku town. She hid it well, forcing those shy smiles of hers and humoring her team's typical dynamic. Hell, she had even fooled Kurenai herself for a day or two…
But her sensei knew with growing surety now: something about her time away had impacted the young Hyuga, and whatever it was, Hinata wasn't talking about it.
Hinata was quick to take advantage of the moment, bracing herself against Kiba's impact and forcing both of their arms outward to open a clear path to her contender's torso. It instantly sparked panic, for Kiba's only free arm was already moving in fear of an incoming Gentle-Fist attack.
It never came.
Instead, Hinata wove a tight, strangling grip around the back of Kiba's unprotected neck and yanked him in. Kiba flopped down to the ground, his body stiff and briefly paralyzed in a bundle of shock and pain. Kurenai's breath hitched for just a moment as the boy laid face down for a painfully long moment.
Then his stupor left him, and Kiba shakily curled inward, his fingers clutching and prodding painfully at the crumpled mass of swelling, bloodied, tender flesh and cartilage in his hands.
"Why!?" He whined, the nasally tones clear signs of his newly broken nose.
Hinata froze a little as the fight drew to a sudden and awkward stop, the remaining members of Team Eight rushing in to check on Kiba. "E-er, s-s-sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to- I got carried away!"
Truthfully, she hadn't even expected the blow to slow him down. Naruto had never gone down over such a thing-
She shook herself free of that thought and calmed herself, dropping to her knees in a rush to aid him; her homemade healing ointment was already leaving her utility pouch to help tend to her teammate's wound that she had inflicted. "I'm sorry! Are you okay?"
"What the fuck do you think? You broke my nose!" Kiba snarled, glaring through bloodshot eyes; he tried half heartedly to ward off Akamaru who leapt down from Shino's curled arms, plodding forward to push between Kiba's guarding limbs and lick at the object of his pain. "Fuck! Why is your head so hard?
"S-sorry…" Hinata looked away from the boy, looking ever-uncomfortable as the center of attention. "I didn't mean to-"
"Shit!" Kiba tried to stand, but lost his footing immediately, collapsing down onto his butt. "Shit! I think I'd have just rathered the Gentle Fist-"
"Suck it up, Kiba." Kurenai finally cut in, kneeling down beside the boy to palm his shoulder. "People get hurt in spars. Quit harping and let me see." Heedless of his grumbling, she pried his arms apart, taking in the swelling, purpling wound.
She tried not to wince. Yeah, Hinata had messed him up good; now that she was really seeing it, she was honestly surprised the boy was still conscious at all, with how much blood he was losing.
"It's actually not as bad as it looks," She lied, and Kiba relaxed just a little. "Just sit still while I patch you up." She pointedly gestured for Hinata to hand her the ointment, so as to spare the girl the wounded Inuzuka's continued whines.
An awkward energy filled the air between them all as Kurenai worked, and it was surprisingly Shino who broke first.
"Hinata, I am quite surprised to see you deliver fisticuffs in such a messy fashion. Why? Because you typically tend to favor a rather- well, delicate touch. That is to say I always thought I'd sooner see you poke the bear than put it in a rear-naked chokehold." Shino inclined his head to the girl, a sign that his words were mere observation, as opposed to judgment. "Learning well from Naruto, I take it?"
Hinata cast her eyes downward, scarlet tones belying her embarrassment. Yet, the tiny smile at her lips at the mention of their once-classmate was a welcome addition in his eyes.
Kiba could only let off a nasally groan. "Ugh, of course you'd learn to throw cheap shots from that asshole!" His loud grumble devolved into sniffles as he blew his nose into a damp cloth at Kurenai's prompting. Hinata's smile flattened a bit, but she held her tongue. Shino observed the subtle exchange with a frown, speaking up again in disagreement.
"I would rather commend her for such a tactic," He remarked, matter-of-factly. "Why? Because we are ninja, and as such, it is our duty to, as my father so succinctly supplies: 'always aim for the groin'."
"You stay away from my groin, you villain!" Kiba hissed.
"No groin is exempt from the iron fist of justice."
Kurenai tuned the two out a bit. "How is he, by the way?" She asked Hinata, glancing back at the girl. A stern face painted her placid features, not aimed for anyone present; Hinata twitched a bit, and she raised an eyebrow. "He hasn't come to train with me since he returned; I'm quite disappointed, I'd like him to know…"
Hinata frowned, her first instincts wanting to jump to the defense of her boyfriend. "H-he's very busy- er, Tsunade-sama has had him doing a lot of work around the village for her. And then there's Sasuke-s-san's condition-"
"Oh…" Kurenai's glare ebbed, at that. The sharp sting of guilt evoked a twitch in her brow.
If she had been able to stop young Sasuke from running off, perhaps that boy could have been spared such a terrible fate… "Yes, I suppose that's a fair point." She shrugged, trying to seem casual about the matter. "I trust you'll at least let him know for me- I am ready to resume in his tutoring at his earliest convenience."
"Of course!" Hinata was quick to agree. "Er- though…" She looked away, her mood taking a further tick downward. "Though, I haven't seen much of him either for that same reason…"
"Tch, figures-" Kiba grumbled, a half-sneer breaking out around the splint that Kurenai had plastered to his nose. He was still damn sore about the way that guy had spoken to him, during the invasion. "Shit student and a shit boyfriend, huh? What else is new? Step your standards up, ladies!"
Really, he'd mostly meant it as a joke. Even still-
"Don't say stuff like that." Hinata's rebuke was icy, and Kiba gulped a bit at the unimpressed glare that his jab had earned him. "Naruto-kun is doing his best for all of our sakes; I won't hear you badmouthing him like that."
Dead silence.
Neither side had a response on hand for her retort, for a long moment- none present knew how to respond to such a swift, albeit politely worded slap down from Hinata of all people.
Kiba recovered first though. He scoffed, trying to save face by rolling his eyes away from the girl. "It was just a joke; don't go getting your orange panties in a bunch, miss cheerleader."
Hinata's expression darkened. She took one step forward, and Kiba began to suspect that he had miscalculated, a bit.
"Enough, Kiba." Kurenai's authority was the knife that finally perforated the tension between the two, halting Hinata's approach and deflating Kiba with swiftness; his mouth clamped shut in an instant, the boy glancing from the clenched jaw and fist of Hinata to his sensei's authority. "You know how close they are. Hinata shouldn't have to ask you twice not to disrespect somebody precious to her."
"Y-yeah… My bad," he half-grumbled. "I really didn't mean anything by it." Kiba first chanced a look at Shino, who merely gave his friend an unimpressed shrug. Then Hinata, and Kiba gulped a bit at the lingering intensity in her glare. "W-what? I said sorry, so quit looking at me like you wanna turn me inside out!"
Hinata obliged, tearing her gaze away from him. Though, her poor mood remained persistent, denoted by the clenching and unclenching of her fist, even moments after the fact.
Finally standing up from tending to Kiba, Kurenai's own expression hardened just a bit as the air around them all continued to curdle.
Kiba and Shino clashed constantly, but rarely let it linger for long; in part, Kurenai suspected that it was simply how the two got along. Hinata though-
She had the patience of a saint. Not once had she ever snapped at the boy. Never had she seemed to contemplate striking him- even at his most grating.
Or that had been the case, until she came back from her mission. Since then, her student's usual well of patience seemed far more limited. Bit by bit, that facade of hers had started to crack; Kurenai didn't know what it was that was eating at her student, but she knew it needed to be addressed.
"Hinata. Come with me." Kurenai did not wait for a response, for she knew Hinata would not make her wait. The pair stepped a fair distance away, until the worry-eyed Inuzuka pair and Shino had become mere dots in her peripheral. When they finally stopped though, and Kurenai was sure that even dog and master's sensitive hearing could not overhear their conversation, she finally turned to face her uncomfortable-looking charge.
"You were going to hit him," She led, for Kurenai was simply not the sort to waste any time. Hinata refused to meet her gaze, seeming unsure of herself and how to answer Kurenai's observation that she knew was really a demand.
"Explain yourself."
"I w-wasn't- I…" She trailed off, forcing herself to stop and calm herself. Despite the mood, Kurenai's lips twitched into a smile at the girl's recent progress with her speech. "He was being rude. B-but I swear, I-I wasn't going to hit him," She insisted.
"But you wanted to." Hinata hesitated for only a moment before she nodded, shamefully. "I'm not mad," Kurenai insisted, for she knew well just how grating Kiba had been, as of late. "But you know that Kiba wasn't really trying to pick a fight… You're not in trouble, but I need you to tell me what's going on."
Again, Hinata refused to meet the woman's gaze; her fingers scraped lightly at the hem of her shirt, eyes panning about to observe everything and nothing, so long as it was far away from Kurenai's piercing, scarlet gaze.
Almost like-
She steadied herself, forcing herself to abort that line of thought. The stress of the moment was already too high. She needed a moment to breathe!
Inhale…
Exhale…
Inhale-
Her breaths rattled in her haste and she choked on her own spit. Hinata's hand twitched up for a split moment, halfway toward trying to brace her stuttering chest against her absent breaths. Though she caught herself, Kurenai caught it far too easily.
"What's wrong?"
"N-nothing! I'm fine," Hinata tried to lie.
"Don't lie to me. You know better, dear." Kurenai stepped forward, blinking twice with shock as her student stepped back. "Hinata?"
"I'm fine," Hinata wheezed, and this time she did clutch her chest, wobbling just a bit.
"Are you- Hinata, you're hyperventilating."
"I'm fine!"
"Hinata!" Kurenai groaned.
"Y-you're hyperventilating!" Hinata petulantly whined, her hands pushing out to half heartedly ward her approaching sensei away. Her vision was beginning to swim. Hinata wobbled again, and when it became clear that Kurenai would bypass her barrier, she instead clamped her eyes shut and tried to focus entirely on regaining her breath.
"God, you sound just like Naruto, right now." Kurenai tutted, her tone stuck somewhere between amusement and exasperation as she gently led the girl to the ground. "Just slow down and breathe, darling. Look at me."
Hinata tried to calm herself, but she could not yet look at her. Not when she knew what she would see. She shook her head.
"Hinata," Kurenai ordered this time, firmly.
"I can't!" Kurenai startled as Hinata tried to yank her arms out of her sensei's grip, scrambling back with minimal results. Her eyes remained bound shut, Hinata ducking her head down into her too-tense arms and shaking her head again with far more vigor. "J-just let me- I just need a moment! Stop rushing me! Please!"
Kurenai had seen a lot from all of her students, but she had never seen a reaction quite like this from Hinata. The girl had been holding herself well since she'd returned from Tanzaku, but it was getting clearer by the day that whatever she'd seen had affected her deeply… Her bouts of stoicism were one thing; her frayed patience with Kiba was another. But this? "Okay… You don't have to look at me." Hinata relaxed a bit, and though that stung just a bit, Kurenai tried to smile, even though she knew the girl couldn't see her. "Will you tell me why you can't?"
Hinata froze again, the ice-cold temperature of her flesh nearly making Kurenai recoil. "I-if you say no, I'll let it go; but I really wish you'd know that you can talk to me."
Hinata muttered a bit, and Kurenai had to lean in close to hear her.
"What?"
"W-when you look at me like that- it's like-"
"Like what?" Cupping her student's cheeks, Kurenai implored her- "Talk to me, darling. What's wrong?"
"Red- a-and cold, like-" Kurenai's throat dried, her thoughts reading between the lines after only a moment.
"I- I see…"
She too remembered the glare of Itachi Uchiha. The cold gleam of his sharingan as the kin-slayer stared down at her- through her, as if she were merely meat to be dissected. It hadn't been the first time that Kurenai's own eyes had been compared to members of the late Uchiha clan. In her youth, it had even been a source of pride. Now though, she wished her eyes were just about any other color.
"I'm sorry," Hinata whispered, trying with middling results to compose herself. "I-I just- I can't… When you glare at me like that, I-" She licked her lips, wishing to god that she wasn't so close to crying in front of her instructor. "Please don't make me talk about it right now; not yet… Please."
Kurenai knew she shouldn't just let the subject go. Not when her student was so obviously hurting. But forcing Hinata to speak wouldn't do the girl any favors either…
"Alright, Hinata. We will talk about this," her sensei warned her. Hinata nodded back vigorously. "But we can put a pin in it for now, alright?"
"Y-yeah…"
Kurenai held her close, planting her lips to her head. "You're dismissed from training. Go eat something, sweetheart," She ordered, gently. Hinata obliged, shakily standing and leaving in a rush, leaving Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru to hastily rush her in the girl's absence.
"What happened!?" Kiba demanded, looking where Hinata had departed with frantic eyes. "I swear sensei, I really was just joking; I didn't mean to upset her like that-"
"It's not you," Kurenai cut in, warmly. "I don't think it's any one in particular, actually." Standing up as well, she palmed the boy's head and plastered a fake smile for his comfort. "She's just- she's just having it real rough right now."
Shino inclined his head, his stoic facade broken by the slightest curve of his lips. "Then the choice is clear. We shall simply do what we can to support her."
Yeah…
In the meantime, she needed to have words with Naruto. If Hinata wouldn't speak about it, she'd make damn sure that he would.
Sharing lunch with Tsunade had become a common routine for Naruto; from the very day that they'd returned to the village, she'd seemed intent to make him 'pay' for dragging her back to Konoha.
Nevermind the fact that he'd tried to give her out. Nor the fact that she had seemingly chosen to take the hat entirely of her own accord.
He doubted Tsunade cared for those small details. Regardless-
The two of them sat far away from the soul-crushing mountain of work that nested atop the barely held-together skeleton of the Hokage's desk; they had decided to hold their lunch at one of the plush, decorative couches that Hiruzen had often let him occupy in his youth, but Naruto had never seen another soul actually use.
"You know, I could be training right now," Naruto started, leadingly.
"You are training," Tsunade batted back, shortly. She nibbled absently at one of the cheap sandwiches he'd brought her, too hungry to work- yet, very little seemed appetizing at the moment. Not when there seemed so much to dread, just right around the corner.
Orochimaru had been suspiciously silent, since retreating from the ruins of Tanzaku town; Jiraiya's toads had followed the man's tracks as best they could, losing his trail entirely in Rice Country. Since then, the old pervert had been keeping a hawk's watch on the territory, on alert for any of the snake's movements. Every report thus far suggested that Orochimaru was keen to lay low for the moment, but Tsunade's gut knew well that the hammer was bound to drop at any moment, now.
Danzo had not sought her out since their last conversation; she knew the man was feigning patience, so as not to irritate her further. But he would need an answer soon, if she didn't want him acting on his own.
Then there was Naruto, himself. The foolish boy was working himself to the bone trying to aid her in her transition to heading the village. Not only that, his presence had been noted en masse, aiding in the cleaning or reconstruction efforts throughout the village.
His efforts were being noticed- but they were hardly sustainable for his own health.
Naruto groaned, loudly. "Clones can only do so much by themselves, ya know. Besides, it feels kinda shitty of me to saddle them with all the work while I screw around like this…"
"You ain't just screwing around. You gotta learn to slow down. Relax a little." Tsunade's chastising tone sparked a fierce twitch in his eye, because he knew damn well that she wasn't telling him to relax. "Your big problem now is that you're juggling too many things- spreading yourself too damn thin, and it's hurting you. So your training today is to just chill out."
"By shoveling cheap sandwiches?"
"By shoveling cheap sandwiches." Tsunade bobbed her head in confirmation. "You're already working hard enough as is. Even as we speak, I bet you're working hard to refine those dances of yours- I can see the tension in your body… How often do you run them?"
"Er-" He hadn't really thought much about it, really. "I usually just go until I can't anymore… If I keep them at low output I can usually handle most of the day; if I try to max them though I bottom out fast." Naruto shrugged. "I try to keep them active while I sleep too; I've usually got a clone on standby to wake me if I let them go without meaning to. I figure if I normalize them at all times, I can work on boosting output later, once my body adjusts."
Tsunade nodded in approval. It was good reasoning, and a clear sign that his intuition was improving as well. "Stay the course. Make sure to take at least a half-hour break every five-to-six waking hours to give yourself time to breathe. Sundays, you're to relax entirely. Your body won't actually get to grow and strengthen if you never allow it periods of recovery. We can focus on maximizing output once you've normalized their use as your default state."
Naruto frowned. "Okay…"
She wasn't sure that she liked his response, but she at least trusted him not to disobey her medical orders. "And how're your chains coming along?"
His frown only deepened. Extending his arm, Naruto snapped his fingers; a handful of rose-gold chain links shed from under his sleeve, gliding forth to sweep a document up and return. The parchment settled neatly in his hand. "I've been practicing trying to mold and control the individual links remotely; it's a bit tough if I'm not focusing entirely on them, but it's doable." Eyeing a small puncture that one of his links had left in the page, he winced. "And I ain't as precise as I'd like to be…" A thought. "Er- actually, I've been trying to keep them manifested at all times and just wear them under my skin like you do, since they're easier to reshape than they are to make from scratch…"
Tsunade nodded. "And?"
"Ugh, I hate it!" Naruto groaned. "It's so itchy, I feel like I've got a bunch of midgets going to war under my skin! How do you do this all the time!?"
His mentor smirked, leaning forward just a bit as if imparting words of conspiracy. "It's all about control; you've gotta learn to make your chains and your flesh one and the same, so that they don't conflict or chafe when you try to use one separate from the other." Tsunade thought for a long moment. "Try experimenting more with your shape-changing jutsu to build more familiarity with it. Little changes, big changes- just get used to sustaining them until it becomes purely instinctual. Then you can practice using it to meld your body and chains as one, instead of just wearing them underneath; it should help you with your problem."
He nodded. Then, she leaned back again, giving up on her half-eaten sandwich and flicking the damned thing onto the platter between them. "Tell me about your friend."
The younger blonde shrugged, lamely. "He's not coming around- er, it doesn't seem like it, at least. He refuses to see either me or Sakura and I'm worried about him… I talked to Tayuya and she said his curse mark might have something to do with it."
She had considered as much. She still remembered him barging into her office the day prior to talk about it; she had been too busy at the time to humor him. Now though- "You think Orochimaru might be controlling him?"
"Tormenting him, more like." Naruto sighed, and she saw the worry in his eyes. "I just- I don't want him to suffer all alone is all, ya know?"
She did. God, did she know… "So what do you need from me, then? Do you want me to seal his mark for you?"
Her sealing wasn't her best skill by any means, but she surely was no slouch- not when it came with their territory.
"No." Her eyebrow raised at his tone, which brooked little room for argument. "I've already gotten a bit of experience dealing with the marks he left on Tayuya and her buddies. I think it's best if I do it."
"You think you can do a better job than I can?" There was a bit of challenge in her tone, and Naruto was quick to rise to the occasion.
"I know I can."
Well, maybe not by himself. But he had an advantage that not even Tsunade had.
"Hello, it's me. I'm the advantage." Kushina snickered to herself, fingers inching closer to the giant spider by herself. "Ack!" She hissed as the creature snapped halfheartedly at her. "Let me befriend you, asshole!"
'Language,' Naruto snarked at her. His sudden mirth was not missed by Tsunade, but she did not ask. Instead, she merely bowed her head in allowance.
"I'll trust your judgment, then."
And wasn't that an odd feeling? It was rare that an adult had merely trusted him to do well- simply accepted his word and let him handle something. It was rarer still to have one rely on him with full trust in his abilities.
Maybe that was why he kept showing up- bringing her lunch or running her damned errands every day, however tired he was, or however much he really wanted to complain that he'd rather be doing just about anything else.
Tsunade hummed in thought, leaning forward to plant her fist against her chin. "And what of your other two teammates? The pink one and your jonin."
Naruto frowned. "Sakura is-" He shrugged. "Complicated. We're not exactly close like that, ya know?"
"Coulda fooled me with the way she was hanging off your neck like a scarf."
Naruto grimaced a bit. "She's just like that, I guess. Real- er… Touchy." He grimaced, for even when he had liked her, that had been a quality of hers he could've really done without. "But we ain't exactly friends. I just- well, I didn't feel comfortable just letting her cry, ya know?"
Tsunade shrugged. "And Hatake?"
Now, Naruto looked a bit guilty. "I haven't seen him."
That got a rather unimpressed look from Tsunade. "Really, now? Not even a quick check-in, then? I would've expected better from you, brat."
Kushina firmly concurred. "Not cool, darling. Even if you're still mad at him, I know my son isn't a hypocrite."
Yeah… "Yeah, I know." Naruto palmed the back of his head, his visible eye refusing to meet Tsunade's own judging stare. "What would I even say to him?"
"Don't know. Don't care." She climbed to her feet with a loud groan. "Take the day off tomorrow. I expect you to go see that man with the time I'm giving you. Maybe spend some time with your little girlfriend while you're at it instead of being a neglectful shit." Naruto winced, sparking a conniving grin from his fellow blonde. "And you know what? As punishment for being a sniveling little bitch-
"Your mother," Naruto snapped back without pause.
"You're on treasury again, the evening after; this time you'll be taking that teammate of yours. The two of you can get real 'close like that' with one another while you're stuck doing math all night."
"Oh fuck you!" Naruto groaned. But he couldn't deny that he kind've had it coming. Nor could he ignore the help for what it was.
Tsunade had opted to pull an all-nighter in the office. When she finally sent Naruto home for the day, the sun had long-since departed, relieving the village of all light, save for the stray lamps and fixtures scattered about.
His clones' report from hours earlier signaled to him that the north wall's reconstruction-effort was well on its way. The rubble that had been left behind by the damages had mostly been cleared in the month since he had been gone; temporary homes were still being put in place for those who had endured losses. Meanwhile, many of the village's genin were being dedicated solely to rebuilding alongside dedicated construction teams.
"It's all uphill from here, yeah?"
"That's a good way of thinking about it." Kushina's palms ghosted over his shoulders. "You can probably afford to take it easy a bit now; let the people rebuild for themselves, ya know?"
Maybe…
"You don't know what tomorrow holds, X'omaa. Take the time you've got to check in with your people."
Right… He needed to figure something out with Sasuke. He also still hadn't gotten to see Iruka, and he knew well that his old sensei would have words with him over that...
"Deserved."
"... No arguments there."
Hinata, he had seen, but rarely interacted with, in person. Then there was Kakashi-
Naruto let out a breath, his flesh and blood hands rising to press his temples. There was still so much to do; too much, even.
"One thing at a time, darling. It's going to be alright."
Right… "We'll make it alright."
Then their senses blared.
"Above."
Naruto ducked backward as a set of shuriken descended onto him, puncturing the dirt just by his feet. Judging by the trajectory-
He interrupted that train of thought as he processed the opening salvo.
The shurikens' path impact had come in unison, a likely sign that they'd been fired from a mechanism. In that case-
Reading the feint for what it was and twisting to meet his opposition. His right prosthetic lashed out, snapping upward to redirect the lunge of a kunai. His attacker's torso was left open, thrown off balance by his swift response; at the same time, his earring broke off from its chain, falling neatly between his waiting fingers, then thinning and lengthening into an improvised knife. Naruto pushed forward, rushing to stab into the body of his assailant.
"Genjutsu," Kushina warned with haste. Naruto aborted his counter entirely to leap above and twist, his gaze narrowing as the dirt kicked up where he'd been standing. The blade in his hand was let loose, lurching forward with speed only to stop short in mid-air. As Naruto came to land atop a squat building just ahead of his foe, his prosthetic limbs joined together, focusing his chakra then-
"Yin Release: Empty Bead."
The air around his target twisted sharply, a soundless, formless rush of energy dispersing the genjutsu surrounding his attacker to reveal the paralyzed shape of Kurenai. Her eyes swam with a daze, and she had no recourse as the blade in her hand shifted again, this time lengthening into a centipede's shape to coil firmly around her body.
"Kurenai-sensei?"
Another warning came, but this time Naruto was not quick enough to respond to the point of a knife at his back.
"That's an interesting technique," Her voice remarked, staring past him at the melting away picture she'd painted just ahead. "You shouldn't let your guard down so easily though."
The air around them shifted, and Kurenai's form melded into existence, the sharp point of steel retreating after a moment. He turned to face her, gulping just a bit at the stern glare and raised eyebrow that met his greeting.
"Er- hi?"
"Well clearly, you've been keeping up with your training, at least." Kurenai palmed her hip, surliness in her aura. "I need a word."
Her demand was short, her usual warmth long-discarded in favor of an ice-cold glare that made Naruto flinch a bit.
Clearly, she had noticed the gesture; Kurenai forced herself to calm, plastering a smile that was fake as sin, and yet even still, Naruto could only appreciate the effort.
"Er- if this is about me skipping classes-?"
"I'm not angry at you," She interrupted, her posture softening further. "But you'll have to forgive my terseness."
Well, that was a relief. Naruto eyed the tension in the woman's body as they dropped back down to the ground level as one- felt the intensity roiling in her chakra.
"Okay… You couldn't just lead with that instead of attacking me?"
She rolled her eyes. "A little sparring is just a polite greeting between capable ninja." Finally, she cracked a real grin up at him. "Or would you prefer that I still treat you like a child?"
"I'd prefer maybe a hug or a crisp high-five, to be honest." Naruto chuckled to himself as Kurenai obliged, stepping forward to draw him into an embrace. "It's been stressful, ya know?"
"I'm sure…" Pulling away from him, she continued. "I'm not here about your training. But I need you to be candid with me." Kurenai crossed her arms, stepping back further and leaning against a wall. "What happened to you and Hinata?"
Naruto blinked. "Er- what?" When her gaze narrowed a little, he rushed to explain. "N-no, I'm not being coy! I just thought- er, that she would've talked to you about it?"
"I wouldn't be here if that were the case, now would I?"
"Don't sass me, woman. I'm trying to be helpful."
"Well you're doing a pretty poor job of it," Kushina barged in, needling him with a chuckle.
'You both suck.' Refocusing on Kurenai- "I'm trying to get something to eat before bed; join me, and I'll see if I can fill in the blanks for you."
He began to walk, and Kurenai fell into step beside him. "We ran into some real pieces of work, believe it… Itachi Uchiha, and some scary Mist ninja- er, Kisame-something-"
"Kisame Hoshigaki," Kurenai supplied. "He's one of the Seven Swordsmen of the mist; an S-ranked ninja with a killer, sentient blade for a companion." She had not forgotten her own encounter with those men, either. The fact that the kids had survived at all was a miracle in itself! "I ran into them in the village, alongside Asuma and Kakashi; I was there when your sensei got hurt."
"Right…" Naruto sighed. "Itachi trapped me in a genjutsu. Kisame gave Hinata the work."
"The work?" Kurenai had heard the slang before, and she could infer, but- "How bad?"
"He fucked her up." Naruto's breath hitched a bit as he spoke. Then a forced calm filled his speech; he spoke matter-of-factly, trying his best to give his girlfriend's sensei his best attempt at a complete report. "Broke a bunch of her ribs… He smashed her head into the wall so many times I thought-"
"I-I understand," Kurenai cut in, thankfully. She glanced worriedly at his hands, rivulets of blood trickling down from the punctures his nails were punching into his palms. "She recovered, though?"
"Yeah…" Naruto relaxed a little, his whole face lighting up with awe. "She was incredible, believe it! She managed to get past that guy and helped loosen Itachi's genjutsu. Then Sasuke barged in and bought us some time; he got fucked up bad by Itachi- uh, Super Bushy Brow-er Gai-sensei said it was the same thing that was used on Kakashi. But he bought me a chance to break outta the genjutsu."
Kurenai was impressed. "You managed to break out of his genjutsu, hm?" She knew well how formidable that man was in the art of illusions. "That's quite the feat."
"Er- yeah… Then Pervy Sage- er, Jiraiya came to bail us out right on time." Steadying himself, he added- "It was a lot, but she and Sasuke saved my life… But-" Then he frowned, shame bleeding in and dulling the gleam in his eyes. "But they both got hurt real bad having to bail my dumb ass out, ya know?"
Kurenai nodded, but said nothing, not willing to interrupt the boy while he was on a roll in recanting their tale.
"After that, we booked it to Tanzaku. Auntie- er, Tsunade patched her up for us, but then Tanzaku went to shit, because Orochimaru is garbage."
"I'm going to need a bit more than that to go off, dear." Kurenai chuckled a little, grabbing his shoulder and subtly steering him toward a place she was craving. "Tell me everything you can. And- well, I need a favor."
She wondered if they were still serving dumplings at this time of the night.
It felt like it had been days since Hinata and Naruto had last spent any real time with one another. Oh, they had seen each other; with the sheer volume of clones that her boyfriend often had navigating throughout the village, grumpily aiding the reconstruction effort or doing grunt work for Tsunade, it was far more likely than not that they'd inevitably cross paths from time to time. But brief talks or stolen touches were a pale imitation of the quality time she'd come to crave.
And maybe that was exactly why she hadn't thought twice to take up his rather sudden and bold invitation to spend that time at his apartment. Based on the timing, she was half-concerned that Kurenai-sensei had gone and incited this. Though if Naruto was aware of her little episode in front of her sensei, he hadn't let anything slip when he'd been inviting her.
Of course, her father would likely have words over her choice to take him up on his offer; she doubted that telling him she'd gone to a boy's house without his permission would go over well with that man; she doubted further that he'd believe her much if she told him she went for a haircut, of all things.
Eh, he'd get over it.
"Heya," Naruto greeted her at the door, and Hinata did a double take, taking in his appearance.
He'd done his hair anew: long currents of elegant, freshly oiled braids were amassed into a fairly neat bun. Two stray coils lay free from the rest, slightly asymmetrical and extending like rope-like antennae at the front in lieu of his usual fringe; they inched their ways down to his chest, where they capped off with little, pointed ornaments.
Both eyes were left free for the first time in a long while, and Hinata noted with a start just how dull the blue of his right eye seemed now, in comparison to the brilliant chip of amethyst that had since taken front and center as his most prominent trait.
Her gaze trailed downward, observing the short-sleeved mesh shirt he'd donned, and the black, baggy, cotton pants that tapered at his shins; they were strung up with crisscrossing rope at the sides and seemed to ride just a bit too low on his hips- Hinata instantly snapped back up to his face, where his trademarked grin had only widened.
"Pervert," Naruto accused her with a cackle. Clearly then, he had noticed her attention.
"S-stop!" Hinata whined, both hands snapping up to hide her pinkening face. "You're so mean!" Though, even she couldn't help the embarrassed laugh that he had managed to drag out of her. "S-sorry."
"I don't mind." He shrugged, his grin widening even further as she tried to tear her eyes off from him, only to snap back a moment later.
Wanting to distract herself -and hopefully him-, Hinata tried to change the subject. "U-um, what's the- er, occasion?" She pressed the tips of her index fingers together, bemoaning the little nervous tick that only he seemed to get out of her these days.
Naruto's grin tugged downwards, giving way to the spark of annoyance. "Ugh, don't get too used to it. I ain't going dolled up in my usual look, 'cuz Sakura's ego is made of wet tissue paper. So I'm doing- what's it called… Malicious compliance?"
Hinata's own mood ticked downward in turn, her shy smile giving way to a stern frown. "She asked you to change?"
Now he looked embarrassed. "Er, n-no, not really… If she had, I probably wouldn't have done it." Naruto shrugged as he led Hinata in, taking the bundle of snacks and drinks that Kurenai-sensei had advised her to bring. "She hasn't asked me to do anything I guess- more like she just gets super self conscious and it gets awkward so- well, I'm kind've in hot water already for not going to see Kakashi yet-" He winced as even Hinata gave him a rather unimpressed look. "I'm gonna do it! I'm doing it tonight, as soon as we're done kicking it- I super promise!" Her glare smoothened back into plain amusement, and her boyfriend pouted. "So I'll be stuck with her doing inventory tomorrow evening, 'cuz Tsunade is a meddling whore…" He trailed off, meaningfully, and Hinata tried not to laugh at the sudden and outrageous statement.
"S-so you're- snrk -trying not to rock the boat?" Hinata understood.
"Yeah… Sakura definitely knows I've been avoiding her, so I'd rather play it safe, I guess?" He sounded like even he wasn't so sure anymore. "Maybe I'm thinking about it too much… It's not like it's a big deal though- I'm probably just using her as an excuse to try new things, even if the braids itch like hell!"
He much preferred it loose, but Tsunade had challenged him anyways to experiment with his shape-changing to refine it, so he was treating it like any other training.
"Er- I-in any case!" Naruto threw his arm out, leading her gaze around the interior of his home. "Welcome to my place!"
It wasn't terribly large by any means, but it was very clean; Hinata suspected that he had done so very recently- not long before she'd gotten there, in fact.
"Oh, and thanks for bringing goodies- you didn't have to do that, ya know. Auntie just paid for groceries." Nonetheless, Naruto brought them to a small table right in front of a fairly large couch.
"O-oh!" Hinata frowned, suddenly looking a bit self-conscious. "W-well it's very kind of Tsunade-sama to have helped you pay for-" She took in his widening grin and then sighed. "Ah, you stole her wallet, didn't you?"
"Of course I did." Naruto's chuckle was music to her ears, and she could almost forget the fact that he had stolen from their village leader.
Almost…
He pointed at the couch, and Hinata eyed the neatly bundled pile of pillows and blankets he'd folded atop it. "The old Senju estate got crushed in the invasion, so that crotchety old bitch went and barged into my house and stole my bed, 'cuz she didn't wanna put in the work to find her own damn place; the least she can do is buy some of the groceries, since she sure as shit ain't paying rent."
"Oh, Naruto-kun…" Hinata tried to sound disappointed with him, but the tiny pearls of laughter that forced their way out really weren't helping her to look any more responsible than he was.
"Sit," Naruto ordered, politely offering her a place on the couch. His fingers briefly crossed, and a clone flickered into place beside him. "Could you make our girlfriend some tea?"
"Only if I get to hold hands with her after," The clone quickly rebutted.
"You savage!" He accused his doppelganger. "Honestly, out of wedlock? Next, you'll be asking to know the color of her socks."
"She isn't wearing socks."
"Scandalous!" Naruto and his clone gave Hinata a pair of sly, matching grins. "How about it? You feeling spicy?"
Hinata smiled for the pair, amused by their antics. "D-don't tell my father."
"I remember when that poor girl could hardly look you in the eye. Now you've got her sitting on your couch and holding hands like some scarlet woman. X'omaa, you've gone and corrupted that poor girl!" Kushina cooed. "Isn't that right, Kumoko?"
Had she- 'Did you name the spider?'
"Well I can't just keep calling it Shukaku! There's already a Shukaku- what if she gets confused?"
She- 'So you named it after our exploding handbag!?'
"I don't see you coming up with funky fresh new names for the spider!"
'It's not a pet!'
"It doesn't need to be a pet to deserve a name! Isn't that right, sweetie?" Kushina shuffled slowly after the glaring behemoth, which by now towered thoroughly over her. It hissed and spit at her, its glossy chelicerae clacking threateningly and dribbling with rose-gold discharge. Yet, Kushina's silent cheer nonetheless rang loudly in his own head when it did not snap at her this time, allowing her to briefly pat its body before it shook her off.
"Yes! Glorious success!"
Naruto tuned her out as best he could in favor of the girl on his couch. "So do you know what you want me to do with your hair?" He snapped his fingers, and from what she presumed was the bedroom soared a roll of tools, carried swiftly on a few stray shards of chain.
"Show off!"
'Your mother,' Naruto deflected, unrolling the bundle to reveal a handful of items. "Full disclosure, I've technically never cut another person's hair before; I usually just have a clone cut mine and let god take the wheel, but I'll try my best, believe it."
"A-ah, well could we maybe try something like this- er, but neater?" Hinata half-asked, gesturing to her own head. She'd really tried to fix it up, if only so she wouldn't have to go to a boy's house looking like a mess. But she really just had no idea what she was doing. When Naruto merely raised an eyebrow at her obvious lack of confidence, she sighed indulgently. "W-well- um… Do you have any recommendations?"
He gave her a long, appraising look, even going so far as to boldly curl a few of her locks around his fingers. "You've got bouncy hair; it's a lot lighter than mine too, so a lot of the styles I usually wear probably won't work very well. Let's try to keep it simple for now: I'll line up your edges and curl the ends a little, and we'll just see where it lands, yeah? If you let it grow a bit more, then I can try something a little nicer."
It was as good a plan as any, as far as Hinata was concerned. Frankly, she was just happy to have some time with him.
He got to work, quietly mumbling to himself as he planned out his next move with her hair; Hinata tried to listen in, if only because sitting silently while he worked was starting to make her anxious. When his clone dropped into the couch beside her, plating her tea just within her reach and taking her hand, she smiled thankfully at the welcome distraction.
But then her heart leapt into her throat as he procured some familiar shards of blue-gray, spreading them out onto the table with his secondary arms and prodding at them with intense focus.
"So I've actually been meaning to talk to you about these but we were so busy that I kinda forgot in all of the chaos, ya know? See, I was thinking I could probably shave these down and graft them onto a-"
She didn't hear the rest, too caught up in her own experience.
Pressure, squeezing against her lungs so tight she thought her chest would pop. Her ribs crumpled bit by bit…
Hinata forced down a scream, stifling it down to a mere hiccup; she stiffened, trying to silently avert her eyes so as to not disturb him.
But Naruto had already caught on. The original's ministrations ground to a stop; his clone took one look at her face, following her gaze back to the shards of Samehada and snatched them up in an instant, moving them from her line of sight.
"What the hell are you doing?" Naruto hissed, the telltale rattling under his skin denoting his fury. "Have you lost your damn mind!?"
"S-sorry!" Naruto's clone apologized, already sensing the source of her discomfort. "That was super insensitive of me- I didn't mean-"
"I-it's okay," Hinata soothed him, clenching her eyes and forcing herself to breathe. "It's okay… You didn't know."
"I should have known," He rebutted. "I just- Pervy Sage gave them to us a while back and I just remembered we had them. I thought it'd be cool to make you something out of them- I don't know, like a trophy or a ninja tool! I thought it'd be a fun project we could do together but I didn't realize-" He cut himself off, taking a deep, steadying breath. "I'll get rid of them."
"No!" Hinata interjected, and both Narutos froze at the sudden raising of her voice. "I mean- it's not- I don't want you to get rid of them. I just- I think it's a great idea…" She tried to calm herself, willing her breaths to steady. "I just need time. Please?"
The two blondes looked between each other, the original's glare still thoroughly heated, but softening rapidly in the face of the other's clear shame. "Okay," They muttered back, as one.
Locking eyes with his clone- "Take it to our room and work on it there." Naruto's order brooked no room for argument; his clone rose silently, pocketing the shards and leaving quickly. When he was gone, Naruto sighed.
"I can't even be that mad at him, 'cuz he's me. If I'd been the one to remember them I'd have probably done the same bone-headed shit, ya know…"
Hinata rubbed his forearm. "It's okay. I know he didn't mean it; I know you wouldn't hurt me." Then she floundered for a moment, the topic at hand heavy on her tongue in a way that made her hesitant to divulge. "I- erm…"
"Talk to me," Naruto pleaded, and Hinata melted.
"I've been- erm, I've been having nightmares… About that day when they came for you… And about Tanzaku Town, too. I-I didn't want to worry you so-"
Suddenly, Kurenai's questioning made a lot more sense to him.
"I understand." Naruto let the scissors dangle from his fingers, dropping onto the couch beside the girl. Then he leaned down, wrapping both arms over her shoulders and burying his face into her hair. "Same, honestly…"
Oh… "You too!?" She hated how desperate she sounded for that solidarity. But it was overshadowed greatly by how warm he made her feel.
Naruto chuckled, hollowly. "Hinata, we were both there." Admittedly, Tanzaku and the Akatsuki were really only a small piece of the nightmare pie for him. "I try to play it cool, but that doesn't mean I wasn't scared as shit too, ya know. I would've been toast if you and Sasuke hadn't saved me; I'd never felt so helpless before in my life… I still remember how you looked after- I get it, believe it…" He shrugged a bit numbly.
They could talk about him later though. For now- "How can I help you?"
It was a simple question, plain, and earnest, and without judgment.
And it bothered her to no end, in ways she couldn't fully explain.
"Er- well, I…" Hinata sighed. "I d-don't know… B-but I don't want you to worry over it!" She scrambled a little, suddenly feeling self-conscious, and even a bit guilty at shoveling such a burden onto him. "You're already stuck doing so much, and it's really not that big of a deal!
Naruto froze for a moment, seeming entirely nonplussed. "What- o-of course I'm worried about it!" Naruto rebuffed, clearly upset. "If you're suffering, then it's only natural that I'm gonna worry; I ain't just gonna write you off 'cuz I'm having a bad couple of days! That'd be super shitty of me!"
"N-no! I know that- it's just- I know that you have a lot on your plate right now, with S-Sasuke-san, and helping Tsunade-sama; plus there's Sandaime-sama's condition, and Sakura-san and Kakashi-sensei-"
"And you're just as important as any of that!" Naruto shifted his gaze a bit guiltily. "And if I ever made you feel like you weren't, then I'm really sorry…"
"N-no!" Hinata exclaimed, raising her arms in a half-flail. "Never! You've never done that! That's not why- it's just-"
How did she explain to him that she still wasn't used to being cared for so intimately? That having him or her team worry for her like this filled her as much with dread as it warmed her- that she feared for the day that he burden himself over her too much, and learn to resent her like her father had…
How did she tell him that her own father's only concern for her had been if she let another village steal her clan's eyes? That she couldn't even handle the idea that she'd one day look at the boy she loved and see that very same scorn in his gaze?
Hinata leaned back fully into his embrace. "I just feel really blessed to have you." She hiccupped, the familiar sting of tears reddening her cheeks. "So at least for now, please- just don't- can we talk about something else?"
Naruto felt his own eyes begin to sting, but forced a nervous chuckle forth in its place. "Y-yeah, sure."
Like hell he was letting that slide for long though.
"Come in!" Kakashi's voice sounded from the other side of the door; Naruto paused right before his knuckles could connect with its face, a light snort responding to the Copy Ninja's remarkable senses.
It figured, that even bedridden as he was, the instincts of a jonin were not to be trifled with…
He parted the entrance, just a tinge of shyness on display as he poked his head in to meet the man.
"Hi." One word, spoken with a lame inflection. Naruto could barely even look back at the startled eye of Kakashi.
"I- uh, I didn't think you'd visit…" Kakashi muttered, a small hint of shock persisting in his visage. "Er- hi; thanks for coming."
"Mhm." His student merely nodded in greeting, standing awkwardly at the midway point of the entrance for a painfully long moment.
"Would you come in? I've got- er, snacks…" Kakashi gestured to the seat by his bedside. "Gai comes by often, and he brings far too much for just me, and I don't really eat sweets like that anyways so-"
A steadying breath, then Naruto entered properly. "Yeah… Yeah sure, I'll steal some of your snacks."
He would freely admit that he had taken longer than he was proud of to have come to visit Kakashi.
Some part of it, he knew to be plain pettiness.
"It's understandable that you might still harbor some negative feelings for Kakashi," Kushina tried to soothe her son.
Yeah. But it was hypocritical as hell of him to have jumped down the man's throat for not coming to see him, now when he had taken over a week to come when their roles were reversed.
He knew that. His mother had outright said it; Sakura had been hounding him to go with her to see the guy for the better part of that week; Tsunade had punished him for it; hell, even Hinata had seemed a bit exasperated with him when he had admitted it to her.
A sigh, and Naruto closed the door behind himself. "Sorry it took me so long to come visit; I was actually really busy with-" His jaw clamped shut and he frowned, a stain of shame painting his eyes at lying so brazenly to the man. "I wasn't ready to come see you, I guess.
"Ah." Kakashi fidgeted a bit, trying to prop himself up in his bed. "Well- uh, you're here now right? Thank you- er, for coming, that is."
"Mhm…" Naruto took the offered seat, finally finding it in him to look properly at the bedridden man. He was startled a bit by how soft Kakashi seemed, staring up at him from his bedrest. "How are you feeling?"
"Ah, well the headaches have been hell on me, I can tell you that!" Kakashi laughed a bit awkwardly, rubbing the side of his head. "The medication helps, but- well trust that I know immediately when I need my next dose."
Naruto's frown deepened, his thoughts translating over Sasuke's own condition. "Nightmares, hallucinations- have you experienced anything like that?"
Kakashi sobered up at that. "A whole lot of both, but it's nothing I haven't tolerated before. You don't have to worry about me."
That sparked something defensive for reasons he didn't immediately understand. "I'm not."
"Er- right… Sorry for assuming." Kakashi laughed a bit awkwardly, and though his tone was ever-amiable, Naruto winced at the spike of hurt that simmered beneath the surface.
"I-" He floundered for a moment, gesturing aimlessly with all four hands. "I don't know… I didn't mean that. I don't know," He repeated, a bit lamely.
Kakashi said nothing, noting the prosthetic limbs, but pointedly not yet acknowledging them in favor of the clearly conflicted kid in front of him. "I get it… It's alright."
"My bad…" Naruto looked away, unwilling to look at his bedridden team leader. "You know I'm shit at stuff like this, but- er, it's no excuse for being a dick."
"It's alright, really. I understand." Kakashi chuckled a little and rubbed at his masked face, the lines of a forced grin creasing the fabric of his mask. "It's nothing I don't deserve, in any case-"
Hearing the guy make excuses for him was the last thing he needed. Needing to change the subject before he lost his nerve- "Itachi Uchiha got a hold of Sasuke too- had you heard about that?" Naruto interjected a bit bluntly. Kakashi startled for a moment as he processed that request. Then he looked away, sadness piercing through even the veil of his mask.
"Yeah… The guy's a real piece of work. Gai told me he hit him with the same jutsu he used on me. I-" Kakashi tried to swallow; it was like iron in his throat. "If it's anything like what he did to me, then I know Sasuke probably isn't doing too hot, huh?"
Because however traumatic as Itachi's attack may have been, Kakashi was a seasoned jonin; it was not the first time he had been hurt- tortured, even; it would not be the last, either. "How is he?"
"How do you think?" Naruto didn't mean to come off as harsh as he did, but nonetheless, Kakashi bore it with a nod.
Fair enough… "Will he recover?"
Naruto shook his head. "I don't know… Aun- Tsunade put him back together, but he ain't fixed, if you know what I mean. He won't talk to anybody anymore… Sakura and I tried to find him a specialist but he clammed up big time when I brought it up." Naruto ducked his head down into his hands, a frustrated growl aching in his throat. It felt like the umpteenth time he'd had to explain this to somebody, and he still felt no closer to an actual solution! "I shouldn't have just brought that shit up with him so brazenly. I knew damn well he was gonna pull back, but I was trying way too hard to act cool, or like I know what to do or what the fuck is going on, but I don't! I don't, and I-" He stalled, his passion petering out like a failing engine. "I don't know what to do… We think-" His breath hitched, and the boy had to fight to remain composed. "We think that mark that Orochimaru gave him might be hurting him too… I wanna try resealing it, 'cuz it might be wiggling free, but Sasuke's clammed up real bad, and I don't wanna set him off even more by getting in his space too much… I'm at a loss."
He didn't even know why he was speaking to the man like this. He'd only really meant to pop in to pay his respects- maybe give the guy a 'get well' gift before getting out of there.
But seeing him posted up in a hospital bed, same as Sasuke-
He'd been trying so hard to keep it together. To play it cool so that no one would have to worry, but- "I guess I ain't as cool about shit as I wish I was," He chuckled, bitterly.
There was too much to do. Orochimaru was lurking around unfettered; it was likely they'd be at war with the Hidden Sound Village any day now.
Sasuke was a mess, and Kakashi was bedridden. Sakura was trying to get along, but every time she opened her damn mouth, all he could think about was the fact that she'd called him a threat! And yet, Sasuke had nearly burned them to a crisp, and she'd let it slide in minutes.
And that hurt!
And then there was Hinata too. It pained him to admit that he hadn't even considered that she-too might be suffering from the events of their mission. Maybe he was just an insensitive, terrible boyfriend… She held herself well, but he should have known!
It was all too much.
"I don't know what to do…" Naruto hiccupped, and he really didn't know if he was talking to Kakashi or Kushina, or even just himself. Angry tears threatened to spill over; Naruto palmed his face, unable to hold back, but not wishing for Kakashi of all people to see him cry. "Everyone's stressed and hurting, and I don't know how to help or where to start… Auntie keeps telling me I'm doing too much, but I feel like if I stop, I'm gonna fucking keel over and pass out or something… What do you do when it's like this- when it feels like nothing you're doing is enough, but you can't just do nothing?"
Kakashi's lone eye melted, staring down at his student. "What do you do, huh?"
He thought back to his old team.
Rin…
Obito…
Minato-sensei…
Losing each of them had crushed him; losing them all had nearly broken him.
It was that moment more than anything that made him understand just how alike he and his whiskered student really were.
Stiffly, he leveled a gentle palm on the boy's head, who froze up at the sudden show of affection. "I guess we just do what we can, yeah?"
That's the chapter.
As you can see, there's a lot going on right now. Too much to cover, realistically speaking- so I'm having to basically cherry pick the most important stuff so I don't yap too much and drag things on.
For those of you who are craving more action, sit tight for a bit longer while I waffle on about trauma a little more. Next chapter should be right around the corner, and after that, we'll be able to dive into the next arc in full swing, methinks.
In the meantime, give me your thoughts! Every review helps a lot; it gives me ideas of what I'm doing well, and what I'm doing wrong and/or need to work on. I can't express to you enough just how helpful the feedback really is.
Also, if you'd like to have a conversation about the story or just join a growing community of goobers who like to write and talk about nonsense, then go ahead and join the discord, link in my profile (some assembly required.)
I've got a lot to catch up on while I get myself reacquainted with the story and all of that, but I'm really looking forward to writing. There's a lot of juicy things I can't wait to work on here!