A/N: I'm so sorry it took so long for this chapter to come out. For some reason I found it really difficult to write it; I don't like Fudge or Crouch all that much, so I guess that ate away at my drive to write this chapter. Writing this made me realize how difficult it really is to write from Hinata's perspective - a lot of people end up painting her as a Mary Sue, and given her character it's really easy to fall into that trap. I actually had to rewrite my basic plot line a bit, to make room for a more realistic character and growth for Hinata-chan. She's awesome, yeah, but just for a moment there I almost wrote up a super genius super powered Hinata. And I really don't want that.
With that said, I find writing about Hinata from someone else's perspective really enjoyable. Especially from Hanabi's, actually, so you might find more of those in the coming chapters.
And lol self insert lol.
Mercifully, Hinata stayed on her feet as she and her sensei landed, her eyes squeezed shut. Her head was spinning in a vortex of colors, and as she struggled to regain her bearings, she felt Kurenai take the raincoat from her. She stumbled forward and landed on something large and heavy. Unable to fight the vertigo, she leaned against what felt like an armchair, catching her breath.
A pinch to her hip pried her eyes open, and Kurenai's displeased face swam into focus.
"If we weren't alone in this room, you would be dead by now." her sensei scolded.
White eyes widened at the realization of the mistake, and Hinata began to stammer out apologies. The brunette cut her off.
"Now isn't the time for excuses. I want you to take a good look around you and tell me what you see. You're a Hyuuga, and in the Main House at that; you're no stranger to politics."
Hinata hastened to obey, and scanned the room. They were in a small room containing only two sofas in front of a fireplace. Although the furnishing was sparse, the carpets were thick and luxurious, the walls lined with large (moving!) portraits. There was a large window on the wall opposite them, with a view of blue, cloudless skies. The most striking feature of the room, however, was the fact that they were quite alone.
As alone as they could get, anyway, with the portraits surrounding them bursting into chatter.
"We appear to be in s-some sort of waiting room, sensei." Hinata finally replied.
Kurenai looked at her expectantly.
"The room looks expensive, so that can mean that their country is rich, or that our contact is d-deliberately trying to impress us." she elaborated. "I would've checked the state of the adjoining rooms, and those in the lower levels, but if they detect it, activating my Byakugan can be interpreted as a sign of hostility."
The teacher raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Hinata plowed on, eager to redeem herself after her initial gaffe.
"Also, we are alone in the room. Our contact is keeping us w-waiting - either this is another power play, or he is very busy and we aren't a p-priority."
Satisfied, Kurenai nodded. "I see that you've absorbed some of Shino's logic." Hinata smiled uncertainly.
"Your analysis of our lack of supervision is correct. They have these portraits to keep guard, so they're not fussed about having two potentially hostile shinobi in one of their waiting rooms." The brunette began to walk around the room, scrutinizing the paintings. "I'm surprised that you didn't catch on to the genjutsu by the window, though. We're actually underground; your eyes should have picked that up immediately."
Hinata's face burned up in shame - not even fifteen minutes into the mission and she had already made two major mistakes.
Red eyes flicked to the girl, and Kurenai gave a small smile. "Don't worry, it's your first day on this job. Just find a way to activate them discreetly, okay?"
"Hai, sensei!" the girl replied, bowing.
The sound of approaching footsteps put both kunoichi on alert. Hinata slid into a defensive stance just as the door burst open. Her sensei's arm shot out to restrain her as a harried-looking young man in thick glasses barged in."Ms. Yuuhi!" he said, breathless. "I am so sorry; there was a spot of trouble upstairs and I was sent to sort it out - I'm Percy Weasley, from the Department of International Magical Cooperation." he added hastily.
Kurenai watched in amusement as he bowed rather clumsily, and the two women bowed back. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Weasley." she said in heavily accented English. She gestured to Hinata, and her student's inky head dipped again. "My apprentice, Hinata. We were under the impression that we were to meet up with Mr. Fudge and Mr. Crouch?
"Ah, yes." The man stepped aside. "This way please."
He led them through a stone corridor, lit by torches hanging on the walls. "I'm going to be your guide for most of your stay here." he said as he walked briskly through the halls. There were more portraits lined up outside, and as Hinata followed Weasley she noticed that the people in the portraits were following them. Slightly disturbed, she forced herself to focus on the path they were currently taking.
They stopped in a circular hall with a lift in the middle, and Weasley stepped in. Warily, the two kunoichi followed, and around half a dozen paper airplanes zoomed into the lift as the doors slid shut. Hinata watched them interestedly as they descended, and two floors down, the lift came to a halt. A disembodied voice announced that they were on "Level Five, Minister's office", and the golden grates slid open.
The redhead swept out, and came to a stop in front of a pair of oak doors. He knocked sharply, and opened the door for the two women.
"Go on ahead; after your meeting, I will escort you to your lodgings."
Kurenai gave the young man a dazzling smile. "Thank you, Percy." She entered the room with Hinata at her heel.
Two men were having a heated discussion inside the office, and their conversation broke off abruptly when the Kurenai and Hinata walked in. The man seated behind the desk stood up in welcome. "Good morning!", he said, beaming. "Have a seat! Kurenai, wasn't it? I trust you had a pleasant journey?"
The other man walked up to the window, still looking furious. Pale eyes darted between the two men in apprehension as Kurenai and the man who introduced himself to be Cornelius Fudge chatted amiably. The one by the window, with the incredibly neat moustache, would have to be Barty Crouch. He looked incredibly stressed, and with bags like those under his eyes, he wasn't likely to be having much sleep either.
While Hinata made the appropriate replies at the appropriate times, she spent most of the meeting observing everything around them, as per the plan she and her sensei came up with in the last week. Kurenai would talk, and Hinata would listen - not just to what everyone was saying, but to what everyone meant. "Reading between the lines, looking underneath the underneath... They're even more essential in politics than they are in battle, Hinata." the jounin had told her.
Mr. Crouch was now offering her a plate of biscuits, and Hinata took a few politely. "So, young lady, are you enjoying your holiday from school so far?" he asked her in a voice that was meant to be kind. However, she didn't miss the appraising glint in his eyes.
Shouldn't you still be in school? Aren't you a little too young to be involved in important government affairs?
"I suppose you're feeling quite anxious- so young, and you'll be having to stay in a strange new place with strange new people and strange new magic." he continued.
It's insulting that your Hokage sends us an adolescent as a diplomatic attache - doesn't she take us seriously enough to send us a real diplomat?
Her mouth was suddenly dry, and it became difficult to swallow the biscuit.
"Actually, Mr. Crouch, I g-graduated from the Academy two years ago. I've been working in Reconnaissance and R-R-Retrieval since then." she stammered.
Kurenai glanced at her fleetingly.
I told you to get rid of your stutter.
Hinata lowered her head in shame, and continued quietly. "Most of our work required us to immerse ourselves in different cultures; it will always be an h-honor for me to to get to know d-different people and different magic. I l-look forward to getting a-a-acquainted with your culture."
Her sensei sighed, but Crouch looked taken aback.
Reconnaissance and Retrieval? That sounds like a military operation. What kind of magic do you use, and what kind of country do you live in to send children like you into a military operation?
He made to question her further, but Fudge interrupted.
"Really?" the Minister beamed. "You should come to the Quidditch World Cup, then - it'll be a great opportunity to meet people and to observe the culture. We're hosting it this year, and you're just in time for it too! It'll be on the coming Monday!"
Kurenai smiled amiably. "That sounds like an excellent idea."
Fudge turned to his colleague. "Barty, would you speak to Ludo about preparing another couple of seats in the Top Box for Ms. Yuuhi and Ms. Hyuuga? They'll be there as my guests, so I don't think he'd mind."
"Of course, Minister." Crouch said curtly.
"Unfortunately, the World Cup is also the reason why the Ministry is so swamped at the moment," Fudge chortled, "so I'm afraid we won't be able to meet with you in the coming week. Negotiations regarding the Triwizard Tournament will begin in the last week of August, so, until then, please feel free to enjoy yourselves here."
Crouch stood up. "Weatherby will be escorting you; if you'd like to go around London don't hesitate to ask him. Don't worry about expenses, Weatherby will take care of everything." he intoned. "Ms. Yuuhi, Ms. Hyuuga, Minister - I'll be going ahead now."
"Oh Barty, can't you stay for a bit more of a chat?" Fudge protested.
"No really, I must be going - Ali Bashir arranged a meeting with me about his carpets, and as it is I'm already late."
Half an hour of small talk later, Hinata and Kurenai took their leave as well, and Percy was waiting for them outside.
"I'll be taking you to your rooms in the Leaky Cauldron - I hope you've traveled by Floo Powder before?"
The older jounin paled. Travel by powder? She did not like the sound of that at all.
A/N: I'm not particularly proud of this chapter, so constructive criticism would be especially welcome for this one. Haha. Don't forget to leave a review!
Also, I've been asked about the pairing, and...well, I'm not exactly sure right now. Naru/Hina is a particular favorite of mine, and yes, Naruto will be making an appearance in this fic, but I don't think either of them are ready for a relationship with each other. Actually I'm leaning towards... well I wouldn't want to spoil the fun, would I? Hehe.
Reviewsreviewsreviews yay okay guys they make my day, and though I'm not an animal who lives on reviews, they do help motivate me!
~Vertigo