"All right little rainmaker, what's up?" Anko asked as she almost pushed Hanabi into a chair.
The youngest Hyuuga wiped away some moisture from her eyes that were suspiciously close to being called 'tears'. She eyed the older kunoichi knowingly, then turned to stare at the closed study door. "He let you get away with that?"
Anko grinned mischievously and nodded. "Utter confidence in yourself, leaving your opponent in shock and not knowing what to think. It's a powerful combination. Listen, watch and learn."
Hanabi pondered that a moment, then filed it away in the back of her mind to be looked at later. It looked useful, if used correctly. "So, when is the wedding?" She asked, her heart flipping over as she thought about Kiba being married to someone else.
The spiky-haired jounin shifted uncomfortably then smiled to hide her unease. "What wedding?" Maybe she'd read the girl wrong and Hanabi had actually seen her and Hiashi in a compromising position. A hot, orgasm producing position. A wild crazy position that left her wanting more. Anko crossed her legs to ease the returning pressure and smiled wider in an effort to hide what she was thinking about. Shit. It didn't look like she'd gotten Hiashi out of her system yet.
"Kiba's." Hanabi pouted and flopped back in her chair morosely.
Anko blinked and blinked again. "Okay, so not what I was expecting."
Her attention caught, Hanabi looked up to eye the other kunoichi speculatively. "Whose wedding were you talking about?"
"Ibiki's." Lied Anko without remorse. If the darling child had no clue about she and Hiashi, all the better.
"Oh." Hanabi shrugged. "I wondered if father was behind Kiba's engagement, to keep us apart. I didn't know Ibiki was engaged. Poor woman."
"Poor Shizune." Anko shook her head in mock sympathy. Actually, she thought the two might be well suited for each other.
Hanabi groaned. "Shizune? I thought she had better taste than that! Well, that scratches her off my father's list."
"Never mind that." Anko stared at the younger genin a moment. "Why are you looking like someone kicked your nin-dog? And why did you think your father had anything to do with another clan's betrothal?"
Blushing very lightly, Hanabi looked away and refused to answer.
"Got a crush on the Inuzuka boy have you?"
Still no response.
Anko sighed. "Look rainmaker, first crushes rarely come into fruition. Look at your sister."
Hanabi snorted in derision. "Like Naruto could see her anyway."
"And Kiba's looking your way?" Anko pointed out brusquely. When Hanabi refused to answer, she continued. "Has he ever really encouraged you? And don't say anything stupid like you KNOW he cares for you by the way he doesn't speak to you, or look at you. Be honest."
Hanabi sighed and played with her fingers, much like Hinata liked to do. "He's nice to me."
"Nice? As in polite?" Anko shrugged, not waiting for the girl to respond. "You need to move on to someone who notices you. You don't want to waste your youth pining after the unattainable like Sakura or Ino."
Hanabi scowled. "I'm not some silly fan girl. I don't follow him around everywhere and beg for his attention."
"Good." Anko sighed, girl to girl chats about crushes were out of her element. As far as she was concerned, this meeting was over. She'd discovered that the girl hadn't seen her have sex with Hiashi and that was all to the good. "Time to find someone else."
Hanabi watched the spiky-haired woman open the study doors and leave. Her father was still out there and she could hear them whispering. Probably about her. Hanabi frowned. She wasn't a fan girl. She wasn't! Like she was going to follow Kiba around and beg for attention? Bah. She was a Hyuuga. She'd kill her rival and win the shinobi. That was a much better plan. Except, she paused and sighed unhappily, that was outright murder.
Death was a way of life for ninja, but it was in the manner of sanctioned and approved missions. Not personal gain. Murder without a contract, well, that was beyond what honor could cover. She wasn't a fan girl, but she also wasn't a renegade nin.
Still, maybe she could drive the girl off without killing her. That wouldn't break the ninja code, just bend it a bit. Like Ibiki had when he'd questioned Neji. Hanabi cheered up a bit at that thought. She could always point at Ibiki's example if she got caught and blame him for the idea. It was perfect!
Smiling, she was about to leave her father's study when she saw a name on an outgoing letter scroll. Her pale gaze narrowed as she read it, then the other two with it. These were all names of men who'd asked her father for her hand in marriage. A fact she'd discovered through outright snooping. Hey, a girl had to be on top of things, right?
The fact that he was responding to all three at the same time meant ….what? Were two of these a refusal, while one was a marriage contract?
Hanabi scowled. It wouldn't do any good to free Kiba from his betrothal if she was forced to marry someone else!
o.O.o.O.o.O
Temari rushed into the room to see Hanabi beating the stuffing out of ….a serving girl? No. As the blond rushed forward to help, a strike to the chest had the henge dissipate and the image of the serving girl 'poof' out of existence. Startled, Temari struck the combatant with her fan and sent the woman smashing back against the far wall. Girls and their patrons scattered. A lone tea pot flew at the stunned assassin, striking just to the left of the woman's head.
A quick glance to the side, showed a tall blond woman already picking up something else to throw. Temari grinned. "Watch your aim, I don't want to be hit by mistake. It would make me cranky."
The tall blond nodded, and held on to the second tea pot as she watched the two kunoichi make quick work of the outclassed rogue.
Kankuro and Shino rushed inside, having heard the commotion from the courtyard. But when they got there, there wasn't much more they could do. The missing nin was trussed up like a holiday meal and sputtering mad.
Soft whistles of approval filled the room and Hinata turned to look at the two shinobi outlined in the doorway. Kankuro was still filthy and covered in face paint. Shino though ….Hinata smiled and turned to gauge Temari's reaction.
Temari ran her tongue over her lips and stared at what she'd been missing for over a year. "Forget something?" She called out, her voice a bit husky.
"Thought you could use the help. I was wrong." Shino pointed out, ignoring the fact that he was wearing nothing but a towel. And sunglasses.
"I could use a towel." One of the tea girls called out, laughing. "Got one to spare?"
Shino didn't even bother to answer as he turned to leave.
Chakra strings attached themselves to the towel and tugged it away, sending the damp cloth sailing over to the girl who'd asked for it. "Don't you know better than to be stingy?" Kankuro crowed as Shino fled back into the courtyard, leaving a lot of sighing women with the mental image of a perfectly toned ass.
o.O.o.O.o.O
"False alarm." Anko whispered to Hiashi. "She didn't see us."
The tension slowly flowed out of him with relief. Then the Hyuuga frowned. "So, what's she upset about? And why did she go out against my wishes?"
Anko shrugged. "I'm not telling you the one, that's girl stuff. The other I didn't ask."
"Why not?" He asked curtly.
The spiky-haired woman reached around and patted his ass. "Not my place, anteater. You're the parent. Oh, by the way. We need to meet after dinner to discuss marrying you off." She needed him married. Married he'd be out of her life. Married she wouldn't constantly be wanting to throw him over the nearest piece of furnature and have her wicked, wicked way with him. She hoped.
"No we don't." Hiashi drew up to his full height. "I have no intention of marrying again."
Anko mock pouted. "There's going to be some mighty disappointed women in this village. Your guards tell me there's been over fifty women just today who've been turned away from the Hyuuga gates. Seems they were all 'just passing by' and wanted to pay their respects."
Hiashi flushed slightly as he watched Hanabi come out of his study. His daughter was no longer looking on the edge of tears. Now she looked ready to attack him. "Just what did you say to her?" He hissed to Anko.
But the spiky-haired kunoichi was at a loss. The anger and resentment rolling off the young genin hadn't been there when they'd been talking. "Dunno, anteater."
"Hanabi?" Hiashi asked slowly. "Is anything the matter?"
"No, father." The girl replied just as slowly.
"Then go get ready for dinner."
"Yes, father." Hanabi said in a dull voice that belied the spark of anger in her pale eyes.
Hiashi felt goose bumps as he watched her leave. Something was definitely wrong. "Are you sure she didn't see us with the Byakugan?"
"No. The secret is safe." Anko assured him.
Upstairs, a maid was smirking as she put away the clean towels in the master's bathroom. She turned and eyed the mussed and tangled bed linens. The cracked headboard even made her snicker with amusement. Mentally, she reviewed each woman who'd been in the house today. Grinning, she headed back toward the servant quarters. Oh, wasn't this a prime piece of news!
o.O.o.O.o.O
Fully dressed, and ignoring the disappointed cooing from the tea girls, Shino headed for Temari. He looked around for the missing nin, but didn't see her.
The blond smirked and shook her head. "Turns out the woman was in the BINGO books. Some Grass shinobi were even tracking her. We turned her over to them."
"And you two turned her over, just like that? Are we sure they weren't her allies?" Shino asked in his matter-of-fact logical voice.
Temari's smile faded. "I recognized two of the shinobi from other missions, and Hinata knew of the other's family connections. We're not stupid."
Shino backpedaled quickly. "That wasn't my meaning." In the past year, he'd forgotten just how tart Temari could be sometimes. Prickly too.
"Better not have been, bug-boy." She said coolly, then smiled to take the sting out of her words. "I've missed you."
"Where's Hinata?" The Aburame asked, wanting to grab Temari right here and now and needing to focus on something else to hold himself in check.
Frowning at what she thought was a dismissive comment, Temari narrowed her eyes on him. "Talking to the tea girls in the private dining room. Seems they wanted to give her a thank you for saving one of their own."
"Is that wise, letting her be alone with strangers?" Shino asked, thinking of his shy teammate with experienced working girls. "There's already been an attack on her, and we don't know why."
"Kiba's back and guarding the door to the private dining room. And no, you don't know the 'why' behind the attack." Temari huffed, her hurt and anger spirally upwards. "I know why, because I questioned the ninja before turning her over. Seems she was told that if she killed Hinata, the secret of the Byakugan would be hers to sell to the highest bidder."
Shino shook his head, trying to stave off Temari's not inconsiderable temper. "I trust your judgment, I just had to be sure. Though the reason behind the attack makes no sense. With all of us here, why attack now? There were too many of us and only one of her, or so it appears."
Temari shrugged. "She reeked of opium. Probably not in her right mind. Still, I wonder who told her about the Byakugan? That's the real question. That, and why you're ignoring me."
"I'm talking to you now." Shino pointed out reasonably. "Hardly ignoring you."
The blond smacked his arm with enough power to make him wince slightly. "That's not what I meant and you know it. I tell you I missed you and you ignore me?"
Shino leaned in to whisper to her. "If I showed you how much I've missed you we'd be putting on a show so explicit that even these tea girls would blush."
"Oh." Was all Temari could say as her internal temperature shot up into the stratosphere.
o.O.o.O.o.O
Gaara was in the hallway, heading down for dinner when Hanabi came barreling around the corner. "Oi." He said and grabbed her shoulders before she knocked him down. "What are you doing in the guest wing?"
"Looking for you." Was the snippy response as she grabbed his hand and pulled him back into his room.
Gaara watched as she shut the door. "This isn't proper, you know." He pointed out. Being around her publicly was one thing, alone together in a bedroom with a closed door was another.
"Screw proper, this is an emergency."
The red head sighed. "Did a prank go awry? Who got hurt?"
Hanabi turned on him. "My pranks don't go wrong! And their not pranks, they're an expression of my feelings. Or revenge, take your pick." She stopped, and then sighed. "For the most part they don't go wrong anyway. Still, that's not it."
"So, what is it?" Gaara asked her as he watched her pace restlessly back and forth. "More advice on poisons?"
The girl shrugged, reluctant to bring up the problem now that she had the Kazekage's attention. So she hedged. "How do you know much about poisons anyway? You don't use them with your sand jutsus."
"Are you sure about that?" He teased, then sobered as she turned to glare over at him. "Fine. My brother, now your brother-by-marriage, uses poisons a lot. And Kankuro likes to talk about his work. A lot. And Temari and I have bought him quite a few different and unusual poisons for birthdays and gifts over the years." Actually, mostly Temari had until after that battle with Naruto, but no need to go into too much detail, he mused.
"I'm getting married." Hanabi words rushed out of her mouth, then she stopped to gauge his reaction.
Gaara snorted. "I doubt it. Not for a while anyway. Years."
Hanabi stamped one foot and looked at him snottily. "How can you dismiss me like that? I know what I'm talking about, and I know my father. There are three letter scrolls in his office all addressed to men who've asked for my hand in marriage. There's no reason for him to write all three at the same time except to accept one and deny the other two."
The red head sighed. "I didn't want to tell you yet. But those letter scrolls are all denials."
Hanabi's gaze tightened on him. "You know something."
"I know many things." He admitted slowly, not sure how much to tell her without setting off her temper. "I know that you won't be betrothed for at least four years."
Mentally running that through her head, Hanabi snarled. "Seventeen? Fine. That's a year over the age of consent. But my father married Hinata off when she was only a one year old! What makes you think he'll wait until I'm seventeen?"
"Because we made a deal, your father and I."
Hanabi choked on her own breath and coughed for a few minutes. When she recovered, she saw that Gaara was looking at her, but his expression remained unreadable. "A deal?"
The Kazekage nodded, his eyes never leaving her own.
"Are you asking for my hand?" She asked, her pale eyes narrowing dangerously.
Gaara shook his head negatively. "If I ask for you, I'm pretty sure I'll want more than just your hand."
"You know what I mean!" She shouted, then scowled at him. "Wait, you said 'if'. So you haven't asked to marry me?"
"Not yet. Maybe not ever." Gaara admitted. "But I did make a deal with your father that basically gives you four years not to worry about marriage at all."
"What do you get out of it." Hanabi asked, ignoring everything else. "You didn't do this out of mere generosity of spirit."
Gaara snorted. "Generosity of spirit. You talk like a noble."
"Stop insulting me and answer my question!" She growled.
Pale-jade eyes widened. He hadn't been insulting her, not really. "What do I get out of it?" He asked, watching her give a brief nod. "Well, to put it plainly. I have first dibs."
"On what, exactly?" Hanabi asked suspiciously, not liking where this conversation was going.
"You."
o.O.o.O.o.O
Kiba sneezed and smiled as he leaned against the wall next to the door leading to the private dining room. Akamaru snoozed lightly at his side, resting.
The darling tea girls had no idea he could ear them through the flimsy door. Seemed like they were really thankful to Hinata for saving someone named 'Little Bit'. Huh, what a name.
He heard as the girls bemoaned the fact that they didn't have anything to reward Hinata with. Kiba smiled as he heard Hinata assure them she wasn't looking for a reward. He could still remember when he and Shino and Hinata were first teamed together. It was amazing at how much they'd all changed.
Hinata was coming into her own, a fact that delighted the young Inuzuka. He and Shino had at first sheltered her, before realizing that despite her shy manners, she was a strength to be reckoned with. Well, to be fair, Shino had always seemed to know she had the potential.
Still it was funny to think of that twelve year old girl and compare her to the eighteen year old speaking with experienced whores. That twelve year old would have expired from sheer embarrassment to be in that room. Not so the Hinata of today. Kiba grinned as he listened to the conversation without remorse. How was a guy to guard her if he didn't know what was being said?
Suddenly, his ears pricked up. Hinata hadn't really said that, had she? Kiba tried to tune the conversation out as he blushed from the tips of his toes to the top of his head.
o.O.o.O.o.O
"You want to know what?" Little Bit murmured, shocked that such an elegant lady would want to know any such thing.
The tall blond, Mika, just grinned. "Oh my. Well, I guess sharing our knowledge could be considered rewarding. The question is, does your husband deserve such bounty?"
Hinata blushed and bit her lower lip. "It's for later. Maybe."
Little Bit shook her head, still in a bit of shock. She touched the bandage at her neck and sighed. "I do owe you. But ….how did you even think of …"
The purple-haired kunoichi's face heated even more. But she gamely told the girls about the time Anko interrupted her and Kankuro in the tent. And what she'd put her hand on, and later, what Anko had said.
Mika laughed and slapped the table. "Oh, that's too funny for words. And yes, you can kiss a man anywhere you can touch him."
Hinata sighed. "I touched it once. He seemed to like it." She looked away as she remembered how much he'd seemed to like it.
"Oh ho!" Mika and Little Bit laughed, with the tall blond reaching out to pat Hinata's hand. "I'll just bet he did."
"So. You want to drive your husband crazy." Little Bit shook her head, losing her shock in the amusement.
"No." Hinata shook her head. "I want to drive the memory of a former girlfriend out of his mind forever."
"And if it drives him crazy too, that's a bonus." Mika laughed as Hinata reluctantly nodded. "Ah now, listen up. First of all …."
o.o.o.o.o
Outside the door, Kiba groaned and tried to cover his ears. Not that he didn't want to know about sex. But the mental image of Hinata doing this with Kankuro …well, that was too much, even for him.
"You okay?" Kankuro asked from the end of the hallway.
Kiba whimpered, but nodded. "Just a headache." He didn't need the puppeteer down here right now.
"I came to get Hinata, it's her turn in the shower."
Kiba groaned and shook his head. "She's busy. Go get Temari and let her go first."
"You sure?" Kankuro asked, sending him a puzzled look. "And Kiba, you really look a bit green. Are you sure you're not still suffering from the flu?"
Kiba shook his head. "I'm fine. Food will fix me right up. Go get Temari. Hinata will be out soon." He hoped. He tuned into the conversation behind the closed door, and flushed again even as his mind raced. Women did that?
Kankuro turned away reluctantly, heading off to get his sister. Maybe Kiba needed to be off guard rotation tonight. The dog-nin didn't look too healthy to him right now.
The Inuzuka sighed with relief as he watched the puppeteer leave. An evil grin crossed his face as he thought about the surprises in store for Kankuro. He wondered briefly about his own fiancé. Kiba wondered if she knew about any of this. If not, he'd have to find some way to tell her.
He grinned and pushed aside his embarrassment, listening in once more. He just had to keep the images of Hinata out of his mind and focus on learning something new.
o.O.o.O.o.O
Misyu slapped Hajime soundly. "Fool! How dare you jeopardize us in such a manner."
"I was disguised and she was full of opium. There's no danger she'd recognize me and tell them anything."
The elderly man eyed his son coldly. "How can you be so sure? Idiot. I have an idiot for a son."
Hajime's temper ignited and simmered under the surface. How dare his father treat him so?
Misyu shook his head sadly, shaking from disappointment. "If I didn't need you for this to work …" He left the rest unsaid.
Suddenly, something occurred to Hajime. Something dark. "You do need me though. Don't you father?"
The elder just sighed. "No need to state the obvious."
"Obvious?" Hajime crooned darkly, making Misyu a bit uncomfortable. Over the years he'd overlooked these 'spells' of his sons. Still and all, sometimes the boy made him nervous. It was a good quality though, he assured himself. It was a good thing for others to be nervous around a clan leader.
"What's obvious is that you need me. But in what way …do I need you?"
o.O.o.O.o.O
Aw, must run. While I'm gone, I'd be very happy to get some REVIEWS to read when I get home. Please? Thank you.