A small crack in perfection

A small crack in perfection
By eternalshiva

Disclaimer:
I do not own Naruto or any of the characters portrayed by Masashi Kishimoto, nor do I make any monies off this fanfiction.

AN – I’m not blocked on TS, just felt like writing for this story :P Large chunks of text in italics are flash backs with Hinata btw.
Thank you Jolly Green for the beta, much appreciated.

Chapter 3
Compromised Isolation

The rain poured relentlessly around him as he walked back towards the building he’d just left to meet with a woman he was determined to crack. It hadn’t gone very well. In fact, Mission: Cinnamon Buns was a complete failure.

Hell, he’d hoped to make a little more ground with Hinata, but she had to go and surprise him by turning on her heels and running as far away as possible; figuratively of course. He ignored the fact that she got her driver to screech out of the parking lot like a bat out of hell. Acknowledging that would be a fatal blow to his ego.

Naruto sighed, his fingers lingering around on the bar of the door. The cool metal was a sharp contrast against his heated skin and he wondered for a brief moment if he’d completely screwed up. Something was off though. He couldn’t quite put his finger on what, but the way she was acting triggered a memory of something Sakura had said earlier that day.

He should really pay more attention when she babbles on about work. He pulled the glass door open and took a very confident step into his building. The guard gave him a puzzled look, but shrugged as his boss walked by. The elevator swallowed up the blonde as he continued to think on what had happened in the space of several seconds.

“What a fucking week,” he muttered to himself, disappointed overall, but not quite feeling entirely defeated. He did get the passes, which meant she had to see him again. There was still another chance to get through to her with the personal garden. He hoped anyways.

The more he thought about it, the more he realised that there was nothing offensive said; he’d barely spoken to her. Her eyes had been averted from him; her posture had been stiff, as though she was fighting some vicious internal battle. He shrugged to no one and tried to ignore the drips of water escaping his hair, which were sliding down his back like the cold fingers of an unknown lover. He caught his reflection from the metal sliding doors and groaned. His hair was flat, his skin was still peeling and his so-called rain jacket was soaked through. No wonder she freaked out; he looked like he crawled out of a hole!

He made a mental note to call the store in the morning and give them a piece of his mind. He’d been tricked into buying something expensive and was a little annoyed. He watched the lights blink as the floors climbed, ignoring the bone-deep chill that passed through him as the mouth of the elevator opened and he was welcomed by Kiba’s large, white, drool-infested mutt.

“Akamaru, down boy!” he heard his friend yell from another room. Kiba poked his head through Naruto’s office and raised an eyebrow.

“What are you doing back here?”

“What are you doing in my office?” Naruto ignored his friend as the dog greeted his second owner with a sniff to the crotch and a bark. Naruto swatted at the animal and grumbled; absolutely hating that greeting.

“I was looking for the pencil sharpener. Mine’s broken.”

He didn’t believe him. Kiba never used pencils for drafting; he was strictly digital designs and often complained about how Naruto still sketched out the ideas.

“You lying sack of shit. Stop surfing for porn on my computer.” The blonde pointed at his partner and frowned. Kiba let out a bark of laughter as the blonde shook his head, trying to get around Akamaru while walking towards the other man.

“I got the passes.” He waved the white square objects and Kiba nodded before shifting positions.

“Stop ignoring my question. What are you doing back here?” Kiba was now standing in his office doorway, arms crossed. Naruto paused a moment before swatting at the animal who had taken an interest on the cooling buns. He was nearly tripping over him and it was irritating.

“I have work to do.” He shrugged, trying to get across that he didn’t want to talk about it.

“Naruto, I understand you’re giving me the ‘leave-me-the-fuck-alone’ tone, but this is a major client.” Kiba rolled his eyes as his friend stiffened, his lips pressed into a thin line. He knew the blonde would tell him eventually, he just had to pry it out of him.

“I didn’t do anything! She was all uptight about something, I said like ten words to her!” he defended. Both of Kiba’s eyebrows rose slightly in surprise; that was a lot easier than anticipated.

“You can piss off somebody just by looking at them, Naruto. You have that special ability to wear your thoughts and emotions on your sleeve.”

Naruto snorted in disbelief; he was not some emotional guppy. He sidestepped the other man and entered his office and gave him a sour look. Kiba pointed to him and his mouth began to form the word “see”, but he was cut off when Naruto shut the door quite hard, hitting Kiba on the behind.

“Ouch, you asshole!” Kiba retorted, rubbing the spot where the handle had struck. He kicked the door in retaliation like an angry three-year-old and called his dog to follow him back to his office. Naruto leaned his forehead against the cool metal, trying to gather his thoughts together.

He threw the bag of buns on his courtesy seat and peeled off his drenched clothing. He kept a small supply of extra clothing in his office due to several reasons. He slept here much too often and he was a complete klutz with inks. He shook his head to spike up the hair, but it rebelled and fell back to flat. So he resigned himself to the fact that he was doomed to shitty hair and pulled out a pair of black sweats and an orange sweatshirt. His fingers touched the intricate tattoo absent-mindedly around the navel.

He had a scar there originally from the accident that killed his parents; it was shaped like a swirl. Gaara had often mentioned he should tattoo the strange marking in high school. He finally did the last year the Japanese man stayed there. They had researched the Kyuubi myths and legends from Gaara’s country and they found the pattern of an old seal used in ancient times. According to the legend attached to it, the Kyuubi had been sealed inside an infant to save an ancient ninja village - killing the little boy’s father in the process.

The story had touched Naruto so deeply that he had the same seal tattooed on his belly. Gaara had thought him strange and said the design would be bad luck since it sealed evil and took another’s life for it to work. Naruto had shrugged and pointed at the fact that the other boy had the kanji for love tattooed on his forehead. He then ignored his friend’s near-schizophrenic-paranoid rant for the rest of the day. He tagged it to his friend’s serious sleeping disorder, but didn’t take offense at the rant; Gaara seemed to understand a little bit of everything about Naruto. He had been an accomplice in life so far; a true brother.

He sat down at his graph table. His right hand slipped in-between the wet dreads of his hair and continued to shake the water out as he watched the rain slosh against his office window. He noticed that his computer wasn’t on. Frowning, he concluded that Kiba must have been watching the rain. There were no windows in the other man’s office and he’d often come in here to think on projects that stumped him on these long full-nighters.

He reached over to the bright graph lamp he used for nights like these and pulled out one of the sketches he was working on. She had requested Japanese designs, which were difficult to put together in an indoor setting due to the different elements of water and sand. He picked up his pencil and looked at the tip, absentmindedly noting that it was getting dulled down, but was too lazy to reach over and sharpen it.

His thoughts drifted again towards the shy girl he remembered, comparing her to the cold woman of today. She was still in there, he could feel it, but getting her to shed the chains binding her to the past was more difficult then he could imagine.

“Snap out of it, Uzumaki.” He lightly slapped his cheeks to shake the ongoing chill and tried to ignore how the lightning illuminated his office with an eerie light. His blue eyes looked out the window one last time and he set to his task, designing her sanctuaries.

* * *

Hinata was a torrent of emotion. Her calm demeanour betrayed the current storm brewing inside her. She could hear the rain outside the limo’s window as they drove away from her past. A flash of lightning distracted her a moment. Her pale eyes watched the clouds as they groaned and released their charges. Lightning traveled the under part of the clouds, flashing quickly. She counted the seconds in her head, wondering how far away the angry lightning had struck the ground.

Her finger reached out to the window to tap the glass, silently counting. Something ticked in her head before she reached five, another flash of lightning illuminated the sky and her eyes followed the quick succession of the lights dancing on the clouds.

“Put your seatbelt on, Hinata...”

The voice was an echo in her head. She frowned as a dark shape formed in her mind...

Long hair flowed in a disheveled state, her mother having put it in a hurried ponytail before coming to the car. She looked over her shoulder, her mouth opened, warning her daughter once more to put the belt on...

Her finger formed circles on the window, another crack of lightning; she counted again.

“Why do we have to move? Father’s been there for two years already, I wanted to stay here! I wanted to be with Naruto!” She felt strangely rebellious, arguing with her mother in the car. She knew her mother couldn’t devote all her attention to her because of ...

“Twelve seconds. Twelve kilometres,” she whispered. Her hands were now idle on her lap, her mind wandering back to the man she left alone in the rain earlier. His piercing eyes had left her feeling vulnerable, opened and she'd had to get away. He would discover all her secrets if she let him.

“Hinata! I’m not going to fight about this again!” Her mother looked over her shoulder again, her eyes hard. Hinata blew a puff of breath in her cheek, crossing her arms, and refused to put on her belt. She was sitting in the back; her mother would never be able to reach her. Hanabi gurgled and cooed next to her. The young girl was unaware of the rebellion and reached out for her sister. Hinata glared at her, causing Hanabi to laugh, happy her sister finally paid attention...

Another flash, the sound was near instant and it startled Hinata out of her daze.

“Don’t make me pull over Hinata, put your damned seatbelt on!” her mother threatened. Hinata continued to ignore her mother, sticking out her tongue.

“One.” Her mother started, Hinata knew what was coming, but she didn’t relent; refusing to cave. Naruto had taught her that much.

“Two.” Her mother’s voice drew out the syllables that warned impending doom. Hinata rolled her eyes, waiting for the two and a half warning. She started to reach for the belt, suddenly tired of the game, knowing full well her mother would pull over and make a scene.

“Fine”...

The limo swerved suddenly to avoid a pothole, Hinata felt her heart leap out of her chest. The memory was fighting to surface and she couldn’t really stop it. So she let it play like a movie, waiting to see how it ended. The rain was heavier, the sounds were too familiar and her head ached. The lightning struck again and another door opened in her mind.

Her mother looked away from the road, watching her daughter for a split second while she was putting on her belt. She shook her head wondering where this stubbornness was coming from.

Hinata screamed.

Her hands trembled, her stomach squeezed uncomfortably as an old fear tumbled out of her memories. Another flash of light caught her attention, her eyes widened as the scenery changed from an empty road to the two bright lights of a semi-truck slamming into the side of the mini-van her mother was driving.

She could see it. She could see what her heart had locked away.

Her mother, both arms raised over her face, mouth agape in a soundless scream. She could see the glass shattering, cutting her mother’s face, the metal squeezing, and the sounds of the groans it made as the van was pushed off the road. The semi kept ploughing through them, her mother had veered into the other side of the road while yelling at her daughter without noticing.

Everything was in slow motion inside her mind as the memories unfolded. She saw the metal squeeze down on her mother, crushing her instantly, her hands limply flailed about as the car rolled. Hinata was still seat beltless and was thrown about the cab of vehicle, she could feel her bones cracking and breaking, they ached in response as the memory flashed.
Bile was starting to climb up from the depths of her belly while her hand pressed against her lips and she sobbed unconsciously. She could hear her baby sister crying, screaming for their mother to calm her. Hinata was tumbling inside the cab, she winced. The ghosts of her past were restless in this rain.

Her small body was thrown clear of the tumbling vehicle, sparing her life in the process. The destroyed mini-van stopped rolling and Hinata gasped in pain as her body lay broken on the grass. She opened her eyes, fighting the wave of darkness threatening to swallow her. She could hear Hanabi still screaming in the stilled car. Her mother was calling her faintly and Hinata forced herself to crawl, tears mixing with the blood leaking from her cut skin. The rain was a violent torrent, unforgiving as she made her way to her family.

Her skin crawled and she closed her eyes, attempting to stop the onslaught of memories. They wouldn’t slow down and she started to feel her chest tighten. Her skin was clammy and her breath was erratic as panic set in. She was losing control of her emotions quickly. Tears were welling up and she let out a soundless sob against her will.

“M-m-mother?” she barely managed to squawk it out. Her mother turned her head towards her daughter from the crushed frame of the mini-van. She smiled at her, her eyes spoke volume about the dire situation. Hinata could smell gasoline. She broke down into hysterics as her child sized brain registered how injured her mother was.

“Hinata! Hinata!” her mother yelled, trying to calm the girl long enough to see if Hanabi was ok; to see if she could remove her from her future coffin.

“Calm down! You need to check Hanabi. Get her out of the van baby, get her out!”

“O-o-ok mother.” She sniffled, trying to gather her wits. She cried out as she tried to stand up. Something snapped inside her as fire began to burn by her mother.

“Hurry sweetie, Hanabi needs you.”

Hinata shook her head, trying to free herself from the gruesome image of the woman in the driver seat. Her face had been severely cut, her one arm hung at an odd angle bleeding profusely. She couldn’t see past the window, but she couldn’t imagine the rest of her body.

She kept that smile the whole time in the flash of memory, her eyes always trusting that she would do as she was told.

“Get her away from here, baby,” her mother had nearly whispered.

“What about you mommy?” Hinata called out, holding her sister tightly as they stepped away from the van.

“I’ll be fine baby, I’ll be fine. Go under the trees sweetie and wait for help ok?”

“O-O-Ok mommy, ok,” she stuttered, her eyes never leaving those of her mother. She cried, her head hurt and she felt dizzy from blood loss. Her sister was unusually quiet, as though she understood to not be a bother right then and Hinata was grateful.

“I love you sweet heart.” Was the last thing she heard from her mother before the explosion knocked her off her feet. Her back hit something hard and she heard a crack as pain invaded her head before falling blissfully into unconsciousness.

Hinata screamed inside the limo, startling the driver to a complete stop. She fumbled with the door, tears unleashed and bile locked itself in her throat. She ran out into the rain, gasping for breath as it poured down and she screamed again into the night before spilling the content of her stomach.

“Miss Hyuuga?” the driver called out as she collapsed to her knees, hugging herself.

“I...” she started saying to a ghost before her, flickering in and out of her sight as her mother’s dead eyes bore into her. Guilt washed over her, thirteen years of suppressed grief pouring out in an instant. The ghost smiled sadly and she could have sworn she saw it mouth 'thank you'. Her grief had never surfaced, having been blocked all these years ago after that incident.

Her mother’s face invaded her, her warmth lingering unwanted. The millions of butterfly kisses she had been showered with as a child assaulted her senses, a forgotten lullaby hummed to her right, her mother’s laugh flooded the darkness with a bright light that drowned out the pitter-patter of rain. Ghostly hands hugged her; she felt a hand pet her head in an achingly familiar way, her name whispered with affection.

“I... killed her...” she whispered before the driver reached her as she collapsed from the strain caused by a flood gate of memories.

* * *

Naruto scratched at the scars on his face in frustration, an old habit he’d been hard pressed to break from since god was a child. He couldn’t get the last few designs to pan out no matter how much he tried. His inspiration had decided to take an impromptu vacation at two in the morning.

His eyes caught bits of pieces of used erasers scattered around his desk, crumpled papers were all over the floor. Whilst in the middle of considering how to clean up the mess, Kiba burst through his door. Naruto, whom had been startled at the sudden charge of energy, let out a very girly scream. Kiba nearly jumped out of his skin and screamed as well in unison with his friend. Akamaru barked in alarm and rushed into the office, teeth bared and ready for action.

“For fuck sake, Kiba, will you learn to knock!” he managed to spit out once he caught his breath, his heart was hitting his ribcage hard.

Kiba ignored him and bee lined for the forgotten cinnamon rolls on the chair.

“Jesus, Naruto. You scared the shit out of me.” He shot the blond an accusatory glare and Naruto fumed.

“Me? ME?” he was yelling and Kiba plopped down on the adjacent chairs, ripping the bag opened as his fingers were seeking what he’d been craving for several hours.

“Oh, relax.” He put his feet on the coffee table and munched away, his eyes closing in satisfaction as the sweet and bitter taste tingled in his mouth. ‘Who ever had been bored enough to create these sweet things was the new deity to be worshipped,’ thought Kiba.

“Damn I could smell these across the building; it's been total torture for hours,” he added before stuffing one entire roll in his mouth. Naruto grimaced, disgusted suddenly by the crass eating behaviour.

“So,” bits of food came barrelling out of his mouth as he spoke. Naruto had trouble focusing on the words coming out of that mess Kiba sported as a mouth.

“Are you getting anywhere with the designs?”

“What?” All he had heard was “Sow are ou ehing nywor wif se sezanes”

Kiba swallowed hard, coughed a moment and repeated his question. Naruto nodded and pointed at a neat pile of paper. He still had to do Hinata’s personal garden, but the way things were going he wasn’t going to be able to pick her apart for the perfect design.

“What about her personal one?”

“What the hell? Stop reading my mind.” Naruto scowled as Kiba cracked up laughing. Naruto seemed unaware that he was easy to read. He couldn’t hide a single emotion even if he tried.

“I’ll figure something out.” The blonde brushed the bits of used erasers off his graph table and his hands. His solution was quite simple: he was going to stalk her.

“I don’t like that look,” Kiba sputtered out, knowing full well a plan had formed in his partner’s head. He was concentrating, eyes focused on a task. It was dangerous when Naruto started to think.

“Stop doing that! Shit!” He hated it when Kiba read him like a book. The dog owner laughed.

* * *

Sakura was confused.

Hinata wasn’t in her office this morning and she was facing some smaller version of her boss sitting behind the desk.

“Ah, excuse me miss, but where...” she started. The younger girl analysed Sakura before she decided to answer her. This must be the assistant.

“My sister will be away a little while, she’s taken ill,” she stated quite matter-of-fact. Sakura raised an eyebrow.

“Your sister? You must be Hanabi.” She recalled Hinata telling her about her new sister ages ago. Time certainly flew by when you stopped paying attention.

“How do you know my name?” The young girl squint her eyes in mistrust. Sakura resisted the urge to roll her eyes. ‘Oh yeah, these Hyuugas are a fun bunch.’

“I knew your sister before she lost her memory.” Hanabi’s eyes widen a fraction at the woman’s answer. Before Sakura could inquire further into why Hinata was sick, she heard a familiar voice call her name.

“Miss Haruno, there’s a Naruto Uzumaki asking to call on you.” Her co-worker smirked.

“Oh.” She turned towards the mini-Hianata and smiled apologetically. “Please excuse me, if you need anything don’t hesitate to ask.” She turned from the girl and walked out of the office. Hanabi returned to the documents her sister had requested to bring to her at home. She spied a blob of blonde hair hugging the pink blob and she frowned. There was something familiar about the two.

“Ah, Sakura!” Naruto broke free from the hug and he gave her a dazzling smile that only meant one thing.

“What do you want? Why are you here? Wait, how did you even get in here?” She was happy to see him, but at the same time she was a bit nervous that he was walking around unsupervised.

“I’m on official work visits.” He pointed at a pass Hinata had given him. She puzzled over the fact he had one.

“Oh, you need to see the where the landscaping needs to be done?” She motioned to him to follow her to her desk. She knew his work policies like the back of her hand; he was a creature of habit.

“Yeah, I was hoping to meet with Hinata first. There are a few details I need to discuss with her.” He nodded to her co-workers who shamelessly eyed him. Sakura shot them a knowing look but they ignored her. Naruto wasn’t hard on the eyes and most of the women in her office blushed lightly at him. He exuded masculinity without really meaning too; all he had to do was walk into a room. Not that she could blame the ladies.

He was fairly tall, his frame lean and muscular due to the line of work he was in. His step was aloof, but his blue eyes sparkled with an intense promise of mischief that most women found endearing. The scars on his cheeks only added more mystery to him and he was pleasant to listen to when he opened his mouth. If she knew what velvet sounded like in speech, she’d compare it to that.

Sakura had grown immune to his good looks over the years but she still lingered in the memories of their time together. If anything, she missed the sex since he was skilled not only in the garden, but in bed as well. She peeked over her shoulder; he was smiling at them, using his usual charm. She shook her head.

“Hinata’s not here.” She paused when she saw his smile falter a bit.

“Something I should know about?” she asked, a slow smirk formed on her lips as he fidgeted. His reaction was a bit weird.

“Why is she not here?” he tried to look disinterested but it failed miserably.

“She’s sick or something.” She was really confused when his expression fell.

“Sick?”

“Yes, sick.”

“What happened to her?” he asked, genuinely concerned. He wondered if it had anything to do with him and last night’s incident.

“I’m not a hundred percent sure.” She pulled out her chair slowly and thought on the night’s events. “She was acting weird before she left last night, especially after all the kafuffle with the yearbooks.”

“Yearbook thing?” He was getting suspicious.

She shot him a dirty look over her shoulder as they sat down at her desk. “You’re making me sound like a parrot,” she warned. He grinned sheepishly.

“Yes, I told you on the phone that she remembered a few things.”

He blinked.

“I even warned you to make sure not to say anything stupid because she was skittish like a horse in a storm?” She could see he didn’t remember any of that.

“I... uh.” He scratched behind his ear, trying to recall her babbling on the phone, he’d been distracted by a draft by then, blocking her out. She sighed.

“What did you say to her?” Her eyes narrowed in a warning and he frowned. She was the second person to assume he’d done something.

“I didn’t say anything, I asked her what was wrong and she told me to stay away.” He shot her a look she recognized.

“Oh no, no, no. This isn’t my fault!” she defended. He rolled his eyes and laid his hands flat on the desk before leaning his forehead against them in frustration.

“Let’s not play the blame game today. I got bigger problems,” he whined. “I need to see Hinata for her design. I can’t do it properly without getting to know her first.” He kept talking but she could barely hear his muffled speech.

“I can’t understand you. Stop being an ass and sit up.” She poked him until he sat up; she couldn’t help but notice that he was feeling sorry for himself.

“Can’t you just set up a meeting?”

“I could, but I get the feeling she’d just send in a replacement or a rep. She seemed pretty shook up.”

“Maybe I can be of help.”
Sakura and Naruto turned their attention to the smaller woman, who had appeared out of thin air. Naruto blinked.

“Hinata?” His voice was heavily laced with confusion.

“No, I’m her younger sister.”

“Oh. You two could pass off as twins.” He grinned. Hanabi was taken a little by surprise, he seemed very familiar.

“I highly doubt that,” she retorted, trying to shake the déjà-vu sensation.

“What’s the matter with your sister?” he asked out of the blue. Hanabi squint her eyes in consideration to his request.

“She is suffering from stress related problems; it seems that her memory has begun to return. She experienced a severe episode last night and must stay in bed until she recovers," she replied coolly. Sakura swallowed hard as guilt began to spread. Naruto glanced her way and pressed his lips together. They were both at fault.

“When can I see her? I have a design deadline for her to review the drafts and her personal design has to be presented as well.” He was very serious and Hanabi could sense there was no room for argument.

“I will advise Hinata of your request and prepare a meeting at her home.” The young woman gave him a curt nod and spun on her heels quickly as she retreated to her sister’s office.

The two stared dumbly at her back. Sakura shook her head while Naruto wondered what the hell had just happened.

“Think they’re fun at parties?” she asked him, her eyes danced with a twinkle he was quite fond of.

“Oh, oodles. We might even need to hide the booze after a while to stop their crazy antics.” He smirked. It was hard to imagine them like drunken college students.

They both burst out laughing.

* * *

A soft knock woke her from her light sleep.

“Come in.” Her voice was still shaken up, but she was in her own home, surrounded by familiar things; there was no need to wear her mask.

“Hinata,” her cousin started “your sister just called. She says that she wants you to make time to meet with Uzumaki for your contract with his company.”

She froze. Her cousin puzzled over her sudden change, but ignored it.

“I suggested that he pack for a few days since you will be unable to meet with him. She agreed that with him staying here he will be able to meet the requirements of the contract set by you,” he continued.

“What?” She didn’t think she heard him right.

“I said that Uzumaki will be staying here while you recover. He can design and ask his questions.” He wasn’t in the mood to put up with his cousin’s strange behaviour.

“No, no. He can’t stay here. I refuse!”

Neji ground his teeth in irritation. Since she had taken over the business, her old self had begun to resurface. Both Hanabi and he were quite pleased that the layers of her shell were being peeled away by her co-workers. Although her father had nothing but good intentions on recreating a Hinata that was confident, proud and direct, it had backfired. Instead he’d created an emotionless android.

Since discovering that Sakura was her assistant, Neji had made a point to ensure she would work even closer with the pink-haired woman. He was even more delighted to hear that her old crush was the new contract she’d landed for the designs of the gardens.

“You don’t have a choice in the matter, Hinata. He will be arriving here tonight.” He turned and shut the door quite suddenly, not allowing her to object.

She was furious.

* * *

Oooh the plot thickens. And what? Neji’s a meddling in her affairs? Oh ho!

Beta'd June 30, 2009 - By Jolly Green