A/N: Wow, a ton of reviews. 23 to be exact. I love you people.
Chapter two: Pain
Naruto was restless. "Neji-niisan, I can't sleep." The three year old told his brother.
"Count sheep." Neji suggested before quickly falling asleep.
Naruto sighed; his brother never had any trouble getting to sleep. He, on the other hand, had way too much energy to fall asleep any time soon. He got out of bed, deciding to train for a while so he could wear himself out. He could always use training; he was the only Hyuuga he knew of that didn't have the funky eye thingy. He had to make up for it, so he trained harder than the other kids of his age, often joining Neji in practicing with some of the older shinobi. Everything was so tough for Naruto; out of the entire practice group, he had the worst chakra control by far. Naruto decided to change that tonight. He was going to practice until he could perform all the practice maneuvers perfectly. Or until he was ready to go to sleep, whichever came first. "Ok, time to do this!" Naruto shouted excitedly.
"Naruto, go to bed!" His father shouted from his room.
"Ok!" Naruto said before making his way outside.
"Is that boy ever going to learn any respect?" Hizashi said, exasperated.
"I doubt it. You're just jealous they won't allow you to act like that." Yamashita replied, "Now, where were we?" She said seductively.
"You said you still wanted a daughter." Hizashi replied, turning towards his lovely wife.
"Oh yes, that's right. Now I remember."
"Hmm, what should I try first?" Naruto grinned. "I know; I'll go climb the trees outside the walls. They never let me go out there like the other shinobi. Now I get to see what's so special about the outside." Naruto snuck through the shadows carefully, avoiding the guards. He didn't have much to worry about other than a direct confrontation, since he was below the range of their eye thingy. Naruto carefully climbed over the wall, quickly falling to the ground and looking around to make sure he hadn't been spotted. When he was sure it was safe, he chose the tallest tree he could find and began training. "Ugh, this is hard; why does everyone else get it so easily?" Naruto grumbled, after working for an hour, and only having gotten about halfway up the tree. "Ok, I'm gonna keep trying until I get it done. I won't take back my words; it's my ninja way!" Now revitalized, Naruto attacked his training with renewed fervor. Slowly but surely, Naruto approached the top of the tree. "Almost there," Naruto's energy was finally starting to flag. "I've got to try once more. I can do this." Naruto said to himself as he prepared himself for one last run. Naruto ran at the tree, focusing chakra in his feet as he drew near to the tree. "Here goes nothing!" Naruto yelled as he hit the tree and kept running, his body parallel to the ground. Just as he was nearing the top, he felt himself faltering, "No! Not when I'm so close!" With an extra burst of speed, he made it to the top…and barely stopped himself from running off the tree in its entirety. "Haha! I did it!." Naruto panted heavily from exhaustion. "I can't wait to show Neji-neechan!"
Just then, some movement caught Naruto's eye. "What's someone doing out here at this time?" Naruto wondered. He leapt from branch to branch through the trees, his tiredness forgotten in the pursuit of getting a better look at whoever was out at this strange hour. He nearly fell out of the tree when he saw who it was. It was a stranger, a foreign shinobi, and if that wasn't strange enough, what, or rather, who he was carrying did. He was carrying his cousin, Hyuuga Hinata. Naruto didn't know what was happening, but he was sure of one thing: it wasn't normal. Naruto jumped down, startling the man. "HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Naruto yelled.
Lights flickered on in the Hyuuga compound. "Look what you've done now, brat. Damn it! Looks like I'll have to take two prisoners tonight." The man said as he quickly knocked Naruto out cold, or so he thought.
"WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" Naruto yelled as he rubbed the back of his head, grimacing. "YOU'RE NOT A VERY NICE MAN!"
"You are most certainly the loudest Hyuuga I've ever met." The man muttered as he dropped into a combat stance. "You've ruined everything, brat; I hope you're happy."
"There he is! The man who kidnapped the heir! Get him!" Shouts came from all directions.
"I've failed you, my family. But I've done my duty to the Cloud." The man said as Hiashi ended his life with a quick blow to the heart.
"N-naruto-san?" Hinata spoke softly.
"Huh? You say something, Hinata?" Naruto looked at the small, shy girl.
"I-I just wanted to…" Hinata started.
"What? Speak up, Hinata; I can't understand you." Naruto said, leaning closer to her.
"T-thank you, N-naruto-san." Hinata said, slightly louder.
"Eh? For what?" Naruto was confused.
"F-for helping stop the s-scary m-man." Hinata answered.
"Oh, I didn't help that much." Naruto said, scratching the back of his head. "You should be thanking your father; he's the one that stopped the guy."
"But he wouldn't have known about him if you hadn't yelled for help." Hinata pointed out shyly.
"Huh? I didn't yell for help; that's how I always greet strangers carrying off important people in the middle of the night." Naruto replied, confused.
Hinata laughed, "Of course you do, Naruto-san."
"You don't need to call me Naruto-san. It's embarrassing." Naruto said, instinctively moving his hand behind his head again.
"Ok, what do you want to be called?" Hinata asked tentatively.
"It doesn't matter to me; anything except –san or –sama." Naruto shrugged.
"Umm, Naruto, I don't know any other endings." Hinata said.
"That's perfect!" Naruto said excitedly.
"What?" It was Hinata's turn to be puzzled.
"You can call me Naruto!" He exclaimed excitedly.
"Are you sure? That seems kind of informal." Hinata questioned softly.
"Eh! What's that?" Naruto questioned, scrunching his face in thought.
"Never mind; Naruto it is." Hinata said.
"Nani! What do you mean you're leaving?" Naruto was frantic. "When are you coming back?"
"I'm afraid I won't be coming back." Hizashi replied calmly.
"Why not?" The last comment hadn't calmed him down any.
"I have to do it for the good of the main family." Hizashi said.
"Who cares about the main family? You can't leave us, Otou-san!" Naruto argued.
"I'm sorry; everything will be explained when you are able to understand. Just remember this: I love you and your mom." Hizashi said as he left to talk to Neji.
"I heard, father. It's ok, you don't have to explain anything; I understand." Neji said coolly.
"I'm sorry I have to out you through this, son. Promise me you'll take care of your mother and brother for me." Hizashi said seriously.
"I will, father. That's one thing you don't have to worry about." Neji responded solemnly.
"I'm gonna go see your mother now." Hizashi said as he tousled his son's hair for the last time.
"Honey?" Hizashi spoke into the dark room. He didn't hear a response for a moment, until the sound of muffled sobbing reached his ears.
"It's ok, just let it out, I'm here for you." Hizashi comforted her.
"But you won't be for much longer!" Yamashita pointed out, breaking into a fresh round of tears.
"Shh, please, don't let our last moments together be miserable. I would prefer you enjoy these moments while they last." Hizashi said, wrapping his arms around his young wife.
"How is that even possible?" Yamashita inquired, looking into his eyes.
"Well, there's always your goal." Hizashi suggested with a glint in his eyes.
"Which goal?" Yamashita asked, although she had a pretty good idea of where he was heading with this.
"Your goal of having a daughter, of course." Hizashi answered nonchalantly.
"How can you think of that kind of thing at a moment like this?" Yamashita chided.
"What? I'm jus trying to do what I can to assuage your grief." Hizashi defended himself.
"I'm sure." Yamashita said, still staring suspiciously at her husband.
"Well, if you don't want to…" Hizashi said, walking toward the door.
"Just shut up and close the door." Yamashita told him.
"I thought you'd say that." Hizashi said, obeying his wife's command.
A pall hung over the celebration of the heir's third birthday, although it would have been more accurate to call it a gathering than a celebration. The recent sacrifice of the chief's brother was in everyone's mind, even more so for four of the people present. "I'm bored!" Naruto complained to his older brother.
"It's something you'll have to get used to, if you ever want to succeed as a Hyuuga."
"I don't see why you can't have fun and be a great ninja at the same time." Naruto grumbled.
"Don't question tradition." Neji said sternly.
"You need to lighten up." Naruto said before walking off, "I'm gonna go find someone who's less of a prick."
"He's so naïve." Neji said with a smirk as he watched his brother try in vain to start conversations with a group of elders.
"Sheesh, what's with these people? No one wants to do anything." He muttered.
"Ano…"
"Hmm?" Naruto looked around, "Did someone say something?"
"Ano…Naruto?"
"Oh, there you are, Hinata. Speak up, I can barely hear you." Naruto told the small girl.
"Are you having… a good time?" Hinata asked quietly.
"Heh! Oh sure, how could I not have fun with all these exciting people around?" Naruto gestured toward the crowd in frustration.
"I'm sorry." Hinata apologized. "It's all my fault." She looked at her feet and rubbed her fingers together.
"Eh? It's not your fault! This is the longest conversation I've had yet!" Naruto exclaimed, earning some glares from the elders.
"Really? But… I've hardly said anything." Hinata said.
"Yeah, says something about our clan, huh?" Naruto said with a grin.
Hinata giggled, "I suppose. Ano, Naruto?"
"Yeah, Hinata?" Naruto looked at her, interest showing on his face.
"Do you mind if I ask you a question?" Hinata inquired hesitantly.
"Hahaha, not at all, go ahead." Naruto replied.
"Why…why are you different from everyone else?" Hinata asked quietly.
Naruto looked at her suspiciously, "Why do you care?"
Hinata blushed, "You don't have to answer…if you don't want to."
"Ah, I don't mind. Well, my mom told me I have a gift. As you can tell, I'm the only Hyuuga without dark hair or funky eyes." Hinata instinctively brought her hand to her face. "I'll even tell you a secret." Naruto said conspiratorially, motioning for her to lean forward. Hinata brought her face close to Naruto's, blushing deeply. "My full name is Hyuuga Omiyage Naruto, because my mom says I'm a gift to the Hyuuga clan." Naruto whispered proudly.
"That's wonderful, Naruto." Hinata said, and then looked down at her feet, "I doubt there's anything special about me." She said sadly.
"Don't say that, Hinata. Everyone has something special about them." Naruto said passionately. "Anyway, isn't this your party?" He asked.
"Yeah, but…" Hinata started.
"No buts. I think you're special, and that means it's true." Naruto said firmly.
"Ok." Hinata gave in shyly.
"Well, since this is your party, you should have some fun!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly.
"How?" Hinata asked.
"Hmm…I'm not sure. Thinking is hard work; let's go get some food!" Naruto suggested loudly, pulling Hinata behind him to the table covered with all varieties of expensive food. However, before they could find anything that looked remotely edible on the table, a ringing interrupted them, and Hinata was rushed away to her assigned spot at the head table.
"Attention" Hiashi's voice permeated the area. "I'd like to thank everyone for attending. Now, I'd like to acknowledge the young lady. Hinata, please present yourself to the elders." Hinata curtsied toward the specified table. "If anyone would like to make a toast, now is the time to do so." A number of elders walked forward, toasting to boring stuff, such as the continued prosperity of the clan, a long life for the head and heir of the clan, etc. To put it simply, Naruto was bored again, and he bet Hinata felt the same way. 'Who cares about all this junk?" Naruto wondered to himself, 'Everyone deserves to have a good time on their birthday, so it's up to me to make sure she does.' Naruto decided, stealthily making his way to the area where the elders were making their long-winded toasts. Although he didn't see why they were called toasts, he hadn't even seen any bread around, much less a toaster. Naruto grinned, imagining the elders as toasters in formal kimonos. "Almost there. Wait…Now!" Naruto said to himself, rushing into the midst of the elders as soon as one finished speaking. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HINATA!" Naruto yelled out before anyone noticed his presence.
Hiashi shook his head at his young nephew's antics. "Would someone please apprehend that young boy?" Hiashi nearly let a grin come to his face, watching the elders move in confusion as the three year-old evaded their grasp. The grin finally appeared when he looked at his daughter, who was subconsciously smiling as she followed the blonde's antics. A guard approached and whispered in Hiashi's ear; duty called. Hiashi walked toward a special building in the Hyuuga compound.
Hiashi wished he could wait a few more years to do this, but the council had decided that Neji needed to step into his father's role as the protector of the heir, therefore the sealing ceremony had to be moved forward. "Neji, I'm sorry you have to go through all this at such a young age." Hiashi said to the young boy kneeling in front of him.
"I understand. It is what must be done for the good of the clan." Neji said, his voice devoid of emotion.
"Well, waiting won't do anyone any good. We might as well proceed with the sealing." Hiashi said, performing some hand seals. "Juin Jutsu!"
Neji gritted his teeth and waited for the pain to subside.
(That evening)
"Neji-niisan!" Naruto called out. "I wonder where he is; I didn't even see him at Hinata's party. If you can call something that formal a party.' Naruto said to himself. A grin crept onto his face, "At least it got more interesting when all those geezers started chasing me around."
"So you've returned." Neji's voice greeted the boy at the door.
"I didn't see you at the party; where were you?" Naruto asked.
"Clan business." Neji stated simply. "Nothing you need to worry about."
"Aw, come on Neji-niisan, you can tell me." Naruto pleaded.
"Alright, but remember, you asked for it." Neji said, moving into the light.
"WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR FOREHEAD?" Naruto exclaimed, sticking his finger in his brother's face.
"Calm down, your behavior is not becoming of a Hyuuga. This is the seal that marks me as a member of the branch family. This means that the sole concern of my existence is to protect the main family. It's fate." Neji explained.
Naruto burst out laughing, completely ruining the mood. "Please, don't tell me you believe all that junk you just spouted." Naruto said, holding his sides.
"Of course I do, and you should as well. The sooner you accept that, the easier life will be on you."
Naruto stopped laughing and looked his brother in his funky eyes "You're wrong, brother. The only person in charge of your fate is you. If you believe otherwise, then you're dumber than I thought." Naruto said seriously.
"What about father?" Neji countered, "You think he wanted to die? He didn't have a say in his fate, now did he?"
"Of course he didn't want to die! But you're wrong; he did have a say in his fate! He's just like the Yondaime!" Naruto replied.
"How do you figure! Neji scorned, although his interest was piqued.
"Can't you see? The Yondaime didn't have to die! He could have escaped and left Konoha to fend for itself. But he didn't, because that would have meant sacrificing thousands of lives. Our father did the same thing! He didn't have to die, but refusing the Cloud's demands would have meant war for Konoha! We're not ready for that; even I know that! Our father is every bit the hero the Yondaime was!" Naruto finished forcefully.
Neji pondered his younger brother's words. Perhaps there was something to what he was saying, "Thank you, Naruto; I hadn't thought about it that way. I will consider what you've told me tonight." Neji said before walking into his room.
A/N: Wow, I love this fic. I hope most of you out there feel the same. This is nearly 400 words longer than my previous longest chapter, but you guys deserve it. Next chapter, a two year time jump, and the reason for the title! You've been wondering, haven't you?
I'm only going to respond to meaningful reviews. I'll just list the rest.
YaminekoHyousai: Congrats on the first review. I'm not completely decided, but I'm sorta leaning toward random fights in the chuunin exam. So the Neji-Naruto fight could happen, it just has about as much a chance as anything else. :shrug: I'm always open to suggestions.
Stormraven: I'm psychic. I knew you were going to ask those questions, so I answered them.
mackan56: Hope my time jump choice worked for you.
harukakanata: Those are very possible pairings. Although, I can't promise you how much I'll focus on people besides Naruto.
Hisoka316: He may end up saying that anyway. But I can't say anything yet.
Dragonien and Shikamaru: You write it; I'll read it.
Flameraven1: Your questions will each be answered in due time.
Dragon Man 180: Good guess.
cheeseburger: Well, I'm on the nature side of the nature-nurture debate. That should explain Naruto's personality.
Blinkin: Over the top? Perhaps. But just remember who he's related to.
The Gandhara: Duly noted.
Joker: Wait and see.
A huge thank you goes to Dairrokkan, raging hobo, raven, Leoj49OP, Shinta Azechi, the DragonBard, Rook, warprince2000, nonengel, Wrath of air, and KageSakura for their support. If you want individual recognition, ask a question. I'll answer it, although it might be a vague answer if it's part of the storyline.