Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Winds Of Change ❯ Chapter Five: Punishments ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter Five: Punishment

 

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. Masashi Kishimoto does. I just make them do naughty things.

 

After returning to the Hyuuga grounds both Hikari and Hinata were lucky enough to be allowed to sleep for a few hours before they had to start their punishments. As soon as the girls entered their respective room Hiashi ordered Neji to start cleaning, stating that he would receive his new punishment with the girls later in the afternoon.

 

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Hikari was woken up by a timid knock at the door at one thirty.

“Come in!” she called, expecting it to be Hinata.

“Hikari?” Neji said to her surprise.

“Yeah?” she said sitting up sleepily.

“My Uncle is requesting you downstairs. He wants you and Hinata to eat before we start our punishments.”

“Won't you be joining us?”

“I already ate. I have to clean your room first anyway.”

“Umm okay, just let me get dressed and I'll be right down.”

Neji nodded and left the room. Hikari realized she felt bad for him as she dressed for a day of cleaning. She could tell he was lying to her. He probably wasn't allowed to eat until he had finished all of his punishments. She had used that stoic expression herself too many times to be fooled by it.

After eating, Hikari made her way to the branch house to start cleaning, while Hinata left to do some kind of training with a woman named Anko.

 

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When Hinata got to the bridge Anko was already there waiting for her. Her small features and womanly figure were deceptive of the young woman's true personality. Anko was a genuine hard-ass that had a reputation for not taking any shit from anyone.

Hinata swallowed the lump in her throat, she didn't know what her Father wanted her to train in but she felt her nerves take over as soon as she saw Anko. This wasn't going to be easy. She shifted her gaze to the ground as she fidgeted under Anko's intense stare.

“Look at me Hinata!” Anko commanded.

Hinata met her gaze only for a moment before her eyes flickered to the left. “Yes sensei?” she said meekly.

“Starting now we will be working on building up your confidence. You Father tells me it's been a problem for awhile, says everyone pushes you around. I even heard that was the reason you got mixed up in all that drinking last night. Well that's all going to stop now! Understand?”

“Yes sensei,” Hinata squeaked.

“I won't be finished with you until you learn to say no and stand up for yourself. Now for starters no one is ever going to take you seriously when you can't even maintain eye contact. Do I make my self clear?”

“Yes sensei.”

“I can't hear you,”

Yes this definitely was not going to be easy.

 

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Neji was almost finished cleaning Hikari's room, it wasn't that the room was dirty it was that his uncle wanted the room immaculate. Everything had been returned to its proper place, he had swept under the bed, washed the floor and cleaning the windows. All he had left to do now was the bathroom. Once finished, it was time to start his new punishment of giving the family cat, Gin, a bath. The task seemed simple enough but it wasn't. Gin didn't like Neji and was always trying to scratch him any time he cam close.

He started rinsing Gin off when his Uncle informed him that several neighbors had requested that he give their cats baths as well. It was going to be a long painful day.

 

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Hikari was disgusted. It wasn't that she hated cleaning, she could care less. Not all on the rooms in the branch house were dirty either. In fact most of them were spotless. She was disgusted by the living conditions of the branch house when compared to that of the members of the main house. All of the bedrooms were only big enough for a bed and a dresser. All of the women shared one bathroom and the men another. She wondered whether her Aunt knew about any of this and if she could find a way to change things.

Hikari left the bathrooms for last. The women's bathroom was decently clean and she didn't have to spend much time in there. The men's room was a whole different story. Hikari doubted it had ever been cleaned before. A part of her wondered how Neji or any of the other men for that matter could bare it. The smell alone made her want to gag. It took her two and a half hours to clean that room alone. At the end of day, feeling exhausted and nauseous, she vowed to herself that she would continue to clean the men's room in the branch house even after her punishment was through.

 

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Hinata finally got home at six o'clock that evening. She was in the kitchen making some dinner when Hikari came in.

“Hikari would you like something to eat?” she asked.

“No, I'm afraid it'll take awhile to get me appetite back after cleaning that bathroom.”

“It was what bad?”

“Worse,” she forced a smile, “How'd your training go?”

“I'd rather not talk about it. Did you see Neji nii-san before you left?

“No.”

“He's probably still out back, let's bring him something to eat.”

“Okay just let me get changed, I'm this smell will stay with these clothes forever.”

Within minutes Hikari was ready to go. Out back Neji was still hard at work. With only two cats left his arms were covered in blood from the numerous scratch marks. The small cuts burned from the soapy water causing him to cringe.

“Want some help?” Hikari offered.

“I'm fine, why don't you guys head over to the picnic table, I'll join you in a few minutes.”

Hikari passed the message on to Hinata before running inside to get rubbing alcohol, cotton swabs, medical tape and gauze. She came back just as Neji sat down. When he saw what she was carrying he jumped back up.

“Its fine I don't need anything,” he said quickly.

“Neji, God knows if those cats had anything, those cuts should be cleaned before infection has a chance to set in,” Hikari said soothingly as she tried to ease his obvious discomfort.

“I said I was fine, I'll clean then them up later,” he insisted.

“Neji, sit down, shut up, and let me take care of these cuts before I stab you with this fork,” Hikari ordered and she grabbed the fork off of the table.

Neji's eyes widened in surprise giving Hikari an opportunity to shove him back onto the bench. She then soaked a cotton ball in the alcohol and began to dab at his left arm. Neji hissed in pain and glared at her, but made no move to get away.

“Hinata can you start on his right arm?”

As Hinata moved to help, Neji shot her a glare as well, which Hikari caught, so she put more pressure on his arm.

“Oww, what'd you do that for?”

“You know why, now stop glaring, we're only trying to help.”

In the time it took to get him all cleaned up, Hikari caught a few more glares directed at them. Each time this happened she pushed harder.

“Now that wasn't so bad was it?” Hikari asked when she was done.

Neji was silent. He didn't want to prove her right. It had hurt like a bitch, yet it wasn't as painful as other wounds he had sustained over the years. It was just the shear numbers that had made it almost unbearable.

“Now you can eat,” Hikari said passing him the dinner Hinata had prepared for him.

“I'm not hungry,” he muttered.

“Aww you're so cute sulking like that,” Hikari teased. “Now seriously, Hinata went through the trouble of making you dinner so you had better eat it.”

Neji looked at her, she had a looking in her eyes that told him she wasn't about to back down. It was the same look she had had when she had brought out the rubbing alcohol. There would be no point in arguing with her. He picked up his fork; the same one Hikari had threatened him with, and began to eat.

“Why aren't you eating?” he asked Hikari.

“Because your bathroom was gross, it made me lose my appetite.”

Neji laughed, “I would've expected you to have a stronger stomach.”

Hikari hit him playfully, “I do have a strong stomach, but that place smelled like a massacre occurred inside.”

“Hinata, Hikari the two of you did well today, why don't you come inside and get cleaned up. Hanabi just went to pick up a few movies, you girls can relax for awhile before you sleep,” Hiashi called from the back door. “Neji you should rest up as well,” he added as an after thought.

Hikari sighed, she was really starting to hate that man, “Well I guess its goodnight Neji,” she said placing her hand on his shoulder and letting it linger a bit longer that necessary. “Promise me you'll clean those again before you go to sleep, or I'll do it myself tomorrow.”

“Okay I will.”

“Promise?”

“I promise,” he answered with a small smile.

“Goodnight Neji nii-san,” Hinata said quietly.

“Goodnight Hinata-sama, Hikari.”

Neji made his way back to the branch house deep in thought. He had seen it in her eyes if only for a second. It wasn't pity, it was understanding, the very thought was refreshing, so many looked at him with either pity or disgust in their eyes. Very few seemed to understand him. Yet Hikari understood him after such a short time, it made him respect her.

 

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The next week passed slowly for Hikari there wasn't much that interested her anymore. She was growing restless being unable to leave the grounds. To top things off she seemed to have misplaced her medication. She could have used that as a valid excuse to leave the grounds if her Aunt had known about the pills. However she didn't and she meant to keep it that way. Also her prescription wasn't up for another two weeks anyway. She had made so much progress that she decided she could survive the three weeks without them, big mistake, confinement was taking its toll and had brought her to the edge once more. So she took out her frustrations the only way she knew how, after all the only one in the village that knew her secret was Uncle Jiraiya, and it wasn't likely he would notice the change in her behavior. As long as she was careful no one would.

Something was wrong with Hikari and Neji wanted to know what it was. He knew Hinata had noticed the change as well, but also knew she'd never confront Hikari. So that left him alone. She had become withdrawn; she left her room only to do her chores. Hinata had told him she rarely came down for meals anymore and when she did she barely touched her food. The bags under her eyes said she wasn't sleeping well. He was on his way over to the main house right now. Her confinement to the grounds was over now and he planned to take her out somewhere to try and get her spirits up before he asked any questions.

Neji knocked on the door and Hikari opened a moment later.

“Hi Neji come on in,” she said with a fake smile plastered on her face. “No one's here right now, I think they were going out to dinner and movie.”

“That's fine. I was just wondering if you'd like to go grab a bite to eat, I know a really good sushi place. We can celebrate the end of your punishment.”

At first it looked as though she would protest but then she nodded and followed Neji out. After dinner he took her to a small tea house where they could talk privately.

“Are you okay Hikari? You've seemed a little distant the last few days.”

“It's nothing. I'll be fine now just a bit of cabin fever, being cooped up too long. I'm not used to that. I like solitude but I'm used to being able to move around freely too, with no confines.

“Surely you had some rules back home.”

“Not really, my Mom knew I could take care of myself thanks to my Uncles. So she didn't worry too much.” It came out naturally, the excuse, it was partially true anyway, she hated being cooped up and it did tend to make her a little stir crazy.

Hikari quickly street the conversation away from herself and onto more trivial matters. Shortly after she claimed she was tired and they headed back. Once in the relative safety of you own room she berated herself, `How could I be so stupid, no one was supposed to notice. I hope he bought that damn story.' She got undressed and slipped under the covers, she was exhausted, and lately she found she had no energy. No matter how much she slept she never felt rested.

 

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Neji found himself standing outside Hikari's door for a second night in a row. Only this time Hinata had asked him to. Hikari hadn't eating anything today and the one time she had actually opened the door she had looked sick. When Hinata had offered to call a doctor Hikari had insisted it was nothing and said that she would just sleep it off.

“Hikari please open the door, I need to talk to you,” he called.

“Can't you come back later, I'm trying to sleep.”

“Look I'll only take a few minutes of your time please let me in.”

“Fine.”

Neji heard a bit of shuffling around and the door was finally opened. Neji stepped in and shut the door behind him. He looked at Hikari, she was almost as whit as a sheet and her eyes looked even more sunken than before. The room itself looked as if a tornado had ripped through. Clothes were everywhere, the desk drawers had been dumped out, the sheets had been ripped off the bed, and the mattress had been moved as well.

“Are you going to stand there all night or do you have something to say?” she asked impatiently.

“What happened in here, it looks like a war zone?”

“I lost something I was trying to find it.” It was the truth after all.

“What on earth could be so important that you'd have to tear the room apart?”

“It doesn't matter anymore, now what can I do for you?” Hikari started to sway on her feet as if she would collapse any moment.

“I really think you should see a doctor, or at the very least your aunt.”

“No! I don't need a doctor I——,” she didn't get to finish what she was saying because she collapsed.

Thanks to Neji's quick reflexes he was able to catch her before she hit the ground. He quickly placed her on the bed and was reaching for the phone when she grabbed he arm.

“Please don't call anyone,” she had a look of desperation in her eyes.

Neji relented, “Fine I won't call anyone, but I'm staying here until your better.”

She was too tired to argue so she merely nodded before passing out. It was then that Neji saw blood. It was leaking out from under her right arm band. He gently removed is to discover multiple cuts of varying depths on her arm all a safe distance away from her major veins. Most of the cuts were no more than three days old although he could see scars from long ago.

`So this is what you're hiding.' Neji removed her other arm band only to find the same thing. Neji went into the bathroom the retrieve the same items Hikari had used on him last week. Gently so that he wouldn't wake her, he began to clean her wounds. Just as he finished there was a knock on the door.

Neji opened it to find Hinata standing there, “Is everything okay? Neji nii-san?”

“She'll be fine, I think it's just the flu, I'll stay with her until she's feeling better,” he explained.

“Is there anything I can get for her?”

“Just water for now.”

“Alright I'll be back in a moment.”

Neji closed the door. He felt bad about lying to his cousin but he didn't want to betray Hikari's trust either. He had promised after all that he would call anyone. So for now he would keep quiet, he would help her himself and if that failed he would insist that she seek help. True to her word Hinata returned with a few bottles of water. Neji closed the door once more, wrapped Hikari's arms and set about putting her room back in order. Once everything was back in its proper place Neji pulled a chair next to the bed and watched over her until sleep finally claimed him as well. He couldn't figure it out, why did he care so much? Why did she have such a strong effect on him? When she was around everything changed, he felt at ease around her, like he could relax at last. She made him laugh, could match wits with him and it seemed like she could control him, like that day with the cat baths. She had awoken feeling in him that he had never felt before yet these new feelings didn't scare him. He could almost feel the wall he had erected to keep people out crumbling when she was around, and he welcomed it. Now saw was falling apart in from of his eyes and he wanted to help her pick up the pieces. He couldn't lose her so soon after finding her.

 

~AN- So here's the next chapter I just could stop typing, PLEASE read and REVIEW while I'm working on the next chapter Healing and a Gift, its only half done right now. So it'll be a little longer for the update……probably, I could still REALLY use a new beta reader too.~