Chapter Fifteen: The Domain of the Hyuga

The Hyuga Compound was massive.

It was even larger than the Uchiha Compound that now lay empty. Though Sasuke said, Hyuga Clan had more than three times as many members when they were built. The walls were white and made from chakra enhanced materials. As Ino knocked, Naruto could not help but feel self-conscious wearing orange.

It didn't seem the kind of place you would have a sleepover.

Then again, Naruto wouldn't know.

The door opened, and they were lucky enough to get Hinata on the other side. As she stared at them, she put her two fingers together and looked away. "Oh, Ino, Naruto, Sasuke, you're back from your mission..."

"Sure are," said Naruto. "We stopped a gang of bandits and totally got to burn down a warehouse full of drugs. So what have you been up to?"

"Well, Kurenai-sensei has been mostly making us do D ranks," said Hinata, cringing a little. "Just recently, we help track down some thieves who had been robbing local villages."

"Oh, nice," said Naruto. "Bet the people you helped are grateful."

"Um, so uh, what can I do for you?" asked Hinata.

"Well," said Ino. "We were wondering if we could talk with your Dad."

Hinata stared and opened her mouth, then closed it. "You want to talk with Lord Hiashi? I mean, Father.

"Um, are you sure?"

"Yeah, we'd like to look at the Hyuga records," said Ino. "Kind of some homework."

Hinata nodded. "Well, um, follow me then. Just uh, Naruto?"

"Yeah, what is it, Hinata?" asked Naruto.

"Don't um... don't raise your voice or be casual," said Hinata.

"Oh right um, sure," said Naruto, wondering why she was so afraid. This was her house, wasn't it?

"And don't mention anything about Neji or the Branch Clan," said Hinata. "Lord Hiashi is um... well, it's a sensitive subject."

"Um, okay..." said Naruto, wondering what was going on.

"And whatever you do, don't act friendly with him," said Hinata. "Or smile or show any emotions." Finally, she sighed. "Actually, Naruto, it's probably better if you don't talk at all when we're with Hiashi."

"Why?" asked Naruto.

"He's uh... very conservative," said Hinata. "He doesn't like children speaking out without reason."

Hinata led them through the wood-paneled halls. As they walked, Naruto thought about how nice this place was. He also noticed several candlesticks made of silver. It didn't look like anything he'd seen in other houses. They had strange designs of huge winged lizards and guys in armor fighting them. But it wasn't samurai armor at all.

"What are those?" asked Naruto.

"Oh, those are a western design," said Hinata. "Father got a gift from the Lord Temujin. That was one of them."

Moving beyond, she came to a door and knocked. Beyond the door, Naruto saw the silhouette of a man.

"Yes, what is it?" asked a voice.

Hinata slid the door apart, and Naruto saw a stern-faced man. He was painting with a brush upon a canvas and wore a white kimono.

"Forgive me, Father, but... Team 7 desires an audience with you," said Hinata.

"What is their business?" asked Hiashi.

"They wish to look at some of our records," said Hinata.

"One may enter," said Hiashi. "The others will remain."

"Yes, of course," said Hinata, before shutting the door. She was breathing hard.

"You go, Ino," said Sasuke.

"Um, are you sure you don't want to-" began Ino.

"This was your idea," said Sasuke.

"Fine," said Ino, before slipping through.

The door shut, and there was an awkward silence. Hinata was looking down, while Sasuke had his arms crossed. Naruto shifted.

"Well, um, do you want to go watch the other members of the Main Clan training?" asked Hinata, suddenly.

"Fine," said Sasuke.

So Hinata led them away, while Naruto stayed silent like he'd been told. They passed several servants, and all of them had weird tattoos on their foreheads. When Hinata spoke to them, they answered shortly. But all of them had the same blank eyes, which meant they must have been Hyuga.

"So um," Naruto paused. "Hinata, do the Hyuga transfer Byakugans into their servants or something?"

Hinata looked at him. "Um, well, not really. You see, the servants are actually members of the Branch Clan. Hyuga, who aren't part of the Main Family. See, there were several different clans of Byakugan users before the Land of Fire existed. But the Hyuga succeeded in uniting all of them.

"So, um, well, Father always said they were born to protect and serve the Main Clan."

"So is Neji part of the Main Family?" asked Naruto. Then again, Neji had always worn his headband over his forehead.

"No," said Hinata. "He um... he's my cousin. But, well, he refused to join the conventional Hyuga forces. Instead, he joined the Leaf Ninja." Then she halted as she slid open the door. "Hang on, we can't go out there."

"Why not?" asked Sasuke.

Naruto peered over Hinata's shoulder. He saw Neji sitting on the steps overlooking a courtyard. As he sat, he was scratching on a scroll with a pen. At the same time, he was watching a group of Hyuga train. They were doing movements he'd never seen in basic training, and none of them had the tattoos.

"Neji is out there," said Hinata, shutting the door. "He's hated me for years and never forgiven me for what happened to his Father."

"Neji hates you?" asked Naruto. Why would anybody hate Hinata? "But he was a really good member of our team when we were out in the Land of Rice Paddies."

"Well, yes, he's always professional, but... he scares me," said Hinata. "The way he looks at me, it's like he's analyzing my soul."

"What is he doing out here, anyway?" asked Sasuke. "If he hates the Main Family so much, why sit watching them."

"Oh, he's always there," said Hinata. "Neji is always watching the Main Clan train. He, um, he's always hated us, you see. But he constantly watches them practice their movements. This, even though no one will ever teach him the higher forms.

"He-"

The door opened, and Neji was on the other side, face expressionless. "Hinata, you aware that I can see in all directions at once and through walls, do you not?"

"Um... yes. I'm sorry Neji, I didn't mean to disturb you," said Hinata, backing away.

"What you meant to do is irrelevant," said Neji.

"Hang on, Neji, what's the big deal here? Hinata didn't mean any harm," said Naruto. "She was only showing us around."

"What is Team 7 doing here, Naruto?" asked Neji flatly.

"We're looking for information on, um, Sakura's parents," said Naruto. Then he realized he probably shouldn't have said that.

"Sakura Haruno? You mentioned her once or twice," mused Neji. "The vapid pink-haired girl who physically abused you?" That was right, Naruto had mentioned Sakura a couple of times during the journey. But he hadn't gone into detail or anything, just made a few offhand comments.

"Well, um..." Naruto blinked. "That's a little harsh, don't you think?"

"Surely, you would have met her parents at some point?" asked Neji.

"Well yeah, that's just it," said Naruto. "We haven't met them. And, um, Ino visited her and couldn't find any pictures or anything.

"And it... well..."

"There was a genjutsu on her house warding off interest," said Sasuke flatly.

Neji nodded. "You suspect a conspiracy then?"

"Um, well, not really, but we're sort of investigating for fun," said Naruto.

"You should suspect a conspiracy," said Neji. "The presence of a genjutsu. That, combined and the nonexistence of two figures who should be there, is suspicious. You are right to investigate as much."

"Really?" asked Naruto. "You think something is going on?" Was Sakura in danger?

"There is always something going on," said Neji. "No one is who they appear to be on the surface. Only by rational analysis can a person's true nature be known.

"The only question is if you should try to learn about it."

"Why wouldn't we want to learn about it?" asked Sasuke.

"Knowledge is power," said Neji. "Knowing an inconvenient truth may make one a threat to powerful people. Depending on what you are trying to discover, things could get very dangerous. The person behind the apparent conspiracy may have you, or Sakura Haruno, killed.

"Certainly, the Hokage already knows of it."

"What makes you say that?" asked Naruto.

"You are genin," said Neji. "If you were able to discover what was happening, Orochimaru would certainly do so. He has agents everywhere. In fact, he probably already knows you are investigating this.

"Then again, it is possible that he does not have a part in it. Perhaps politics require that he tolerate it."

"You seem to have thought all this through," said Hinata. "Have um... you been investigating this, Neji?"

"Don't be absurd," said Neji. "I simply made several theorized based on the evidence available. Any of you could do this if you put in the effort.

"Thinking things through is my job on Team Guy."

At that moment, Ino ran up to them. "Hey guys, I'm back."

Naruto glanced up, glad at the distraction. "Oh, Ino. Any luck?"

"Nothing," said Ino.

"Nothing?" asked Sasuke. "What do you mean nothing?"

"There is no Haruno family on the records of the Hyuga," said Ino. "Sakura is there; apparently, the fact that she was my friend got her in the book. But Hiashi and I couldn't find anything."

"What?" said Hinata. "But we keep records on everyone. Especially merchants, they're a possible source of espionage."

"I do agree that the absence is uncharacteristic," said Neji.

"What?" said Naruto. "But how can Sakura's parents just not exist?"

"They have to exist," said Ino. "Who's been paying her bills? Who taught her to dress and got her enrolled in the academy. She'd have to have someone doing it for her, and she wasn't listed as an orphan."

"She's been your friend for years, and you don't know any of that?" asked Neji with a raised eyebrow.

Ino flinched at the statement. "Well, um... she never brought it up, and there was that genjutsu. I mean, Sakura was never really one to talk about herself and-"

"Irrelevant," said Neji. "If you'd tried to learn more about her, this conspiracy would have fallen through years ago. You are a self-absorbed person, aren't you?"

"Neji, why are you being such a jerk?" asked Naruto.

"Is anything I said incorrect?" asked Neji before looking to Ino. "Why is Sakura Haruno your best friend anyway? Do you enjoy her company? Or is it merely that you regard her as an extension of yourself?"

Silence.

"...Can we change the subject here, please?" asked Ino, looking shaken.

"Yes, I think um, that would be wise, Neji," said Hinata.

"As you wish," said Neji.

And then he just kind of dropped it. Naruto looked to Hinata and then Neji and then realized that what Hinata had said was a command. Neji, her cousin, was also her subordinate. He wasn't allowed to keep snarking at Ino if Hinata didn't want him to. It was like... a law. But Hinata would never hurt anyone just for being a bit unpleasant.

Hiashi.

Hinata was terrified of Hiashi. Why would she be afraid of her own Father? There was something really wrong with this family. But the tense silence that had followed now was too strong.

"So um, why don't we go talk to Iruka-sensei about all this?" asked Naruto after a moment. "I mean, he's got to know."

"Naruto makes a good point," said Sasuke.

"I do?" asked Naruto, blinking.

"Iruka-sensei interacts with our parents regularly," said Sasuke. "He probably knows who is taking care of Sakura. Or at least knows who isn't."

"You are too trusting," said Neji.

"What do you mean, Neji?" asked Ino.

"You are following this line of inquiry as a game," said Neji. "But you are not preparing for the possibility of a real conspiracy.

"If there is such a conspiracy, then Iruka-sensei is almost certainly at least aware of it. Which, by necessity, means the Leaf is so aware. Talking to him directly may lead to an immediate changing of plans."

"Like what?" asked Sasuke.

"Such as having Sakura Haruno move to another house, or having her disappear," said Neji.

"The Leaf wouldn't do something like that!" asked Naruto.

"It may not be the Leaf," said Neji. "The academy was infiltrated by Mizuki, was it not? There could be another agent. Or Iruka-sensei may be under a genjutsu that is controlling his actions. Such things are possible, even without a Sharingan. Though they are difficult to achieve.

"We must take precautions here."

"So what do you want to do?" asked Naruto.

"Sakura Haruno should be kept under watch at all times," said Neji.

"How?" asked Naruto. "You mean like talk to Lord Orochimaru-"

"If we are going to involve Lord Orochimaru in this, then we might as well tell him everything," said Neji.

"Good point," said Ino.

"At any rate, what you need is someone who is very good at remaining unseen," said Neji. "Someone who has a veritable history of stalking others without their notice. And also with taking notes on them. Someone for him, this behavior would be considered natural by anyone who saw her at a glance.

"Wouldn't you agree, Hinata?" And he stared at her with an accusing glance. What was he talking about?

"I um... well you see..." said Hinata, blushing scarlet.

Naruto got it. "Oh, so Hinata has been practicing her ninja skills?"

"Y-yes! That's definitely it!" said Hinata.

"What if they just kill Sakura," said Sasuke flatly.

"You don't really think they'd do that, do you?" asked Ino.

"We do not know who we are dealing with, Ino," said Neji. "It might be an organization willing to tie up loose ends without regard to human decency.

"Sasuke, you'll be of use here."

"What do you mean?" asked Sasuke.

"You're going to spend an entire day with Sakura Haruno while we meet with Iruka-sensei," said Neji. "You'll then sleepover."

"You can't make that kind of decision for me," snapped Sakura.

"Are you, or are you not, a member of this organization?" asked Neji.

"Since when are we an organization?" asked Naruto.

"Shush," said Ino.

Sasuke paused. "I am.

"Why not make Naruto do it? He's got a crush on her for years."

"First, Naruto would be rebuffed instantly," said Neji. "Second, you are irreplaceable. If you were to be murdered or kidnapped, the entire Leaf would be mobilized. It would instantly escalate events, and since they are interested in subterfuge..."

"They can't kill Sakura as long as she's in the same room with Sasuke," realized Ino. "And with Hinata as a witness... if they were kidnapped, Lord Orochimaru would send an army after whoever did it."

"How am I supposed to justify spending the night with her?" asked Sasuke.

"Just say that Ino was afraid someone might come after you and asked you to stay with her," said Neji. "She'll believe whatever she wants to believe about that.

"Now, we'd best get to work."

Silence followed.

"Well?" asked Neji.

"Um, Neji, why are you in charge..." began Ino.

Neji looked at her hard.

"Right, getting to work right away!" said Ino. "Glad to have you onboard!"

This had gotten weird.