Black Light (Naruto)

Chapter 33

Hello! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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Hikaru lay in his training ground, his eyes closed, the grass whispering against his cheek. While it was a bit dangerous to be like this- open and somewhat honest with his body language, dozing off in the middle of a deadly forest- Hikaru couldn't bring himself to care. 

It had been so long since he'd been able to just relax like this. It had been even longer since he'd laid down without worrying about anything- not the war, not what he would do, not even himself. 

And he wasn't filled with the urge to move like he had been when he'd first arrived, so Hikaru found himself slowing down. Everything had gotten a bit sharper, louder and easier to pick up. He had constant headaches, and he couldn't bring himself to walk through the village without wincing at the noise.

So he rested, his muscles relaxing for the first time in awhile. It was peaceful- the birds not quite singing, no genin to distract him, nobody knew where exactly he was. He would be unbothered. 

Hikaru let his eyes flit open as something landed on his stomach. It was a rabbit, its golden nose twitching, beady black eyes staring at him with curiosity. Hikaru realized with a pang that Kurama would love this moment- peace and quiet for once. 

He reached up a hand to pet the rabbit, feeling the soft fur beneath his fingertips before it raced off. 

A small smile was on his lips, and Hikaru let himself sigh, leaning back up and letting himself stare at the thick branches overhead. He wasn't worried about bugs- all bugs naturally hated him- nor was he worried about animals. 

Hikaru closed his violet eyes again, not letting his mind drift from how the wind felt on his cheeks, the rustling of the leaves overhead. He would never let himself forget such a peaceful moment.

He ended up falling asleep there, curled in the grass with a serene expression on his face.

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One day to the Chunin Exams. 

Hikaru was walking around with the genin and Kakashi, taking them to find a place to eat. He'd talked with Sarutobi about what they were going to do- they were going to stick as close to Hikaru's timeline as possible, and if things skewed left, let them. Or make the timeline itself go even more left. 

There was a rasp of sand in front of him, and then Gaara was in front of Hikaru. 

His screams echoed across the-

Hikaru pushed the memory away. "Gaara." He greeted smoothly, and Gaara blinked. 

"Hikaru-san." Gaara rasped. "These are my siblings, Temari and Kankuro." The two in question stared at him. Temari waved, a strained smile on her face.

"Hikaru-san, I've heard that you're the one that fixed Gaara's seal? You have Suna's thanks." Temari said, before turning towards his team. "This your team?"

"Ah, it's Kakashi's actually." Hikaru said, looking back at the confused genin and Kakashi, who kept reading his book. "This is Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto."

"Nice to meet you. You guys trying out for the Chunin Exams?" Kankuro spoke up. Naruto nodded, blue eyes gleaming with excitement.

"Yeah, dattebayo!" Naruto grinned over at the Sand Siblings. "You guys in it as well?"

"Yep." Temari interjected between the two, glancing over at Sasuke and Gaara, who were having a not-so-secret glaring contest. "If you'd excuse us, Hikaru-san, we'll be on our way." She gave a swift nod, heading off. Kankuro and Gaara followed shortly after.