Yay! An update! Thanks to all my lovely reviews, I enjoyed reading each and every one of them. Thank you so much for your support.Anywho, here is the next (albeit short) chapter of Broken Promises. Please enjoy the story!

All standard disclaimers apply, these characters do not belong to me.

Naruto cowered as he felt the heat of white eyes glaring at him. He had never seen a Hyuuga so angry before. His impression, they were a calm, reserved clan. This was not the case however.

"What are you doing here?" asked Neji. His rage at seeing the unwelcome visitor made him tense. His hands clenched and unclenched in fury as he waited for a reply.

Naruto felt his grip on the bouquet loosen, it was one of the few times he felt fear. He knew Neji cared about Hinata, he knew that the branch member swore to protect her. He also knew that Neji had no problems hurting him in revenge for breaking his cousin's heart. However, the blond found his wits and said as he clutched the flowers,

"I'm here to see Hinata."

Neji's eyes narrowed at the comment.

"What makes you think you can see may see her?" Neji hissed. His gaze never left Naruto's face.

Naruto was silent for a moment, clutching the bouquet in his fist. He had to see her, to let her know he was truly sorry. He wanted to let her know that he had never menat to hurt her. Even though he knew it was unlikely, he hoped that they could stay friends. He was so close, only a few feet away but this man, Neji, the very man that had once tried to kill her, barred his path.

"Please, just let me see her," Naruto pleaded, "I need to tell her I'm sorry." His voice cracked as emotion dried his throat. Neji peered at him coldly before replying coldly,

"No."

Confusion filled Naruto as he stared blankly at the Hyuuga. It was partly his doing that Neji and Hinata had rekindled their friendship, his efforts tounite the clan and now Neji was denying him one of his closest friends? Not fully comprehending the branch member just said, Naruto stammered,

"W-what?" His eyes were wide in shock.

"I said, no." Neji stated frostily, "I will not allow you to hurt Hinata-sama again. I swore to protect her, both mentally and physically, and unlike you; I keep my promises."

Silence reigned and in the quiet, Naruto felt anger flooding into his veins. His grip on the flowers tightened and he resisted the urge to punch Neji in the face. Time calmed the once impulsive ninja and gave him wisdom. He knew that if he hurt Hinata's beloved cousin, she would not be pleased. Not only that, but it would also give Neji more incentive to keep him from seeing her; he couldn't risk that, it was an option he couldn't afford if he wanted to fix the damage he had done.

"Alright," he managed to say, his teeth were clenched in resentment but he turned away from the Hyuuga property. Anger made his step quick; his hands were empty.

As Neji watched Naruto's retreating form, he couldn't help but feel unsettled. He hadn't expected Naruto to give up so easily. He stood silent, trying to piece together the puzzle, but one thing he did know was that the dispute was not over; he had seen the look in Naruto's eyes. THinking about the blond made him angry and Neji turned and walked back into his home. In his haste, he did not notice the bouquet of flowers left on the sidewalk, the tissue paper torn and petals lay scattered on the pavement.

Neji winced as he heard the familiar squeaks as he opened the door making a mental note to have it fixed. As he closed the door, Neji heard Hinata's voice calling faintly,

"Neji, is that you?"

He hesitated for a moment, briefly wondering why she didn't use her special bloodline to discover his identity. He would have but he shouted in reply,

"hai, Hinata-sama."

The Hyuuga heiress stepped into view. She wore her pajamas and her soft blue hair was pulled into a loose ponytail. The soft blue flannel material fitted her and displayed her figure and had Neji been any other man, he might have blushed but he was not and so he remained cool and composed. He did admit she looked beautiful even in sleepwear and he was glad to see a change in her attire as he recalled a time where she wore a loud orange set. The clothing had made him oddly irritated whenever he saw her in it but he never commented on it.

When Hinata saw her cousin, she smiled slightly; she had not truly smiled after Naruto's betrayal. Much to her delight, she received a smile in return.

"Where did you go?" The Hyuuga heiress asked quitly.

"A walk," Neji replied stiffly. He continued, "Hinata-sama, there are a few matters I must attend to. Please excuse me."

Hinata nodded her head in understanding and in a burst of smoke, he was gone. In the empty hallway, Hinata stared vacantly at the space her cousin had just stood moments before. She was glad he had not seen her before she revealed herself. She was glad he had not seen the raised veins that ran along her temples before he had returned inside, glad he did not know she had seen the whole scene. Hinata did not know what to think, her mind and heart wrapped around the situation, pulling in different directions, tangling it to incomprehension. Part of her was glad Neji had kept his promise, to know that he would protect her. On the other hand she wanted to see Naruto, she wanted to know what his true intentions were. She decided to wait and allow the conflict to disentangle in her thoughts to form a single thread she could read. Show would stay silent for the time being she decided as she stepped out of the manor. Almost mechanically, she bent sown and picked up the torn bouquet from the asphalt and in silence, returned inside.

She sat quietly in her room, her haven, as she eyed the flowers warily. The harmless object felt dangerous to her because it was from him. What did it mean? Did he love her, did he want her back? Did she want him back? Without thinking, Hinata reached over to the bouquet and plucked a lone lily from the tissue. She gazed at it, fingering the soft petals between her fingers and with a light tug, pulled it off. One by one the petals floated to the floor while the Hyuuga heiress worked. She sat, plucking the petals all the while thinking, he loves me. He loves me not.

Her hand wavered as she held it above the final petal.

"He loves me not," she whispered and let the plant fall from her fingertips. She knew he didn't love her but this one act finalized the fact and broke the last thread of hope she had. She was surprised to feel a tear running down her cheek but she made no move to stop its course. More followed and Hinata sat silently as tears rained from her eyes. They stained the covers and fell on the scattered petals but with each falling teardrop, Hinata felt the pain lessen bit by bit. But, it still hurt so much.

Hinata went to sleep that night with her cheeks still moist from the fresh tears. One though ran in her mind as she drifted into sleep, Neji kepps his promises, Neji will protect me. He will keep me safe.

Not far away, her father rummaged through papers, searching purposefully. Wrinkles marred his features as his efforts had so far been in vain. His eyes widened when they fell upon a scroll, hidden under the jumble of other papers. Was this the one he had been looking for he wondered?

Hiashi's eyebrows furrowed as he leaned forward what was within. Slowly, he unraveled the paper, ignoring the cloud of dust that blew up from the years of storage. His eyes watered from the particles as the drifted into his face but he remained focused on the scroll. The ink appeared faded but with a quick glance, he knew he had found what he had been searching for. At the bottom of the parchment were two smears of blood, behind the marks were the Hyuuga flame and a fan. Hiashi's mouth curved into a smil at the sight. The Hyuugas and the Uchihas had not interacted in years but soon, that would all change. He would have to contact the lone Uchiha shortly.

Well? What did you think? Love it? Hate it? Drop a review, criticism, opinion. Thanks for reading! I'll try to update soon.