Chapter 45

'It must've been him that Kankuro met!'

Feeling every bit like a walking corpse, covered in blood nearly head to toe, Hinata searched his pockets. Once she'd stolen his phone, she unsteadily rushed toward the road and away from the awful house. Her breaths were ragged, each one burning as though the knife had entered her throat and not Ko's.

'He squeezed so hard. There will definitely be a bruise.'

Only when she turned into a dark alleyway two blocks up did the realization of what had just happened hit her. The image of a masked man atop her, actively trying to murder her with his bare hands, was enough to make her light-headed. Hinata was terrified. Adrenaline was the only reason she made it out of that encounter alive.

'I can't faint now. Deidara's life is in my hands.'

She also couldn't ask anyone local for help. She had to stay out of sight because she looked like she just killed someone. The police would be called right away. It'd be nice if they could rescue Deidara, but he'll go to prison if caught up in this. After all those bomb threats as a youth, they'd never allow him to see the light of day. Hiashi clarified that when he gave her those files on Akatsuki's members.

So, Hinata dialed Hidan's number on the old flip phone, obviously a disposable. It rang only once before the man answered, "Who is this?"

'If Deidara and I weren't missing, he probably wouldn't have even answered.' She opened her mouth to speak, only to crouch down to the ground with a hand to her throat when an abrupt pain shot through the area. A quiet squeak was all that sounded.

'I…I don't think I can talk!'

"Speak, or I'm fucking hanging up."

With shaking hands, Hinata texted Hidan without hanging up, 'Help. Can't talk. -H' She also sent a description of her location.

Moments later, the man obviously got the message, "We're on our way. Stay on the line."

Heavy tears flowed freely down Hinata's cheeks as she slid to the ground, back to the brick wall of the alley. With her knees to her chest, she kept glancing between one end to the other; worried someone would look for her after noticing the dead body in the yard.

The sound of Hidan telling the others and them leaving the house brought the woman as much comfort as it did anxiety. Once they were in a vehicle, he asked, "Are you hurt?" When Hinata began texting a reply, the low-battery icon suddenly flashed. The phone died.

Her brow furrowed as she shoved the useless device into her pocket. Now entirely alone, the petrifying terror was rebuilding. The knife in her hand shook as she did, pearl-colored eyes darting around at every tiny sound. Five minutes passed, and goosebumps dusted her skin from head to toe. Ten passed, and she was so scared she was dizzy. By the time half an hour had passed, the woman was almost hyperventilating because Hidan hadn't arrived yet.

'Where are they? Did something happen?' Her body tensed further, if possible, 'What if they were intercepted by the people that attacked us?! They're not dead, right?'

That's when footsteps were heard at one end of the alleyway. Hinata rose into a crouch, the cuts on the pads of her feet blazing with pain. She had to ignore it because it wasn't just her life on the line. 'Is it them, or is it the bad guys?' It was too dark to tell. Even if it wasn't nighttime, Hinata was too frazzled to see straight.

"She wasn't there. Where are the others looking?" An unfamiliar female voice met her ears, seeming to answer her question.

'It's not them! I need to move, or I'll be discovered!'

So, Hinata swallowed the fear and the discomfort. She ran toward the opposite end of the alley as fast as possible.

"Hey!"

Pearl-colored eyes squeezed closed as the woman's voice sounded behind her, 'They're going to catch me.'

Suddenly, the woman ran into something hard, bouncing off and falling to the ground. Her vision and stomach rolled at the sudden change of pace. 'Move. Move. Keep moving!' Half-blinded and disoriented, Hinata struggled to her feet, panting as she tried to run.

"Hinata!" She froze, turning unsteadily to see that no other than Hidan was staring at her with wide eyes.

The knife in her hand slid through her fingers. He caught it, sparing it a glance before shaking his head, "Where are you hurt? Is this your blood?"

A gasp distracted the pair. They turned to see a blond woman with green eyes, followed by Zetsu and Nagato. The latter stepped forward with a pale face, "What happened to you?"

Hinata tried to respond, wincing at the sharp pain raking the inside of her throat, losing her balance with her cut feet and leaning heavily into Hidan's chest.

He wrapped an arm around to steady her, "I need you to fucking answer me, Hinata." She wiped shakily at her cheeks, gesturing at her throat.

Zetsu was the first to understand, "I don't think she can speak."

A car passed on the road, and Hidan moved to block the petite woman from its view, gesturing for everyone to move back into the alleyway they'd stepped out from. Then he gently maneuvered her chin upward to see her neck more clearly. It made her wince, and she stumbled again, fighting with all her might not to faint because she had to pass along the information on Deidara and Gaara.

The man carefully helped her to the ground and knelt between her legs while pulling out his phone, "You're about to pass out, aren't ya? Hurry."

She nodded, typing out a brief explanation of the situation. Just as she returned the device to her boyfriend, Kisame, Itachi, Kakuzu, and Sasori showed up, each more stunned than the last. Sasori was pale and breathless.

He seemed more expressive than ever before as he hurried to his knees beside the couple, "Where's Dei! Why isn't he with you?"

"He was shot in the leg. She escaped to get help. They have Gaara, too," Hidan read the message on his screen with an enraged face.

"Gaara's alive? Oh, thank God!" The blond woman burst into tears, covering her mouth.

'This must be Kankuro and Gaara's sister. I think her name's Temari,' the Hyuuga closed her eyes, trying to rub the drying blood from her face while fighting exhaustion, 'Judging by her response, they must've found Kankuro's body.'

"Stay with me, Princess. Show us which house it is." She nodded, cringing as she was pulled back to her feet and helped onto Hidan's back so he could carry her. Hinata barely managed to stay conscious long enough to do just that, fainting the moment she confirmed they knew all that she did.

It felt like she blinked, and then she was waking once more, 'I'm being carried. Where am I? Did they get Deidara and Gaara? Is everyone safe?'

"-to hide her. It's obvious she was the target. If they get their hands on her one more time, we may never see her again," Konan's concerned voice whispered.

Yahiko responded, just as quietly, "Ultimately, it's up to her to decide."

"I don't give a fuck what she wants. She can hate me for all I care. She's hiding somewhere until we know more," Hidan wasn't relatively as hushed. He sounded ready for murder.

"And what about you?" Kankuro asked, sounding as though he already knew the answer.

"What do you think? I'm gonna find who fucking did this and-" "You're a dumbass if you think she'll listen to anyone but you."

Hidan paused, growling, "Then I'll fucking stay with her, but if I find out you show them any mercy, I'll kick your ass, Old Man."

"You're not the only one that's pissed off, Hidan," Kakuzu warned. "Sasori's likely to massacre anyone involved. Not to mention Itachi."

"And me, damn it!" Konan interrupted, sounding upset, "Do you think I'll just sit around when one of my best friends was hurt, and another is still missing?"

'Still missing? Does that mean they didn't rescue the guys?'

Hinata's fingers twitched, her brow furrowing as she began rousing from her half-awake state. They continued walking, though. "We're almost there. Don't move yet." She nodded, turning her face further toward Hidan's shirt for warmth. 'Someone, please tell me what's going on!'

A minute later, she sensed them pass the threshold of a building, and soon Konan asked, "Should I help her, or…?"

"What do you think? Fuck off," Hidan barked.

The sound of the others leaving came, and Hinata's eyes flickered open. She frowned when she looked up to see Hidan's flexed jaw and severe glare as he carried her into the bathroom, 'They'd usually argue with him for being so rude, but I guess even they can tell that he's not in the mood for it.'

"Can you sit?"

She nodded, straightening her spine as he set her on the edge of the bathroom counter. The girl watched as he wordlessly began running a bath before returning to pull the bloody shirt off over her head.

'My hair feels all crunchy and gross. The blood dried. This is disgusting. I wanna be sick.'

When she was fully undressed, Hidan helped her stand, and she nearly toppled over. He caught her, grumbling, "Don't freak out."

'...Is he talking to me or himself? I can't tell.'

Once in the bath, Hinata woke up further. It was enough for her to feel humiliated at being seen by him like this, 'I want to be alone. I don't want him to look at me when I'm so messed up.' After witnessing her mid-panic attack, the last thing she wanted was for the man to continue seeing her at her worst. She feared he'd become overwhelmed.

Hidan uncharacteristically remained silent as he helped her wash the blood from her hair and body. Tears welled in Hinata's eyes as he rested his chin on his fist, elbow on the edge of the tub when he'd done all he could, and all that was left was to remain nearby in case she needed assistance. He watched her closely. She averted her gaze to the reddened water, massaging conditioner into the ends of her hair while mouthing the name of their missing blonde friend.

"The house was empty when we got there. Don't think about that right now. They'll find him. Worry about yourself."

She pulled the plug in the bath, struggling to her injured feet to turn on the shower so she could rinse herself and the tub one last time of any remnants of blood. The silver-haired man rose, too, and offered a hand for her to grasp onto for balance. She did, feeling every bit as useless as a child.

'I shouldn't feel like this because I'm injured right now, but I can't help it. Deidara's missing, and so is Gaara. Why did I get out and not them? It's not fair.'

After drying off, Hidan wrapped a fluffy bathrobe around the muted woman and carried her to the bed, where he sat cross-legged and pulled one of her feet into his lap, an open first aid kit nearby. 'Are things awkward, or am I just still worked up? Is he angry at me for getting into trouble again? I wish I could tell him I'm sorry, and that I didn't mean for things to end up this way.'

Calloused hands were surprisingly gentle as they cleaned and bandaged the wounds to her feet and palm. After putting the first aid kit away, Hidan disappeared momentarily before returning with a glass of water and some pain medication. He handed them over, "Kisame said to take these and stay in bed."

She nodded, following the vet's orders before climbing under the covers. It was dark outside, but Hinata had no idea what time it was. Hidan soon turned out the lights and joined her. They faced one another, pearl eyes studying magenta ones for a long time in silence.

Eventually, Hidan whispered, not to ruin the calm aura of the room, "We're gonna go away for a while; until things calm down."

She allowed her tears to overflow, nodding sadly. 'I knew this was coming after what they said earlier. As much as I want to stay and help, especially since Ko was involved, I'll only cause more problems at this point. I'm already injured. It'll take a couple of weeks before I can do anything.'

He kissed her, fingers brushing against the bruised skin of her neck, "You're not leaving my sight. This shit isn't going to happen to you again." Hinata sniffled, brow furrowing uneasily as the touch against her throat brought memories of what happened to mind. "I promise, so don't be fucking scared. Not of me."

'I wish I could tell him I love him,' the woman nodded again, scooting closer to him and closing her eyes when he wrapped his arms around her, 'I won't let Ko ruin the trust I've built with Hidan. He isn't allowed to taint that for us.'