青い骨の美 - The Beauty of Blue Bones

Chapter 12

Spring
Thursday—3:04PM

He dragged his feet the further away from the house he got, reluctant to actually leave despite knowing that he would be going back before nightfall. Naruto stuffed his hands into his pockets and took the time to survey the area as he made his way back to Konoha. His lips were caught between his teeth as he thought about Hinata's predicament. When he went searching for her earlier during the day, he was not expecting what he found; not only was Sasuke there, but the Hinata that lived in that house was unlike the one he remembered growing up with.

He understood that people changed after the war, hell, he was one of the ones who changed even if he didn't want to admit it, but this? There had to be another word to describe how much change has happened with Hinata. She still blushed sometimes, but she didn't giggle, or stutter. She could barely look him in the eye, and she just seemed so sick.

Kurama's words made a shiver run down his back.

Hinata was different because she was haunted; both by her past with her family, and something much darker that he was determined to figure out. Even if that meant watching her at all hours of the day and never going on missions, he would figure it out and free her completely so the Hinata he was used to would return to him.

The prospect of actually being in the same space as both Hinata and Sasuke made him feel giddy despite the initial hesitation he had in regards to the main issue at hand. He was going to live with people he considered his friends! He's never had a sleepover, or even been invited to one. Usually, when his friends visited, they never stayed for more than a few hours—Sasuke was the only exception but he was quite literally homeless if they were being honest. Now, he was going to be under the same roof as two people he craved to be even closer with.

"Back from your mission already?" The patrolling guard asked him as he walked through the gates, so deep in thought that he didn't even realize that he had made it back already.

"Yeah, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be." He gave them a tight lipped smile and continued on his way to his apartment.

Shutting the door behind him, Naruto leaned against it and took a very calculating look around his apartment. The rent was covered for the month, he was sure that he wouldn't be out for that long, and even if he was, automatic transactions were a thing now. The place was cleaned; no dishes were piled in the sink, no garbage was hanging around, and his clothes weren't thrown haphazardly onto the floor or couch.

It would remain that way until he returned.

Grabbing a duffle bag from his closet, he began folding and packing away some of his things. Naruto wasn't sure what to take, or what to leave behind, so he settled on packing most of his clothes, some medical supplies, and things like his hair-care products, body wash and shampoo. Deciding to take a shower before he left again, he replaced his clothes with something more casual instead of his mission attire—technically, he was not going on a mission, so he wouldn't need it.

Closing and locking his door behind him, he took to the roofs and hoped that Kakashi was not stuck in some silly meeting with the council. Casually climbing through the window, he stifled a snicker once he noticed that Kakashi was sleeping on his couch. Approaching him slowly, he stooped to his level and attempted lifting his mask until a hand wrapped around his own.

"I see that you're back." Kakashi said with a tired voice.

Naruto rolled his eyes, cursing the heavens for still not knowing what Kakashi looked like without his 'stupid old mask' and crossed his arms. "I found her, she's at her house currently, and has been since a few weeks ago."