The lost princess.
The most important Clan of Konoha has decided to marry their first-born to strengthen the Alliance between Nations. The most anticipated event of the year is threatened by a very unique trio, wich could symbolize the peace of the most powerful Village in shinobi world or the emergence of new conflicts.
Chapter 9: Destination.
Amid the sea of emotions Inori again felt his sharingan falter until it was turned off. His brother again found himself in his cell letting tears flow. Meanwhile Itachi hugged his children tightly trying to assuage their crying. Especially Takara.
-It seems that she has fallen asleep- Itachi pressed her closer to his chest, she was curled up.
-I imagined that she would be the one who would have more work to process ... this situation. -
-You don't have to play strong, let me be the one to carry everything Inori. They are children, and it is okay to feel sad and cry-
-I tell you the same dad- she smiled, wiping her tears. "We're not going to judge you for it." - Surprised with the response of his eldest son, he stroked his head affectionately and smiled genuinely. - Hinata did a great job. He educated them well-
-Yes ... just don't pay too much attention to Takeshi.-
-Don't worry, that got it out of Sasuke. It's not your mother's fault- they both laughed, oddly enough. Forgetting for a moment what was happening.
-Dad ... Could we go to mom's room again? I would like to try something.
- You're sure?-
-Yes, we don't know how much time you have left ...
The sounds of the machines connected to Hinata were the only thing that could be heard in the room. Wich would be etched in his memory forever, even the worn image of his mother.
-I don't have much chakra left, but I will try to endure as much as I can-
Inori put all his attention on his mother, he wasn't sure if he would make it. The previous two times it had been sheer luck, but she had to try, with all her heart. It hurt her soul, but if she could give her parents one last meeting, she would. Perhaps, destiny; a word that samurai used frequently and that he had never paid much attention to, it was a reality.
Fate was for him to inherit the Sharingan and the Byakugan by this very moment. With hope as his only guide and relying on the age-old heritage of his eyes, he activated his chakra. Crimson and white met, flowing at top speed.
For Itachi, everything happened in the blink of an eye, the hospital scene changed and became that place of flowers that his eldest son described to him. And there among the sunflowers, from behind, was the only woman he had never been able to forget. Her hair rocked majestically. And then the memories assaulted his mind.
This image had lived before, on that mission in the Land of Grass. Hinata running among flowers, passionately explaining each property and detail of them. He remembered himself seeing her as a fool, studying every movement of her lips, memorizing each smile, each tucking a lock of her hair behind her ears.
When he saw her turn around, he forgot to breathe, again that 21-year-old boy felt inexperienced, who had no idea what love was. She smiled at him and thought that this time he would be the one to pass out from excitement. I walk slowly and smoothly toward him. When they were face to face he placed a hand on her cheek.
"Inori has brought you to me." He stroked the marks under her eyes that he liked so much.
-Hi-Hinata-
-It seems that the roles have been reversed. I never thought to see you stutter- he smiled as tenderly as he remembered.
After that conversation about his feelings and what was happening with Naruto, both of them became closer. She did not cry again at night and he felt relaxed for the first time. Of course, at no point had his guard lowered, but for some reason, he felt free and without the usual pressures. At times I forgot that they were there for a mission and not for a honeymoon, as many people had thought.
She would never forget the blush that caused her the first time the chambermaid on the ship on wich they were traveling to the Land of Grass mentioned that they would have beautiful children. According to a legend from his village, children conceived in the sea used to belong to the moon, so they would be healthy and strong, but without a doubt, with the appearance of both they would be beautiful creatures.
He, in a momentus more hormonal than for the mission, far from denying or letting her clarify it, took her by the waist possessively and brought her cheeks closer, winking at the pleasant lady. That was the first time she had passed out in his arms and found it fun to push her to the limits of her emotions.
When he awoke they were already installed in the small cabin. She was lying on the simple double bed, next to her there was a small table with the necessary to prepare tea and a basket with many colored leaves. Itachi was sitting next to him reading a little book, which he was thankful for was not the famous Icha Icha Paradise.
He left his reading for a moment to smile at her calmly. "How is Hinata-san feeling?"
"Well, I'm sorry I passed out," he replied sadly as he sat down.
-It was my fault, I should have been more cautious. I just thought they better think that we are newlywed couple to Konoha ninjas.
-Ti-you're right Itachi-san. I'm sorry I didn't measure up. What are you reading?" He asked with marked curiousity.
"This?" She moved the book slightly. "The kind chambermaid from a long time ago gave it to me." Along with these herbs for you- she smiled scratching her cheek with some pity.
Hinata fixed her gaze on the book. "Manual for New Parents" - She turned red up to her ears. Apparently the old woman had thought she was already pregnant. He had taken the trouble to leave her with a variety of teas for the ailments, including blood pressure drops. The last thing he remembered was Itachi's black eyes filled with concern before he fainted again.
Itachi made sure he had hot tea ready for her when she came to.
-I'm really sorry Itachi-san. I've always been ... too shy for my own good.
Maybe if her family hadn't been so hard on her from a very young age, this wouldn't be the case.
It was logical that she had trouble getting along with men; when the most important male figures in her life had given her nothing but anger, pain, and rejection. Added to the bad luck of falling in love with someone who could never reciprocate. Unconsciously he had sought the image of everything opposite to what he had seen during his life.
First his father, for whom he was not enough, no matter what he accomplished. Then her cousin Neji, who as far as she had heard had almost killed her during the chunin exams. And the cherry on the cake, the elders of the council, mostly men. The only thing she could give them credit for was the fact that they did not discriminate against her for being a woman. The council didn't care about her gender, they wanted results, period.
-Okay, those details in the personality are what define us and make us who we are.
-Being shy has always brought me a lot of problems. I've been trying for years to get over it and just stop being who I am.
- And who are you?
-Just an incomplete kunoichi. The shame of the Hyuuga clan. The mission hasn't started yet and Itachi-san has already seen the worst in me. - He emitted a force smile with resignation.
-Do you really think that?
"You don't? Both of them were completely silent for a few seconds.
-Can I tell you, what I really think? -
Hinata sipped some of her tea and nodded.
-I think you are being very unfair to yourself. The fact that she not the strongest kunoichi in the world or the most outstanding of her clan does not make her incomplete or deficient. I know from ANBU that despite Neji Hyuuga's assassination attempt, you forgave him. I don't know anyone with such a big heart for such an act. The entire town does not stop talking about the brave young woman who face Pain, face to face, to protect Naruto. There were many shinobi nearby, and they preferred to depend on what Naruto would do, and seeing him cornered they lost hope, not you. Regardless of your reasons, you knew you could buy time and that could mean the difference between victory or defeat. Only a shinobi with clear conviction and courage would do what you did. Even now, with his feelings shattered and without fully recovering from that attack, here he is. Willing to face anything in order to serve her clan and her village. And she has accomplished all of this despite having the world against her, despite disapproval and rejection, Hinata Hyuuga, the heir to Konoha's most important clan, has never given up.
Hinata almost dropped her mug from the impression. Even Itachi looked surprised. ¿ Where had all that?
"G-thank you Itachi-san." She smiled shyly with her cheeks flushed. Without warning he placed a hand on her head, as if it were a little girl, ruffling her hair. -And added to all that, Hinata-san is a very beautiful woman. - Fortunately she had already finished her tea, otherwise she would have spilled everything on herself when she fell unconscious for the third time.
I would be lying if I said that I had never fantasized about a woman or had an erotic dream. What, if it was true,was that he could count the fingers of one hand how many times it had happened. In his mind, and even more so in his subconscious, he seemed to only have room to fight, fight and fight. In his dreams the faces of those who had perished under his sharingan and his sword used to appear. Except that night, he woke up sweeting, but it was not from fear or adrenaline as on other occasions. He was excited, VERY excited, and Hinata being fast asleep next to him didn't help at all. In his dreams he had crearly perceived his scent, as well as the heat of his breath colliding very close to his neck and the sound that came from his nostrils as he exhaled.
He had just had the most vivid fantasy of his 21 years. There in that same cabin, he had done very dishonorable things to her in a ... very rude way. And she only saw him with a clearly flushed face saying his name over and over again. He sat up slowly, trying not to wake her. He went into the room's small bathroom to take an ice-cold shower. He hopen to put those thoughts aside.
When Hinata woke up; she found him sitting on the corner of bed drying his long hair, fully clothed. "I fainted again, right?" He sighed as he sat up, one hand on his chest.
-It's okay Hinata-san.
-It's not, but ... thank you for your indulgence.
Itachi put down the towel and walked over to her. "Here," he offered her a small hand mirror. She took it in her hands, looking at him questioningly.
-It was on the dresser. I want you to take it with you and every time you feel insecure, look at yourself and say three positive things about yourself. You can start now, I will help you.
Hinata held the small round object for a few minutes before encouraging herself to pick it up. With one hand she put it in front of her. He had never realized how difficult it was to look in the mirror, until now. He couldn't hold his gaze. It hurt to see his own reflection.
-It may be difficult, even if you don't believe it, I want you to tell yourself three nice things or qualities that you would like to possess.
Hinata looked at herself again, but the words weren't coming out of her mouth. His big lilac eyes only reflected to him the failure that he was.
"I am strong, I am brave, I am beautiful," Itachi mentioned confidently. His eyes widened with surprise, he smiled tenderly at her, nodded indicating her repeat it.
With clear shyness and barely holding his gaze in the mirror, he repeated those same words. -I am strong, I am brave, ss-I am beautiful- could not help but blush before this last.
-The first step will be for her to accept those compliments from herself. You cannot recognize the compliments of others because you do not feel that you deserve them. The only thing he accept is what hurts him. It will be painful and it may take a while, but I am sure that if you put your mind to it, you will succeed.
-Thank you Itachi-san ... I give you my word, that I will try. He answered with determination.
It was the first time anyone had given him some way to overcome his shyness or at least confront it. Both Ino and Sakura had once mentioned to her that she should be more confident. But that's the same when someone tries to comfort you when you're sad and says, "Don't be sad." It's no use, no matter how well they mean for you. Indeed, it was very painful to see oneself in the mirror and not recognize oneself. But she would never give up, she had given her word to Uchiha Itachi, and she would never back down from her words, that was her ninja path after all.
Notes:
Originally the story was to be called the Perfect Triad. Later I realized that my main objective was to convey the relationship between Hinata and Itachi; Although their children are important and essential for its development, they are not the real protagonists.