After Sasuke came back, he was content to have at least one person never pay attention; Hinata never had eyes for him, not even once. But when her strange talents for finding the truly valuable things belying facades reveals itself, Sasuke finds himself more than a tad insulted that she never looked his way at all.
-oOo-
There were rumors that the Leaf had gained a formidable weapon as of late, a supposedly limitless resource that would inevitably turn the tides in almost any conflict. It was almost too fantastical to be a valid truth, but in hindsight, this was also the village that churned out frighteningly godlike shinobi or legends almost every generation. Reportedly, the Konoha shinobi were much more well-equipped and confident as they completed missions and attended diplomatic conferences than usual, creating an odd and noticeable streak of successful operations that boosted both reputation and apparently, according to an insider, the village's treasury. The hearsay spreading through the other hidden villages was comparable to a wildfire, fear and envy prominent among so-called allies. Everyone wanted desperately to know the Leaf's secret and how to attain it for themselves.
Sasuke himself had heard of these mysterious tales when he was a nuke-nin – another Jinchuuriki that was unaccounted for, small mountain god that was somehow trapped, a forbidden jutsu, a fortuneteller with the ability to manipulate time – but he hadn't invested too much of his curiosity into the matter mainly because not only was he occupied with hunting down several enemies at the time but also because he simply doubted the credibility of the vine of gossip that ran through ninja circles. Really, he'd listened to rumors relating to himself as he sat under a heavy hood drinking tea in seedy bars; Sasuke knew he didn't have eyes that shot black lasers filled with pheromones or was actually an angel of death in disguise. He didn't appreciate the exaggerated exonerations of his good looks (which reminded him of the crappy poems he was given by various fangirls back at the Academy) and he only felt intense disdain for those who believed he was homosexually attracted to a) Naruto, b) Itachi, and most atrociously of all, c) Orochimaru.
He nearly sliced off a couple tongues that day.
But now, he was back in Konoha again as one of their active-duty ninja and he'd been steadily rising through the ranks and village's trust just by walking around doing everyday things like grocery shopping and not stabbing every hoard of fangirls that came his way. It was a relatively easy lifestyle he lived and while he didn't appreciate the sedentary moments that came with being a shinobi on a village payroll, he did indeed like the peaceful quiet and white noise that slowly eroded his past. No longer did he feel the insatiable urge to avenge or slaughter, although he did feel tingles in his arm that alluded to the Chidori whenever he heard squealing or Naruto's raucous laughter grating on his ears.
And because of this sudden tranquility in his life, he found himself regaining old parts of himself that had existed before his brother's decisions changed his world forever, including his childishly wily curiosity about things he was reluctantly ignorant about. He never liked being left in the dark, left to wilt in ignorance like so many of his compatriots, because he refused to believe that he was in the same standing as most of the idiots he was forced to deal with. Secrets were what had destroyed his childhood and being kept out of the loop, especially with everyone else aware of them, irritated both his pride and his memories. Now, as an adult who'd finally broken free of suppressed emotion, Sasuke was almost over eager in learning all that he could.
It started when blabbermouth Ino had rambunctiously burst into Ichiraku's with a wide grin, practically demanding that the Hyuuga girl – who had been sitting inconspicuously in a corner glancing at Naruto occasionally, though Sasuke hadn't really taken too much notice of her – go shopping with her to search for a gift for Tsunade's upcoming birthday.
"I need the blessing of a zashiki-warashi!" the blonde girl had explained as the shy girl attempted to evade the invitation with some bland excuse.
Sakura, who had been blatantly ignored by her "best friend," glared at Ino with a ferocity that Sasuke hadn't ever seen before, only to be matched by her apparent love for him. It was evident that Ino had said something wrong, though he couldn't pinpoint the exact reason, and he couldn't very well ask why especially as Ino pulled the Hyuuga into a wild gallop towards Hokage Tower. His female teammate herself had only huffed impatiently after scanning the crowds cautiously as if looking for eavesdroppers and then she grudgingly continued her conversation with Naruto while pretending as if nothing unusual had just occurred.
It was so obvious that something completely irregular had just happened that Sasuke was surprised no one else had said a word about it, though perhaps, he mused, he was just more observant than the other ninja eating at the stand.
But then over the next few weeks after that incident, the term zashiki-warashi cropped up more times than what could be considered normal.
"This is pure silver. It was a gift from that kidnaped princess we recovered," a kunoichi had said haughtily to her teammate while flourishing an ornate dagger. "That mission in Iwagakure was a complete success even though our odds were so bad. We had the blessing of a zashiki-warashi, you know."
Her companion had looked at the weapon with admiration glazing his eyes. "You're so lucky to have the zashiki-warashi on your side, dammit."
They were normal looking chuunin as far as Sasuke could tell and they weren't particularly special with their non-descript brown hair and plain features. The fact that they used an out-of-place phrase such as zashiki-warashi so casually meant that it was probably a codename, since he really did doubt the existences of mischievous little spirits that brought good fortune even if demons like the Kyuubi did end up being real. But these ninja were so inferior to him in terms of skill and rank – how did they know this secret while he was only just becoming aware? Ino was still of the higher ranking ninja, especially as a member of the legendary formation Ino-Shika-Cho, the Rookie Nine, and of the Yamanaka clan who practically specialized in secrets, so it was easier to explain her involvement with the hidden movements of the Leaf. The Hyuuga girl, according to his memory, was also of high enough merit that he could excuse her knowledge of this zashiki-warashi also. And yet, even these nameless cannon-fodder idiots were included in this ring of mystery. He felt like he was suffocating in ignorance.
And then the Rookie Nine began to inadvertently taunt him with their knowledge.
"He was blessed by the youthful zashiki-warashi!" cried a teary Rock Lee on the anniversary of Hyuuga Neji's death. "He will never be forgotten – a beautiful symbol of those who carry the will of Fire!"
"Ha, it's so nice to have our budgets raised again. Remind me to thank zashiki-warashi for helping us," Shikamaru said offhandedly as he calculated the new ledger, piles of gold and paper notes sitting abundantly by his hand.
"You're lucky that Akamaru was on the rescue mission with us, kid. A zashiki-warashi blessed him as a pup, you know," a matter of fact Kiba had informed an injured child who had been buried under a mudslide before the ninja dog had sniffed and dug him up.
"I have the blessing of a zashiki-warashi, dattebayo!" Naruto had thrown back valiantly in response to a frustrated ninja who'd demanded as to why Naruto didn't even have a scratch despite being shot at by flaming projectiles during a fairly one-sided battle. Sakura gave him that same glare Ino had been awarded with earlier before proceeding to punch the daylights out of both the enemy and Naruto.
It pissed him off that pretty much everyone knew who or what the zashiki-warashi was, especially since this elusive spirit-thing was turning up everywhere and turning everything into a success like that legendary king with the touch of gold he'd heard about in bedtime stories his mother used to tell him. Something as obvious as that should've been discovered and concluded with already by someone with Sasuke's perceived caliber, but all he could see ahead of him was dark, dark ignorance and no clear answers within his grasp. It bothered him to no end especially since it also proved to him that he still wasn't as trusted as a generic chuunin in terms of the knowledge hierarchy the Hokage had built up. His efforts to find his own answers simply by observing quietly in the background only amounted to more frustration and empty hands, so he resorted to talking to the two biggest blabbermouths he knew (both coincidentally blonde).
"Naruto. What's the zashiki-warashi everyone's talking about," Sasuke stated emotionlessly one day when he couldn't take being in the dark anymore after hearing the youngest Sarutobi brat talk about the spirit (of all people, why the most annoying Naruto-wannabe!), his words falling from his tongue reluctantly and failing to put the questioning intonation grammatically required for inquiries.
"Eh?" his teammate looked at him confusedly. "You don't know?"
A vein by the Uchiha's temple throbbed.
"She's Konoha's greatest weapon!" Naruto exclaimed proudly, oblivious to the increasing tension. "We're doing really fantastic because she's been helping us. We have brand new gear in the ANBU and Academy armories, less rationing in the general villages, and I think Granny Tsunade's gambling debts have been paid off by double because of her! She's the best, dattebayo!"
"… And she is…?" Sasuke trailed off suggestively, hoping that he wouldn't have to explicitly make Naruto aware that he didn't know anything about this mysterious zashiki-warashi.
"Yeah," Naruto agreed, thinking that Sasuke had seconded the notion that 'she was the best.' He opened his mouth again, causing Sasuke's hopes to rise when he recognized that Naruto was about to say a person's name fondly…
And then a gloved fist came from nowhere and Naruto found himself too occupied to reveal anything that Sasuke anticipated.
"Stop wasting time, you idiot! We're going to be late!"
Never before had Sakura aggravated Sasuke so much as in that one moment; he felt his eyes involuntarily flicker blood red with annoyance before he quickly spun on his heel and left his two teammates before he activated anything more serious than his Sharingan. He promised himself to punish Naruto for his incompetence later when they sparred in the training fields however, and then proceeded to vent at least half of his impatience on some unsuspecting and airheaded jounin.
And then he asked his last resort, his former fangirl.
"Oh, Sasuke-kun, it's great to see you here!" Ino flounced about her flower shop happily, watering a few blossoms with a spray bottle as she darted away from him. She had changed since her Academy days and so had he; no longer did she spend her time staring at his beautiful face and waxing poetry about his 'deep, endless eyes' and 'sharply cut jawline that reminded one of a classical statue.' It seemed that flowers had become her distraction and occupation during his absence and she barely fluttered her lashes at him once as he entered. Professionalism clearly sank in, for she acted as if it were completely normal for Uchiha Sasuke to stop by the florist's.
"Is there anything you need right now?" she asked him absentmindedly. "I'm going to close shop in ten minutes because I've got a mission with Hinata-chan."
He stood awkwardly by the counter, leaning away from some passion flowers that teetered by his elbow. The scent of blossoming flowers almost suffocated his sensitive nose as it was unaccustomed to such a cloyingly sweet odor and the smell of earth felt out of place inside. Watching her organize and wipe away stray soil made him feel uncomfortable – he'd never really had a conversation with Ino other than trying to tell her that he didn't like her that way, and the fact that her interest in him had waned almost completely didn't boost his confidence either. He realized he hadn't planned out how the conversation would go and prayed that small talk would eventually get her big mouth to spill the information he needed.
"Ah," he acknowledged dumbly with an incline of his head. "What kind of mission is it?"
This caught the blonde girl's attention, as Uchiha Sasuke never really showed any interest in anything that didn't directly involve himself. As a master of psychology and observing people, Ino was certain that he wanted something from her, probably information or a favor. Though one would think he was an excellent liar, she saw through him clearly with his every fidget and evasion of eye contact. In fact, he looked so discomfited without even speaking a single deceptive word that she almost laughed at him. Sasuke, the epitome of shinobi values, was as transparent as glass, as easy to read as…
"Hinata-chan!"
The bell on the door jingled merrily as a third person entered the shop, a gentle breeze following in and ruffling the petals of every bloom. The girl had long hair that was uncharacteristically tied back behind her, giving the illusion that she had returned to the old bobbed cut of hair she'd had as a child, and her rounded cheeks were tinged a deep red as if she had exerted herself a bit too much.
"A-ah, Ino-chan…" she stammered. "A-am I interrupting s-something?"
There was something ethereal about her, with the ivory skin that flushed pink which reminded him of his mother's prized water lilies, contrasting hair so dark that it reflected blue light, large pearly eyes that reminded him of innocent fairies from legends. If it weren't for her earthly stuttering, he would've mistaken her for some kind of mythological creature –
"No, no, no, Hinata-chan. Sasuke-kun just wanted to ask about some flowers he was going to buy for his mother's birthday. I was going to suggest the traditional chrysanthemums but there are many other choices…"
Ino trailed off before her eyes widened as if she had just recalled something of importance.
"Dammit, I just remembered that my mom wanted me to pick up some sugar before I leave with you on that retrieval mission," she muttered furiously. "Ah, Hinata-chan, can you help Sasuke-kun with his order while I run to the store quickly? I believe in your knowledge and taste in flowers! And I know you'll choose something special enough for him like you always do!"
With that, the door opened and shut again as a whirlwind of blonde hair disappeared into the distance, leaving behind two suddenly very quiet and awkward people attempting to evade each other's gazes. They were quite unsuccessful with this particular endeavor, especially since constantly wandering eyes were bound to meet at some point.
He had no idea why Ino felt the need to lie for him but he was pleased enough at her meddling for once. Pride still thankfully intact, Sasuke wondered if perhaps it would be easier to pry the words from the Hyuuga girl using intimidation instead of conversational skill, the latter of which he reluctantly admitted he lacked.
"Um…" she attempted to string together coherent words with someone she had never before talked with. "W-was there any flower in particular you wanted to give to your mother?"
Unintentionally, his usual glare sharpened as he sardonically replied, "Not really. Why else would I be asking Ino for suggestions?"
She shrank away, unaccustomed to his naturally sour presence. "Then is th-there any message you'd want to t-tell her?"
He considered her for a moment, somehow forgetting temporarily that he had wanted to interrogate the girl about zashiki-warashi, as his mother's birthday really was nearing. "Thank you. And, I guess goodbye."
She smiled softly as if remembering something. "When my mother passed, I wanted to tell her the same thing. Father always put traditional white chrysanthemums on her headstone but she never liked the sobriety the contrast between white flowers and stone made her feel… So I planted bluebells and sweet peas nearby because she loved blue so much."
Moving deftly behind the counter and grabbing a ladder as if she were accustomed to working Ino's flower shop, Hyuuga Hinata climbed with surprising confidence and determination to a high-shelf where she carefully hugged a small pot of blue flowers to her chest before stumbling down onto the ground again. "These are bluebells, meaning gratitude. And then there are sweet peas, which represent farewell." She set another small pot of paler flowers onto the counter and then continued without a single stutter. "If you don't mind, you can use those instead of white flowers."
"Oh." He struggled to say something with a semblance of cleverness or even appreciation for her considerateness, but his mouth couldn't shape the words and his mind couldn't form any. "That's fine."
He took out his wallet and flipped out a few coins carelessly, knowing that he'd overpaid but resistant to the fact that he'd look utterly stupid counting out the exact price and then demanding for her to explain what the hell zashiki-warashi was.
Gathering as many social skills he possessed into his figurative palm – the field of sociability was sparse in him, indeed – he grunted out a soft yet forced out "thank you" in the hopes that this would allow him to integrate into a topic he was more eager to talk about, such as the zashiki-warashi. Keeping in mind that eye contact and physical proximity would probably help with his goal, he stepped a bit closer to her.
"Hyuuga – "
The door burst open as he spoke her name, the bells ringing obnoxiously when Ino sauntered in with an arm full of bags.
"I bought more than just sugar," she said cheerfully. "Maybe we can just have a nice cup of tea before we leave for the mission. I'm sure Tsunade won't bother us if we're half an hour late for our mission…"
She noticed the blue flowers sitting innocuously on the counter while her dark haired customer stood suspiciously close to Hinata and a mischievous smile stretched onto her face.
"Hinata-chan, these are so adorable! I'm sure that Sasuke-kun appreciates them very much," she squealed excitedly. "Sasuke-kun, be glad that you were lucky enough to have Konoha's zashiki-warashi choose your mother's flowers for you! They've now been blessed and diamonds are probably going to drop out of them now."
Sasuke froze as he looked at the plants he'd bought and the now cherry-red Hyuuga next to him. Her blush elevated until she looked like she was naturally red all the time and her head kept ducking after stealing shy, uncertain glances at him, like a curious little spirit or fairy.
"I-Ino-chan, that was supposed to be s-s-secret!" she cried with embarrassment staining her cheeks and tone. "Um… Sasuke-san, p-please don't tell anyone else what Ino-chan said!"
Frowning, he glared at the nonchalant-looking Ino. "Explain, Yamanaka."
Ino giggled slightly nervously, realizing then that she had indeed just broken a law decreed by the Hokage; she had just informed a non-clearance person of a supposedly very confidential village secret, one that was kept in order to prevent catastrophe and war over a particular resource. But it was also the worst-kept secret that was kept within the village, as almost everyone knew of the existence of the zashiki-warashi even if they didn't necessarily match the spirit to an actual human face. She was sure that Sasuke was simply curious and not suddenly about to usurp the title of Hokage or terrorize the Leaf, so she proceeded with her explanation easily enough though Hinata looked like a kettle boiling over as Ino continued with the story from the beginning.
"Hinata-chan here is our most powerful weapon. We haven't found any limit to her ability yet, but it seems that it's all unintentional," Ino told him. "She's really our zashiki-warashi. Ever since we realized she could do it, good fortune kept falling right into our laps."
Sasuke nodded, but still didn't understand completely. "So, what does she do?" Scenarios from the rumors he'd heard years before circulated through his brain. He remembered thinking that it couldn't possibly be another jinchuuriki or time-manipulator, but if she really was the Leaf's top resource then…
"She has the figurative touch of gold," the blonde girl replied, the answer completely unexpected. "Anything that catches her eye apparently has hidden value.
"It first happened when I took her shopping, actually. I saw this really cute bracelet that Hinata-chan would've looked so cute in, but she was taken with this ugly, gaudy piece of crap the salesman called a necklace. Anyway, he practically chucked it at her for free and I tried so hard for her to get rid of it! The rhinestones were too flashy and the chain was obviously plastic…"
Ino looked like she was about to burst in exasperation towards Hinata's questionable taste while ignoring the still incredibly rosy face of her friend before realizing that Sasuke's patience was already being tested by this seemingly impertinent anecdote.
"But then we were attacked by ninja from Kirigakure, you know, the village with all that acid. They sprayed it on us but we managed to dodge it, for the most part. Hinata's crappy new necklace melted off into bits of plastic and aluminum but in the middle of that puddle was a giant diamond."
She flourished to embellish that dramatic revelation.
"So apparently, it was a genuine diamond – we got it checked by jewelers. And it was so big that it's actually incredibly valuable. We gave it to Tsunade-sama to boost our mission funds. Before Hinata showed up with the diamond, we were actually running really low in the treasury – ask Shikamaru-kun, he's been forced to do all the accounting! But it doubled the amount we already had after we sold it to the Daimyo.
"At first we thought this whole thing was a weird fluke that happened, just luck or Hinata's Byakugan catching something different in that butt ugly necklace. But when we asked other Hyuuga to identify that same necklace from dozens of replicas, no one succeeded in telling the difference. And then she did it again with an old kimono a shop was trying to get rid of! It was actually one of Uzumaki Mito's robes from at least a hundred years ago… And then, if you think about it, Sasuke-kun – "
Hinata squeaked in embarrassment before scurrying outside, hiding her face from Ino and Sasuke.
Ino frowned when she saw Hinata leave, wondering if perhaps she shouldn't have spilled that story to Sasuke. She made to follow her friend but the Uchiha boy grasped at her forearm tightly, preventing her escape.
"Continue."
She couldn't stop her retelling of the story now. If there was anything Ino was absolutely confident in, it was her own set of storytelling skills. Beauty would fade and bodies would rot, but her stories would remain, she always told herself. Even if everyone else thought she was just a shallow, gossiping airhead, she was satisfied that at least the entire village ran on her stories and information. She was the secret propaganda specialist in the village, really. Planting ideas in people's heads seemed like an underhanded, manipulative move but it was a formidable and underestimated weapon; she was a ninja before all, so what was a bit of sneaky craftiness? It gave her hidden power over others who would otherwise be too drastic an enemy to tangle with, like the clueless ninja before her. Sasuke looked like he was hooked, his eyes slightly wide with thinly veiled curiosity. She was rather pleased with his interest, but knew that she couldn't show any ulterior motives under her shallow mask so she tapped her chin innocuously as if in the middle of thinking.
"Well, Sasuke-kun. It turns out that if you think about it really hard her ability doesn't only work with material things… She was, if you recall, the first one to believe in that idiot Naruto – look where he is now! Tsunade-sama's most trusted right hand man and her main candidate as successor! And she'd always believed in him since the beginning when he was only a brat with crappy test scores and drinking sour milk. I'm really impressed with that one, actually.
"But then there's Neji-kun – her cousin, who died in the war. Everyone thought he was a snotty, stuck up rich kid with emotional problems, especially during our first chuunin exam when he almost killed poor Hinata-chan, but now he's a village hero and martyr and all that symbolic stuff because she never stopped believing in him."
She let him absorb her words when she noticed the thoughtful glaze in his eyes.
"Aren't those all coincidences?" Sasuke asked after a minute pause. He seemed to be pondering something inside. "I thought Naruto was different too and Neji's an exceptional anomaly in the Hyuuga family anyway."
Slyly smiling, Ino decided to prod at him a bit more. "Well, she's the one who picked Akamaru – who was the runt of his litter – for Kiba, too. I guess it's just objective specialness that she finds in everything. She's part of the Rookie Nine and we're the best graduating class this decade and we've all had interactions with her, gotten approved. Eh, except for you, Sasuke-kun. You've never even had a full conversation with her, have you? I know you're curious."
"… Not really," Sasuke said reluctantly. It burned his pride somehow that he remained unnoticed and 'unblessed' by someone who treated everyone kindly. The fact that she seemed to attract only the best and all but disregarded him made him feel a bit… impotent.
"Don't worry, Sasuke-kun! I'm sure that you'll get paired with her on one of those retrieval missions. Tsunade-sama's been sending her to antique stores and mines all over Fire Country and it can be a bit dangerous out there. But I guess you don't really care for C-ranked missions anyway."
"Hn." He didn't feel too talkative at the moment, especially after this revelation sank in. He still had his doubts about the Hyuuga. He'd always thought himself exceptional and quite frankly, the utter best of what life was offering, especially since his brother and family weren't there anymore. But this Hyuuga girl hadn't seen what he and other people had seen in himself and with all this overwhelming proof of her being a damned treasure-magnet, Sasuke couldn't help but feel uncharacteristically insecure. It slightly hurt that she didn't notice him even when he was just the top Rookie of his year up until now as a legend to be written in shinobi history forever, but the stinging was replaced with a burning annoyance. What did Naruto and Akamaru and an ugly necklace have that he didn't? Yes, she was probably just a fraud or a completely defective treasure-seeker.
"Well, goodbye for now Sasuke-kun! I have to go find Hinata-chan now before we miss the mission completely!" the blonde girl called sweetly, sweeping him out the door carefully before locking up the store. She hid a sadistic grin when she caught his slightly troubled face. "Don't brood too much; the flowers will wilt."
Sasuke watched the blonde skip off with a certain flair to every step, as if she were immensely satisfied by something, before setting off to his mother's grave to deposit his new offering. He frowned as he came to the same conclusion as before: why didn't Hyuuga Hinata ever interact with him? Though he was still a bit skeptical about her talents, he also couldn't help but wonder. He was clearly superior to many she associated with and he was sure it wasn't just his ego making excuses. Gifted with looks, talent, and even wealth, he found himself to be of considerable worth. There were so many things they had in common too, now that he thought about it. So how was it that she never considered him in any way besides as an insignificant stranger?
Eventually, he made it to the Uchiha cemetery where his blood and tears lay long buried but never forgotten. His family gravestones were fenced off a bit due to their status as the leading branch, with his parents' headstones freshly cleaned and dusted while his brother's new and relatively untouched by weathering. There were a few white chrysanthemums scattered around a few other Uchiha graves and he remembered that Hinata had said her mother didn't like the bleak contrast grey stone made with those snowy petals. Looking among the stones, he realized that it was like something had leached the colors and life from the fallen Uchiha and all that remained was uncolored death and grief instead of the bold and brilliant shades of glory and flames that always accompanied the legends that the Uchiha always were. The empty monochrome that even swallowed the golden sun among the tombstones was something he noticed that he didn't especially like, but the nearly forgotten splash of blue in his arms was like a soothing balm over sore eyes accustomed to black and red.
Wordlessly, he placed his pots of bluebells and sweet peas before the marker carved for Uchiha Mikoto. The wind whispered through his hair lovingly and he remembered how his mother used to rub his head when he got tired and collapsed into her lap for a nap. The shifting air carried away the blank sterility he'd breathed before and he could smell something familiar and nostalgic, something he'd always attributed to his mother in his scant memories – the scent of something flowery – and suddenly he felt like she was next to him again with that gentle smile and soothing voice.
His eyes and nose prickled uncomfortably with a foreign feeling and he wasn't sure if he wanted to sneeze or yawn. Instead, saltwater traced over a smiling pair lips rather than the bloody tears his eyes so often shed and it felt like he was home again, for once in these past years…
Perhaps Hinata wasn't a complete fake then, he conceded as the wind dried his stiff face. It felt like she'd given him something more valuable than a diamond or even those blessings everyone else seemed to have. He couldn't pinpoint why exactly he sensed something just different, like coming upon a windfall or just noticing the small things in life that were there to remind you that it was worth living and suffering. Maybe she found other people treasure, but she'd given him a part of herself that was now something he called his.
Sighing, he turned his face to the sky and really breathed for the first time in many years. The air was crisp and cold but his heart was warmer than it had ever been and his pulse was calm. Instead of the hollow emptiness and intermittent screams he heard in his mind, his ears just took in the light chirping of the swallows and the soft whispering of the leaves.
And then a throb in his temple made him remember that he'd just admitted that the Hyuuga girl wasn't a sham after all; he was still a bit annoyed that she hadn't deemed him worthy and now that he had let himself be convinced that she did indeed sense the valuableness in everything, he was left once again feeling more than a tad insulted that she never looked his way ever, even since the beginning.
No matter, he thought resolutely. His life was always about proving himself and now that he'd proved himself to his brother, his village, and his friends, he supposed it was only right to prove himself again to a girl.
He would make her acknowledge him.
