Chapter 15

"Hinata's good…" Now it was Neji's turn to be held captive in the backstage room, and he even was forced to have his hair and makeup re-done so he didn't look like himself anymore, but he was still watching his sister act like him in the concert. "She's really good."

"She's your sister. Stop looking at her like that." Kurenai raised her hand to threaten Neji with a hit that he flinched away from before it came.

"Like what?! I'm just saying she's good at acting like me on stage." Kurenai's eyes narrowed more at him, and Neji even put his hands up in defense. "Saying I'm looking at her like that while she is dressed like me is like saying that I look at myself like that. And that's just weird."

Kurenai backed down a little and Neji let out a sigh when he could finally relax. "I'm told you play guitar as well. Play something." Neji took the guitar that was offered to him even though Kurenai could tell he didn't want to. But still, he situated himself with it and began to play, becoming entranced in the music much like Hinata had been.

When he finally finished, Neji handed the guitar back to Kurenai. "I'm done."

"You're like your sister. She didn't do something for more than ten minutes." Kurenai chuckled a little as she put the guitar away again. "I guess it runs in the family."

"It might, but it doesn't help that it feels like I was kidnapped, being held here." Neji sighed out of boredom, before turning back to the concert on the television, even though he could hear the music from the live show itself.

"That's what your sister said." There was no reply back to the stylist, and Kurenai eventually stood up to start organizing her things. Neji was focused entirely on the television until the door of the room opened and a reporter walking in, talking a mile a minute to introduce himself before finally stopping to look around.

"Sorry, wrong room… Are you Neji? From Kitsune?" Neji froze at the question and Kurenai quickly jumped forward to grab the reporter and direct him out of the room, spewing a random story from her lips while Neji still sat shocked, barely realizing that Kitsune's stage just ended.

"You have to get dressed up like yourself. Now." Kurenai grabbed Neji by his shoulders, pushing the spare stage outfit into his hands as he entered the curtained area to change. As soon as he came back out in the fancier clothing, Kurenai was pushing him into a makeup chair and clearing the old makeup off his face, replacing it with makeup identical to Hinata's Neji look.

"What's going to happen?"

"Your sister is going to have to get out of here quickly so there is no chance that he realizes it was her. You have to take over anything after this." And then Kurenai was attacking the hair to fix it up once again.

"What's going on in here? Why are you putting makeup on him? I'm Neji for the night." Hinata looked at the stylist curiously, but Kurenai didn't even look up as she started barking out orders.

"Hinata, don't fight back at all and change into the outfit on the table. The whole secret is on the line right now." Kurenai finished up on Neji before turning to Hinata, who was glaring at the dress in hand but did go to change. While Hinata was doing that, she turned to the other boys. "A reporter came into here on accident and saw Neji. He has to think Neji was on stage then. Hinata has to get out of here."

They nodded and started coming up with a plan of how to do that on their own while Kurenai turned to put new makeup on Hinata, who was nervously playing with the fringe of the dress, unused to it. "Sit in the chair and be still."

For once, Hinata listen, and Kurenai bombarded her with brushed and makeup and other things, before turning the Hinata's hair. Deciding the scrap the style entirely, Kurenai wetted the hair before drying it expertly in wisps, clipping a hairpin into it before smiling a little. "You look like a pretty girl in that, but it isn't the time to be talking about this right now." Hinata stood from the chair, wobbling a little in the heels Kurenai was forcing her to wear, before turning attention to the boys.

"What's the plan?"

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"Come on." Sasuke grabbed Hinata's wrist lightly before leading her out into the hallway, making sure no one was there. "Whatever happens, don't look up, okay? And don't speak." Hinata only nodded, listening to him for once. Without warning, Sasuke took off running down the hall, and Hinata stumbled after him, but the older boy didn't stop.

Somewhere behind them, footsteps could be heard, and there stood the reporter, chasing after them, franticly taking pictures of the two as they ran, but neither stopped. Once the reporter was chasing after them, Sai and Naruto slowly crept out of the room, before running in the opposite direction, taking the stairs two at a time to beat Sasuke and Hinata down. Meanwhile, Neji was just leaving the room himself, before going through the halls to Gaara's room. "If anyone asks, I came here right after the show. Please. And don't ask any questions." He pleaded with the three inside the room with his eyes, but it was unneeded as they all nodded without really caring why. They just had a feeling it was something to do with a reporter. It was, just not for the reason they thought.

"When we get to the main floor, you have to run right out. Naruto and Sai will have a car right out front for you." Hinata nodded once again, remembering not to speak or lift her head.

They reached the main floor just as Sai and Naruto were sneaking out a back exit. As Naruto went to get their car, Sai stood by the front doors with his head down and hood up, waiting for Hinata to come running out to grab her and lead the way.

But it was taking too long…

Seeing the headlights of the car Naruto was driving appear but not having Hinata, Sai looked around before slipping inside to the room packed with fans. Pulling a scarf over his face a little more, Sai looked around without quite lifting his head, only to realize most of the fans were crowded in one place. The main stairwell. The one that Sasuke and Hinata were taking.

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"Run. Now." Sasuke gave Hinata a little push for her to go, but just as she went to open the door to leave the staircase, it was opened from the outside. A girl stood there, looking first at Hinata, before glancing up to Sasuke. Her scream of his name was loud already, but was followed with more as other fangirls—and some fanboys—heard it and came running.

Hinata's eyes widened as she tried to push past the girl, only to be blocked by the crowded coming towards them. "Sasuke was with this girl!" Phones and cameras were clicking away for a picture of her face and Hinata made sure to not look up so her face wouldn't be captured, but it was only a matter of time before they got close enough to see who she was.

Sasuke was barricaded from Hinata by the fans, and there was nothing he could do as they closed in on her. And just when the secret was close to being exposed, he saw the crowd parting as a new name was being screamed. The person coming through reached the end of the crowd in front of Hinata at last and quickly threw his jacket over her shoulders, showing it to be Sai. With one arm holding that on, he undid his scarf and wrapped it around Hinata's neck, covering her face with it.

Reporters were there with the crowd, taking pictures of the scene by now, and Sai wanted to grimace, but he kept his face straight. "Can you please move for my girlfriend and me?"

That seemed to be the wrong thing to say, as the crowds only seemed to get closer, so Sai sighed and held out his arm in front of them to create a small path, leading Hinata through the crowd while keeping her face covered. By the time they broke through the other side, security was there to keep people from chasing after as Sai ran Hinata out the doors to the car. In the stairwell, Sasuke was running for his life back up before fans recovered enough to come after him.

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"Hinata?" Sai rapped on her door gently, and got no response. With a sigh, he tried the doorknob and was surprised that it turned in his hand. Without even waiting to think about it, he threw the door open and walked inside, only to freeze at the sight that greeted him. All of Hinata's things were stuffed into her suitcase or backpack, and the room was looking empty. "What's all this?"

Hinata didn't move from the ball under her blankets, and Sai made his way over to the bed, gently sitting beside her. "Are you planning on leaving?" He got a mumbled reply back that was unable to be deciphered. "Hinata, please talk to me."

"I'm just going to screw things up more."

"You didn't screw anything up. Unless there is something you want to tell me…" Sai didn't get a reply once again. "What's this about?"

"Have you seen any online news today?" Hinata didn't wait for a reply before reaching for a laptop right next to her computer. Without even taking her head out from under the blankets, she opened it and turned the computer for Sai to see. "Read."

"'Sai's got a girlfriend'?" He glanced over the article as he read the title aloud.

"Don't say it! I've already seen enough of them." Hinata's head finally popped out from under the blankets, and she still had the makeup on, making her red-tinted eyes stand out more. She had been crying last night. "I'm just going to screw everything up for you guys."

"It's fine. We can clear all this up. It's simple. Don't worry about it. By the time you leave this house again, it will all be forgotten." Sai gave Hinata a little smile and ruffled her hair as he stood. "You might want to wash that makeup off soon."

Hinata seemed to have just realized it was still on and rubbed at her eyes franticly with the back of her hand, but it did little to the makeup. Sai gave a little chuckle as he left the room.

Once he was gone for sure, Hinata grabbed her phone from the table by her bed and typed in a number with her eyes closed. "Hello?"

"Asuma, everyone has schedules today, right?" She crossed her fingers, praying for the answer she needed.

"Yes, why?"

"Can you pick me up as soon as all of them are gone?"

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"Are you really doing this?" Asuma held Hinata's arm, keeping her by him to ask the question for the hundredth time.

"Yes. You don't have to come. I'm going to miss my plane. And don't tell them where I am going, either." She shook his grip off of her and started towards the security checks, her lone suitcase trailing behind her as she walked with the backpack she was bringing perched on top. When she finally reached them and started to put her things on the belt, Hinata turned around and found Asuma in the crowd.

For the first and last time, she gave him a completely genuine smile and raised her hand in a little wave, eyes twinkling with excitement and nervousness all rolled into one. Asuma raised his own hand to wave back, giving a small smile in return. "Goodbye, Hinata."

This is the end! I have to say, I'm extremely proud of this story, but that might just be my first finished chaptered story speaking. I wish I had done a little more in some parts of this, but alas, it is not the end of this tale.

Say what?!

That's right. I have a sequel to this. A sequel that already has two chapters written for it, so updates might come quickly if I keep up being ahead on chapters. Seeing as I was at least five chapters ahead at any point in writing and posting this story, however, that does not seem likely. Not kidding, I finished writing this story over a month ago… I just haven't gotten around to posting all of the chapters until now…

Please don't kill me?

But the sequel will be posted soon under the title We Meet Again. Pretty much, Hinata went to Korea and became a big star in her band, while Kitsune fell down on the charts. Three years later after Hinata left, she returns with her band (maybe? I wrote the chapter that says if they come or not a while ago, before I had even finished this story, so I don't remember. Sorry if they end up not going) as a stunt to not only gain them popularity in Japan, but increase the popularity of Kitsune. But will it work? And what will happen along the way?

As I'm writing this, I have a feeling there will be romance in the next story, so please stop by my profile to vote on the pairing, or drop a review with your vote. I have to say, I was surprised that nobody said Sasuke/Hinata. I figured a lot of people would have said that, but seeing as there were only 2 votes, I don't have much to go on. Especially since it is a tie… Anyways, thanks and enjoy!

Kai