AN: Neji, Hinata, Sasuke, and Tenten are all in this chapter. I made Sasuke a rather dark and serious character although you do get a glimpse that he's not always like that. I also realized that Neji's way of parenting and Sasuke's way are completely different. Ya know, I never really contemplated SasuTen until this and the fanfic Not So Subtle Differences by Darth-Taisha which kinda sorta hints at it (at least, that's what my depraved mind wishes to believe). BTW, if you like ItaHina go read that fic if you haven't, it's awesome.

OC-wise, Shino's child is introduced and Shikamaru's children are mentioned although they don't come in until next chapter I do believe.

Mission

"Haruno!" called out Hyuuga Rashi, son of Hinata and Neji. The twelve year old's brows were furrowed and his pale white, lavender-tinted eyes were narrowed in anger. His steps were unhurried but the stiffness in his body showed his ire. "Haruno!" he called out again, growing more and more irritated the longer the short haired brunette ignored him. Rashi has absolutely no idea what is going on with his friend and team mate but he was going to find out. Right the hell now. Catching up with her he moved his hand to touch her shoulder "Nadeshiko!" he snapped loudly, his voice echoing in the dark forest.

Fast as lightening the taijutsu specialist whipped around and her bandaged fist slammed into his palm as he stopped it from hitting his face. There was a small grunt from Rashi, the narrowing of his eyebrows slightly, but he glared at her silently taking her in.

Haruno Nadeshiko, at thirteen years old, was a beautiful young girl. Perfectly tanned skin, silky black hair that she currently had cut short, ends meeting at the nape of her neck. Her normally bright green eyes were dull and lifeless at the moment and he noticed that she honestly wasn't aware of what she was doing. Her face was a blank slate.

"Nade-chan," the Hyuuga said soothingly, trying a different approach "what's going on?"

The girl, still taller than most of her male peers, blinked once and confusion emerged on her pretty face. Then she noticed that her fist was caught in his hand and she flinched back from him as if he had burned her. Her eyes widened in horror.

"Rashi-kun!" she exclaims, not wanting to move backwards but too afraid to move forwards "I am…I am so sorry!" her apology is heartfelt and his expression stays slightly impassive as he tries to read her. "Did I…I did not hurt you too badly did I?"

Raising his hand, he waved his fingers at her and smiled slightly "No," he lied "My wrist just hurts a little, probably a sprain. I'll have Aburame look at it."

Black eyebrows furrowed down as a look of guilt and sadness moved over her face. Nadeshiko wasn't a pacifist but she was still a gentle soul, a trait Rashi was sure she inherited from her father Rock Lee. He knew Haruno Sakura, there wasn't anything gentle about that madwoman. Her manner of speech was also similar to her father's and she was a practitioner of his taijutsu style. Her dream was to become a great medical nin like her mother, all of which was why Rashi was so concerned about her. Tonight she had been…a completely different person.

"Are you sure…Rashi-kun?" she seemed back to normal, thankfully. A pissed off extremely powerful taijutsu user did not bring about fun times.

"Yes." He responded and decided to get to the point "Listen Nade-chan, as far as the mission went you performed just as well as you always do. We completed our objective with little issue. What I'm worried about is how you were acting…I never thought I'd ever say this to you of all people but you were absolutely brutal to our enemies." With a small smile he raised his other hand, brushing his knuckles along her cheek briefly "I'm not asking as the team leader, I'm asking as a friend, what happened back there?"

Pain and anger flashed in her bright eyes and then she looked down, frowning "I am…I am sorry Rashi-kun but I do not wish to talk about it right now."

The Hyuuga took in her forlorn expression and sighed, shrugging "Alright. Go take first watch, try to clear your head."

Sadly she nodded and walked away from the camp, jumping up into the trees. With another sigh, this one for a different reason, the heir turned and calmly walked over to Aburame Hotaru who had been pretending to rummage through her backpack. She sat up as he neared her, his expression severe. Through her shades she looked up at him briefly before he knelt down a little too hard in front of her and held out his hand.

"She wouldn't talk?" the Aburame asked and Rashi shook his head.

"Whatever it is, it's very serious." His eyes narrowed a bit more and there was a slight shiver from him "I won't press her but could you not mention what happened in your medical report?"

Her eyes widened slightly behind her shades and she sat up a little straighter, surprised. Idly, she took his hand into hers, a small green light throwing shadows over their faces "I won't." she promised. "But you said you believed it was a strain, correct? So…"

Hotaru almost dropped his hand in complete shock. "Hyuuga, this…"

Quickly he motioned for her to keep it down so that Nadeshiko couldn't overhear. "I'm pretty sure she shattered the bones in my hand." He admitted "Can you fix it?"

She was glad that her face was hidden behind her jacket otherwise he would have seen her jaw drop "Rashi," she began, dropping formalities "your hand is…there's not a bone that isn't either completely broken or severely fractured." She informed him "I didn't even hear you cry out. Wasn't it painful?"

Then she saw it, the sweat beading at his brow and he grimaced now that his friend would be unable to see "It was excruciating." He said through clenched teeth, his voice strained. She noticed how he was forcing himself to breathe evenly "Don't let her know, she's too sensitive and I don't want her feeling guilty."

"Hm." She said, focusing more on healing his hand now "I can heal the broken bones but I'm not skilled enough to handle these fractures like one of the Nara siblings would be able to. You'll have to wait until we get back to the village in three days."

"Just do what you can." Already the tenseness in his body was relaxing somewhat as she did her best to heal what she could. Looking off into the forest he closed his eyes briefly. "Hotaru." He said softly "Thanks. If anything happens I'll take the heat as team leader."

Her response was to nod slightly, her eyes flickering up to his profile. Hyuuga Rashi was arrogant, prideful, cynical, had a slight superiority complex and hated anything Uchiha. Since she hadn't interacted with him too much she had never really noticed that he was also extremely kind, caring, and selfless. He always looked out for others before himself and seemed to be a natural leader.

"You're a very kind person, Hyuuga."

Rashi snorted, tilting his head towards her slightly, looking every bit like his father as he smirked "Don't tell anyone," he joked lightly "I have an image to keep up, after all. Who knows what would happen if it got out to the Uchiha. They think I look feminine enough as it is."

She smiled behind her jacket. The Hyuuga/Uchiha rivalry was something she would never understand. "I haven't seen you around them much lately." She said, trying to help him keep his mind off the pain through conversation.

"Kosuke is…" a strange smile emerged on his lips "getting to the point where I'm actually starting to have a hard time beating him. I think he'll make chunnin this time." Despite the obvious hatred the boys held towards each other he actually sounded happy."Itachi is still a sadistic psycho and I try to avoid her like the plague." This time he scowled "Unfortunately, she's also the best damn shinobi within our age group and she's already a jounin. If I want to go all out in a spar, I have to go find her." He even shuddered for effect.

"Is she still calming you to be her fiancé?"

"Yes." He said through clenched teeth. "She's worse than mine and Kosuke fangirls; at least I can dodge them. If Itachi wants me, she will find me; it's extremely uncomfortable and unnerving and I wish she'd leave me the hell alone. I'm twelve and she's fourteen, what could she possibly see in me?"

"Maybe she's not attracted to you physically." Hotaru offered, reaching into her medical kit to grab some bandages for his hand "I hear she takes her position as heir very seriously, so it would only make sense to go after someone strong and the two of you are almost equal in skill. Especially since they're trying to rebuild their clan, they would want strong genes."

He didn't respond so she didn't push it. Finishing his hand she reached in her bag once again and handed him a bottle of painkillers "Take these," she instructed "it'll help with the pain and swelling. Take two pills every six to eight hours until we get back. Until then, I strongly recommend you do not, under any circumstances, use that hand until you get the clear from medical."

Rashi's expression hardened darkly as he continued to look out at the forest. She almost missed him murmuring "A Hyuuga who cannot use their hands is worthless."

xxxxx

Standing outside the main entrance to the Hyuuga home she raised her hand up as if to open the sliding door but paused. The guards at the gate had allowed her to come in on her own but now that she was here, she was incredibly nervous. He hadn't seemed angry with her but still…

"Probably a sprain." He had said. If he had been any other person, she would have believed him, but this was Hyuuga Rashi and he would never admit it if the damage was worse than he claimed it to be. She knew how strong she was, she hadn't held back and he hadn't expected to be attacked by his own team mate and best friend. Rashi deserved an apology and a real explanation.

So here she was, Haruno Nadeshiko, looking at the door into the main compound and wondering if she should just walk in or bolt. Her head lowered as her mind flashed back to a few nights ago when her fist had connected. If it had been painful, he hadn't shown it. A twitch of the eyebrows, a natural reaction for one blocking a blow.

Maybe it really was just a sprain…but still, I cannot keep Rashi-kun in the dark, he is my best friend.

Taking a deep breath she mustered up all of her determination and moved to open the door. Right as she did the door slid open and she cried out in alarm and almost lost her balance. Looking up, her gaze locked onto her uncle, Hyuuga Neji. He was giving her a 'what in the world are you doing?' sort of look.

"Is there something you need, Nadeshiko?" he asked calmly "You've been standing out here for the past twenty minutes."

How did he know that? Oh. Right. Bloodline limit and all that. Taking a deep breath her face turned pink as she tried to find her voice. "I am…wondering if Rashi is available." She said softly "I would like to speak to him if possible."

"Hm?" tilting his head at the girl he blinked once "Weren't you two on the same mission?"

She nodded "Yes but when we arrived the three of us went in different directions so…" she looked down at her sandaled feet.

"I see. He is not here Nadeshiko, although if he was your team leader, he could be reporting to the Hokage directly. If you'd like, you are more than welcome to wait for him inside." He said the word 'inside' almost teasingly. Even more embarrassed now, she shook her head.

"No that is alright. I will come back later. Could you please let him know that I stopped by?"

"Yes, of course." There was a small pause and he pulled out a small jar from the inside of his kimono sleeve "Your father asked for this last week and Hinata finished it yesterday. Could you give that to him?"

Nodding obediently, he gave her the tiny jar of salve and with a polite bow, left the compound.

Thirty minutes later the boy in question arrived at his home, hand still bandaged but considerably less painful. He caught his mother in the gardens, kneeling down as she messed around with some strange plant or another. A smile that no one outside the compound had ever seen emerged as he walked out to join her.

Hyuuga Hinata turned to him and smiled warmly as she straightened up. "How did your mission go?"

"The mission itself was fine, standard really." he reported "But Nade-chan was really off. When I tried to talk to her about it she…" he raised his bandaged hand "shattered the bones in my hand with her fist." His smile became wry. He and his mother were very close and he made it a point to hide nothing from her.

His mother's expression turned a mixture of concerned and deeply worried as she reached out for his hand. "Oh, Rashi…" she whispered softly, looking sad "you two have been friends since your first day at the academy. Why would she…?" Hinata cut herself off, frowning "Nadeshiko-chan is such a kind girl…"

"I don't think she registered that it was me at the time," he explained "I –"pausing, he turned to look at his father that was standing above the steps, arms crossed. He could feel his father's approval for the fact that he had sensed him.

"She was here not too long ago, asking for you." Rashi's father said.

"I told her it was just a sprain so, please don't tell her how bad it actually is." His expression was pleading.

Both parents smiled slightly at their son's concern over his friend's feelings. "Did she explain what was wrong?" his mother asked him, his hand in hers while the other moved over it lovingly "She's always so mild mannered."

"If it weren't for the fact that she is Lee's daughter I would have considered her to be harmless." Neji confessed, agreeing with his wife.

Rashi shook his head "No, she didn't want to talk about it. She looked sad and angry." His brows furrowed in thought "Not at anyone in particular…more like she was upset with herself. At least, that's the feeling I got."

"You have good eyes," his father said, walking down the steps to join his family in the garden "I am sure your observations are correct." As if remembering something, Neji's eyebrows also furrowed in thought, the two males looking almost exactly alike at that moment. "Actually, I am almost positive that you are correct." When his son and wife looked up at him curiously he continued "I was talking to Lee the other day, he was very upset about Nadeshiko. Apparently, her skills in everything but taijutsu are abysmal and haven't been improving despite all of her training."

The son looked sad "She always did have problems with even the simplest of things…" he said, thinking out loud "She'd always work really hard but ninjutsu and genjutsu were just things she wasn't good at."

"Yes, well," Neji wasn't finished quite yet "Nadeshiko has wanted to join the medical program for a while now. Once they discovered that she was, well basically like her father, they told her that she could never become a medical ninja, she just doesn't have the capability."

Hinata made a small sound and turned to her son. He looked devastated.

"Being a medical ninja like her mother has been her dream since she even before I met her." Rashi said softly, sadly "I am almost positive she believes it's her fault for not being good enough, that's just the way she is."

His mother put her arms around him and pulled him towards her and he did not resist. It was probably true what they said about him being a 'momma's boy', but he had never cared. None of them understood the bond he held with his mother, none of them knew of his life before he had come to this village. His nightmares filled with her pain filled screams would never allow him to forget how important she was to him, how much she had went through because of him. If he had never been born she would had been able to leave her first husband easily, instead she had ended up taking more abuse to protect her son while he had been…worthless. For all his supposed genius, he had been unable to do anything those first six years, he had been nothing but a burden.

All the more reason to become as strong as possible, so that he could protect the ones closest to him. Failure wasn't an option any longer; he had sworn that the moment he entered the village for the first time. Never again would he be useless, unable to do anything besides look and hope that the next blow wouldn't be the one that killed.

"I'll go find her later." He said eventually. Rashi had no idea how he wanted to approach Nadeshiko about her problem. He cared about her a lot, during his first day at the academy she had been the only person who had tried to help him get around or be kind to him. He knew he pitied her, which was the main reason why he was hesitating to go seek her out. Nadeshiko didn't need pity or sympathy and it'd especially hurt her coming from him.

"What about your hand?" his mother inquired, trying to look into his eyes when he found himself unable to look at her for a moment. "Rashi?"

"They were able to mend all the fractures but they're putting me off missions for the next two weeks. I'm not to use my hand for anything until then since it's still rather swollen and the fractures could easily return if I put too much stress on it."

Rashi closed his eyes when his mother removed one of her gloves and her fingers drifted through his long hair. Her other hand rested on his chunnin vest. "I have some herbal remedies that will help with the swelling," she offered.

"Thank you, mother." He said sincerely and then barely stifled a yawn, surprised at how tired he actually was.

"Go get some rest." His father instructed and the son nodded, moving past him to go up the steps and to his room.

Hinata's worried expression did not shift "Neji, if Nadeshiko doesn't know that she hurt him that badly…"

"He probably didn't say anything or give away his pain to her." He finished. Closing the distance between them, he helped her up and pulled her into his arms, a hand moving over the small bulge of her stomach "Let him handle it." He told her "I know you're worried but he's smart enough to work it out on his own." He kissed her temple and then pulled back slightly "I leave on a mission tonight," he informed his wife "I'll be gone for a week at the most." There was a small pause, he made sure he had her complete attention "I'm thinking of quitting ANBU." He announced. Flinching, she took a step away from him, her eyes sad. "I'm not home enough as it is." He continued "I want to be here for you and the baby…I was not able to do so with Rashi. I have someone in mind to replace me as squad leader and contrary to what you're thinking, yes you have that look in your eyes, I don't mind. It is almost impossible to be in ANBU and be around for your family, Hinata, you know that."

"Yes, I know," she said with a soft, mixed smile "It's just that you've seemed very happy in your position. I don't want you to regret anything, Neji."

He pulled his wife into his arms once more and dipped his head down to kiss her. After a long moment they parted and he brushed his lips against hers "I am happier being here with my family." He said softly. "And one doesn't join ANBU because they enjoy it, they do it because they want to fulfill a duty to their village. There is nothing glorious or beautiful about what I do, do not ever think I would choose that over you and our child."

Her delicate hand fluttered to move along his cheek and she smiled lovingly at him "Thank you." She said softly and they both knew it was about more than just him being there for her. Tightening his arms around her, he rested his cheek on the top of her head and closed his eyes.

xxxxx

"Why don't you stand still so I can hit you properly?" Uchiha Tenten suggested to her husband, grinning as she whipped out another scroll from her arsenal "You're only making this harder on yourself."

"Hn." Uchiha Sasuke returned her grin as he ducked, narrowly avoiding a rather massive spiked ball. "I'm not really a fan of being a pincushion." He murmured, blinking when the spiked ball split into two and hundreds of weapons came flying at his back.

"I think it makes you look charming." She teased, rushing forward as her husband ducked her barrage. He jumped back, crimson eyes narrowing at the strange hand seals she was doing. Skidding to a stop he frowned slightly at her, which was exactly what she had wanted.

A circular wall of very sharp weapons erupted from the ground around him, all of them attached to chains. Tenten held the ends and she pulled her arm back, the blades closing in at breakneck speed. A cloud of dust rose and she stood a good distance away. She could still sense his chakra so he was definitely around, but she couldn't pinpoint an exact location.

A high pitched yelp escaped her lips as she was suddenly pulled forward by her own chains into the cloud as it was settling. Her body slammed into something solid and she felt an arm wrap around her waist. Dropping the chains, she looked up at her husband and smiled.

"You dodged." She observed, looking at the scores of blades sticking up from the ground.

Tilting his head, Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her, his expression otherwise blank "If I didn't know any better," he began "I'd almost swear you were actually trying to kill me."

Leaning back, she sighed "Yeah well, you won't take it seriously otherwise." She shrugged "I'm just a poor jounin trying out a new technique on a man strong enough to take on the Hokage. Can you blame me?"

He looked thoughtful for a moment before jerking his thumb to the field of blades "If I wasn't, I would be dead right now." He remarked dryly.

Chocolate brown eyes lit up "So, is it pretty good then?" she gave her a sly smile "Besides, you like it when I try to turn you into a pincushion, admit it."

"Yeah, it's fine." He remarked before wrapping his other arm around her, lips moving along her neck "You should find it disturbing that I get turned on when you're trying to kill me." Teeth bit down softly against sensitive flesh. She made a small noise.

"Wasn't that the reason you married me?" she sounded a little breathy "Because I tried to kill you? Well, accidently but still…"

"Mm." he responded in a manner that told her that he had probably stopped listening to her as his hands began to roam along her body "It makes things in the bedroom interesting, I'll give you that." His hand began to slide up her shirt.

She had to admit, it was amazing that he still found her attractive after having five children – and being pregnant but she wasn't going to tell him that right now or he'd make her stop training – and very flattering. Oh, she kept her body in shape of course, but her body was definitely different from when they had first gotten married. Itachi had been two at the time. What had started out as a drunken one night stand had turned them into parents nine months later. For a long while she had been hesitant about marrying him because she was well aware of what would be expected. Becoming a baby making machine had not been her goal in life and it was only through their first born that they had even really dealt with each other prior to that. Those first few years had been rather rocky but eventually she decided she'd marry him. Love tended to make people do anything, even become a baby making machine.

Both paused as a flare of chakra moved through their house, announcing the arrival of their first born and heir to the growing Uchiha clan. Normally it wouldn't have bothered them; their daughter was very powerful at the age of fourteen, but she was also normally a very calm and collected person. They could both sense that she was highly agitated by something.

Neither of them said anything as she calmly walked out towards the field they used for training. She looked calm, her long hair trailing behind her, bangs framing a slender face. There was no expression on her face and her Sharingan was active, although that was normal for her. Her movements were smooth and fluid and she didn't bat an eyelash at her parents standing in the middle of a blade-covered field with their arms around each other.

Uchiha Itachi looked up at her father and said blandly "Father, you know my goal is to become the best so that I may properly take over when it is my time, yes?"

He blinked once. "Yes." His tone sounded as if he suspected she was going to drop some sort of bombshell on him like she tended to do every now and then. He wasn't at all off the mark.

"You told me that you would teach me everything you knew." Her tone sounded accusing.

Slowly, his arms lowered from his wife and he turned fully to her, frowning "And?"

The young girl's fists clenched "Then teach me how to activate the Mangekyo Sharingan."

Tenten stiffened and looked at her daughter as if she had gone insane. Her father's face hardened. Sasuke looked at his daughter for a long moment before he spoke.

"No." he deadpanned "Don't ask again."

Before she could open her mouth to protest, Tenten jumped in "Where did you hear about that anyway?"

Itachi turned to her mother "The other jounin were speaking about it, they weren't aware that I was there."

"It doesn't matter where she heard about it." The dark haired man said, "It's not happening."

Confusion and frustration filled the heir "I don't understand," she began "you don't think I could handle something that advanced? If you learned it I know I –" she made a small startled sound as her father grabbed her arm and practically dragged her back to the house, her mother following solemnly.

The oldest child had never seen her father so angry before until now and she had to admit it was frightening. His face wasn't scary, he was merely scowling; it was his presence, his aura. It was as if she was being sucked into a pit of darkness; cold, merciless and ever consuming.

The Uchiha children knew, for the most part, about their father's dark past. They knew that he had betrayed his village, had become an S-Class criminal and descended into madness after his brother had died. They all knew he was powerful, as strong as the Hokage, but they had never really seen it. Not like this. She'd never been so frightened in her life.

They entered the house and Kousuke looked up at them while he was trying, and failing, to feed the current youngest lunch. Even he tensed and looked at his father with wide eyes as he strode across the living room and towards the wing where they all slept. Itachi said nothing, she was too afraid to.

Sliding open the door to her room he pushed her inside, closing it behind him. He motioned for her to sit and she obediently went over and sat down on her bed, trying not to look as terrified as she felt.

"Do you have a best friend?" he asked her, crossing his arms. She could read nothing in his gaze, which was now a bright crimson as he glowered down at her. The question threw her off guard and she tried to think.

For some strange reason, Hyuuga Rashi entered her mind.

"Y-yes…" she answered. Reaching behind him he tossed her a kunai and she caught it with curious eyes.

"Go kill them." He said it flatly, coldly.

A horrified expression emerged and she almost threw the kunai out of her hands, as if it had burned her. She didn't dare to look away from him, for some reason she felt as if she couldn't, but her entire body began to shake. "Wha –"

"Also," he continued "If you don't want to eventually become blind from using it, you can go kill Kousuke and take his eyes. He's the only other one who has activated his, although you could always try to kill me and take mine instead." He spoke to her as if he were discussing a mission or the weather. Not a single emotion showed on his face or in his eyes as he watched her drop the kunai he had tossed at her on the ground and began shaking. Itachi looked down at it as if it was some sort of venomous snake and she unsuccessfully tried to fight back tears.

"But you…" her voice was shaky "you're…"

"Not blind?" he finished for her. Taking two steps he knelt down and looked his daughter in the eyes. She watched in horrified fascination as red turned to black with strange red ellipses in the center. "These eyes originally belonged to Itachi, my brother." She gasped and her blanched face turned slightly green "I killed him and then eventually took them from his dead body and implanted them into mine. I did it for power and revenge."

He didn't stop her when she rushed out of the room. Instead he slowly stood and began to walk towards the bathroom where the sound of her retching could be heard. He ignored his wife's expression, she had known that it had needed to be done but it still wasn't pleasant watching one's child in pain, and stood outside the door. The water to the sink was running and Itachi's head was bent over as she rinsed out her mouth.

Turning, she saw her father standing at the door frame and she looked away from him, afraid and not a little ashamed.

"It dies with me." He told his daughter "As my heir, it'll be your responsibility to make sure it happens." Not waiting for her response he turned and began walking down the hall. His wife noticed the look in his eyes and moved forward as if to stop him.

"Where are you going Sasuke?" she asked him, stopping him by gently placing her hand on his arm. He didn't get like this often, in fact, he hadn't since Itachi had been born, but it was always terrifying. It was always a reminder of what he once was.

"I'm going to go have a talk with some jounin." He growled, irritated at their incompetence.

Sighing, Tenten let go of his arm and he continued his trek out the house. "Just try not to kill anyone." She was half joking.

"We'll see." Was all he said.