FIRST PERSON POV
I don't need to use my bloodline limit to know that she's the same as I am, hiding behind a mask that was perfected years before anyone could even guess who she really was. It isn't like Kakashi-san's mask, which is a real thing, but it's an ultimate defence, better than Gaara's sand or Neji's Eight Trigrams Palms Heavenly Spin. It might not be useful in battle, but it's all she has in real life.
I watch her as she allows me a brief glimpse at the complex woman she is, rather than the two-dimensional girl her teammate's and sensei thought she was. And her family too, I'm guessing.
"Don't judge me too harshly. Your own persona is set in concrete, so don't you dare give me a lecture on how it's not good to hide." Sakura's voice was colder than ice, yet held no hostility. She had hidden too deeply within her persona to allow her real emotions to slip out.
I let part of my own mask slip when I spoke. Just a small part since, like Sakura, I couldn't trust that I could put it back on if I removed it entirely.
"I wasn't going to lecture you Sakura-chan. I was just going to ask a question." I spoke, surprising her with the change in my own voice.
She smirked slightly. "I should have known you were faking the stutter Hinata-chan." She lets out a humourless chuckle. "Ask your question."
"Why are you hiding?" I asked.
A flash of… something shot through her acid green eyes.
"I'll tell you my story if you tell me yours." Was the answer I received.
END OF FIRST PERSON POV
"I asked first." The Hyuga heiress spoke clearly, and with no emotion.
Sakura smirked, but both girls knew that it was for show. It wasn't a show of emotion, merely Sakura moving some muscles.
"I assume that you know I was bullied by Ami in the Academy." Sakura stated. "But I'm sure that you don't know that her brother continued it outside the schoolyard."
Sakura fell silent for several minutes, allowing the rain to hit her face, hiding the stray tear that had fallen.
"Kado was monstrous. He enjoyed psychological bullying more than taunting me." She spoke, finally. "I didn't know that he was Ami's brother you see. He was just the nice boy who worked for my parents at the shop. They owned Yo! Clothing. They still do actually, except now I own just as many shares in the business as they do." She swallowed the lump in her throat. "Kado pretended to be my friend, except he was always saying things that seemed like he meant them to be compliments, but they destroyed me from the inside out."
Hinata waited patiently for the rest of the story, ignoring the harsh wind and the pounding rain that chilled her to the bone. Mind over matter was difficult to accomplish, but definitely worth it. At least until the consequences hit home.
"The day I found out he was Ami's brother, he kicked me senseless. I could barely move without pain, and I told everyone that I'd had a nasty fall out a tree." Sakura wasn't even hiding her tears now. "I learnt my lessons. Girls who stand out aren't welcome. If someone gets close to you, they can hurt you. And you can never be sure of a person is who they say they are."
Her mask crumbled completely, and hot, bitter tears ran down her face while a sadistic smile forced itself onto her expression.
"I guess I owe Kado for that. After all, if a civilian boy could trick me that easily, then surely I, a Kunoichi in training, could fool everybody else. Ino helped; everyone thought that she was responsible for the change in her. I grew fond of her, and was so close to letting her see the real me when she developed a crush on the Uchiha. I realized that I no longer needed her, that she was far too close to me, and pretended I liked Sasuke. That wasn't too hard, he's not exactly Quasimodo."
Hinata let out a harsh laugh. "Liar. When did you fall in love with him?"
A genuine blush, barely noticeable, spread across Sakura's cheeks. "Before the bullying got as bad as it did, I noticed a boy who worked even harder than I did. I noticed that he had a nice smile when he got good grades. After the massacre, I saw that he was just as broken as I was. I saw that he put up a shield instead of a mask. I tried to force myself to get over him, but failed miserably."
"What's the worst part about your mask?" Hinata asked quietly. "The worst thing is that people feel the need to make up for my 'mistakes'. And that I have to train at night if I want to get stronger without raising suspicions."
Sakura looked up at the dark sky. "That explains why you're out this late. The worst part of acting a part is that I have to do things that fit in with my persona. Like hurting Naruto, stalking Sasuke, being a damsel in distress…" Her voice trailed off. "The very worst thing happened in Wave. I thought Sasuke was dead, and I cried over him. I acted like myself for the first time in years, and I couldn't pull my mask up for almost an hour. Luckily, everyone brushed it off as shock and exhaustion."
Hinata walked over to stand beside Sakura. She stared out into the darkness that engulfed the familiar path to the forest, while Sakura stared back at the housing estate the girls had just left behind. Hinata, to train. Sakura, to unleash some of her frustration at being so helpless. She'd been acting the part for so long that she couldn't remember how to play another character.
"My story is simple. I couldn't master my family's fighting style, and as a result I became angry and resentful at the way I was consequently treated. I realized that if becoming Clan Leader meant having heir's instead of children, a concubine instead of a lover, and putting the Clan above everything else, I wanted out." Hinata took a deep breath. "I couldn't work out a way to do that, but then I noticed that Hanabi was showered with affection and praise. She would make a great Clan Leader. By being as weak and unsure as I have been, I've practically guaranteed that the second I start dating, I'll be thrown out of the clan."
"Especially if you date Naruto?" Sakura questioned.
Hinata blinked in surprise. "Yes. The adults all treat him like a monster, yet he always seems to be smiling. I fell for him when I realized that he has his own, unique defensive mechanisms. Shame that I have to be Hyuga Hinata all the time; otherwise I'd ask him out. It's hard to develop a backbone when it's not you who needs one."
"You've worked out a name for when you leave the clan?" Sakura half stated, half asked.
Hinata blushed. "Hinata Huzaki."
"A subtle combination of Hyuga and Uzumaki. Nice." Sakura nodded her approval. "My name for missions is Kamen Azarni. I haven't told anyone that. It's what I call myself in my head, to differentiate myself from Haruno Sakura."
Hinata looked at her companion in amusement. "Are you schizophrenic?"
"I play a part. So do you. I think like the character I'm playing; yet I remain myself. I think I probably am schizo, but at least I'm not the only one."
Hinata cracked a smile. "Touché. Perhaps I should choose a new first name too, any ideas?"
"How about Kohana? It mean's little flower." Sakura suggested.
"Kohana of Konoha." Hinata mused. "I love it. Arigato."
"Break's over. Back to normal for me." Sakura stated, a slightly rueful smile playing on her lips. "It was nice talking to you Kohana-chan. We should do this again sometime."
Hinata let her mask slip by mistake. "I'd like that very much Azarni." She smiled softly.
Both girls pulled their masks back up with difficulty, as the rain stopped.
"It was nice talking to you Hyuga-san. I think I'll go home now, I'm beat. Or maybe I'll stop by the training ground to see if my Sasuke-kun is there." Sakura swooned.
Hinata fiddled with her hands. "I-It was nice t-talking to y-y-you too Ha- Haruno-san."
They turned around and walked in separate directions, ready to play their parts for just one more day. Tomorrow… Who knows.
AN This story just came to me as I was staring dismally at some of my long term stories. I couldn't help but write it.
TRANSLATIONS
Kamen- Mask
Azarni- Thistle flower
Kohana- Little flower
Arigato- Thank you
Reasoning behind this ficI love Hinata and Sakura dearly, especially fics where they both leave the village to get stronger. But for some reason, I went onto Sakura's section on Wiki and read that she was 'the only one on her team without a tragic past', or something along those lines. Then I remembered Ami, and remembered my own experiences with bullying.
And then I remembered a piece of logic that had created another fanfiction (by someone else). 'Boyfriends come and go, but best friends are forever.' Why wasn't this true for Sakura and Ino? And then I started working out how to write a fic about it, and realized that angsty oneshots are okay, but I'm better when I have something to work with. So I threw in Hinata, remembering some of my own opinions.
Hiashi is a Clan Leader, not a father. Hinata is so sweet and kind, she wouldn't want to be that way. Yet from what we've seen from both Hiashi and Fugaku Uchiha, Clan Leaders act that way. So the only way to avoid that would be to avoid the position entirely (at least from a five-year-olds perspective). And I threw in Naruhina and Sasusaku because I love both pairings, and it would give them some humanity, rather than just their masks.
And I know that this is no where near my best work, it's a plot bunny I just had to get rid of.