((I don't own Naruto. I don't own any of its characters. But as you can see...there are original characters depicted here.))

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It was a Hyuuga tradition that the clan would meet when their heir turned three.

And it was so much that a small boy with deep jet hair would sit so proudly beside the watch of his mother. Hideaki Hyuuga was by all standards a natural-born genius. He had already excelled tremendously in the academy and was expecting to reach genin quite soon, however because of his tender age was restricted to graduate as per order of the Hokage. Yet the fact that he was too young did not phase his mother to ferverently train him and constantly remind him of his position in life. Although she was stern like the grandfather before him, her soft and gentle voice would always remind him that he was "a Hyuuga, remember that."

It was said that the day of his birth was one like that of a prophet. Hinata Hyuuga had been long a Jounin and recently the clan leader. It was known that the young clan leader was a virgin, yet suddenly arrived back home from a mission with a tiny babe in her arms.

It was known that the child was a Hyuuga, and a possible child of Hinata's. Yet she claimed that the child was given to her by chance, by virtue of a solemn wish. When asked of the child's parents the leader herself would simply cast her eyes down at the question, and simply reply that it must have been the wheel of fate turning. The question eventually was never asked again, leaving the public to speculation and astonishment.

Although the elders had cried against the tainting of the Hyuuga house with an adopted child, it was clear that the child belonged to a prodigy or someone of a pure bloodline of the Hyuuga. Whether or not the child was indeed from the womb of Hinata, or even more probable sown from the seed of her male relatives, it became a common belief that she had made a pact with one of the female Hyuugas because Hinata herself was infertile. This had not been the first time in Hyuuga history where an heir was adopted. Four generations ago the Hyuuga leader was also found incapable of producing offspring, yet by honor his wife had rejected the offers of carrying the seed of other Hyuuga men, only to accept a child fully not her own in the warmth of her breast. This child would eventually mark the beginning of Hisashi and Hizashi Hyuuga, the first pair of twins born into the clan.

Although unorthodox, the Hyuuga knew that adoption of an heir could only mark the end and the beginnings of certain bloodlines in the family. It was nearly impossible, after all, to keep one solitary family in power of the clan as every member was susceptible to assassinations, discord, and death.

Hideaki grew up loved and cherished as the golden child. His eyes were a stark white, purer than any Hyuuga that existed, and his face was always calculating with mature thought. Yet today was a special day for him as he would be announced to the clan as the next heir.

His mother woke him up with a gentle tug at his sleeve, and before he knew it he had been thrown into a warm tub and scrubbed so ferverently that his skin blushed pink. His hair had been oiled, combed, and oiled again to ensure that it was the straightest it could ever be. As his aunt Hanabi did so, his mother tightened the knots on his tiny summer kimono, decorated in black and green, the traditional Hyuuga template.

His tiny feet slipped into rough slippers and trodded along the dry summer dirt, his hand held tightly by his immaculate mother, her face lifted high and her dress no where far from perfect. Her blue hair was tied into a loose golden stick that was supposedly the heirloom of the Hyuuga women before her, yet a small stray strand bounced gently in her rush to take her son to the council quarters.

The ceremony was without much trouble, and as the last bell rung and the last stick of incense properly presented and burned, the young heir was allowed to roam the veranda freely to play as most toddlers would. He was introduced to many new faces of whom he had never seen before. Eight year-olds and children many years his senior would approach him on the will of their parents and bow down respectfully, always addressing him by the strange name of Hideaki-sama. He was not obligated nor had the desire to play with any of his relatives who were all too old for him. Yet the last child that approached him that day was the child closest to his age.

Hideaki was holding onto the inner folds of his mother's kimono, embracing her and reaching for a sweet cake in her hand when a dark shadow loomed over them. Hinata slowly looked up from her seat on the wooden veranda and propped Hideaki to stand.

Hideaki looked up to see a man of tall stature, tight lips, and an age almost equal to his mother. His eyes were cold yet hard to read and by the look of his forehead, he was a Branch Family member.

"Hinata-sama," the man said simply, his body not moving yet his lips softly bending to the words.

"Neji-niisan," his mother acknowledged with a slight bow of the head as she was not required to stand before a subordinate. Yet the small bow itself obligated the stranger to bow to her even further in respect.

The man kept his strong and silent nature and stated, "I am sure you have heard of my young son Hirotaka."

Just then a small fist pulled at the corner of the man's dark green haori, and slowly a pair of eyes peered shyly out.

"Yes. How could I not? The elders say that he will become the closest rival to my Hideaki." Hinata said with a small smile, a hand outstretched to the young boy before them. Hirotaka only let out a small sound and inched further behind his father.

The clan leader laughed softly and looked to her son. "Hide-chan," Hinata said softly, "Meet your cousin and say hello."

Hideaki nodded with a natural grin on his face and approached Neji without fear or shyness. He crept up and gently leant over to see what was behind Neji, and without question Hideaki met equal eyes to another child whom he was to call Hirotaka.

The other boy looked everything like a typical Hyuuga. He bore the same coffee strands of his father and looked like a miniature version of his grandfather Hizashi. Although he had not been marked with the curse of the Branch House, he had little to fear because of the reformations his clan leader had made in time.

"Hello!" Hideaki said cheerfully as he stretched his hand out. Although his language was still elementary, it seemed as if he were to say, "Come, let's play! I'll be your friend!"

With such innocence the other boy nodded slowly to himself before taking Hideaki's offerring. The two boys clasped their hands together and ran into the courtyard with blushing cheeks. As the boys ran from their parents they could not see that the man sat down on the veranda beside his clan leader.

"What of his mother?" Hinata began to ask, only to be sharply interrupted.

"His mother has been long gone." Neji then turned to face his clan leader, meeting eyes with her like an equal. "You know this."

Hinata could only nod to the statement. "Yes. Yes I do."

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As the summer blossoms began to bend to the breeze of the wind, Neji Hyuuga lifted up his eyes to the sky in contemplation. He was suddenly called by his cousin to help their young sons to bed.

Hideaki had been sleeping with his little mouth gaped open, he hands were recently wiped and cleaned from the mud and dirt that he had introduced to Hirotaka, who also had evidence of dirt under his tiny fingernails. As Hinata tucked them gently away Neji stood by the doorway, the soft candle-light lighting his shadow. Hinata was the last to leave the room, sliding the door as quietly as possible before walking to her chambers, followed by a vigilant Neji.

As she began to walk the deeper corners of the household she could swear she could hear the steady beating of Neji's heart and the rhythmic padding of his footsteps. At her bedroom entrance she turned around and bowed her head again to her cousin, wishing him a good night before laying herself to bed.

Yet Neji did not say a word, only to take a step toward her in silence.

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Hirotaka suddenly woke in the need for a snack. Although he had been closely tucked with his newfound friend he was holding his stomach, realizing that he had eaten too little that evening. He took Hideaki's shoulder and shook it gently, summoning him to wake and accompany him to find his father who always held rice crackers in his pockets for him.

Hideaki rubbed his eyes wearily and followed his cousin down the darkened halls, mutely and sluggishly tracking down his uncle Neji. Yet after a few minutes of zombie walking Hideaki found himself stopped and looking at Hirotaka's back, which also stopped in the darkness.

Hirotaka peered threw a tiny crack of the slide door and it only beckoned Hideaki to do the same.

Yet neither was prepared to see or quite understand what they saw in the dim light of the candles.

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Hinata had been pressed against the walls, her kimono loosened and her shoulders bare. Her hairpin had been let loose and her dark blue strands were messily sprayed on her sweaty back. Her legs were also bare and white, clinging and locking ankles onto the body of a man that Hirotaka knew as his father.

The two children could hear the tiny whispers of Neji and his deeper confessions that were meant for the ears of an adult. As Hinata's mouth slightly opened to respond to him her lips were joined with his in a passionate kiss. And as they silently embraced their forms begain to mold with another in the darkness, rhythmically fused with each curve and joint together as one being.

Hideaki covered his mouth only knowing that being a witness to such a thing would be reason for a scolding. As he pulled onto the sleeve of his cousin he found that Hirotaka would not budge, for his eyes were wide and staring ahead of him as if in awe or in shock.

Yet no more words were exchanged that night, except for a small inkling of a breath that Hinata sighed before her form shook and quivered.

"Four long years," she said. "I cannot bear to live this lie any longer."

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