Thank you all lovely people for taking the time to read this story!
Thank you, nazarin ramzan, for your comment, it brightened my day!
I am grateful knowing that somebody is interested in my work and I sincerely hope that you will enjoy this chapter!
Clarification:
"sample text" (Dialogue)
"sample text" (Thoughts)
"Hello, Tomato-chan, Glaring-san, and... Little girl who has Glaring-san's stare and Tomato-chan's hair..." Sai said, attempting one of his smiles.
"S-Sai-kun... We need to ask you something."
And so, they briefly described him the situation.
"I see... So nobody must know that you two had sex when you were around 11. Got it!" Sai agreed.
"NO! IT'S NOT ABOUT THAT!" Neji yelled while Hinata was turning red, owning up to the nickname that the clueless shinobi had given her, and beginning to feel very dizzy.
They had to take all day to explain in detail what was going on and, when he finally understood, he swore he would protect the girl. After all, that's what a bond is, isn't it?
"Ok, the first part of the mission was a success", Neji sighed, while Sai was closing the door behind them. "Hinata-sama?"
Hinata was looking back at the door and Neji knew that she wanted to activate her Byakuugan just to check in on Kimiko.
"Hinata-sama, she will be fine", he whispered, placing a hand on her shoulder, startling her.
"N-Neji nii-san?"
"A-And… A-About that… I-I mean… "Damn it, Hyuuga, concentrate! You're stuttering worse than a 5-year-old Hinata! You're stoic! You're a rock!" – the image of Rock Lee popped into his head and a cold shiver ran down his spine, imagining the hug and all his broken bones when "and if, Hyuuga, and IF" he would announce the situation to his teammate.
"Nii-san? W-Were you about to ask me something?"
"What? Oh! Yes", the thought of him needing a trip to the hospital for at least one cast and a few stiches, courtesy of his over-excited teammate, was quickly wiped out when he saw her questioning gaze, "yes. Well, given that… You know… Given that we will have", he made a vague gesture towards Sai's door.
"A child?"
"Yes. This. "THIS? You're calling the child you'll have with the woman of your dreams a this! I swear, Hyuuga, you're getting stupider by the minute!" I mean yes… Kimiko. Well… Since, you know… I was wondering if you could just simply call me… Neji?"
"Oh… I-I thought that… Well… I thought that in order to maintain appearances, for the time being… I-I mean, if you want me to…" Hinata finished meekly, barely whispering the last sentence, clutching her hand on her chest, as if to stop the heart that was beating so fast it was beginning to resemble a hummingbird.
"Of course, you idiot! Of course, you imbecile, you muttonhead, you dumbbell, you dunce! Of course you have to maintain appearances. What were you thinking? Were you really thinking that she could just drop that loathsome honorific? Were you thinking that nobody would notice? No! Don't even try answering that. You WEREN'T THINKING, you cretin! Not with your upper head at least…"
"I mean, I mean… I mean when it's just… The two of us?" He quickly added, wishing he hadn't finish his last sentence in a question, but a statement.
"Great job, Hyuuga! Way to save face! Maybe there's something in that otherwise empty head of yours after all!"
He wished he could stop that annoying inner voice from interfering, so he shut his eyes and began breathing deeply, trying to shut it up.
"I'm in my happy place… I'm in my happy place…"
"…good."
"Hinata-sama, I am sorry, I got a bit carried away… You were saying?"
"A-Ano… I-I was just saying that, if that is what wish for, I will do it. A-And… If you could… Y-You calling me just Hinata would also be good… When it's just… T-The two of us, I mean…"
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand… SCORE! The Hyuuga genius is back on track!"
"Hinata-sama, that is… Different. You're still in a superior position and…"
"B-But… Neji…"
"No, no, no, you buffoon! She just said that you can call her Hinata, you dumb cluck! Why in the world would you go on and on about positions? The only position you should be interested in is you on top of her! Or her on top of you! Or you behind her and her on all fours! Or…"
"SILENCE!" Neji exclaimed, startling his cousin while making her stutter worse than ever.
"I-I-I-I'm s-s-sorry, N-Neji-nii-san, I-I mean Neji… I-I-I didn't m-m-mean to…"
"No, no… It wasn't you… I thought I heard… I thought I heard… Something in the distance."
"You like it or not, Hyuuga, I'm here to stay! I'm that little voice some people would call a conscience, but it so happens that I am not necessarily interested in your feelings. However, since I'm stuck here, I intend on having as much fun as possible. By the way… Something in the distance… Smooth as a rock, loser!"
"C-Could it be an enemy? Should we activate our Byakuugan?"
"No, I… I must be hearing things. I believe it is due to the fact that I am tired and… And I believe you are too, seeing how this day went. Should we head back home?"
Hinata nodded and gave another glance at the door.
"She will be fine", Neji smiled, guessing her thoughts.
They walked in silence towards the Hyuuga compound, trying their best to act as inconspicuously as possible. When they finally reached the gate, Hinata smiled.
"G-good night, Neji" she gave a quick glance around "Nii-san".
"Good night, Hinata-sama!" Neji replied; he didn't need to look to know that there was someone watching them.
"You know, you really should not be spying on people. It is rude and unnecessary…" Neji let out a sigh when he knew Hinata was far enough she couldn't hear him.
"Bull! So? Were you two on a date? You have been gone all day… Did you tell her?" a pair of identical eyes was observing him intently.
"Hanabi-sama, I really do not know what you are talking about…"
"Oh, for crying out loud", the young Hyuuga exclaimed, pointing a finger at him, it is so obvious! "Neji and Hinata, sittin' in a tree…"
"Hanabi-sama…"
"K.I.S.S.I.N.G."
"Stop it!"
"First comes love…"
"I am warning you…"
"Then comes marriage…"
"Enough!"
"Then comes Neji with a baby carriage!"
"That's it! Byakuugan!"
"Catch me if you can, baka!" the giggling figure was already jumping from roof to roof, sticking her tongue out at her cousin. "You should really tell her, though, maybe you'll be surprised…" she added, while quickly disappearing into the darkness.
"Maybe you'll be surprised…" her words were repeating in his head like a broken record.
"Damn it, Hyuuga, control yourself! As close as the two sisters are, it is highly unlikely that Hinata-sama would confess a non-existent feeling to Hanabi-sama…" the voice of reason inside his head was covered by the other voice "What do you know, idiot? You're an hermit, you have no idea how women work, what they talk about… Go back to your meditation and let me handle this!"
Feeling his head about to burst from the inner fight, Neji resolved to try to sleep, ignoring the uneasy feeling and the signals that his voice of reason was desperately trying to convey, while being obliterated by the other voice…
Back at Sai's house, a staring match was being held. The two hadn't moved for three hours, each of them determined to be the one who would break the other's resolution. At least that was Kimiko's reasoning. Sai, on the other hand, was just curious.
"You're a weird girl." Sai broke the silence.
"A-HA! You won, Hyuuga! You broke the ANBU! Good girl!"
"You're a weird guy." Kimiko replied, trying hard not to look too pleased with herself.
"Now that is rude." Sai attempted a smile.
"No, it's not. THIS is rude." Kimiko said, sticking her tongue out.
"Sticking… Out… Tongue… Means… Rudeness…" Sai calmly wrote in his notebook.
"Oh, Kami-sama… Good thing that I know how you will turn out in the future... But… That is for me to know and for you to find out!"
"Oh?" Sai smiled, but didn't ask any further questions.
Kimiko was fuming.
"Are you not at all interested in who your wife will be? How your child will look like? I can tell you…"
"If you want to, you can go ahead."
"I don't want to!"
"Ok then."
"Are you not curious? Not at all?"
"Does it make any difference? You possess the information. If you are willing to share it or not is entirely up to you."
"You will marry… You will marry… You will marry…" Kimiko chanted, hoping that she would see just a sparkle of curiosity in Sai's eyes, but he was as impassive as always.
"Great, Hyuuga! Now YOU're curious of his reaction!"
"You will marry Ino and you will have a baby boy named Inojin!"
"Ino?"
"Ino Yamanaka!"
"Who is Ino Yamanaka?"
"ARRRRRGH! I CANNOT! I JUST CANNOT!"
"You cannot what?" Sai seemed genuinely surprised at the small figure's outburst.
"I'm going to sleep. Where's the bedroom?"
"We cannot sleep in the same bed, you take the couch."
"Nu-uh!" Kimiko thought for a second. "A true friend would not force another friend who is visiting him sleep on the couch. A true friend would invite his visitor to take the bed and he would sleep on the couch."
"Interesting… Let me write that down. Friend… Takes… Bed… In… Case… Of… Visit… Ok. The bedroom is over there."
"Baka…" Kimiko thought, five minutes later, while arranging the pillows. She made herself comfortable, pulling the blanket up to her eyebrows.
"Was it better not to tell daddy the truth? Did he figure out that some things are missing, that some things are not clear enough and that some things are just… Uncharacteristic of him? But how can I tell him? How can I possibly tell him about the plot? How can I tell him that he was not the one who invented the Time Jutsu? How can I tell him that... How can I tell him that mommy was already pregnant the night the fire started?"
With these thoughts running through her head, Kimiko never had time to realize that she was falling asleep.