Chapter 25

Late April - Hinata (Konoha)

It was 5 AM when Hinata got off the Konoha train station .

It had been three weeks since she departed Kumogakure but it was still three days prior to when everyone was expecting her. She had given her family and friends a slightly delayed arrival date because she wanted to surprise everyone.

Looking around Konoha was weird.

Having been away for so long, the balmy weather here and the lush greenery felt different and almost foreign to her now. But that feeling was inevitably mixed with a feeling of coming home.

At the train station she recognized a few employees and waved to them as she gathered her luggages and hailed a cab. Things at Konoha seemed to have modernized a bit she noticed as she looked out the cab window on their way to the Hyuga compound.

When she arrived at the compound she paid the driver and unloaded her luggages. Upon seeing her, the guards at the gates rushed over to help and greeted her with exuberant excitement, which she returned in equal measure. As she had gotten older she had become well liked by most of her clan members.

They asked her briefly how her trip was and how Kumogakure had been and she stopped to have a brief conversation with them.

There would be many such encounters in the next week or so she mused while thinking about everyone she needed to go visit. There were so many people to see, and she was impatient to do so. It was good to be home!

She was meaning to head straight to her otou-san's house, but almost despite herself her mind flashed back to the one person she knew who had been patiently waiting for her to get back. It was the person she hadn't said goodbye to when she left.

So she thought to start her integration back to Konoha with Neji.

Thanking the guards profusely for taking her luggages to her father's house. Hinata tentatively approached the main Hyuga mansion.

Everything looked the same as she remembered before, Neji didn't seem to have done any redecorating. Hinata waited in the living room and rang the bell for the housekeeper.

The older woman came looking hurried in a few minutes and her face broke out in a wide smile upon seeing her.

"Good morning Hela-san" she bowed.

"Oh my, oh my, Hinata-san" the older woman exclaimed! They exchanged hugs and shared a quick recap and afterwards Hinata asked to see Neji.

The housekeeper agreed at once but ordered her some tea and breakfast before rushing off to go get the master.

Neji had been just finishing his morning bath and was moving onto dressing himself when an urgent knocking came at his bedroom door. That was unusual, he thought and quickly put on his white robes and answered the door.

It was Hela with a wide smile on her face telling him that Hianta was waiting for him downstairs.

Neji was startled, why was she home so early? He had planned to take her out for breakfast on the morning of her arrival. He had also ordered flowers and some of her favourite desserts to be delivered as a surprise, but that was for three days from now.

He had nothing on hand to welcome her with, and he had to attend a meeting in an hour and a half.

Why would she be here early, he wondered as he hurried down the stairs eager to see her and grateful that she was finally home.

"Hinata" he called out, entering the living room in a rush. There were maids in the room and they put down a tray filled with something he didn't even bother to glance at and left giving them privacy.

Upon seeing him Hinata stood up from where she had been sitting. "Neji-sama" she bowed respectfully at him and his heart sank a little bit.

She looked fresh despite her travels and was dressed in a loose navy-blue travelling dress. It was flowy and looked comfortable, but it hung over her frame fashionably. She had on white sneakers again and her hair was artfully arranged in curls.

He looked at her standing there so beautiful in the morning light, and he felt like something was stuck in his throat as nothing eloquent to say came to his mind.

"Hi Hinata, w-what are you doing home early?"

She started to look a bit nervous and unsure, so he went forward quickly grabbing her hands in reassurance.

"Is everything okay?" he asked, looking deep into her eyes.

She smiled and nodded tearing up a bit "I-I missed you".

At that Neji took in a sharp breath feeling immensely relieved, and pulled her close to him in a hug.

"Do you still love me?" she asked in a watery voice, with her face muffled into his chest.

"Of course" he said, pulling back and looking into her eyes again. "Why would you even wonder that?".

"Just wanted to make sure" she said sniffling "...I wanted to tell you that I love you too" she said in a small voice. Neji's face was blank for a second or two as if he was in disbelief but then slowly a wide smile broke out and he felt triumphant and relieved for the first time this year.

His gamble had paid off, she had come back to him!

"But…" she continued on, "that doesn't mean that I am agreeing to be your wife..." she looked nervously at him.

The previous euphoria he felt slowly dissipated and his smile drained away just as his stomach flipped and sank.

"Okay" he said carefully nodding at her, wanting to understand what she meant.

"C-can we talk?" she looked around nervously, "in private?" she whispered.

"Of course" he said looking around the living room, the main house was relatively empty but there was no guaranteed privacy anywhere.

"Come up to my room" and when she looked at him with a raised eyebrow he rushed to explain, "It's the only place other than the study I can ensure our privacy and even in the study my dad might walk in".

After looking a bit uncertain she finally nodded and he led her up the stairs to the master bedroom.

He'd had this room spelled when he first moved in, so it had a barrier against the Byakugan (not that he didn't trust his clanspeople, but a leader could never be too careful).

Hinata looked around his room in surprise, this was enormous! Upon entering they arrived at a small sitting area opening up to a private garden. It was beautiful.

"Wow," she said reverently, and observed Neji as he went to sit over at the low table. He gestured for her to follow him.

He looked tired, she noted all of a sudden. When he first came down stairs he had barely finished dressing, and his hair had still been mussed up but she hadn't noticed the slight line between his eyebrow indicating he had been frowning a lot. In addition, his face looked a bit pale as if he was worn out.

"Have you not been sleeping well?" she asked in concern as she sat down adjacent to him at the square table.

"Uh…" he trailed off with a dry laugh, "yeah it's a bit of that, and a lot of stuff has just been happening internally with the clan that needs immediate attention, so it's been busy and stressful" he said lightly.

She nodded thoughtfully.

"Anyway Hinata, please tell me, what did you want to talk about?".

"Uh…" she started off feeling nervous, "as I told you before, I do love you. And that hasn't changed over the years. I may have been in denial for a bit, but it's become abundantly clear to me that I do love you… but..." she sighed, "I don't know if I can be a clan leader's wife anymore. I was independent in Kumo and I loved it, I had a job, a purpose and things there were more progressive. I know you are a wonderful leader who is going to do amazing things for our clan. But I don't know if I can settle for just being a clan leader's wife for the rest of my life. I mean I do want children and to take care of them, but I don't want them growing up watching only their father accomplish amazing things while their mother takes a back seat".

After she finished, Neji smiled at her and reached out to take both her hands into his.

"Hinata… I had thought about that quite a bit actually. After spending time with you in Kumo I knew that you couldn't just come back here and operate as per status quo. You are an incredibly smart and talented woman and I don't want you to have to sacrifice your work in order to marry me. I want us to have discussions about what a joint leadership structure could look like or what your role within this clan or village could be depending on what you want to do. We might have to fight tradition, patriarchy and... archaic beliefs but I think we can do it. And whether you are my wife or a member of my clan, I will support you however I can to achieve your dreams".

She had been effectively driven speechless.

She couldn't help as tears gathered in her eyes again and she looked down at her lap with a shaky breath amazed that he had already thought all this through. She had been worried for months about having this talk with him and he already had anticipated her worries and wanted to build a solution together. That was incredible. Tears were running down her cheeks and she sniffled wishing she had tissues close by.

Neji handed her a handkerchief and she looked up at him gratefully. He smiled at her simply and squeezed her left hand in reassurance.

She was still in a state of shock so Neji continued, "I think there are quite a few things for the clan that I would like to be more progressive about over the years."

She nodded at him in agreement while wiping her face, overcome with emotion.

"Hinata I'm sorry but I have a meeting in half an hour, and I need to finish getting ready. But please think about what I said and we can chat more later tonight over dinner if you are free?".

Again she nodded at him and shakily got up. Neji followed her close by and gave her a light hug at the doorway watching her exit his room.

"Eat some breakfast please before you go, or Hela is going to be upset" he called out after her and she threw him a quick smile over her shoulder.

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Hinata drank some tea and had a few bites of rice and miso soup, thanking Neji's housekeeper before she left.

It was past 7 AM when she got home and her father and Hanabi were waiting eagerly having already heard that she was on the compound from the guards.

Hanabi jumped as she saw her and ran to give Hinata the biggest hug.

"Oh my god, when did you grow taller than me?" Hinata asked, leaning back to get a better look at her sister.

Her father gave her a more sedate hug but she could tell he was glad to have her home too by the sparkle in his eyes. After the greetings, Hanabi and her father looked on at her speculatively, because she had taken over an hour to reach their house after getting to the compound.

Her family of course had put on a breakfast spread for her, so she sat down to eat with them.

"So….." Hanabi started.

"What?" she asked, pretending ignorance.

"What is going on with you and Neji-sama, I thought you left to get away from him?" Hanabi said archly.

Her father was also giving her a bit more serious look now.

She sighed and started serving herself breakfast, while telling her family everything that had happened since she saw Neji last September in that grocery store in Raike (a highly PG rated version of course).

When they finished, her father looked pleased at how things were progressing between her and Neji, while Hanabi gave her an odd look that she couldn't read. But the conversation from there got directed towards what Hinata's transit to here was like and how the hospital in Raike was doing, so she didn't get to ask Hanabi what her look meant.

The rest of the day passed by quickly, after breakfast Hinata went to the Hokage tower to give the new Hokage, whom she hadn't had a chance to congratulate yet, a detailed report on her mission.

Afterwards she dropped by to see Kiba and Shino, but unfortunately they were away on a mission. Disappointed but expecting to see them fairly soon, Hinata dropped by the hospital instead to see Sakura and Ino. That had been a really happy and boisterous reunion.

Tsunade-sama had also been at the hospital and gave her a huge hug congratulating her on the Raike project.

"Hinata, I heard nothing but the best throughout your project. Really good job, you did phenomenal" the older woman told her.

Hinata blushed. Being complimented by Tsunade was a huge deal to her.

"You know that there is always a position open at the hospital for you. After you get settled in come see me, and we can chat more if you'd like".

She was blown away and promised to think about things and get back to Tsunade soon.

Later in the afternoon, after feeling refreshed from a light nap Hinata was putting away her clothes and trying to decide what to wear later on for dinner.

Hanabi came to the doorway and exclaimed loudly at all of her new clothes. "Wow, onee-chan can I borrow these?" the younger girl asked in awe.

"Of course" she said, giving Hanabi a fond glance. She had really missed her sister and couldn't believe how much she had grown.

"I still can't believe you are taller than me" she said while hanging up a few more of her dresses.

Hanabi walked in with a small smile and looked contemplative. Hinata knew the look. Of course as Hanabi's older sister and de facto mom, she had learned to read her sister a long time ago. So she put aside the clothes she was holding and went to sit next to her on the mattress.

"What is it?" she probled gently.

"Umm.. I was wondering if you had decided whether you are going to marry Neji-sama or not?" her sister asked.

"Oh" she said, surprised.

"Why Hana, did you have something you needed to tell me?" and her sister nodded looking a lot more timid than she had ever seen her.

"Umm… I didn't write to you because it all happened so quickly. But my engagement with the heir of the Hitzuen clan is over".

"What?!" she said alarmed.

"No.. no" Hanabi rushed to assure her, "It's a good thing".

Then her sister went to tell her the nightmare that had been her life for the last year when she had been forced to get closer to the heir of that clan. She told her the incidents that had happened and how Hanabi had gotten more and more scared of the man towards the end.

Hinata's stomach was lined with rock by the time she finished.

"It...It was actually Neji-sama that helped me end the engagement." Hanabi said hiccuping, because she had been crying for the last bit quite heavily. Hinata had her arms wrapped around her sister and they were still sitting on the bed.

"I went to talk to him back in… February I think" Hanabit continued, "and he was so understanding. He didn't ask me any questions or make me feel bad about wanting to end the engagement and he took care of the whole ordeal with the Hitzuen clan. It took a month or so to wrap up… and I don't know how he did it. But… I'm finally free" her sister said with a smile, "and I know it is unfair of me to ask you this, but If my opinion counts for anything, please give Neji-sama another chance. I think he is a really good person." Hanabi sniffed.

Hinata was speechless. Neji hadn't mentioned this when she had seen him earlier. He hadn't even alluded to it. She continued to hug her sister and rock her, feeling horrendous that she hadn't been here herself to help Hanabi through this.

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Later that night she was still trying to figure out what to wear for the dinner. Finally since Neji would be dressed in a Yukata she also opted for a less formal silk Kimono. It was a color that was a cross between teal and robin's egg blue and the Kimono had a stunning design of large soft pink and white peony flowers on it.

She wore her hair in curls as it had been this morning and arranged it simply into a low bun with wisps of curls framing her face. And then she did her makeup softly, focusing more on achieving radiant skin with a touch of mascara to make her eyes pop, and finished the look with a soft neutral lipstick.

When she arrived at the main compound she found that Neji had arranged for them to have an outdoor dinner in the living room area that opened out to the courtyard. A small table with cushions had been added to the room, and a romantic dinner was set up on the table. There were sparkling string lights hung around the room artfully, complemented by an assortment of candles and lanterns, adding to the warm romantic glow.

Neji stood up as she walked in and she noticed that he was wearing a dark black Yukata. He had his hair hanging loose today, as clan leaders were prone to doing.

"Wow" she breathed in softly, taking him in as well as the atmosphere.

He came forward to give her a soft hug and moved to part away but she tightened her arms around him.

"Neji…" she said with her face resting on his heart, "I heard what you did for Hanabi".

She felt his back stiffen at her words.

"Oh" he said simply.

"Thank you" she looked up at him gratefully and felt the love that had been in her heart expand and grow even more than she thought was possible.

"Of course Hinata, you don't need to thank me. Actually… I would have rather you not know about it" he said simply. "I didn't want your decision to be swayed by that".

"It wasn't" she said looking at him with a glowing face, "My decision was made when we talked earlier today. Ask me again" she said.

"What?" he asked, confused.

"You know" she looked meaningfully at him. "Ask me again".

"Oh" he moved back from her nervously. After looking at her for a few seconds he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. When she looked confused, he explained.

"I don't know if you remember, but I told you I got you a birthday gift for your 18th birthday". She nodded along with him, remembering that day in her office back in Raike.

"It was actually this," he held out the box.

She felt her heartbeat increase with anticipation as he got down on one knee in front of her.

"Hinata… will you make me the happiest man in the world and be my wife?" he asked simply, smiling up at her while opening the box.

Between taking in his words as well as his face and looking at the ring in the box she was overwhelmed with joy and gratitude.

Sitting in the middle of the box lovingly cradled in the velvet was a dainty wedding band, it was a thin silver ring that had small marquee diamonds arranged along the band to look like a small wreath of leaves.

It wasn't a showy or flashy ring, but it was the most perfect ring she had ever seen.

When she didn't reply he swallowed nervously and said, "we can get a different ring if you don't like this one".

"No" she said loudly and he looked up at her confused. "I mean the ring is perfect and yes, yes I will marry you" she said rushing forward to kiss him as he got up off his knee gratefully.

"Thank god" he whispered, as he slipped the ring onto her finger and kissed her deeply among the twinkling lights vowing to never let her go.

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The end & epilogue to follow :)

Authors note: I wanted to thank everyone who read the story, reviewed, followed, favourited etc. along the way but I didn't want to keep repeating myself. So let me now offer a heartfelt and HUGE thanks to all of you :D. I appreciate your time and feedback! Can't believe this is fully published now! I will move this story to complete status once the epilogue is published but thank you for coming along this journey with me.