Chapter 16

I was avoided like the plague for the next few weeks. At first, Sakura and Matsuri tried to talk to me a few times, but when I wouldn't confess what'd happened while I was away, they got upset and left me again.

Tenten was the only one who didn't follow the trend. Her curious inquiries continued as though nothing had happened. I realized she was only asking questions about my upbringing and family. One night, I finally snapped and asked her why she was gathering information on me. The pretty brunette tried to devise an excuse but was a poor liar and retreated to her bunk next to Neji and Lee defeatedly. That was when her questions came to an end.

Somehow, I managed to steel myself both inside training and out.

My and Naruto's M.A.T. sessions were tense and confusing for us both. There's no hiding your emotions from someone inside your head. He was worried, but he was also hurt by my inability to trust him and angry that I was doing all I could to ice out my thoughts so he wouldn't see anything I didn't want him to.

I didn't want to admit that it hurt when he looked at me like he did after Madara threw me back down here. Of all the people participating in The Program, he was the one person that truly understood me. At least, that was what I thought. Maybe it was only because we were partnered for M.A.T, but it was true nonetheless.

Keeping yourself completely distracted in your thoughts for hours is incredibly strenuous. I did everything from reciting the elements of the periodic table to attempting to replay movies in my head.

On the first day of this, Naruto tried to question me since there wasn't anywhere for me to run, but I did the mental equivalent of putting headphones on and ignored him to the best of my ability. That really made him angry. By the time that specific session ended, the worry he initially felt for me was barely a footnote. He'd even stormed out of the room without a glance in my direction.

Pushing away the first people I've ever considered friends made it hard to keep my head up. Tears were always just a moment away, and I often excused myself to hide in one of the bathroom stalls so no one would see me struggling to keep my façade up.

Not only did Madara ruin my home life, but he also made sure to stomp out any rays of hope I'd have down here. There was also the story he told me about my mother. I desperately didn't want to believe it to be accurate, but something in my gut told me it was. If that was the case, I have an older brother out there somewhere that Madara insinuated he hadn't been able to locate.

What type of person could he be?

Will he look like me, or would he favor his awful father?

I yearned to meet him, surprising myself, and had to nip those thoughts in the bud. There's a chance he doesn't even exist, so there's no point in putting energy into worrying about him. Instead, I worried about the sibling I knew was out there.

Hanabi was clearly going through something by how she acted, but I knew better than to question Madara. I had to rush to the bathroom in the middle of the night when I first got back when I realized he might've gone for my little sister how he'd tried to approach me.

What if he forced himself on Hanabi?

My whole body heaved and shook in response to the panic the thought made me feel.

I was so worried about her that it became hard to eat or sleep, but I still gave it my all during physical training. There was still a tiny sliver of hope in me that if I did well like I was told to, Madara would let me go at the end of this twelve-week program, and I could convince Hanabi to run away with me.

Before I knew it, The Program was halfway through. We'd been locked in the basement below the basement for six whole weeks.

Looking around the dark room at all the sleeping participants, I couldn't help but feel at least a little impressed. Every person was developing their talents at an incredible pace, even me.

Six weeks ago, I'd never touched a gun in my life, and now I'm confident I could hold my own in a gunfight. My once soft body was becoming lean and fit as I developed muscles from my hard work. All this only proved the physical training was paying off. I still couldn't determine what we could gain from the invasive mental training.

My question became relevant during the first training session of the sixth week. It wasn't answered, necessarily, but it was still relevant.

Instead of sending us directly into our individual rooms, Dr. Uchiha had us meet in the ample open space, Masumi standing at his side. Her pregnant stomach was becoming more noticeable, and I wondered if they'd gotten a paternity test yet to verify the father. She was far enough along by now to do so.

His dark eyes scanned the group, and I cringed when they landed on me. Ever since he tried to kiss me, I haven't been able to meet his gaze. He'd reacted so angrily when I refused, and I was too worried about what emotion he'd portray if I looked him in the eye.

"You've had six weeks, as a group, to strengthen your minds. The time has come to take the next step in your training."

Weeks ago, this group would've broken out into curious murmurs, but we knew better now. This seemed to please him, so he continued, "The person you've been partnered with has undoubtedly found out your hopes, fears, and triggers."

My heart sank into my stomach. This didn't sound good.

"You'll each be filling out questionnaires about your partner, and I expect nothing but the truth." Narrowed eyes threatened us, "I will know if I've been lied to."

Masumi started passing out tablets. I inspected the one handed to me with a frown. The entire thing was dedicated to Naruto. It held file after file of information about him: his physical characteristics, medical history, history, mental acuity test scores, and more. My face burned as anger rose in my chest. This was incredibly personal information, and it didn't seem right that it was handed to me without a second glance.

I was shocked when I realized that Naruto had most likely been handed a tablet with the same info about me. I looked at Madara with panic, but his back was turned. He was speaking with Masumi about something before sending her toward the exit.

I glanced at Naruto, hoping he wouldn't notice, but he did. His once warm blue eyes locked onto mine with an accusatory expression. I covertly shook my head, hoping to reassure whatever negative thought he was having made him look at me that way.

"You may now go to your assigned rooms and begin."

Once the two of us were in the training room alone, I nervously sat against the wall on the floor. The only chairs in the room were the two training ones, and there was no way I'd sit in one of those unless I had to. We were supposed to click each folder and answer the questions within about our partners.

I felt dirty, like I'd been tricked into spying on Naruto, and everything we'd experienced together suddenly felt tainted.

I couldn't bring myself to click a single folder and stared at the screen hesitantly. Minutes passed, and all I could hear was my heart beating loudly in my ears. I eventually sat the tablet on the ground beside me and leaned my temple against the wall so I could rest my eyes.

"If you don't fill it out, he'll torture you again."

My body jolted in shock, and I saw Naruto looking down at me guardedly. I got over my surprise and gingerly picked the cursed tablet back up. He slowly sank to the ground a few feet away. My eyes danced shakily over to the device in his hands.

What exactly was my partner putting for his answers? There was so much he'd unintentionally learned about me, but at the moment, I couldn't remember anything but the glimpses he'd gotten of Madara and Masumi.

"W-wait! Don't-"

I tried to warn him not to mention those things, for his sake and my own, but he sternly said, "I'm not," and discouraged me from speaking again.

My mouth clamped shut, and I slowly nodded before sinking my gaze back down to the tablet. It felt disgusting to divulge someone's secrets, but I must do it for everyone's sake. My hands were shaking slightly as I clicked the first folder. Immediately, the questions made me worry about what they planned to do with this information.

"What material object, living or nonliving, scares him the most?"

It was hard to choose an answer, but I chose a belt. Naruto grew up moving from one foster home to another and endured so much abuse from adults who were supposed to protect him from danger but chose to do the opposite. Almost every single one of the memories he's shared involves a belt.

"Does he believe in the supernatural? If so, how does he feel about them?" I honestly didn't know the answer to this one. So, I answered with what I imagined he'd say. "He probably hopes ghosts are real so those who've passed can still visit their loved ones."

"What does he think is the worst way to die?"

"There isn't a specific type of death he fears, but he doesn't want to die alone."

"If he had to choose between killing a child or five elderly persons, who would he choose and why?" I wanted to smash the screen of the damned tablet.

"He'd rather die than kill an innocent person." I'm sure of that much, so I put that as my response.

I kept anxiously glancing at the topic of these questions, and each time, the blonde man was submitting answers quickly with steady hands. Tears rose in my eyes. I must've hurt his feelings so badly that it didn't matter to him whether or not the information he provided was used against me. That, in turn, made me feel terrible.

Even if I hadn't grown closer to Naruto, I still wouldn't have treated him so coldly if I wasn't forced to. I wished I could tell him why I acted the way I did so he doesn't think I was as terrible a person as I seemed. My chest tightened when I realized it didn't matter if he knew. To him, and probably everyone else down here, I was a cold-hearted introvert they were suspicious of.

Despite this, I still hated each moment spent on this questionnaire. I didn't know what I'd do if he got hurt because of these answers. I leaned my elbow on my knee with my legs crossed so my hair could act as a curtain between us, and he wouldn't be able to see my face as I tried to refocus on the questions.

For a long time, we worked in silence. I finally got to the last folder and realized the questions were directed toward me rather than Naruto. "What is his best personality trait?" This was an easy question.

"He treats everyone with the kindness he wants to be treated with."

"What is his best physical feature?"

If the mood in the room wasn't so negative, I'd have blushed at this question. I put the man's smile down as the answer, hoping no one would directly confront us for our responses. It was incredibly cliché, but the one smile from Naruto really could light up a room. I've seen it happen firsthand.

"Do you believe you could depend on him if your life was on the line?"

"Yes."

"What do you think his sexual orientation is based on the knowledge you've gained so far?" I'd gotten glimpses of a handful of attractive young women he'd been involved with throughout his teenage years. He was definitely straight.

"Are you afraid of him in any way? If so, explain." I hesitated to answer honestly once more. If I put the wrong answer down, something terrible could happen.

"Yes, but it's not his fault. The last time I cared what someone thought of me this much, they disappeared, and I don't think I can go through that again."

"Given a chance, would you rather have a different partner? If so, explain."

"No, but I wouldn't blame him if he does."

I tried to answer the questions honestly while simultaneously trying not to think about the horrible things he was likely putting as his responses.

Once we were finished, we hooked the tablets to the cords beneath the wall's screen and waited, per instruction. I desperately wanted to leave the small room because the uncomfortable air was starting to make me feel like I was suffocating, but the door was locked as usual.

I nervously picked at my nail buds as I sat back down, fighting the urge to curl into a ball and take a nap. My sleeping habits really had been affected by my stress levels.

Naruto and I would've filled the awkward silence a few weeks ago with small talk. Well, Naruto would eagerly coerce me into conversing with him to pass the time, and I would secretly not mind. Instead, he leaned against the wall a yard away with his arms crossed over his chest. I didn't dare look at his face. Every time our eyes met in the past few days, the expressions he gave made me sick to my stomach.

I made one of the nicest people I've ever met hate my guts.

Around an hour had passed when the screen suddenly powered on. Suddenly, our answers were displayed: his on the left and mine on the right. I slowly got to my feet and approached the screen. Naruto did the same.

"She doesn't like blindfolds."

The blood drained from my face. As soon as I read Naruto's first response, I knew my attempts to mask my thoughts had miserably failed. I tried so hard to hide what happened from him and thought I'd somehow managed it, but apparently not.

"I don't think she's thought much about ghosts and stuff." That was true, for the most part. When I was a child, there were a few months when I slept in my father's bed because I was scared, but then, what child doesn't go through a similar phase?

"Getting killed by someone she trusts."

Tears welled up in my eyes as I continued to read. How had he figured all this out? I never meant to be so honest and couldn't remember a specific time when he'd have learned this type of thing.

"She'd try to kill whoever asked her to make a choice like that."

My shaky hands wiped at the tears that fell. I forced myself to keep reading and tried to ignore Naruto as he read my responses and stood barely a foot away.

"Hinata stands up for those who can't fend for themselves, even if it means she'll get hurt."

"She has the prettiest eyes I've seen in my life." My face warmed at his sincere compliment, even if he hadn't meant for me to see it.

"I'd trust her with my life, but she probably wouldn't trust herself."

Briefly, I wondered why they were showing us each other's answers. Perhaps, this, too, was part of the training.

"I think she's heterosexual because she gets more nervous around guys than girls, but I'm not one hundred percent sure." How humiliating. I am, indeed, heterosexual, but having someone speculate about it was uncomfortable.

"I'm not afraid of her, but she often confuses me."

My eyes danced down the screen to the final answer, whether or not he wanted a different partner, and a whimper slipped past my lips as I tried to choke back my tears.

"No."

We answered dozens of other questions, so we read through them in silence. Once we'd finished, the lock on the door clicked, and I rushed out of the room before Naruto could get a chance to say anything. Whether he asked about my responses or wanted to talk about what he did or did not see about the day I'd been taken upstairs, I didn't want to have to look him in the eye, and I wasn't sure if I even could.

Everyone grouped back up in the large room, and Madara addressed us, "These results will be studied tonight and tomorrow. Your next M.A.T. session will differ, so prepare yourselves."

He paused to look at us studiously before continuing, "You're all dismissed. Hinata, please stay."