Three months had passed and Hinata was still not used to this.

Not the running. She had no problems with it, with the constant hiding and secret living that they had to endure.

It was the murders that she was not comfortable with. But was it understandable. As he had explained multiple times, it was simply basic survival.

They were in a foreign land with no particular place to go to. They were strangers that were so easily recognizable, it was hard to be around people. Even the harbor village and the other places they had visited before were now forbidden for them. They were wanted. There was a price for their heads.

Maybe not for hers. But they knew she was with him. They knew he had an accomplice. And she didn't mind. For some reason it made her proud to know that she was considered a part of his team.

But right now she had to stay concentrated. Her eyes hurt and her breathing was uneven, the winter had gone into its peak and it was colder than the Hyuuga could believe. Rubbing her hands together, she tried to stay focused. Her kekkei genkai was weakening and she couldn't let this happen. He had not returned yet and there was no sign of him at all.

Taking a deep breath, Hinata tried to calm down. She rubbed her temples with her frozen fingers and looked ahead. Miles away there was only the whiteness of the snow. Her headache was getting out of control. And the worry she had for him was not helping. He had never been away for so long.

The girl closed her eyes and tried to calm herself once more. She had to stay calm. With her head pounding with pain, she stood up slowly and headed to the door.

She was waiting for him at their new hiding place. It was situated deep in the mountains, on a high cliff between some sharp stone walls that concealed the small hut quite conveniently. The man had gone for provisions or at least he had claimed so. And it was taking him too long.

Her heart was pounding so hard that she could hear the loud thud in her ears. Thankfully her long hair provided her some comfort. But they had hidden here quite unexpectedly. Her sweater and cloak were just not enough for this vicious weather.

Rubbing her temples harder, she made it to the door but dared not open it. She had to conceal her presence. No one could know she was there. With a sigh she took a step back and went to sit on a chair. Debating whether or not to go and search for him, she let her face hide in her palms and tried clearing her mind. Could she feel his chakra? No. She was not a sensory type. But she had to do something. This was just taking too long…

She wasn't sure how much time she had spent like this. At a point she felt the cold air blow in her face and jumped up. The door was open. The clear grayish-white winter sky could be seen. But something else attracted her attention.

A hooded figure stood on the doorway, his hand still placed on the knob. Looking at her, he slowly took a step forward and closed the door, not making a single sound.

Uchiha Sasuke took his hood off with a sharp move, revealing his black hair, which had grown again and she loved it like that. But there was something strange in his eyes. Was it pain?

Anger.

He knelt before her, raising her chin with his fingers. His crimson eyes looked around the small space before returning to her white ones. Not saying a word he leaned in to inspect her face.

"What is wrong?" His voice was low, a gorgeous whisper. But there was worry in it. She was slowly learning to find the faint signs of emotions in him.

"I was worried for you."

"You used your Byakugan too much. Look at you…" Raising her chin higher he leaned in even further. She could feel his warm, calm breath on her face and the sensation of it was amazing, it was bringing her warmth. "We talked about this."

"You cannot go missing for half a day and expect me to stay calm and do nothing."

Pulling back he sat on the ground before her and smirked, looking away. "At least you had the wits to stay here and not look for me."

"Precisely."

His black gaze returned to her. "Any trouble?"

"None. I think this place is as safe as it can get."

"Don't get your hopes too high. There are patrols nearby. We would need to leave soon. At sunset, to be exact."

"Ah," she noted and looked through the dirty little window on her right. There were a few hours until the sun went down.

The Uchiha stood up and went to the table in the corner of the room, next to the haystack that had to be considered a bed. Taking the satchel off his shoulder he started pulling things out of it, waiting for the girl to reach him. When she finally did, he turned around, leaning on the table, his arms folded on his chest.

Her white, curious eyes were tired. She was pale. Not enough food, not enough rest. He had to think of something before she got sick. If this happened things could go very bad. It was practically impossible for him to find a doctor here without risking too much.

"I have something for you," he started, trying to distract himself out of this scenario. He took something from the table and gave it to her.

Her slim arms took it gently and unfolded it. It was big but light. And it turned out to be a jacket. A black one, fluffy and with some kind of animal fur on the neck, hood and in the ends of the sleeves. She took off her cloak and put it on. It was big for her, it would probably suit him better, but the immediate warmness it brought her made her want to cry. It was perfect.

"Thank you," she noted, smiling at the man. His face did not change from his blank expression but it was clear to her that he was proud of this finding. Fixing her cloak over it, he turned to the table again. A loaf of bread was handed to her. Stiff from the cold, she barely managed to break it and give the bigger piece to him. He rolled his eyes to but knew well that arguing was pointless. She could be amazingly stubborn. And he loved it.

Biting into the tasteless thing, they stared at each other in silence. At a point Sasuke put away his lunch and took the girl by the free arm, dragging her closer. She gave him a questioning look, but he took her shoulders and spun her around.

She was already used to this kind of behaviors of his. He was a man of few words and often acted rather than explaining. So she let him wrap his arms around her and leaned on his chest, enjoying how warm it felt on her back.

"I have something else for you," he added after a long moment of silence. She looked at him with the corner of her eye to see him dig in his pocket. His fist rose before her eyes and unfolded.

A ring lay in the center of his palm. A small, silver ring, so elegant that she was mesmerized to the point of forgetting how to move. Slowly, the man took her left hand and raised it as well. He put the jewelry on her ring finger and marveled at it for a moment. It suited her perfectly.

The girl turned around to meet his blank expression. She opened her mouth but could not find the right words to say.

"Happy birthday," he said, his tone cold.

She opened her mouth again, but still couldn't speak. The headache was back with full force and suddenly she realized her eyes could no longer function properly. In the darkness her vision seemed to fade faster. She could no longer see his face, only blackness.

"Hinata," she heard his voice, but it appeared distant, like he was a mile away. Her body felt heavy. Some strange warmth touched her face before she felt her feet give in.

Fortunately, his hands were still tied around her waist when this happened. Sasuke stared at the girl in his arms as she parted her lips not saying a thing. Although fixed on him, her eyes were not concentrated, it was as if she did not see him at all.

"Hinata," he called again, pulling her closer, feeling as she was losing balance. Her head drifted back as if she was inspecting something interesting on the ceiling, and a red stain made its path from her nose, down to the corner of her lips, reaching her chin.

Why was she having a nosebleed? Had he shocked her that much?

No. This was something else. His Sharingan moved rapidly as he inspected her chakra flow. It was uneven. Flickering. This was not good. In the end the girl did lose her balance, but he had picked her up already, headed to the bed. Leaving her on it, he pulled away and inspected her with his eyes again. But he could not understand what was happening. It was the first time he saw her chakra being like this…

Her eyes closed but her eyebrows were knotted. She was in pain. Kneeling on the ground, he went behind her and put her head in his lap, leaning in so their foreheads could touch.

Forcing all the chakra he could gather after all the fights he had earlier in the day, he started distributing it slowly, sharing it with her just as she had taught him recently. And this appeared to help her. She was conscious. Her hand slowly drifted to touch his cheek but her movements were weak.

"Are you sick?" he whispered.

She barely managed to shake her head in deny.

"You are lying."

"Only… because I know that you will ditch me if I get sick."

Her voice was so weak that it frightened him, and yet he smirked. "Of course I will. So start getting better."

Staying like that for a while, Sasuke felt her shift in his arms, moving her head so she could look at him. Although blurry, her eyes could focus on his handsome face again.

"Let me stand," she requested. It took him some time to decide if this was a good idea, but in the end helped her sit up and drew her closer, holding her in his arms so that her face was buried in his neck.

"Did you hate it that much?" he asked.

She pulled away and took to staring at her left hand. "It is beautiful."

"Then what is wrong with you?"

"I just love you too much," she explained. She was so happy to see him safe and well that tears rose into her eyes. Leaning in, she pressed her lips to his cold ones, and enjoyed the way he responded, gripping her tightly, playing with her senses like only he could.

The evening came quickly. They had decided to have some rest and get some sleep. But Sasuke had awoken with the setting sun and had risen up, supporting himself on his elbow, towering over her. Colder than ever, Hinata stiffened from the sudden change of temperature.

She managed to fix her position and quickly hid her face in his chest. They staid like that for a moment. The girl loved the way he dug his hand in her hair.

Then the moment ended. They had to hurry. Checking their surroundings, the Hyuuga made sure no one was spying on them. It was clear for them to leave. They walked out the small hut, squinting their eyes due to the coarse evening wind.

It was not safe for them to travel on his Hawk summon. People here already knew of this method of transportation they used and kept a wary eye on their skies. So they quickly headed down a steep road into the forest that awaited them in the foot of the mountain.

They kept a quick pace in complete silence. The man walked before her, and she scouted with her white eyes. However, the pounding ache in her temples was making her dizzier with every passing minute.

Darkness was engulfing her. Shaking her head she stood still, rubbing her eyes. In a moment she felt her palms being forcefully removed from her face. A crimson gaze was fixed on her.

"Do not rub your eyes."

"They hurt."

"Then give them a rest. I will take it from here. Besides-"

But he did not finish. A whistling sound rang in the air. And yet, Sasuke was fast enough to duck, dragging her to the ground as well. A second sound followed and a long arrow made of some shining metal dug in his shoulder.

The man stood up and moved his eyes to the object sticking out of his body. True annoyance had filled his face. He gripped the arrow and tore it out of his shoulder without even dignifying this with a facial expression.

"Stand up. We have been found," he ordered, not even turning to look at Hinata.

The girl followed. However, as soon as she rose, the headache hit her with a blast. She struggled to stand her ground, but in the end managed to take a defensive position. Veins appeared on her temples.

"Seven men," she explained. "Two up front, one behind us. The rest are on both our sides."

The Uchiha did not say a word. He took out his Sword of Kusanagi and held it in his right hand.

They stood still. The others were not attacking. Were they evaluating their targets? Were they simply observing? In a moment all became clear. All seven men attacked absolutely simultaneously.

Sasuke easily slashed one of them and headed towards another one. Hinata spun quickly, creating a vortex that saved her from a few iron arrows. She had to take the man with the bow first of all. Jumping ahead, she blinked, casting away the pounding pain she felt and landed before the attacker. With a shaking hand he tried to aim at her, but it was too late. Using a Gentle Palm Fist technique, she smashed his wooden weapon, then landed her palm on his chest. He flew back, finally dropping dead on the ground.

By the time she turned her eyes to the Uchiha, he had murdered a total of four men. However, one of the two left was giving him a hard time. He was an experienced fighter. Hinata saw a golden chain on his neck and something hidden underneath his shirt. Surely this was one of those medallions.

And they had to fight plainly. Nothing too hasty as too much chakra use could lead to them being tracked and found by others. Maybe it was her overuse of her kekkei genkai that had resulted in them being discovered now.

Shaking her head again, the girl headed towards the Uchiha, her palms glowing in blue. She felt blood on her face, indicating yet another nose bleed. That damn headache. But it would be over soon.

She was a few feet away when something happened. She was not sure what it was though. It felt warm on her back, just between her shoulder-blades. Suddenly she saw Sasuke flying by her. No. She was the one flying. And she crashed.

Her back hit a tree so hard that she bit her tongue and coughed, choking on the blood that filled her mouth. Complete darkness had fallen on her and she understood that she could no longer see. A strange wetness touched her senses, headed from the back of her head down her neck. The Hyuuga heard a few muffled sounds. Felt a few strange sensations. Then complete lightness took hold of her.

Sasuke slowly advanced upon the medallion-bearing attacker. He could not use too much of his chakra but he liked fighting like that. It was fun playing with the man, toying with him, making him think he had a chance.

Suddenly he heard a zapping sound. Lightning attack had hit someone. He turned his head on the side and froze.

Hinata flew in the air, her long dark hair like a vale of thick smoke around her ghostly-white face. Her pale eyes were barely open. She smashed into a tree with so much force that her scull crashed with a very clear sound.

Before she could fall on the ground he had already caught her. He was fast, one of the fastest shinobi to have lived. But he had failed to notice the lightning-user that lurked in the shadows. There were three more men with him. The girl had not seen them. Either they were very good at concealing themselves, or her Byakugan had failed her miserably. This explained why she was struck in the first place.

His mind was frantically making the calculations and explanations for what had just happened, but his onyx eyes were opened wide, staring at her face. Her eyes were closed, there was blood on her chin and below her nose. His hand that held her above the back of her neck was strangely warm.

Sasuke parted his lips. He had moved his fingers to see them covered in a thick layer of blood. The snow on the ground below the girl was red. His clothes were soaked with the dark liquid. She was bleeding heavily. She was hurt. They had hurt her.

Something crept in the back of his mind, slowly spreading its cold hands over his sanity. He tried to blink, but his eyes stood fixed on her, wide open.

Panic. It was panic that overwhelmed him. His fingers were shaking. His lips were trembling. He called her name, trying to figure out a way to wake her up.

But he closed his eyes, listening to the men approaching. Taking a deep breath he cast the dreadful feeling away. No time to be irrational now. He was never irrational.

Standing up with the Hyuuga in his arms, the man turned around to face his attackers who were already too close. They would strike him altogether at any moment. They were six from what he could count.

But it did not matter. Nothing mattered anymore.

Hinata's head rested just below his neck. Her broken scull poured out her blood and warmed his cold chest. She was light. Too light. She was sick. He had failed to notice this in time.

But it did not matter. All that mattered was his anger, his complete madness, her utter and absolute hate for these pathetic, little puny men that though they could measure their strength with his.

They couldn't.

The air in the small clearing buzzed with the Uchiha's chakra. A purple giant filled the surroundings, transparent but enormous. The creature changed its appearance a few times. The foreign men, simple bounty-hunters watched as the skeleton turned into a heavily armored beast. It held a long sword, glowing in the darkness.

And the same sword moved. It slashed through the air, cutting a few oak trees like butter. One of the men tried backing out of its reach but it was too late. His body was cut in half. His blood soaked in the snow.

The attackers could barely move. They watched the young man walk, headed to them. He was surrounded by a transparent ribcage of the same purple spirit matter. His pace was calm but death poured from his very being. He held the dead woman in his arms, his red eyes fixed on them.

The man with the medallion yelled. He knew of these eyes. The ones that were black, then red, then red and black in the same time, and strange in form. He knew of them from the stories that were passed in the Northern regions. But it was too late.

Screaming, one of the men on his side burst into black flames. The hunter fell on the ground and rolled, but nothing could extinguish this. It was over for them, they were done for.

They started running. But it was no use. Another man cried in pain and screamed for minutes as the dark fire slowly consumed his flesh. The purple giant caught another and simply squeezed the life out of him with its great fist.

The bastard was to close. They were all dead. His only chance was to hide between the trees and to hope the giant could not reach in and…

It grabbed him. Squeezing him painfully, he cried and struggled to break free, but to no avail. Slowly, he was carried by the purple monstrosity. Disassembled bodies lay everywhere around him. Black flames still shimmered in the dim light.

The fist held him tightly, he could barely breathe. He was moved further until his eyes met the ones of the black-haired man. Suddenly, he felt a pain shoot through his head. Darkness fell around him. Was this hypnosis? Where was he? The pair of red eyes was all he could see.

"Who are you?"

The sound of the man's voice came roaring in his head. Yes, definitely hypnosis, but unlike any other. The words echoed painfully in his ears.

"We are bounty-hunters," the attacker spoke without being able to control himself. He would rather die than give the maniac any information. But it seemed he had no control over his mind.

"Hunters?" the roaring voice repeated with an accent. He did not know the language well.

"Yes. There is a price for your heads."

The red eyes simply stared at him. It was like two floating balls of fire in the darkness of his mind.

"A medic. Where?"

He definitely could not speak their tongue. But he knew all the words that were important.

"Go west. There is a village in a meadow. A small hut near the woods – there is a medic."

The attacker tried biting his cheek to stop speaking, but was he really saying anything actually? No. These thoughts were extracted from his mind without his control. Damn bastard.

"West. A house near the woods." The voice confirmed, coming with such a force that the hunter feared his mind would go deaf.

"Yes," he confirmed without wanting to do it at all.

Sasuke cast his genjutsu on the bounty-hunter, taking all the information he needed out of his head. The man in Susanoo's fist was shaking uncontrollably. Pathetic little roach.

Done with the questioning, he let him go and the attacker fell on the ground, coughing, vomiting and gasping for air. He slowly raised his face, wet with sweat. Gratitude could be seen in his face. He had given him information. And he would live in return.

The Uchiha smiled. His head leaned to the side. Blood was pouring from his eyes. The Mangekyo Sharingan glowed in the shadows of the trees. His eyes had not bled in years. But he did not care. He could not control himself right now. He didn't need to. He didn't care to.

Extending his chakra through the Kusanagi Sword, he slashed through the air carefully, he was still holding the girl in his arms.

The head of the attacker fell on the ground with a thud and the snowy ground soaked the dark liquid that poured from it and the headless body.

Finally dismissing the Susanoo, he walked to it and dug underneath the shirt. He took the medallion, a blue-stone hung from the chain. He put it in his pocket quickly, careful not to drop Hinata.

He knelled on the ground, keeping the girl in his embrace carefully. She was getting cold. Loosing too much blood.

Cursing, he bit his thumb and performed a combination of hand signs. A giant hawk appeared before him and he jumped on its back quickly. He headed west, hoping that the night would provide them some shelter from the unwanted eyes. It had to. It just had to…

Note:

Such a long chapter! I apologize :D More of my babbling will follow after the second, final part of the Prequel. Check it out.