Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Chapter Three

Hinata stretched her arms out, sitting in the middle of the dojo, Neji stretched out next to her, "What if we could block chakra points with our feet?" Hinata asks, "I can cover my feet in chakra and block the points while dealing more damage."

Neji raises an eyebrow, "I don't think I've ever heard of someone using the Gentle Fist that way."

"Can I test my theory out on you Neji-Nii-San?" Hinata asks.

Neji sighs, "If you can manage to land a hit on me first."

Hinata frowns, "Are you underestimating me? I've grown a lot since our last training session."

"That was yesterday."

"So? I can land a hit on you."

Neji rolls his eyes and stands up, offering Hinata a hand, the two walk to their proper places and fall into their stances.

Neji used the traditional stance and Hinata used her own, it was much looser than Gentle Fist stance, and had more weak points since she hadn't perfected it yet.

They each activated their Byakugan and charged at each other.

Hinata stayed on the defense, ducking and dodging around Neji's attacks, Hinata tries to swipe his feet but Neji jumps back and narrowly dodges an attack from Hinata who had attacked before he could fully land on the ground and gain his balance again.

Hinata falls down into her stance and charges, Neji side steps another attack and lets out a yelp when Hinata kicks his knee, he falls over holding it.

Hinata grins, "I win."

Neji glares at her, "Cheap shot."

Hinata rolls her eyes, "Ready to be my test dummy?"

Neji groans and rolls over, refusing to answer her question, Hinata giggles at his reaction, having fully expected it.

Line Break

"I'll give you this Hinata, I'll have plenty of bruises, but you didn't land a hit on my chakra points at all," Neji states, rubbing his sore arm, Hinata had kicked it a few times, she may look weak, but her strength was nothing to scoff at.

Hinata pouts, "You were a moving target, and it was my first time trying it, and of course your gonna have bruises! Legs are stronger than arms after all."

Neji scowls, "Of course I was dodging! I wasn't gonna let you willingly lock my chakra points with a kick to my arm, or gut."

Hinata shrugs, "Well obviously, but did you have to dodge like your life depended on it?"

Neji narrows his eyes at her, "Yes. Yes I did."

Hinata giggles and helps Neji stand before leaving the dojo, "I'll meet you by the front gate in about two hours," she says over her shoulder.

Hinata and Neji walk to the school together, winter was coming to an end, the slight warming of the usual bitter cold told them that Spring would soon arrive, "I can't believe it's already my third year," Hinata says, she was nine years old now.

Neji rolls his eyes, "Time flies fast at the academy, you get used to it."

Hinata laughs, "Of course I know that, but it's still a shock, I feel like I've come so far in such a short time."

"That's because you have Hinata," Neji states, "And don't let anyone tell you otherwise, your very strong, mentally more than physically."

Hinata narrows her eyes, "Tell that to the bruises decorating your body."

Neji glares at her, "That was uncalled for."

Hinata shrugs, "You asked for it."

They parted ways once they arrived at the academy and Hinata entered her classroom, unbothered by the chaos that was her classmates, and took her seat in the back, "Good morning Aburame-San."

"Hyuuga-San," Shino greets in return before they both fall into a comfortable silence despite the noise in the classroom.

Hinata beams, 'Shino greets me back now! I'm so happy he's my friend.'

Hinata looks around the class, nothings really changed, at all, in the passed three years, other than Sakura and Ino becoming bitter rivals, and of course Sasuke's sudden change into a depressed boy festering hatred and revenge.

Hinata looks around again and meets the lazy but intelligent eyes of Shikamaru Nara, who nods in greeting when he notices her, followed by a yawn as he rested back on his arms.

The Hyuuga girl and Nara boy had been assigned as teammates in some of the projects Iruka had given the classroom, Hinata enjoyed the time she spent with him, and she enjoyed playing Shogi, even though Shikamaru had recently began teaching her how to play during breaks.

During lunch Hinata found herself sitting in a shaded area with Shino, Shikamaru, and Shikamaru's best friend, Choji Akamichi.

Shino was quietly observing the shogi match between Hinata and Shikamaru while Choji was peacefully and happily snacking on his chips.

Hinata pouts, "You win again."

The lazy Nara smirks, "Your a beginner, it's a drag teaching you but your coming along."

"What made you start playing shogi Nara-San?" Hinata asks curiously, as the two began resetting the board.

"My father taught me how to play, he's the only person who I can't beat, it's troublesome," Shikamaru says with a shrug.

Hinata's eyes widened, "I thought you were unbeatable."

"I had to learn from somewhere right?" Shikamaru says, playing his first move.

Hinata hums in response, "I guess," she moves her knight before leaning back on her arms, "I wonder how long I'd last in a match against your father."

"Not long," Shikamaru dead pans as he moves another piece.

Hinata pouts, "Jeez, one day I'm gonna beat you."

"Probably not," Shikamaru says, "I win."

"Ahhhh, I was distracted by our conversation that time!"

"No, it wasn't that, your strategy was just bad that round."

"Shut up!"

"What a drag, dealing with girls is so troublesome."

Hinata narrows her eyes, "One more game! We still have time!"

Shikamaru sighs as they restart the board again, "Your never giving up are you?"

"Nope!"

"..troublesome."

Line Break

"Sasuke vs Hinata," Iruka calls during their lesson, Iruka paired up random students to spar, the dark haired boy scowled but moved to the middle, Hinata stood across from him, they each fell into their respective stances, "Begin!"

Sasuke charged towards Hinata, she side steps his attack and hooks her ankle around his foot bringing him to the ground and tries to pin him but he kicks her off.

Hinata jumps back on her feet and stays on the defensive as she dodges and parries Sasuke's attack, looking for a pattern, 'Right, left, jab, swipe,' Hinata thinks, catching his next attack, fully grabbing his arm with her other hand, before flipping him over, he lands harshly on the ground with his breath knocked out of him, his feet outside the sparring circle.

"Hinata wins," Iruka calls, Hinata shivers feeling the collective glares of Sasuke's fan girls, 'Jeez, it's a miracle he hadn't snapped yet.'

She moves back to the other students and stands beside Shino, "Congratulations," Shino says quietly.

Hinata smiles, "Thank you Aburame-San."

"I can't believe you picked him up! Your really strong," another one of her classmates says, Kiba Inuzuka if she remembered correctly.

"Thank you Inuzuka-San."

"Call me Kiba, Inuzuka-San sounds like your referring to my mom," Kiba says awkwardly, the pup sitting atop his head barking as if he agreed.

Hinata smiles sheepishly, "I-I don't feel comfortable being so informal with someone I barely know."

Kiba rolls his eyes, "That doesn't matter, from now on we're friends so deal with it."

Hinata stares at him, eyes wide in shock, before nodding as a small smile forms, "Okay, we're friends now."

"If you don't mind, I would like to be called Shino from now on as well, why? Because we are friends Hinata-San," Shino chimes in quietly, Kiba flinches back, having forgotten he was there.

Hinata beams at the both of them, "Okay Shino-San, Kiba-San!"

Kiba looks at her raising an eyebrow, both confused and amused by her show of emotions, 'What's the big deal? It's just our first names.'

The three quiet down as they watch the rest of the matches, wishing each other good luck when they were called on.

Line Break

"Hinata, you look like the sun itself your smiling so much," Neji mutters as they walk home.

Hinata giggles, "I made another friend! And me and Shino refer to each other with our first names!"

Neji raises a brow, "That's quite informal of you."

"But we're friends now! And he asked me politely to, so I couldn't say no! Even if I wanted to, which I didn't," Hinata explains.

Neji chuckles, "Whatever you say Hinata."

"You still don't have any friends so I won't hear anything from you," Hinata says crossing her arms with a playful pout.

Neji scowls, "You actually want friends, I on the other hand, don't need nor want any."

Hinata frowns, "That's not a good mindset."

"Smiling that much isn't good but I'm not saying anything."

"A smile can brighten up anything! Your just jealous because you can't smile."

"I-I can smile! You've seen me smile!"

Hinata laughs, "The look on your face," she says, "Of course I know you can smile Neji, I'm just teasing you."

Neji scowls, "Stop that."

"Sorry, I won't ever stop, not if it means I can't see that incredulous expression on your face," Hinata states, her voice playful and serious.

Neji's scowl deepens as he begins speeding up, leaving her behind, Hinata starts jogging after him, "Stop being a drama queen Neji!"

Hiashi was outside the compound, talking with Hizashi when he saw Hinata and Neji entering the compound, by the annoyed expression on his nephews face he could tell Hinata was at it again with the teasing, "Hinata," he says warningly.

Hinata freezes, looking up and offering her father a sheepish smile as Hizashi suddenly has a "coughing fit" and horribly disguised his laughter.

Neji smirks and Hinata narrows her eyes, "I look forward to our training session dear cousin," she says before heading inside the main house.

Neji pales, and both Hiashi and Hizashi look at him curiously, "Did she come up with a new idea for her fighting style?" Hizashi asks.

Neji nods, "She wants to lock chakra points by kicking and using her feet," he states, "And it's very painful."

"She best you in a spar?" Hizashi's blank expression betrayed the surprise in his tone, Hiashi sent him a glare, "My daughters capable of beating your son."

"Yes," Neji says bitterly, "But only because she used a dirty move and kicked my knee knocking me off balance."

Hiashi frowns, "I'm becoming lax in our training sessions, she shouldn't have to use such moves to win."

"She still won," Neji says, "Anyways I need to get ready for our session, I'll go harder on her than usual today to make up for the bruises she gave me yesterday," he starts walking towards the Branch House.

Hiashi and Hizashi share a look, "I can't tell who's influencing who more," Hiashi says.

Hizashi shrugs, "Who cares, the only thing that matters is that they are there for each other when they need it the most."

The two brothers part ways, Hiashi heading to lecture Hinata on her fighting style, and Hizashi going back to the Branch House to get in some training with Neji.

Line Break

"What happened to you?" Kiba asks the next day, Hinata had just entered the classroom.

Hinata pouts, "I lost a sparring match to Neji," the bruise on her face was hand sized.

"Doesn't that hurt?" The Inuzuka asks, wincing at the sight of it.

Hinata shrugs, "It stings but I tune out the pain, Neji got a lucky shot in when I let my guard down, for just a moment!"

"Good morning Hinata-San," Shino greets.

"Good morning Shino-San," Hinata replies with a smile, before wincing because of her bruise.

"Alright everyone," Iruka says, walking into the classroom, "Line up, we will be practicing your Transformation Jutsu."

When it's Hinata's turn Iruka winces, "Where did you get that bruise?" He asks, concerned for his student.

Hinata shrugs, "Neji got a lucky shot."

"...alright, show us your transformation," Iruka says awkwardly.

Hinata makes the correct hand sign, "Transformation Jutsu," a clone appears next to her, an almost perfect copy of her current self, though the bruise was gone.

"Good job," Iruka says, the clone disappears, "Who's next?"

Kiba joins Hinata, Shino, and Shikamaru for lunch again, having joined them the day before, "You both play shogi? Isn't that game really boring?" Kiba asks, looking at the board with a confused expression.

Hinata smiles, "It helps you strategize better, and the game exercises the mind."

Shikamaru shrugs, "I just want to beat my dad."

Kiba sweat drops, Akamaru yapping before jumping off Kiba's head and snuggling up to Hinata who giggles and gives the puppy her attention, "Hello Akamaru."

Hinata smiles contently as she plays her next move, she liked eating lunch and hanging out with her friends, it made her very happy.

To be continued...

AN: Another chapter completed.

A special thank you to hinatayvonne for reviewing, I agree with you! Neji is the cutest. And CrazyChimera for the following Altered and reviewing as well! I'm glad you liked the chapter and I hope you enjoy this one!

More special thank you's to The Plague Doctor for following Altered and to Thesamemistakes for favoriting and following, thank you to Tolitir for favoriting and following both Altered and myself as an author! And another thank you to MoRaine25for following my story too! I hope everyone enjoys the newest chapter of Altered.

See y'all next chapter! Bye!