Eyes closed in focus, Hinata reached deep within and let Hamura's chakra rise up and mix with hers before performing the necessary hand seals to create shadow clones. With her Ootsutsuki ancestor's more potent chakra added, her clones were bound to be stronger, more durable.
After providing the two instructions, they began a taijutsu spar of two versus one.
Though his words were blunt and hard to swallow, Senju Tobirama was right. With the changes made in this period like her saving Uchiha Izuna from certain death and the peace between the Uchiha and Senju now happening years earlier, the future she came from must be unrecognizable by now. Better or worse, she couldn't tell and was even afraid to know.
It still hurt very much—the knowledge that she might never return to her rightful place in time. That she'll never again see all the people precious to her. It all still made her heart ache.
But, if they're all still alive in that timeline she'd been taken away from, they'd all move on, won't they? They'd all eventually move on, just as they had moved on from the losses they experienced during the war.
Hanabi, she's sure, would mourn. But with her gone, her younger sister's now the undisputed heiress to the Hyuuga. She'll become Clan Head one day and she'd eventually have many duties to perform and problems to worry over rather than waste time grieving for a missing sister.
As for her teammates…Kurenai-sensei would no doubt grieve for a while but she has Mirai-chan who'll brighten her days and fill them with new, happier memories. Kiba and Shino, her best friends, would feel sad too. But in the next few years, they'd both marry and go on to have children. They'd have their own families and shinobi and clan duties to occupy their time and attention.
And Naruto…That genjutsu-induced romance was done and over with. And with it, the hopes and dreams for the future that she uselessly held on to for many years.
As for her...
She can no longer afford to keep looking back and continue wishing for things that are beyond her control. Not now when she has many problems ahead of her.
Without any time travel jutsu, (as confirmed by the genius future Nidaime himself), every day that passed, it's becoming more and more apparent that she'll be spending the rest of her days in the early years of the Hidden Leaf Village along with its founding fathers.
That means heightened danger with so many perilous situations to navigate and so many potential enemies to fight.
First, with the end of hostilities between the Senju and the Uchiha so recent and the deaths of their family and friends still so fresh in everyone's minds, anyone could attack and kill anyone in the name of vengeance for their fallen.
In addition, all the other clans that would soon join Konoha would, without a doubt, be suspicious of each other. With former enemies living in such close proximity, there's a huge possibility of fights breaking out in the future among those still holding on to hatred and grudges.
Finally, there's the looming problem that is the Hyuuga Clan. Sooner or later, her ancestors would be joining the fold and when they found out about her, that she has the byakugan, they would no doubt immediately view her as a threat.
With her an unknown entity to them, they'll either think her a bloodline thief to be eliminated or, if they're somehow convinced of her being a Hyuuga, they'll have her sealed and/or married off so she'd be under the council's control.
All three were equally dreadful fates and she'd like to avoid all of them as much as possible. She had already lost her family, her friends, her home—almost everything that mattered. She'll not have someone take away her freedom too, especially not the Hyuuga clan where the Branch members were treated no better than slaves.
Ironic as it was, the only people who could help were the Uchiha and Senju brother pairs who were practically strangers to her. But even they she couldn't afford to rely on.
Madara and Izuna have their own clan and many more worries to mind now that peace talks were in motion.
The Senjus brothers were the same. Hashirama seemed friendly and sympathetic enough and expressed willingness to help in whatever way he could but he's also bogged down by duties to his clan and all the changes that are happening. Soon, with his mokuton, his work would increase even more once the village starts to rise up. All that wood release would certainly be necessary in constructing buildings and many more village structures.
And Tobirama, though intrigued to figure out the puzzle that is her situation, was not only in the same boat as his older brother. He was also wary of her connection with Madara and Izuna. A reasonable reaction, considering what she knew of the man and his fraught relationship with the Uchiha.
So she's alone, here, in this timeline, without anyone to really fully trust or turn to during her time of need. No Hanabi to brighten her days or share her troubles with. No Kiba and Shino to boost her confidence or help her get out of any danger or difficult situations. No Kurenai-sensei to give her words of advice when she's in doubt.
No more hesitation. No more holding back. She'll have to become stronger than ever before. She needed to train and be prepared to face whatever challenges were thrown her way. Be it the Hyuuga Clan or otherwise.
…..
Yawning wide and rolling his shoulders and neck, Madara approached the courtyard which also served as the personal training ground for both he and his brother with silent steps.
It's still dark out with about two hours remaining before dawn and already, he'd been roused from his sleep when he felt the Hyuuga's strange second chakra surge before becoming steady.
Upon nearing the area, he immediately saw that she's having a taijutsu spar with two of the special clones she created during her escape attempt. Visually identical and each possessing considerable chakra, he found it impossible to distinguish which was the original and which were mere clones. They also looked durable enough to withstand light skin to skin contact and hits.
It was a surprise. He's never seen the woman do any training in the past. Only Izuna had the pleasure of engaging her in a taijutsu fight. This would be the first time he's going to witness her do so.
During her captivity, all she did was visit the gardens and read during the times spent in his presence. After she healed Izuna and her status changed from captive to guest, she spent the following days teaching and sharing her medical knowledge to the clan healers and making medicines and all kinds of ointments.
He figured the sudden change must be due to the disastrous episode the day before. When the bastard Senju Tobirama bluntly informed her that with the changes made, the future she came from would no longer be the same. Perhaps even gone.
Even without their byakugan active, all three's lavender-gray eyes looked fierce and they moved—no, they flowed like water. The footwork and the striking speed of the hands light but swift that it looked like they were in a choreographed dance.
He's aware of the Hyuuga clan's renown when it came to taijutsu. How many called their Juuken as the pinnacle of hand to hand combat due to the internal damage they inflict upon their enemies and their capacity to shut down the chakra pathway system, making them incapable of performing jutsus.
Despite the strong rivalry that existed between their clans in account of their doujutsus, he's never personally fought a Hyuuga before and he's very much curious to fight one now and see what Izuna talked about.
"Why don't you get rid of your clones and spar with me?" he challenged while taking the last remaining steps and entering the sparring ring.
…..
Hinata finally stopped sparring with her clones and, with a guarded expression, turned to the Uchiha Clan Head upon hearing his words.
A spar with Uchiha Madara? Now, wasn't that a real challenge!
But she felt torn.
On the one hand, she felt afraid she might be biting more than she could chew. She hasn't forgotten that the man was the main enemy during the Fourth Shinobi World War. He may not have the rinnegan right now but he's still the same Uchiha Madara, the only person who could rival the first Hokage. She might just get overwhelmed by his prodigious strength and skill in battle and get squashed like one of Shino's bugs.
On the other, she felt a bit excited. With the goal of getting stronger she had in mind, she knew that testing her skill against someone like him would be greatly beneficial. Yes, she could rely on her clone for spars but her progress, she's certain, would be slower than if she trained with someone stronger than her.
Taking a deep breath, she dispersed her clone and reluctantly nodded her head in acceptance of his dare, all the while mentally hoping that she'd survive and learn from the experience.
"An all-Taijutsu fight. Chakra and doujutsus permitted but no weaponry," Madara stated upon standing in front of her.
"Alright," Hinata nodded her head once more in agreement. She then activated her byakugan before sliding a foot forward to assume her preferred fighting stance.
…..
With his sharingan, Madara saw the chakra stream his opponent released after a high-speed palm thrust and moved to dodge it, only to feel his right arm ache after being grazed by what was actually a tremendous force. Mentally, he admitted that he should not have underestimated the power and the reach of her chakra attack.
Skidding to a halt, he opened and closed the hand attached to the pained arm to test its usefulness while at the same time looking at his sparring partner who was warily looking back at him from a few meters away.
"Crafty aren't you?" he asked then grinned with pleasure when he took note of her sweating and panting form. His arm may be out of commission for a while but it's very clear he's won the fight.
Izuna was right though. Hyuuga Hinata was formidable—he'd give her that. She had great skills that could defeat many an Uchiha in a close range fight.
She may not be a match for his battle instinct, speed and reaction time but her perception, chakra control, striking speed and Gentle Fist style were all solid enough that even he had to use his sharingan. The ways she manipulated her chakra for bodily defense were also some of the best he's seen so far from someone who's specialized in taijutsu.
He found out to his own peril earlier that her hands and feet weren't the only ones dangerous at close quarters, her entire body was. Not only could she expel chakra from her fingertips, she could also do it from any point of her body.
To add to that, she had great chakra reserves and could also apparently blast a stream of chakra using her palms at mid-range and do it in several quick successions too, as she had just displayed—an important fact he'll keep in mind if ever he had to fight another Hyuuga.
"I can…I can heal your arm, if you want," she offered cautiously with her breathing still a bit labored.
"Hn. Let's take a break. You look like you need one badly," he teased with a smirk. One that went wider when he saw her lips purse.
"I can still go on," she insisted with a faint but decidedly stubborn expression on her face.
Madara huffed and rolled his eyes. "It's been two hours, Princess, and it's about time for breakfast. Also, I have many duties to attend to. As you well know, this making peace business needs much effort and careful attention. If you want more, you'll have to wait until before or after dinner. Or you could ask Izuna or Hikaku."
When he saw her shoulders fall a bit, he asked, "What's with this sudden fervor for training anyway? You've been with us for weeks now but never saw the need to train before."
"Nothing," she immediately responded with an awkward shrug which easily gave away her lie, making Madara snort.
"Has anyone ever told you you're shit at lying?" he asked with an amused smile. A good fighter she maybe but what a struggle it must've been for her to be a Hyuuga and a kunoichi with her much too kind and honest personality. She's worse than Hashirama—she practically wore her heart out on her sleeves.
"Many times," she admitted with a sigh. She then pointed at his arm with a raised brow. With another huff Madara extended said arm and watched with interest as she jabbed several points on his arm before her hands glowed green with healing chakra.
"Hashirama is thinking of inviting the Hyuuga Clan to join," he told her after a while. "You know what will happen when they find out about you living amongst us, don't you?"
"Yes," she said, voice whisper soft, before her mouth pressed into a thin line.
"Why don't you want to go back to them?" he asked then demanded, "Answer me honestly, Princess. I think I deserve it. As Clan Head of the Uchiha, it'll be me who's going to have to face them and answer some annoying questions."
When she remained silent and simply continued to heal his arm, he quickly moved his working arm and with his fingers, lifted her chin up.
"If you want to remain under my protection, Princess, then you will answer my question," he stated, dark eyes looking down at her intently. "What issues do you have with the Hyuuga that you would rather seek asylum in my clan?"
She took a deep breath before speaking. "What do you know about the Hyuuga?"
Madara's eyes narrowed and his brows furrowed as he recalled everything he knew about the Hyuuga. They're a bunch of paranoid folks who were also secretive as fuck that they even came up with a seal to protect their eyes.
Curiously enough, the seal was only applied to members of their Branch House so he didn't really see the point. What if a Main House member was taken by their enemy? How then would their eyes be protected if they're not branded with the same seal? Or could the seal have another hidden purpose? There were, after all, unconfirmed rumors of the Branch House also serving the Main House.
"Does your reluctance to return to them have something to do with the Main and Branch House division? And the seal?" he asked her with piercing eyes.
"You are correct. And yes, I don't want to return to the Hyuuga for that very same reason," she admitted softly. "I know how the clan works, especially its Main House and the council of elders. They'll see my eyes and think it is property that belongs to them. They'll either move to have it destroyed or, if they're made to believe I am indeed a Hyuuga, they'll have me either sealed and/or married off."
But of course! How could he have forgotten the cursed fate that is the life of most noble women?
Madara let the hand holding her chin fall and stared at his healer with new eyes.
The Uchiha, though known for marrying within the clan to ensure their children would have more chances of manifesting the sharingan, was more lax when it came to marriages. They had no laws when it came to love and choosing life partners. The heart wants what it wants after all and only a fool would try to rein it in with stupid, rigid rules that were sure to cause complications and make their lives utterly miserable.
But that was not the case with the world outside of their territory. With most of the other clans, arranged marriages were the norm. The Hyuuga, he was certain, practiced the same.
With the Hyuuga's known almost tyrannical treatment of their women, Hinata most likely wouldn't be allowed to continue her kunoichi status. Not only that, she might even be prevented from teaching and healing others not of Hyuuga blood.
With her questionable background but considerable power and strength and skills and delicate, almost haunting beauty, they'll rein her in and make her bend to their rules and just like she said, they'll arrange for her to be married once they got their filthy hands on her
How long before she's wed to some controlling, balding geezer with rotting teeth who wouldn't hesitate to raise a hand if she stepped out of line with her future sensibilities? Or a man her age who would put her in a small box and treat her as nothing but a broodmare and a warm body to bed at night?
Thoughts of her possible futures with the Hyuuga caused his hackles to rise and his blood to boil. All scenarios were unacceptable, disgusting even, for a soul as good and kind as her.
"Very well," he said with a hardened expression on his face. "We could formally arrange it so that your clan won't be able to get their hands on you. Before they could make any claim, we could come up with a blood contract which would allow you to stay with my clan and under my protection. We can even have Hashirama sign it as a witness. I'm sure the idiot wouldn't hesitate to support your decision."
The freedom to make her own choices, a place in his clan and his protection—they're the least he could offer to repay her for teaching and helping his clan healers and saving his last remaining brother.