More NaruHinaSasu interactions this chapter

Chapter 28: It's so easy to come back into you

Mind and body alert with an ongoing mission, Hinata awoke early the next day. It was a little strange to wear civilian clothes, but this was a different type of mission. After dressing and packing some food, she made her way to Jiraiya's cottage, sneaking in stealthily, byakugan sweeping over the area. Her kekkei genkai was still activated when Sasuke arrived a few minutes after her.

They'd agreed during dinner the previous night that Hinata and Sasuke would continue reading through Jiraiya's scrolls while Naruto would join them after spending his day at the Hokage Tower as usual.

Hinata greeted Sasuke with a smile, knowing better than to try to engage him in conversation this early in the morning. They silently sat down at the kitchen table and turned their attention to the scrolls.

Unsurprisingly, Sasuke worked at a faster pace, sharingan memorizing paragraphs of text in a matter of seconds. Hinata read through each word carefully, notepad by her side as she jotted down anything of interest. She suspected Kakashi had assigned her this mission hoping that she could use the information for her own clan-related goals and so with that in mind she went over every piece of information twice. Once to determine if it was useful for deciphering the nae-ROOT seal and a second time to extract anything that could apply to sealing dōjutsu. Sometimes when she saw something particularly noteworthy, she would point it out to Sasuke, leaning in towards him so they could look at the text together.

At a certain point, Hinata became so engrossed that she didn't notice when Sasuke got up from his seat. More than the sound of a cup being set down in front of her, it was the scent of green tea that pulled Hinata's focus. She blinked at the bright red toad decorating the fine porcelain cup. Sasuke had already stepped away only to return with a small plate of two cream coloured mochi.

Murmuring her thanks, Hinata allowed herself to be tempted away from the task at hand. A sense of peace settled around them. Hinata's days always felt more complete after a cup of tea. More often than not that cup of tea was in the company of a certain Uchiha.

As usual, Hinata ate her wagashi, leaving the second one for Sasuke despite knowing he had no intention of eating it. Only after she finished hers, did Sasuke push the remaining one to her, watching as she happily accepted it.

They worked in peaceful harmony for hours. At around two in the afternoon, Hinata pulled out two bento boxes filled with a simple chicken teriyaki, rice and kinpari gobo. She made sure to hand Sasuke the one with a handful of cherry tomatoes on the side. It wasn't obvious, but Hinata could read Sasuke's appreciation in the way he ate and how clean the bento box was when he finished it. It helped that he made it a point to voice that appreciation. Even a simple "it's good" was enough for a pleasant warmth to settle in her chest, more filling than the food itself.

Sasuke took it upon himself to wash up and Hinata didn't bother arguing the point. Once he was back, she took the opportunity to pick his brain. Sasuke made for a great sounding board. Even if he didn't know the answer to her question, he was able to hold an intelligent discussion with her and dissect the problem with his razor sharp mind and his near photographic memory. They talked seamlessly, each adding comments and ideas onto each other's statements to build a serviceable explanation. Hinata's notepad was now littered with additions in Sasuke's handwriting.

They were in the middle of analyzing a specific passage, crosschecking against one of the Uchiha scrolls Sasuke had brought, when Naruto slipped into the room.

"Wow, you guys have been busy!" Naruto exclaimed, eyeing the scrolls that Sasuke had neatly arranged in a 'read' and 'unread' pile. "Time for a break — I brought dinner!"

Dinner was, unsurprisingly, takeout from Ichiraku Ramen and was filled with easy conversation courtesy of Naruto. Hinata attributed Sasuke's more frequent contributions to Naruto's ability to draw people out of their shells. After all, that was one of the reasons for her own participation. Another reason was Sasuke's persistent efforts to redirect questions to her — especially when Naruto got caught up in an old story — in a way that managed to make her feel included rather than interrogated. Sasuke's mannerisms may have intimidated Hinata once, but that was no longer the case. She could see the genuine interest in his eyes when she spoke.

After eating, Naruto brought out his own work while Hinata and Sasuke returned to the mission.

Most of the scrolls were in what Hinata presumed to be Jiraiya's handwriting and were educational, going into the theory of fūinjutsu and juinjutsu or documenting seals Jiraiya had encountered or created himself. There were plenty from other sources, but they also leaned towards identifying seals and explaining their design and use. The next scroll Hinata picked up from the 'unread' pile was in Jiraiya's looping cursive, but the contents were unexpected.

At her gasp, Sasuke turned to Hinata, his pale rinnegan exposed and swirling.

"What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked, brows furrowed with concern.

Hinata's eyes were still locked onto the scroll. A hand on her arm pulled her eyes away and to a searching mismatched pair.

"This is…" Hinata trailed off. Unlike the others, the writing in this one read more like a journal. It started as an account from Jiraiya on a curiosity he had come across on one of his journeys before unfolding into hypothesizing on the nature of a particular seal native to Konoha. Grip tightening on the parchment in her hands, Hinata looked between the two boys. "According to this, Jiraiya-sama came across someone in Kirigakure with the byakugan. Someone that wasn't a Hyuuga."

Naruto's face contorted into shock. "That's…"

Hinata felt a mirroring swell of emotion. The thought of her kin being mutilated like that, a vital piece of their person and heritage being stolen…it was horrifying. She felt a rush of indignation at the violation and sorrow on behalf of her clansman.

Again, it was the squeeze of Sasuke's hands that pulled her from these thoughts. His face was a blank canvas, but his grip was gentle and warm. "Think," he told her.

Frowning in confusion, Hinata looked down at the scroll again. Eyes widening in realization, she looked back at Sasuke. "I can use this," she said, voice coloured with a mixture of hope and disbelief.

The edge of Sasuke's lips curled into a small smirk, eyes glinting with pride. It completely transformed his typically impassive face.

"I don't get it." Naruto shot a puzzled look at the two of them, scratching at his cheek.

"The purpose of the Kago no Tori no Juin is to protect the secrets of the byakugan," Hinata explained, trying to keep the building excitement out of her voice. She didn't want to get her hopes up too high. "This," she said, gesturing to the scroll, "Is material evidence that it doesn't work. And a seal that cannot serve its purpose, has no business being used."

Slowly, a grin broke out across Naruto's face. "You can use this to get rid of the seal!"

An uncontrollable laugh bubbled out of Hinata, Naruto's enthusiasm breaking through her attempts to subdue her own. Still, she tried to keep her expectations reasonable. "I can try!"

But Naruto and reasonable didn't exactly go together.

In a shot, he was out of his chair and pulling Hinata into his arms, swinging her around. Hinata squeaked, arms looping around Naruto's shoulders for stability. Before long she was giggling as Naruto spun them both into dizziness. When he finally set her down, her head was still spinning and she had to lean her forehead against his chest for stability. After a moment her head was clearer and she looked up, only to freeze at how close her face was to Naruto's.

Naruto's eyes slid down from her own to her lips and Hinata parted them automatically. Then suddenly remembering where she was, Hinata pushed herself away.

"Um." Now a good distance away from Naruto, Hinata kept her eyes on her feet, much too embarrassed to look at Sasuke. "Sorry, I got carried away…" she croaked out.

Naruto spluttered something, but Hinata couldn't hear him over the mess of her thoughts.

Meanwhile, the silence from where Sasuke was sitting felt incredibly loud.

Normally, Hinata was the type to work herself to her limit, but right now she was eager to escape the awkward atmosphere. It was nighttime and though she could have passed a few more hours pouring over the scrolls, it was late enough to justify leaving.

"…I think I'll head home," Hinata said. She forced herself to look up. Naruto was rubbing his hand on the back of his neck nervously. Sasuke was looking away, an inscrutable expression on his face.

It felt like a stone was sitting in Hinata's gut. She eyed Sasuke's clenched jaw and mentally berated herself for putting him in such an uncomfortable situation. Once again, she was giving him the impression that she was a romance-obsessed child rather than a serious ninja. Letting herself fall into Naruto's gravity even after she'd made the decision to end things. Like she had no self control.

"I'll send you home." Sasuke's words were clipped and he didn't look at her when he spoke.

Hinata thought to turn him down, but Sasuke wasn't one for niceties as he'd told her himself. If he was offering, then he meant it, despite how inhospitable he sounded. Besides, she longed for the sanctity of her bedroom. She agreed with a silent nod and he opened the portal.

Hinata said goodbye to Naruto softly, her gaze focused on his whiskered cheek, unable to meet his eyes. As soon as she stepped into her bedroom, Sasuke's portal shut behind her, leaving Hinata alone.

Too frazzled to sleep, Hinata pulled out her notepad and flipped through her notes of the day. Her own tiny and narrow lettering was interspersed with additions in larger, bolder strokes. Sasuke's handwriting was so different from hers, but still easy to read. When she got to the last couple of pages, Hinata blinked in surprise. They were filled with only Sasuke's tidy writing, detailing the relevant parts of the scrolls he'd been reading and organized based on whether they pertained to the mission or to her own goal.

Heart filled with gratitude, Hinata went to bed resolving to thank Sasuke.

But the next day, Sasuke didn't show up.

Sasuke was on his way to Jiraiya's for the third day in a row when he was intercepted by a mission bird. After the previous evening, it wasn't an unwelcome sight.

The first day had been fine. Nice, even. No one would describe him as particularly sociable, and it was true for the most part. Even as a child, he'd found his popularity bothersome. But there were some people whose company Sasuke didn't mind. Naruto was one of them, though he could get annoying in large doses or when he was especially hyperactive.

Hinata…

With most people, Sasuke might spend ten minutes in their presence and need an hour of solitude to compensate. With Hinata, Sasuke would blink and realize he'd spent hours with her without wanting to be anywhere else.

Sharing space with them together, having dinner and exchanging stories, it had been enjoyable. Sasuke had found himself talking more than he normally would in a group. He typically let Naruto dominate the conversation, both in public and when it was just the two of them. But having Hinata there had shifted things. Neither himself nor Hinata were very talkative, their conversations were give and take, both meeting in the middle. Seeing her willingly take a backseat had driven Sasuke to pull her back to the forefront.

It had worked.

And it had been nice.

Hinata's eyes on him when he asked her a question, her look of interest when Naruto shared an anecdote from their genin days, the amused smiles she'd send Sasuke when Naruto revealed something embarrassing about him, her laugh when Sasuke undercut Naruto's chattering.

And then Hinata had found the excerpt on the Kago no Tori no Juin and she'd looked so hopeful that Sasuke had felt his own mood rising, like her happiness had a direct connection to his own. Her lavender eyes had been glowing in the light of the kitchen and Sasuke had wanted to reach out to share in her excitement.

But he never got the chance. Naruto had scooped her into his arms, had spun them into their own private bubble and Sasuke had been left on the outside looking in.

It hadn't felt like this before. When Hinata and Naruto were together, watching Naruto press a kiss to her temple or hold her hand had been uncomfortable, but mildly so. Sasuke had attributed it to being witness to public displays of affection. Yesterday had been that feeling magnified tenfold.

Sasuke was hardly looking forward to watching Hinata and Naruto dance around their feelings again today. If Kakashi had something else for him to do, Sasuke would gladly take it.

He switched directions, using shunshin to cross the village to the Hokage Tower. Kakashi was waiting in his office, a serious look on his face. Sasuke felt himself stiffen in response.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked, cutting to the chase.

"Not even a good morning?" Kakashi's attempt at levity was half-hearted at best. Sasuke didn't deign to respond. "The nae-ROOT member that extracted the white zetsu and managed to escape, we looked into a lead from Sakura. It seems like it could prove worthwhile, but…"

Sasuke refrained from reacting and watched his former teacher with narrowed eyes.

Arms crossed against his chest, Kakashi's displeasure was evident. "The informant will only speak to you."

For Kakashi to be visibly upset, Sasuke knew it had to be bad. There was a niggling suspicion at the back of his brain, but he pushed it away. "Who?"

"Orochimaru."

Hinata's confused and Sasuke's feeling some type of way...all because of Naruto.

Thanks as always to everyone who reads and takes the time to leave a comment ^^

MVH