Naruto's Labyrinth

Chapter 7

Well, here we are, at the end of things, and I still don't own Naruto or Labyrinth.

Hinata found herself feeling like she was floating as they lowered her to the ground floor of the castle's stair room. Once she touched down, she began to run, only to be stopped by a wall of sand.

"Miss Hyuuga," the Sandman said, dropping the sand wall as he looked her in the eyes, "Do be careful. He is in pain, a pain which I believe only you can heal. No matter what he says, do not be deterred. Now GO!"

Hinata ran, trying to find Naruto. He needed her. She ran and ran, searching room after room, trying to find him, yet, no matter where she looked, she could not find him. Still, she pressed on.

She stood in the hallway after checking through the ninetieth door she had come across and began to think. Where would a Demon King, vanquished in his own Labyrinth, a creation he had painstakingly built only to be defeated by six words, want to seek solace? There was only one possible place he could be when she looked at it that way.

She rushed to the throne room, the very entrance of the Castle and saw him slouching on his throne, a slump to his shoulders, a slouch in his posture. He looked the very image of a broken man, one who had nothing left to him. He didn't seem cocky, eager to take on the world, nor did he seem satisfied, willing to bask in the moment. He just looked miserable. She definitely needed to help him. Anything to offer solace to the broken figure in that throne.

Tentatively, she edged closer to him, not wanting to startle him, as he still had that red aura around him. She stuck out her hand, readying to touch his shoulder, get him to acknowledge her presence, that she was there to help.

Just when she was about to make contact, she pulled, hearing a rasping voice coming out of his throat as he said, "Come back to gloat? Well, here I am! Look at me: the Demon King, bested by a few words. I offered you everything, but you ignored me, spurned me. Your eyes are so cruel, as I can be. I would have given you anything you wanted, but you didn't care. I worked all of this time, trying to make you the perfect world, but you didn't want anything to do with me. You rejected me. Six. Words. That was all it took. You said them so easily. Did I really mean so little to you as to be worth six words? I thought... I thought... Never mind. It's nothing. Go away. I don't want you here."

"No, Naruto-kun," she said, standing her ground, "I'm not leaving you alone. Not again."

"Why?! What more is there of me for you to take?!" he shouted, his eyes burning red, "You took my world and smashed it to pieces! I built you this Labyrinth and you passed through it without any care! I pulled you out of danger as best I could, and you just kept pressing on without thinking of how much it took for me to help you secretly. You wanted a villain to shout at when the rules forced me to take your sister, and I was frightened. I bent over backwards just to help you through. Don't you realize you've beaten me? You've triumphed! My entire Labyrinth was too easy for you, my kingdom too unimportant, my love worth too little! You've won everything you could possibly want from me! I can't give you anything else! Why aren't you satisfied?! Why did you have to come back?!"

His anger spent, he let her go and shoved her back weakly before she grabbed his shoulder gently, and said, "Because I remember a boy with whiskers who needed someone to help him up one day. When the girl who tried to help him was shoved to the ground, he moved to defend her. Yes, I still remember that day. You were so cheerful, even when they hit you, until I was thrown down. Then I said those words, so concerned with the possibility of losing Hanabi that I didn't think that you could be hurt by it. You're hurt, and you feel such anger over the entire situation, from opening up to me to getting beaten. I admired the details of your Labyrinth. I felt how much it pained you to be my antagonist. You kept trying to tell me something important, but it kept getting lost in all of the chaos of your attempts to court me. You did all of this, and I am grateful, but you didn't need to do it. Don't you understand? I didn't need such a lavish attempt. I didn't need any wishes, or any Labyrinths. I would have been glad if you had gone up to me and asked me if I would like to spend time with you."

Naruto let out a light chuckle and looked at Hinata, his eyes fading to blue one again and his vulpine features fading into a more human appearance as he said, "I made a mess of things, didn't I? I even did what Gaara did when he thought he could never be with Matsuri. That was dumb of me. Why don't I make it up to you?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, "Aren't I the one who hurt you?"

"Yes, but you came back," he said, a light blush dusting his cheeks, "You couldn't possibly know how much that meant to me. I had to stay in my seat just to prevent myself from leaping at you and kissing you when you first entered."

"That's not fair," she smiled, grabbing the collar of his jacket, "You purposefully resisted me from the start."

"You say that it was unfair, but I can't help but wonder what's your basis for comparison," he teased, wrapping his arms around her, "How did you even get here?"

"I have my ways," she returned with a gentle smile as she returned the embrace.

He gave a sigh of content as he pulled her closer to him, tightening the embrace. She pulled back slightly and looked deep into his eyes, which showed joy, peace, and love. She smiled as they both leaned in for a kiss. He was never going to be lonely again, not if she could help it.