DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO. XP
Author's notes: This fic was supposed to be a oneshot, but it got too long, so I'm making it a trilogy. A focus on Hanabi? Hmm... NejiHina in Hanabi's view.
Vocabulary:
Imouto – younger sister
Sensei – teacher
Nakama – friend (more like very deep friends. Real friends.)
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Exiled to Paradise
Chapter II: In Loving Memory
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Hanabi walked between the Rokudaime and her Sensei, all three attired in black. They reached their destination, and they paused.
The last time she visited her sister, they were living in an apartment flat. The house seemed like an upgrade from their last address. But, Hanabi figured, they might've thought to finally purchase a house when they were expecting a second child.
The Hokage looked back at her as Tenten squeezed her shoulder before Naruto knocked on the door, and was greeted by the host.
"Neji." Naruto started before pulling his friend and comrade into a hug. "I'm sorry for your loss." Neji just patted Naruto's back before indicating with a hand to let them inside. Tenten did the same, and patted Neji's arm after pulling away. Hanabi stepped up in front of Neji.
"I didn't think you could come."
"But I did." She swallowed the lump on her throat. Neji bowed and straightened his back as he extended his arm to show her inside. They were not one for affectionate gestures even at this time. She stepped further within the humble abode, Neji closing the door behind her.
Everyone was dressed in the same ebony shade. People from Suna and Konoha had come to mourn the passing of Hinata Hyuuga.
The Kazekage and his siblings who were conversing with Shikamaru, Chouji, and Ino were approached by Naruto. Shino was with Kiba and Kurenai, her young daughter beside her. Lee was by the couch with Sakura and Tenten who were later joined by Neji. Gai and Kakashi seemed to be preoccupied in speaking in low tones. The rest were strangers to Hanabi, perhaps residents of Sunagakure, whether neighbors or coworkers, she didn't care to know how they were related to her eldest sister. Hanabi didn't come to socialize.
A loud cry overwhelmed the hushed tones of the visitors and Neji excused himself from the company of his former teammates. Everyone watched the widower enter the nursery to attend to the newborn. Kurenai followed after Neji into the nursery, leaving her daughter in the presence of her former students. She came back out not long after.
"Neji's got her," Hanabi heard her say to Naruto who had approached her.
Not knowing what compelled her, Hanabi walked unnoticed to the nursery, to see Neji bending down the crib, hushing the child as he cradled the baby in his arms. "By the way, there's a letter for you."
She was not surprised that he sensed her. "For me?"
He nodded his head to the direction of the counter, where the diaper changing took place. She took the white envelope and noticed her sister's penmanship. She opened it and read the contents as Neji took a warm bottle of milk from the side table, which he recently heated before the arrival of the three.
"What's her name?" Hanabi spoke after reading, though her eyes were still on the paper.
"Hina. After her mother."
Hanabi fell silent as she watched the baby being fed, Neji sitting down on a chair next to the crib. She folded the letter back into the threefold it was in before.
"Don't blame her, Hanabi," He gently settled the infant in his arms as he reached for a bottle. "If you want to blame someone for Hinata's death, hate me, but not the child. She's done no wrong. She's innocent."
Hanabi fought the quiver of her lips. "I'm not that idiotic." And she forced herself to forget those same thoughts running through her mind all the while she traveled to Suna for the gathering.
It had been a difficult delivery for Hinata. In the end, too much bleeding took away her life, but her daughter was brought healthy and in no danger into the world. A week has passed after the baby's birth, and Hinata was cremated, so there was no need for a funeral or any struggle between Neji and Hanabi on where she should be buried.
Hanabi approached the father and daughter with slow steps to stare at the newborn, tiny fingers grasping her father's pinky. "I'm sure she'll look just like Neesan when she grows up."
"I think so too."
"You should let her grow her hair out." And Hanabi left the nursery granting them privacy as she shut the door behind her.
--
As soon as Hanabi closed the door to the nursery, her sight fell on the couch, to Naruto with his knees bent, speaking with a small smile in front of the young boy, whom she hadn't noticed before in her position on the foyer, sitting next to Kiba. She approached them, and Naruto looked up to see her hovering just behind the sofa's back rest. He rose and Hanabi walked to his side to take her first look at the five-year-old nephew she had overlooked.
"Hello." She said, not really knowing how to start the conversation, as it was her first time (and first chance) to actually interact with the boy. He looked up, to gaze at eyes so similar to his own.
He blinked curiously at her, perhaps wondering why they had the same set of eyes. His long mahogany hair was tied in a high ponytail, russet brown bangs hanging at the sides of his face, as he too was dressed in black, holding a large frame with its back to Hanabi.
Naruto placed a hand on her shoulder and leaned close to her ear. "His name's Haruo," he whispered as he patted her shoulder before leaving, taking Kiba with him to talk to Gaara, knowing the privacy the moment demanded.
"I'm Hanabi. I'm your mother's younger sister. I'm your aunt." The boy did not answer. Hanabi sat next to him and he hugged the frame to his chest.
"It's nice to meet you Hanabi-obaasan." Haruo's head was tilted upwards to see her face before he detached the frame from his chest to allow Hanabi to see a picture of Hinata. Holding it out to the side towards her, Hanabi accepted the photo and rested the bottom of the frame on her lap.
"Do you miss her?" Hanabi's eyes were still on the picture but she saw Haruo nod from her peripheral vision.
"The last time I saw her, you were still inside your mother's womb."
"Mama talks about you. She said she was looking forward to us to traveling to Konohagakure one day and we'd get to meet you." Eyes widening, Hanabi's gaze was diverted to her nephew. There was grief in his eyes, but they were dry. Her pale orbs returned to the portrait of her late older sister.
"Do you miss Mama?"
Her eyesight blurred in an instant and a few teardrops fell on the plastic cover. She wrapped her arms around the frame holding her sister's photograph and embraced it as she nodded vigorously. Her chest tightened as her throat emitted restrained sobs, tears cascading from her cheeks as she could not control the flow of her sorrow.
"N-neesan…" she called out as she wept. The room fell silent as the second sound of crying filled the room. She barely felt the shift of weight on the couch as a small body came closer to her side, and short arms wrapped around her shoulders, her nephew attempting to comfort her. She was the adult; wasn't she supposed to be the one to hold the crying child? She was the shinobi, a jounin at that; wasn't she the one to control emotions?
She became vaguely aware at the weight added on the sofa at her other side as Naruto sat down and rubbed her back. Before leaving for Sunagakure, Hinata had asked him personally to look after her sister. And he grew fond of the girl, and treated her like the little stubborn brat of a younger sister she is. He was the one who gave updates on the Hyuuga to Hinata and reporting her sister's wellbeing.
Hanabi felt pathetic as her breath hitched unevenly from crying. Even the large hand that was placed on top of her head by her cousin could not ebb the sobs as she clutched the frame to her chest and the letter on her right hand.
Dearest Hanabi,
I miss you so very much. I don't know if this will ever reach you or if ever you will have a chance to read my letter, but I am still writing this, if only for the hope that I will one day be able to return to Konoha and hand this to you myself.
Haruo is already five and I really wish he could meet his hard-headed aunt. I have another one along the way; I think this time we'll have a girl like Neji wishes, but that's our secret, okay?
My dear imouto, I hope you are doing well. I left you with a heavy burden, haven't I? Sometimes I wonder if you hate me for it. I know Otousan has been very strict with you, having two bodyguards with you everyday and your time outside the compound restricted; he's chained you within the house. Because Neji and I escaped from the cage, your bars were tightened. For my happiness, I left you with tighter restraint from Otousan. I'm sorry for that. You blame Neji for it, but I am the cause. And there are times when I wish that you would hate me for it, if only to placate my guilt.
But I do not regret my decision. I regret leaving the clan, especially you, but no matter what, I never regretted my decision. I am happy that I left to pursue love and happiness. Hanabi, no matter what, please try to be happy. You are strong unlike I was; I know you have the courage to search for happiness and you will not be afraid to reach it and claim it. Do me a favor, Hanabi: look for your brand of happiness¸ run after it, and grasp it. As the Head of the Hyuuga, I know that you cannot live for yourself, that you carry the lives of those who bear the same bloodline limit. It is a position that demands selflessness, and you sacrifice your heart and your soul for it, but, Hanabi, it is alright to be selfish sometimes. Keep your individuality. Follow your chosen path; don't let anyone dictate what you should be, for your life is your own and yours alone. You have the power to change our family's discriminating belief. You have the strength, the strength I never could have.
So, Hanabi, my wish is for you to be happy, to trust your judgment and your feelings. Establish strong bonds with others, so that you will have precious nakama that will push your back to propel you forward or offer a hand to pull you to a stand. I am afraid that I might never see you again and say these things, so it is my hope, that if I am unable to tell you of the things I have learned in Neji's love, in my son's existence, I hope this letter can reach you. Even though I might never set foot on Konoha ever again, and the distance between the villages is long, know that I am always your supporter. I love you, my dear sister, and I always will.
You loving oneesan,
Hinata
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A/n: Written while listening to Namie Amuro's 'Baby Don't Cry' up until 5am. Whew.
Err... I hope you people don't hate me for killing Hinata. T-T But I wanted drama. And Death is Drama. xX
The next (and last) chappie is a bit long, and covers more time than the previous two. I hope I didn't shock you with the time skip. Hehe. A Hyuugacentric fic tackling the immediate family only. Hehe. I've always liked fics showing Hanabi's loving side to her sister. Creating Hanabi as a villain is just way too melodramatic. And cliché. XP
If all goes well, this might be the first fic I've posted that's multi-chaptered and finished. Woot for that! XD
Haruo – Japanese name meaning "springtime man." (www(.)(20000)(-)names(.)com/male(underscore)japanese(underscore)names(.)htm)
CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM IS WELCOMED BUT NOT FLAMES! XP
Well you can flame, but not because of the pairing. XP