Author's Note: Welcome to the Sasuke/Hinata fic Her Light to His Shadow. Although this story will primarily be based on Sasuke and Hinata's relationship, it will include other pairings in it, too: Naruto/Sakura, Shikamaru/Ino, and Neji/Tenten…and maybe one more (I'm still debating whether I should include some this couple…but you shall soon see who this mystery couple is if and when I reach a verdict). And while I did say that the genres were romance and angst…HLtHS will also incorporate suspense and humor into its plot. I am usually a romance and humor writer, after all, but have delved into dramatic romance lately.
Information You Might Need: This fic is a bit different than the Naruto storyline, yet it still retains some of its characteristics. I have decided to distort the story a little. You will learn more if you continue to read the story, but as for now, know that Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto are now chuunin, as are the other former junior ninja from Konohagakure.
The setting takes place well after everyone (yes, all the genin pass…the first change in the storyline) passes the Journeyman Ninja Selection Exams. Pertinent characters include: Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura (Kakashi's team); Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Choji (Asuma's team); Hyuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba and his dog Akamaru, Aburame Shino (Kurenai's team); and Rock Lee, Hyuga Neji, and Tenten (Gai's team).
I may switch the way the chuunin refer to their jounin instructors from time to time. For example, I may have Naruto say, "Kakashi-sensei!" one minute, while having Sasuke or Sakura call him "Master Kakashi" at a later time.
Also, you'll notice that the thoughts a character may have throughout the story are bolded. Sakura is the only exception. Although her thoughts will be bolded as the others are, Inner Sakura's voice is bolded and italicized. Think of it this way: Sakura's thoughts are bold; Inner Sakura's are bold and italic.
Summary: (SasuHina) She was the light to his obscurity; he was the shadow that always protected her – but adversity can tear even the subtlest of affections apart.
Disclaimer: I do not own any aspect of Naruto. All components belong to Masashi Kishimoto.
Dedications: This fic is dedicated to my most favorite sisters in the world: Garowyn and DBZAngelX, and to my eternal (though obsessive it may be) love of the Sasuke/Hinata pairing! And don't forget the other diehard S/H fans - this is for you!
Inspiration: "Hinata will be Sasuke's light, and Sasuke will be the shadow to protect Hinata." –SasukexHinata Fan Club signature; Never Say Goodbye by JoJo, Use My Shoulder by JoJo, Homeboy by JoJo, By Myself by Linkin Park, Crawling by Linkin Park, Forgotten by Linkin Park, Figure.09 by Linkin Park, Bring Me to Life by Evanescence, My Last Breath by Evanescence, Lies by Evanescence, Whisper by Evanescence, Every Heart by BoA, Anywhere by Evanescence, First Love by Jessa Zaragoza, Final Distance by Utada Hikaru, Waiting by BoA and Dreaming of You by Selena.
Her Light to His Shadow
Chapter 1: An Announcement
Water and oil don't mix.
It was a phrase Haruno Sakura had since learned and plastered into her memory many a year ago – to tell the truth, it wasn't such a difficultly for her to understand anything regarding the sciences.
But it was only recently - right after she'd proudly graduated as a genin from the Academy and was placed in a three-man cell with two other alumnae, in fact - that she realized water and oil weren't the only materials or substances that refused to blend.
The very same thing could be said about the newly frustrated chuunin's teammate and ally, an overenthusiastic Uzumaki Naruto.
She stood in the midst of her team's training field, hands on her hips, and a livid scowl plastered so appropriately on her attractive facial features. The frown only seemed to magnify in size as she glowered at the way the blond impatiently paced back and forth around the empty field. Was he trying to irk her this morning? Master Kakashi, their sensei, had instructed them to meet him here the minute the sun peeked out from the night's murkiness, and as expected, he was nowhere to be found.
It was quite the norm for something like this to occur, of course, so she needn't have been so easily aggravated. But what troubled and confused the pink-haired kunoichi to no end was the puzzling absence of a certain other teammate…
She shut her emerald eyes in a soft, fluid motion, currently in a vain attempt at calming herself down. It wouldn't do to have her, an esteemed shinobi-in-training, openly express such emotions as annoyance and antipathy to someone who was hardly deemed to be worth all the stress. 'Ignore Naruto, Sakura. It's the only thing you can manage to do for now if you plan to have a long, fulfilling marriage with-'
But try as she might have, she couldn't deliberate on the nonappearance of the boy she'd been sweet on for the majority of her adolescent life. And if she couldn't think about him…something was dreadfully wrong with the situation. She forced her eyes open immediately and scowled at the fox-like boy, who was currently trying to divert his attention by digging up the blades of grass that grew beneath their feet. "Naruto! Quit moving!"
Said chuunin gazed up at her in ire from where he sat near her feet. "What's wrong now, Sakura? You said to stop eating my breakfast because I was chewing too loud, so I stopped. You said to stop jumping around because I was making you dizzy, so I stopped. You said to stop walking back and forth in the same spot because I was killing the grass, so I stopped. What's your reason this time?"
Fists clenched by both sides, the dangerous gleam in narrowed jade eyes informed him that she was considering hitting him. He never had gotten along with those excruciating blows and pummels of hers, and now he was beginning to indisputably agree with what she'd said in the first place – it was far too early for him to be displaying so much action and exuberance. "Naruto…just sit there and blink - maybe even breathe a few times when you need to. It won't kill you to do that, right?"
He snorted in response to her seemingly polite request, but was secretly relieved that she'd held back from her attack. "Whatever." He lay back on the exhumed roots and examined the pale blue skies above, an uninterested expression scrawled without much effort on his fierce facial features.
Hmm…maybe she was being a bit harsh on him. Sighing in reluctance, she relaxed her hands and shut her eyes again. This time, all that met her ears was…immobility, save for the occasional faint rustling of the grass created by the waning spring breeze.
At that juncture, Naruto averted his blue eyes to visually inspect his companion in cautious silence. He hadn't been able to catch her like this in such a long time…and studying her full, rosy cheeks, he quickly recognized the face of one that was carefully emptied of all emotion, discerning a person rigorously schooled in the strict tenets of duty, discipline, and tradition. Involuntarily, however; he also took note of the enticing curves of those nice, slim thighs of hers…and instantaneously directed his gaze back to the sky, a dark blush reddening his cheeks in an impressive manner.
Once he'd fully recovered from that confrontational assault of his hormones, he released a small sigh neatly laced with longing, his usual triumphant smile now dripping with slight melancholy and dejection. Although he'd always expressed his deep affection for Sakura since they'd first met at the Academy, she had always responded with repugnance and candidly articulated the possession of a profound odium for him.
'Besides,' he now groused inwardly, sitting up and glaring at the individual that was steadily approaching the two, 'all she ever thinks about…all everyone ever thinks about…is-'
"Sasuke!" Sakura literally forced her eyes open upon sensing him, taking in the very sight that was otherwise referred to as the angst-ridden, fearless chuunin who was also her teammate. Her quiescent senses were instantly stimulated from their previously inert state as she eagerly perceived the expressionless stare, the way he carried himself, the deadly self-satisfaction that came from absolute confidence – all were combined with the frightening indifference and predatory calm that made up Uchiha Sasuke. Her cheeks colored unquestionably – from that distance his current gaze made her feel…kind of hot.
Naruto noticed the way in which her hands had involuntarily clasped together in delight as she gleefully welcomed their team partner. "It's always about Sasuke, isn't it?"
Sasuke chose not to question why Naruto had been laying on an area covered with filth, or why Sakura was giggling girlishly and indulging in creating little coquettish poses. He paid no mind to the latter's nonsensicality and sat at the foot of a towering oak tree, where he, as Sakura had done prior to his appearance, shut his eyes in an attempt at concentration. An unnoticeable scowl made its way onto his facial features as he felt the presence a certain kunoichi a little too close for comfort. He opened his eyes again and glared up at Naruto. "So…I'm going to assume that he hasn't told either of you why we're meeting."
"Nope," Sakura shrugged in Naruto's stead, fluttering those divine rosy eyelashes of hers in his direction lovingly. It didn't matter if Kakashi-sensei was a billion light-years behind schedule…as long as he was with her, she would wait an eternity and a half. "Would you like some breakfast, Sasuke?" she now asked fondly, reaching into her backpack and unearthing a few wrapped sandwiches in it. "You probably didn't get to eat anything this morning, you poor thing…so I didn't eat some of them."
He raised a dark eyebrow in slight curiosity – it seemed to fascinate him to no end how bad a liar she was in actuality. "…I thought you were on a diet. Why would you be eating breakfast in the first place?"
An irate Naruto bristled. "I'll tell you why! I gave her those sandwiches earlier…those are mine! And there's no way you're eating my hard work… You make your own food!"
"Shut up, Naruto! You gave them to me, so logically, they're mine now! And if I choose to give 'em to Sasuke…that's just what I'm going to do!"
Pause. Rewind. Naruto smacked his head, replaying the situation in his mind. An hour earlier, Sakura had pretended to be positively famished from the evening before, and on that account, he'd willingly (and foolishly) shared his food with her. "You did that on purpose!"
She smirked triumphantly, holding her abdomen inconspicuously while she challenged him. "And if I did?" 'Hey, you were askin' for it, buddy! Maybe next time, you'll learn to ask a lady if she's hungry before you start eating your food!' No, she hadn't been lying when she'd told him that she was nothing but a starved body at the moment. She'd just intended to sacrifice her hunger for Sasuke…hell; she'd sacrifice everything she owned for the sake of that gorgeous boy.
Cut that first part out. She was a love-starved soul…and that was worth much more than any old piece of bread any day. Sasuke was what she required to fill the void that was currently co-existing within her…Sasuke was all she needed to put the last touches on her existence in this world.
"Never mind, Sakura," her future husband smoothly intervened. "If it's made by him…I'd rather go hungry than risk everything on one bite of that trash."
Her hostile expression melted into a kinder one as Naruto indignantly released a string of obscenities. "Y-You sure you'll be okay?"
He nodded once in affirmation to her question, and then frowned as he felt the warmth of human flesh against his own. "I'm fine, Sakura…and if you'd take your head off my shoulder and your hands off my arm, I'd probably be even better."
She instantly reddened and removed her head from where it had been resting on his shoulder. Releasing her grasp on his arms – those strong, firm arms – in hesitance, she smiled sheepishly. "Oh, I'm sorry!" 'Darn it! It was too soon!'
"…Sorry about what, Sakura?"
All three chuunin glowered at the man who had posed such a question, taking in his familiar inexpressive, impassive gaze. "You're late again, sensei! Can you even begin to fathom how long we've been waiting for you?"
Kakashi shrugged in apathy, his face just as unreadable as it usually was. "My neighbor happened to be working on some broken shutters on his upstairs windows today. I didn't want to have to walk under a ladder – you know, bad luck – so I opted on taking the long way here."
For having to wake up with the sun this particular day, Naruto and Sakura, were, needless to say, naturally teed off.
"YOU USED THAT ONE TWO WEEKS AGO! YOU THINK WE FORGOT!"
"AND WOULD IT KILL YOU TO AT LEAST APOLOGIZE!"
Kakashi made no attempt to act contrite or express regret for his lack of punctuality. He instead pointed rudely toward Naruto, making an indication of where Sakura sat by Sasuke. "Jokes aside…go sit with your teammates, Naruto. I have something important to say…something that may play a significant part with your future career as a full-fledged shinobi."
Still grumbling dispiritedly under his breath, the shortest chuunin of the group settled down near Sakura and Sasuke and listened lackadaisically to what their instructor had to tell them. Whatever it was…it'd better be good. He wasn't planning to leave this field – the same place he had spent almost three and a half hours lounging about with Sakura and waiting for his sensei's appearance – without hearing at least a few things pertinent to his success as a shinobi.
Sakura was still stuck on what had transpired a few minutes earlier to catch wind of Naruto's inability to keep stagnant for long. 'He still didn't even say sorry!'
Kakashi cleared his throat loudly, dissipating her thoughts along with anyone else's. "I want you to listen, and listen well. If you don't…well, it's not my problem if you completely miss the entire point of this, is it?" When no one answered him with a direct response, he continued. "To cut a long story short…I need you all to be present here this time tomorrow. And that's all the information I can tell you, unfortunately."
The pink-haired girl blinked twice in astonishment, and for a few seconds, great resentment at the irresponsible jounin. So what was the purpose of them meeting him today? "And why is that, Kakashi-sensei?"
"Orders from powers higher than my own," he said with an accustomed shrug. "And next time, you really shouldn't endeavor to deceive any of your teammates, young lady. That evokes unnecessary trouble sooner or later, and we all know we don't want that… And by the way, be prepared to see your fellow chuunin at the meeting tomorrow. The gathering's just something we'd like to hold based on our concerns about you and your respective strengths and weaknesses. 'Course, I can't say much more than that…so, until tomorrow!"
His miniature speech provoked Sakura and Naruto to agree that tomorrow was probably destined to be the most insufferable day of their short lives. Who really wanted to see that blonde swine, Yamanaka Ino, again? And who actually wanted to hear her griping teammate (the idler known as Nara Shikamaru) whine about what the jounin were going to tell them? As luck would have it, Sakura was quick to agree on what Naruto had said at an earlier date and time – neither of them would know quite what to make of all the freaks that would be making themselves apparent the next day.
Sasuke concealed a small smirk. Those prattling annoyances were busy yapping their mouths off about something as trivial as petty rivalries…but tomorrow would prove to be interesting. He and his teammates had all undergone rigorous training and practiced strict and unrelenting ideologies – truth be told, he couldn't wait until tomorrow came. He'd get to experience how the other chuunin of Konoha village had progressed…especially those who were under the tutelage of Master Gai…
Kakashi was examining the Uchiha carefully, snapping him out of his reflections. "And before I leave…it won't do to have you late again, Sasuke. Try not to do it again."
Stunned, the young Uchiha opened his mouth slightly to produce an utterance of protests, but the jounin had already made his exit…unbeknownst to the unyielding kunoichi and the town idiot, who continued to keep up their complaints on how they were going to loathe meeting their rivals once more, on how dorky Rock Lee and Master Gai were going to look…
They were currently in a bet regarding if Inuzuka Kiba was going to have his esteemed dog Akamaru accompany him, and how many assorted varieties of food Akimichi Choji would manage to sneak into his knapsack to snack on during the meeting's progression.
Sasuke closed his mouth. Some things were better left unsaid…and unlike Naruto and Sakura, he wasn't planning to boast about his accomplishments thus far as an established chuunin tomorrow.
He was going to surprise them all.
Ending Note: And thus ends the first chapter of HLtHS. A lot more humor than was expected – normal Naruto comedy. Please review…the more responses I receive, the more inspiration I get. And some of you may have caught sight of the first pairing in the story, right?No worries; Hinata will make her appearance next chapter.
Ladii-Chocolate