Over 3k people read this but I only get two comments for my work? come on, make little ol' me happy and brighten my day with a nice comment, doesn't have to be long or anything, you can just say hi and I promise I'll stop bugging you guys before the story:) in exchange for what I'm expecting I decided to make this longer, yay!
Marihimesama: phew, I'm glad I haven't been wasting my time and not improving! Thank you for another nice comment, it does wonders to my confidence when it comes to posting new chapters. More concerns for this chapter, but believe me, all I want is fluff during these times. I hope you and your family stay healthy and happy too!
LB Cat: truly, our frontliners deserve a round of applause from the world. I hope you enjoy today's longer chapter, I promise you'll see fluff at the end. Thank you for giving me a reason to write!
Hinata took a seat beside her bedridden cousin who was no longer deathly pale like he was a week ago. All candles in his room had been snuffed for days; his eyes were still sensitive despite the cloth wrapped around them. She could feel tears threatening to spill since the spat with Neji's cousins. She wanted to look away, to forget that it was her own house that caused the damage, but he didn't deserve that. She wouldn't look away.
"If it co-unts for anything," she started unsteadily, "I'm sorry."
Neji sighed, "well it doesn't, but it's not your fault either."
"I didn't stop it."
"Look, Hinata-sama, I know you feel guilty for this, but you should realize that you can't stop what happens when you're not even present."
She sniffled slightly. "But still, I-I'm so sorry, Nii-san. I should've-"
"-I am not saying this again. It was not your fault," he hugged her. "You weren't there."
But still, it hurt to see her genius cousin reduced to an incapacitated child (even if it was only temporary). He was Sasuke's equivalent to Itachi, it just seemed so wrong to see him look resigned.
"The Main House shouldn't be activating your-your seal just because… because they can, it's not fair!" she exclaimed helplessly. "Tell me, who was it?"
He played with one of the strands framing her face as he spoke, "let it rest, I don't want to get you in trouble." Then he snickered, "believe me, I'll think of something."
"No!" Hinata's red eyes flared to life as tears kept falling, "give me a name, I can-I can make sure they never dare do it again, just tell me who!"
Though Neji's eyes were covered, his pause conveyed his shock. He knew that the Uchihas had a reputation for being vengeful to the point that it was concerning, but gentle Hinata was none of that. Maybe it was just Tsubaki's influence?
He shook his head. "It's not just one person, you can't afford to have the clan turn against you."
"It's not just you! Natsu had her seal activated too, you know."
"The elders can still switch you out for Hanabi-sama if they don't like how you think," Neji warned once again. He feared that at the rate Hinata was going, she would be demoted to the Branch House very soon.
"Don't you hate them?" Hinata whispered, resting her head on his shoulder.
She felt his chakra dim down in what she thought was resignation. "I love my sister more."
Because Neji Hyuuga pledged his life to his liege, not the Hyuuga Clan.
oOo
The next day, Hinata requested permission to learn the clan's juinjutsu.
"Permission granted, Hinata-sama," the only female elder said dryly. "I am glad to see you are finally taking your duties seriously. Dismissed."
Hinata bowed and left the room.
When she made her way to her mother's garden, the heiress was sure she could see a victorious smirk on her face before anything about the meeting could be said.
"How did it go, Chibi?"
"My lessons start tomorrow."
The woman hummed and turned back to the garden bed. "Here, take a look at this."
Hinata did not see a thing until she got closer. There it was. "It's an egg."
"I think it fell from its nest, but I haven't seen the mother anywhere," she sulked while prodding the egg for any clues.
The girl blinked slowly before saying, "um, that's nice and all, Hahaue…"
"But?"
"Do-do you think I made a mistake?"
"Explain," she urged without taking her eyes off of the tiny egg.
"Well, Uncle Hizashi was Chichiue's brother, but he was a Branch Cadet, right?"
Tsubaki raised a brow. "Yes."
"So Hanabi-chan will be sealed when I take over, right?"
"That's right, Chibi."
"But, but you said that if I married Itachi I wouldn't get sealed when you thought Hanabi-chan was a boy!"
Tsubaki removed her gloves and gently took her daughter's hands. "I'm afraid that will not work for her. The Uchihas respect the Hyuuga Clan's traditions, they won't intervene for the second born. All you can do is make this clan better for your sister and for Neji when it's your turn."
With blurry eyes, Hinata nodded without a word. It was at times like those that she wished she was under the jurisdiction of the Uchiha Clan. Fugaku-sama was a good person (if not a little stern), for all his brooding he was always present in the life of his sons without prompting from Mikoto or his firstborn, even if that wasn't the case before.
"What if I marry into the Uchiha Clan and let Hanabi-chan take over this one?"
The woman smiled bitterly, but Hinata thought she could see amusement in her eyes. "What if your constipated cousin fancies someone else? I don't doubt that he'd choose you, but are you willing to potentially ruin his (nonexistent) romantic life?"
Hinata shrugged as she rubbed her eyes, "Hanabi-chan is more important. Besides, I'd let him hang around whoever he wants as long as no one notices."
"Well," Tsubaki whistled, "you've got that well planned, but it's still a bad idea. Personal feelings aside, how do you think that Konoha's higher ups would react to such a union?"
The girl tilted her head. "They care?"
"Yes, Chibi," she laughed, recalling her own wedding. "They certainly care, alright."
After a few minutes of silence, the heiress spoke up, "they wouldn't like such far reaching loyalty between our clans."
"Good, I see the old bat's classes are not wasted on you. So what do you think would happen if there is another Hyuuga-Uchiha union?"
"Um, I don't…" looking at her mother's glare, she paused. For some reason it always irked the matriarch to hear her say 'I don't know' but Hinata was more than accustomed to her eccentricities by that point. "We would be pushed away from Konoha's politics, maybe?"
"Until they neutralize what you two together would represent or assure themselves that you are no threat, both clans will probably be isolated for a bit."
"Oh." Hinata remained soundless after that and stared at the egg for the next few minutes. She had never considered the political consequences of her plan, it had all been about Hanabi's well-being, about her happiness and freedom. The heiress didn't consider Itachi's feelings either, of course he would have agreed (he said so himself once) due to his disturbingly selfless nature, but at the end all she felt was guilt for even contemplating using him for her own goals.
Maybe I'm becoming a bit more like what the Hyuugas want me to be, she mused darkly. I need to meditate.
"On a different topic, I decided to join you and I think I've found your target. It's a," she paused to find a word that wasn't too much for Hinata, "snappy Hyuuga, I hear she has been taking it out on the Branch Cadets recently."
The bluenette perked up at that. "Who?"
"Hitomi."
Hinata still looked lost.
"You know," Tsubaki prompted, "the one that got rejected the other day? again."
"Oh! yeah, I remember her!" it was the talk of the compound, any Hyuuga worth their salt was aware of at least fifty different rumors that started that very day.
"But how could she even get to Neji-nii-san? He's just a Branch Cadet kid, she wouldn't consider him worth her time."
"Ah, that's where it gets good. Her son was sparring against Neji."
"I can see where this is going," Hinata muttered annoyed.
"Her son lost badly, which is why Hitomi thought it was a great idea to punish him for being better."
Hinata hummed in appreciation as she held a flower to her lips.
Despite her daughter's lack of expression, Tsubaki found the malicious gleam in her eyes hard to ignore. For some reason it always disturbed people when they realized that being soft-spoken did not equal a forgiving nature, though Hinata generally did fill in the stereotype quite nicely. Unfortunately for Hitomi, such kindness probably wouldn't extend to her.
oOo
A week later, Hitomi Hyuuga couldn't help but notice that despite her threats, the Branch Cadet women in charge of laundering kept returning her clothes with a funky smell and always damp. It was no use to say anything, though. Hinata-sama seemed to like them, so it wouldn't end well for anyone who messed with her protected people; that's just the way the hierarchy went.
oOo
Hanabi's training was going well and it pleased Hinata to no end.
For the first few months the firecracker was gleeful to finally have something more in common with her aneki, another excuse to spend more time with her. It was fun to go over exercise routines and katas together and unusually enough, Hinata decided to prioritise helping her improve during training over spending time with their mother. It was more than Hanabi could ask for.
The current heiress couldn't be prouder; it was a pleasant feeling, to see how someone improved at least partially due to her help. She loved teaching, be it taijutsu to Sasuke and Naruto or simple katas for Hanabi. Maybe when she reached jōnin she could even lead a genin cell of her own.
"Good work, I think we can stop now," Hinata announced as she tumbled her way to Ko who as usual held her water and snack.
Hanabi ran to Natsu for her own. "One day I'll be as good as you, Aneki!"
The heiress smiled, "I hope you're better." And I'm glad to see that Natsu's looking happier, too!
The tiny girl shrugged and happily munched on her rice ball as she spoke, "can you stay for my other classes too?"
"I'm sorry, Hanabi-chan," the heiress started with an apologetic smile to Natsu who would have to deal with her tantrum. "There's something I have to get in the shopping center."
The firecracker pouted, "let come with!"
"You still have your own classes to attend, Hanabi-sama," Natsu chided gently.
"What's so important anyway?" Hanabi huffed, unamused as she held onto Hinata's training attire.
"Um," she hesitated, wondering if the truth was worth her little sister's reaction. "Just a birthday gift."
She narrowed her eyes (Hinata thought it looked adorable), "for Itachi, I bet."
"Yes..?" the bluenette automatically regretted her answer as Hanabi's eyes went wide and offended.
"Aneki, do you like him more than me?"
"N-no! Of course not!" Hinata spluttered as she waved her hands in denial. "You're my favorite and you know it!"
Ko and Natsu on the sidelines could only laugh quietly at their antics. It really was a blessing to get to know their future leader and her kindness for everyone, it was something that they hoped would stick with her forever. Kami knows the Hyuuga Clan needs it.
"Hm, does that mean you're willing to wait until tomorrow for the shopping trip?"
The heiress laughed, "sure thing, I guess I'll be joining you in your classes today."
Hanabi's delighted face was worth it.
oOo
"Hinata-sama," Soleil (the instructor in the beginning for you forgetful people) pinched the bridge of her nose, "would you please stop trying to set your compound on fire?"
The match was promptly snuffed. "I apologize."
oOo
By the end of that day, the heiress felt happy to the point of grinning in a very un-Hyuuga fashion as she skipped across the compound to reach her room. Nothing could ruin her great afternoon, spent in the company of Hanabi who strived to achieve only the best of results for the praise of her sister. Hinata felt honored to be held in such high regard. To make things better, Tsubaki showed up during the firecracker's later classes and even played tag with them after that.
Once she opened the screen to her room and entered, she froze. One of the windows was cracked open, not enough for someone to crawl in, but the fact that she recalled closing it that morning was already very alarming. Just as she shook a breath to call for Ko (she was sure he always checked on her before going to sleep) a whisper right in her ear caused her to shriek and jump up a foot in the air.
Quickly, Ko (she was right!) slammed open the screen with his Byakugan blazing only to find his charge on the floor with an oversized crow sitting on her raised knee. "Um, I'm sorry for scaring you, it's just one of Itachi's crows."
His brow nearly twitched. "A bird."
"I said I'm sorry," Hinata muttered with a red face. "I forget that they can open my window."
"I can't believe it," Ko slapped a hand to his forehead. "The council expects the windows to protect you, but it appears that even a bird is able to get past their 'great defenses' what a load of bull- erm nevermind."
"It's okay, they're really nice," she stood and raised the crow to his face. "His name is Takeshi."
The caretaker forced his lips into a tight lipped smile. Somehow the damn bird has the same I-don't-give-a-shit expression like his owner. "Yes, he's lovely, Hinata-sama."
"Of course I am," the crow said, proudly ruffling his feathers.
Ko couldn't even bring himself to look surprised anymore. " Well I will be going to bed now… goodnight, Hinata-sama."
"Goodnight, Ko!"
"So?" Takeshi squaked. "Feed me, I brought you a message!"
"Right, right..." Hinata grinned and pulled the message on its leg before hurrying over to her desk where a small pouch of grain was hanging open. "Eat all you want."
Nii-san will be coming home tomorrow, make sure to hide whatever you got for him
-Sasuke
She quickly grabbed a pen and scribbled a reply and asked the bird, "do you know of anything we could give him?"
The bird tilted its head, "Itachi will take anything that has sugar in it-oh! Yes, you should buy him a bag of sugar, I'm sure he'll like that."
Hinata laughed, "I'll keep that in mind, thanks for helping us."
"Anything to get away from my mother," he shivered as the note was tied to his leg. "She thinks I broke her favorite rock, but it wasn't me, I promise! I hope she won't be as mad if I find her another one…"
"I'll look for something shiny tomorrow, okay?"
"You're the best!" Takeshi nearly cried as he took flight.
oOo
"Now tell me, Haruno-san, what is chakra?"
Said girl popped up from her seat and recited her knowledge eagerly. Hinata could only sigh in despair as the bubblegum-haired girl spoke, how she envied her way of speaking before the entire class so clearly.
"You okay?" Sasuke prodded her cheek with a pencil from one side while Naruto unglued his eyes from the speaker to glance at Hinata.
"I woke up early today," she grumbled half asleep.
"You always do," Naruto pointed out from her other side.
The girl shrugged, "but I was dreaming and I just had to wake up at the good part!"
"Oh yeah, I know that feels," Sasuke sympathised as he scribbled down what Iruka was saying. "I'll let you see my notes later, if you want."
Her eyes were practically glowing. "Thank you thank you thank you!"
"So what were you dreaming about?" the blond questioned after the ever vigilant chūnin turned around. He never discriminated between girls and boys, Iruka never failed to call out anyone not paying attention.
"Well, I don't remember too well anymore, it was something about a pile of rubbish, but I think someone else was there playing around with all those broken gadgets," she said, still trying to recall the face. It seemed familiar and she was leaning towards believing it was an Uchiha, but he seemed quite entertained and that didn't fit any of her stoic cousins (except Shisui, he was always the weird one amongst Uchihas, but she didn't think it was him).
"Cool, you think it was Nii-san?"
Hinata blinked. "Why would I dream about him?"
Sasuke shrugged, "he likes playing around with that kind of stuff sometimes."
"Really?" her semblance brightened, " then maybe I could-"
"-Hyuuga-san, would you mind telling the class what all the nature transformations are?" Iruka suddenly called out, making said girl's heart jump.
"Um," she could feel her heart going faster, her body freezing and her cheeks- how embarrassing, they felt hot enough to cook an egg! "Those would be fire, water…"
"Can't hear you!" one of the kids in the room shouted with a pesky smirk.
Sasuke, always ready for a fight, retaliated in kind. "Shut up, wannabe."
The boy scowled, "who are you calling a wannabe, Uchiha?"
Naruto, eager to prove his loyalty was right behind his best friend. "You, no one asked for your opinion!"
The heiress slowly sinked in her chair, hoping the ground would swallow her as the chūnin attempted to smother the rising shouting match
Thankfully, nothing happened to her two friends and Iruka forgot to ask her about the nature transformations. Not that Hinata couldn't answer him, those things she learned ages ago under the instruction of Soleil and her mother. She just didn't like being picked out even if she was talking during the lesson.
The few things that she enjoyed about the Academy were Naruto, ninjutsu analysis, and outshining everyone in her class during shuriken practice, though she always denied the last part (but Shisui already caught on and thankfully kept quiet about that).
Today's lesson was boring. All they learned was a bunch of hand seals that she knew for the most part and the moulding of chakra. It would be much better if the chūnin decided to explain more in depth the relationship between chakra and nature transformations, it reminded Hinata of the stories that her mother would tell her when she was younger and now Hanabi, the ones about a legendary Avatar who was able to wield every element during a time that a person could only employ one.
Firebending was her personal favorite because it was the only one that could be generated without the need of an already existing flame; it was the most dependable element in her humble opinion, even if it represented the Fire Nation, who were the bad guys. Eventually Hinata had forgotten all about those stories, but then Itachi showed her and Sasuke an old warehouse full of dusty books and scrolls and there she found written all of her mother's stories. She carefully brought the book back to the compound, it would do her no good if the elders found out she still had a special place for fairytales in her heart.
And good thing they don't know about my dinosaur either….
"Think Ko will pick you up today?"
"Yeah, I was hoping we could find a gift before Ani- I mean, before Itachi figured anything out," she mumbled with averted eyes.
Sasuke nodded, "let me come with you, I can help."
"Let me warn you, Hanabi-chan's coming too," Hinata warned with a knowing smile as she waved goodbye to Naruto who was leaving with Iruka (he promised the blond a bowl of ramen).
The boy groaned, "fine, but you'd better tell her to stop calling me a barbarian."
"I'll try," she sing-songed noncommittally.
"You're the worst, Hinata!"
"Now, now," a voice behind Sasuke hummed. "That is no way to talk to our favorite Hyuuga."
Sasuke sighed with a tired look of resignation. "Nii-san's behind me, isn't he?"
"Welcome back?" Hinata greeted stiffly as she fiddled with her sleeves behind her back. I was kinda hoping that Itachi would arrive a bit later...
"I was expecting more of a warmer greeting, you know."
"We're sorry," Sasuke and Hinata chorused before latching themselves on either of the older boy's arms as if nothing happened.
Itachi looked at the pair suspiciously before shaking his head with a small smile. "I don't suppose you two are hiding something?"
Hinata looked positively scandalised. "Could it be that we finally outsmarted the great Itachi Uchiha?"
"Nah, he's just trying to get us to tell him," Sasuke accused with a frown. "Nii-san tricked me enough times for me to learn my lesson."
"I am offended," Itachi muttered drly. "After all these years of being a good brother, that's what I get."
"It's okay," Hinata patted his arm. "We all know you had good intentions."
"Yeah, right," the younger Uchiha scoffed. "You spend your days bullying me!"
"I do not, that's Shisui's job."
"That doesn't make it better!"
"Anyway," the heiress cut in, "I need to pick up Hanabi, we're going to the shopping center."
"Ah, gift for me?"
"Um. no?"
"Perfect, then it's safe for me to accompany you, right? I told Ko that I would be walking with you since I'm picking up Sasuke too."
"Yeah, sounds great!" Hinata wanted to slap herself and her big mouth. Oh, but maybe this could work, I have an idea! "You're coming too, Sasuke."
