I know it took me a while to upload this chapter. To be honest, I had trouble deciding the plot line of this fic. I'm just writing whatever scenes that popped in my mind these days. But, fret not! The plot lines are becoming clearer to me thanks to the reviews I've been getting. They really motivated me :D
So, as always happy reading!
Hatake Kakashi was back. He just returned from visiting all the other four hidden villages in the land of fire. It was required for him to do so before he is to be coronated as the Sixth Hokage. To be honest, he felt indifferent of his future. Yes, he is honoured to be leading the hidden village of the leaf as the Rokudaime. Who wouldn't after seeing all the previous Hokage reanimated from the dead, fighting feverously with the will of fire? Not to mention the Yondaime, his used to be sensei. A flash of yellow hair clouded Kakashi's vision. The person who had guided him through his darkest times. Also the person who had him watching over another blonde hair person from when he was just a foetus growing innocently inside a tummy. The child who would soon replace him of his soon to be job as Hokage.
"Good times are coming ahead," He muttered under his breath as he knocked on the Hokage's door.
Inside the office, a blonde hair woman dropped the report she was reading and gestured for him to take a seat with her hand. As far as Kakashi can remember, Tsunade has always brought with her an air of authority, an aura that not many women of her times carry. Having the Senju blood running through her veins, she was one of the most accomplished medic ninja at the present time, who also happened to be Konoha's Godaime. Tsunade took her glasses off and set it aside before saying,
"It's good to see you're alive and well,"
"I wouldn't miss coming back,"
"I hope you're ready to take the next big step in your life."
Kakashi chuckled before saying, "It depends on what you mean by 'next big step',"
Tsunade lifted an eyebrow curiously at him.
"Well, I'm not interested in your personal life, Kakashi, Except for your ex-students. Have you've been keeping up with them?,"
"To be honest, I haven't. But I assume that Sakura is well under your care. Naruto, would probably still be pretty enthusiastic in his pre-Hokage training as suggested by the council. And as for Sasuke—"
"Ah, yes… Uchiha Sasuke," Tsunade cut him off. "But of course, the topic all of us must tamper with caution."
"What do you mean?" Kakashi asked as he placed his foot on a knee, his hands that were resting on the armrests were now interlaced.
"While you've been away for the past two years, I have come up with a theory," she began saying.
"Please, enlighten me."
"We have Sasuke, the last standing Uchiha. A shinobi no doubt full of potential." Tsunade began saying as she got up from her chair and turned to stare outside the window that was perched behind the Hokage's desk. "But we can't have the sole Uchiha to be one-handed." She finally said as she turned to face him.
Kakashi looked inquisitively at her and said matter-of-factly, "You want him to produce an heir?"
Tsunade laughed at the question.
"You're thinking too far ahead, Kakashi. But I don't blame you," she said after recovering from her untimely laughter.
"I have begun researching the likes of regenerating a lost limb, taking into consideration what some of our Konohans could offer, such as clans with special abilities like the Aburame, Yamanaka and Hyuuga."
Kakashi noted how Tsunade said the Hyuuga clan last. He doesn't know why but he could tell where the conversation was going.
"We may have highly trained medical ninjas, but for this project to be a success we must seek for a medical ninja who has a little bit more to offer." She continued saying.
"Therefore, I sought out all potential possibilities and landed with one with 80% success rate."
Kakashi who kept silent up until now, was definitely intrigued by what Tsunade was saying.
"The byakugan can see our chakra flow even if a part of the body part is not there, using this as a guide I have discovered several ways to multiply the different cells of our bodies, that will further develop into body tissues that will later become bones, muscles, nerves and you name it."
"So the likelihood of Sasuke growing back his arm with the help of a Hyuuga is possibly high?" He asked confirming his understanding,
"Exactly,"
"How many Hyuugas are required for this project?"
"Just one actually,"
"And who would that be?"
"I've had a talk with Hyuuga Hiashi, and he offered me his eldest daughter, Hyuuga Hinata. He told me, since she was no longer the next Hyuuga heirness, she should redeem herself through this project. And her age, makes her byakugan agile to contort to this project too."
"Sounds like a perfect plan. Has it been in motion?"
"Yes, she's been having basic medical training under some of my best medical ninjas for the past two and a half years. And she is showing promising results. I'm going to prepare her properly before pursuing the plan. I just wanted to tell you of my agendas before passing my post to you," Tsunade explained thoroughly.
"Understood. But may I ask one question?" Kakashi said as he lifted up one hand.
"What is it?"
"Why is reviving the Uchiha so important?"
Tsunade smiled at him before saying,
"Some things are better off knowing when it's in your blood."
None of Hinata's friends knew what she was really doing for the past two and a half years. Yes, they knew she's been training medical ninjutsu at the hospital. But they never knew the real reason why. Even Kiba and Shino, her supposedly closest friends were clueless. And as of lately, since the war the two of them has been busy preparing themselves to take over the title of clan head. While Hinata, has been spending her time reading medical books and journals quietly in her room. She even gave up on tending her garden, which had always been her hobby. She missed her flower pressing days.
It wasn't easy at first. Hinata was not the type to keep secrets from her loved ones especially by lying. But it was a top secret project that belongs to the Godaime. And she was just a part of it. Although her role hasn't even begun, Hinata was just honoured that her father had entrusted her with something so big, it made her feel slightly of importance again in her clan. However, as days become weeks and weeks becomes months and later years training as a medical ninja… Hinata began feeling the strain.
It's not that she hated learning medicine, at first it took her a while just to digest a few texts. But with alternate help from Sakura and Ino, she later got the hang of it. Even though she was far behind compared to their level in medical ninjutsu—she was six years behind them, it did not falter her spirit. Because she knew she was doing something for the village, for her father, for Sasuke even though she had no idea how involved he would be in her life later on. But most importantly, she did it for herself.
When her father told her, he had offered her to the Hokage as part of her project to regenerate the last Uchiha's hand. At the very beginning, she was terrified of the idea. Because she had to cram the said six years of the medical ninjutsu training she had missed. And thus the nearly 12 hours of training per day ever since she was eighteen. Thanks to the post war situation she was able to learn most of the syllabus within two years. But darn, it was a very long and stressful two years. It changed her, not only internally but also physically. The Hyuuga elders kept saying that her posture was degrading, making her develop a habit to check herself in the mirror before leaving her room. Her eyes also began to puff due to tiredness and just as it was now, black circles would develop around them when lack of sleep.
But she didn't care. She was never one who cared how beautiful she should look like. For Hinata, a decent and proper appearance is more than enough. Ever since her long standing crush on a certain blue-eyed boy slowly died—slowly meaning that it wasn't completely gone. Hinata still feel flustered whenever Naruto is in too close of a proximity to her, but unlike her old self, she didn't hyperventilate or worse fainted. She would just turn red, and for Hinata, that was a big enough change.
Sometimes you can hate yourself, but you also need to forgive yourself.
Hinata sighed and looked out her window to the greyish-blue sky. Time does change a person. It mends broken hearts, it opens room for new resolution. It… well it's all we've got in hopes for a better future. To prove it, Hinata has stopped falling head over heels when it comes to Naruto. It was as if her feelings took a halt. Still there, but it was no longer brewing, in fact it felt like it was slowly fading. It'd be a big lie if she said that she was over him. Nobody gets over their first love. At least, not easily.
"Hinata-sama, gomen ne but your father is calling for you," Mitsuko appeared in her room after a gentle knock.
Her father was having tea at a veranda facing the Koi pond they own. Hinata greeted her father and sat down next to him, joining him on viewing their beautiful garden.
"You called for me, Otousan?"
"Hinata, I have some news for you," he began saying before taking a sip of his tea. "The Hokage just sent me a letter regarding your studies. She told me that you would be having your final examination in another month,"
"Ano… Like the end of the basic training?"
"Yes, she told me that you are a fast learner, which she said was quite rare to find amongst those training to be medical ninjas," Hiashi paused with a small smile on his face.
Hinata suddenly felt a flutter in her heart. It's been a while since she saw her father smile like how he was smiling now. It felt like an accomplishment.
"So, here is the list of your study materials that you need to cover before the exam," Hiashi said as he handed her an envelope.
"Arigatou, otousan." Hinata said as she took the envelope from him.
"And… Since, your studies is going well. I've decided to unground you. But there are two conditions that go with it,"
"What is it, otousan?" Hinata asked as her heart began to flutter happily. Ungrounded? That was such a piece of good news!
"Number one, tell Uchiha Sasuke to come see me because I know once I let you out, you're bound to see him or the other way around, it doesn't matter."
"B-but—" Hinata began to protest at the accusation as her cheeks started to feel hot all of a sudden.
"And secondly," he cut her off before saying, "Please take better care of yourself. You're losing weight, and you look so pale I could swear sometimes I think you look like a ghost," Hiashi said concernedly as he looked at her face.
Hinata smiled.
"My, Otousan. If only you'd know."
She was doomed. He knew it, but refused to believe so even though it has been a few weeks since he last saw or heard anything from her. If he were to follow his desire right now, he would break into the Hyuuga compound again and kidnapped the Hyuuga princess just so they could pick up where they left off, thought Sasuke as he suddenly awoke from his sleep in the middle of the night. But that kiss though—Sasuke touched his lips. It was actually spontaneous even for him. He just wanted to make the Hyuuga angry, not that he has any other purpose to touch her soft lips with his—even though he can't deny felt better than he expected it to be. Sasuke has never bothered to kiss a girl before, even though many would put their lips on a silver platter for him. Girls, to Sasuke was just too much. Maybe it was due to childhood trauma. But still, not all girls from his childhood were hormonal fangirls of his, there was that one girl with the boyish blue haircut. The one who he usually met amongst trees. The same one he just gave both of them the luxury of having their very first kiss.
Sasuke got up from his bed and headed towards the kitchen to get himself some water. The inauguration for the sixth Hokage was coming up soon. Up to this day, he hasn't seen the white haired man who used to be his sensei. Hatake Kakashi was one of the few people that Sasuke could ever give any respect to. Although in strength he could defeat him easily, but Kakashi is no ordinary ninja he has wits that was earned through ages and ages of experience something that young bloods like him could not yet achieve. And thus, he was appointed the role of the Sixth Hokage.
Thinking about the soon to be Hokage, his mind trailed off to Naruto, who the Konoha council had already lined him up to be the Seventh. It was no surprise, after the war Naruto had become sensational throughout the Shinobi world. The used to be outcast of a jinchuuriki is now the most highly appraised ninja. Everyone who had lived through the war would know his name like a heartbeat. Naruto resonated with the new age Shinobi world. He was the light. And Sasuke… well he was the darkness.
Suddenly he heard a rapping sound against his window. It was a messenger bird. He opened his window and the bird flew onto his shoulder with a paper tied to his leg. Untying it from the bird's leg Sasuke slowly opened it and read its content.
"Wow… this is an odd request." Sasuke muttered to himself.
Wow, I smell a confrontation in the next chapter. And don't forget to review because maybe... just maybe I'll upload the next one sooner!