AN: OK...its just plain depressing that it took me this long to finish this story. so yes people, this is officially the end of facing you...thank god it's over! Well, yeah...enjoy...

The battle taking place was like a blur for the girl

The battle taking place was like a blur for the girl. She needed to be closer to perform her attacks correctly but he just wouldn't stay still. Every tactic she used wasn't working and she was running low on chakra.

Striking forward with her palm she missed once again and received a blow to her side, sending her into a nearby tree. Pulling herself from the splintering wood she looked over herself and her enemy.

Cuts and bruises littered her pale skin while Zaku seemed relatively untouched. She had only managed to hit him twice, and only because she had combined the gentle fist with her water techniques.

Her body hurt and her eyes stung, but she kept moving in those smooth fluid motions. Forming the chakra over her arm, she managed to form a sort of whip and hit him solidly in the chest.

Zaku could already feel the bruise forming from the last hit, but it didn't matter. He could tell just by looking that the girl was at her limit. Her eyes were glassy and her breaths were shallow. He knew she wouldn't last much longer, he just had to wait.

Her movements were erotic and uncoordinated but she didn't care. She knew she had to finish it soon. Just as he moved to dodge her attack she lunged forward, meeting him in the air.

A smile came to her as her kunai cut into his right shoulder, the blade dragging downward and leaving a large gash.

But her smile faded as waves of pain over ran her senses. Looking down her pale eyes reflected the red color of her blood as it poured out around the enemies kunai. Kicking herself away from him, she ripped the weapon out of her body before landing heavily on the ground. Her small hand grasped at the wound, but the blood still flowed.

Naruto ran through the forest. All his senses tuned into the scene around him. He didn't think anything bad had happened to Hinata. She was a highly trained Kunoichi who could handle herself.

But, still, he was worried. He didn't know what he would do if she dies now.

Quickening his pace he continued through the forest, looking for any clues as to where she would be.

Finally, his bright blue eyes landed on the small, lithe frame he had come to know so well. For a second he allowed himself to be happy. That one second in which he thought he had managed to find her before Zaku.

That was, until he saw the blood dripping though her fingers. Even with moving as fast as he could, even when her pale eyes turned and locked with his, he already knew he was too late.

She didn't scream as the sword rammed into her stomach. She didn't cry when it came back out the other side. She didn't even look all that shocked.

Her eyes were still locked with his as the enemy pushed his foot against her chest and withdrew the weapon. She even offered him a small smile as she closed her eyes and fell back to the ground.

Rage took over as Naruto looked down at her. His eyes were turning red as was the chakra that was pouring out of him. He knew what was happening, it had happened many times before.

The unusual blood lust. The blinding darkness that came and the deafness that didn't allow him to hear when they screamed.

Everything grew dark around him. The bright green color of Zaku's eyes were the last things he remembered seeing. He could feel his body moving. He could feel his claws ripping through skin and taste the blood as it sprayed against his face.

Finally, the darkness was lifted as he felt a shuriken lodge itself into his back. Spinning around, he felt his rage subside as his eyes landed on the signature orbs of the Hyuuga clan.

Neji jumped down beside him, followed by two squads. Naruto didn't speak, he only nodded once before turning around and heading back to Hinata.

He would let Neji take care of Zaku. He was fairly certain he was almost dead anyways. His demon side almost always seemed to kill off the enemy before allowing Naruto to take control again.

Naruto wove his way through the trees, coming back to where Hinata was. Medic-nin were already there and treating the wounds. They had managed to slow the bleeding, but the dark color continued to stain the thick bandages wrapped around her.

Lowering himself beside her, he ran a blood stained hand through her hair. She was shaking, and her forehead was creased in pain. Reaching a hand out he tried to soothe her as best he could.

"Sir, can you please step away? We're going to have to transfer her onto a stretcher and carry her back to the village." One of them spoke, trying to give him a stern and commanding look. His grip only tightened on the Hyuuga heiress.

"No. I'll carry her back." He stated firmly.

"But, you have injuries that need to be treated. You're in no condition to carry her." The other medic protested. He moved to grab Naruto but a harsh voice stopped him.

"Leave him be. He can carry her back if he wants to." Neji ordered, coming up to them. They only nodded before running off, mumbling something about injured people being too stubborn.

"Thank you." Naruto said as he rose with Hinata bundled in his arms.

"Don't thank me. I just happen to know my cousin would much rather come into a village with another shinobi rather than on some stretcher. She's stubborn like that." Neji commented. Naruto only gave him half a smile, his worried eyes still trailing over Hinata.

"You should take her back now. We have to stay behind to do a few things. We'll catch up later." His tone changed from light to commanding as he turned to give orders to his subordinates.

Naruto didn't need to be told twice as he sprinted through the trees and on his way home. He couldn't barely feel her chest rise and fall as she breathed. Her face paling, and her bandages getting redder with every step he took.

Bending down he placed a gentle kiss against her temple before doubling his speed.

xXx

Soft light streamed through the window in the white room. The rays laying across the crisp sheets of the bed.

Hinata opened her eyes dully and taking in the plain white of the ceiling. Blinking a few times she shifted her gaze to the window. Closing her eyes again she brought her hand up to her bandaged head. Her body felt stiff, like she had been laying in this bed for days, but other than that, she felt fine.

"I see her royal majesty is finally awake." Hinata shot up at hearing that voice. Her eyes locked on the figure at the end of her bed as a slow smile took over her features. His bright blonde locks framed his face as he walked around to the side of the bed, his hands in his pockets. Leaning down closer to her, he gave her his chestier smile. "And here I was thinking sleeping beauty would never wake up."

Not long ago, he had spoken the same words. Turning her head away she kept one eye on him as she spoke. "It's too bad this sleeping beauty will never get a kiss from her prince charming."

Turning her face back to him Naruto covered her lips with his in a small and sweet kiss. "There. Better?"

"Hmm…" Hinata moved back a little to look him over. "Well, you're not very princely." She swept over him again. "Or charming."

Naruto was about to argue when she silenced him with a quick kiss. "But I guess you'll do."

He gave her his signature grin as he pushed her back onto the bed rather forcefully. "Now Hinata, you need plenty of bed rest. According to the doctor you're body is still repairing itself." He stated matter of factly as he sat down on the side of the bed. Hinata just rolled her eyes.

"If I were sick would I be able to do this?" Springing up she tackled the young boy to the bed, her top half laying on top of his.

"No." Naruto flipped their positions, he head landing solidly on the pillow. "But you still need to rest." Naruto shifted so his entire body lay on the bed beside her. "But don't worry. I'll give you plenty of time to make out with me later. Although it must be so hard for you to resist me since I'm just so damn sexy." He mocked.

"Yeah. It's killing me on the inside." She deadpanned.

"Good." Naruto gave a sharp nod before moving to give a small kiss to her forehead. Just as his lips made contact the door opened. Both teens looked over to see Hyuuga Neji standing at the door.

A slight smile could be seen before fading away as he address the two. "Hello Hinata-sama. Hello Naruto."

Both gave a hello as Naruto rolled off of the bed. "Well, I'll give you two some quality family time. Baa-chan told me to tell her when you woke up anyways. I'll come back later, ok Hinata?" Naruto left out the door before she could respond, his bright and cheery smile the last thing she saw.

Pulling the sheets off of her Hinata swung her feet off the bed and rested them on the cold tiled floor. "Does father know I'm back?" She asked, her eyes going to meet his.

"Yes. And he requests your presence. The elders have assembled again." Neji paused a moment before continuing. "They already talked to Tsunade about suspending your missions."

"Yeah. I thought they would." She sighed. "Well this sucks." Her reaction somewhat surprised Neji. He had expected her to silently seethe while openly defying the wishes of the clan. But the girl before him was simply swinging her legs while blowing her bangs out of her face.

"There's something else you should know." She gave him her full attention. "You should know this before you see them." He ran a hand through his long brown hair in exasperation. "They've chosen a suitor for you. They're not going to let you get out of it."

Hinata sat in silence for a minute, her eyes focusing to her left. "Ok." Was all she said.

"Hinata-sama. Do you know what that means? They've chosen a husband for you so you can take over the clan. It means you can't be with-" She cut him off.

"I know what it means." Rising from the bed she put her shoes on and walked to her door. Her expression turned stoic as she turned back to her cousin. "Come, Neji. Lets go have a talk with the elders."

Neji followed silently behind his cousin toward the Hyuuga compound. He knew this would happen eventually, they all did. But, he also knew Hinata wasn't the type of person to take it sitting down. That's why he knew she'd make a good leader. That's also why he had no problem following her to his death.

AN: And that's that...I'll be editing the beginning and middle areas of this story since it sucks and I can't stand it. So, if you people happen to get any alerts saying I updated on any chapters up to 14 just ignore them...unless you want to read them, then go ahead. I'll be keeping this in the in-progress section until the editing is complete. And also...as you can see, there will be a sequel to this lovely thing. BUT! It'll be better and easier to write considering the fact that they will NOT be going on a mission! The last update I do will be on ch. 15, telling you what the name of the sequel will be...That's probably what I'll do anyways...so, til then. thank you, and good bye!