"Talking is like this."
'Thinking is like this.'
"Flash backs will be like this. You get the drift."
"Demonic Talking is like this. Other things may qualify."
'Demonic Thinking will be like this'
"Techniques like the Henge Jutsu will be said like that."
Jutsu may be given a name like this: Henge! (Transformation) if it is the first time it appears, has a complicated name, or is unique. Techniques like the Kage Bunshin will not be given that. If you're reading this story, you should know what Kage Bunshin is.
If you want a more in depth 'Jutsu Library' at some point, then tell me through reviews. If enough people say 'Yeah!' then I'll start adding them in... But I will never repeat a Jutsu.
AN: Milestone reached, so here's another. More info on some future stuff at the bottom!
Anko grinned to herself, throwing another kunai at the blonde in front of her who hastily dived out of the way. There were at least twenty kunai in the ground now and each one was buried slightly in the ground from the force that Anko threw them.
"Faster!" The woman shouted, shaking another kunai around threateningly. "The scroll said 'Be like water' not a snail! Go!" She ignored the angry glare the blonde gave her, grinning and twirling the the kunai around her finger as she read the scroll in her other hand.
The Shaedo no Ken seemed to be based on using the body to its maximum potential. Speed was a huge aspect, but so was strength. "Reach the target in the least amount of time, with the maximum amount of force" was what the scroll said as a summary for the style.
In a way, the style could be used for almost any other fighting style. It had no real 'form' to it, just a lot of tips. Such as countering attacks instead of simply dodging them. Parry and strike at the same exact moment, which required a lot of speed and power. The over all style just screamed 'Adapt!'
Which was all what water was about.
The style was almost the exact opposite of one of Anko's many styles, the one she had used against Naruto during the test before.
The Hebi Toru style was all about wasted movement, after all, to make openings to bait people in. There were still controlled movements to make sure the bait didn't become threatening to the user...
Which made it very unsuitable for any Genin to learn. Anko had plenty of other styles, most of them focusing on a 'Snake' theme, but all of them were pretty complicated to start with. The Shaedo no Ken was perfect, especially for water users, and Anko had to mentally applaud the Uzumaki's genius for making it an academy style.
It also made it perfect for others to learn as well...
"Hey, Naru-Chan." Anko suddenly called out, causing the girl to look up but, as she leaned earlier, she did not pause in any of the fast motions she was going through. "I think this style would be a good basis for Nata, and maybe Violet. Think it'd be alright to teach them it too?" The Jounin smiled at Naruto's constant movement, having been prepared to throw a kunai if she paused for even a second.
The Jinchuuriki frowned thoughtfully, considering it. While the idea of someone else using a style meant for her clan filled her with the slightest bit of annoyance... It was her friends who were going to learn it. If it was Sasuke, that would be another thing, but Hinata or Ino...
"I... suppose it's okay." She slowly agreed, a slight frown on her face still as she voiced her thoughts. "As long as Sasuke-Teme or Ami-Teme don't learn it..."
Anko nodded in agreement, smiling. "Good! This style is great for a basis for most styles. I think Nata will benefit a lot from it. Not sure about Violet, but we'll see."
Naruto nodded slightly and squeaked as she ducked another kunai that flew over her head.
"Faster!"
The blonde nodded quickly, starting to go more through the forms of the style.
40 minutes later...
Once again the girls were in front of the two Jounin, panting heavily as they laid on their backs. Both Hinata and Naruto had removed their jackets, showing off Naruto's own black shirt while Hinata's gray top was revealed to the others.
Ino, not having an undershirt, kept her outfit on still but all three girls had a thick coating of sweat on their bodies, due to the 'Sadist Twins', as the three liked to call them now.
While tree walking had no sadistic qualities at first when they began, it was when they were able to reach the top of the tree three or four times in a row that the "real" training began.
Hinata, having already trained with it before, was the first target.
The poor girl was smiling at having gotten up and down the tree so easily compared to how she started, but was suddenly dodging kunai left and right as her red eyed instructor chucked them at her.
At Hinata's surprised cry and the way she backed up behind a tree, Kurenai had to pause in her throwing to state her intention.
"Start running, Hinata. Because I'm going to chase you through the trees."
And she did. For over thirty minutes or so, the woman chased Hinata through the trees, but never quite hit her with kunai. Palm strikes, however, were given from time to time and Hinata had to learn quickly how to instinctively turn and land on trees with her feet whenever she was knocked off one.
Ino was the next target, though she had been reluctant to even finish the exercise after seeing Hinata's sudden 'test.' But she knew if she failed on purpose that her own test would be even more brutal.
Ino had been attacked by one of Kurenai's clones, who didn't even need to explain why since Ino had overheard Hinata being attacked, but the clone had instructed Ino to stick to tree branches completely.
Since she didn't have the advantage of knowing the area around her as well as Hinata did, due to the Byakugan, the Jounin had told her to learn to observe the area around her as she moved. Which led to the clone suddenly yelling at Ino, asking her how many branches she had jumped off of since they reached the trees.
On a right answer, the kunai throwing would pause briefly and the clone told her she was correct.
On a wrong answer, Ino suddenly found herself been wrapped up by a thick snake or, even worse in her opinion, was knocked off into a mud pit.
Both were just Genjutsu, but the impression was there as Ino knew Anko could actually summon a snake like that for Kurenai, and she had noticed a few pits full of mud as she ran. The Yamanaka knew for sure that, in future sessions, those 'wrong answers' would get more than a Genjutsu.
But once again it was Naruto who had the worst of it, and she was the only one sporting an actual cut on her outfit which was just on her knee, splitting the pants leg slightly.
The cut on her skin had healed very quickly, but neither Ino or Hinata had been around to see that, so it was believed the cut had just barely cut open the fabric.
The blonde's clones had been dispelling themselves to pass on knowledge to other clones, to improve their tree walking, and it was after one clone managed to do what the other two did that the real Naruto suddenly found herself deep into the forest as well.
But unlike the other girls who were only tossed around or had things tossed at them, Naruto had been forced to get into an actual fight with Anko on the trees.
The battle, like the last two, was pretty even, but any time Naruto would make a wasted movement, she'd be sent flying through the trees from a heavy punch.
Despite the fact that all of them had been punished at least once during their training, Anko and Kurenai were staring proudly down at the Genin with smiles on their faces. Neither of them had expected such hard work just the second day of being a team.
Anko herself had not expected to be impressed at all with the Genin, something she had told the Hokage to his face awhile ago. She wasn't easy to impress, but learning tree walking in a day and not having any complaints about the hard training … Well, mostly no complaints.
Ino sort of complained a lot, but it seemed to be her coping mechanism.
Which is what she was doing now as she groaned on the ground, her eyes staring blankly up at the sky.
"I can't... feel my legs." The girl groaned out slowly.
"That's because I hit you with a couple of senbon." Was Kurenai's simple reply, prompting another loud groan from the fallen girl. The woman chuckled slightly, shaking her head slightly. "It should wear off in just a moment."
"It better..."
"At any rate, you girls did a great job today." The woman started again, smiling as she pulled a scroll out from her pouch. Slowly, Kurenai began to unwrap it, smiling as she noticed the happy smiles on the tired girls. "We're going to eat a bit and rest, then we're going to do one last training session before we send you girls home."
"Food?" Naruto shot up, her fatigue completely gone at the idea of food. Hinata also began to sit up as Kurenai unsealed a set of bento boxes again, chuckling a bit as she handed the boxes out.
She simply put one on top of Ino's lap, as the girl had not gotten back up, but her eyes were open and alert to show she was still awake. The poor girl just couldn't bring up the effort to sit up, even with the hot meal on her lap.
Naruto and Hinata had no qualms about popping the bentos open and quickly starting to eat, not even waiting for the older women to open their own. Anko and Kurenai chuckled a bit, sitting on their knees beside the girls as they began to eat.
But Kurenai did not take more than two bites before she began to speak again.
"Girls... I have something to discuss with you. It's fairly important." Naruto and Hinata looked up curiously, though the lavender eyed heiress had a slightly resigned look to her face. Ino simply turned her head in the grass, but the girl was just starting to sit up.
Kurenai shuffled slightly, not quite sure how to start. 'Well, I guess I'll just be as blunt as possible.' The woman thought to herself with a slight smirk.
"To put it simply, Hinata and Ino, I am going to ask you two to go through with a certain policy that will allow you to live mostly on your own instead of within your clan." Hinata had already been informed of this, but Ino's eyes widened in surprise.
"W.. What? Leave my clan? I can't..." Ino sputtered, but stopped as Kurenai held out a scroll towards her.
"This goes over, specifically, what I mean. Read that before you decide." Ino frowned a bit, taking it slowly and starting to unroll it to read it.
Naruto frowned a bit, nibbling on a piece of dango once more. "Mmn... What does that have to do with me though, Kurenai-Sensei?" The Jounin smiled a bit nervously at the blonde's question, scratching slightly at her own cheek.
"Well... My own home does not allow multiple people to live inside it, due to my land lord. Even pets aren't allowed." The Genjutsu Mistress sighed slightly, a faint blush coming to her cheeks as she realized she was actually going to ask her own student for a place to live.
Anko rolled her eyes, picking at her teeth with a dango stick as she interrupted the conversation. "Nainai wants a room for herself, one for Nata, and one for Violet. Got it, Naru-Chan?" The Tokubetsu Jounin grinned a bit as Kurenai glared at her with a slight pout, while Naruto just blinked blankly.
Hinata, however, had the strongest reaction as her face lit up in a dark blush at the idea of having Naruto as her land lord... and living in the same house. Her eyes began to spin slightly as images went through her head.
'Waking up at the same time as Naruto-Chan... Eating breakfast... with Naruto-Chan..!' A stray thought pointed out that Ino, Anko, and Kurenai would also be there, but then a darker blush covered her face as an image of her sleeping beside Naruto flashed in her mind.
The group jumped slightly as Hinata suddenly fell onto her back, her eyes spinning and a happy smile on her face.
"H... Hinata-Chan!?" Naruto cried out in concern, putting her bento to the side as she hastily went to the girl's side. Ino just rolled her eyes slightly at the sight, having gotten pretty used to it while Anko sent Kurenai a 'Told you so' look. Kurenai just glared slightly, shaking her head.
Ino, deciding to simply ignore the concerned cries of Naruto beside her, held up the scroll towards Kurenai as she finished reading it. Kurenai nodded, accepting the scroll back and sliding it into her pocket. "What do you think, Ino?"
The platinum blonde squirmed slightly, frowning a bit. "I'm not sure. I don't have any problem with my clan or anything..."
"That isn't the point, Violet." Anko interrupted, smiling a bit at the girl's annoyed expression. "The point is to give you a bit of experience on living … mostly on your own. Not only that, but it'll let you get more used to your team, which is important..."
Kurenai chose that moment to put in her own two cents. "The major thing, however, is that you won't be declined from your clan for techniques... But we won't be limited in what we teach you ourselves."
"I don't think my dad would keep you guys from teaching me something." Ino frowned a bit as Anko shook her head, a grin on her face.
"Your dad, maybe. Inoichi knows what it's like to be a Ninja. But the old farts that he talks to..?" Ino nodded slightly at that, having some experience with the old men that made up the Yamanaka council.
All of the clans in the village organized themselves by a small council of people that handled most of the choices. It was typically six or so, with one of them always being the 'Clan Head' which was, in this case, Ino's father. The Clan Head was responsible for most of the dealings in the clan and had the say over almost anything, though they were not all powerful in their clan.
Even more so, they were not powerful alone in the council that regarded all of Konoha. Only Clan Heads and selected representatives were allowed on the Konoha Council, with the 'Hokage' being at the 'Clan Head' position. The Konoha Council was also larger, since there were more than six clans in Konoha, but a few of their seats such as the Uchiha seat remained empty.
The problem with most councils in Konoha, including the main one, is that they were filled with old men and women that had long since stopped involving themselves with others. They merely desired power and to leave a legacy behind, which often led to awful laws or rules being passed.
Ino, for example, was expected to be married off, despite being an heiress, around her sixteenth birthday if she didn't get Jounin rank or higher by then. Even then it was highly possible she'd be married off to someone the council members knew so they could put their own choice as the future clan head. There were also some warnings to not associate with other clans... But she ignored those entirely.
Hinata had the worst of it, as the entire Hyuuga clan had been ruthlessly brought into a 'main' and 'branch house' system for years due to the men currently on their council. Not only that, but Hinata herself had nearly been branded with a 'Caged Bird Seal' that would render her a slave of the main house. It was only her age and how handily she won any duels that came to her that kept her from losing her position as heiress.
Naruto, having no clan alive, had no council to deal with. Thus, she had no idea what the others were talking about as she held the fainted Hinata, fanning her slightly with the girl's head resting on her lap.
Ino sighed a bit, staring at her bento for a long moment as she considered her choices. On one hand, she'd be away from her father... which would be a blessing and a curse. He always treated her like a child, and probably always would, but she had always wanted to 'spread her wings' so to speak...
But the main issue was what would happen after she got older. Even if she stayed at home, being married to someone she didn't know was a huge issue that her father couldn't stop on his own...
"How long does it last?" The Yamanaka asked with a frown, picking a bit at her food.
Kurenai blinked at the sudden question, frowning slightly. "It does not say there is a time limit. It only says that either I or the Hokage are required to stop it. I assume it can last until one of us gives the order... Or the next Hokage, if it lasts that long." The woman shrugged slightly, but had a curious expression as she wondered why Ino would ask such a question.
"I see..." Ino frowned a bit and nodded slightly. "Then, if it can last that long, then I'll accept it... But I don't know if Daddy will go for it..."
"We'll handle that." Kurenai stated, getting a bewildered look from Anko rather quickly.
"We?"
"Yes, we. The Hokage warned me that a Jounin can only do it with one person... And since we're both Jounin..." Kurenai stared at her partner who sighed, rubbing the back of her head.
"Fine, fine. I'll take..."
"You're taking Inoichi." Was the instant interruption and Anko frowned slightly, though Kurenai knew she was just pouting. "You're more familiar with the man than I am, and..." Those red eyes narrowed slightly at the woman, a faint bit of amusement in them. "I can't trust you with Hiashi."
Anko just stuck her tongue out a bit at that, unable to argue that she planned on messing with the man.
"Uhm... Sensei?" Naruto's soft voice brought their attention to the blonde and she squirmed slightly, looking down at Hinata briefly. "She's uh... not waking up."
Anko grinned, staring at the two with a sparkle in her eyes. "Oh, she'll be fine. She just has a really bad case of..." Anko grunted, feeling Kurenai's elbow go into her gut.
Ino rolled her eyes a bit with a smile at the exchange, while Naruto just blinked blankly, her head tilting. "A bad case of...?"
"... Ah, she just trained a little too hard, that's all Naruto." Kurenai hastily answered, smiling a bit. "Just let her rest for now."
Naruto slowly nodded, running her fingers through the unconscious girl's hair...
Which got rather amused smiles from the other women present, while Hinata herself just smiled warmly.
30 minutes later..
The sun was beginning to go down as the three Genin stared at the two Jounin standing in front of them with a mixture of annoyance, surprise, and embarrassment. The latter of which was reserved for Hinata, who had nearly fainted again after finding herself not only waking up with her head on Naruto's lap, but with the target of her affection running her fingers through Hinata's hair.
Which got her a lot of teasing looks from Anko and Ino, but neither of them said anything directly to her... which some how only added to her embarrassment.
Now, however, Ino was doing anything but having an amused look as she held a kunai up for the third time in the last fifteen minutes. The Genin had been forced to do one last training session before they were allowed to return home...
The training, however, was a test to see how well they worked together in a battle.
"It'll be easy!" Naruto had said, smiling brightly after hearing the 'rules', which was simply to try to land hits on Anko or Kurenai. "We're best friends, so there's no way we'll fail!"
The blonde then proceeded to get into another fight with Anko, with Hinata close behind. The two were then tossed to the side, right into Ino who had moved to get into position to throw senbon.
After a second attempt, Naruto had to dive out of the way as Ino tossed a kunai, which resulted in a slightly heated argument that was resolved as Anko kicked Hinata into the two. Anko had scolded the two heavily for not only leaving Hinata alone while they fought, but for only targeting her.
That had been the only warning they got before a giant plant wrapped its thick vines around each of the girls, juggling them around in the air for a good two minutes before the three ended up nearly passing out from the strain.
The third, and current, attempt was going a lot better after a brief discussion between the three on what to do. Naruto had been the one to decide the plan, after Hinata and Ino both gave their observations on what to do and what they could do.
"Alright..." Naruto had started, whispering so the two Jounin a bit behind her could not hear. "Ino's clan Jutsu doesn't work on those two, and none of us know any ranged Jutsu... So Ino-Chan, you're on support. Hinata-Chan, you can see through Genjutsu, so you're on Kurenai-Sensei. I've got the most experience against Anko-Sensei, so I'll take her on... But I'll need Ino-Chan's help to actually beat her."
The plan had gone rather well at first, getting a proud look from Kurenai while Anko simply grinned.
Naruto had engaged Anko, while Kurenai had been attacked by Hinata with Ino supporting them both. Neither Jounin really tried to go for the Yamanaka, but any time they 'pretended' to, they'd end up being under an even heavier attack from their opponents.
However, suddenly the Jounin had swapped places with Kurenai slamming her palm into Naruto and Anko landing a heavy kick onto Hinata's stomach. The two attacks sent the girls sliding back beside Ino with the force behind them, which is where they stood now.
Kurenai smiled at the three, crossing her arms under her chest. "You three did well to fix your flaws, but there was still two flaws in your plan." The woman held up one finger. "The first is that neither Hinata or Naruto tried to help each other in any way. While your opponent was not one you should take your eye off of, you should still try to alert the other to anything the opponents may try."
"For example." The woman gestured towards Hinata. "Hinata, with your Byakugan, you see even their fight from where we were... But you made no attempt to tell Naruto of the few times Anko got behind her and got hit." Hinata blushed slightly, nodding her head. She had been too distracted focusing on Genjutsu from Kurenai for that.
Anko put up two fingers, deciding to take over the lesson. "The second think is that you didn't think of what would happen if your opponents swapped and it threw you off. You've got to be prepared for that, and even do it yourself. If a teammate would fair better against someone than you would, then don't be ashamed to swap battles with them."
"We each have our strengths and weaknesses." Kurenai added, smiling at her students."But for your first day, you three have done wonderfully. I think we'll be calling it a day here... But Anko and I will be going to discuss things with Inoichi and Hiashi. Hinata, be sure to pack your things regardless of what your father says." Hinata hesitantly nodded in response, chewing a bit on her lip.
Kurenai tried to give her a comforting smile while Anko gave Ino a thumbs up. "I'll talk to your pops. Just go ahead and pack anyways, since I know exactly how to make him agree." Ino's face scrunched up a bit in confusion at that, but Anko ignored it as she regarded Naruto with a smile. "You get these three some rooms ready, okay?"
Naruto nodded, pushing up a pair of glasses that weren't there. "I already have a clone ready with the paper work. It just needs the signatures." The blonde explained, smiling a bit.
"I thought you said the clones didn't get memories from this far." Anko pointed out with her eyebrow arched.
"They don't, so I sent a clone out towards the house and had it dispel there so they got the info." Anko nodded slightly in understanding, turning her gaze towards Ino again.
"Well, girls, training session over. We'll be meeting at the same time tomorrow for even more training... Now, split!" The woman clapped her hands together and the girls nodded, each going their separate ways...
For the most part, at least.
Kurenai calmly sipped a cup of tea, staring a bit at the green liquid instead of at the cold grayish eyes of the man who sat across the small table between them. They both sat on their knees on small square cushions in a small room that seemed to simply be a room made for meeting a single person, as it had very little other than the table inside it.
A scroll rested beside the man's tea cup, which had a faint line of steam coming off it as he had not bothered to drink from it after reading through the scroll.
The man was Hiashi Hyuuga, the head of the Hyuuga clan... and the father of Hinata and Hanabi Hyuuga. He was known as one of the most powerful Hyuuga ever born, well above the Jounin rank he had before taking the title of Clan Head. But while he was very powerful, he had very little control over the Hyuuga clan as a whole, due to the bias of the Hyuuga's council members.
The man was also known for showing almost no emotion, due to the training from the Hyuuga, unless he was around someone he trusted...
Or just someone who could really get under his skin.
As it was, the man had no expression on his face, but Kurenai could feel the irritation coming off him in small waves. Kurenai, wisely, kept quiet as she waited for him to speak and absorb all that the scroll said.
Which took a few moments, letting Kurenai enjoy the tea one of the Hyuuga maids cooked up for them.
"I am... struggling to understand." The Hyuuga Head admitted, staring towards the Jounin with a frown on his face. "To understand what exactly you are hoping to achieve with this, Kurenai-San."
Kurenai placed her cup down, holding it with both hands as she stared directly into the man's eyes, a sign of respect and a sign that she was not here as a servant, but as an equal.
"I am hoping, Hiashi-Sama, to find a way to improve my student without... unnecessary interruptions from some outside interference." Hiashi arched his eyebrow at the slight annoyed tone to Kurenai's voice, and the man let out a slight sigh.
"I see... I had, originally, put my daughter under your care in order to avoid such conflict. I suppose it was foolish to assume you would not put your interests where they do not belong." Hiashi said, sounding like he was talking down to a child.
A hard, yet quiet tap was heard as Kurenai put her cup down again and Hiashi hid a small smirk to himself as he stared at Kurenai's impassive face. Despite the calm look about her, it was still evident she was very irritated by the man's words, and originally that was what drew him to the woman in the first place during the Jounin exam he had been a judge over.
Any time she was taunted, or struck, she showed no emotion to it. She did not let her emotions control her battle, until her teammate had been struck down... Then she was like a tornado of fury, the likes of which had not been seen for quite awhile.
Hiashi knew that if he had not been using his Byakugan, even he would have fallen to the torrent of Genjutsu and powerful attacks the woman had let out... and he wasn't even participating in the fight!
It was that attitude that he wished to be carried over to his rather meek daughter. The girl was always showing her emotions clear on her face, and shrunk inward when pressured... Or at least she used to. It did seem that the woman's presence had helped his daughter quite a bit, but he wondered if the idea of caring for Hinata had got to the woman's head.
As if reading his mind on that matter, Kurenai spoke. "I do not think of Hinata as my own daughter, Hiashi-Sama. I do care for her greatly, but I know that she is, first and foremost, a Hyuuga. However, as a Jounin of Konoha and Hinata's instructor, I cannot allow her to be crippled in the battle field because of some pointless traditions." Kurenai's words were like chilled water to Hiashi's ears.
Smooth, yet cold.
Hiashi's own words... were merely ice. "I understand your concern, but the Hyuuga traditions are not... pointless. They each have their own usage and keep the clan balanced in power. Hinata's failures to..." A sudden click was heard and Hiashi turned his head slightly towards the door of the small room they sat in.
A small girl with dark gray hair was standing in the door way, bowing her head respectfully towards the two. "Hiashi-Sama, I apologize for the interruption but I was told to inform you that the Elders are not located in the building. They have taken three branch members with them to The Jarring Ape."
Hiashi nodded his head, mentally going over what that location was. As far as he could recall, the Jarring Ape was merely a bar that mixed to be a brothel in the darker side of Konoha.
Not exactly a place you would expect to find a Hyuuga member, but it wasn't a place you'd expect to find anyone, really. No one you actually would want to find, at least.
"Thank you, Mitomi. You are dismissed." Hiashi spoke, receiving a sharp bow from the woman as she slid the door closed. Kurenai arched her eyebrows as Hiashi's turned towards her again, the slightest smile on his face, which was a bit unnerving for the woman. "It seems that luck has smiled upon us, Kurenai-San."
The red eyed Jounin blinked once at that, a confused frown on her face. "I am not sure I follow what you mean, Hiashi-Sama."
The man sighed a bit, taking a small sip of his tea. "In truth, I have no qualms about signing this transcript. But if I did not put up a fight at all, the Elders would have my head for making the Hyuuga appear weak." At her slightly horrified expression, the man hastily added. "Not literally, just politically."
"That's... almost as bad, in some cases." Kurenai pointed out, getting a slight chuckle from the man.
"I suppose so... But now that we may speak freely, I wish to know what exactly the issue is beyond traditions. Is there anything wrong with my daughter's body?" A slight touch of concern laced the man's voice as he spoke, greatly improving Kurenai's opinion of the man.
So she quickly responded in order to put his fears to rest. "No, there is nothing wrong with Hinata's body as a regular person, but as a Hyuuga..." She shook her head slightly. "The chakra affinity we found for her is Water, making the Jyuken too much of a tight style for her to master."
Hiashi leaned back slightly, a slight frown on his face as he nodded. "I see, I had expected as much. The way she moved had always been rather... stiff, even if she hid it well." He shook his head. "But I am glad that there is not anything particularly wrong with her." The man admitted with a slight smile.
Kurenai frowned a bit, shuffling slightly on her knees. "I am afraid I must ask you, Hiashi-Sama, why your personality seems to be..."
"Different than what I usually appear to be?" Kurenai nodded slightly, causing Hiashi to sigh a bit with a small, yet sad smile. "The truth is that I am as much of a slave to the Hyuuga as the branch members, though only a few of them agree. I have taken oaths and my own father breathes down my neck if I do not follow the long traditions the Hyuuga have placed."
He shook his head, staring down at the tea he held in his hands. "If I were to simply drop all precautions and allow myself to speak my mind, the... Elders would do everything in their power to defeat me. I suspect they would even hold my nephew, Neji, hostage or place a bird seal on my daughter's head... Both of them."
Kurenai frowned, wondering how and why the Hyuuga clan had became so... corrupt. A small part of her wondered if all councils were like that but dismissed it. It wasn't her business to get involved in something that big... nor did she even think she could handle something like that in the first place.
"I see... I am sorry to hear that something like that takes place. But I suppose that means you are fine with my suggestion to use this rule to keep Hinata from being influenced by the clan?" 'Best to keep on track.' Kurenai thought to herself, though she couldn't keep the bit of discomfort in the back of her mind completely suppressed.
Hiashi nodded slightly, appreciating her words. "Indeed, I am willing to sign this and allow you to be placed as her guardian... Although, I must ask what you intend to do about living conditions, as I was under the assumption you were only allowed to live on your own in your current home."
The Hyuuga Clan Head sipped his tea as Kurenai answered with a slightly amused smile on her face. "Well, that is indeed the case... But my other student has an apartment complex under her name... With several rooms. Hinata and I will both be buying one."
Hiashi arched his eyebrows at that, mentally reviewing who was in Hinata's team. "You mean... The Uzumaki child?" He chuckled slightly as Kurenai nodded with an amused smile and he shook his head slightly. "I see... It seems I owe that child two favors now."
"Two?" The woman arched her eyebrow slightly.
Hiashi nodded, a slight smile on his face. "I do not know the exact story, but it seems that Hinata was able to keep her status as heiress by some... talk she had with the Uzumaki child before she fought Hanabi, my other daughter, for the last time." Kurenai nodded slightly at the Hyuuga's explanation, but could not keep the frown off her face.
Hinata had a younger sister named Hanabi, a girl who Hinata had told Kurenai looked so much like their mother, whom she could never raise a hand to. Kurenai herself could not see it, but it caused an issue as the girls were forced to fight for the title of 'Hyuuga Heiress.'
They had fought a total of five times, over the span of several years, with four slow victories from Hanabi... and one fast victory from Hinata. The red eyed Jounin was not privy to what exactly happened, since it was a clan matter, but Hinata had told her she was going to keep her heiress title and that her sister would only be in danger if the laws did not change before the girl reached the age of sixteen.
At sixteen, the girl would be forced to wear the 'Caged Bird Seal' despite still being a member of the main house, simply because she was viewed as weak.
'It's astounding, really, that the Hyuuga's main house is made of nothing more than a bunch of old men... It's doubtful they would even meet half of the rules Hinata and Hiashi have told me about.' Kurenai thought to herself, her inward frown growing larger. 'Is this really how clans work..?'
She hoped not, but wasn't holding her breath.
"At any rate..." Hiashi began, looking back down at the scroll he left laying on the table. "Where do I sign this, Kurenai-San?" At the slight gesture from Kurenai on where to write, Hiashi nodded as he began to sign his name.
After it was signed, he rolled the scroll up and held it out to Kurenai who accepted it with a nod. "Thank you, Hiashi-Sama. I will make sure Hinata grows into a fine Kunoichi." Kurenai smiled as she began to stand up, which was mirrored by Hiashi as he nodded with a smile.
"I shall leave her in your care, Kurenai-San... And I will be sending several scrolls containing Hyuuga techniques to you soon. I am certain you can find a usage for them, despite them not suiting my daughter." Kurenai nodded, turning to leave.
"Good day, Hiashi-Sama."
Hiashi nodded, crossing his arms. "Good day, Kurenai-San."
Meanwhile...
Hinata smiled sadly to herself as she placed a picture of her mother and father into a small bag full of her clothing. The girl giggled to herself, placing another picture into the bag that she took with Naruto, Ino, and Sakura in front of the academy.
Naruto had her fingers up behind Sakura's head from the girl's right and Ino was hanging onto the pinkette's left arm and grinning, while Hinata was on Naruto's other side, smiling shyly at the camera. It was one of the few pictures the four had together, as they never really got together outside of the school.
'I suppose that isn't true...' Hinata thought to herself, placing one of her medical creams into the bag as well. 'I spent time with Naruto-Chan outside of the academy, and Ino-Chan spent time with Sakura-Chan... Though I suppose only Sakura-Chan is alone now... I hope she's alright.'
The pink haired girl had always been rather fragile. She didn't react well if she did not have friends around, so the Hyuuga Heiress hoped that Shino and Chouji were friendly to her.
'Though, if they follow Naruto-Chan's advice... then Sakura-Chan is probably pretty annoyed with them.' Hinata giggled to herself, but turned her head as she heard her door click open. Her smile grew as she saw her younger sister standing there, a slight frown on her face. "Yes, Hanabi-Chan?"
Hanabi squirmed a bit from such a warm greeting, a slight out pout on her face as she walked up to the older Hyuuga. "Onee-Chan... Are you really leaving?" Her voice was soft, yet slightly cold as their father's own voice, but it was the warmth in her eyes that melted Hinata's heart.
The girl smiled at Hanabi, kneeling down as the girl got closer and running her fingers gently through the girl's smooth hair. "Yes, Nee-Chan., I am going to be leaving for awhile... But I'll still be around."
"B... But I don't want to be alone..." Hanabi muttered, causing Hinata's smile to faulter slightly as she realized that Hanabi would truly be alone in the clan if she left... Despite the duels they had in the past, the two sisters were still very close, and leaving Hanabi alone put a pain in Hinata's chest.
But... "I'm sorry, Hanabi-Chan... I'll be sure to come visit, but..." She frowned as Hanabi bit her lip and tried to go through her head on what else she could do for her younger sister. As if summoned, a small Naruto in her head held up the picture of her and her three friends at the academy, the same one she had just put away in her bag.
Her eyes widened slightly and she wondered, briefly, if her idea would even go over well with her father... 'No reason not to try, I suppose.' Hinata thought, smiling as she gripped her sister's shoulders.
"Hanabi-Chan, I want you to listen to me." Hanabi blinked, looking up at her sister's warm smile. "I want you to tell father that I suggest putting you into the academy... by next year, alright? It will be some time before you can be a Ninja like me... But you'll find friends there. Friends you can trust." Hanabi blinked, nodding a bit while Hinata marveled to herself that she managed to say all of that without stuttering.
Why did she never stutter when it was just her sister around? Perhaps it was how calming it was to see her mother's eyes once more...
A mental kick from 'her' tiny Naruto got the Hyuuga Heiress off that thought process and she began to stand up straight and fill her bag up again with the rest of her belongings. "I won't be gone forever, Hanabi-Chan, and you're free to visit me. Father should know where my home will be..."
Hanabi nodded a bit, smiling slightly as she moved beside her sister, helping the Heiress fold some of the clothing spread across her bed.
Neither of them really noticed the cold gaze of their cousin from the still opened door.
Meanwhile, at the Yamanaka Mansion...
Inoichi groaned, staring at the cards in his hands and sighing as he slapped them down on the table. "Fine! I fold! You win! I'll sign whatever it is you want!" The man groaned out loudly, blushing as he was almost completely naked at the table he sat at.
Anko grinned, being completely dressed in her usual outfit with her own cards in her hands.
"Good! Then it looks like your Princess is mine!" She cackled evilly, throwing her head back as Inoichi grit his teeth slightly, mentally scolding himself for losing so easily...
Especially in a game of Go-Fish!
Chapter End!
Some may be wondering about the flip in Hiashi's personality and more are probably questioning not much effort being put into Inoichi's choice. The former will actually be covered soon in a planned Extra! Look forward to that within the next few days!
As for Inoichi, Anko is actually a former worker for him, thus making her someone Inoichi can trust. Not only that, but he hadn't been seeing much of his daughter anyways as their time didn't meet up. Might focus on that in an extra / omake or something later!
Anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter!
Happy reading!
~Yasha-HebiHime