Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Chapter 7: Single Refuge
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"Let go of me!" Shikamaru gave a strangled yell. Ino was having difficulties controlling her temper, and took it out on his poor shirt.
"How dare he, why that little-?" She growled as she wrangled it around.
"INO! Let go of my shirt!" Shikamaru yelled desperately as he tried to get out of her tough grip. She blinked a couple of times before she realized Shikamaru's shirt had about eight different holes in it.
"Oh?" she let out a small nervous laugh. "Gomen, Shikamaru." She let go of it and smoothed it out with her hands. "Don't glare so much, it wasn't all that great anyway." He narrowed his eyes at her. "You'll get over it." She patted his cheek. He sighed.
"I hate you for doing this." He said under his breath.
"Pardon?" He shook his head. Ino laughed elegantly. A sudden chill ran down her spine. 'There it was again?' She turned her head toward Sasuke's room, which was right across from Shikamaru's. "Shika? what is Sasuke-kun doing? I haven't seen hide or hair of that guy anywhere, and why is his room always locked up?"
Shikamaru hung his lead low and took a deep breath. "You should know?"
"He's mourning and he needs some comfort?" She took a stab at it.
He shook his head. "That Uchiha has a wife, I thought you knew?" He grinned evilly. "He's probably celebrating?" Something dawned on him, "That means? crap, I'm the closest to him. They better not be loud or-?" Ino grabbed his collar, her eyes burning.
"What the hell do you mean celebrating and since when did she become is wife 'officially?'" Their current conversation was cut off when Sasuke just happened to be walking by, carrying an unconscious Sakura to his room. They both turned their gazes toward him, slowly. Sasuke gave a sharp glare at the two and walked into his own room, ignoring everything they'd said.
Shikamaru sighed. "You? didn't feel it? Not to long ago, Sasuke just made her his 'official bride.'" He placed a hand under his chin. Ino's blue eyes widened. "You barely missed him Ino?" Shikamaru sneered.
"Like that matters." Ino said dully, crossing her arms and sitting down on his bed. She clenched the bed sheets. 'Damn it?' She sighed. 'I wonder if Sakura even remembers me?'
"Still going to go after him, huh?" He raised an eyebrow at her. She nodded with a smile.
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Neji ran throughout the entire Hyuuga mansion and still he couldn't find where that girl was located. He let out a frustrated sigh. 'That old man probably lied to save himself?' He shook his head. 'No matter, he's dead anyway?' He continued to run until he spotted a door with the words? "Hinata" On it. He smacked his forehead. 'You're slipping Neji.' His fists clenched and he opened the door, revealing? absolutely nothing. There was a bed in the corner, a desk, a closet, a dresser, everything one would need for a basic bedroom, but there was no one here. He punched a nearby wall. 'You'd think this girl would grow up to be a rich spoiled little brat?' He expected dolls, hairpins, kimonos? but nothing of that sort was around.
His blank eyes scanned the room. 'Maybe she heard me and-?no, I would've been stabbed by now.' He rolled his eyes. A breeze flew in from an open window. His face lit up. 'So that's where you are?' With skills that would make a cat jealous, he climbed out of the window stealthily. Now he had no idea where to go. He looked around, searching for any bed sheets she might've sneaked out with. 'Nothing? so that means?' He took a giant leap up onto the roof.
To his pleasure, a small petite form was laying peacefully there. 'A rude awakening is in order?' He approached the girl. 'Dark hair? but what about the eyes?' He bent down and decided to slap her awake, but as soon as he pulled a hand out, her own grabbed his. Hinata snapped her eyes open. 'Definitely a Hyuuga?' His eye twitched. It looked like? Neji had finally found his victim.
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Naruto sighed as he walked into Byakugan village. 'Right? or left?do the Hyuugas have any guards? This is no fun?' His eyes scanned the lush area as he walked around the mansion lazily and noticeably. His nose picked up a familiar scent? 'blood?' He ran toward the source, allowing the smell to lead him. "Ah HA!" he rounded the corner and opened a door, revealing two bloody corpses, only piled over the other. Their throats were sliced. He gulped. 'This must've been the baron Neji was so desperate to kill?'
He approached the two poking the man slightly. 'Well, the bloods still fresh?' A wheeze of air came out from the dead woman below him. Naruto cringed. He curtly spun his heel and walked the opposite direction. 'I hate corpses. Strange?' He froze dead in his tracks, something was wrong? very wrong. "Neji-?" he cursed and ran top speed to where his comrade was.
Sure enough, there he was, on the roof fighting with that one Hyuuga girl. "Neji! What the hell are you doing?!" Naruto questioned angrily. Neji didn't respond, but Hinata was distracted by his sudden outburst and stopped her attack, which allowed Neji to make a clean punch under her jaw. The girl flew back a few feet and scraped her back on the hard deck of the roof. She let out a small-strangled cry.
Naruto approached them, disbelief in his eyes. "Ne-Neji! You just hit a girl!" The other man shrugged. "That's against the rules you know."
"Stay out of this Naruto." He commanded lowly.
"I can't do that? I-?" Naruto stopped his sentence. What right did he have to stop them? 'Oh yeah?' "Look Neji, this is pointless, the baron is dead. Why are you even bothering with this girl?" The other vampire growled. "You can just go home, and I'll-?"
"Why don't you go home and quit interfering?" Neji snapped at him. Naruto kept his mouth shut, but his angry eyes remained on the defiant being in front of him.
Hinata was able to pick herself up in time to launch herself at Neji. She hit him right in the face, however, Neji countered by thrusting his palm into her abdomen and then kicked her chest. Blood spewed from her mouth, as she was thrown back again. 'What was that?' She struggled to get back on her feet, but she couldn't. Something was wrong with her body. A sudden churn in her confirmed that. Hinata placed a hand over her heart. She could feel it beating irregularly. Her pearl eyes widened as her body fell forward and more blood fell from her mouth. She began to cough uncontrollably.
"Damn it, what are you doing?! You're going to kill her!" Naruto yelled at him. Neji raised an eyebrow at him. Realization hit the blonde vampire. "Wait, what- no! Neji y-you can't! She never did anything to you!"
"It's because of her and her sad excuse for a family that I became what I am!" He snapped angrily and strode toward Hinata, grabbing her hair. "Do you see?! Do you?! This is what happened to me little girl; this is what I became because of you and your family. I became this inhumane, eternally damned creature who had to live on human blood for a whole century, all because your family couldn't afford to sacrifice a member from the head, I had to become Orochimaru's!" Hinata's eyes remained hard and unmoved.
"That's? not true. It c-can't be." She gasped out. Neji's angry eyes remained on her. Hinata's eyes widened in utter shock and surprise. 'He's telling the truth?!'
"Do you think I'm lying?" He said through clenched teeth. She looked away. 'So that means? everything I've been told up until now? was a lie?' She felt like crying, but she couldn't. Up till now, the entire village had been lying to her about the entire Hyuuga incident, claiming Neji was kidnapped. So? the branch started the fight with the head family because Neji was given away to Orochimaru? 'How could they?? How could they do that?!' Disbelief and shock was apparent in her eyes.
Naruto watched painfully from the side. He felt bad, and he couldn't do anything to help her. He could see Neji was desperately trying to control his temper, and became calm again, while Hinata looked as if she were about to cry? His fists clenched. "Stop!" He yelled at the other vampire. "You're going too far-?" Neji's blank gaze snapped toward Naruto. He growled frustratingly. "Neji, it was the head family, but it wasn't completely her fault! She doesn't even know the whole story! You can't hold her accountable for everything that's happened to you!" Neji let go of Hinata and strode over to Naruto. He punched him in the face.
The blonde looked at him in shock. He snarled. "Damn it Neji! Quit being so stubborn." He retaliated. The two began to exchange punches and kicks, until Neji finally knocked Naruto down. He stood over him triumphantly.
"You can't save her you know? Don't try to stop me." He turned his back on Naruto.
"She's mine to kill." The blonde spat. Neji stiffened.
"That's what this is about? You wanted to kill her? You're lying." Naruto thought about it for a while. "You can't kill people Naruto, you hate it, even if you do it all the time to feed. You're weak."
He said it. The two words Naruto absolutely dreaded, and he knew it too. He never admitted openly that he hated killing, but who said he had to like it? right? Being unable to kill? doesn't make you weak does it? His expression darkened.
Hinata continued to try and pick herself up, but was failing miserably. Even though she was struggling, she couldn't help but over hear the two. With the way they were shouting, the whole village was probably awake. That blonde vampire definitely saved her? for the time being anyway. What that Neji guy was saying to him hit a chord in her also. Her father gave up training her long ago, because she was a failure to any of the Hyuuga techniques. She was always put down because she'd hold back from her opponent. She took the liberty upon herself to train, but apparently, that didn't do much for her either. Then again, she didn't expect to fight the Hyuuga prodigy.
That thought irritated her. 'How can he look down on people like that?' She closed her eyes. 'So? his name is Naruto.' She confirmed. Whatever was happening between the two didn't matter to her. She just wanted to let the Naruto know that he's not weak. That he shouldn't care about what Neji was saying.
But, Naruto had already picked himself up. His fists clenched, and his jaw tightened. "I'm not weak... that reason's not good enough."
"What do you know?!"
"I know-... like it matters! You're the one being weak Neji. Just swallow your pride! Quit blaming other people!" He turned the conversation around.
"Damn you Naruto." Neji snarled. 'He doesn't know what he's talking about.' he kept convincing himself.
"Well, see it this way. You blamed the head family for what you became, but it wasn't their fault you're a vampire. Orochimaru did it." Naruto stated. "You still think I don't know what I'm talking about?" His blank eyes widened. "You forget I can read thoughts a lot too? The head family thought you would be able to escape from his clutches; they trusted you. And then there's Tenten?" Neji immediately stiffened up. "You blame her for your rash actions? and now you're blaming me for ruining everything because I'm depriving you of your revenge." Naruto smirked a bit.
Neji looked down at his hands, and clenched his fist tightly. 'I've been blaming others because I couldn't accept what I was? what I became? it was all- Orochimaru?Is he right?' A grin spread on Naruto's face. Neji raised his head to meet with Naruto's and gave an unreadable look. The blonde nodded as if he understood Neji's expression. The dark haired vampire growled... "Naruto... you're going to pay dearly for this later.." He ground out through clenched teeth. Neji swiftly turned and walked away....
"Stubborn ass." Naruto muttered when he was gone.
Hinata's cough became louder and even worse. Naruto immediately ran to the girl's side, Neji instantly forgotten. "Hey, hey!" he yelled at her. Her eyes fluttered. She looked up at him as he picked up her head and placed it on the crook of his neck. "You," he stated, "Hinata, am I right?" He grinned his signature fox grin. She let out another cough. Naruto panicked, 'Ok if I don't save this girl soon she's going to die. Darn it...' He snapped his fingers. Hinata let out another cough. "Woah! Ok ok!" He looked around to see if there was anyone that could help them. 'This is bad?'
Naruto wanted to rip all his hair out. He looked down at her. 'She doesn't deserve to die? she can't die!' He was shaking with anxiousness. 'I need to help her?' He blinked a couple of times and realized, 'She's bleeding internally?' "NOO!!!" He yelled dramatically. She gave him a weird? almost amused look. He looked down at her sadly. 'There's one way to save her? but is she worth it?'
As he debated with himself, Hinata felt an overwhelming, sickening feeling in her chest. It hurt? a lot. She clutched it painfully and let out a scream. Naruto snapped out of his reverie and looked down at her. 'Uh oh?Save her Naruto?' an inner voice whispered. 'Just leave her?' another one said. 'Save her? she doesn't deserve to die. Help her!' The other voice countered. 'No! Don't do it Naruto! Don't burden yourself!' So it went back and fourth? 'Save her! Hurry!' the first one yelled. 'It'll piss Neji off!' the second one warned. Naruto blinked a couple of times. A slow grin spread on his face. 'I live to piss Neji off?' It was decided.
"I'm sorry missy?" Naruto looked down at her apologetically, "but this is the only way I can save you. You'll have to come with me after this? You- you just can't die? I-?" he cut himself off. She gave him a questioning look. "After this? you'll be-" he cut himself off again... 'mine'. "You can leave later if you want but ah jeez, I'm sorry. This might sting a bit!" He said in shakily. He ran a hand through his hair. 'Here goes...'
Hinata's eyes widened into large pearl orbs. 'Is he going to-?' Her train of thought was abruptly cut off when Naruto, unsteadily, plunged his fangs into her neck. Well, at least he got his meal?
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"Itachi?" Orochimaru addressed the other vampire, who was currently residing in an old abandoned church. His red sharingan eyes snapped open, but he stayed in his place.
"What do you want?" His cool demeanor was making Orochimaru mad. Usually, when another vampire saw him, they'd cower in fear. He hated feeling inferior. Orochimaru opened his mouth to speak but- "If it's about Sasuke and his whore, I could care less."
The kind raised his eyebrow. "I thought you'd be interested in this little piece of information."
"What Sasuke does is none of my concern." He said flatly.
"I thought you wanted him to become stronger-?"
"What does that have to do with anything? Get to the point Orochimaru." Itachi narrowed his eyes at the pail form in front of him. Orochimaru on the other hand, was losing his cool, calm expression. He was never a man to take orders very well. "You want your kin back don't you? How fatherly?" Itachi mocked the other vampire.
Orochimaru growled and launched a punch at Itachi. It made contact with his cheek, but he remained calm and collected. As Orochimaru pulled away, Itachi grabbed his wrist and twisted it. The king let out a strangled yell. Itachi twisted it even more, and heard a satisfying snap. He let go.
Orochimaru took a few steps back, holding his limp wrist. He snapped it back in place, growling. 'Damn you Itachi...' "You're becoming rash, my king." Itachi scorned. His eyes remained on the other being. "You want me to go do your dirty work right? Defeat those four traitors and bring them back to you? Use Sasuke's whore to lure him? is that right?" he questioned knowledgeably. Orochimaru nodded with a scowl on his face. "I have one request."
Orochimaru's head snapped up. "No." he stated simply.
"Selfish as always, but if you don't agree I just won't do it?"
"Threats will get you no where, Itachi. You work for me!"
"And I see no pay in it!" Itachi retorted. "I do your dirty work, but I see no reward in it anywhere. I do it for thrill, and not for you. I will get my demands." The king swallowed.
"So be it..." He snarled, "What do you want?"
"Naruto and Sasuke's whore." Orochimaru's eyes widened.
"The girl you can have but no, you can't have Naruto. He has the-?"
"That is precisely why I want him in my clutches. Besides, he'd be better suited in mine that yours. You already said-?"
"Fine! Anything else?!" Orochimaru questioned sharply.
"Kakashi." He stated simply. The king blinked a couple of times. "He's still alive. You didn't kill him."
"Even if that's so, that is definitely a demand I can't give."
"You locked him away in a dungeon for almost a century, what use is he to you? Some toy?"
"Are you implying something?!" Orochimaru fumed. "You think like a pervert."
"I wasn't thinking anything, you're the one who said it? or perhaps I am implying something?" Itachi placed a hand under his chin. "So, I want Naruto and Kakashi and the bitch, if you don't give, you won't receive."
"So you're Santa now?" A low growl sounded from Itachi. "Fine." His sharingan eyes glinted in the moonlight. "But you remember, Sasuke, Neji, and Shikamaru return to me." He nodded and waved his hand dismissingly. Orochimaru scowled. 'One day, Itachi?' his fists clenched. 'You'll get what's coming to you?You best be watching your back.'
"I don't think so, Orochimaru... You're the one who should watch your back. Someone might stick something through it." Itachi sneered at him. The king stiffened.
TBC?
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I don't know about everyone else, but when I was writing this, I put a lot of adreniline in it. Well, the next chapters going to bring that to an abrupt hault. *shrugs* Ah well, oh and yes, *grins evilly* Sasuke and Sakura are celebrating their wedding night. Sorry to say, there is no lemon in this fic (there is lime though), perhaps, if I feel like encorperating it into the later chapters, but I don't know.
Not so sure. Sasuke... fangs... Sakura... Lemon. Good combo. I'll stop there and go back to pondering.
Naruto needs to beat some sense into him!!! *whacks Neji again*
lol.