The Keeper.

AN: I wrote this in a fit of sheer boredom. Sakura is very OOC in this...but oh well. The character couples are as follows: NaruSasu KibaHina SakuLee NejiTenten InoShika and other's I'll mention along the way. I havent spent much time on it, so there's bound to be a lot of grammatical mistakes. Once again, my apologies. Anyways, enough of me babbling. Enjoy. R&R please :). They're my motivation.

Chapter One: The Cousin's

It was one of those days. From the moment she had gotten out of bed, to the time she put her uniform on, Hinata Hyuuga knew that something was going to happen today. She just didn't know what.

It was her first day at Konoha High School, and she was frightened about the prospect of starting school in a new environment. She tugged at her white blouse (with the school crest on it), then pulled down her pleated navy blue skirt a bit so that the hem fell over her knees, and finally, checked her appearance in the mirror for what was probably the fourth time. She brought a small, pale hand up and touched her cheek. Glossy blue-black hair that was cropped short with bangs that draped over her cheeks, pale skin, brilliant blue eyes, and a skinny frame.

She supposed she was pretty in own way. But still...

She was average.

Realising this, Hinata turned away from the mirror, having given up on her appearance and sullenly made her way downstairs to the kitchen table where her cousin's were already eating breakfast. One of them, who was a in the same year as she was, immediately cast her a glare, but remained quiet. The other, who was a prestigious university student, merely gave her a blank look.

'Hinata-sama. It would be prudent of you to come and eat something' That was Neji nii-san. He was the university student; tall, pale and handsome with chestnut brown hair that was kept at an unsually long length and eyes that were the same brilliant hue as Hinata's. This striking semblance came from their respective fathers who were identical twin brother's.

Everything had all started a little over a month ago when Neji and Hinata Hyuuga had moved into the gigantic Uchiha manor to live with their cousin, Sasuke Uchiha, who now lived alone after what was quietly known betten the inner family circles as The Itachi Incident.

'H-hai'

Hinata perched herself down at the circular table in the kitchen, and helped herself to some peanut butter toast and cereal that was neatly layed out on the lace-ridden table that Neji nii-san had probably prepared earlier on that morning. The three of them never talked while they ate at the table, as talking was not something that Uchiha's and Hyuuga's often engaged in - unless it was detrimental, or, it had to do with a business deal, of course.

The Uchiha's and the Hyuuga's were one of the wealthiest families in Konoha; with endless business franchise's that stretched from new line clothing to state of the art electronics, and even fancy tupperware of the sort (with either the Uchiha or the Hyuuga symbol embossed in gold). Not that shallow, materialistic things seemed to matter all that much to Hinata, or Neji nii-san, or even Sasuke-kun, to some extent. After all, wasn't it ironic that for a family so wealthy and well off that they all seemed so...unhappy?

Miserable, even.

It was with a resigned sigh that Hinata forced this gloomy thought out of her head and instead focused her attentions on what lay in store for her today in this new environment - this, new...setting that was Konoha High School.

I only wish Neji nii-san could come with me she thought sadly, nibbling at her piece of toast Sasuke-kun doesn't seem like the type to even want to...

Suddenly, the sound of keys hitting the table startled Hinata from her pondering thoughts. She glanced up to see that it was Sasuke-kun, who was now gazing at her with an stoic expression on his extremely handsome face. From the time that Hinata and Neji had moved in, he hadn't spoken to her once. Acknowledged her presence with a glare, yes, but spoken to her, no. She supposed that this was due to both she and Neji nii-san intruding in on Sasuke-kun's personal space by moving into the large manor, and especially after the brutal...incidident. But then again, she wasn't too sure of this. After all, Sasuke-kun had fast proved himself in three years to become one of the hardest people to read.

'Hinata' Sasuke said in a cool, refined tone; his pale, pointed fingers absently tapping on his keys. Hinata wondered if her cousin had a fangirl following at his - their - school. He was, after all, so beautiful that he could probably put Edward Cullen to shame. 'If you want a lift to school, I'm heading that that direction now'. He arched an delicate eyebrow at her, waiting patiently for her response.

Hinata opened her mouth a bit to reply but out of habit glanced timidly over towards Neji nii-san, who also arched an eyebrow at this proposition. 'Heading in that direction?' he reiterated coolly, leaning foward with both elbows perched on the table in front of him. If there was one thing Neji nii-san was, it was extremely perceptive. So even if Hinata could no longer read Sasuke-kun anymore, there was probably a chance he still could.

Sasuke's gaze hardened, his fingers gripping onto his keys tightly. 'Yes. Heading in that direction'

'Meaning you're not going to school straight away. Why is that?' asked Neji pointedly, who was now beginning to furrow his brows at the raven. 'I hope you've informed Kakashi of this arrangement'.

It was said without worry or concern but rather bleak condescendance. Kakashi Hatake was Sasuke's legal guardian. Once the chief advisor of Fugaku Uchiha at Uchiha Corporation, he was now the stand-in CEO until Sasuke-kun (the natural heir of Fugaku) came of age. Kakashi-san's abrupt departure from the Uchiha manor was the reason why Neji and Hinata had moved in in the first place. Hinata flicked a worrying glance over towards Neji nii-san, who continued sitting in his seat in the same challenging position. Sasuke-kun had a very volatile personality when the time called for it, so perhaps it wasn't the best of times to try and patronise him...

Sasuke scoffed, pulling his keys off the table and placing them in his navy blue school pocket. Hinata noticed that his uniform, which was almost identical to her's, had been neatly pressed. 'That, is none of your concern. And my business with Kakashi is also none of your concern'. And with that, the raven lackadaisically got off his chair, and carried his dirty dishes to the sink; casually rinsing them.

Good. So he was level-headed this morning. Talking to Sasuke-kun these days was sort of like talking to a brick wall, Hinata thought as she quietly watched Neji nii-san scowl at the raven's back. He hadn't always been this way, though.

Cold...apathetic...withdrawn...and difficult. There was once a time when Sasuke-kun would actually smile. But that was becoming more of a mid-summer night's dream as that was well over three years ago now. Right after Itachi...

Hinata closed her eyes. She didn't want to think of Itachi right now.

Opening her eyes, she found herself being watched by both cousin's, who were patiently awaiting her answer. Immediately, she felt embarrassed at being thrusted under the blinding spotlight and brought a hand up to her face.

'Ano...h-hai. Sasuke-kun' she said timidly, making a move to get out of her chair (and forgetting about the piece of toast she had been nibbling on). She leaned over to briefly fix one of her long sock's before heading back upstairs to grab her cream-coloured argyle school bag. It only contained a single work book, a small water bottle, her wallet, her lunch and some rather cute gel pens. Hinata offhandedly figured that considering it was only the first day of school, that the teacher's at Konoha probably weren't going to throw anything too drastic or haphazzard at them.

When she came back downstairs, she quietly bid Neji nii-san goodbye (who in turn said nothing to her. He still seemed to be a little peeved at Sasuke-kun's rude behaviour) and left the large foyer of the manor to see Sasuke in the drive way already sitting in his jet black Koenigsegg CCX. Hinata blinked. She was sorta surprised he had even bothered waiting for her.

Sasuke started up the engine with ease when she got inside and slid into her leather seat. The car still smelt authentically brand new, but Hinata caught the faint whiff of laundry detergent and the Ocean. They sat in silence as they waited for the engine to warm up, and then finally they were off. For the next few moments, Sasuke's gaze was focused intently on the road ahead of them, but Hinata knew that by the way his left eyebrow twitched, that he wanted say something. Which was rare. She threw a discreet sideglance at him; patiently waiting for him to speak.

'I'll be at a meeting' he finally said in a sharp tone, making a left turn on Housia road; his dark bang's covering his handsome face 'So I'm going to be late attending school. Will you be alright manouvering your way around the place alone?'

Hinata's eyes widened slightly, but forcefully kept herself composed. If there was one thing Sasuke-kun disliked more than anything, it was a person without elegance or composure. And Hinata knew that by experience. After all, she had watched Sasuke-kun and Neji nii-san interact her entire life.

'Yes. I'll be fine' she replied in an even tone, smiling to herself that Sasuke-kun would actually be concerned over her welfare. Even if it were over something as trivial as High School.

Suddenly though, something blue, furry, and cute popped out of thin air that made Hinata forget any feelings of gratefulness towards Sasuke. Almost out of character, she loudly gasped. Sasuke, however, scowled.

'Karin, what are you doing here?'

The Hyuuga and the Uchiha family would be nothing if they didn't have their secrets. They were a blockbuster family of unprecedented riches and wealth, but another startling thing about them was the fact that many of them were...Keepers. Keepers were people who had the strange...well, unique ability to see spirits and ghosts, and so their job was to make sure that they steered the spirit forward in the right path which was the light. Some, however...

'Ohayo, Sasuke-kun!' said Karin in a loud, sickly sweet voice

Weren't that easy to be persuaded. Like Karin, for example, whose spirit in the form of a bright, royal blue monkey was commonly referred to as an:

'Annoyance' deadpanned Sasuke with an irritated expression, gripping onto the steering wheel tightly 'I thought I persuaded you last week to go into the light'.

He sharply turned left at the upcoming lights ahead and finally pulled up in front of Konoha High School, which was a collossal architectural institution. Hinata's eye's widened at the sheer size of it. It was just...huge. Massive. Much bigger than the local private girl's school she had previously attended. She gazed at the structure in pure admiration; her fingers on her porcelain cheeks. Sasuke's gaze, however, was focused intently on Karin, who sat perched on Hinata's lap. He narrowed his dark obsidean eyes at her.

'Get off of her' he ordered coldly, glaring daggers at the poor creature.

That snapped Hinata right out of her reverie. Karin however, who seemed used to this kind of harsh treatment, beamed up at the stoic raven, but did as she was told. Instead, she hopped right onto Sasuke's lap, which made the raven's glare on her darken even more.

'Ano...Sasuke-kun?' asked Hinata tentatively, unsure of what to do now that they had arrived.

Sasuke seemed to notice her discomfort. With his gaze still focused intently on Karin and his hands bound tightly to the steering wheel: 'The office is located just ahead. They will give you the directions and timetable you will need. And if they have enough brains, they will assign someone to help you find your way around. I should back before lunch, so if you can find your way there, I'll meet you in the cafeteria'.

Hinata blinked, her face showing bewilderment, before she smiled serenely: 'Hai. Arigato, Sasuke-kun'. She gently opened her door, but before she got out, however: 'Oh...and if you see a certain blonde idiot roaming the hallways' Sasuke added, smirking devilishly in her direction 'Tell him I said he's still a Dobe'.