Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Protector	By : djserani Category: Naruto > Het - Male/Female Views: 1759 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, and I do not make any money from these writings.

Chapter List
- 35
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As soon as they were out of sight of Mondai, Hinata broke into a chakra-infused run. She skidded around the corner of the house and straight over to where Sakura was tending Tenten. Tears ran down her face as she knelt next to them.
"Is she going to be okay? What about the baby? Oh, Ten, I'm so sorry!" She felt Neji kneel behind her and put an arm around her waist.
"She'll be fine, calm down. I need to check you over." Sakura's no-nonsense words helped to calm Hinata down a little. Tenten looked as if she had a black necklace on, the bruises went all the way around.
"No, no, I'm fine! Just take care of her." Tenten took Hinata's hand and smiled.
"I'm fine," she croaked. She coughed and Lee helped her sip at some water. She swallowed several times. "I'll be just fine and so will the baby. Really."
Sakura leaned over and got into Hinata's face. "Sit. Back. Do you want anything to happen to the babies?"
Hinata leaned back against Neji and Sakura's hands glowed green once more as she ran them first over her abdomen, then up over her lungs and throat. "The babies will be fine, but you're going to need to rest for a couple of days. No, don't argue," Sakura cut in when Hinata opened her mouth. "You've inhaled a lot of smoke and it's not good for the little ones."
That took the wind out of Hinata's sails. She closed her mouth and nodded. "Okay. How about the rest? How many�" she took a shaky breath as things started to crash in on her. "How many are injured?"
"We lost three in the rush to get out of the courtyard. There were four older folks who took in too much smoke." Sakura paused to gather herself. "We've started moving the more serious ones to the hospital. There are probably a dozen or so of them. As for the rest, everyone here is okay or will be shortly. I've got to go see to them." She patted Hinata's hand and stood up to move over to the other injured.
Hinata looked around to see all of the people sitting in small groupings along the path and under the trees. The children were quiet, clinging to their mothers or grandmothers. Some of the women wept quietly. Hinata had to tamp down on the anger that was boiling.
She sighed and closed her eyes. "How bad is the damage? Have you seen Yamato?"
Lee cleared his throat. "I have. I believe he said that the main house was a loss. There was also some fairly bad damage to the branch house, but that is all I know. I am so glad you are okay, Hinata-chan." He looked down, a blush staining his cheek.
Hinata reached out and took one hand and smiled. "It takes a bit more than that to get me." She looked back down at Tenten. "I'm so sorry I put you in danger like that, Ten."
"Stop it. I'd rather have been there. I'm certainly not one that could have sat back and wrung my hands, waiting. Uh uh, no way." She smiled and looked over at Ino and Temari who were moving from group to group with water. "You should have heard Temari complaining. She cursed Shikamaru so many different ways for getting her pregnant." She giggled, then coughed again.
Hinata smiled. "I can believe it." She closed her eyes and laid her head back against Neji. Then she sat up abruptly. "Neji! Did you have Sakura look you over??"
"Stop. I'm fine. It's no different then the hits I take when we spar. I'm fine." He kissed her forehead. "Really." He said, when she looked like she wouldn't believe him.
She closed her eyes and leaned back against him once more, soaking in the rest for just a few minutes before she stood up. She found her father and made sure he was okay. He, too, had taken some hits, but nothing he wouldn't get over. His illness was far more of a worry, but Sakura said that even with that, he'd be okay.
None of the other shinobi had any injuries to worry about. Hinata spoke with Sakura about the clan members in the hospital and she said she'd be sure to get a list for her so Hinata could be sure of who made it and who didn't. She would also need to know if anyone was missing.
Yamato, though exhausted, volunteered to put together temporary housing for as many of the clan members as he could. Happy that that much was taken care of, she and Neji moved from group to group to see if there was anything they could do and to talk to as many as they could. There would be a lot of clean up and work to do, but for that day, there wasn't much left.
Lee and Tenten suggested that they stay with them for a couple of days, and even argued that it was closer to the Hokage's office and market areas so that they could do what needed to be done to rebuild easier. When Neji and Hinata hesitated, Hiashi chimed in. "If you're worried about someone being there, you're not far. And I'll stay here. Not that I think anything more will happen, at this point. It's over. Go with your friends, sleep in a good bed and get the rest you need."
Hinata gave in, but only after she made sure everyone got settled. When she was sure that everyone had a place to sleep and had visited the clan members in the hospital, she and Neji joined Lee and Tenten in their small apartment.
It was very small - only one bedroom and wouldn't be enough for them when they had the baby. It was well kept, but very indicative of the two who lived there. It wasn't decorated or anything. In fact their "living room" was obviously used for little more than weapons and scroll storage. There was a fighting dummy in one corner and one entire wall on the long end of the room was taking up with targets. It was so Lee and Tenten that Hinata laughed.
She stood uncertainly for a moment. Tenten grabbed her hand and dragged her into the bathroom. "Let's get you cleaned up." She helped her strip out of her clothes and stepped into the shower with her. She washed Hinata's hair and helped her scrub the blood and soot and muck from the long day.
Hinata returned the favor, helping Tenten wash away everything, too. When they were done, they spent a few minutes just hugging each other under the warm spray of water. Hinata sighed. "Let's go, the guys need to shower, too."
Tenten nodded and they dried off. Hinata stifled a yawn, but she wasn't quite good enough at it. It was still early, but after the day they'd had, she was exhausted. Tenten led her into the bedroom, where there was very little except one dresser under the window and a large bed that took up most of the rest of the room.
Tenten blushed. "We don't spend a lot of time here. It's not much of a home�" she trailed off.
Hinata smiled. "I know what you mean. We never got around to decorating our suite. We spent too much time on our research and stuff. Then we went on the trip and�well�you know what I mean. Life of a ninja, huh?"
Tenten nodded. "Yeah, I know what you mean." She yawned behind her hand. "Wow, I'm beat, too. Let's get some rest. Do you want a shirt or something? I think we should burn your other clothes�"
"I'll get something in the morning. I've slept naked with you and Lee before�" suddenly, the exhaustion was overwhelming and she swayed on her feet.
"Let's get in bed." Tenten took Hinata's arm and guided her to one side. They climbed in together, snuggled up and were asleep almost immediately.
Not long after, Neji and Lee joined them, curling around their wives. Neither man fell asleep for a long time, however, their minds on the events of the day.

* * *
It came to him overnight. In the long hours he'd lain awake, his mind turning over everything that had happened and everything that needed to be done. The clan needed their leadership now more than ever, and they could be there to give it. And they could have what they wanted most.
He'd finally figured that out, too. It was not and probably would never be the exact same thing the he felt for Hinata, but he loved Tenten. Even Lee, in an odd way, though that was more brotherly than anything. By the way that Lee held onto Hinata's hand throughout the night, he suspected Lee felt the same way.
It was an odd situation they found themselves in, but he thought he finally had found a way to make it work. So, much later, when the others woke up, he brought it up first to Hinata. While Lee and Tenten were showering, they sat over tea.
Hinata sighed. "There's so much to do. I'm not even sure if I know where to start." She stared down into her tea cup, willing the steamy liquid to show some wisdom.
Neji held her hand. "We'll take it one step at a time. We can talk to Tsunade-sama and see what she can do. I'm sure she'll get us some help. The clan finances are just fine, even after rebuilding, so we'll be okay there. But before we begin, I had a thought about the rebuilding."
He paused. After everything they'd been through, everything they'd come to mean to each other and everything she'd done to make him feel like her equal in the clan, he still hesitated. "We're dissolving the lines between main and branch, right? What if we didn't build another 'main' house?"
Hinata looked up at him, taking in his pensive look and the weariness etched around his eyes. She suspected he hadn't slept much the night before. "What did you have in mind, then?"
"What if, well, what if we built individual houses, for the most part? And�a school. To teach the Gentle Fist to the clan members. I was thinking that if we handle it right, we could build a nice house for us and the children and maybe attached to it or immediately next door, we could build one for Lee and Ten."
Throughout his speech, Hinata's smile grew. "Oh, Neji! That's a wonderful idea!" She jumped up and wrapped her arms around his neck.
He pulled her into his arms, cuddling her close. "Then, as our best friends, they could be close without people wondering. If it's attached or there's a hallway or courtyard or whatever, we could come and go as much as we wanted without worry."
Hinata sat up as a thought came to her. "Would they accept it? I mean, I think, for everything they've done for us, it's not even enough of a thank you, but�they might feel different." Her brow furrowed in worry.
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. In the mean time, let's talk to them and see what they say. It sounds like they're out of the shower now." He smiled and motioned for her to go ahead of him into the other room.
* * *
"No. no no no no no. No way we could take that." Tenten was shaking her head. Lee was still staring, openmouthed, at Neji.
"Do you�" Hinata paused. She'd thought they'd want to be near them. But maybe she was assuming too much. "Do you not want to be that close?" Hinata stared down at her feet and realized she was twisting her fingers together. She hadn't felt this nervous since she tried to talk to Naruto way back when�
"OH! Hina, no! That's not it!" Tenten grabbed her hands and pulled her to her. "I'm sorry! It's just�too much!"
"Yes, Hinata-chan, it is just that it is too much!" Lee exclaimed.
"We don't think so. You need a bigger place. If we could, we'd have you just live with us, but that's a bit much for the clan to take." He chuckled. "Where would you put a baby here?" He asked, indicating the tiny apartment.
Tenten glanced around at the bedroom. There was obviously no room for even a cradle or crib, much less the myriad of other things a baby needed. "We hadn't really had a chance to talk about it yet." She looked at Lee.
"We will find a bigger place when things calm down." He smiled and stuck his thumb out in a frighteningly perfect imitation of his teacher.
Neji rolled his eyes. "If you just take what we're offering, there's no need to." He paused. "First off, you two have already done so much for Hinata and I. Secondly, you can earn it, if you feel the need."
Hinata glanced sharply at Neji. Then she realized what he was doing. "Yes! Help us. Help us with all the things that we're going to need to do. We must go through everything, see what i salvageable, all the cleanup. We'll have to rebuild and then move! There's so much to do."
Lee and Tenten passed a look between themselves that said they knew, quite clearly, what they were trying to do. But it was an out, a way they could take it and not feel bad. Tenten grinned. "Okay, deal. But only if we can help." She threw her arms around Hinata. "Will you guys stay with us until the new places are built? Pleeeeeeeeeease!!"
Neji chuckled. "I don't see why not. It could get crowded, but I expect we'll be spending most of our time over at the compound anyway."
"YAY!!" Tenten punched a fist in the air in celebration and Lee gave another of his sensei's trademark grins.
* * *
Tsunade wouldn't let them pay for help with the compound. She sent most of the shinobi over to help clear out the debris and start the rebuilding process. They'd put the plans together for what the new compound would look like and the clan members were amazed at the changes that took place daily.
There were still a few that seemed unsure of the changes and the new direction that the clan was going, but no one could argue with the idea of their own houses. They spent a good deal of time working out the plans and figuring out how best to fit everything together in the space they had. They ended up being given an entire corner of the newly built-up section of Konoha.
Hinata and Neji's house was built on one end of the compound, with Lee and Tenten's house attached to it. They shared a courtyard in front, a big back yard and, unknown to most, there was a doorway built into the inner wall that connected the homes. There was also a huge garden for Hinata to grow flowers and a training ground for them all to practice in.
The school occupied another corner of the compound. Hiashi had asked to be allowed to run it, claiming it would give him something to do in his "retirement." He took pride in working with the youngsters in the clan, teaching them all what they would need to be fine shinobi, if that is what they wanted to do.
Neji and Hinata took turns teaching until Hinata couldn't move much anymore. They had removed the brands, taking care to not overdo it. Hiashi had also helped in that, so that it could be taken care of sooner.
* * *
Another scream ripped through the air and Neji had to fight to keep from flinching. As it was, his right thumb was completely purple, having long ago lost any blood flow to the appendage. He'd counted at least seven times that Hinata had sworn to never have any more children with him. She was up to seventeen different expletives and at least three dozen promises to never let him in her bed again. He was, apparently, supposed to sleep on the porch, unless the babies needed to be changed.
He took it all in stride. If all he had to do was put up with a bit of verbal abuse for the pain she was going through, he'd gladly do it over and over again. In fact, he figured he was getting off pretty easy, considering.
"Okay, here's the first one. One more push, Hinata, come on!" Sakura encouraged her.
"YOU push! I'm done! They can stay in there forever!!" She panted, trying to catch her breath from the last horrible contraction.
"Breathe, Koishii. Like Sakura-chan taught us." He rubbed her back with his free hand and started breathing with her.
He held her up as she struggled to push once more. "That's it! The head is out. Hold on, one second!" Sakura cleared the baby's mouth out. "Okay, last push for this one!"
Hinata took another breath and, using Neji for leverage, pushed one more time. And angry scream came from somewhere in the vicinity of between her legs. "It's a boy!" Sakura announced.
Hinata looked up and gave Neji a tired smile. "Hizashi." Neji kissed her tenderly and nodded. Just then, another contraction hit and she screamed again. This time, Neji did flinch.
"Okay, the other one's coming out. Come on, Hinata, I know you're tired, but push!" Sakura quickly handed the infant off to a waiting nurse and turned back to Hinata.
Once more, Hinata strained and pushed. Pausing to take a breath, she closed her eyes. "You can do it, koishii! I'm so proud, you're doing wonderfully!" Hinata had to bite back a reply as she opened her eyes and pushed again.
"And that's the second head! Okay�" Sakura cleared the second baby's mouth and then told Hinata to push just one more time. "Then it'll be over, really!"
One last push and the second baby was out. "It's a girl!!" Sakura crowed. She cleaned the baby off a bit and handed it off to another nurse who whisked off to clean it up.
A few minutes later, Sakura had cleaned her up and each of them was holding a baby. "What should we name her?" Neji asked her.
"Hikari." She gazed at her daughter, asleep for the time being. She smiled.
"Light�very appropriate." Neji gazed at his infant son. "Thank you. They're beautiful. I couldn't have asked for more beautiful children."
Hinata blushed. "It's because of you that they are."
Neji chuckled. "Not likely." He stopped as a loud noise erupted in the hallway. Tenten's own son, Midori was going to wake up if someone didn't do something. Neji set Hizashi carefully in the hospital bassinette and went to the door.
On the other side stood a bawling Gai-sensei. Neji slipped out into the hallway, but just as he was about to close the door, three infant voices let loose all at once in ear-splitting wails. He sighed and went back in. Tenten had Midori, Lee was holding Hizashi and Hinata had just pushed a nipple into Hikari's mouth.
Neji took Hizashi from Lee and sat in the rocker to try to calm him. "How wonderful! The power of youth! Such beautiful children! And my whole team in one place!!" There were streams of tears running down his cheeks. He held a huge bundle of balloons in one hand and a bag in the other. Behind him were two more bags that seemed, at first, to float in mid air until Gai tied the strings of the balloons to the end of one of the beds.
Kakashi leaned to one side, his one eye crinkled. "Yo," he said cheerfully. "Where do you want these?"
Lee jumped up to take them from Kakashi and set them on the floor by the one bed. "Thank you, Kakashi-sensei!!"
"None of that sensei stuff. You guys have long since surpassed us. Besides, you managed something neither of us ever did."
Lee gave him a puzzled look. "What is that, Kakashi-sensei?"
"I told you�never mind. You managed to reproduce." His eye crinkled even more in obvious amusement.
Lee blushed bright red and both women laughed. Neji snickered and stood up. He took the bag that Gai was holding with one hand and handed Hizashi to him.
The alarm on Gai's face was comical. He held Hizashi so awkwardly, as if he'd never seen a baby before. As Neji thought about it, it's very likely he'd steered very far away from them until now. Kakashi laughed until Lee handed Midori to him.
His eye widened and he tried to give him back. "I don't do babies!" He said quickly, but Lee just went and sat back down. It was almost as funny watching Kakashi try to handle a baby as Gai.
Neji had an idea. "So, what's the latest contest?" He helped Gai hold Hizashi the right way and within a moment or two, he seemed to be much more at ease with him. Neji turned to Kakashi, but he'd lived up to his nickname and copied Gai's movements and was now looking much more comfortable with Midori.
"Rock, paper, scissors. My esteemed rival here does not seem to lose it somehow!" Gai exclaimed. The noise startled Hizashi, who opened his eyes and stared, wide-eyed, at the blob that was Gai. Thankfully, their sensei got the hint and quieted down.
"Well, how about this? The next time one of you loses, you have to baby-sit. Alone." Neji grinned wickedly.
Both men stared for a moment at Neji as if he'd lost his mind. Then Gai, ever the optimist, said, "of course! That is perfect! What wonderful training!"
Kakashi looked at him and Neji was sure he was wondering if Gai didn't need to be in the ward a few floors up, the one where they locked you in. Neji snickered and the ladies both laughed. "I think that's a great idea, Gai-sensei!" Tenten grinned, but Kakashi looked truly scared.
"I guess this means I need to win for a while. Hm�" He looked thoughtfully at Gai, but Midori decided he wanted attention then, and started to fuss. "Um, I think that's my cue. They're beautiful kids. Congrats." And with that, he handed Midori over to Lee and disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Gai held Hizashi a while longer before giving him back to Neji and turned to his bags. He handed one to Lee and Tenten and two to Neji and Hinata. "Oh, Gai-sensei, you shouldn't have�" there was laughter in Tenten's voice. She pulled out a tiny green spandex jumpsuit and Hinata had a feeling she knew what was in their bags.
"It was my pleasure! I am so proud of my students!" He grinned and stuck his thumb out. Hinata was sure she could hear the 'ting!'
"No, really, Gai, you shouldn't have�" Neji was staring in dread at the pair of matching green jumpsuits in Hinata's hands.
"Really, it is the least I can do! I can not wait to train them!"
Neji had a feeling he was going to go gray very very quickly.
- 35
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- 37
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