Sins on Lowered Wings

Sins on Lowered Wings: part IV: Blessfully Empty

“I wonder what he’s dreaming about?” Kiba grinned as he prepared to poke Neji with a stick.

“Kiba!” Sakura whispered harshly, even with a smile on her face. “If we wake him up like that he’ll probably try to kill us.”

“But he’s just asking for it!” Kiba chuckled. “He looks like a kid who’s dreaming he’s stuck in a candy factory!”

“Kiba,” Akamaru barked. “You know you hate being bothered while dreaming! But if you insist then at least poke him in the head!”

Neji opened his violet-tinted eyes to stare up at Kiba and Sakura. He shut his eyes again slowly and smiled.

“I wasn’t talking in my sleep, was I?” he asked.

“No, but you were smiling like a madman,” Kiba grinned.

“What were you dreaming about?” Sakura asked, smiling.

Neji only smiled as he sat up. “We have a mission to attend to,” he said, the amusement in his eyes showing them that he intended to dodge the question for as long as humanly possible.

“Anyone here learn interrogation techniques?” Kiba asked jokingly.

“I hope not,” Shikamaru called to them. He was sitting near a cliff with Shino, trying to learn more about their surroundings. “The last thing I need is one of you guys being good at that kind of thing. Bothersome….”

“I believe Neji has some training,” Shino commented as he held his hand out for a beetle to land.

“I do,” Neji smirked. “And I’m not interrogating myself.”

“Was it about a girl?” Sakura smiled.

“I think it was,” Kiba laughed. “I’m surprised his pants aren’t--”

“DON’T finish that sentence!” Sakura interrupted, running closer to Shikamaru and Shino.

“It wasn’t a girl,” Neji said, walking off after her, a slight blush on his cheeks.

“We should get moving guys,” Shikamaru said, saving Neji from the conversation. “The sun will be up soon. We want at least a little cover from the darkness.” He stood, dusting himself off. “Shino sent out a few search bugs and found an entrance in the forest below this cliff,” he continued, pointing. “These mountains in front of us surround some type of valley. But according to the information we received in Konoha, there are caverns underneath. That’s where we’re headed. We’ll secure who we can find and leave for Konoha again as soon as possible.”

The others nodded, listening as Shikamaru pointed to various points of the landscape.

“While we travel over long distances through the forests or inside of the caverns, we’ll need to stay in formation. Kiba will be in front with Akamaru. They’ll be able to detect enemies or hostages quickly with their sense of smell. We also have Akamaru’s strong sense of chakra levels. I’ll follow next so I can easily give orders to Kiba and directions to the rest of you. Next we’ll have Sakura. Keep in mind that it’s important for her to stay safe since she’ll be not only our medical member, but she’ll also be the closest to the hostages, who we’ll need to keep in the center with her until we know the situation. Next is Shino. He’ll be able to use his bugs to cover areas we can’t see, even after we’ve passed them. Even though Neji can see these areas, it doesn’t mean he can get to them like the bugs can. Shino will have to be constantly working to make sure we don’t miss anything. Last will be Neji. Obviously he’ll be scanning behind us with his Byakugan since he’s the only one with 360 degree vision. Any questions?

The others shook their heads. Shikamaru’s plans were usually perfect, so they never bothered to question anything. In no time they found a path to descend into the forest below. It was steep and rocky, but they made it down safely. And soon after they were leaping through the treetops in formation, heading for the mountains to find the entrance to the caverns.

~~~~~~~~~~

Hinata stared blankly at the flowers left for her near the front doors of her family’s house. They were beautiful shades of blue and purple, and not one petal was out of place. She slid the card out from between the long leaves. According to some markings on the envelope, the flowers were ordered days earlier and meant to be delivered when she was sure to be at her father’s home. She slowly slid the card from the envelope and read.

Dear Hinata,

These flowers remind me of you. Please don’t ask why as I can’t properly explain it myself. Perhaps it is the depth of their color. Most walk by not seeing them at all, thinking they are too fragile to give notice to. But these flowers survive the harshest conditions and grow more beautiful and sweet as they do.

Have fun at the festival.
~Love your “Big Brother”

She blinked and tilted her head. She stared at the card a while longer and then turned her attention to the flowers, raising them to her nose to inhale the sweet scent.

“Oh good,” Ino smiled, walking up to greet Hinata. “You did get them. My mother was a bit worried with them sitting out like that.”

Hinata blinked curiously and glanced to Ino, whose blonde hair caught the rising sun’s shine. “These were ordered at your family’s shop…?” she asked softly. “Then… who are they from?”

Ino blinked, gently taking the card from Hinata. She grinned soon after. “You didn’t even read the card, Hinata! Look, it’s so sweet of him!”

“Of who?” Hinata questioned. “I read the card.”

“Oh,” Ino said softly. “Oh! Maybe you have more than one person you are that close to? I thought it was only Neji. Neji bought these for you the other day.”

Suddenly the flowers fell from Hinata’s hands. The bundled bouquet rested at her feet as she shook her head. Someone flashed through her mind at that moment, but they were gone in an instant.

“Are you okay?” Ino gasped as a look of fear crossed Hinata’s dollish features.

“O…oh…” Hinata whispered. “I’m s… sorry.” She picked the flowers up again slowly. “But I think you’re mistaken. What did the person look like? Are you positive these are for me?”

Ino giggled. “How silly! It was Neji! Hyuuga Neji! Long hair, white eyes like yours, tall, calm, sexy… YOUR Neji!”

Hinata’s gentle eyes looked up at Ino seriously. “I’m sorry, Ino, but I don’t think I know who you’re talking about.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Gaara sat on a stump and watched as Lee trained. The green-clad ninja had just finished many laps of running and had now moved on to push-ups.

“You’re strong, Lee,” Gaara nodded. “You must be unbeatable.”

“Not unbeatable,” Lee smiled as he continued to do his push-ups.

“Have you ever lost a fight?” Gaara asked, tiling his head.

Lee stopped and got up slowly. “Of course, Gaara,” Lee said, looking to the sand ninja uneasily. “Years ago… you…”

Gaara blinked, listening intently. Lee sighed, realizing that Gaara couldn’t possibly remember, and it would be cruel to remind him. After all, Gaara had almost killed him using the sand in his sand gourd. Lee held no grudge about it, but it was still a little hard knowing that Gaara forgot something that was so painful for Lee.

“Nevermind,” Lee said softly, trying to smile. “Um, I was going to say Neji. He beat me lots of times. More than I care to remember.”

“Aren’t you friends?”

“Of course,” Lee smiled. “We’re friends and close comrades. But people will always have rivals.”

“But to be rivals, don’t you have to dislike something about the person?” Gaara said softly. “Doesn’t it hurt?”

“Sometimes,” Lee nodded. “But the feeling you get when you acknowledge each other… that’s greater than anything. A feeling like that erases any bad feelings.”

Gaara suddenly held his head. Someone flashed through his mind. Someone long buried.

“I secretly hated you… Gaara….”

“Are you alright?” Lee asked, walking closer. “Do you have a headache?”

“Your father ordered me to kill you, Lord Gaara….”

“Gaara?” Lee asked again, reaching out to touch the shoulder of the red-head.

Suddenly something struck Lee’s hand, but it was so fast that he couldn’t see it. He glanced at the side of his hand and wrist, only to see blood tricking from thin scrapes. And he instantly knew what it was. Sand. Gaara’s defense went up for an instant. Something wasn’t right.

“I need to rest,” Gaara said, getting up slowly. “I feel like I’m hallucinating…..”

Lee nodded slightly. “I’ll take you to my home. You can rest there.”

But Lee planned to leave Gaara there for a while. He needed to tell Tsunade what was going on. Gaara’s village must have requested that he keep his sand gourd for protection, and now those defenses were working properly, but Gaara wasn’t in the state of mind to keep control of the situation in case anything happened. The chakra flowing through the sand in that gourd could kill anyone who tried to attack him.

Not that Lee had ever seen it himself. He only knew because… because………

…Because….

“Lee? What’s wrong?” Gaara asked.

Lee snapped out of it and turned to him. “Huh?”

“You look dazed,” Gaara smiled.

“Oh…” Lee blinked. “I… just feel like I forgot something just now.”

Suddenly Lee’s eyes widened and he pointed to the massive sand gourd on Gaara’s back.

“What’s in there?!” he exclaimed. “Why haven’t I noticed it before?!”

~~~~~~~~~~

Tsunade sat writing a message to the Hidden Village of Sand. But her hand stopped, as she couldn’t remember the name of the person she was supposed to write to. The Kazekage’s name, she couldn’t remember it.

How could I possibly forget the leader of that village?! she thought, alarmed.

She knew it was more than a minor slip of the mind. Something was seriously wrong with the situation. She pushed her chair away from the desk and stood, intending to summon Gaara and ask about the Kazekage’s name and what the person looked like. For whatever reason she couldn’t remember, and she knew she had better jog her memory about it.

But when Gaara entered her mind, something else flashed there as well. She saw the helmet of the Kazekage, the symbol of the leader of the sand. Had Gaara done something to him? She had a bad feeling. Suddenly it struck her as odd that Gaara was on the mission he was on before they found him. But why was it odd? He was a ninja….

As if her body was moving on its own, she ran out of her office and into her library. She headed straight for the safe that held the scrolls with important information about each village and its leader.

The combination…?! What is it?! I can’t remember!

She sat there, frustration building. But soon that frustration melted away and turned into confusion. And then that confusion melted away and simply became warm.

What was she doing in the Third Hokage’s library? If found… surely she’d be arrested. But he’d probably understand if she explained herself. He was the level-headed leader of this village, after all.

But… why was she back in Konoha? She left didn’t she? Or maybe… she didn’t?

Tsunade slowly stood up, walking out of the library and then out of the building. Slowly, she walked to her old home with a smile on her face.

~~~~~~~~~~

Kiba led the way as the five of them walked through the dark caverns, their purple flares burning brightly.

“You sure you don’t want to lead this mission, Neji?” Shikamaru yawned. “It’s bothersome….”

Neji smiled. “I’m perfectly happy taking the backseat on this one, commander.”

“But you’ve been the highest ranking for the longest time now.” Shikamaru said, turning around for a moment and looking at Neji, who was in the back of the line. “Don’t you think it’s weird that you aren’t in charge?”

“Whatever the Hokage wishes,” Neji shrugged with a smirk. “And maybe I was asked to observe your leadership abilities during a mission so that I could write a report on exactly what you were capable of? Who knows.”

Shikamaru whirled around. “You bastard!” he pointed. “Are you serious?! You’re grading me?!”

“I said maybe,” Neji chuckled.

“I don’t believe this!” Shikamaru groaned as he continued. “Now I have to show off if I do anything.”

“Let’s say you were grading,” Kiba called back to Neji. “Is there a chance I would be graded also? Or Shino? Or Sakura?”

“No, in the event that I was writing a report, which we have not confirmed, you three would be off the hook,” Neji smirked.

“Oh good,” Kiba laughed. “Then the rest of us can screw around!”

Akamaru barked and Kiba fell silent. He held his hand up and everyone stopped, ducking down.

“Footsteps,” Kiba whispered. “The person is running. And they’re coming this way.”

Neji stood up and stared at the wall of a cavern. The others could see his head turning slowly. He could see through the rock walls and was watching the person as they moved.

“Genjutsu?” he whispered. “No… that’s no illusion.”

“What do you see?” Shikamaru whispered.

“I see… Sasuke,” Neji said softly.

“Sasuke?” Shino blinked. “He was on a mission when we left. It is possible that something led him here.”

“He’s building up chakra,” Neji blinked. “And he’s running this way. It’s his Chidori attack!”

They turned and watched as the caverns started to glow with a strange blue glow. They could hear what sounded like a thousand birds chirping as Sasuke ran in their direction, the blue chakra energy erupting from his hand.

“He knows someone is here!” Sakura yelped. “But he doesn’t know it’s us!”

“Why would he trigger an attack without confirmation of who he’s facing?” Shino asked as they all prepared to defend themselves.

“Because there is something wrong with him,” Shikamaru said simply.

Neji moved to the front of the group as the sound of the chakra became unbearably loud as it bounced off the cavern walls. He only had to wait a few seconds before Sasuke came rushing around the corner, bathing them all with blinding blue light as he trust his chakra filled palm at the first person he saw. Neji.

The others gasped as Neji dodged the attack and grabbed Sasuke’s wrist. With one effortless touch, Neji managed to cease the flow of chakra through Sasuke’s arm, extinguishing the blinding blue sparks and returning them to the purple glow of the flares.

“What are you doing?!” Kiba yelled.

“Bothersome…” Shikamaru muttered.

Sasuke’s eyes darted around as he looked at all of them. “I’ll kill you…! Get out of my way!”

“Sasuke,” Neji said gently, “It’s us. Calm down. Your Sharingan should be able to tell you that we’re real. It’s not genjutsu. There is no illusion.”

Sasuke didn’t calm down, but he was clearly too exhausted to fight.

“So,” Shino said calmly. “Does he count as being the first hostage we’ve encountered?”

The others stared at Sasuke blankly.

“Hm,” Shikamaru thought. “I don’t think this is what Tsunade had in mind.”

Neji kept his eyes on Sasuke as he held tightly to his wrist. He watched as Sasuke’s eyes slowly moved from his trapped hand and up Neji’s arm. They finally rested on Neji’s neck, which was covered by lose strands of Neji’s long hair. Neji sighed softly and released Sasuke’s wrist. He took out the hair band in his hair and pulled all of his hair back into a ponytail, fixing the band in place again. Sasuke got a look at the healing bite mark before exhaling and backing up against the cavern wall for support.

“You guys…” he said, breathing heavily. “I’m the only person you’ll be able to take out of here safety. I’m the only one you’ll get any information out of.”

“Did you see others?” Sakura asked. “Are they dead?”

Sasuke shook his head. “I saw others,” he said lowly. “They’re still alive.”

“Then we should go help them!” Kiba insisted, jumping up.

“Wait!” Shikamaru said, holding up his hand. “That’s exactly what Tsunade instructed us not to do. No matter what we see or know, we have to turn back with the first people we find. The first we’ve found is Sasuke. And he’s telling us he has information and that we need to turn around.”

“But--!” Kiba began.

“We aren’t the first team to come here!” Shikamaru interrupted. “The sand sent a team first. They never made it back. Tsunade mentioned that other countries might have been through as well. Sources say that they haven’t returned either. All information we’re getting about this place says that people who go in don’t come back out.”

“Why…?” Sakura whispered.

“Because they don’t want to,” Sasuke said lowly. “There is a clan in here. Their goal is to purify the mind of everyone they capture. They erase people’s most painful memories and brainwash them.”

“Erase?!?” Sakura exclaimed. “Is it genjutsu of some kind? How do they--”

“I will tell you everything on the way!” Sasuke said, steadying himself. “We should go!”

Shikamaru glared at Neji, who looked at him innocently.

“This is one of those important, career-changing decisions for me, isn’t it?” Shikamaru glared. “Something that might be graded with a lot of weight, IF you were grading.”

“It would be, IF I was,” Neji smiled.

Shikamaru sighed. “Alright,” he said. “Let’s turn back. Sasuke is the first we’ve found, and it seems pointless to continue on if he has information about this place.”

Neji continued to smile innocently until everyone passed him, and he took up his position in the back of the line again. This time, with Sasuke walking beside him.

~~~~~~~~~~

Sasuke sat, resting against a tree, opening his eyes after dozing off for a while. He wasn’t aware that the journey to this place was so long. He looked around, watching as everyone prepared to relax for a short time.

“Sasuke,” Sakura yawned sleepily. “Was it really that easy for you to get away? That seems so odd.”

“I don’t know why,” Sasuke said. “I demanded to know what they did to Gaara, and they only laughed. But the moment I mentioned that he would be healed soon, that seemed to affect them. It was then that they pondered releasing me. But they were still messing with my mind, which is why I was the way I was when I ran into you guys.”

The rest of the group suddenly perked up.

“Gaara?!” Neji said, sitting up. “What about him?”

“Oh, that’s right, you don’t know,” Sasuke said, running his hand through his black hair. “Lee, Hinata, and I were sent to escort Gaara back to Konoha. He fell into a coma and woke up with most of his memory missing. Or rather, all of his memories of his hardships are gone. The guys we just escaped from were the ones who did it to him.”

Shikamaru and Neji glanced at each other, the same thoughts running through their minds.

“Sasuke,” Shikamaru began. “How did they manage to invade the sand village to get to Gaara? Is everyone there alright?”

“Gaara wasn’t in the sand village. He was on a mission.”

“A mission?” Kiba blinked. “But, Gaara can’t go on missions!”

“Why not?” Sasuke asked seriously.

“Because the Kazekage can’t leave the village for something so small,” Sakura said. “You know that! The leader must stay in his village for most of his life.”

Sasuke stared at them for a bit. “And what does that have to do with Gaara?”

Neji looked at him for a bit, his eyes reading Sasuke‘s features.. “You said Gaara’s memories were erased?”

“Yes.”

“And you don’t remember that Gaara is the Kazekage?” he asked.

“Gaara is the what?!” Sasuke smirked. “Get serious.”

Sakura took one of her gloves off and put a hand on Sasuke’s forehead. “Maybe I can heal him,” he said softly.

Sasuke gently swatted her hand away. “What are you doing? I’m fine.”

“They screwed around with your memory,” Kiba said as he petted Akamaru. “Come on man, who knows what else you lost….”

“Tsunade is the one who told us the sand village had a mission in that place,” Sasuke sighed.

“She told me the same thing,” Shikamaru nodded. “But Gaara wasn’t part of the team.”

“She said he was,” Sasuke responded.

“What is going on?!” Sakura sighed. “This doesn’t make sense. Why would Tsunade tell Shikamaru one thing and then tell you something completely unbelievable?”

“At first the mission was to escort Gaara,” Sasuke responded. “I assumed he was coming from his village. We didn’t know he was on that mission either. But after he arrived in Konoha Tsunade made it known that he had been in those caverns, and Gaara agreed that he had been on a mission there.”

“…After he arrived?” Neji said softly before glancing at Shikamaru.

“She definitely told me the names of the village members,” Shikamaru explained. “And Gaara wasn’t one of them. In fact, he was the one who reported everything to her personally when we found out about this weird developing country. I don’t understand why she would change her story just because Gaara was in Konoha. That wouldn’t protect him in any way. And now that we’re on the subject, it would have made more sense to send one of our medical ninjas to check on him before letting him leave his village.”

Neji suddenly jumped up. “We have to get back to Konoha,” he said firmly. “The sand village isn’t taking proper precautions to protect themselves, even after their leader was attacked and brainwashed. And now Tsunade is acting strangely after Gaara’s appearance in Konoha. And then consider that Sasuke was allowed to return with us after mentioning Gaara.”

Sakura stood. “You mean--?!”

“I hope I am wrong,” Neji nodded. “But this appears to be a trap.”

~~~~~~~~~~

His glass of water fell from his hand as he passed by the mirror in the hallway near his room. He reached up and touched his left eye gently, tracing the line of the long vertical scar that went from forehead to cheek, straight over his eyelid.

How…?! Kakashi thought.

He marveled at how the scar seemed to have been there forever, but he had no recollection of getting it.

Outside, Iruka passed by the shops. He looked twice at the ramen shop for some reason, wondering why it caught his eye the way it did. He had been there many times, hadn’t he? But… wasn’t someone there with him? He shrugged and kept walking towards the school. The image of a blonde student flickered in his mind for an instant before completely dissolving into nothing more than a dull sensation.

“Gaara” a gentle voice called to him. “I’m here to take you home to the sand.”

Gaara looked up to see his sister, Temari, smiling at him. He smiled and immediately stood up to hug her.

“Where have you been?” he asked. “Where is Kankuro?”

“He’s waiting for us back home,” she smiled. “Now, come, it’s time to leave Konoha.”

“What about him?” Gaara asked, motioning to Lee who had fallen asleep on the grass after his training.

“He will be fine there,” Temari smiled. “Now, come. This village doesn’t suit us.”

And off they went with no one to stop them. And no one was there at the village gates to monitor who came and who went. In fact, more people than usual were seeming incredibly carefree. And it wasn’t just the festival that was on their minds….

~~~~~~~~~~

He didn’t hear the footsteps behind him as Gaara and Temari passed by on their way out of the village. The loud, overly-energetic blonde was sitting out near the lake when the warm feeling hit him. At first he thought he was simply remembering when he and Sasuke would pass each other here, scowling at each other, but secretly enjoying the acknowledgement. He thought of those days, and the brief moments of happiness in them.

But that wasn’t where the warm feeling was coming from. Naruto felt a little uneasy. Suddenly, he wanted to be near someone. He was starting to feel lonely. He stood up and started to walk back home, but he felt that he could hardly move his own body. His limbs felt heavy, and an overwhelming feeling hit him. He remembered this feeling. It was a hopeless, empty feeling.

He made his way up to the road as quickly as he could and headed for the village, which was still very festive. But then he felt very lost. He felt as though he shouldn’t be there. They wouldn’t want him there, so why should he go?

“Someone…” he whispered as he sank to his knees, holding his head. Desperately, he looked toward the distant crowd, looking for Sakura, Sasuke, Hinata, Chouji… ANYONE. But then… he stopped looking. He stopped looking because there was no one to look for. He couldn’t remember them. Their faces, their names… the people he had just wanted so desperately to see were fading from him. And with them, his memories of them, and with his memories of them, his pain, and with his pain… everything.

Naruto collapsed to the ground, conscious, but empty. Empty and without the will to live or die.

~~~~~~~~~~

Gaara and Temari were long gone, and the village had started to transform long before Shikamaru’s team arrived back home. They instantly knew something was wrong when there was no one to check them in and no one patrolling the gates. Most of the boarders had been well patrolled except for the area they entered from. But the gates and the areas inside of the village had a certain eerie feeling hanging there.

“Let’s get to the Hokage first!” Neji said, running to the Hokage’s building.

The six of them (and Akamaru) ran as fast as they could. As they ran they passed people, but something wasn’t right. Most of the people seemed fine, but without a care in the world. And they looked as though they didn’t care that they didn’t care.

“Tsunade-sama!” Sakura cried out as soon as they entered the building. “Why is no one here?!” she demanded.

“We’ll split up!” Neji said. “Groups of two. Go!”

They split up immediately, all of them exiting the building and running in separate directions. It took Neji a moment to realize that Sasuke was the one who came with him. Shikamaru had joined Sakura, and Kiba was running with Shino.

“I’ve seen this before,” Sasuke said as he ran next to Neji.

“What do you mean?”

“Everyone’s expression. They way they carry themselves. They look the same as the people in the caverns. Most of these people have been brainwashed.”

“Impossible!” Neji responded, although he believed what Sasuke told him. “So many people in such a short time? How?!”

“I don’t know,” Sasuke sighed. “At first I thought it was an advanced eye technique, like the Mangekyo Sharingan, but they all seemed to have normal eyes. But if we see anyone dressed in odd white clothing, we should be careful.”

“Is there a possibility that we could be affected just by being here?”

Sasuke was silent for a moment. “I don’t know.”

Suddenly Neji stopped running and stopped in front of a very frightened looking girl. Sasuke slowed and slid past for a bit, spotting Hinata.

“Hinata!” Neji said, putting his hands on her shoulders. “Do you feel alright?”

Hinata looked up at him, her eyes confused.

“Hinata?” Neji asked, concern falling over him. “Say something. Did something happen to you?”

Hinata stared into his eyes, which held a color exactly like her own. Those pure white eyes with the slight violet tint. She looked at the concerned face with its silent passion and gentle strength, loose strands of his long, dark hair falling against his cheeks.

“Hina--”

“Who are you?” she asked softly.

Sasuke swallowed as she uttered those words, and watched as Neji’s hands slowly slid from her shoulders.

“Stop joking, Hinata,” he said gently, his eyes worried.

Hinata turned to Sasuke, who now stood beside them. “S… Sasuke,” she asked. “Who is he? Why does he have those eyes?”

“Hinata, this isn’t funny,” Sasuke said firmly. “Neji is worried about you. There is something very wrong happening right now.”

But Hinata shrank back at his words, and Sasuke knew then that she was serious. And not only that. Hinata was scared. She was the same timid, frail creature that she had been years ago. Sasuke glanced at Neji, who held his calm expression.

“Hinata,” Neji said softly. “There is an emergency out here. Please return to your home for now.”

Hinata only nodded slightly as he turned away, dashing off down the road. Sasuke nodded to Hinata and quickly followed. When he caught up, he knew that Neji was hurt, but wouldn’t speak of it. And only Sasuke could tell that anything was wrong with him at all. All of Neji’s emotions and passions were usually hidden within his calm, silent exterior. Sasuke hid his emotions as well, but always managed to look more solemn than calm. Neji… he was almost always truly serene. Even before he became one of the elite of the village, it was this way.

“Hinata will feel bad when she gets better,” Sasuke said, trying to put Neji at ease.

Neji nodded, some of the edge in his eyes disappearing at the thought of her remembering him once more.

Kiba and Shino ran through the streets, amazed at what they saw. People weren’t taking time off anymore. Now, they were acting as if they no longer had normal lives or jobs at all. Their eyes were clueless, careless, and sometimes empty. As the two walked by they felt uneasy, as if they were surrounded by children raised in a cult.

Shino passed by a child who was pulling at his mother’s sleeve.

“Mommy,” the little boy whimpered. “I’m hungry! Mommy!”

But the woman pushed him away. “Go away,” she said sternly. “I’m not your mother!”

Shino walked over to the boy and pulled out some food that he held onto for the previous journey. The boy took it eager and thanked him, quickly devouring the food that was there. But the woman paid no attention.

“We’ll have to take care of the children and elderly,” Shino said calmly, returning to Kiba’s side.

“This is awful,” Kiba muttered. “What happened while we were gone?”

“We have to find Tsunade-sama and find out.”

“Akamaru,” Kiba said, calling to his faithful dog, “Is Tsunade around h--”

Shino turned to look at Kiba, who swiftly pointed to a figure lying on the ground.

“Naruto!” Kiba yelled, running to the blonde. “Hey! Get a hold of yourself stupid!”

Shino looked down to see the empty look in Naruto’s eyes. It was as if his mind had been wiped clean. He was like a vegetable.

“He looks worse than anyone!” Kiba said. “Let’s get him to the hospital!”

“Let’s hope that someone can take care of him,” Shino said softly.

“There she is!” Sakura yelled, pointing towards the wandering blonde woman.

“That old woman?” Shikamaru blinked. “She’s not hiding her age anymore.”

The two jumped in front of Tsunade and stopped her in her tracks.

“Hokage!” Shikamaru said. “What happened?”

“And who are you two?” she said with a smile. “Leave me. I’m on my way for a drink.”

“But, Tsunade-sama!” Sakura began.

“It’s just this way,” Tsunade smiled with an old woman’s tenderness. “I’m just going this way.”

“Tsunade-sama,” Shikamaru said. “I’ll bring you a drink. Let’s just get you to your office, okay? I’ll get you anything you want then.”

“What a nice boy!” she smiled. “Then let’s go!”

Shikamaru glanced to Sakura and she nodded, firing a flare into the air.

~~~~~~~~~~

“They found her!” Neji said, seeing the flare. “Let’s go.”

“Neji!” Tenten called for him. “Neji…” she said, as he quickly approached. Her voice was almost a whimper.

“Tenten, you look exhausted,” he said, right before she fell into his arms. “What happened?”

“Sleep…” she murmured. “Everyone who sleeps….”

She started to nod off, but then caught herself and tried to stand with her own power.

“Tenten, let me take you back to your house so you can rest,” Neji said gently.

“No!” she yelled. “Sleeping… that’s what does it…. Everyone who falls asleep wakes up differently…. I noticed during the festival. Anyone who took a nap or dozed off… they all started to….”

“She can’t stay awake much longer,” Sasuke said. “She’s been up for too long.”

“What else can you tell me, Tenten?” Neji asked, shaking her gently for a moment. But her weight grew heavier against him and she went limp. He quickly scooped her up into his arms.

“How long could she have been up?” Sasuke said, looking down at her.

“Like the rest of us, Tenten can stay awake for an extended period. But her chakra is extremely low. She probably exhausted it herself somehow, thinking that she might be dealing with Genjutsu. One good way to stop the illusion is to stop the flow of chakra in your body or cut it down immensely. Apparently it didn’t work, and Tenten tried to find out what was common among those affected. It appears to be sleep.”

“A mind-altering technique that’s activated when the person reaches a certain stage of sleep?” Sasuke said solemnly.

“But even then,” a familiar voice spoke up. “The person who wants to alter another’s state of mind must be close enough to create an illusion that would brainwash someone.”

The turned to see Ino supporting herself against a wall.

“And making the jump into someone’s mind takes time,” she said sleepily. “To do it to so many people at once is either the work of someone very powerful, more than one person, or… a summoned creature or demon.”

Ino walked over to them slowly, looking down at Tenten, who was sleeping peacefully in Neji’s arms.

“Neji,” she said softly. “Hinata was acting strange this morning. She… she…”

“She can’t remember me,” Neji nodded. “I know.”

Ino nodded. “But… when Tenten brought up the sleeping issue with the rest of us, we asked Kurenai-sensei about it since she is so good with illusions. She had Hinata scan the area for any unusual people or chakra. She only saw unusual chakra in Gaara… which is normal.”

“Where is Gaara now?” Sasuke asked.

“I don’t know,” Ino said.

“He… he went home,” Hinata’s shy voice spoke up behind them. “W… with Temari.”

Neji gently handed Tenten to Sasuke and walked over to Hinata, who was trembling slightly.

“Hinata,” he said with a gentle smile. “What did you see when you looked at Gaara? What was unusual about his chakra?”

“…Just the sand in his gourd,” she whispered. “It was red.”

“Red…” Neji said softly. “That’s a problem.”

Hinata nodded.

“What does it mean?” Ino asked.

“We knew there was something strange surrounding Gaara’s presence when we got here,” Neji explained. “And even though pieces of Hinata’s memories are gone, her skills were not erased. She was able to see that something wasn’t right with the sand in Gaara’s gourd even if she couldn’t recognize exactly what was wrong. I’ve seen into that sand gourd before, and while at rest the sand is has a blue energy running through it. For that energy to be red at rest usually means there is chakra that has not originated from a human. And something on this scale points to something that isn’t quite human, as you brought up, Ino.”

“Hinata,” Sasuke spoke up. “Are you sure Gaara is gone?”

Hinata nodded timidly. “I watched him leave until he was out of my Byakugan’s sight. I watched because the energy around him was affecting people.”

“Was it his own energy?” Sasuke asked.

“No,” she said very softly. “It was something else.”

“If we don’t find a way to reverse the affects of this, it will be permanent,” Kurenai sensei said, walking towards them. “People’s minds are caught in an illusion for now. But even after that illusion is released, they will remain in that state of mind forever if we don’t break them free soon.”

“Are you alright?” Neji asked.

“The people who were away on missions or outside of the village are fine. And during the time I was here, I had no exposure to Gaara. A lot of people were affected because Gaara was wandering during the festival.”

Another flare went up not far from them.

“We should go see about the Hokage,” Neji said.

“I’ll bring Tenten with us,” Sasuke nodded.

And they headed for the Hokage’s building. The flare was in a different position this time, indicating that whoever found her had moved.

“It is possible to break the illusion on one’s own,” Sasuke said when they made it to the building. “The problem is that the illusion is so strong that people don’t realize what’s happening to them. The only reason I could break it was because I’ve had experience with the Mangekyo Sharingan.”

They found Sakura and Shikamaru standing together in front of Tsunade’s study.

“She’s just as bad as everyone else,” Sakura said.

Neji used Byakugan to look through the door, watching Tsunade as she happily drank sake.

“She doesn’t remember being the Hokage,” Shikamaru said. “She thinks The Third is still alive.”

“With the sand and leaf leaders both completely clueless about their roles,” Shino said, walking up to them, “And with the ninja in both villages under this spell…”

“We’re sitting ducks,” Kiba sighed. “Which is probably the point.”

“Neji, Sasuke,” Kurenai said. “Is there any way for you to reverse the illusions using your techniques?”

“We don’t know what will work yet,” Neji responded. “If it’s an illusion that dispels pain, people might hold onto the illusion to get rid of any pain we inflict. I can try manipulating everyone’s chakra, but who knows what the final effects might be.”

“U… umm…” Hinata muttered softly. “Y… you can try on me first.”

Neji looked at Hinata and shook his head.

“Hinata,” he said, “Not to you. I can’t.”

“I… I believe what you say is true,” she whispered. “We are supposed to know each other.”

Kurenai looked at Neji, who seemed torn. She knew why. Years ago he had used his techniques on Hinata with the intent to kill her. And now she was asking him to use them on her again.

“Alright,” he said finally. “Come here.”

Hinata timidly walked over.

“It will hurt for a short time,” he said softly.

Hinata nodded and closed her eyes. At first she felt a pin prick, then the stick of a needle, then soon stab after stab of intense pain. Neji’s hands moved swiftly, his Byakugan active as he hit points that only his eyes could see. He was only using his index and middle finger on each hand, but he channeled his chakra through his fingers with needle-like precision that no one else could master to this extent. The others looked away, as it was somewhat hard to watch Hinata take the attack.

They turned to look when they heard her slump against him. He let his eyes relax and knelt to the floor, helping her to lie with her head on his lap.

“Hinata?” he said softly. He placed a hand on her forehead.

Hinata stared up at him, fear in her eyes. But he only stared down at her, worried.

“You were aiming for…” she whispered.

He lowered his head to hear her.

“The one suffering with the fate of the head family and branch families… it’s you….”

Neji closed his eyes.

“Was I able to change myself…? Just a little?”

“Hinata,” Neji whispered. “I’m sorry.”

“What is she saying?” Sakura asked.

“She’s reliving the past,” Neji said, not looking away from Hinata.

“She has to face the past as the memories resurface,” Kurenai nodded. “And then she has to decide if she wants to hold on to her memories, or live on without them.”

“It must have been painful,” Neji said, reaching forward and taking Hinata’s hand. “To nearly die like that, must have been so painful. I’m sorry.”

“Losing this bond would have been more painful,” she whispered back.

Neji opened his eyes to see her smiling face.

“Thank you for the flowers, ‘big brother.’”

The others smiled as Hinata drifted off into sleep.

“Looks like you have a lot of work ahead of you,” Kiba smirked. “Better get to it.”

“Yeah,” Neji nodded, looking up. “Sasuke… it’s your turn.”


~*~*~*To Be Continued*~*~*~

(Sorry for this extremely long informational chapter. T_T Sometimes it just has to be done with these long stories. For some reason all my stories seem to start out slow like this. As you can probably tell, different characters get to be the focus of different chapters since there are so many. And the story description will continue to change as I go. Things pick up in the next chapter, I promise!)