Her eyes spoke all. Lavender tinted and pupil-less, her gaze swept across everyone one in the room.
"All rise for the Empress' words," The Empress' personal guard, and ever-faithful cousin, spoke calmly, though his hands shook with nervousness. Neji, a former knight, knew something was awry. His armor glinted, and he checked the guests. Nothing, not a single hair out of place. His own creamy white eyes scanned the area, not bothering to use the gift personally bestowed to him by the Empress. It was Hyuga Territory. No one could escape the eyes of Hyuga.
"I request that each of the nobles see me individually. We will start with the Uchiha Family." Her voice echoed in the halls, the silence scaring her slightly. One by one, each guard left with one noble. Her stubborn cousin remained, standing perfectly still to her right. She whispered, "The Empress requests tea." The Empress might've laughed at the twitching chocolate brown eyebrow of her elder cousin, but she was in the presence of two men of the Uchiha. Their was to be no joy, their endless black eyes told her that much.
"Empress, my brother and I would like to ask why you have requested such an audience," The elder of the two said, his voice icy and distant, as if he intended for her to hear that he did not care. The Empress was not fooled by his flowered vocabulary. He was trying to sooth her.
"I requested your audience, Lord Itachi and Prince Sasuke, because I would like to know why there is an extra Uchiha wandering about my halls." Her sentence was final. Two sets of black eyes narrowed. They wondered in awe at her knowledge, though she had never once left her throne of gold. One pair began to widen, and red bled into the iris revealing that the Uchiha were not pupil-less, but had four pupils. He was less patient. The Empress decided to tug a little more. "Nothing escapes the eyes of the Hyuga. Pupil-less, yes, but there is no focus on one singular thing, thus, we see everything." His pupils began to rotate threateningly. The silence before scared her, but his eyes did not.
"Empress," she had forgotten about the taller one, "I, Lord Itachi, can swear on my kingdom that there is no Uchiha besides the Prince and I. If there is, he is not aligned with our family." He spoke honestly, his eyes staring straight at her. He was probably a very talented lair as well.
"Guard, bring me the Uchiha," The guard behind the white double doors opened the object in question, and revealed a female in his grasp. She was beautiful indeed, and her temper mild. She looked comfortable, as if she wasn't being found out.
"Mo-" one began, but quickly cut himself off. His eyes were no longer red and pupil-filled.
"Ah, a mother?" The Empress' eyesbrows lifted elegantly and the elder of the Uchiha marveled at her grace - a skill one could only hope to be born with. "Since she reminds of my own mother," she turned to the tallest male and stared him straight in the eyes, "she will be given back,".
"Empress do you know why the Uchiha possess four or more pupils at their peak?"
"I can say that I do know."
A Hyuga boy was once blessed personally from the Goddess, Amaterasu, but in exchange for the gift, she took his pupils.
"Then even you, Empress, must know of the prophecy."
The Hyuga boy soon fell in love with his neighbor's daughter, an Uchiha. The girl was blind, her eyes darker than the night. Amaterasu met the girl at sunset and said that she had a gift for the Uchiha girl. The Uchiha girl met Amaterasu as told, and the Goddess gave the girl the pupils and let the sun pour into the girl's eyes - rendering them red. The Hyuga boy and Uchiha girl soon met and created the new generations. The new generation was born without the gift of the girl, and she became saddened. Amaterasu took notice of the girl's sadness and said that she had yet another gift.
"I do know of the prophecy, but it does not effect my family and I."
The child, because of the Hyuga gift, gave the Goddess her pupils. Amaterasu, in turn, gave the extra pupils to the mother who felt so strongly about not passing down the gift. With four pupils, the mother soon gave birth once more to a boy who surpassed the elder sibling and gave rise to the Uchiha.
"Interesting, when the prophecy states you will have no choice," his voice was silk, and the Empress found that she had committed a mistake. She had stared into the eyes of an Uchiha. The illusion shattered, and she awoke to a nightmare.
"Welcome to the new reign of Uchiha, Empress," the tall man with marks underneath his eyes laughed cruelly as he faded away.
Her shock registered, and her weak heart began to race. The Empress stood from her throne, and nearly fell back into her seat from the heat.
The white halls of the Hyuga Kingdom was burning in the revengeful red of the Uchiha.
Tears pricking her white eyes as the flames licked at the grave of her mother, a room the Empress had constructed after she was placed into power.
Finally, the grave was swallowed into the belly of the fire. The Empress did not allow herself to cry. The halls she grew up in. The walls she used for support in the past. All gone.
The ashes and stifled air around her gave her heart and lungs a hard time, but the Empress forced herself to push through and understand.
"Hanabi," she whispered. Where was her little sister? Lady Hanabi had just turned thirteen - a sacred number within the Hyuga secrets. "No," the Empress' voice was strained. How long had she been stuck in their trap?
"Dearest Empress," the sneer in the voice was unmistakable.
No, it couldn't be. Please. No.
"After following after you for so long, I have always wished for this moment," the voice continued the taunt. "We always knew you were too weak and waited until the Uchiha was at its strongest."
The Empress turned to face the voice and cried furiously as her nightmare was confirmed.
"Why are you doing this? I practically brought you back!" The Empress' distress found its way into the traitor. The traitor felt no remorse.
"Kingdoms cannot be ruled by the week, and I, Hanabi Hyuga, will lead this kingdom to victory!" Her determination did not waver, and the men of the Uchiha army began to spill into Hyuga Territory.