Neji-niisan,
Congratulations on your promotion as captain!
I'm proud of you and I really miss you. I've been consistently training in secret. I miss your mentorship. Lady Keiko doesn't ask questions but she has probably figured out our secret. She tries to hint at it by commenting on my bruises and callous hands, saying that they are not very lady-like. She taught me to make a cream that moisturizes my hands so that the bruises heal more quickly. I'm sending you a bottle to help with your bruises, too.
A few days ago, Father received a strange but important-looking visitor. I later learned that this was the Daimyo's adviser. They were finalizing an arrangement regarding my betrothal with the Daimyo's son Lord Sugawara. In a few days from the time I'm writing this letter, the omiai will take place.
- Hinata
Neji's brows are furrowed deeply as he finished reading his cousin's letter.
So, they've finalized the engagement, huh?
Neji has done a background check on Hinata's fiancé Lord Sugawara. He's about a decade older than her. He's of average height with clear porcelain skin that has never known the hardships of a fighter. He's not bad looking, which is a consolation. Neji doesn't think much of him to form a valid opinion, but his influence and family is enticing enough for the Hyugas to initiate the marriage proposal.
"Neji-sama, is everything okay?"
A large peregrine falcon is perched above Neji. She cocks her head at her master and peers at him curiously with deep black eyes. Neji's summon looks like an intimidating creature with a majestic poise and a cold icy glare that almost resembles his perpetual scowl. But in actual, her summon is just as gentle as her cousin Hinata.
"It's manageable, Jiyu." He replies succinctly but the falcon is not too convinced.
"Is everything alright with Hinata-sama?"
"Jiyu," Neji smiles softly, content with how close her summon is with Hinata. "Thank you for worrying about Hinata, but I know you're tired from your flight. You can go now and rest."
"Hinata-sama looked sad, Neji-sama." Jiyu says, ignoring his suggestion. "If you reply to her letter quickly, it might cheer her up."
"I will." Neji nods and waves a hand. "I'll write back to her after my duty. Go home now."
"Alright. But summon me as soon as you finish writing a reply." After sending Neji one last hopeful look, she disappears in a puff of smoke.
What kind of words would soothe Hinata-sama? Neji ponders. He knows the turmoil Hinata feels with the forthcoming engagement. She, a hopeless romantic, dreams of princes, who'll whisk her away from the clutches of their oppressive clan. Lord Sugawara, the Daimyo's son, is technically a prince, but he is far from the fairy tale princes that Hinata dreams of. Unlike the fairy tale prince who will break the Hyuga curse (if there ever was such a thing), Lord Sugawara is no knight in shining armor. The marriage to him won't liberate Hinata; they'll shackle her forever.
You could say that being born into the world as a Hyuga is like winning the genetic lottery. The Hyuga clan hails from a proud aristocratic lineage with a powerful Kekkai Genkai running in their blood. Consequentially, the affluence and prestige of the family name come with a steep price—Freedom and choice. Neji used to resent this predetermined fate. It wasn't easy when he first fought it. It took a lot of courage to denounce the Hyuga name for his goals. He wonders if Hinata's disposition is the same as his, if it's possible to fight it…
A soft rustling of the leaves snaps Neji from his long winding thoughts. Deciding to concentrate on the mission beforehand, He pushes his thoughts on Hinata behind and tucks her letter in his breast pocket. He unfurls the scroll containing his notes on the mission and reviews his team's initial assessment of the situation. For several years, the ANBU has been trying to track the location of one of the hideouts of a notorious criminal organization. They had never gotten this close up until recently. It had been all thanks to him and his Byakugan; hence, his early promotion to captain.
Neji's team is comprised of two newly-minted but competent ANBU members. There's Sparrow, a skilled marksman and an expert on traps and Heron, a sensor ninja who's an expert at detecting and differentiating chakras. Together they form Team Falcon (after Neji's Alias). Their mission is to investigate and narrow down the location of one of the Akatsuki bases. It's on the outskirts of Kumogakure, along the foot of its mountainous region. It has been both a tireless and tedious surveillance mission. There were no suspicious activities for over a month now. The lack of activity could be a good or bad sign. It's good because not engaging in combat with S-class criminals is a breath of relief. But it's also bad because it might mean that they've pinned down the wrong location.
It has been a few hours since their team last convened. Neji decides to conduct one last patrol around the area before moving on to the next location. Suddenly, he hears an explosion coming from a distance. He instantly activates his Byakugan and scans for his teammates. He sees a small dimming flicker of familiar chakra from a few meters away.
"CAPTAIN!"
"Sparrow!"
Neji springs to his feet and jumps from branch to branch to reach his subordinate.
Sparrow staggers as he approaches his captain. Neji catches him before his knees unbuckled. His mask is cracked at the side, revealing a gashing wound on his right cheek. Both of his hands were clutched on this side of the head; his gloved hands drenched in his blood. When Neji removes his hands for him to inspect, he flinches upon discovering that his cheek wound extends towards where his ears are gone.
"They blew him off," Sparrow mutters shakily. "They blew Heron off."
"Shit." Neji curses. His stomach is churning wildly.
Before Sparrow could confirm anything, something white zooms past them. Neji deflects it with an air palm and the white figure hits a tree where it detonates.
"What are those?"
"They're paper bombs. It's one of those guys—Deidara, was it?"
"Are there others with him?"
"His partner, the puppetmaster. But there's a third member. I wasn't able to confirm who it was. Everything was a blur after that explosion."
"That's unusual. From what I know, these guys usually travel in pairs."
Neji recalibrates his Byakugan to see much further. Hundreds of meters away, he spots the enemies huddled in a forest clearing. But it's strange. They're neither running away nor running towards them. They're simply standing still as if they're waiting for him to approach them.
Neji scans the chakra of the third member. Cold sweat travels from his brows as he confirms the owner of the chakra: dark, fiery, and ominous.
"Sparrow, can you still stand?"
"Yes, captain." Sparrow wobbles to his feet but his balance is off and his ears haven't stopped bleeding.
Neji bit his tongue and drew his hand to the ground.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu."
A winged creature materializes from a puff of smoke.
"Oh, that was fast. You finished the letter already, Neji-sama?"
"Jiyu," Neji says vigilantly, not even batting an eye towards the falcon.
Jiyu notices the tension and positions herself in a battle stance while she waits for Neji's instruction.
"Fly back to Konoha and inform the Hokage that we've managed to locate the Akatsuki. Tell him we have one casualty—Heron and that there are three of them: Deidara, the clay bomber; Sasori, the puppet master and…" Neji balls his hands into a fist. "the Uchiha."
Deidara, a long-distance attacker releases another round of explosions from a kilometer away.
"Go now! Hurry!"
"Roger that." Jiyu stretches her wings and prepares to depart when white flying figures launch towards them. Jiyu dodges it gracefully. A couple more bombs are sent their way. Jiyu takes off in a spiraling motion, dodging the flying clay bombs. When the sky is clear, she soars until she disappears in the night.
"Sparrow," Neji inhales sharply. "Get ready to run!"
Author's Note:
The Background of the Story:
I got inspired by listening to the MULAN Soundtrack.
The setting of this AU is the Shinobi world in a patriarchal and feudal society. The Hyuga is a traditional and political clan. Consequently, Hyuga women are disqualified from becoming shinobis.
The ANBU is still an elite and covert operative, but only men are qualified.
Just a heads up...
Because this AU hasn't reached the age of women empowerment yet, Tsunade hasn't ascended the Hokage's seat. After Minato, the fifth Hokage who succeeded him is Kakashi.