Chapter 3

"Hmm…Let's see, plenty of marigold, plenty of marigold, low on goldenrod…" Spottedleaf enjoyed the quiet moments of the day. Usually, these were at the end of the day once the twilight patrol had returned. She loved these times as they allowed her to do mundane, stress-relieving tasks such as setting her den in proper order for the next patient (at least until an unruly kit *cough* Graykit *cough* or an ailing warrior came in).

Her accounting was interrupted by Bluestar's brisk entrance. "Is this about the twoleg kit?" The tortoiseshell asked quietly. At her leader's slight nod, she sighed. "I see no reason why this should not happen, nor any word from Starclan against it." Spottedleaf mewed pensively

"But, the betrayal-"
"Happened a long time ago, and was the result of a series of accidents; it was not on purpose. It seems to me that this little twoleg will need us just as much as we need her-"

Suddenly, Spottedleaf froze, eyes aflame and gazed unseeingly over her leader's shoulder. After a moment, she shook herself.

"Never mind. Starclan has spoken."

"Spoken…?"

"Fire will save the clans from the danger spotted by the sharpest eye."

Bluestar blinked. The Sharpest Eye… "Is that the Byakugan?" She asked her medicine cat.

"I can see no other explanation."

"But fire has always been feared. How can it save us?"

Spottedleaf looked troubled. "I am not sure. But there is no question that the clans will need the fire and the sharpest eye to save them…but from what?"

Bluestar shivered. "Starclan cannot be doubted. Both fire and the sharpest eye will save our clan."

She groaned. Her shoulder hurt like fire and throbbed. Her legs were also sore from the exercises she had performed the day before. She started to groan then remembered what day it was. Hinata hurried out of bed and through her morning routine so she would have as much time as she could get.

After a silent breakfast with her father, she made her way out of the clan compound accompanied by two guards from the side branch, their Caged-Bird-Seal hidden beneath their headbands (or hitai-ate). Her fists clenched at the thought. The first thing she would do as leader of the Hyuga would be to destroy the cursed seal.

But who was she fooling? She probably wouldn't live longer than tomorrow, depending on whatever those cats had planned.

First, though, she would visit her mother. It was the anniversary of her death, after all, and it was highly unlikely that her father would come. She would want someone there.

Hinata laid the flowers at the base of the grave marker. Hyacinth to represent her mourning and white lilies to show her hope for the renewal of her mother's spirit.

"Hello, Kaa-san." She started. First, she filled her mother in on how Hanabi was growing and how her training was going. She did not speak of her father as she wasn't really sure what to say without potentially upsetting her mother's spirit. So, she moved on.

"I-I wish you had told me about the summoning contract, Kaa-san, b-but I understand why you didn't. I-I was stupid and used it b-because I thought I could use it to stop bad things from h-happening." She began to rush her words. "N-Neji nii-san, Otosan, everyone hates me b-because I-I am weak and useless! I t-thought that the s-scroll would make me s-stronger, b-but now-" She cut herself off, wiping the tears that flowed unbidden and unnoticed. "Now they want a debt. I-it's m-most likely my l-life, but I agreed to it. Because I almost hurt someone else. I-I am tired of putting other people in danger."

With a sigh, she stood from her kneeling position, an unfamiliar steely look appearing in her pale eyes. "If I don't die tomorrow, I will get stronger and I will not let others get hurt because of me anymore."

Hinata gave a low bow to her mother's grave, then left. She never noticed the two shadows following her through the treetops.

Hinata's guards had left her at the entrance to the cemetery then returned home at her insistence. She was in the middle of the village and only a ten-minute walk from home, no one would try anything here, especially after what happened last time. By the time she left, it was late afternoon anyway, they wouldn't have wanted to wait for hours on end, no matter what Hiashi may have insisted. She slowly began to make her way home when three boys, all with brown hair and black eyes, cut in front of her. She stepped back, recognizing them as kids from the village who liked to waste their time by tormenting her.

The tallest one sneered. "Well look who it is. The little weakling."

"W-What do y-you w-want?"

He swaggered around her as his companions giggled. "I heard you got your uncle killed." He leered at her. "Honestly, you should just die, that way no one has to waste their time trying to save you."

He shoved her to the ground before she could make a move. "Come on boys, let's practice our taijutsu, shall we?"

The young Hyuga prepared herself. And to her complete shock, as well as the boys, she blocked his first strike, aimed at her face. Almost instantaneously, her vision had improved where she could see almost entirely around her. She could also see flowing lights through the boy's body and could somehow tell where he would strike next. The boys all recoiled.

"Eww, your eyes are weird! Weirdo!" The boy's punches continued, the little Hyuga blocking punches aimed high, low and in the middle, until the other two pinned her arms behind her and forced her down to her knees.

"Spot this, Hyuga wimp." The tall boy snarled before giving her a black eye on the right-side. Gold and white blurs launched themselves at the boys from the trees, hissing and spitting. After a few well-placed swipes, the boys decided they had had enough taijutsu for one day and ran. Hinata slowly sank to the ground and as her vision went black, she saw the blurry outline of two cats approaching her.

Consciousness slowly returned to her. Feeling moss and dirt beneath her, she figured she must have been left where she had dropped. But why wouldn't the guards have come looking for her? She opened her eyes only to find herself staring at the ceiling of some sort of bramble hut. Taking a few deep breaths to help center herself, she looked around. The hut was empty aside from some strange nests made of moss and leaves and shelves filled with neatly sorted plants and seeds.

Suddenly, a dappled white, red and black cat slipped through the opening. The little Hyuga gasped. This cat was huge! Hinata in a sitting position came up to its knee, standing she would have been just reached her shoulder!

"Oh, good, you're awake sweetling." The cat exclaimed, obviously female by her voice. "How do you feel?" She began to nose and nudge Hinata all over, as the bewildered girl could only stare.

"B-But you're so b-big!" The four-year old blurted out then blushed. "Gomen-nasai, neko-san." The cat, instead of being angry as Hinata expected, only looked highly amused.

"Quite alright, dear, but I'm not big. Lionheart is big!" She chuckled. Seeing that the girl was still confused, she mewed gently.

"Honey, you're much smaller now. That's what happens when twolegs are brought into our realm."

"You mean humans?" The she-cat tilted her head. "I suppose so. Anyway, you suffered quite a nasty blow to the face, but you will be fine. Expect a headache for the next day. Come back here if it lasts longer or your vision doesn't improve."

Hinata nodded thoughtfully. "Arigato, neko-san. But I thought I wasn't expected until tomorrow."

"You mean until today, you've been unconscious since last night." Another voice, more familiar voice stated from the entrance. Bluestar slipped into the den and looked at the other cat.

"Spottedleaf, is she well enough to leave the medicine den?" Spottedleaf nodded. Hinata stood and gave a short bow to the gray cat. "Hello, Bluestar-sama."

In reply, the stern she-cat merely turned to exit, flicking her tail to indicate that the Hyuga should follow her. With a quick bow to Spottedleaf, she scurried out behind the imposing leader.

Hinata gasped. She was in a large clearing surrounded by multiple dens, some made of brambles while others were nestled within various trees and stones. A tall stone ledge towered over the rest of the clearing (or camp Hinata thought to herself). Cats of all colors, all much larger than the little Hyuga, were dispersed all around the edges of the camp. All of them were staring. At her. Some simply looked curious while others seemed hostile. The little heiress didn't know it, but this was her first exposure to killing intent directed at her.

"Welcome to Thunderclan."

Hey everyone! I managed to update this. Just a quick note- from now on I will be putting all jutsu names/terms in bold though without brackets. Thank you and please feel free to review!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Naruto or Warriors