Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto...(cries) even though I really want to (sniff) however, I do own this particular story and I will be extremely cross with you if for some odd reason you chose to take it from me or steal any part of it in word, form or idea...so don't do it
I remember a time when she was seven and I was four, we were all in the southern dojo, the one with ancient oak floors kissed by the sun and cool stone steps veiled in the shade of a willow. Neji and I were seated along the side of the floor with four of the Hyuuga elders as Otousan and Hinata sparred. Sometimes I saw the elders frown, caught them pursing their lips or arching an eyebrow but I thought little of it, not realizing it would change my life and the order of things eventually. I watched Otousan's movements intently without expression quietly studying the lines etched in my father's face and the movements of my sister's hands. Otousan never asked me to spar.
I was by no means oblivious to the fact that father would never pay as much attention to me as he did to Hinata, his treasured favorite daughter. Hinata was eldest, first born, the heir… and I would grow up to serve her loyally and become a member of the branch family. I knew this, and I didn't want to know.
I was expendable, Hinata was more important and Otousan would save none of his attention for me or Neji nii-san, this mantra had been engraved in my mind and perfectly accepted for as long as I could remember.
Hinata's birthday was the twentieth of January and mine was the first of February. Each year I would watch as beautiful colored lanterns went up for Hinata's birthday, and I would help adorn my sister in exquisite new kimonos and expensive hair ornaments. The celebration was like a miniature festival and always last a week; I looked forward to this occasion all year but dreaded it at the same time, preparations were frenzied and I was more likely to get slapped in the weeks leading up to it. But during the celebration I didn't care, I was too busy being hypnotized by all the beautiful decorations, there was music and food set out on tables everywhere as relatives from other villages and family friends came to the unofficial festival. I could run around and play without being yelled at or sneak away from the festivities to go train with shuriken and kunai. And every year, as February first approached I would smile and eagerly wait for my own little festival! I would run around the compound happily expecting lights and decorations searching for the scents of my favorite foods! I constantly looked around, enthusiastically expecting Otousan to surprise me with a new kimono!
But it never happened. The compound was quiet, the walls were plain, and no one came to visit.
Otousan would find me sitting in the practice yard and smack me asking why I had been running around 'laughing like an idiot!' And I bit my lip because I didn't dare cry but my tears spilled over anyway and I couldn't stop from crying. I sobbed uncontrollably and my tears fed the parched dusty ground. I bit my lip until it bled and the blood mingled with the tears. He hit me with his walking stick and again demanded to know why I had been disrupting the quiet and wasting my valuable practice time. "O-Otou-Otousan…" I whispered though my sobs, "to-today is…it's my birthday…" But he never heard my answer because my whisper was to soft and my words unintelligible though my weeping…so he would just walk away disgusted and leave me there.
It was Neji nii-san who would always find me later and silently carry me back to my room. I understood that he had gone though a lifetime of forgotten birthdays since his father died and he pitied me for not having anything in the first place. He who worked so hard and whose life was so unfair…he deserved a family, a better existence than this…but he never cried. I decided I wanted to be like him, and by my fifth birthday, I didn't have one. February first was not my birthday anymore, it was just a day and there was nothing significant about it; but even though it was unimportant I decided that every day that week I would go visit my mother's grave. Eventually I found out that February first was the actual anniversary of her death and that she had died giving birth to me. So I went to her grave, cleaned her grave stone, offered incense, prayers and apologized to her…for being alive.
Because of this rift, I found it hard to love my sister, I remember laughing with her and playing with her when I was little, but it was artificial. We couldn't stay sisters because we were unequal and it was painful. Our games were always interrupted by someone's call for me do laundry or clean something. "Stop it!" the housekeeper would shout and she would hit me with a rod, "you're so lazy! Stop wasting Hinata-sama's time! Go clean the dojo!" and with a resounding slap across the face I would bow and apologize to Hinata for wasting her time and then scuttle off to do my chores. She would whimper sometimes, not for me, but because the sight of me being slapped interrupted her rosy view of the world.
Every morning I made the familiar trek to the dojo, quietly following Neji-san. Hinata always walked in front of us, holding hands with Otousan, and we followed… like faithful foot soldiers ready to serve their queen. Because that was the way things were, and I learned to believe a family wasn't anything else. I poured my love into my father but like a stream running down hill, not one drop ever came back. I wanted the warmth and devotion I saw my Otousan share with Hinata, but I learned not to expect it; listlessly and obediently walked though the days of my life as a dutiful daughter and dependable dog until the day father would notice my existence.
I had nothing else, so I strived to be recognized during training, I searched my body for energy and squeezed every drop of it out of me and channeled it into my training. I stayed in the practice yard even after father dismissed us, determined to use every spare minute to get closer to my goal of being acknowledge and treated with the love he seemed to reserve only for Hinata.
I rose with the sun every morning and went out into the forest with Neji to practice, we didn't practice together but we practiced near each other for the same length of time and that was enough. We didn't even need to speak to each other but slowly we did and we became… not friends but perhaps allies and companions. It gave me resilience to see him train everyday and it inspired me; I began training into the night as well, leaping from trees and practicing my aim. A lot of the time Neji would have to peel me off the ground and drag me back to my room in a cold sweat. If Otousan noticed any improvement or wondered why I would go to breakfast with a fresh array of scratches on my arms on a daily basis he didn't show it. And that was not what I wanted.
One day, for no apparent reason, the three of us, Neji nii-san, Hinata and I were all called before the elders and given small slips of paper. Hinata let out a little gasp and Neji's eye's widened a little in surprise when both of their pieces of paper split in half and became damp. The elders nodded at this and murmured to each other, a scribe began scribbling this down and father looked satisfied and nodded. Water and wind were both perfectly acceptable chakra natures, they were traditional Hyuuga elements that were passed down through generations, and completely suited to our clan's fighting style. As part of our advanced bloodline we were expected to carry at least one of these elements and hold at least two chakra natures. I did not.
My slip of paper cut it's self in half but then continued splitting into smaller pieces and began to smolder. There was a long silence and I held my breath, entirely certain someone would hit me and I would be disowned. I closed me eyes and waited bracing myself for a slap…but nothing came.
author note: yay! i'm an author now! hence i get a note! yay me!
ahem well anyway, i hope u liked it, this is my first fanfic ever so plz review! i will probably take a little while to update since school is starting for me soon, but anyway i will not update at all if u don't review so--REVIEW! (flame if u need to) but seriously, i want at least seven reviews from different ppl, 'kay? I don't care if it's good, bad or ugly but it has to be there if u want anymore of this story.