Amnesia | Naruto Fanfiction

10. Their Mission

The blinds were closed tightly in the apartment complex, not allowing any natural light to enter the household. Hibiki and Yua were busy packing away their clothes and tidying up the house. After Kakashi informed them of the mission they were going to take with Team 7, they knew that they had to clean things up before they left.

  Yua seemed content as she was busy packing, but Hibiki couldn't help herself but think of what Kakashi had told her just a couple of hours ago.

  "The two of you are coming on a mission with me."

  The two girls looked at him with slight surprise. They weren't used to his tone being commanding, so they knew that this mission was important if he demanded them to come along.

  "Can you give us any details on the mission?" Hibiki asked.

  "I guess I should fully explain things before I talk about the details," Kakashi began. He closed his visible eye for a brief second, before opening it again. "A while ago, I made a promise to Hokage-sama that I would keep the two of you safe from harm."

  Yua looked down at the ground, "Were we really the ones who caused all of these tragic events to happen? Everyone's been suspecting us of doing those deeds, but you know we didn't, right Kakashi-sensei?"

  "Well, I try not to doubt my comrades, but your lost memories are suspicious," Kakashi admitted. "However, since I made my promise to Hokage-sama, I kept it. When all of these events began to occur, I made sure to look after you two whenever I had an opportunity. There's no doubt in my mind that most of these events had occurred due to the two of you living in this village. Which means that there's more to the two of you than I initially thought."

  Kakashi looked directly at the two girls before he continued, "Although Hokage-sama is dead, I will not break my promise. You're my comrades, so I'll protect you two from harm. But... aside from my promise to Hokage-sama, I had to keep some information confidential. I was told that when the time came along, I would tell the two of you the truth."

  "The truth?" the two girls repeated in unison.

  "Yes... I did explain most of it to the two of you while we were fighting in the arena, with those events being used as a distraction and infiltration by both your attacker and Orochimaru. But... there's more. Our mission is to join the team of jounin and ANBU who are investigating your attacker and the villages that were massacred."

  Hibiki was surprised that the Hokage withheld that information from the two girls. Wouldn't he think it would be a good idea to tell them that immediately?

  "How long ago did this investigation start?" Hibiki asked.

  "A few weeks after Yua arrived in the village. So... that would've been a couple of days before you arrived, Hibiki."

  "So... you're telling me that the Sandaime Hokage had been keeping that information confidential?! We're the ones who are supposed to figure this out - our memories are the key!" Hibiki snapped. Both Yua and Kakashi were surprised by the sudden outburst. Hibiki's jaw was clenched tightly as she glared at Kakashi.

  "Allow me to expla--"

  "No, just tell us what our mission is," Hibiki interrupted.

  Kakashi let out a deep sigh, "Alright. The two of you are supposed to come along with myself and Team 7 to begin to assist this team. They now need you to help them, since your memories are the only lead they have on the attacker. A few of the ANBU members know how to retrieve lost memories, and since I think that the jutsu is slowly wearing off on the two of you, now might be the time for them to help you. I can't guarantee how long we'll be away from the village... a couple of months at least. Maybe even longer, depending on how long the investigation will be."

  Hibiki felt uneasy about them being away for a long time. She could still remember taking out that kunai lodged in the ground, its cool metal brushing against her fingers. That image was a reminder to her that there was still more to come.

  "Is that all?" Hibiki asked.

  "That's all for Yua," Kakashi corrected. "Hibiki, there's still something I need to tell you."

***

The two girls headed to Konoha's gates. They both packed lightly for the trip, with their backpacks slung across their backs. Hibiki wore a long-sleeved navy blue shirt, shorts of the same colour that went mid-thigh, and black shinobi sandals. Her hair was braided as usual, with thin black ribbon keeping the hair together. Yua wore a long-sleeved black shirt, with light brown shorts and brown combat boots.

  Up ahead, they spotted the three genin waiting by the gate. Naruto was jumping on the balls of his feet, his fists clenched together. Sakura had her hands folded behind her back, while Sasuke stuffed his hands into his pockets. Hibiki noticed that there was something different about him. She sensed something malicious underneath him - something powerful. Upon closer inspection, she noticed three tomoe's arranged in a circle, with what appeared to be a seal surrounding it.

  'What happened in the Forest of Death?' Hibiki wondered.

  "Uchiha-kun," Hibiki asked, not bothering to greet him, "what's on the back of your neck?"

  "That's nothing of your concern," Sasuke scoffed, receiving a glare from Hibiki.

  Silence hung between the five as they waited for their sensei to arrive. Hibiki didn't like the fact that she was unaware of the things that occurred in the Forest of Death, and she was a bit bitter about it. She wasn't used to this kind of silence looming between all of them. It didn't feel comforting - it felt distrustful. Hibiki felt on edge as she felt Sasuke's onyx eyes bore into her skull. Naruto didn't pay much attention, he was more engrossed with the mission that was soon to come. Sakura and Yua could both sense something off between the group, but they didn't bother to speak up about it.

  As the sun shone on them, a puff of white smoke appeared in front of them, and there was Kakashi.

  "Sorry I'm late, I was helping an elderly lady with her gro--"

  "Yeah right! You're just makin' up lame excuses again, dattebayo!" Naruto yelled.

  Kakashi rubbed the back of his head as his visible eye shut together, "Ah, well, let's start our mission, shall we?"

  And so, the six headed off onto the worn down dirt path. As time went by, Hibiki began to fall behind the group. Her eyes were focused on the ground ahead of her as she busied herself with her thoughts. Yua noticed this, and slowed down to walk alongside her.

  "Hibiki-chan, ever since Kakashi-sensei told us about this mission, something has been off. Is everything alright?"

  "It's nothing of your concern," Hibiki said, repeating Sasuke's words from earlier. "I just need to... cut ties with someone, that's all."

I finally described their clothes! But that's not the big point of this chapter...

What did Kakashi tell Hibiki once Yua left? Why is Sasuke and Hibiki distancing themselves from each other? Who does Hibiki need to cut ties with?

Please comment and let me know what you think!