Again, thank you all for your amazing reviews! You guys are the best!
Just a bit of a clarification about the child from the previous chapter: no, it isn't Sasuke. His identity will be revealed eventually, though, so stay tuned! ;)
Chapter 4. Sprouts of Rebellion
Night had finally enveloped the village, making some members of the Hokage's office staff sigh with relief. Another day was finished, and they could finally go back home and rest. Even if it's just for a little while, they could forget what was happening in their village and in the world as a whole – a much required temporary relief. However, one room in particular still had its lights on. The top floor of the building and the room that allowed the inhabitants to have a decent view of the entire village – the Sixth Hokage's office. Inside the room was the Sixth himself, a couple of ANBU shinobi whom he was debriefing, and Shikamaru Nara – Kakashi's Chief Aide.
The mission that the two ANBU ninjas had just returned from predictably resulted in failure. So, while Kakashi was talking to them, Shikamaru seemed to be deep in thought, standing beside the Hokage and looking through the window behind his back.
So, they were unable to find any traces of sabotage at the western gatehouse. Should I be happy that our cover is safe, or disappointed at how unqualified the ANBU ninja have become in recent years…? Ugh, what a pain…
However, none of these thoughts visibly reflected on the Nara at all. Unlike him, as soon Kakashi finished and the ANBU members left, the Sixth sighed with disappointment, looking at his subordinate in a silent question.
"These random attacks continue to happen throughout all outposts, not just for the village, but for the entire country. Yet so far the only thing we've found at one of the sites was a scratched off Leaf forehead protector." Shikamaru summarized the situation around these strange attacks. "It's troublesome that ANBU is unable to find anything else after all this time. Disturbing, I would say."
For a long minute Kakashi didn't respond, continuing to write something on the list of paper in front of him. The man looked tired, exhausted even; although his hair was already fully gray, making it more difficult to determine his exact age, somehow, he now looked considerably older than he actually was. And it didn't escape anyone's eye.
Shizune entered the room, giving him a compassionate look before placing a plate with steaming green tea as well as some sweets next to the man, bowing her head politely.
"Hokage-sama, it's almost midnight. Do you have any assignments for me, or…?"
"Ah… thanks, Shizune, you may go home now. Get some rest, it's not like there's much you can do at the moment."
The woman let out an upset sigh, bowing again.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama." She turned around and began to walk away, throwing a brief glance at Shikamaru as if to ask him if he needed her assistance or anything. But seeing no reaction, she retreated, closing the door shut.
"I'm not sure about ANBU, or at least I don't have any immediate suspects at the moment… But, it would only make sense that some of them would become more inclined towards rebelling, all things considered. Frankly, we are screwed," he finally replied to Shikamaru without looking at the young man. "The quarantine measures are only making things worse, it seems. But lifting them now would be an invitation for even more havoc to enter our walls. Not to mention it would be provoking towards other nations as well… after all, having a common international agreement is a rarity these days. What do you think we should do?" he asked, looking at the Nara without much hope.
Shikamaru didn't reply immediately, staring at the floor and thinking. He then walked around Kakashi's table, picking up one of the folders that lay on it. Looking through the document pages, he stopped at the one with recent reports from the country's border outposts.
"It looks like there are numerous groups of shinobi from other hidden villages that are trying to pass through our borders right now. The last reported one was from Suna. There have been other reports of their people requesting passage through our lands, and all of them seem to go through the same outpost.'' He put down the folder on the table in front of Kakashi, putting his hands in his pockets. "While they obviously use the same route to reach us as the most convenient one, the most devastating attacks we've had so far were exactly in that area. On the same roads." He paused, looking at the Sixth.
"While it's extremely obvious to be true, we can't rule out the possibility of these Suna shinobi somehow cooperating with the rebels. I suggest sending out a squad of ANBU ninja, but only those whom we currently suspect of treason. Have them monitor this Suna group that is currently waiting for their pass throughout their travels here. On top of that, we should send out one or two of our most trusted people, someone with whom you are personally close, to watch all of them. If there will be any hint of those ANBU's somehow contacting the Suna ninja in a compromising way, then upon their return we can hand over them to Yamanaka's group at the Interrogation division for further investigation."
He stopped talking, closing his eyes and trying to find a pack of cigarettes in his pockets. As his fingers finally gripped it, Shikamaru walked over to one of the open windows to have a smoke.
Finishing his writing, Kakashi leaned on the back of his chair and hemmed, taking a moment to think over Shikamaru's suggestion. There were no actual concrete reasons to believe that Suna was playing dirty. Still…
"That doesn't sound unreasonable, though I don't feel like Suna is actually planning to do anything big. As far as our intel suggests, they don't have enough resources to afford a direct confrontation with Konoha or any other Great Nation at the moment. Not to mention Gaara's personal ties with Naruto…" He sighed, turning his head to the Nara and eyeing him searchingly.
"However, the idea to lure out potential traitors seems sound. Would you be able to compose a team like that? And who do you think should lead them? Naruto or Sakura seem like too obvious candidates, I doubt anyone would dare to try anything in their presence. And also…" He looked away, stretching his arms in front of him and yawning, "It's been reported to me that Sasuke was noticed around that very outpost, talking to a group of Suna ninja. Do your sources have any information about that?" He was sounding almost casual, though it was obvious that it had been the elephant in the room the Hokage for some reason hesitated to discuss until now.
"That's true," Shikamaru replied somewhat reluctantly. "When it comes to Suna… well, we're not the only village that is struggling right now, nor the only one with a rebel element in our midst. Could be the rogues of theirs doing the same thing on their territory, causing issues and all. Might be trying to sabotage the international relationships too. As for Naruto and Gaara's relationship..." Shikamaru finished his cigarette, leaving it on the ashtray that had long become part of the Hokage's office thanks to him. Leaning on the nearby wall, the young man crossed his arms on his chest and looked at the Sixth grimly. "That scratched off Leaf forehead protector can mean several things. It could be a coincidence; it could be a lowlife trying to mimic you know who, or it could be something far more insidious that we should not underestimate, given our current situation. Wouldn't be the first time a prominent ninja would turn their back on their homeland. And also…"
The Chief Aide paused for a bit. He wasn't planning on sending out either one of the Hokage's former students to this mission, but it could turn out for the better considering that both Naruto and Sakura were still fully loyal to Kakashi.
"Sakura would be a better fit. Naruto is too important to waste his time on a simple monitoring mission, especially if it doesn't play out the way we're hoping for. And Sakura, with her abilities, would easily be able to overwhelm any resistance the potential traitors may pose. She can probably go alone as well." Shikamaru walked over to the Hokage's table again, standing now in front of it. He picked up a couple of documents, specifically those that mentioned Uchiha's traces.
"I haven't heard about Sasuke being in contact with any Suna ninja, however there was a report of him causing problems at the mentioned outpost. Apparently, he wanted to circumvent the quarantine procedures we implemented. The guards also described him as if... well, as if he fell off the moon or something," He smirked. "Because he was completely unaware of all that's been happening in our lands recently. As such, I don't believe we should concern ourselves with whether he may or may not be associated with any of these rebel problems we're experiencing." He paused – Kakashi wasn't saying anything either, thinking over what his assistant said.
Indeed, Sasuke was not something any of them had been expecting. He's been gone for a long time, and considering there was almost no news about him in these past few years, everyone had grown to believe that he'd become a hermit somewhere far away. However, the fact that he'd actually come back into the picture, and on top of it had tried to enter peacefully, brought some hope to Shikamaru. If they were lucky, the Uchiha would be perfect to fill the role that had been absent in his plans for the longest time.
"We should definitely keep an eye on him, but I advise no hostility for now," the Nara finally continued. "We can't afford it. I'm certain the Hyūga clan will want to at least win a favor with him in case he returns to the village, if not completely turn him over to their side. We need to make sure we stay on good terms with Sasuke and eventually re-integrate him into our ranks."
Kakashi slowly nodded, weighing out every word Shikamaru was saying. Surely, he wasn't intent on turning Sasuke into their enemy either – all things concerned, that would be nothing but suicidal for them. If anything, having his former student back on their side could potentially turn the situation into their favor at long last.
"They also reported he decided not to enter, though. And I'll be honest, knowing Sasuke, it's difficult to imagine him not just barging in on a whim. For him to just obey like that... I wonder what else has changed about him," Kakashi mused, frowning. Of course, the Uchiha wasn't the type to just go back peacefully, nor to follow the rules. The Sixth realized there was a high chance he'd simply decided to sneak in without causing a fuss after all, but that was arguably even more problematic.
"I'm betting he's already in Konoha, but it's strange that he hasn't showed up yet," he added, thoughtfully scratching his chin under the mask. "Could you please speak with Ino? We need to find him as soon as possible. Sasuke isn't exactly the type to stay in the shadows voluntarily, but if that's what he's doing now, we need to reach out to him before the Hyūga do. Though they've been loyal so far, they might indeed try to turn him against us and use him as their trump card to take full power. Hiashi is fully aware of the history between the village and the Uchiha clan, so he could easily exploit that to get under his skin."
Shikamaru nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, I'll speak with her first thing in the morning. As for the Hyūga – I believe they currently have their hands full with Hinata, so... hopefully they won't be so quick to act on an unexpected element such as Sasuke." The Chief Aid looked at his wrist watch and then back at Kakashi. "It's already late. You should get some rest, and I still need to finish some reports before tomorrow. I'll come into the office after I've had a word with Ino in the morning." With that said, the Sixth smiled under his mask and motioned that Shikamaru was dismissed. The man bowed and turned around to leave.
"Goodnight," the Nara said as he closed the door behind him.
As soon as he went out of the building, he was met with his ex-teammate who stood near the closed store down the street, glaring at him.
"Took you long enough," the kunoichi spoke with an irritated voice. "I've had a very long evening, you know? And would prefer to be in bed right now." She poked his chest with her finger somewhat playfully, though still looking annoyed.
The man smirked, putting his hands in his pockets and starting to walk away. The woman hesitated for a bit, but after a while followed him.
"I know. Thanks for waiting," he finally replied over his shoulder.
"You don't sound like you're sorry." She caught up with, smacking Shikamaru on his back.
"Is that so?"
Ino didn't like it when he spoke with her like that, but the Nara could never be bothered to partake in her mental games, so he preferred to ignore it, appreciating the weather instead. The night was a bit chilly, but the clear starry night sky made up for it.
"So, how's the old man? Is he onto something?" she mumbled, crossing her hands on her chest.
"We've had some reports on suspicious activities here and there. Looks like the outposts across the country are still being raided by unknown entities," answered Shikamaru, pausing for a bit. "There was also a report of Uchiha Sasuke trying to cross the border. Do you have anything you'd like to share with me?" he finally looked at Ino, who upon catching his gaze looked away, as if she felt guilty for something.
"I know, I wanted to tell you earlier but I couldn't reach you! Don't blame me, ok? But... yeah. The report about the intrusion at the apex of the barrier around the village came straight to me yesterday. That's when I set out to look for the source of it, and well... Bingo! Tell you more at our place," the kunoichi replied. Of course, she couldn't wait to tell him everything that had happened earlier, but they had agreed not to discuss anything like that outside of a private space. And so, the pair headed towards Shikamaru's house that was on the outskirts of the Nara Forest.
Half an hour later...
"…And that's basically what happened." Ino finally finished her story about her meeting Sasuke and dragging him into playing a part of her plan. She didn't forget to mention how great of an actor he'd turned out to be, and how the situation with Hinata and Naruto had changed, as well as how Sasuke had almost killed her in the dirty back alley behind the bar. Shikamaru was reading something as he listened to her tale, sitting behind an old wooden table while Ino was eating noodles on the opposite side of it. There was another person in the room who silently sat away from the pair, drawing something on a scroll in front of him and listening as well.
"I see. I didn't imagine you would use Sasuke of all people for something like that." Shikamaru grinned darkly. "I'm surprised he didn't snap your neck right there and then, but at the same time I'm relieved to hear he has more self-control now." He put away the book he was reading and closed his eyes to think, propping up his chin with his hands. "But this is a positive turn of events overall. It's good that you managed to get a hold of him first, Ino. Helping him to meet with Hiashi would hopefully put you into at least some positive light for him." He chuckled.
"Hey, I have been an extremely accommodating representative of Konoha for our traveling guest. He better be thankful!" she retorted. "But anyway, I take it we should now attempt to get him to help us? He did say 'This shit hole you all call a village needs some serious fixing'." Ino tried to imitate Sasuke's voice and tone as much as she could, but ended up laughing at herself, causing Shikamaru to smirk as well.
"Yeah. Interesting he would say something like that. But you're right. Ino..." Her teammate looked at the corner of the room where the other shinobi was sitting. "Sai. You both need to focus on finding an opportunity to invite him to... if not join us, then at least have a chat." He looked back at Ino. "I think you'll have more luck with that, considering you've already had contact with him. But who knows what will happen. Just make sure it doesn't seem forced."
"Yeah, fine. But what about her? Where is she by the way?" asked the kunoichi, looking around herself – apparently, one person from their group was missing at the moment.
The Nara, however, just shook his head dismissively.
"Don't worry about her for now. Sai, do you have any questions?" he asked, once again looking at the ninja with a paintbrush in his hands.
The pale shinobi raised his head, blinking a few times. He looked as though he was surprised his presence had been noticed in the room at all.
"Unlike you two, I don't know Sasuke Uchiha very well, and he sure seems like a wild card. What I'm thinking is…," he bit the tip of his brush, looking at the other two ninjas with concern, "The outcome of his conversation with Hiashi-san. How exactly do you suppose it can go, Shikamaru?" He eyed the shinobi curiously and continued without waiting for an answer,
"It seems like he will most likely provoke the Hyūga in some way, and in this case, things might turn nasty. Or, which seems far less likely, he will come to some sort of agreement with them, but I don't really see how that can possibly play out. I mean… Sasuke isn't known to be the most cooperative person. From the reports I've read on him he's smart, but he seems to prefer to use his intelligence in battle rather than in a diplomatic way." He lowered his eyes, his fingertips knocking on the wooden surface of the table nervously.
"It comes down to who he decides to represent as he approaches Hiashi," Sai continued. "Konoha? The Uchiha clan? Or just himself? And besides… planning to change the village is a bold claim. Especially coming from an Uchiha, don't you think?"
Shikamaru nodded, leaning back on his chair and staring into the ceiling.
"It's true you don't really know him. Can't say we do, to be honest. But you have been acquainted at some point. Even if it was in combat... But even more so, it would probably be even less suspicious, considering that he doesn't know you either. Ino, on the other hand, he may not want to even see for the next couple of days, after everything she'd done", he said, still looking into the ceiling.
"Why not? I gave him an apartment to clean himself up, I arranged some entertainment for the evening and I helped him with what he needed. He should be delighted to see me." Ino butted in, poking Shikamaru with her elbow lightly.
"...As for your other question," the Nara ignored the blonde-haired kunoichi, making her turn away and pout pretentiously, "I don't believe he's representing anyone or anything at this point. It seems he already realized how the village changed in his absence. Looking at what became of it, he may not feel Kakashi is the right person to speak with when it comes to 'fixing' anything. And he's not wrong. So it's logical for him to go after the Hyūga first." Shikamaru leaned back on the table, looking around the room for a bit.
"I don't think the meeting will end with violence," he added then. "If he wanted to act like that, he wouldn't suffer through Ino's shenanigans. He's the only one in the village to rival Naruto when it comes to raw power, so if he wanted to go that route he would've just done it already." The man looked at Sai with a serious expression.
"From what we heard so far, he doesn't seem like his old self, when he would just draw his blade to solve all the problems. I think he might have an agenda but no clear path towards bringing that idea to life. So, my assumption right now is he will try to gather as much information as possible from all parties involved, and he'll be doing it quietly, keeping a low profile for the time being. Of course, that may result in some broken heads along the way, but nothing too big to shake the village at its core. Not yet, at least."
Sai nodded somewhat obediently, lowering his eyes.
"Okay. I trust your judgment, Shikamaru. All of it sounds logical and I hope it works out in our favor. I'm just not exactly sure what to expect of him. Besides, as you said he doesn't know me at all, and we only had a couple of brief encounters before which weren't exactly friendly. On the other hand…," he looked at Ino and his lips curled in a tiny grin, "Guess that also means he hates me less than some of you guys."
Before the blonde realized what he'd just said, Sai looked at the Nara again with a more serious face and added,
"I think we should eavesdrop. I'll try to spy on him and Hiashi as they talk, and come up with a plan based on what I hear. I don't think we should approach him until then anyway, since he's already onto something according to Ino. Let's observe him for a while, not too long, and act once we have a clearer picture of his intentions. How about that?"
Shikamaru nodded approvingly.
"I agree. However, try not to do that in person. Utilize your drawings. He's not a rookie ninja to not notice someone's presence. Same goes for Hiashi. He may be old, but he's still the head of the most powerful clan in the village. Don't underestimate either of them."
Sai gave him a slightly annoyed glance.
"I'm not a rookie either. Obviously, it has to be done carefully, but since we know the location in advance, it shouldn't be too hard."
Shikamaru smiled. He knew repeating the same thing about being careful was unnecessary as he fully trusted his comrades and their expertise, but he still couldn't help himself. The young man turned to look at Ino who was now glaring at Sai with a bit of a murderous expression.
"Hey, what are you doing?" asked Shikamaru, smirking at her.
"Nothing.'' She quickly stood up from the table and stretched her arms. "I'm gonna sleep here tonight, it's already late and there's no way I'm going all the way back to my house. So, if we're done here…?'' She looked at Shikamaru impatiently.
"Yeah. Goodnight," he replied with a short nod. The kunoichi instantly left the room without adding anything else. "I'm going to bed, too. You get some rest as well, Sai. We're gonna get a lot busier from now on, it seems," Shikamaru added, standing up from the table and walking towards the stairs. "You can stay the night here as well, as always. See ya."
As night fell upon Konoha, most people in the village had already retreated to their houses. Despite the rather feeble and unorganized attempts to celebrate the anniversary of the great war by certain groups of people, there was no massive festival or anything of the sort. Even aside from the quarantine measures, most people weren't really in the mood for that kind of thing, nor did it seem appropriate in the current circumstances.
Hinata was one of the few remaining away from home. As soon as she and Naruto had parted, she obviously didn't feel like celebrating anything either, but at the same time she wasn't in a good state of mind to show up in front of her clansmen either. So now she was standing in the bathroom of the same abandoned inn she'd spent the previous night in, critically studying her reflection in the mirror.
The red, puffy eyes would be easy to disguise if she decided to go home, but that was only part of the problem. Besides being as pale as a corpse, she still couldn't suppress her tears that kept dropping down the dirty sink every now and then. Her breath was unstable and disrupted as her heart was still pounding heavily, as if she just couldn't inhale enough oxygen. Her skinny hands were slightly shaking as she held onto the edges of the sink, eventually lowering her head, closing her eyes and biting her lip. Her mind was racing helplessly as the young woman was desperately trying to come to terms with what she'd done and heard this evening.
An hour earlier…
"...say something, will ya?" he said as they stood in front of each other at the training grounds. Right now, it was one of the only places in the village private enough for a conversation like that. Although there was no massive celebration going on, apparently no one was about to come here and practice today either.
She gulped nervously, afraid to look at him and carefully studying the tiptoes of her shoes instead.
"Hinata-chan, seriously–," he said impatiently, taking a step toward her.
"What do you want me to say, Naruto-kun?" she forced herself to utter, still avoiding his eyes. "You–you saw it all, didn't you? This is the way it goes. That's how it has to be."
"But why? Why wouldn't you just tell me?" he asked loudly, his voice expressing nothing but disappointment and pain. "Why did you have to do it like that? In front of everyone? I don't understand–"
"Just tell you?" she repeated, interrupting him. The blonde ninja's eyes widened a bit. He'd never seen or heard her expressing anything like anger at him before, and even though it was barely noticeable in her voice, it was suddenly there for sure. "I did tell you. I did, multiple times. But you never listened."
"But–"
"We aren't children anymore, Naruto-kun." She finally raised her head. Despite the ninja being considerably taller than her, still looking now at his face that expressed a strange mixture of anger and confusion, she wasn't feeling scared or intimidated at all. "You are very close to fulfilling your dream of becoming Hokage… and that's truly wonderful. I am happy for you. But… not all dreams get to become real. The dream of my childhood certainly won't."
"That's not what it is about!" He exclaimed, clenching his fists. "You and I, we could still–"
"No." She said firmly, looking directly into his eyes. "No, there is no way. And even if there was, I wouldn't want it to happen. I don't love you, Naruto-kun… not in that way, at least. You are a precious person to me, and you have inspired me a lot throughout my life, and I truly, deeply appreciate it. But I know that you don't love me like that either. And so…" She took a step closer, putting her hand on his cheek and caressing it gently as if to calm him down. "This is where our ways have part."
He lowered his head to look into her eyes, though not backing off from her touch.
"And what if I still want to do this… for you? You deserve to be happy."
She smiled again, not removing her hand just yet.
"So do you, Naruto-kun. I don't want to force the two of us to be stuck in a loveless political marriage. Just me alone is enough. I–I can handle this burden… on my own. This is my duty, and if I have to cut you or anyone else off for that sake… I will do it."
His eyes widened slightly, and he looked at her almost suspiciously, as though he was truly seeing her for the first time in his life.
"You sound just like him…" he muttered, looking at her darkly.
"Huh…?" She blinked, feeling confused. He then suddenly pushed her hand away, taking a step back.
"Sasuke said a similar thing… at some point," he muttered perplexedly, frowning.
Hinata didn't respond for a few seconds, trying to understand what that could imply.
"W-Well… I–I don't know what he meant by that, but maybe he wasn't that wrong after all?" she ventured carefully, feeling slightly afraid as she could feel something dark quickly filling the Uzumaki right in front of her eyes.
"Yeah hell no, he was wrong! But I–" He gasped, suddenly all the previous aggravation disappearing momentarily. He took a deep breath, now looking upset rather than rageful, and lowered his head. "If that's your choice, I can't really force you, can I? Besides… I suppose I should also act like an adult and be honest with you." He looked at her gloomily, the blue eyes suddenly shining with icy resolve in the moon's light. She'd never seen him like that before, and it was a bit scary to the kunoichi.
"You're right, I never loved you either. I wanted to do this for Konoha… My main concern is the village as it should be. I can't afford to be selfish. Not anymore… I did plenty of that with Sasuke in the past." He closed his eyes and sighed. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you… Hinata. But maybe I was never meant to do that in the first place." He turned around and began to walk away, but after a few steps Naruto stopped, glancing at her over his shoulder and hesitating for a moment, as though wondering if he should voice out what was on his mind.
"Maybe you're right, and maybe I need to grow up as well. Guess I should accept things for what they are," he finally added. "I kept telling myself that – that we could help everyone by being together… and make the village stronger by marrying each other. I refused to realize it before, but now it honestly feels like I just wanted to use you – like, you know… I thought you actually loved me, and… turns out I was eager to exploit your feelings for the sake of the village. And you know… now that I think about it, it kinda makes me sick. Sick of myself trying to do something like that as though it's ok… sick of what I'm becoming… sick of what everything's turned into. I guess I was too deep into the chase after my own childhood dream – so much that I missed the moment when it all went to shit, huh…"
He chuckled, but there was no sign of amusement in that expression, of course. Only the same ice-cold resolve and unusual firmness.
"Thank you, I think I needed this to finally wake up. And you don't have to cut me off or anything like that. You made the right choice today, and I won't bother you again. I have my own things to do, anyway. And, well… I'm truly sorry for how everything turned out… Hinata."
With that he disappeared, leaving her alone on the empty training ground, feeling completely stunned as her legs began to shake, and her head began to spin. She was overwhelmed with a few very important and scary realizations hitting her all at once, and she didn't like any of it… not one bit.
Back in the present…
Despite her initial shock, all in all, she had to admit things didn't go as catastrophically as she thought they would have. At the end of the day, although she'd cherished the tiny hope of remaining friends with Naruto somehow, realistically she knew it wasn't an option even before he'd made his heartbreaking confession. Not only because of the spectacle they'd arranged to push him away – knowing the jinchūriki, he probably could swallow it up and forgive her, that wouldn't be an issue in itself.
No, their lives would just be too different very soon, to the extent of being hardly compatible even on friendly terms. Actually, they probably already were. With him becoming Hokage in the foreseeable future, and with her leading the Hyūga clan, the nature of their future relationship was already predetermined. She could say so for sure, knowing her father's plans for the expansion of their influence in the village. At best, their friendship would've been unnatural and constantly strained by political matters. And the older they'd become, the more it would deteriorate into something really ugly. She'd seen it many times before among other adults who assumed a position of power. So just keeping it polite and formal from now on seemed like the best option they had, Hinata realized it as well.
No, the reason she was crying had nothing to do with that.
"Guess it all went just as planned then?" The cold, deep voice behind her back made the kunoichi flinch, abruptly turning around.
"It's you," she said quietly, staring at the dark-haired ninja who was now casually leaning on the wall of the bathroom, his only hand resting on the handle of his blade, which seemed rather habitual than threatening.
"You don't look surprised," he stated, eyeing her curiously.
It wasn't much of a shock indeed, even though she hadn't expected him to come to her directly and so soon. Back in the bar, she'd wondered what to think of his reasons to participate in something as embarrassing while she'd been so shamelessly sitting on his lap and hugging him. As impossibly surreal, ridiculous and unbelievable as all of it was, Hinata'd had enough time to come to terms with the fact that it was the mysterious Uchiha that she had to kiss in front of her childhood crush. And she realized someone like him would never ever do that… unless he needed something from her in return.
"Byakugan can see through any disguise," she said carefully yet firmly, meeting his gaze.
"Hn." He looked away. There was no source of light inside the inn, but both of them had good enough visual prowess to see each other clearly through the dark. "Naruto can be pretty hard to convince to leave you alone, but was that shitty scene at the bar really necessary?"
She eyed him appraisingly for a while before replying,
"Worked better than beating each other to death, so I can't complain."
He glanced at her with a mixture of surprise and skepticism.
"Didn't know a Hyūga was capable of having a sense of humor. You guys are always so full of yourselves."
Hinata frowned, leaning her back on the corner of the sink and trying to relax at least a bit.
"I could say the same about you, Uchiha-san."
"Touché," he shrugged indifferently, looking at her neutrally again. "So you are the future head of the Hyūga clan."
"Yes. How can I help you?" she replied, frowning. Knowing everything she knew about this man, there was no reason to expect anything good to come from him. But at the same time, somehow, she didn't feel like he was here to hurt her. As difficult as it was to read someone like this man, he didn't seem to be intent on hostility, at least not at the moment.
"That… we have yet to figure out." He took a folded piece of paper out of his pocket, holding it between his pointer and middle finger. "I'm planning to have a talk with your father shortly. But since I heard you'll be taking his position soon, I decided to contact you first, just in case."
"In case… of what?" She asked, feeling both confused and a little worried.
Sasuke smirked.
"In case he decides to be uncooperative. Old men in Konoha tend to be… not very agreeable. And despite what you probably heard about me, currently I don't feel like causing an unnecessary carnage in the village."
She eyed him skeptically for a while, weighing out what he was telling her.
"So… you just want to blackmail us into something? And if we don't agree, then… what? Will the carnage become necessary?"
He cocked his head, looking moderately amused.
"I don't know what gave you the idea. I come in peace."
She sighed, shaking her head.
"Please, Uchiha-san. Naruto-kun – Naruto is – was my friend, and he told me some things. I know what you're capable of."
"Then you have me at a disadvantage, as I have no idea." His deadpan expression gave away nothing at all, but somehow it made Hinata feel like he was attempting to make a joke.
She sighed nervously, deciding that trying to assume anything was useless.
"Let us get to the point, Uchiha-san. What is it that you want from us? And from me in particular?"
"I intend to become Hokage," he replied immediately, making her eyes widen. Of course, she'd already heard him make a similar proclamation on the battlefield four years ago, but…
"Are you serious?" she muttered quietly, blinking a few times in disbelief. No, this had to be a joke…
"Yeah. What I once said about the war applies to Konoha now, too. The current circumstances were created by all of the previous Kage including the current bunch. That's why I'll take that role and change the village."
She frowned and bit her lip thoughtfully, remaining silent for a while. Turned out he wasn't kidding at all, as unbelievable as it was.
"But Naruto-ku – Naruto told us that you agreed to follow him – that you decided to put your trust in him. Did you change your mind?"
This time it was Sasuke's turn to sigh and look away, a hint of sadness and disappointment in his face not missing Hinata's attention.
"I believed in Naruto's vision of the future back then. He told me his way would work, and I decided to wait and see if it would. It very clearly didn't. Can you honestly say that it still might, seeing how things have become?"
Hinata lowered her eyes sadly. The temptation to say 'yes' just out of spite was strong, but that wouldn't be genuine – she knew it. And the young woman realized that Sasuke knew it as well.
"No… I can't," she finally whispered.
"Then as the future head of the Hyūga, you have no reason to support him anymore. Especially after what you did today. Am I wrong?"
No, he wasn't wrong at all. And still, it did feel right to agree with him either, no matter how logical it sounded. She realized it was completely irrational, but as silly as it was after what Naruto had told her earlier… In a way, by doing so Hinata still felt like she'd be betraying her old friend. Or maybe actually just herself – she wasn't sure.
"You aren't wrong. But I don't have a reason to think that you can succeed, either," she finally said, looking at him again.
"That is a fair point." Sasuke nodded. She expected him to be angry, but strangely the man seemed satisfied with her answer. "But what seems better to you: going down the path of imminent failure, or taking the risk of possibly making a change?" He was watching her expression impassively as though the two of them were playing poker. It made Hinata feel a bit uneasy as she totally didn't feel like she was winning whatever game he'd pulled her into.
"It's true, I can't guarantee that things will go well…," he continued, "No one really can. But with me in charge, there is a chance they will. And if you just let things keep going the way they are now, it's as good as giving up. Not that I would judge you for agreeing to let Konoha go to hell – I can sympathize with that. But that's not what I myself want at the moment. What about you?"
Her eyes widened a bit as she stared blankly in front of her. To her, Sasuke Uchiha was a complete stranger. All the things she knew about him, besides what Naruto had told her, indicated that he was nothing but bad news. And yet, everything he was saying now totally made sense to her. Surprisingly, after her earlier conversation with the Uzumaki it was shockingly easy to be honest in her own mind now that she was trying to answer the Uchiha's questions in her head. And with that came another merciless, crushing revelation that once again made her start to breathe faster, her fingers gripping the edges of the sink behind her tighter than ever before.
The reason she'd felt so terrible earlier in this room was actually the feeling… of shame. She actually felt ashamed of how liberating it had been to settle things with Naruto in a direct, honest and straightforward way. Without worrying about hurting his feelings, having accepted it as a necessity. She'd known she'd had to hurt him, but at the same time, surprisingly, it just felt like the right thing to do – for her own sake. Intuitively, it all felt wrong. But was it really? Was it ever wrong to be honest, even if it caused others to suffer…?
If she hadn't done that, she would've never found out that he didn't suffer from her rejection at all. And as a result of her decision, Naruto had done the same thing to her with his final confession. He'd admitted that he wanted to manipulate her and use her, as unbelievable and heartbreaking as it sounded coming from Naruto Uzumaki of all people. But was it really unfair or bad at all? No… if anything, it was the opposite. And it would be hypocritical to blame him now – they were actually even.
And yet she wanted to blame him. She desperately wished to feel heartbroken and hurt by what he'd told her… simply to justify her own earlier dirty scheme. To feel like the good girl she herself and everyone else was so used to viewing her as…
But she simply didn't. She actually wasn't that girl, not anymore at least. And that was exactly why she'd felt so shook back at the training ground. This realization had hit her like a thunderbolt as Naruto walked away. She'd finally got to encounter this dark side that had quietly grown within her, unnoticed until now. As though after a very long delirious dream, the Hyūga woke up to the simple understanding – she was just tired of her own hypocrisy. Throughout her entire life, she'd tried to be nice to everyone even when they didn't deserve it. She'd tried to pretend that people were better than they actually were; that the world wasn't as cruel as it was in fact. And she was truly sick of trying to sugarcoat things in situations where the opposite was warranted. Her entire life until now had been all about believing that she shouldn't make anyone feel bad, even at the expense of her own happiness.
And where exactly had it led her to? She had reduced herself to being nothing more than a puppet. To her village, to her clan, to her father. And she'd almost become that to Naruto as well. Having no control over her life had become her personal comfort zone. And as a result, she'd almost lost herself completely…
She let go of the sink, clenching her fists and pursing her lips. It had to stop. There was no turning back now. The kunoichi wasn't sure what was to become of her, but she knew for sure that she couldn't go on like that anymore.
"You are offering me to side with you against the Sixth… because he wants Naruto to become his successor," she mused, finally looking at the Uchiha again.
"Correct."
"That would make us traitors… wouldn't it?"
"In their eyes, I suppose it would. But who exactly are you loyal to? The Hokage's regime, or the people of your village and your country? What's more important to you, Hyūga? Being a good servant to those who are clearly failing at their job, or using your own power to do what you think is right? Think about it – it's a very simple choice."
Much to her own surprise, deep inside Hinata didn't feel conflicted at all. Not anymore at least. Somehow this man, despite being an enigma to her, was either shrewd enough to read her like an open book, or he was simply right. Because what Sasuke was telling her sounded very similar to how she'd already felt prior to this encounter. He seemed to be competent and smart enough to be a leader, not to mention his quite infamous raw power. And he also presumably intended to change Konoha for the better, even though by questionable means. Was she ready to dare and try something as outrageous?
"What you're suggesting is – it's a revolution, Uchiha-san."
"Yeah. So?"
She gulped. So…
"I agree," she finally whispered, looking at him vigorously. "I don't have a reason to trust you… but I don't trust the Sixth and Naruto either. Not anymore. And so… I think trying something different is better than doing nothing at all."
He smirked.
"Splendid."
They remained silent for a while, just gazing at each other with mutual curiosity and some caution on Hinata's part.
"There's a condition, though," she suddenly said firmly, looking into his mismatched eyes.
"Oh?" He didn't seem surprised at all.
"I realize that you could kill us all in a heartbeat. You are as strong as Naruto after all, he says so himself… So I know that I can't really stop you or do anything against your will." She paused, as though expecting him to say something.
He shrugged.
"Yeah, guess you could say so."
"But I don't want to be your puppet or a slave to your whims, Uchiha-san," she said quietly but rather vigorously. "If that's what you expect of me, you'll have to kill me… as well as everyone else in my clan. But without my clan, I don't think the village would be able to survive… even with you being its leader."
His eyes narrowed ever so slightly as he realized what exactly she was saying.
"Oh… Interesting. Turns out you aren't as simple-minded as everyone thinks, Hyūga."
She smiled at him timidly.
"I'll take that as a compliment, Uchiha-san."
"That's fine by me. If I sought control, I'd just put you or your old man under Rinnegan's genjutsu and be done with it. That's what I'd do in the past, anyway. But now, I'm trying to learn to be more… civilized when it comes to these things. There was some truth in what Naruto told me all those years ago, after all. One can't rule others by force forever." He smirked, reaching out to her with his only arm. "We have an agreement then, Hyūga."
"Yes." She nodded, taking his hand carefully, though shaking it without any hesitation. "I will follow your lead and help you become the Seventh Hokage. In return, you will treat me and my clan with respect. We will be… partners. Is that acceptable?"
"Yeah. We have a deal."
He smirked, and she smiled widely for the first time in a while. Both of them realized how strange and unusual was this new alliance they had just formed, but at the same time they couldn't help but feel moderately optimistic and excited about it. Because as ridiculous and unheard of a union like this was, that's exactly why they both could see a tiny glimpse of hope behind it. When normality was pushing the world to the abyss, maybe something as blatant and frantic could actually turn the tables. Only time could tell.