She flinched as his hand hit her stomach, feeling her chakra levels drop drastically with each hit.
"Sixty-Four Palms!" a barrage of blows rained on her body. She flew backwards and slammed against the wall. Her cousin looked at her with obvious disdain, and walked off the training field to stand by her father, who had averted his eyes at the beginning of the fight. The only person who made a move to help her was her sister Hanabi.
"Hinata! Are you okay?" she asked, worried that her big sister was hurt.
"I'm okay Hanabi." she reassured her. This was true, to an extent. Physically she would be fine. Neji knew that badly injuring a member of the main branch, even weak little Hinata, whom all the elders hated, even her own father, would have severe consequences. This didn't stop him from proving his superiority by crushing her pride, especially now, with the stakes of the fight she had just lost. As she got to her feet and started to stumble over to her father, she caught a glimpse of him throwing her a hateful glare before turning his back on his eldest daughter.
"Come Hanabi. Leave your sister to contemplate her weakness." Hiashi ordered. Hanabi looked wistfully back at her sister before running to catch up with their father. Hinata felt tears well up in her eyes as she watched her father's retreating back. She ran out of the Hyuuga complex, blinded by her tears. After a few minutes of running, she ran flat-out into someone.
"Hinata! Are you all right, eh?" they asked, she opened her eyes, only to see a huge grin and a bowl-cut, attached to a whole lot of green.
"L-Lee!" she choked "S-sorry! I didn't me-"
"Hinata." He interrupted. Even through her tears she could sense the change in his attitude. He was no longer the Gai-sensei-obsessed goofball she had come to know over the years. "I didn't ask if you meant to hit me. I know you well enough to know that was an accident. I asked I you were okay." As hard as she tried to stay composed, she couldn't help but burst into tears again. 'Hinata…" Lee muttered "come on. Let's get some ramen. That makes most people feel better."
"B-but y-you hate ramen" she stammered, trying to talk in between sobs.
"But you don't." he grinned. "Let's go."
o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o
As they ate, she was slowly able to open up to the compassionate exercise freak. She told him about how Neji and Hiashi hated her, how she was constantly being humiliated by them, and how all the Hyuuga elders wanted to remove her from her position as heiress, a position she didn't even want to begin with. She was all for giving Hanabi the position, except for one detail. According to clan tradition, the only way to remove the heir was if they died, or were crippled so badly they could no longer be a shinobi.
"L-Lee" she muttered.
"Yes?"
"I was fighting Neji today for a reason. It was a fight to decide my fate. And I lost.' She admitted.
"I'm not quite sure what you mean, Hinata." Lee said, worried about the direction this conversation was going.
"I….I-"she stuttered, suddenly bursting into tears "Because I lost, the elders are going to put the caged bird seal on me."
"WHAT?" Lee and someone else yelled. Both of them spun around to see a half-feral Naruto, wide-eyed and furious behind them.
"Hiashi…" he snarled. He had seen what the caged bird seal could do. He would rather die than let someone hurt Hinata like that.
"N-Naruto…" she stuttered. She had to help him. He had told them how much damage the Kyuubi chakra did to his body at the same time he had told them that it was sealed in him. She had to help him, but how…
"Hiashi… I'll kill you…" he growled, one eye red and the other blue. He was obviously fighting a losing battle against his Kyuubi chakra fueled rage, his fangs lengthening as his nails turned to claws.
"Naruto," Lee said, warily stepping forward "this isn't the way to deal with it. Killing Hiashi will just rush their plans. This way we have time." He said calmingly. Naruto completely disregarded his words. Lee backed off with a look of hopelessness.
"Naruto, please," Hinata whispered, cupping his face in her hands. "We'll find a way. Just please calm down."
Naruto visibly calmed at this, his eyes returning to blue and his claws and fangs dulling and pulling back into his body. "Hinata… Thank you."
Hinata suddenly realized what she was doing and tried to pull her hands away from his face, but Naruto grabbed them and held them there. He then moved his hands to her waist and pulled her close. "I won't let them hurt you. I'll find a way to protect you. I promise." He planted a light kiss on her lips.
Lee smiled and walked out of the ramen shop. He had figured they would get together eventually. The circumstances were just different than he had imagined. And besides, seeing them had reminded him that Tenten was due back from a mission soon. Maybe he would wait for her at the gate. Seeing Hinata calm Naruto down had put him in a very romantic mood (or as romantic as someone like him could get, anyways)
Naruto and Hinata spent the rest of the night at the ramen shop, talking. At about midnight, the shop closed and they went home, Naruto with a plan, and Hinata with a new sense of hope.