Naruto belongs to Kishimoto. Please review.

"How many more of them are missing?" Koi asked, staring at her filth-covered front.

"That's not the right question," Naomi answered with a smile. "The question is will we ever get that stench out of our clothes."

The team they'd just rescued had been half buried in some of the foulest smelling mud (she liked to believe it was only mud) that Naomi had the unhappy privilege to dig into. They'd counted themselves lucky, though. They weren't bringing back any bodies. At least two groups already had fatalities. As much as everyone enjoyed the chuunin exam, it was also a sober reminder of what the next generation would be heading into if they passed.

Naomi wasn't worried about Hinata as much. Even if she was capable of becoming chuunin, she wasn't about to be made one. But Neji . . . Neji was another story. He definitely had the skill to become chuunin, and nothing was stopping him from taking more dangerous missions if he did. At least he'd still be with his team for a few more years. Naomi would need to talk to Sandaime once Neji's team disbanded. She'd need to make sure they were never placed on the same assignment; it would take more than money to put her son's life beneath some meaningless mission.

Koi slumped against the wall and sniffed at her vest as they waited for the clerk to return with the necessary paperwork before they returned to the forest for the next group waiting to be rescued. Naomi enjoyed a quick stretch, loosening up those muscles stiff from the last five days of waiting with minimal exercise. After her first trek into the forest, Naomi was called only once more, three days in. She might've smelled like a sewer, but at least it felt good to be moving again.

"Naomi!" the clerk screamed, his eyes wide with a kind of panic that didn't come from misfiled paperwork.

"What's wrong?"

The clerk lowered his eyes, momentarily distancing himself from her and the need to deliver the news trapped in his tightening throat. "There's been an incident at the preliminary matches."

Naomi exhaled, the meaning of his words not fully connecting in her mind. Her fingers curled up until she felt the tips of her nails dig into her palm. "Is Neji all right?"

"Neji is," he answered, his voice trembling and eyes fully grounded. "Hinata was hurt."

"Hinata?"

He nodded. "The medics . . . they . . . you need to get there now."

"Of course." She hesitated before moving, turning to Koi. "Can you make sure someone is sent to the compound. Yumi needs to be brought, she's the best healer in the clan, and Hizashi."

Koi nodded in silent affirmation before rushing off to inform someone or get a messenger or maybe go herself. Naomi headed in the opposite direction, through the narrow halls in a career calm that pushed her body forward even as her mind disappeared into a chasm of confusion.

Hinata wasn't supposed to be in the individual fights. She was going to pull out, so what was she doing in a preliminary match? Did she think she needed to lose a match to satisfy Hyobe? Naomi and Hizashi would have supported her decision to leave the exam; she didn't need to do that. Hinata was supposed to be the safe one.

The infirmary was clogged with genin. The preliminary matches were only a tiny fraction of the wounded still coming in. All the genin they were rescuing from the forest were brought here, sitting in the once neat seats, now dragged around the room into orderly chaos. Kumo in one corner, Kiri in another, Iwa huddled against the far wall, Konoha licking their wounds only long enough to be released back home, their journey to chuunin over. She didn't recognize anyone, Hinata wasn't there. Naomi closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady herself.

The next floor up was designated for serious injuries, rooms fully prepared for everything from missing limbs to the near-dead. Naomi took the stairs three at a time; her jaw clenched tight enough her teeth crackled. It was necessary. If Hinata was hurt, then Neji would be nearby and the tenser she made her face now, the easier it would be to relax it for him.

There was a maddening quiet to the floor. A silent stillness so absolute that each order from the medics burst like an explosion in the air, sending the words like shrapnel into the frozen listeners. Naomi forced away the calls she heard beyond the doors—the frantic strain in their voices. She couldn't listen to them, not until she knew who those calls were for. She took a deep breath and allowed her body to relax. It was time to open the door.

Unlike the floor beneath that was amass with tired, beaten genin, this floor was sparse, sterile. Curtains crafted makeshift rooms of breathing white fabric. One metal folding chair waited outside each cordoned off area, no doubt to be filled by the jounin assigned to the team, since that would be the only guardian the visiting genin would have. Only one was occupied, and not by a jounin. Neji sat, head lowered and buried in his hands so she couldn't discern anything from his face. Standing in front of him, half as sentry, was Kurenai. There was genuine worry on her face, both for whatever lay beyond the curtain and—more surprisingly—for Neji. Sympathy Naomi would have understood, but worry? Further down Gai paced, not too far to be out of calling distance, but not close enough to be there solely for Neji. His eyes passed over a different room with different voices.

Naomi was about to call out to them when Kurenai caught sight of her. A single glance stopped Naomi, an intense glare that would have halted anyone, and she waited for the other woman to leave her post and join Naomi away from Neji.

"I just got word. What's happened?" Naomi whispered once Kurenai was close enough.

"Hinata was going to pull out at the individual fights, and I'm not sure why, but she chose to fight in preliminaries. She was paired against Neji."

"Neji?" All her Hyuuga training couldn't keep the shock from Naomi's face. "Neji hurt Hinata?"

"It was an accident," Kurenai explained, though her eyes dropped a little to avoid Naomi's gaze. "A very bad accident. A palm strike to the heart. They've been working on her for over an hour already."

Naomi shook her head, hoping in vain that something might click if she just kept moving. "How is a heart strike an accident? We wouldn't even use chakra to practice such a move."

"Apparently he expected her to move out of the way. That's all he's said since it happened."

Naomi took a breath to collect herself before nodding to Kurenai. "Thank you for watching over him."

Kurenai offered a comforting hand on her arm before moving out of the way. Naomi was still reeling from the news, but she put the physical reactions back to calm as she approached her son. There was no way Neji would hurt Hinata on purpose; the guilt itself must have been eating away at him, but that wasn't what terrified Naomi down to her core. Years might have tempered the gap, but Neji was branch family. For a member of the branch family to harm any of the main, let along the sole heir . . . Naomi couldn't imagine what was going to happened to him. The last brancher to nearly kill a mainer was executed generations ago, and there was no precedent for the mixed up family structure they were living with.

"Neji," she called in a soft voice, not wanting to startle him.

He lifted his head. Horror, fear, grief, shame . . . so many emotions trapped in those pale eyes. Emotions no child, not even a shinobi child, should have to feel yet. Not during times of peace, as fragile as it was. And not all of them for one's own sister.

"I swear she was going to dodge. I don't know what happened; she was supposed to dodge."

Naomi knelt on one knee before her son and rested her forehead against his. "It's all right, Neji. I know you'd never hurt her."

"I should've been able to stop. I should've noticed something was wrong."

"Neji, sometimes horrible accidents just happen."

Neji ripped out of his mother's sympathy and stared into the white curtain separating them from the steady murmur of voices and continuous flux of chakra. His body tensed, curling together as if even the slightest relaxation would send the guilt heaving from his body. "What's the point of being called a genius if I hurt my sister? I should've been better."

Naomi grabbed Neji by the shoulder and forced him to look at her. "You need to drop your ego now. You are absolutely talented and have the potential to be a great shinobi, but you aren't there yet. So if you want to think of yourself as an adult, stop whining like a child that you weren't good enough. You have a long way to go before you'll be as good as you think you are. But learn from this. Learn how to be better."

She kissed the top of his head and pulled him close. For a moment he hesitated but soon fell softly into her motherly embrace. "She's going to be okay, right?"

A weak smile touched Naomi's lips. "If she's half as strong as I know she is, she'll be up and ready to kick your butt in no time."

They waited in an awkward silence. Sitting, standing, sitting again. Every so often Gai would come closer than his distracted comfort and place a hand on Neji's shoulder, but only briefly. And then he would return to his post, looking as nervous and frightened as they were. Naomi did manage to find out Hinata wasn't the only serious casualty of the preliminary matches. It was Lee that Gai beat a path in the floor over. Hours passed and no one came out to give news, good or bad, for either child.

The longer they waited, the more dread filled her heart. Losing Hinata, a girl as dear to her as a daughter, was too painful to imagine, but it was Neji who did it. Naomi didn't even have the luxury to worry about how accidently killing his own sister would affect Neji; she wasn't sure he'd live long enough to suffer that. She couldn't lose both her children. She wouldn't.

The voices began quieting to a low murmur throughout the floor, and Naomi prayed that was a good sign. But whatever hope tempered her fear fled at the ever increasing echo of hurried footsteps on metal stairs. Before she could think of the right thing, the proper Hyuuga thing to do, maternal instinct took over. She yanked Neji out of the chair and pushed him back behind Kurenai. The terror on her face must have been blatant, because Gai left his pacing to stand with them.

"Stay behind them and don't say a word," Naomi ordered and, whether it was from shock or understanding, Neji obeyed.

The ominous thud, thud, thud got louder and louder until the door at the end of the hall swung with sinister leisure to reveal Naomi's worst nightmare. Hyobe led the charge; whatever 'power' Hizashi had as acting clan head was stripped to Hyobe's lackey when the life of the girl he was regent over was in danger. Hizashi and Yumi followed in quick step behind him, Yumi (byakugan active) sprinting ahead to disappear through the white barrier where Hinata lay. Naomi stepped forward to meet them. Hizashi gave her a questioning look at the protective stance she and the others had over Neji, but remained silent.

"What's her condition?" Hyobe asked, as if Hinata were a nothing more than another report for him to be debriefed on.

Naomi forced her voice to remain even. "We haven't heard. They're working on her."

"How long?"

"I'm not sure anymore. Hours." She closed her eyes and focused on the feeling of her tongue against the roof of her mouth. Anything to keep the meaning of what she just said from hitting home.

"This is exactly why main family aren't made genin." He turned his head just enough to glare at Hizashi from the corner of his eye. "What exactly happened?"

"An accident during a preliminary match for the individual round," Naomi said before anyone could give a more detailed explanation. "Her heart was damaged."

"What kind of damage?" When she hesitated to answer, Hyobe huffed his impatience. "Was it a weapon? Ninjutsu?"

Naomi nodded to give herself a moment more. "A . . . chakra based attack."

Hyobe narrowed his eyes, focus shifting from Naomi to the two jounin now nearly blocking all view of the boy behind them. "Who did it?"

"Her opponent, of course," Naomi skirted, stepping to the side to obstruct any remaining view Hyobe might have of Neji.

With irritation on his face, Hyobe pushed past Naomi and stared through Neji's protectors to the boy himself. "You were there, Neji. Who was Hinata's opponent?"

Hizashi took Naomi's hand—when she'd fisted it she wasn't sure—and wrapped a comforting, but restraining, arm around her shoulder.

"I was," Neji admitted, a guilty courage steadying his features. "It was an accident. I did aim for the heart, but she was going to dodge—I saw it in her face, she knew to dodge—but something happened and she didn't turn and when I realized it, it was already too late to pull my chakra back. I'd never purposely hurt her; she's my sister."

"Cousin," Hyobe corrected.

"Right, cousin," Neji agreed, much to Naomi's relief. The last thing they needed was to have Hyobe snapping at them for thinking they were main family. As if that could ever be mistaken.

Hyobe pulled Neji from the safety of his unwilling guards and bore a leader's gaze into the already damaged child. "Tell me what happened from the beginning."

Hizashi's fingers clenched on her arm as the realization of what had happened sunk in—and how powerless they were to stop it. All Naomi wanted was to ripped her son from Hyobe's control and hide him behind her, but this was no longer a matter of the chuunin exam. This was now a clan matter, and no matter how much they loved and treated Hinata like one of their family, they were only branch. They were at Hyobe's mercy. Neji was at his mercy.

Neji lowered his eyes, not out of any obedience to Hyobe, but guilt. Guilt that had been growing thicker as the hours passed until no other emotion could be seen on his face. "It started like normal spar, and I could tell she wasn't fighting seriously so I—" Neji stalled, his eyes glancing toward Hinata's alcove protectively. "I know how to get her mad, so I did. The fight got more intense; we were enjoying it. Then I . . ."

Naomi looked to Hizashi for reassurance as a shred of fear broke through the guilt in Neji's expression. Did Neji realize what happened? Did he cause it? Did he finally understand how much danger he was in? Naomi needed an answer—any answer—but received only empty silence.

"Then you what?" Hyobe pressed.

"I . . ." Neji's eyes paced the ground, avidly avoiding Hyobe's penetrating gaze. "I began . . . closing her tenketsu."

Naomi stopped breathing. She had to have heard that wrong. He couldn't have said that. Not to Hyobe of all people. Any pride she might have felt for him was trampled beneath renewed terror. She turned to Hizashi, confusion in her eyes. The only person who could have possibly taught Neji to do that was Hizashi himself, but all she saw was the same honest shock she felt.

Hyobe ignored the truth on his son's face. "Hizashi, how could you—"

"Dad didn't teach me," Neji interrupted. "I taught myself."

All three adults stared, bewildered, at the boy in front of them. There was no dishonesty in his demeanor, and Naomi knew from watching him that even if he were able, Neji was too raw from the day's events to try and hide the truth.

"You taught yourself?" Hyobe repeated, scrutinizing Neji's every twitch and glance.

"Yes."

The righteous authority that Hinata's injuries had brought back to the once head of the family faltered in a way Naomi had never seen. His face was blank. Not controlled, perfect calm, but pure unfiltered disbelief. "And you decided to test this self-taught skill on Hinata?"

"She wasn't the first," Neji admitted, glancing back at the fabric room that Gai had once worried over. "I used it on Lee and Gai-sensei many times before."

No one spoke. Naomi gripped her husband's kimono until her knuckles turned white. This day just got worse and worse.

Finally, Hyobe restored his leader's facade and straightened to full height over his grandson. "Neji, can you show me, point by point, which tenketsu you closed?"

"I think so," he answered hesitantly, looking around for a volunteer to demonstrate on.

As Gai willingly stood in place so Neji could touch points Naomi could barely distinguish at her best, she and Hizashi offered one another what little unspoken comfort they could in a brief caress or loving glance. Everything was changing, and it was all in Hyobe's hands. Would Neji be punished for hurting Hinata? Would he be punished for having skills he shouldn't? Would Hyobe be impressed enough to let it slide? So many questions and no control over their answers. Almost ten years serving as replacements to the main family only to be reminded how truly powerless they were without Hinata. And if the worst happened to her . . .

When Neji finished his replay, Hyobe stepped forward and pressed a single finger to the apex of Neji's shoulder. "This is what stopped Hinata from dodging."

Neji shook his head. "That's not possible. I hit that to limit the chakra going to her arm, it doesn't affect the motor function."

"Normally that's true, but that was one of the first strikes you made. Once it cuts off chakra to the arm it begins to spread to the rest of the shoulder and upper torso. Given enough time, it can stall motor ability."

"I did it to her?" Neji sat back down and buried his face into his hands.

"Yes, it appears your self-tutelage is lacking. Still," —Hyobe walked forward, slowly, as if measuring the worth of his grandson in each step— "your skills are far more impressive than I ever imagined. If Hinata doesn't survive . . ."

The barest wisp of smile tugged at Hyobe's lips for a fraction of a second, but Naomi saw it. That bastard put Hinata in this position. He hounded her to be someone she wasn't. Demanded perfection from someone who was beautifully imperfect. Refused to let her grow in the way she needed. And when she needed him to support her the most, he could only see a chance to replace her with a superior model. All Naomi wanted was her daughter alive and well, and that bastard saw it as an opportunity.

Hatred numbed her skin to bone. Hatred she couldn't fathom any one person being able to survive without it exploding out. Hatred that separated her from Hizashi's safe hold, forced her body into a fighting stance, and pushed her chakra-laden palms straight at the most powerful member of the Hyuuga clan. She didn't even register her would-be victim's hand raising in a way that should have frightened her to her soul. Hatred blinded her, and then so did the pain.

Screams filled her ears, shrieking that burned from her forehead, through her eyes, and deep into the center of her skull. It wasn't until daggers receded from her skin that she realized the screams were her own. Naomi blinked, struggling to see through the brightness. Hizashi cradled her head in his lap, feather light fingers removing her forehead protector and wrapping to expose the bright seal beneath. Neji stood over them, protective and afraid. But it was Sandaime whose hand had stopped Hyobe.

"That's enough, Hyobe. I think a terrified mother deserves some leeway, don't you?"

Hyobe lowered his arm but kept a level eye with Sandaime. "This is a clan matter, Hokage-sama."

Sandaime shook his head and placed a steady grip on Neji's shoulder. Commanding yet gentle. "This is a tragic accident of the chuunin exam, and one that has a very loving family on edge. Perhaps we should all take a step back and breathe."

Hyobe might have been the most powerful Hyuuga, but they weren't in the clan and Sandaime was right: this was a matter of the chuunin exam. Hyobe nodded and turned away, leaving them on the floor without even a gesture of remorse. Naomi knew branchers who attacked the main didn't deserve that much in his mind —she reached up and took Neji's hand— unless they were useful to him.