Working against a restriction - for me - often produces greater things than getting rid of all boundaries.
-Jon Lord
Today was the day.
By tradition, on the current heir's third birthday, the children born into the Branch House would be branded with the cursed seal.
There were two children that were to be branded today, Neji and Yui.
The Branch House members lined up against the walls, having Yui and Neji walk across the compound to Hiashi Hyuga's office. Yui gave Neji a nod of acknowledgement, as they stood side by side. The two had always been friends, being the only Branch House children. They had developed a bit of a rivalry, but they remained close.
He nodded back, a small smile of encouragement lingering on his face. Hizashi Hyuga walked in front of us, knocking the door of his twin's office.
"Come in." a deep voice rang. Hizashi opened the door, revealing the Hyuga council. The council was made up of the most powerful members of the main house. They dealt with problems clan problems, mostly Branch House uprisings. We detested them.
"Yui, Neji." Hiashi started, approaching us. We stood in front of him, apprehensive and nervous. "Take your oaths."
Neji went first. "I, Neji Hyuga, will protect the Sōke with my life. I will obey any order, and provide my service to the Sōke until the day of my death."
Hiashi nodded, and turned to Yui. She took a shaky breath, before opening her eyes. "I, Yui Hyuga will protect the Sōke with my life. I will obey any order, and provide my service to the Sōke until the day of my death."
There was a moment of silence, where our oaths sunk in. Hiashi placed his palms on our foreheads, before chanting something incoherent.
Yui held her breath, as she felt a terrible migraine overtake her head. Suddenly, an unbearable pain shot through her skull. She writhed on the floor, clutching her head in pain. Tears seeped out, wetting her face. She could faintly hear Neji having a similar reaction, but she was too focused on the excruciating burning sensation she felt.
Through her teary vision, she could see Hiashi standing tall, an unreadable expression on his face. Yui let out one final scream, before everything went black.
She had passed out.
When Yui awoke, her parents were by her side, proud expressions on their faces. "Congratulations Yui, you've become a member of the Branch House." her mother said happily, stroking her daughter's forehead.
Yui didn't feel proud. No, she felt extremely tired. There was still faint throbbing sensation lingering in her skull. "Mother, the branding hurt." she whispered, clutching her knees. "Does it feel like that when a member of the main house activates it?"
Haruka nodded. "We live in servitude to the Main House. It's only right that we are punished with excruciating pain when we disobey our own fates."
Yui frowned, remembering her vow from yesterday. "Is Neji ok?" she asked, changing the subject. She pictured the happy boy. Yui remembered he had been screaming in pain.
Her mother shrugged indifferently, and handed Yui a mirror. "Look at your reflection." she commanded, brushing her daughter's fringe to the side. There was an evident green 'x' in the middle of her forehead. Yui had been branded with the curse seal.
"Congratulations, Yui." her father repeated, a small smirk on his face.
"No!" a familiar voice shouted in anguish. Yui senses sharpened, and she instinctively activated her Byakugan. She had been walking back from training, but she noticed that Neji wasn't there. She had thought that maybe he hadn't recovered from the branding, as Neji never skipped training.
She spotted him an a nearby room, crouching over... a sheet covering a dead body? Moreover, Hiashi- no, Hizashi Hyuga's body?" She rushed into the room, deactivating her Byakugan. "What happened?" she asked in a voice filled with panic.
"Oh, Hiashi-sama. I'm sorry for intruding." she apologized hastily, spotting him in the corner. "I instinctively activated my Byakugan and saw what was in here." Yui explained, gesturing to a crying Neji?
There was a moment where the only sound in the room was Neji's sobbing. "What has happened?" Yui asked reluctantly. You weren't supposed to question the head of the family in any circumstances.
"Kumogakure-nin tried to steal our Byakugan." Hiashi rumbled monotonously. "My brother's life was traded for peace with Kumo." he explained, a tinge of sadness in his eyes.
Neji stood up suddenly, a hard look in his eyes. He gave his uncle a nod of acknowledgement, and then turned to Yui. "Please don't speak about this around me, Yui-san." Yui nodded numbly, still processing the information. Neji then walked out of the room, his steps almost mechanical.
Yui bowed respectfully at Hiashi, before walking out aswell. "Neji called me Yui-san. He never does that. It's always just been Yui" she realized.
He had changed.
And that concludes the Hyuga Affair :D. Like I said, the beginning will develop extremely quickly. I really want to get to the regular plot. The next chapter will be Yui's time at the Academy all shoved into one chapter, so it might be a bit longer. Please R&R on this if you enjoy it! I'm starting to get really attached to this fic :3.
~Lissa