風
物
詩
|||Stardust & Hellfire Compendium|||
By: Chocolate Carnival
2020
Fandom: Naruto
Genre: Dark Eroticism, Canon Setting, Romance, Clan culture,
Post War, Oneshots, SasuHina Month 2021,
Pairing: 団扇 佐助||Uchiha Sasuke,日向 陽向 || Hyūga Hinata
Another update! Yay! Though, it might be a little bit longer than usual to get to the next updates.
I want to thank each and every of my reviewers for their kind words, it truly means the world to me. Truly, it has made taking on this challenge truly a joy even if my SasuHina month may end up extending into September with the way I'm still planning. :)
Unfortunately I didn't have enough time to complete all the stories I wanted in August alone as I wanted to. Life simply got in the way.
Either way, my Honeys, I do hope you enjoy the next prompt. It's one of my favourites: Genderbend AU
Day: 10
Prompt: The O-bon Festival/Genderbend Situations
Rating: T
白茶: White Tea
「8月10日」
Absentmindedly roving across a path of uneven pebbles and the banks of a babbling glen, graceful but decisive kunoichi footsteps tread a familiar path across newly restored Uchiha lands. Spread for miles in each direction from the unofficial one-house estate, the customary Konoha woodlands and ancient branches bedecked the sky in a towering verdant canopy.
The heavy afternoon shadows were already fragmenting the liminal twilight, its tendril-black caress staining the Uchiha Lady's already dark cloak a deeper black as chakra-dampened heels deliberately restrained any sound of movement her steps unintentionally made.
Sasuke had never been one to stop in a single place for too long, her restless wanderlust driven by a desperate need to repent even if she found a happy contentedness in the quiet comfort of her new home many years ago at her husband's side.
The rapidly expanding city of Konoha itself, however, was lighting up the distance beyond the trees, the last day of Obon marking itself in the swiftly oscillating swell of firelight and a lantern-lit multitude. The unique collection of multihued stalls and clear summer skies were illuminating the ever-darkening gloam from here, a delicate Okuribi path already ritually laid out for the visiting spirits' return to the underworld as the twenty-seven-year-old could only breathe a quiet sigh of relief that she partially made it on time.
The Uchiha Matriarch didn't want to glimpse her husband's quietly contained sorrow and unexpressed sadness that she missed a chance to greet her family once more, especially when he too understood the pain and desperation the holiday could bring for those mired in as much death and regret as she was. It seemed impossible to think that only ten years had passed since her greatest and most painful loss, an echo that resounded just as painfully in her soul as it did in a mirror of Hinata's.
Yet, with the former Hyūga Heir's gentle guiding presence steadfastly by her side, Sasuke knew she wouldn't allow herself to wallow in the pain as acutely as if she were to observe the holiday whilst travelling alone. She had two darling twins to brighten her day, after all. And a loving Hinata that was ever so happy to see her whenever she allowed herself to take a breath from her self-appointed mission wandering through dimensions and untravelled lands to protect her family.
In fact, Sasuke could barely contain the small smile of contentment that kissed corner of her lips, their deep carnelian shade swiftly drawing attention away from the stoic sharpness of her single, visible, onyx orb as she crossed the hidden pathway leading deeper into private Uchiha land.
Oscillating welcomingly against a flare of her familial chakra, the raven-haired Matriarch hummed a quietly contented 'hn' as she felt the encompassing blood seals on the property stretch over her skin like silk and opium. The decisive click of her heels became more pronounced the more she dropped her guard, long ebony strands curling in feral Uchiha waves down her back as an asymmetrical curtain carefully bisected her features to conceal the intimidating Rinnegan seared in her left eye.
Uchiha Sasuke didn't want to draw any more attention to herself on the road than she already did, a fact she carefully worked to conceal in the swaying ankle-length cloak meant to androgenize her vivaciously feminine curves. The bulky black fabric had been a great help in assisting her henge'd male appearance, dropping from her form like water not long after she crossed Konoha's steadily growing borders for home.
Unclipping the heavy black mass one-handedly to seal it away in a scroll clipped to the white belt settled low on her hips, Sasuke eased her battle-ready stance to something a little more proper as she took a moment to observe the delicate velvet ankle strap of her four-inch heels before decidedly moving on.
The formfitting black of her pencil skirt stopped just above her knees, the kunoichi slit drawn up the side making for easier movement as she adjusted the double-breasted wisteria waistcoat cinched evocatively around the curve of her waist. It was cut in a fashion to accentuate the spill of her generous bust and motherly hips, a gift Sakura insisted she accept many years ago when the fashion in Konoha seemed to change and the Uchiha Matriarch had been dressed in solid black for too long.
The long sleeve dove-grey shirt she wore beneath was silky and cool against her skin to combat the summer heat, an empty left sleeve speaking of her greatest regret and failure as a bare palm came to rest against the hilt of a frighteningly long chokutō nestled against the off-centre bow of wide powder-blue obi settled outside her waistcoat.
Satisfied that her appearance was less rumpled than before, Sasuke smoothed her palm over the wrinkles in her skirt and stamped the worst of the dust from her heels whilst valiantly offering an offended scowl to the darkening sky above. She was quick to change her previous path to intersect her husband's instead, absolutely refusing to allow her attention to waver from the distinct watery-wind chakra murmuring in the distance.
Uchiha Hinata's masculine Byakugan spark spread swiftly through the night, his highly trained senses probably distinctly aware of the compound seal announcing the Matriarch's long-awaited return. Sasuke could hardly conceal the small tremor in her soul at the mere thought of seeing him again, even if the rest of her expression changed little from the quietly aloof stoicism permanently carved on her brow.
It had been too long since she last saw their twin boys too, she mused. Too long since she last allowed herself a moment to return to the gentle man that so graciously gifted her a chance to bear two Uchiha sparks into the world and loved her broken and fragmented self just as she was after the Fourth Great Shinobi War.
The tremoring smile that briefly kissed the corner of her lips was just for them, for little Surendra and Samsara and Hinata as she approached the edge of the Uchiha dock where their chakra ignited the night with a flare of home and hope. The fading sunlight did little to detract from the encompassing vibrancy of their presence, the black slate of her onyx eye softening minutely as the Uchiha Matriarch self-consciously crossed her only arm beneath her breasts.
"Tadaima," She whispered softly, not at all surprised Hinata heard her approach from a great distance as the crouched father straightened with a careful hand still resting on their eldest's back. A beautiful array of square lanterns was drifting on the glossy Uchiha lake in their hundreds, ebbing and flowing with the gentle breeze as she noted the special flower garland woven around two lanterns still sitting on the dock beside their sons.
The moment her heel touched the threshold of wood however, she nearly lost her balance. Only decades of finely tuned kunoichi training straightened her back in time for two eager bodies to collide violently with her chest. The exuberant cries of 'Mama' was all it took to melt the raven-haired Matriarch's previous insecurities, a painful prick of emotion searing the back of her otherworldly dōjutsu eyes as she fell to her knees in an attempt to pull the sensation of her two heartbeats against her bosom.
The babble of their excited six-year-old chatter truly warmed her from the inside, little Surendra…their youngest…tearfully accepting the kiss she instinctively pressed to the top of his head as large, violet-white, Byakugan eyes only brightened the painfully shy smile quivering his peony lips.
Much like his father, the little boy hid his mortified expression in the side of his mother's neck not long after giving over the excited talking to his few-minute older brother smiling brightly beside him.
Samsara was definitely the more extroverted of the two, his wild Uchiha locks and stark onyx eyes bubbly and bright as he reflected a part of Sasuke herself before her life shattered around her many years ago at the death of her family. She pulled the both of them against her in much the same manner, the near identical boys swaying in her arms regardless of the elder whining softly in embarrassment as she gave him a kiss of greeting like she did his brother.
The deep indigo stratos blue of their hair was a stark reflection of their father's unique inheritance, his shinobi boots treading a near silent path toward their encompassing embrace as Sasuke lifted her gaze to follow the tall frame that came to a halt barely two feet away from them.
"I'm home," She iterated softly, voice tremoring with an emotion she always found difficult to express as she quietly forced herself to her feet and closed the distance between them. There were still two, six-year-old, limpets clinging to her waist without any sign of letting go, the Uchiha Matriarch softening her gaze at the sight of her husband's hundred-and-eighty-four-centimetre frame towering over the lot of them both lovingly and protectively regardless of her unannounced arrival.
Hinata's shoulders were slightly stooped in momentary boyish-awkwardness, an answering softness enlivening the Byakugan white of his eyes as he dipped his head to momentarily conceal the tender flush colouring his cheeks. Like the many times in the past their eyes collided, a soft pink stretched over the bridge of his nose like a sprinkle of moondust dancing on the wind.
The wind was rustling through sideswept indigo strands falling across her husband's left brow, the straight locks tucked behind a rapidly reddening ear as his forehead partially exposed the accursed Caged Bird Seal his father inscribed on his forehead when he denounced his inheritance to stand by his fiancé instead.
It was a sight that still stirred an unholy fit of rage in the pit of the Matriarch's stomach, her fingers forced to uncurl from the frustrated indentations they dug into her palm as she soothed her inherent anger by cupping a tenderly reddened cheek instead.
The indulgent hip-length cascade of his indigo locks had been bound low down his back in a mirror of his beloved cousin's style as always, its luscious thickness nearly twitching those self-same fingers with the need to burry themselves in heavenly soft strands…especially when Sasuke noticed the delicate flower stem he held in the rumpled grip he had on his dark-blue haori coat.
The arctic white peony was peeking out its soft petals in a bid to drink the last of the sun's rays, its sweet fragrance brushing tenderly against her senses as time seemed to slow to a crawl. On his back, Sasuke knew, she'd find the uchiwa fan her husband had proudly worn since their hushed wedding ceremony.
Hinata was her spouse-consort for want of a better word in political circles. Yet to herself, here, and her family; Uchiha Hinata was Sasuke's anchor amongst the only three treasures she permitted herself to have.
"O-Okaeri," Came the twenty-six-year-old's stuttered reply, a shaky hand lifting to place the peony stem behind Sasuke's ear in a tender greeting despite his usual nervousness.
He was always like this, Sasuke mused. A quiet smirk tickling the corner of red-painted lips as she captured his retreating hand before he could pull back. Fingers almost too fine to be on the hand of such an accomplished warrior twitched softly in surprise as the Matriarch and love of his life flipped his palm upward and pressed a kiss to the frantically beating pulse of his wrist. It was—.
"Thank you." Was all the kunoichi said, stepping forward to peck a flushing cheek just as two whining lumps detached themselves from her side and rushed back towards the edge of the dock where two lanterns waited. She knew exactly who those lanterns were for, Hinata only ever took the time to decorate two lanterns on the last day of Obon for their death-torn families — one for each of the boys' beloved uncles.
Saying nothing when her husband's hand curled protectively over her own, Sasuke fell in step beside him as his voice ebbed and flowed like moonlit water against her senses. Uchiha Hinata may never have the bearing of a leader or command an entire shinobi generation with his words alone, yet his voice was always serene in its tranquillity and hard-won but shaky confidence.
It had the sweetest of lilts, the Uchiha mused, whenever she cornered the former Hyūga in the bedroom or they lost themselves soul-to-soul on the many nights they spent in each other's arms.
Sasuke wouldn't have it any other way.
She loved Hinata just the way he was, as a med-nin who preferred to heal with his kekkei genkai rather than hurt and loving their children just as unconditionally as he loved her.
He was her heart, her steady moral compass when the edges of darkness threatened to overwhelm the fractured parts of her soul and helped to snuff the lure of madness that often burned a little too bright in the light of onyx-wisteria eyes. No, Uchiha Sasuke's Beloved was absolutely perfect, unbroken and shy and sweet as he was in contrast to her own more dominant and darker personality.
Briefly adjusting the beautiful peony he tucked behind her ear not too long ago, Sasuke listened intently to the gentleness of Hinata's voice as he addressed their sons' in guiding the floating lanterns onto the glossy black water and pushing them to join the other, intermittently, spitting lights.
Struggling to conceal the quiet hitch in her breath when Surendra shyly but determinedly called goodbye to his uncle 'tachi and Neji; the Last pureblood Uchiha silently added her own regrets and partings to the hundred-and-fifty-seven souls that were sure to have returned to the compound for Obon over the last two days.
They may have disapproved of her marrying Hyūga Hiashi's son and birthing twins into the Uchiha line where they were seen as a taboo, yet Sasuke would not trade her second chance at life for the world. She was grateful she could send her dead family on their way with a sense of peace reverberating in her soul and far less bitterness stinging her eyes than the year before.
The twenty-seven-year-old Matriarch was home, after all. And this time, as Samsara gripped her hand and began dragging her in the direction of the festival brightness growing in the centre of Konoha, the kunoichi willing followed. Her heels may be stained with the grime of her travels and her heart barely at peace, but the steadying palm Hinata laid on her back as they walked and the tickle of his long indigo locks as he pressed a calming kiss to the top of her head, made it worth it.
"Shall we enjoy the festivities, my love?" She asked him with a smile, glancing up just in time to see the foot of height he heralded over her shrinking slightly as a small blush stained his cheeks and his smile brightened even more. His was not quite as hopeful as their oldest with the promise of fun, yet the Uchiha Patrairch eagerly followed his youngest towards the first candy-floss stall they came across.
Sasuke kept her fare to yakitori and takoyaki, instead. A brief flicker of her Sharingan imprinting the joyful sight of her twin boys', dressed in the dark greys and blacks of traditional Uchiha yukata fare. It was not a sight she was permitted to see often, especially when she noted Hinata allowing his encompassing shyness to fade into the background simply because she returned to his side and their hands were never disconnected from each other for long.
It was, indeed, the perfect day to have returned despite the lingering sorrow of the holiday.
If I could, please, ask my Honeys for a tiny review for my hard work, I would greatly appreciate it. It would truly make my day to hear back from you. Any comments about the things you loved, the plot or questions you may have...I would be happy to hear.
Thank you, as always, for reading. Please look forward to my next update. :)