Chapter 5

A snowy landscape surrounded them, the wind carried with it the promise of a blizzard as they made their way to the large, abandoned building in the distance. Sasuke had moved them as close as he felt safe, warning her to be on the lookout for traps and anything that was distorted by her own vision. The Otsutsuki had the Byakugan, which meant that there was a high chance that they had anything important obscured by her own vision. He closed his eyes, activating both Sharingan and Rinnegan, glancing to his right to see that her veins were protruding, the slight shift in her eyes indicating her Byakugan was activated as well. She had brought a hand up to the right side of her face, blocking out the wind that swirled snow around them. Her eyes danced around as she looked at everything from a distance.

"I don't see anything that looks concerning. What do you see?" She asked, looking up at him curiously.

"The same. I expected traps at the very least, but it appears they had truly abandoned this long ago. That said, there is information here about the Byakugan Princess I want us both to look at." He looked away from her back to the building in question once she nodded in understanding.

The building was white, but looked nearly gray against the stark white, shimmering snow that had piled up against it, in some places even taller than Sasuke was. Pillars had crumbled in places, one nearly on the ground, a small section still standing tall as they walked between them. The building looked old and barren, crumbling in places similar to the pillars, yet still stood sturdy and tall, a compliment to those who had built it ages ago. They crossed the threshold, the cold seemed to be seeping into their clothes at this point, even their jackets unable to keep the winter at a distance. Hinata moved her fingers, relaxing them to nearly form a fist, looking down to see that they were pink, threatening to be on the verge of red. Looking around, they saw a door to their immediate right and made their way through there. The room had a pile of snow inside, a section of the roof had caved in, and they could see that it was now snowing harder than when they were outside. Beyond the pile of snow sat a statue, one that looked similar to Kaguya, but had cracked and a few parts slightly crumpled from weather and disuse.

As they approached, Hinata could see the words etched into the stone at the feet of the Kaguya statue. She leaned over it, noting that there were no traps and focused on the writing. It took her a moment and as her Byakugan focused, the words seemed to shift before her eyes, causing her to widen them as they continued to form a new sentence. She read the phrase and paused, wondering what that could mean. She looked up at Sasuke who was watching her before she turned back to the wording etched on the stone.

"The one born as the Hyuga Princess will have the purest of Byakugan."

"Interesting. I believe as the first born, that would be the title given to you." Sasuke raised a brow. "Now, the question is what their definition of a 'pure Byakugan' would mean."

"So, could that mean there is a chance that Hanabi is safe?" Hinata asked, looking up at him. "I'll take the chance, but I'd prefer if we can keep her safe."

"I can't safely answer that, but I'm going to go on a hunch and say she isn't safe." Sasuke responded, not looking at her as he continued to study the statue before them. "The biggest question is going to be when they plan to do something about it. Let's head back and let Kakashi know so we can be a few steps ahead."

Hinata hummed in agreement and Sasuke opened a portal behind them, entering and once Hinata's feet touched the ground, she found herself on the Hokage's tower. Sasuke stood beside her, and the portal closed, the only sound heard was the wind as it howled, the cold air biting as it did so. Turning, they both made their way inside, neither one exchanging word as they continued until they found themselves in front of the wooden door, a guard standing outside. He opened the door, allowing them entry without a knock, Sasuke sensing that Kakashi had been expecting them. As they entered, Kakashi was standing behind his chair, looking out the windows that faced the village. He turned, giving them a small smile as he rounded his chair to take a seat, watching as both Sasuke and Hinata had opted to stand.

"Welcome back. Did your mission give us any leads on what you had found, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked, clasping his hands together and leaning his chin on them.

"Yeah, when we got there the wording changed and said that the one born as the Hyuga Princess will have the purest Byakugan. Based on that, it would appear that there is the potential that they plan to steal her eyes." Sasuke responded. "There is also a chance that this could also concern Hanabi Hyuga, as well."

"Not the answer I wanted to hear, but not unexpected. I have a hunch that this will be a concern for us sooner rather than later." Kakashi said.

Sasuke knew that when Kakashi had a hunch, it was usually accurate, which means that this could happen within the next month or two. Sasuke internally sighed, but he had plans to continue his mission, which meant that this would be something Kakashi, and possibly Naruto, would have to deal with in the future. He waited for Kakashi to respond, then would wait until Hinata left to discuss a new mission and possibly going ahead with Sakura. He didn't plan to do this so early, but after having recently seen her, he knew he wanted to be with her. She had wanted to go on a mission with him, so this would be their chance to do just that. The idea of going on a long mission with her was appealing.

"So, I actually need to talk to you both before we depart. While I know that the current predicament is something we need to be vigilant with, something else has come up during your time away. We had a few close to you attempt to change this situation, but unfortunately, they were unable to make changes. What I'm about to discuss with you will need to be dealt with by the two of you, as I have no say in what happens beyond this point." Kakashi looked serious, perhaps a little too serious, which caught Sasuke off guard. Did it have to do with the mission they just went on? Was he expecting Sasuke to babysit this woman to his right?

"Here." He held out a folder, which Hinata took, looking at it curiously. Sasuke glanced over and the images on it caught his attention instantly. The Uchiha clan symbol, along with the Hyuga clan symbol, caught his eye. Hinata opened the folder, eyes scanning the contents and he watched as her face paled slowly over time, hands shaking right before she dropped the folder at her feet, the contents falling perfectly open, exposing the contents that brought horror to her face. Sasuke looked down, his eyes scanning the contents, pausing and then rereading it. His mouth fell open, rereading it a third time before his eyes looked back up at his old sensei, seeing that Kakashi looked apologetic.

"No." Sasuke heard himself say yet felt that he had no control over his own body. "Fix this now, Kakashi."

"Sasuke, I have tried. Hiashi Hyuga has tried. And lastly, both Naruto and Sakura tried. The Hyuga clan elders and the council on behalf of the Uchiha clan, are adamant that this contract remains valid. Our hands are tied as they have the final say per the contract terms. Even with you as the head of the Uchiha clan, they made sure that the decision was not left in your hands, which means that the Konoha council is to be the voice of your clan. Both the council and clan elders feel that this will be beneficial for the village as well as both clans, which is why they want to proceed with this."

Sasuke closed his eyes, nostrils flaring in frustration. After everything that had happened with the Uchiha clan, the council continued to attempt to control them. And they were forcing him to marry someone he didn't know very well, while he had been planning his future with Sakura. That was being stripped out of his hands, his own future and destiny being chosen for him yet again. He knew why Itachi had done what he had done, but he had been forced to seek revenge, forced to spend his life working toward the day he would find and kill his own brother. And now, he was being told who to marry and have kids with and every ounce of him felt a sense of resentment toward everyone. Knowing that Sakura and Naruto had been told before them, seeming to be in hopes that they could fix this situation, appalled him. Sakura knew and that meant she knew whatever they had was over.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but I was told that both my granddaughter and Sasuke Uchiha were here."

Sasuke turned and saw a small, older woman with Hyuga eyes looking between all three of them. Her gray hair was up in a bun, a cane helping her to walk toward them, and he knew this to be one of those who had made this decision on his behalf. He had worked hard to help this village only to be screwed over. He'd let them know how he truly felt and just as he opened his mouth, the woman held up a hand to silence him. He glared at her coldly, flashing his Sharingan to let her see his displeasure. She merely gave him a warm smile, gripping her can as she leaned against it, looking between the two.

"This decision was made before your parents took over the clans. We knew they couldn't make such a decision, but it was needed. We want to help the Uchiha clan rebuild and in doing so, we want to be an ally to you and have you as an ally for us. We feel that over time, for our future generations, this will be a beneficial union. You two being the same age and unmarried has made this decision easier for us to move forward." The woman said Sasuke clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"I have already promised myself to another. Your contract means nothing to me. There are other ways to form an understanding without an arranged marriage playing a role." Sasuke spat at her, noting that she didn't flinch at all.

"A union will cement that. We cannot trust anything else beyond that. Our decision stands and we expect you two to be married in a month's time. I am sorry that you are promised to another, but that relationship must end to uphold the contract. The Konoha council along with ourselves have agreed to the terms of this arrangement and that means the marriage will move forward." The woman tilted her head slightly. "That means that you will need to remain in the village for a while so we can make sure that you are upholding your end. Just as Hinata will need to remain in the village. We will compensate for the loss of income during this time."

"I refuse." Sasuke plainly said.

"Per the council, your refusal will mean that they will reconsider their pardon of your crimes." The woman sneered, watching as Sasuke's eyes widened. "So, you can either marry Hinata or risk the chance of losing some of the benefits you earned."

"I tried everything I could, and they refused to budge. I even went low enough to use my war hero title to sway them. I'm not sure what they are getting out of this, but they told us to quit wasting our time." Naruto sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he sat on Sasuke's couch a few days later. "Sakura-chan was beside herself as they basically refused to even listen to her. Old Man Hiashi and Kakashi thanked us for trying, but it was brutal."

"How is she?" Sasuke asked, pausing from his pacing to look over at his best friend.

"Slowly accepting it. She's cried a lot since finding out, but once we were told that the decision would not change, I think she started accepting it." Naruto sighed. "You and Hinata-chan don't deserve this, ya know?"

Sasuke didn't respond, unsure of what to say even if had wanted to respond to that. He had kept to himself since that discussion, refusing to go near the Hyuga compound and from what had already been said, Hinata seemed to have disappeared as well. He had a feeling she was doing what he was doing, avoiding the world while the clock chimed down to zero. Once he had been threatened with the risk of losing his ability to take missions outside of the village, he knew how low they would go. And as Naruto even mentioned the idea that the Hyuga possibly offered something to get the council to fully agree and not budge. He wondered if the Hyuga had something on the village that they didn't want to have revealed, which he felt was probably closer than the idea that they were bought off. Blackmail was just as useful as money could ever be, which made him frown at the thought.

"Hinata-chan isn't so bad." Naruto offered. "She's really kind and thoughtful. And she could be good for you as she's also quiet."

Sasuke glanced at Naruto, snorting in annoyance, in no mood to hear about it at all. He understood his friend was trying to help him make the best of the situation, but he wasn't ready to accept what was happening to him. He knew eventually he would have to come to grips with it, but each time he considered it, he wondered if accepting the idea of never stepping foot outside of the village was worth it. While they couldn't simply revoke the pardon entirely and make him pay for his crimes, they could very easily deprive him of the benefits they gave him. The woman had more or less said that they would bring him back in and restart the proceedings and strip him of some of his rights - the ones that mattered most. He clicked his tongue at the thought, earning attention from Naruto at the random noise.

"You know they are not trying to punish you because you are an Uchiha, right?" Naruto asked, looking at him curiously.

"Yeah, I know. It's more to keep me in line so that I go through with this ridiculous arranged marriage." Sasuke sighed. "If they think they will control me the moment I marry a Hyuga, they can forget about it. I will not be a puppet for a clan that threatened me."

"Nah, and I don't think Hinata would allow it, either." Naruto offered. "Neji told me that she's taking this hard, too."

"You should ask her why." Sasuke offered, knowing that she needed to confess her feelings to Naruto before the big day.

"I plan to go see her soon." Naruto went quiet and a moment later, there was a knock on the door. Naruto went over to the door, opening it and paused. "Hinata-chan."

"May I come in?" She asked, her voice soft, but Sasuke was still able to hear her. He watched Naruto step aside and she entered, wearing clothes that felt out of place for someone of her status. Her attire felt out of place as she had on black sandals, black pants, a white top, and black cardigan. The shirt and cardigan seemed baggy on her; the pants borderline just as baggy. Her shinobi attire had been tighter on her, but he had a feeling that this is what made her feel more comfortable and confident. "Um, I wanted to talk about the… arranged marriage."

"Oh, I'll head out then. Hinata-chan, mind if we meet up tomorrow for lunch?" Naruto asked, looking at her hopefully.

"Sure, Naruto-kun." Hinata blushed, watching Naruto leave before slowly turning back to Sasuke, her cheeks going pale once more. "I've been thinking about it. Well, more like I didn't have a choice as the elders simply forced me to."

"They made you come over here, didn't they?" Sasuke asked.

Hinata blushed, "is it that obvious?"

Silence fell nearly instantly at her admission, but he wasn't surprised, feeling that she was taking this nearly the same way he was. However, she probably was able to keep her personal opinions to herself more than he could, even if he was known for being detached. A part of him wanted to lash out, to simply upset her enough that it would upset her family and they would change their minds. He knew that wouldn't work and all he would do is make the situation between them uncomfortable. He noted she was fiddling with the hem of her cardigan, eyes fixed on it as though it was the most interesting thing in the room. She had to be one of the very few females he had come across to not try to annoy him with dates and attention seeking.

"You should confess to Naruto when you see him tomorrow." He suddenly blurted out, watching her look up at him, mouth slightly agape. "It will be easier to do it knowing nothing will come of it."

"Oh." She murmured. "I had considered doing that, but it feels like I would be wasting my time."

"Sounds like something I would say." He smirked, watching her face soften at his own joke.

"I guess you rubbed off on me during the mission." She brought a hand up to stifle the giggle as she said it. "Well, I came here to discuss our arranged marriage. I'm sorry that my family is forcing this upon you, but I'm hoping we can find middle ground and learn to accept each other at least."

"You don't annoy me, so I guess that's the first step." Sasuke shrugged. "I'm not going to take my frustrations out on you, if that's what you are worried about. You're in the same situation I am in, so it wouldn't be fair for me to treat you poorly when this wasn't your choice."

Hinata nodded. "I just feel bad that Sakura-chan was hurt by this. I know how she felt about you."

Sasuke chuckled darkly. "I had planned to take her on my next mission, start a relationship with her. All I've ever been to her was a burden and I felt it was time for me to make things right with her. While I know that my feelings developed out of her persistence and love for me, I learned to love her back. Last time I was here, I visited her and knew that I felt the same way about her. Now, that's gone and there isn't anything I can do about it. I have to let her go and watch her fall in love with someone that isn't me. That choice was taken from me."

"Sasuke-san, I'm so sorry about that." Hinata's eyes were wide and glossy, as though she could cry at any moment. "Sakura-chan truly loves you and I know how she feels, but I'm sorry that you are hurting, too."

"As you said, you know how she feels. It was obvious to me that you felt that way about Naruto. All I can do is promise that I'll make an effort to at least be your friend and possibly find a way to get a divorce later on." He smirked, watching a smile form on her own face.

"Divorcing with the intent to lead happy lives I can agree with." Hinata smiled up at him, her fingers finally dropping from her cardigan. "Thank you, Sasuke-san."

She waved to him, which he returned and made her way to the door, opening it and taking a step back. On the other side was pink hair and green eyes, which surprised the two of them. Sasuke felt a mix of emotions wrap around him like a vice, seeing Sakura stand on the other side of that door. Seeing Hinata stand between them was only confirmation of the circumstances that waited for them in the future. Hinata gave an abrupt apology and left, closing the door behind her as Sakura took her shoes off, refusing to meet Sasuke's eyes. He rounded the counter, having stood behind it for a while as though it would provide a safety barrier between him and what awaited him.

"Sakura."

"Sasuke-kun, I needed to hear it from you. I need to hear it before I lose you forever." Sakura whimpered out, looking up at him with tears in her eyes. "Please."

He knew what she was asking and he felt torn, knowing that he hadn't prepared to confess such strong emotions, yet he knew he didn't have the time anymore to do it. He came to stand close to her, feeling her body heat envelop him like a blanket. He reached out, cupping her cheek in his hand and feeling the weight of her head in his palm. This beautiful woman who stood before him was now no longer an option for him, no longer someone he can come home to. He hated everything in that moment, but he stuffed those feelings down, focusing on just her and what she asked of him in that moment. He knew after today, he would have to let her go in every way, only being able to view her as a friend. He gulped as he watched her eyes search his, looking down at the woman who held every bit of his heart in her hands. Before their lips met, before they clung to each other one last time, their kiss meant to be a goodbye as they were forced to move on from each other, he uttered what she wanted to hear. Hearing her repeat those words back to him right before they shared a long, heated kiss. His heart shattered in her hands, and he clung to her as long as he could.

"I love you."

A/N: Got this out a bit sooner than planned. I plan to entirely focus on the other story before coming back to this one, however. So keep that in mind as I'm trying to make sure that both stories get my attention! Now, I want to answer a few review responses I received before getting to the others, as I felt they needed a more thorough explanation.

What Sakura meant in her comment of "your mission require someone like her" wasn't meant to be a stab at Hinata or her abilities. As we know, Sasuke leaves for long periods of time and his missions are a bit more unique than that of a regular shinobi (dimension hopping). In reference to her saying that, it's something even I would think if I lived in that universe. It's more of how his missions are and long term doesn't fit how we know Hinata to be. It definitely wasn't a stab at her as a person by any means.

To reference your meaning of Sasuke saying that there was nothing between he and Sakura, can I ask where this was? I may have missed it or perhaps something came across to give that idea, but I only recall Sasuke saying "don't be annoying", which I feel would be his way of telling Naruto to mind his business. That may not be what you were meaning, but I want to go ahead and ask anyways in case there was a different area that I need to fix for this. As I believe I mentioned this in a previous AN, there is definitely a thing between them and I wanted that clear. I feel in canon, they had established something by this point and I wanted that showcased.

So, for me, knowing that Hinata has a crush on Naruto doesn't feel like he knows Hinata, especially specific details? When I have gotten into the series and have been well into Boruto, I have always gotten the impression that Sasuke is observant when he wants to be. And as we know him to have had fangirls, I have no doubt he noticed many of them gawking at him. I would like to think that he would have noticed Hinata, thought she was just another one, and then eventually realized she was only around when Naruto was. I wouldn't think that means he knows anything about her other than through observation where Sasuke is concerned. Like if he knew she liked cinnamon rolls or that she made ointments, then yeah, that would for sure contradict things. However, this version I'm writing of Sasuke knows none of these things. The only personal thing either of them knows is that Hinata knows Sasuke likes tomatoes. However, you are definitely welcome to feel differently, or if there is something else that stuck out as weird, you can let me know for sure!

I hinted to this in this chapter, and I won't go into big details JUST yet, but with Kakashi allowing Hiashi to tell them, there is a method to my madness. Obviously it means that Kakashi and Hiashi had discussed doing this prior. While we now know that Naruto and Sakura did attempt to sway the decision, that plays a role in why they found out before. Could it be that Hiashi and Kakashi had hoped Naruto could sway them? Or did they just tell them to see what they would do? That's something we will find out later. As for approval, I will go ahead and say that obviously for a contract like this, Hinata and Sasuke do not get a say, which we learned in this chapter. If they did, obviously they would not marry each other and then we don't get the arranged marriage trope story. Especially as I want to stick to canon a bit and why feelings are involved with other people. I don't intend to make Sakura or Naruto unlikable or villains in this story at all. So, it would be hard to have Sasuke agree unless I just made him outright not return her feelings, which I didn't want to go down that route. I went with the drama aspect of it and followed canon a tiny bit while giving Naruto feelings a bit earlier on, too. The Last bugs me in how his feelings developed, so I wanted to change that up a bit for myself.

I do hope my responses made sense and helped to clarify a few things I'm willing to share. I'll get to the other reviews, as well!

I-Love-Trunks1: I'm so glad those scenes stuck out. The food scene was a fun one to write as I wanted something to be a little more lighthearted between the two of them.

50ShadesofSharkey: Well, now you have your answer to how they took the news!

Guest: Thank you for the comments. That meant a lot! I'm glad that my last story was able to get your attention enough to continue with me onto new adventures! I do hope that I do this one well and it is enjoyable for you! You may have been one of the more public ones to mention the arranged marriage trope in my previous story. You can correct me if I'm wrong. Lol

Guest: Thank you! You more or less answered a lot of my same answers, but I wanted to go ahead and do so. I'm good with you giving it more time before commenting. Definitely let me know if you have concerns or questions along the way!

This goes for everyone! I'm always good with responding to things as long as they don't outright flame due to personal preferences (such as pairings). I don't use a Beta (may consider it eventually) and I'm dipping my toes into the fanfiction world, so I am good with anyone who brings up concerns. If I need to go back and reword things, the following chapter after an update will explain the update, where, and (if my memory doesn't fail me), which paragraph so that anyone who wants/needs the update can go and find it easily. And again, I will be focusing on my other story for a few chapters, so this one may go a bit, but I felt the need to update and also answer a few questions. If there are more, they will need to wait a bit sadly, but I'll do my best to make sure they are acknowledged each time I can.

Thank you for the continued follows, favorites, and reviews! They are always appreciated!