Chapter 9: Uchiha-san's assignment
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It was 6 am when Hinata got up to start her morning routine.
She felt a bit off, and it began after she involuntarily recalled a moment, prompting her to have thoughts she deemed too inappropriate for her stature. Trying to make sense of it all, became her new obsession. But it came with trouble, as her mind was so far off she could not bring herself to train that day.
What was supposed to be an hour of training next to a local pond, turned out to be an hour of just floating inside the nice, cool, unmoving water.
She closed her eyes, her mind traveling back to last night. Since then, she asks herself what would've happened if she hadn't run away from Shikamaru. Last night, over dinner, Shikamaru had been his regular self, giving rise to the possibility she had misread the whole vibe, and that all of it might've been inside her head. Yoshino hadn't seemed to suspect any strangeness either as conversation flowed back and forth. But when Shikamaru's eyes met her again, the slight blush that spread across his feature was enough evidence to convince Hinata that it hadn't been her imagination. Shikamaru wanted something from her, that much became obvious to her.
However, why a man would stare at her in such a way, even if he had no emotional connection to her, was something that intrigued her. Besides, it's not like he knows her, or likes her. But the most puzzling thing of all: Shikamaru was already spoken for.
Hinata continued to swim in the pond, thinking all this musings didn't matter as Shikamaru was Naruto's best friend, therefore she shouldn't trust him. It was nonsensical to continue her indulgence in "What ifs", and decided to get out of the pond as she needed to get ready for her morning.
As she pushed herself out of the pond, her thoughts were filtered by clan-related issues that intertwined with her personal life.
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Picking up Hanabi's recap, Hinata read it with a big smile on her face. Sitting across from her was her younger sister, with a similar smile as she tried to contain herself while waiting for her sister to read her report. Hinata hadn't seen her show so much enthusiasm in a long time. Hanabi truly believed that they should indeed invest in the future of technology since it's at an advancing phase where it will allow Konoha to connect and maintain long-distance relations with political alliances with other countries. The way Hanabi explained, it was like having a walkie-talkie that doesn't lose range.
"Onee-chan, you should've been there! There were so many cool gadgets! We should give them all of our money! Maybe not all of it, of course, but you should send me there again next year with a checkbook."
"How much are they asking from us?" Hinata said while glancing back at the scroll.
"Before you say no, just remember, this is the future!"
"Hanabi, please just answer the question."
"They're asking for a lot,"
A lot turned out to be a reasonable amount for such a large-scale project. Pulling out her checkbook, Hinata signed the amount away and handed it to Hanabi.
"Thank you Onee-chan! Naruto-Kun is going to be so happy!"
"Um, how is Naruto-Kun?"
"He's fine. Sometimes he joins us when I'm having dinner with Sakura-sensei. He's always asking about you," To Hinata, it sounded like Naruto was probably around a lot because Sakura was there to make that happen.
"And what do you normally tell him?"
"Not much, that maybe he should visit and ask you himself, I mean he knows where you live, right?" She said while giggling. "By the way, Onee-chan, the fundraiser event for our hospital is just around the corner. I want to attend the event on your behalf, but with a checkbook this time,"
Staring at Hanabi, Hinata hoped that her younger sister was not becoming a socialite.
"I'll talk to the elders about sending you to the fundraiser," Without a checkbook, she added in her mind. "And how's your apprenticeship coming along?"
"Sakura-sensei wants to talk to you in person about it. Oh! I can set up a dinner night for the three of us. I warn you, it might be super late. We can also go for drinks!"
"No one is drinking, Hanabi." Hinata glared at her sister, wondering just exactly what she was up to with Sakura.
"Right, of course. Anyway... I have to go to work now, so I'll see you tonight!" Hanabi adjusted her light blue hospital scrub as she pushed herself off the floor, and rushed out the door. She paused for a moment to wave at her sister before sliding the door shut.
It was about half a year ago when her younger sister began to work under Sakura. Hinata felt grateful that her new career brought Hanabi so much joy. She's been beaming with life lately and was almost completely back to her regular self. This is why she decided to keep a closer eye on Hanabi.
After Hanabi's departure, Hinata glanced up at the door, sensing someone would soon open it. A maid smiled at her, but something about it seemed a little apologetic, she might've regretted not knocking and just entering.
"What is it?" Hinata asked, her tone reverting to her normal range of a light, gentle whisper.
"The general's wife is here to see you. I already prepared the tearoom,"
"Thanks,"
Hinata rose from and exited her office, thinking back to a few days prior in which she had sent an invitation to the general's wife, to join her for tea, because Hinata's research of a 'problematic Hyuga' had failed. Afterward, a frantic Hinata had pulled one of the oldest maids of the house to the side and interrogated her to see if any Hyuga had ever tried to avoid marriage during her lifetime. That is how Hinata found out about the general's wife.
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The general's wife was a beautiful woman in her mid-twenties, who married one of the elders when his late wife was about to pass away. She was one of the few examples of a woman being torn from her lover and forced into marriage. Likewise, she's been married for three years now, and rarely sees her supposed husband.
"Hyuga-sama," The older woman spoke with a reserved smile. "I was surprised when you reached out to me. My apologies for missing your inauguration, I hate large crowds of outsiders. It just isn't my thing,"
Yet traveling, partying, and debauchery was her thing. But the fact that they were both in the same room together, Hinata reprimanded herself for being judgmental.
"I know you're not the only person that finds it strange that you were summoned here," Hinata said, while she sat across her, holding a cup of tea.
"You were always a strange one, to begin with. I used to watch you while you were little, you didn't like spending much time with your other cousins, and you were always seen around town with an outsider, why is that?"
"Is that what the others are saying?"
"Not at all, but I have heard the elders finally had luck in choosing someone that meets your standards."
When Hinata's smile faltered, the older woman could sense she was close to something. Leaning forward, the older woman kept her gaze on Hinata, almost as if studying her.
"Why am I here? It doesn't seem like you want me to teach you about what goes on after the wedding night."
Waving her hand, Hinata tried to disperse whatever thought was going through the older woman's head.
"I do have a few questions, and you seem like the only person who would give me an honest answer. How did you avoid getting married for so long?"
The woman gave her a simple look of pity. So their precious clan leader was trying to fight her fate.
"Our situation isn't the same. I don't think you could get away with the same things I did, or for as long as I could."
Hinata leaned slightly and pressed her to continue.
"Well you see," Bogus business trips that extended for months, long-term-missions, sickness, scandalous rumors mixed with lies of being infertile, that's how she got away with being single for so long. The lady sitting across from her was considered a tainted, disgraceful, promiscuous woman who had allegedly consummated before marriage with an outsider. But because she belonged to the main branch, she got away with a lot of it. "I was reckless back then, I do regret all the things I came up with just to get out of marriage."
"As you said, our situation is different…" None of those extreme methods would do her any good. Hinata sighed, as she was back to square one.
"Don't look so worried, Hyuga-sama. I do want to say this, digging up dirt on a guy's past shouldn't be that hard. Everyone is bound to have secrets, don't you think?"
"I guess I'll take that into consideration," Hinata said, doubting that she would ever need to call on this person again.
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That night, Hinata fell asleep in Hanabi's room, while waiting for her sister to come home from work. It was around 11 pm when Hanabi shook her awake, no doubt worried over her wellbeing.
"Onee-chan, what's wrong? Why are you in my room?"
"Why are you late, Hanabi?" Hinata mumbled as she leaned her weight on one arm, trying to fight sleep.
"Konohamaru walked me home, so it's fine,"
"Be careful not to get too attached to him…"
Hanabi shrugged, not understanding why her sister believed she had a crush in the first place.
"You're only sleeping here just for tonight!" Hanabi called out to Hinata as she left the room to prepare herself a bath. When she finally joined her sister on the queen-sized bed, as Hinata scooped closer to Hanabi's pillow.
Now, who's being a child?
Hanabi's complaint died in her mouth when she saw how troubled Hinata seemed.
"You're going to meet that new guy they picked for you tomorrow, aren't you?"
"Maybe I'm just sad because I miss you, Hanabi-chan,"
Hinata's morning, afternoon, and evening routines felt lonely. She rarely saw Hanabi anymore. Their interactions were normally rushed during breakfast, or morning debriefing, both were busy with their hectic schedule.
"I miss you too. But are you sure you don't need me to beat anyone up?"
It didn't escape Hinata's notice that might've been Sakura's influence talking. She named every elder, and blamed their tradition for the predicament she found herself in.
"Got it, but you're going to have to bring me bentos if I end up in prison."
"Alright, only if you get caught..." Smiling, Hinata finally closed her eyes. Even with Hanabi next to her, she still had nightmares about Neji and the massacre, only this time, it was the Hyuga clan being wiped off with no survivors.
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The next morning, A tall figure awaited Hinata in her courtyard. It was her fiancé-to-be. He had a muscular build, which was rare for a Hyuga. While they all normally had long hair, he kept his short and slick back. The serious look in his eyes almost seemed permanent, and it added to his intimidating aura. Hinata took all of this in, as she joined him outside her courtyard
"H-Hello," Hinata said to him. "I hope your business trip went well."
After bowing, he proceeded to introduce his name as he seemed pleased to meet her. "I got here as soon as I could, Hinata-sama."
Walking together around the courtyard, she asked him questions while trying to gauge what kind of person he was, sadly he didn't provide enough answers for her to work with. Yet, when her father had asked how it went, she conveyed in her way that he might be the one. No one thought to suspect that her answer had been a bit too rushed, as she had given the elder her final answer that same afternoon. But at night, after dinner, she wrote to the Hokage and submitted a mission request for her private reasons.
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A mission scroll soon found its way in Sasuke's possession, as it was promptly delivered to him.
Sasuke released the crow and let it fly back home, as he made his way to the couch, to unwind for the night. A towel that draped around his shoulder caught most of the drip that traveled south from his damp hair. Not minding the occasional drops of water which landed on the scroll before him, Sasuke kept on reading the unexpected request. The Hyuga had specifically asked for him, and she implied this was her way of getting back at him for that stunt he had pulled at the Annual event. It seemed like Hinata Hyuga had not been pleased with all when she was tricked into meeting with Naruto. He smirked at the prospect of her being angry.
He paused, his attention shifting to Naruto, who settled across from him. Sasuke watched the familiar scene of Naruto's face hovering over a cup of noodles as he stuffed his face.
"Didn't you just come back from dinner with Sakura?" Sasuke said as he raised a brow.
"Yeah, what's your point?"
Sasuke's shoulder gave a slight shrug, as he shifted his attention back to the scroll.
It was rare for mission debriefs to amuse Sasuke the way this one seemed to, so when he chuckled, it got Naruto curious as to where Kakashi was sending him to this time.
"Where is Kakashi sending you to, this time?"
"My Anbu expertise is being requested locally, believe it or not," Sasuke vaguely explained. He found it amusing that the Hyuga princess wanted him to find dirt on her fiancé, even if they had just gotten engaged that day. This is why he couldn't stand that clan, their peaceful way always involved some kind of backstabbing method.
"So, whoever hired you specifically, can afford you, huh,"
"It's just some espionage work,"
"That sounds kinda boring, I feel sorry for you," Naruto sighed his eyes trailing toward the windows. "I don't remember the last time I had a mission outside this village,"
Naruto set the empty cup on the low table and leaned back on the couch while spreading himself. His chin pointed towards his ceiling as his blue eyes seemed to be in a daze. The adventures, the travels, the excitement, the experiences, although some had been bad, for the most part, he misses all of that. The bond he had forged with so many individuals from different countries made him want to explore again.
Yet here he was, back home, feeling bored while training to become Hokage. Glancing over at Sasuke, Naruto believed he had come up with the best idea ever.
"Ne, Sasuke, let's travel together."
"Hh, I'll pass."
Moving his hand back to the towel, Sasuke resumed patting his hair dry. He had ideas of the things he could've said, but kept to himself mostly out of respect for Naruto's wish to become Hokage. The last thing he wanted was to distract him from his goals. His friend had been set on a path, and a schedule had been laid out for him. If Naruto doesn't stray, he could potentially accomplish his goals early.
"You suck," Naruto said, his eyes trailing to Sasuke's arm. For reasons unbeknownst to the blond, Kakashi allowed Sasuke to be an Anbu without the markings of one, which Naruto had always found strange. "Oi, when are you going to get an Anbu tattoo?"
Sasuke contemplated dropping a few hints, or leaving him crumbs to follow but quickly decided against it. If it had been Nara, Sasuke had no doubt the shadow user would've put two and two together.
"Maybe when I grow another arm," Sasuke simply said, if only Naruto knew how close he almost got to the truth.
A nagging feeling surfaced in the pit of his stomach, Naruto placed a hand over the area he associated to be in pain, clearly confused about the feeling. He didn't think it was the food that caused it.
"I don't think I feel so good..."
"That's what you get, dobe, for eating so much."
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Two weeks went by, with Sasuke doing a lot of infiltrating, impersonating, and shadowing the target. But her fiancé seemed, dare he say, like a good guy. It was around 11 pm when he met up with a petite figure covered in a black cloak. They were in a secluded forest, miles, and miles away from the Hokage tower. After sharing his lack of findings, his client didn't seem too happy about it.
"Hmm, then two weeks isn't enough time if he suspects that he'll be watched. Maybe he'll slip up within a month." The Hyuga's voice came from underneath the hood, as she stood perched on a tree. Sasuke's eyes trailed to the small hand that held onto the tree for balance, he caught a glimpse of her engagement ring glistening in the night. Even though the two appeared to be alone, two of her regular Anbu guards accompanied her but were instructed to remain outside the hearing range.
"Trust me on this one, Hyuga-san, I doubt there's any dirt on your guy. I did some digging on his past and there's nothing there. He also fought, and I quote "valiantly" during the war." Sasuke's voice came from behind his Anbu mask.
"So you're saying I should just quietly accept this?"
"I'm telling you that you're wasting your time. If you don't want to get married that badly, what's so hard about letting them know that? I don't understand why you Hyugas always choose the most roundabout ways of doing things."
"You seem to have a lot of opinions lately, Anbu-san, so please tell me more,"
Ah, that's right, he almost forgot he had taken an oath as her Anbu to not voice his opinion unless it was required of him.
Leaping off the tree to join hers, Sasuke handed her the mission report. Hinata tucked the scroll away inside her cloak just when the wind picked up; Strong enough to toss her hood back down.
"Then would you do me this favor?"
Her eyes, almost like two mini full-moon, stared at him unwavering, as if she was waiting for something.
That's right, he forgot to reply.
"Fine," Sasuke said, caving in. "Two more weeks, and then I'm done,"
"Two more weeks is all I ask of you, Anbu-san," Pulling her hood back up, she turned to leave, but his words stopped her as she was about to go join the two Anbu that awaited her.
"Kakashi told me about what you decided to do with the land," Sasuke called out to her. Hinata paused and turned his way and smiled.
"And do you like the idea?"
Sasuke had heard that she had taken one of his ideas and changed it a little. While her version was very philanthropic, he doubted that it would get approved by those greedy bastards in control of clans decision. Spreading awareness was never one of Konoha's fortitude. His mind recalled how every time something tragic happened, Konoha's concern was always to sweep it under a rug.
Yet, Hinata wanted to turn the Uchiha's land into a landmark, but also, she wanted to build an organization around it to prevent future clan massacres from happening across the country. The idea, while good in theory, was going to get some kind of pushback since it seemed a little invasive in nature.
Hinata understood "like" was not a word in his vocabulary, so the closest answer she got to approval was a slight nod from him.
"Once the construction starts, you won't be able to hide your plans anymore,"
There was no need to remind him, but still, she did.
"Duly noted, Hyuga-san,"
He waited for her to take off before he disappeared as well.
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The next morning, Hinata stared at the ancient and monumental trees above her that provided her a decent amount of shade, with their rich autumn color reminding her that it won't be long before winter comes. Once her 21st birthday passes, marriage would soon follow around springtime, and maybe an heir around summer of the following year.
Lifting herself off the grass, she headed back inside the mansion, hoping the Uchiha would find something that would break this engagement.
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Edited 4-15-21.
Edited: 9-24-21
Edited: 9-8-22 Added title and stuff