Summary: His thoughts on his children, Branch Family Members such as himself, and his wife. Unlike before, however, the Main Family served only to become heirs and the Branch Family was no longer caged to serve.
Pairings: Implied Neji/Tenten
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, at all. All the characters belong to Kishimoto Masashi-sensei.
As Time Passes
Thoughts on the Family
Colorless irises looked at the two seven year olds in front, sparring and practicing their Jyuuken, the style of the Hyuuga Clan. It had been eight years since he married, a young man of twenty-three back then. A year later, his wife bore his heritage, their twins, one male, the other female.
He could hear their chakra crackling against each other. He could vaguely see traces of their power heating up the air around them. He was four when the Cursed Seal was burned onto his head, still there even after all those years. They were seven and no seal decorated their foreheads. The new leader of the Hyuuga Clan thought it useless to continue such a tradition and for that, he was thankful.
His son was like him in many ways, cold, calm and calculating in battle, even at such a young age. His daughter was like their mother, able to see through subtle actions. His wife was able to do that after years of experience with him.
They both looked like him, their long dark hair the same, their eyes and the way their face was shaped. His son, however, was growing up to look like his spitting image. His daughter, despite the fact that her face told that she was his daughter, the rest of her body said she was his wife's child.
He had harbored hate for the Main Family and had nearly killed his cousin during the first Chuunin Exams he had partaken in. His wife had managed to calm him down afterwards, to a certain extent that he'd leave his cousin and her life alone.
His train of thoughts was broken as he saw his children taking up their sparring up a notch. They were both talented, talented such as him when he was younger. He, however, knew they were no geniuses like he. They wouldn't be able to figure out neither the Hakkeshou: Kaiten nor the Hakkeshou: Rokujuu Yonshou all by themselves, yet, he was glad that they were his heritage.
Time passed by quickly as he continued watching his children spar, fond memories of himself and his wife training as Genin, Chuunin and even Jounin of Konoha.
"Otou-sama, Otou-sama!" came a feminine voice as she latched onto her father's arm, a wide grin on her face. He was rarely ever at home, usually out on dangerous missions.
"Otou-sama, how were we?" asked his son as he looked at his father, a serious look on his face.
"Good, you were both very good," he said with all sincerity as he wriggled his right arm away from his daughter's grasp, patting them both on the head.
"Okaa-sama, what do you think?" asked their daughter as they looked at her mother. The older female's brown eyes twinkled as she walked over to her daughter.
"You both remind me of when your father and I used to spar, back in the day," she said with a tone of finality in her voice. The twins cheered with glee. A smile appeared on their faces, hers a wide grin and his, a soft tilt of his lips.
"Ryuuji, Ruiko," spoke their father as he stood up, a sigh escaping his lips. The twins looked intently at the male who easily towered over them. "Come on, I'll teach you more about your Byakugan and the Jyuuken," he said with the same soft tilt on his lips. His children squealed with glee as they ran up to him, eager for lessons.
"Remember, don't be so hard on them!" called out his wife. Her words fell on deaf ears as he led the excited children towards the center of the room. A defeated sigh escaped her lips as her brown eyes watched. This time, she wouldn't watch a solitary Hyuuga practice the Jyuuken stance. She would see the same Hyuuga but beside him were his, their, children, practicing the same stances.
He was glad that they were his, Hyuuga Neji's, heritage, brought forth into this world by his wife, Hyuuga Tenten. He was thankful and grateful to his cousin for abolishing the need for a Cursed Seal on Branch Family members. He vaguely wondered at times how his children would react to having on branded on their foreheads but he quickly dismissed the thought.
And for once, he was happy to be a Branch Family Member, with absolutely no duties except to protect his family from any danger that might befall them.
--- Owari ---
I was bored so I decided to write a Neji/Ten. Been a while since I did so and I hope you liked it.
This chapter has been kindly beta'd by cherri-chan!
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