I thank my friend LexKixAss for the use of her twins. As always, Naruto belongs to Kishimoto.


Most in Konoha, who didn't know a Hyuuga personally, believed that because the clan was old and dignified that they were, at heart, overtly formal and stuffy. And, among strangers when their presence was viewed as representative for the clan, those people would be correct. Hyuugas had a sense of presence that they were taught to respect. But surrounded by friends or family, the clan knew how to enjoy life as much as anyone else in the village. Tonight, the compound was alive with celebration and excitement, the kind not even the main family's attendance couldn't dampen.

Hizashi had taken Osamu's suggestion about making the choosing a spectacle to heart. Instead of the traditional way of introducing Hinata to her potential suitors over a quiet meal at the main house, he decided to bring the clan together for an all-night party and let the suitors (or their families in many cases) make the introductions themselves. Hinata loathed the idea, but the closer it got and the more eager the clan became, she relented. It was a chance to influence the decision of who would help lead them, and though the choices remained the same no matter what they did, the clan never had such an opportunity before.

Naomi made most of the arrangements, being far better at planning such events than him. It had the added perk of keeping her in the village for several weeks, and Hizashi no longer took such time home for granted. With Naomi, Neji, and Hinata all away for days or weeks at a time, he was suffering a bit of empty nest syndrome, soothed only by Shou, who was now crawling and climbing everything in reach. He couldn't complain about any loneliness he felt considering he'd done the same to Naomi during Neji's early years. It was wonderful to have everyone home, though.

Not wanting to mute the mood, Hizashi stood near the edge of the training yard between the two houses, now set up with tables of food and flowers. On the far side, close to a small crowd flocking around his nervous daughter and her over protective brother, was a sparring area turned dance floor and a band made up from a few of the more musically inclined members of the clan. One of Hinata's suitors was currently showing off his ability on the taiko drums.

"I haven't seen the clan this lively since Hiashi and Atsuko's wedding," said another, who like Hizashi, chose not to spoil the fun by going too close.

"It does seem to have been a long time since we've forgotten our troubles and simply had fun." Hizashi watched Hinata in her yellow and white yukata shuffle closer to Neji as the mother of one of her suitors ignored personal space in favor of urging her son to engage Hinata. Hizashi sighed. "If only Hinata were having fun."

At his comment, Hyobe did something Hizashi had not seen or heard in many years: he laughed. "She is her father's daughter. Hiashi was horrible courting women. He was more than happy to allow us to arrange a marriage for him."

Hizashi found himself surprised by the comment, though he wasn't sure why. He and Hiashi began drifting apart before either of them had any serious interest in women, and once old enough, light-hearted topics such as brotherly gossip were crushed by the tension weighing them down. He had known Hiashi wasn't bothered by the arrangement, but he didn't know it was to avoid direct wooing. The way Hiashi and Atsuko were, Hizashi always assumed they had gotten along well in the beginning. Hizashi himself wasn't half bad when he was younger, but then he'd been exposed to a lot more women looking for such relationships being branch.

"Hiashi couldn't have been that terrible," Hizashi said, wanting to reaffirm his own remembrance.

"Surely you heard what happened during his first meetings."

"I heard exaggerated stories meant to disparage him," Hizashi corrected. Tensions between the houses had been much tighter back then.

Hizashi blinked, his own thoughts surprising him. For all the uncertainty about Hinata being away from the clan, the strain that had twisted the two houses into a frayed rope had eased without his even acknowledging it. The simple fact the branch family was willing to usher their uncomfortable heir between them without fear of reproach spoke to the subtle changes that had taken place.

As if he wasn't surprised enough, Hyobe laughed again. A light, heartfelt sound so unlike his father that Hizashi turned to verify the person next to him.

"I promise you, every story was true," Hyobe said, smiling.

Hizashi remained skeptical. "Even the one where she tosses her miso soup in his lap?"

Hyobe shook his head ruefully. "Ah, Shiori. It was a pot of tea over his head actually."

"And she got away with it?" Now Hizashi was laughing.

"After what he insinuated, I felt it was . . . deserved." Hyobe's eyes watched the people falling into the rhythm of the music, moving and laughing with unimpeded pleasure, but his gaze was years back imagining a son who was no longer there. "Out of the five women we chose for him to meet, Hiashi managed to insult four of them before the first courses were served."

"I suppose Atsuko was lucky number five?"

Hyobe shook his head. "No, he insulted her as well. I believe he asked if she thought healing was more of a feminine profession by nature or was she simply deficient at jyuuken."

Hizashi rubbed his temple, hearing his brother's haughty voice in the very question. In the past, Hizashi never questioned how he and Hiashi had ended up so very different. It was the main family, he'd told himself, yet he was now main family and still was no similar to his brother. Their father was main family, and even he could find joy in what they had been during that time when the main family had been more what he had wished it to be. Who was his brother back then? Who would he have been if they had not drifted apart?

"What was Atsuko's response?" Hizashi asked.

Hyobe's gaze lifted to the pink and orange aurora of the setting sun. "Exactly what it should have been. She told him that it was indeed a feminine art, because they had to make sure the men stayed alive to keep working, or women would be forced to do everything. Then she told him to keep that secret to himself, or the other healers would be most upset with her. And she smiled. I knew then she was the correct partner for him."

Hizashi turned back to the crowd, searching the throng for Naomi and the certainty he felt with her near. Her green yukata, dusted with pale pink cherry blossoms, was more vivid in color than any of the others and easily stood out to his wandering eye. He'd obviously missed out more than he realized by not better knowing his sister-in-law before she died. The most he'd spent with her was the limited time after Hiashi's death, and she was sick for most of it.

"It's been a long time since we've talked of Hiashi and Atsuko," Hizashi said, unnerved by how true the statement was.

Hyobe sighed. "The sad fact of the dead. The living matter more, no matter how much we miss them."

"Do you still miss him?" Hizashi had been too estranged from his brother. He regretted Hiashi's death, mourned for him, but he did not miss his presence the way he would Naomi or one of the children.

"Every day. He was my son. I would feel the same had you died and he lived."

A bitterness Hizashi had thought forgotten burrowed its way into his chest. He wasn't as certain that Hyobe would have grieved for him the same. The second son. Looking to Naomi again, Hizashi let her image settle him. It had been too long since he and his father had spoken so casually, and Hizashi did not want to turn another conversation into an argument. "Do you ever wonder what would have happened if he'd lived? If Hinata had never been taken that night?"

Hyobe didn't answer right away, his gaze leaving memories to find Hinata in the present. "More often than I should, perhaps. Though, as of late I've begun to wonder which would have been preferable."

Hizashi's eyes widened, the only perceivable reaction to his shock. There was no doubt in his mind Hyobe would have preferred Hiashi as clan head. "What do you mean?"

Again, Hyobe's quiet eyes lingered on his granddaughter, who was now happily holding Shou against her chest to keep people from coming too close. "I do not think Hinata would have done so well raised by Hiashi," he finally said. "I taught him too well. He thought like me, and I believe we can all agree my ways were rarely helpful when it came to Hinata."

"You're admitting to that?" Hizashi was beginning to wonder if someone in the branch family had spiked his father's drink.

A slight scowl turned Hyobe's lips. "I can admit that how I envisioned her being raised hindered her more than it helped, even if much of it was still necessary for the clan. And I can see how Hiashi would have done the same. With him, though, she would not have had you as an advocate or Neji as a confidant."

"She would have had Atsuko."

"So would Hiashi. They were young; they could have had more children. Imagine if one was like Neji, or simply better than Hinata when she was young. I had often wished Neji wasn't sealed so that he could have taken over as heir; I doubt Hiashi would have taken the time and care you did if he had another option." Hyobe's shoulders drooped, not noticeably, not so much that his posture changed, but to Hizashi's trained observation there was sorrow in his father. Sorrow or guilt or regret. "Perhaps that would have been better for the clan in the future. Perhaps a strong, solid leader is still what they need."

"But?" Hizashi said, encouraging what Hyobe kept silent to be given voice.

"But it would have been quite a shame if she had never had the chance to stand in front of the clan after performing kaiten and tell me no." Closing his eyes from the ordered chaos in front of him, Hyobe took a deep breath, a smile expanding along with his chest. "I don't know if her overly kind heart is what this clan needs, but she has achieved so much more than I believed she was capable of ten years ago."

Hizashi allowed his father a moment to experience the small revelation in his own way. But only a moment. "You should tell her that."

"No," Hyobe said, the smile fading as seamlessly as it appeared. "That is not my role in her life."

"She would like it to be."

"There are many things we would like that we do not get." Hyobe opened his eyes, which no longer held the gentle sorrow of his reminiscence. "If you are the wind of progression, then I must remain rooted in our traditions, no matter how much she dislikes them."

"Why?"

"Because she needs tradition. She must remember what was in order to lead the clan to what she wills it to be. Not everything can change and we still remain Hyuuga."

The two men remained quiet, watching those gathered in the fading light, many having forgotten that the main family they normally feared could reach out and touch them. The clan needed to change . . . needed to continue changing. What good could come from a tradition that drove them apart? Wasn't it better they were together?

Hizashi left Hyobe to join the rest of the clan in their merriment. Weaving his way through the crowd, Hizashi stole Naomi by the hand and pulled her onto the make-shift dance floor like they were teenagers visiting their first festival. They slipped into the circle of dancing couples, Naomi laughing light and quick, like birdsong against the early twilight. For so long he'd been living as main family the way he'd known it to be when he was young, slowly pulling away from the branch. He knew his place, that his position was temporary, yet he'd forgotten what it felt like to be embraced by the branch family the way he had when he was a young man and newly cast out of his childhood home. The way they accepted him, acknowledged his pain, and gave him a place to find happiness if not peace.

They had not forgotten him. This clan wasn't Hyobe's or Hiashi's. It was born from the pain of the branch family, who had found a voice that couldn't be denied. A voice that belonged to two worlds. They found an heir, who for all her faults, saw them as family first and branch second. And they accepted her. There was still fear, but it was the fear of uncertainty, not the dread that kept them quiet and in place when Hyobe passed by.

As the song ended and the dancing slowed, Hizashi pulled Naomi flush against him in a public display that propriety and tradition told him was very un-Hyuuga-like and kissed his wife as a husband should. If Hyobe thought him to be progress, then he should embrace it as much as he could in his chained power.

"Hizashi," Naomi said, urging him away enough to stop the snickering chirps and wide-eyed stares in their direction. She led him off the dance floor and toward one of the tables lined with near empty platters and bowls. "What has gotten into you?"

Hizashi rested his forehead against hers, his black scarf pressed against her white one. It was far more intimate an act than any kiss. "Sometimes it's good to ignore tradition. It makes me feel like family."

"We are family," she said, confused.

Hizashi glanced around the yard at the people who'd once accepted him, who would accept him again when the time came, and maybe, just maybe, accept the girl who would never be one of them. "We're getting there."


Neji stayed near Hinata while the sea of people around them shifted and swirled as if pulled on invisible currents. One potential match ebbed away, and another came forward, usually followed by a small swarm of family eager to see how well he fared with the choosing bride. Any other day Neji wouldn't hover so closely, but today was hardly normal, and Hinata's expression when they headed out of the main house all but begged him not to leave her alone. It was difficult enough to maintain what was expected of the heir with everyone watching her, to have to flirt and engage with prospective husbands, when her best experience with romantic love was an unrequited crush on Naruto, was a nightmare for Hinata, and he wasn't about to throw her to the sharks.

Shrugging off the next wave of curious gatherers, Neji led Hinata, Shou bouncing on her hip, away from the main group to a nearby table where he poured them both a glass of water. Hinata didn't need anything that would make her more jumpy. "You don't have to talk to everyone just because they approach you. You're here to meet your suitors."

Hinata thanked him for the glass and drank half in one long gulp before helping Shou carefully take a sip, which dripped down his chubby cheeks anyway. "This is the first time I'm really interacting with the branch family, and I don't want to lose their respect. I'm not a genius like you; it took a lot to earn that."

"Respect and liking are two different things."

"I'd rather not be respected and hated." She turned slightly towards the table and curled her fingers around the glass dripping with growing condensation. It was an instinctual reaction. She'd turned away from Hyobe, who remained on the outskirts of the celebration, alone.

Neji put a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "You're not in danger of that right now, but try not to wear yourself out. The night's young, and the longer you're unimpressed by any one choice, the more they're all going to keep trying."

"It's hard to be impressed by people you don't know." Hinata sighed and finished off her water. "This would be easier if I could speak to people without feeling like I'm talking in circles."

At the sight of a new group coming, Neji leaned in close as if to play with Shou. "Just smile and nod."

"I hope your cousin isn't going to keep you to himself all night," the newest contestant said, grinning a calm, not-too-overpowering expression that seemed to invite them to join him rather than force himself into their conversation.

Hinata shook her head. "He was giving me a small reprieve."

Though he'd snuck a peek at the list of suitors before the party, Neji couldn't place this one's name. He must have been one Neji had dismissed as unsuitable, which seemed likely by his apparent age. Older than Neji and Hinata for sure. Older than the twins even. At first sight, he'd have put the man—for he certainly was a man and not a teenager like them—in his mid-twenties. Not the oldest of her suitors, but older than Neji would like to see her paired with, which made Osamu's presence next to him all the more bewildering.

"Don't get jealous of Neji-chan already, Eiji. If you can't handle him now, you won't make it in the main house." Osamu grinned and rested an elbow on the man's shoulder. "Hinata-sama, let me introduce you to Eiji. He's not so bad once you get to know him."

"What a ringing endorsement," Eiji said, rolling his eyes. There was something very casual about his manner without being impolite or insincere.

"And one no one else will get."

Neji was not so skeptical. Whether Eiji knew it or not, Osamu wouldn't have bothered personally introducing someone that he didn't consider suitable for Hinata, and she was paying close attention to the subtle cues she recognized in the twin. As close as they were and as skilled as Hinata knew Osamu to be, she trusted his judgment. His and Isamu's, who was oddly absent. Neji scanned the yard looking for the missing twin and found him talking to his parents some ways off. Almost as if feeling the pressure of Neji's gaze on him, Isamu shifted, turning his back on them. Stranger and stranger. He'd remember that the next time he was alone with the twins.

"I never know when to take Isamu seriously," Eiji said, and, at the sight of Neji and Hinata's matching smirks, glowered down on Osamu. "You're not Isamu, are you?"

Osamu grinned, innocent and happy. "I don't think I'll ever get tired of doing that."

Eiji offered a pleading expression to Hinata. "How do you tell them apart so easily?"

"If we told, they'd stop doing it," she said, still snickering at Osamu, who looked aghast that he had a tell at all.

"It's quite impressive. How many in the clan can claim that?"

"Three and a half." At their questioning face, Osamu added, "Hizashi-sama can only tell us apart when we're fighting."

"You are a strange little man, you know that?" Eiji said.

"Quite."

Eiji chuckled. "Probably best to leave it at that."

"It's usually safer," Hinata agreed.

The corner of Osamu mouth twitched up, only for a second, but it was enough for Neji to read the triumph he felt. Neji hated to admit it, but Hinata was actually talking to Eiji without looking to either of them for support, a fact that had been absent is her earlier interactions. There was also no family to harass her to anxiety's edge either.

"Would you care to escape him with me? I'd be very pleased to get to know you better."

Any ease she'd been at with Neji and Osamu around vanished at his request, and she hugged Shou to her a little tighter, making the boy squirm in her arms. Neji could see the debate raging inside as she searched for a way to politely refuse small talk without someone to come to her rescue when words failed her. Finally, her eyes flashed to Neji, Help.

He nodded, but before he could divert them, Eiji said, "Or, if you're not comfortable talking, we could just dance. We are both Hyuugas. What we see is often more important than what we say."

"I . . . have Shou," she said slowly while her mouth caught up with her mind.

Once again, Neji failed to break into the conversation to aid her as Osamu reached out to take the wriggling child from her secure grasp. "I'll watch him for you. My little cousin loves me."

As if to agree, Shou let out a big, cheeky smile. Osamu sent Neji a shadowed glare that firmly said, Stay. Denied her shield and her protector and any other excuse she could find, Hinata relented and allowed Eiji to lead her to the dance floor.

When both were out of earshot, Neji finally managed to speak. "I'd heard Dad had you pick for him, but you've got to be kidding me. Surely he's not the best choice?"

"No, but he's the best choice out of those available." Osamu glanced toward Isamu and sighed, though he let nothing slip onto his face for Neji to read.

Neji wanted to ask about Isamu's absence, but something told him now wasn't the time. Osamu was too guarded, being too careful with his words, spoken and unspoken. For now, he settled on Eiji. "He's too old."

Osamu nodded. "Yeah, nine years older than Hinata-sama. That didn't work in his favor. But he's outgoing and well liked, which would help her dealing with the clan, and he still manages to keep a decent sense of humor. She needs that in a partner. Not too bad at insight either. I didn't tell him Hinata-sama was uncomfortable talking to strangers."

"Everyone knows that about her," Neji chided.

"Yeah, but how many actually got her to dance?"

Neji's mouth thinned. "You helped with that."

"True, but she wasn't going to leave you otherwise, not as nervous as she is tonight."

Shou reached out from Osamu's hold, and Neji obligingly collected him. The boy settled against his brother's shoulder, his little arms tired and quickly turning limp. Maybe Neji was getting a brother complex too like Tenten teased, because Shou's deep, even breaths in his ear, signaling to Neji his little brother was falling asleep, felt right. Of course, he might just be too much of a protector. He preferred that idea.

Quieter, so as not to bother Shou, Neji said, "How is the reaction from the clan you think? They seem happy even with me there."

"They're happy. Period. This is new and fun. And they know this isn't a traditional way or age for the heir to find a husband, so most are giving her some slack. Actually, quite a few are highly amused by her." Osamu's smile turned sour, like summer rain blowing across the sun. "He's not perfect, but he's a good match. His family's never held the kind of resentment others did about the seal, and when others in the clan thought Hizashi-sama was spoiling her, he was among those willing to see what happened before judging her."

Neji hated this marriage, more so now that he and Tenten had begun a relationship that he could call romantic, though not entirely normal. Tenten made him happy. He looked forward to seeing her. Hinata deserved to feel that same sweet excitement that could lead to more. Why did he have that right and not her?

"Will he make her happy?" That was all it boiled down to in the end. "Is there even a chance she could love him one day?"

Osamu didn't meet Neji's gaze, an act more worrisome than words alone. "I don't know. But, out of everyone, they can be friends. You should understand how friendship has the possibility of becoming more."

"Maybe," he said, watching the smile on his sister's face, which was a fraction less nervous than when she was with the other choices. Maybe it was all just a matter of time.