Bag of Depravity
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Fifty Shades of Gennin: Chapter 23
🕑 Added 2025-03-17 04:07:14 +0000 UTCChapter 23
When This is All Over…
Fingers flashed toward Hinata so fast that it seemed impossible there could only be ten of them. At first these sorts of barrages had overwhelmed her in seconds. Now, giving ground slowly, Hinata managed to deflect everything that came her way… or at least the worst of it.
If there had been chakra in the fingers, she would’ve already lost the use of her left shoulder and right leg. She could feel herself sweating as she strained to keep up.
Her back hit something hard. Despite having three-hundred-sixty-degree vision, Hinata had been too distracted holding out against the attacks to notice the tree she was backing toward, until it cut off her escape path. Two fingers pierced her guard, tapping crucial tenketsu inside her forehead.
“I don’t think Neji will go quite that far,” Hinata said, attempting a joke to distract from the embarrassment she was feeling. What kind of Hyuuga runs into a tree?
“Fight like he will,” Sasuke said. “Think of him as an enemy out for blood. He’s stronger than you. If you go easy and assume he will too, you are going to lose the only slim chance you have at winning.”
Hinata nodded. Sasuke paced away, returning to the middle of the training ground. He dropped into the starting position for the Gentle Fist, beckoning for her to come.
Her expression growing serious, Hinata did exactly that.
O-O-O
“Favorite color?” Sakura barked.
“Orange!”
“Weak point?”
“His ears!”
“What’s his favorite place in the village?”
“On top of the Hokage Monument!”
“And his favorite food?”
“Ramen?” Hinata said.
That seemed too easy. A devious smile spread across Sakura’s face.
“What kind of ramen?”
“All of them?”
“Wrong!” Sakura slammed her palms down on the table. “It’s extra-pork miso ramen!”
“Alright,” Hinata conceded the point. “But does that really matter? I don’t need to know everything about him…”
“Of course it matters,” Sakura said. “If you don’t even know his favorite flavor, you could use the wrong stock when you pour ramen on yourself and tell him, ‘Come eat it off of me!’ You’ve got to look at the big picture, Hinata.”
It was terrifying to hear something like that delivered with a straight face. Hinata was starting to learn as much about her teacher as she was about Naruto.
Mainly that Sakura was a massive pervert as well. She just hid it better.
O-O-O
Hinata’s fingers slid over the wood of Ichiraku’s serving bar. Her index finger pressed against the grains, moving like a brush. If ink trailed her touch, a pattern of kanji would have appeared, all combining to form a seal with a simple purpose: instant destruction of chakra pathways.
The Caged Bird Seal. Hinata could understand its workings now. She grasped its mechanisms and the ways it could be abused. More importantly…
She could create it for herself.
It might take a few tries, but she could pull it off, she was sure. By tomorrow morning, if she chose, the secret she was hiding from her clan could be gone, replaced by the seal she’d been so scared to be missing.
“The work paid off,” Naruto said. “Congratulations!”
“Yeah!” said Ayame, arriving with their orders. “What are we celebrating?”
Hinata took one look at the extra-pork miso ramens being placed in front of Naruto and blushed too hard to speak.
“I’ve been teaching her seals,” Naruto said. “And she finally learned the one she was after!”
“Ooh! Nice going!”
Ayame clapped for her, and Hinata managed a smile. As soon as the waitress retreated, though, she found herself frowning again. Her fingers traced the necessary shapes again. She was sure she could create a new Caged Bird Seal. Yet now that she was here, she wished she couldn’t. Maybe then she wouldn’t feel so conflicted.
“You don’t want it, do you?” Naruto asked.
“Would you want a seal like this one?”
“Of course not. It’s a crappy seal that doesn’t do anything good. I don’t have a Byakugan, anyway… But if you don’t want it, just don’t put it back. Simple.”
“I wish it were,” Hinata sighed.
Naruto had done an impressive job holding back, but there was only so long he could ignore ramen. He slurped down one full bowl in a few seconds before turning back to her, doing an impressive job looking serious for someone with broth around his lips.
“If you’re scared about your family, I could have my dad put the marriage through.”
Hinata’s heart skipped a beat.
“Arranged marriages suck,” he said, “but they suck less than torture seals that turn people into slaves. That’s everything Fuinjutsu shouldn’t be. So if we have to pick…”
He shrugged.
“Thank you,” Hinata said. “That’s very kind. But you don’t have to.”
She picked up her chopsticks to start eating her own ramen, while Naruto started on his second bowl. When there was another lull, Hinata said, “You never told me how you broke my seal.”
“Oh, that?” Naruto scratched his head. “My chakra is a little bit special, see. It’s pretty corrosive. That’s kind of a problem for doing most things, but it does let me pull some pretty neat tricks. If I channel my chakra into seals, it kind of just eats ‘em away.”
“So it’s a personal trait,” Hinata said. “I see.”
She stared down into her empty ramen bowl while Naruto peered at her.
Suddenly, on the nearby rooftops, shinobi sprinted past. There were too many of them for it to be a simple patrol. They were fully equipped and heading toward the gates of the village.
Naruto and Hinata watched them while Ayame rushed out of the back room.
“Did you hear?” Ayame asked. “Suna is attacking!”
Hinata stiffened. She still remembered the things she’d seen in Fire Country villages— the bodies of civilians sprawled in the street, chakra-induced wreckage around them. She hadn’t seen any active combat, but that didn’t keep the memories from haunting her.
“They’re here?” Naruto asked.
“No.” Ayame shook her head. “It’s just like last time. People are saying Suna is crushing border towns. I hear it’s as brutal as last time, too. The red sand is back.”
It was an image that nearly everyone in Konoha, civilian or shinobi, had heard about. Mass graves with everyone from children to the elderly crushed together, surrounded by sand dyed with blood.
Suddenly, Naruto was standing up.
“That’s impossible!” he said.
“Why?” Ayame asked. “Suna never completely lost. Whoever did it the first time must still be out there.”
“He’s not like that anymore!”
“Naruto… Do you know something?” Hinata asked.
“I know this is weird,” he said. “Crap. Dad will want to see me now.”
“You can go,” Hinata said.
It was supposed to be a celebratory dinner for her achievement of mastering the Caged Bird Seal. That hardly compared to the importance of something like this, though, and Hinata’s will to celebrate had been dwindling for a while now.
Naruto still looked torn, so Hinata decided to leave first, to help him make his decision. But that didn’t mean she was alright with leaving no impression on him in this situation.
Hinata pressed herself to Naruto’s body from behind. Her lips brushed his ear.
“It was very kind of you to offer to give your future up for mine,” she whispered. “I won’t forget that. But I don’t want to get you for the wrong reasons.”
She left right after, strolling away, leaving him to report to his father. As she walked, Hinata was unable to help herself— she cheated and activated her Byakugan, checking Naruto’s reaction.
The was staring straight at her right up until she walked out of sight.
O-O-O
Hinata gasped like a fish as a clenched fist buried itself in her gut.
She dropped to her knees clutching her stomach, coughing.
“That’s… not… part of… Gentle Fist…” she gasped.
“It’s not,” Sasuke said. “But if you aren’t going to focus, I need to do something to get through to you.”
Hinata winced, and not from the pain. She struggled to her feet. By the time she was standing, her face was determined.
“I apologize,” she said. “My mind wandered.”
That had been happening since the day before. There was a tense undercurrent in the village since the Suna attacks. A small town had been entirely wiped out, yet there was no sign of Suna shinobi since then. Konoha was strengthening their western border anyway, just in case. More shinobi were leaving the village every hour, reporting to stations in smaller villages.
Hinata would love to say that was why she was distracted, and it was certainly part of it… But she wasn't so noble. No, the main reason was the parting shot she left with Naruto the night before.
She planned to get him worked up, but saying I don’t want to have you for the wrong reasons? Wasn’t she basically admitting she wanted him? It was almost a confession! What did he think about her now—
Hinata forced herself to focus as Sasuke raised his closed fist menacingly. She dropped into a ready stance, prepared to pit her gentle fist against his imitation. Instead of starting another round, however, Sasuke sighed.
“You’ve made good progress in one week,” he said. “We have another week left. If you make the same amount of progress… You might have a chance in this.”
Hinata beamed. Sasuke wasn’t the type to throw out idle praise. If he said it, he meant it.
“But we have a problem.”
“What is it?” Hinata asked.
“I know all of Neji’s movements, but I can’t move exactly like him,” Sasuke admitted. “Our speed is about the same, but his flexibility is on a completely different level. Only another Hyuuga could match it.”
“You’re saying I need someone else to help me practice.”
“There are some things I can’t prepare you for,” Sasuke said. “Better to be surprised in a practice spar than for Neji to catch you off guard. You can’t afford any mistakes like that. But is there anyone in your clan that would help with something like this? I get the feeling you aren’t the most popular figure.”
“I think there may be someone,” Hinata said.
O-O-O
Hinata felt the strangest sense of deja vu as she tapped the door in front of her. She didn’t have a tray of food on her this time, nor was she in the disguise of a servant. When Hanabi opened the door and found Hinata on the other side, she jumped two feet back, raising her hands.
Hinata lifted one eyebrow, and Hanabi slowly lowered her guard.
“Don’t worry,” Hinata said pleasantly. “I didn’t bring any seals with me this time.”
“I knew that was you,” Hanabi muttered. “Who else would want the journal? What are you here for now? You should be preparing for the duel.”
“That’s why I’m here,” Hinata said. “I need a favor.”
“A… favor?”
The word sounded alien leaving Hanabi’s lips, so much that she stumbled slightly on the pronunciation. It was an utterly un-Hyuuga concept. Their clan based everything upon give and take. To receive something from someone, you had to give something in return, and goodwill certainly didn’t qualify as currency.
“I’m asking for help,” Hinata said.
“From me? But I was horrible to you.”
“Ah. So you do know,” Hinata said. “I wasn’t completely sure.”
“I wanted the marriage gone, but I needed you to back out of it,” Hanabi said. “It was all I could think of.”
“You could have gone to Father.”
“And said what? You saw how much he values my opinion. Not that I had the courage to do it even if he would listen.”
Other than after the meeting with the elders, this was the longest conversation she could remember having with her sister. There were arguments when Hanabi was trying to bully her away from Naruto, and they’d exchanged nods when they passed each other in the halls, but a true conversation?
“You must be desperate, if you’re coming to me of all people.”
“You’re still my sister,” Hinata said.
Hanabi flinched.
“If you want me to talk to Father about calling the duel off, you saw what happened when I tried. He’ll never go for it.”
“I’m aware of that, Hanabi. That’s not what I’m here for. Spar with me.”
“You want to… spar?” Hanabi asked.
Hinata nodded.
“What do you get out of that? I’m not as strong as Neji, but I’m still the second best among Hyuuga our age.”
Ignoring the implication that she was too strong for Hinata, Hinata said, “Perfect! Who better then, to get me ready to take on the best?”
O-O-O
Hanabi grabbed Hinata’s shoulders, shaking her.
“What have you done?” she demanded.
Hinata brushed off a bit of dirt while a small distance away, Sasuke stood with his arms crossed. The two of them had run through a quick training bout, this time with Hanabi as an audience. If her sister was helping her, she didn’t see any reason to keep her preparations a secret. Maybe she should've thought twice about who was helping her, though.
“I didn’t do anything, Sister,” Hinata said calmly.
Hanabi continued to shake her. “That’s the Uchiha heir! He knows the Gentle Fist. How does he know the Gentle Fist?!”
Sasuke smirked.
“Neji taught him,” Hinata said. “I don’t think he meant to, though.”
“I stole it with my eyes, Heiress,” Sasuke said. “Do you have a problem with that?”
Hinata saw her sister’s eyebrows come together as she heard Sasuke’s mocking tone. He managed to make the word ‘Heiress’ sound like an insult. Hinata thought her sister would blow up, but to her surprise, Hanabi let go of her, calming down.
“You shouldn’t use that,” she said.
“Why not?” Sasuke asked. “Jealous that I’m already so good at it?”
“Yes,” Hanabi said. “It’s completely improper.”
“Tough,” Sasuke said.
Smiling at her sister, Hinata said, “Should we spar?”
She wanted to cut off a fight before it could start. Unlike Neji, however, Hanabi was actually smiling slightly after taking Sasuke’s taunts.
The spars themselves were a surprise for everyone except Sasuke. Hinata was surprised that Hanabi had to work hard to beat her. Hanabi was even more shocked. Sasuke just kept smirking. The first few rounds Hinata lost to unexpected, water-like contortions on Hanabi’s part. But once she adjusted to those, the slower speed of her sister’s attacks (compared to Sasuke) allowed her to stall the fight and even sneak a round.
Hanabi’s surprise didn’t turn to anger, either. Instead, her sister grew more determined, pushing Hinata harder until Sasuke said they’d done enough.
“You’re not as insufferable as I thought you’d be,” Sasuke said casually.
“And you’re more insufferable than I thought possible,” Hanabi said.
“Can I expect you to help at the same time tomorrow?”
“I don’t see why not.”
“Perfect. Good work, Heiress.”
Sasuke left with a single casual wave over his shoulder. Almost immediately, Hanabi turned to Hinata, who cut her off as soon as she saw the look in her sister’s eyes.
“That is the Uchiha heir,” she said flatly.
Hanabi sighed. “True. Father would kill me. But maybe one night—”
“He has a girlfriend.”
“Kami motherfucking damnit!”
Hinata blinked, feeling like she took a heavy blow to the head. “Sister… How much time did you spend in those nightclubs?”
“Some,” Hanabi said evasively.
Apparently, Hinata wasn’t the only one who excelled in hiding her real feelings in their clan.
For the first time, Hinata started to wonder about the cold dignity that Hyuugas were known for. Was it really genetic, or did they just have no choice but to live that way, because of the malaise over the clan itself?
She didn’t have an answer, but it gave her plenty of thoughts.
O-O-O
Sakura was doing Hinata’s hair again. This time, instead of a ponytail, she opted for a kind of braid that she insisted Naruto liked just as much.
“This is your last meeting with him before the duel,” Sakura said. “Have you told him about it?”
“I don’t want to worry him,” Hinata said. “Besides, I think that if he knew, he’d find a way to get involved.”
“He might anyway. Naruto has a knack for that.”
There were clearly stories there. Hinata found herself curious, but she didn’t ask. She wanted to focus for now. As appealing as the idea of Naruto sweeping in to help her was, she didn’t want to bring the wrath of the whole Hyuuga clan down on him. There were some things not even the son of the Hokage could avoid the consequences of.
“All done!” Sakura patted Hinata’s shoulders. As Hinata stood up, she felt the pinkette’s arms wrap around her.
“I know you aren’t a hugger,” Sakura said, “but this one time, good luck! I’m invested in this now. And I know Sasuke is too, even if he acts like he isn’t.”
Hinata smiled. She didn’t return the hug, but she did pat Sakura’s hands. She hadn’t known Team Seven for very long, but she wouldn’t forget how much they’d done to help her no matter how things turned out.
The last of her meetings with Naruto to ‘see how he lived’ was at his seals workshop. Although it didn’t have the atmosphere that the top of the Hokage monument would’ve, Hinata didn’t mind. The workshop was where they had spent the most time. She felt connected to it, and it only seemed appropriate to see it one more time before her duel.
When she got to the front door, she removed her headband, revealing her unmarred forehead. There was no reason to hide the fact that she hadn’t reapplied her seal. At the very least, she planned to duel Neji tomorrow without it. Afterward, maybe then she’d put it back in place. Maybe.
She sighed as she entered. The door swung shut loudly behind her, but Naruto didn’t look up. Hinata blinked.
His work table was far messier than it usually was. It was piled with so many seals that she could barely see the top of Naruto’s head across them. Hinata started to walk around to tap him on the shoulder, only to stop and cover her mouth.
There were bags under his eyes. He looked half-asleep, but he was still making seals. Hinata looked around him at the seals he was creating. Exploding tags, paint-creating seals, and others she didn’t recognize were visible. Her first thought was that Minato had him preparing for war with Suna, but that didn’t make sense. Instead, if Hinata had to guess, these seals were hand-picked to make the Byakugan struggle.
Without saying anything, Hinata slid her hand across Naruto’s shoulders. He leaned into the touch instinctively, but it was a few more seconds before he really seemed to notice her.
“Oh, hey Hinata.” His voice wasn’t able to muster its usual volume. “I didn’t realize it was that late already. I haven’t slept much the last couple days.”
“Working on this?” Hinata asked quietly.
Naruto laughed. “Well, my dad mentioned some pretty interesting things. It was about a spar, actually. Or did he use the word duel? So I thought, why not help out a little…”
Hinata stroked the back of his neck, swallowing tears that tried to form. She wasn’t sad, though.
“You didn’t have to,” she said.
“Of course not! I just figured… Might as well, y’know? So I whipped up some of these, they’ll make chakra infused smoke. And these ones are basically paint bombs. These ones are actual bombs.”
Hinata stroked his neck harder. She came here full of plans about how to flirt and win his attention, but what did she need those for? Clearly, she already had his attention. Naruto picked up the last of the things he’d made for her— six identical seals Hinata didn’t recognize.
“These are just chakra containers,” he said. “They don’t usually do much, but I filled them with my chakra. The corrosive kind that I was talking about. You seemed really interested in that trick of mine, so I drew up something last night that should be able to replicate it. I haven’t tested them yet, but they work! I think they do, anyway…
Hinata’s breath caught.
She hadn’t said anything when she learned he broke her seal using a personal trick. She just looked a little bit down, and even that didn’t last very long. Yet Naruto noticed. Then he acted on it, inventing a new seal just to cheer her up.
Before she knew it, she was leaning in.
It was the only thank you that could come close to expressing her gratitude. Her lips were pressed to Naruto’s for a full ten seconds before her brain caught up.
By that point, there was no running away. Naruto was kissing her back. Her hand around his neck looped in, squeezing him. His palms slid up her back, pressing on her shoulder blades. This was it! It was the touch she’d been longing for each time she watched one of those replays!
By the time she caught herself, Hinata had straddled Naruto’s lap, kissing him hard enough to tilt his head back. His fingers were sinking dangerously low. Hinata realized, with absolute certainty, that if this went any further then she wasn’t going to be able to stop.
She pulled away.
“Too much?” Naruto asked.
“Too soon,” Hinata corrected him. “I meant it the other night. I finally realized… well, I want you!” She couldn’t help but blush from her own bold admission. “But first, before all of this, there’s something I have to do. For my sake.”
“Okay,” Naruto said.
He just accepted it, not even considering pressing for more. He probably had some idea, but not the whole picture. Hinata was growing increasingly certain that to become the person she wanted to be, she had to stand up to her clan.
It wasn’t just about her. Maybe, if she and Naruto really worked out, they’d get married and he could protect her. But Hinata wasn’t satisfied with that anymore. She thought of Neji, stuck in a spider-web of ‘fate’ while his talent died a death of mediocrity. Then there was Hanabi, the heiress who was supposedly the freest out of all of them. Yet she couldn’t even speak her mind to their own father. How many other branch members were stuck, being crushed under the weight of this ugly clan?
Hinata wasn’t arrogant enough to believe she could fix everything. But somewhere along the way, she’d become brave enough to at least take a stand.
She collected the seals Naruto made for her, packing them into a storage seal. Finally, she looked at Naruto, who was smiling with half-closed eyes.
“You need to get some sleep,” she told him.
“I will. At some point,” he said. “When you do that duel, you better win.”
“I plan to,” Hinata said. And she meant it: with every fiber of her being, she intended to take down Neji, for his good as well as everyone else’s. “And Naruto?”
He cocked his head.
“When I do, take me back to the Hokage Monument, would you? I’m a fan of sunset dates.”
He grinned. “It’s a deal!”
Squaring her shoulders, Hinata left the workshop earlier than planned, preparing what would come.
