A deep blush stained Hinata's cheeks as the young boy squirmed in her lap. It felt strange, holding Sasuke, but it made her feel a bit at ease. And he really was adorable. A pang of guilt hit her though as his eyes glanced up at her face with a questioning look.
"Hinata-san? Can we, um, cook again?" He shyly asked, hoping she would say yes. He had never gotten as much praise then when he cooked with her, other then the coos from the girls at school, but that was meaningless praise. With Hinata he felt like he truly deserved her small compliments when he helped her.
With soft eyes, Hinata smiled at the boy. "Of course, Sasuke-kun. I'm sorry we haven't cooked recently together. Can you forgive me?"
With a smile Sasuke nodded as he turned to look out the window again. Quickly, Sasuke became bored with the drab scenery of the road and he turned his attention back to inside the carriage. His father appeared to be taking a nap, so Sasuke made sure not ot disturb him to much. The blond man from before was there too. He stared at Sasuke a lot, which made Sasuke a bit nervous. Occasionally the blond man would break out into a huge grin, which confused Sasuke, but he didn't want to get the man upset so he said nothing.
There was another person next to Hinata, whom Sasuke had never met before. Curious eyes would dart to said person, as if wanting to know who it was, but not having enough courage to speak. Taking a deep breath, Sasuke looked at Hinata. He couldn't be shy. Uchihas weren't shy! "Ano, Hinata-san, who is the person next to you?" He cautiously asked.
Smiling, Hinata replied, "That is my cousin and bodyguard Neji. Would you like me to introduce you?"
Wordlessly, Sasuke nodded.
"Neji-nisan, I would like you to meet Uchiha Sasuke. Uchiha Sasuke, this is my cousin Hyuga Neji." Hinata giggled.
Trying to appear less stern, Neji nodded at Sasuke. "A pleasure to meet you Sasuke-kun." He said as he extended his hand to the boy.
Shaking the hand, Sasuke turned to Hinata. "Ano, why is his hair so long?"
"It is Hyuga tradition, Sasuke-kun." Neji interrupted. "Different clans have different traditions. You will have to learn about all of them."
Embarrassed, Sasuke flushed. "Ah, gomen, Neji-san." Sheepishly Sasuke looked at the stern man. "You must be really strong if you guard Hinata-san. Hinata-san is really strong too." He said.
"All Hyuga are strong. It is their destiny to be." Neji stated which caused a slight frown to appear on Hinata's face.
Thinking about those words, Sasuke glanced at his sleeping father. "But my father is really strong because he is Uchiha. Are all Uchiha destined to be strong? Will I be strong?"
Choosing his words carefully Neji spoke, "Uchiha choose their own destiny. You have that privilege."
"No." Itachi suddenly cut through. "My son is strong, and he will be the strongest."
Itachi had been listening to the conversation the whole time, yet pretended to be asleep so that annoying Naruto would leave him alone. However, he didn't know why, but the exchange between his son and the Hyuga greatly bothered him. Glaring at Neji and then at Hinata, Itachi motioned for Sasuke to sit beside him. Itachi knew he was missing information, but the way that Hyuga talked it was if he knew what Itachi did not.
Reluctantly, Sasuke left the warmth of Hinata as he sat beside his angry father. He didn't understand why his father didn't like the Hyuga.
Being unusually quiet, Naruto watched the scene before him. He felt a bit of jealously as Hinata held Sasuke as a mother would and he felt a bit of sadness at Itachi's cold words. Glancing at Hianta, Naruto saw she seemed a little saddened as well. She looked so happy though when she was holding Sasuke. Naruto knew Hinata would make a wonderful mother, if the Hyuga did not interfere too much.
A mischievous grin slowly crept along Naruto's face as he got an idea. Hinata was sad because of the wedding. Children made Hinata happy. Sasuke was now a child. And Sasuke didn't have a mother anymore. Although Naruto was a bit jealousof Sasuke, he wanted his friend to have what both had missed growing up, a loving mother. Now he just had to make sure grumpy Itachi didn't interfere. Easy way would be kill Itachi then Hinata could adopt Sasuke! But never being one for killing Naruto would just have to make sure Itachi didn't ban Hinata from Sasuke, which for the festival shouldn't be too hard. Naruto would need some help though. Neji might be willing to help, if he worded it right, though he knew Neji didn't trust the Uchiha much. And Gaara would be too busy with his wedding to help much.
"Naruto-kun, whatever you are planning stop it. Pranks would not be wise at this kind of event." Hinata's voice suddenly spoke up. She had been watching Naruto for the last few minutes, and the look in his eye she recognized as the gleam he got when he was making plans that would end horribly. Having been his friend for so long, she was able to quash most of his plans without too much trouble.
"Ehehehe, I'm not planning anything Hinata-chan! Honest!" Naruto quickly said. Darn it! He forgot she was in the carriage too!
Hinata narrowed her eyes in disbelief. "Neji, make sure Naruto-kun doesn't cause a war between Suna and Konoha." She slyly said.
Itachi glanced at the kyubi vessel. He still didn't know why the familiar term with the Hyuga bothered him. Feeling a headache growing, Itachi closed his eyes to get some real rest for the time being.
"Mah! Hinata-chan! I'm not planning anything like that I swear!" Naruto protested.
Again, the familiar name, Itachi frowned as the pulsing in his skull grew. 'It must just be the brat's voice that irritates me.' Itachi reasoned.
"We should be arriving in Suna in an hour. So I suggest you calm down Naruto." Neji said as gave a knowing glance to the kyubi vessel. He had an idea of what Naruto was planning, and for once, he would go along with his scheme.
Glancing at his father to make sure he was asleep, Sasuke inched away and moved to Hinata's side again. Maybe his father would like Hinata more if he knew how nice she was.
- - - - -
A.N.
So I can either update this story again this week or update "Majoring in Life" twice. Which would you guys want to read more? Updates are scare this week due to the new year!
