A/N: After what seems like forever, I have finally worked up the courage to update this story. This story, that I started when I was like what.. ten or eleven? I'm seventeen now btw, lol. I know right? I reread it, and I cringed at EVERY word. All these mistakes and omg, it burns. After I finish it, I will surely revise this story, because it desperately needs to be redone and revised.

Are you able to see me now?

That I am no longer weak

No longer the one who cries first

No longer the one to give up

Because I am strong.

-OOOoooOOO-

The temperature had become almost unbearable. Rays from the sun sent daggers of intense heat to the earth unremittingly. It was blistering, to the point that smoke seemed to elevate from the ground in wisps. The sand only added to the growing pestilence of the supercilious temperatures. It skidded haphazardly around at the slightest of movements, entering every fissure of the body. If an opening couldn't be found, the grains landed upon the sticky flesh of its host as unwanted company.

Pallid eyes squinted in an effort to guard itself from the barrage of sand. However, the pair of eyes never lifted from the smirking girl that stood before them in a self-assured stance.

Hinata tightened her fist. Luckily, her fingernails had been cut for conveyance because surely she would have drawn blood if they were any longer.

"This is completely unnecessary, Hinata-sama," Feeling large hands upon her shoulder, the said girl turned around to stare up at concerned akin – colored eyes. "Please."

Turning back around to face the burgundy – haired girl, Hinata shifted her shoulders willing Neji's hands to promptly fall off. "You w-wouldn't understand, Nii-san." She coerced her voice to remain steady. She couldn't back out. Not now. Not ever again. "I have to do this." Neji retreated aversely; he couldn't find any other words to impede Hinata from forwarding with this madness.

Everyone had surrounded the two girls in utter silence. They had left the oasis, and stopped right in front of the entrance gates to Sunagakure. The terms for the mêlée had been set.

Whoever was defeated would never be allowed to step foot back in to the sandy village. The battle would be determined by the last person standing.

Temari shook her head at the insanity of this whole mess. She knew Yuri had a massive crush on her brother, but she never suspected it to cause such a calamity. She resisted the urge to go over there and beat the shit out of the smug red - head, but the look on Hinata's face told her the Hyuga would not fancy her actions. This was the younger girl's fight. The look in her eyes held fire, power, and intensity. It sent chills down her spine at the new found emotions in the smaller girl's features. It startled her in a good away; she couldn't help but feel pride swell up in her. Her pupil had blossomed so much.

A flurry of searing wind brushed past the group of teenagers, a long trail of sand fallowed it. Gaara stepped out from the circle; his toned arms were crossed around his broad chest. "This duel will start in thirty seconds. I will not accept foul play. It will be fought cleanly and gracefully. The deal of this spar has been set, and I, the Kazekage of the land hidden in the Sand, am witness to the events of this battle. The loser will never be permitted to set foot in to Sungakure as long she lives, and as long as the walls of Suna stand." His voice was unyielding, and held the command of all the shinobi around him. His emerald orbs landed on the petite form with ghost eyes.

The ghost eyes stared back.

For that brief moment, only the pair seemed to exist, everyone and everything waned to the background soundlessly. Even though no words were exchanged, everything that needed to be known was acknowledged within that laconic but ardor - filled connection.

Gaara easily severed the exchange with a courteous nod, and once again began addressing the whole crowd. "We will begin, but first, the two konouchi walk up to one another and face your opponent: face to face." The said girls sauntered up to meet each other, and did as told. Neither broke eye contact. "Bow, and than we may commence the battle."

A sneer was etched on the attractive red – head's face, as she placed her hand on the smooth camber of her waist. "You know, there really is no use in carrying on," Yuri Harune shot the girl before her an unambiguous smirk.

At one point, Hinata may have agreed. She was well aware that Yuri was a chunin – level shinobi, just on the verge to becoming a jounin, while she, herself, was still a measly genin. Gaara had specifically entrusted her to be his messenger because of the absolute trust in her skill. While Hinata still remembered having trouble defeating her fresh out of the academy younger sister, Hanabi. Any other day, she would have been stammering and incoherent because of her lack of talent and confidence in herself. However, she was passed that. She's gone through to much to allow it to be taken away so easily.

"You're wrong." The shorter girl replied back with firm conviction. "There is every reason and every purpose."

Yuri rolled her eyes at the girl's silly persistence. Who did this girl think she was? She noticed the way Gaara, even though his body had been facing both of the, his eyes were solely on the Hyuga girl. Yuri felt her hand involuntarily clench. Her eyes narrowed as an involuntary sense of irritation, of anger swelled in the pit of her stomach. How dare she?

She had been by Gaara's side far longer than this girl.

She was there when everybody had doubted Gaara's abilities in being an efficient Kazegake. To protect him, even though he obviously never needed it. She was his silent and lethal weapon, to be used however he deemed best. She never questioned his orders because she always held a complete faith in him. He had saved her from a life she never thought she could ever escape, from a spiral of destructive habits, even though he wasn't obliged too. He believed in her, when everyone else told her it was already too late to make a better life for her self. After so many failures with one to many men, he was the only one who didn't treat as some sort of rag doll, as trash, but as person despite what everyone else had already deemed her. He had become her only reason to live. In essence, he had become her very being, and she wasn't about to let that just go.

Why Gaara-sama? Why her? Why not me?

She found herself slipping into a battle – ready position, right hand placed on her weapons pouch and the Hyuga girl did the same. They both bowed.

"Go Hinata-chan!" Naruto yelled, fists pumped in the air.

"You can do it!" Kiba shouted a grin etched on his face, while Akamaru barked sportingly.

"We want you back in the village," Kankuro laughed. "So don't let us down."

"Ganbatte, Hina - chan!" TenTen cheered.

Hinata felt a swarm of warmth enter the pit of her stomach at the support. Her eyes swerved over her friends whom all had a big grin on their faces; Shino offered a curt nod, but she knew that was his way of showing his encouragement, while Neji offered a supporting smile. She smiled back. When her eyes landed on a mop of red – hair, and green eyes she felt her stomach clench. But the nod of his head and the soft upturn of his lips erased any ill – feelings.

She was ready.

Without much warning, kunais swerved at her head. While trying to dodge the random kunais, Hinata felt a hard impact contact her stomach instantly causing her to cough up blood and slide to the ground.

Yuri smirked triumphantly, "Too slow."

"Hey that was cheating!" Naruto yelled.

"Shut up, blondie!" She spat at Naruto. "We started the battle, and she wasn't looking it's her own fault if she's incompetent." She sneered.

Hinata bit back a yelp, from the harsh impact. Not giving her much time to react, Yuri ran with two needles in between her fingers, and with pinpoint accuracy aimed it at vital spots in her body. Hastily directing chakra to her feet, Hinata hoisted herself up and dodged the thin metals.

"Tch, all this time in Suna, and you've learned absolutely nothing! Pitiful!" Yuri spat. She quickly performed the pig and horse hand seal, and disappeared in a puff of sand. Hinata bit her lip, she really didn't want to have to use the byakugan so early within the battle, but she felt like she had no other choice.

"Byakugan," She exclaimed, activating her dojutsu. Her line of vision suddenly transformed, her mind could barely register the amount of things she could see. Behind, Forward, Left and right, everything was visible 100 meter farther than she could remember. She realized it was the impact of having gained a large amount of stamina and chakra from her training without the byakugan. She focused her attention on finding Yuri's signature chakra.

"I'm here, sweety." Hinata looked around to find the source of the voice. "Under you." The opal – eyed girl quickly looked down, the sand had a face. Before she could register what just happened, a big glob of sand roughly pushed her all the way to the gate. She landed with'oof' against the gate of Suna, however, before she could react to what was going on, sand had begun to envelope her whole body, entirely restricting her body, she was unable to form any hand seals. She felt the sand start to asphyxiate her as it crawled up, and all around her body till it completely engulfed her.

-OOOoooOOO-

She was lost in the darkness, she could not see or hear or feel. She did not know if she was going left or right. She was just there. She couldn't remember anything, who was she? She couldn't remember her name. How old was she? She looked down; two pale and rough hands came in to view. Were they her's? They looked so callous, as if they had been brutally beaten up.

It was as if hopelessness had engulfed her, making her whole body turn completely numb. Her entire being was entirely eradicated with a sense of emptiness, as if she no longer had a reason for living. As if she simply wanted to take her own life.

She looked around in the abyss, trying to find a way out of it, if it were even possible.

Suddenly she caught sight of a white figure; it had its back turned to her. So she ran towards it, hoping the figure would be able to provide answers.

"Who are you?" However, the figure never moved, so she kept running towards it. "P-Please, I n-need help. Do y-you know where I a-am?"

"Why am so weak?" A weak voice echoed; she realized it came from the figure. She stopped running when it turned around.

It was but a small child, a five year old girl. She had a cherub pale face, with big soft lavender eyes and short midnight colored hair, cut in a hime – style. The little girl was wearing a kimono that signified that she was of considerable stature.

"Are you alright?"

"N-No." The little child continued to sob.

"Wh-Why? Everything will be alright." She consoled, while kneeling down and patted the girl's head.

"N-No, it won't."

"Of course it will."

"I'm p-pathetic."

"Why do you think that?"

The little grabbed her hand, and she responded by wrapped her in her arms trying to stop the girl from crying. "My m-mommy left me because I was too weak; da-daddy says she will never be back. My d-daddy hates me now, because he says I wasn't b-born as strong as my new ba-baby sister. My uncle d-died because of m-me, and now he h-hates me. H…His eyes a-always look so accusing. I t-think my w-whole family hate me, my whole clan, e-everyone. I'm not wanted." The little girl was no longer crying, but her grip tightened on her wrists. "I'm nothing but a n-nuisance, a hindrance." Her big pale lavender eyes looked up at the older girl. The little girl took out a kunai in her trembling hands. "I'm not needed. I shouldn't be alive."

Hinata blinked, she realized she was looking straight into a mirror. But she could barely recognize the reflection. It was a girl in a big oversized tan jacket. She was feverishly poking her index fingers together a blush emblazoned on her pale face.

She closed her eyes.

The abyss was vacant once again.

She looked down into her hands, the kunai was in it.

Her whole body felt completely numb, but tears fell in total perpetual silence.

She lingered the kunai over her heart.

"I'm not needed,"

A/N: I finally updated! YAYYY! Oh no, Hinata-chan don't do it! You're strong enough, my baby! Anyway, I hope people enjoy this! I hope its not too cheesy, lol. I hope to have two more chapters up, and I will be finito with this story! MY first completed story, and than I shall vigorously edit the whole thing :D I hope yall enjoy this chapter! Review!