kairaKi: I've gotten so many nice reviews with lots of criticisms and information on how to improve on my writing! There were ones that were very long detailing the readers likes and opinions on my story! I feel so happy knowing that you took the time to type it all down! Thank you! I hope to live up to your expectations and I hope that my story lives up to your expectations! An author is nothing without her readers!
Chapter 3: Dream of Calmness in Uncertainty: The First Date
Hinata moved into the Uchiha compound with a squadron of servants to help keep the house, work in the kitchen, and prune garden. They were all Branch members who were not bestowed the gift of sight , and therefore unmarked. They did, however, have the trademark pale eyes that marked them as Hyuuga, only their eyes were not the perfect opal shade, but a shade of light jewel tones. The servants lived in the old abandon homes of former Uchiha clan members, cleaned, and warded from evil spirits. Along with the servants came Neji, who lived on the outskirts of the occupied homes, and farthest from the main complex. He kept a watchful vigilance of all the going ons of the compound and the newly-weds' stagnant relationship.
Neji should have been reassigned to Hanabi, but Hiashi seemed to have foresaw something that led to his decision that Hinata still needed a Protector, even though she was married to one Uchiha Sasuke. So, Neji moved to the Uchiha compound with Hinata as her 'guardian'. Neji believed the main reason behind this was that even though he belonged to Hinata, he still had to obey Hiashi, and what Hiashi wanted was a spy in the Uchiha compound (he wasn't dying anytime soon) for what ever reason.
Sasuke and Hinata may have been married for a month, they may have shared a bed for a month, but the relationship between the two of them was anything but that of a married couple. With a sigh, Hinata continued her wifely duty of making breakfast. Hinata insisted that she be the one to cook for Sasuke, unless she didn't have time, or was away for something or another. She felt that it was her duty as wife to at least provide that, if not anything else.
There was the soft padding of feet that signaled to Hinata that her husband had woken up.
"Ohayo." Sasuke grunted.
"Ohayo." Hinata replied as she set the table for breakfast. Sasuke poured himself a cup of tea and began going through the early morning mail.
Hinata remembered the first night she spent in the Uchiha household. She was unsure whether she was suppose to sleep with Sasuke (as in sleep, sleep, with him, or were they just going to sleep?) or in a different room. While she was busy debating the idea Sasuke had entered the bedroom half dressed with his hair all wet...
"Are you going to stand there all night or are you coming to bed?" He demanded.
Hinata squeaked, and threw herself into the large bed, pulling the cover over her blushing face. She could hear him snort at her actions as he turned off the lights. There was a small thump, probably the towel that he had used to dry his hair landing on the ground, and a slight shifting of the bed, as he slid under the covers. Maybe they weren't going to do anything tonight. Hinata thought silently.
"Oyasumi." Sasuke muttered.
Hinata had to still her pounding heart due to the suddenness of the formality. "Oyasumi." She whispered, pulling the covers around her tighter. There was a slight tug of resistance from Sasuke but Hinata held on tight.
"Don't tell me you're a blanket hog." Came Sasuke's voice. He tugged lightly at the blankets.
Hinata relinquished her death grip on the blanket, but couldn't fall asleep until much, much, later.
Hinata was twenty-one, and married to Uchiha Sasuke. She, though a mediocre shinobi, was an excellent diplomat, it was one of the few things her father had been proud of after he had forced the stutter out of her and shaped her will so that it would not bend in the most dire of situations. Most of her missions were information gathering, treading in the murky water that was politics; she was an emissary from the Hidden Village of Leaf, a woman emissary from a village who had a woman leader. Hinata knew how to begin conversations and turn them in her favor, but like every morning since their marriage, she couldn't bring herself to speak up.
When they were done eating Hinata cleared the table and prepared to wash the dishes while Sasuke got dressed. After that he would leave in his Jounin attire and prepare for a day of minor missions, and she would change into her Chuunin standard uniform and head out to the Academy. They never spoke besides the proper greetings in the morning and at night.
"Ohayo."
"Ohayo."
"Okeari"
"Taidaima."
"Oyasumi."
"Oyasumi."
Those were the only words they had spoken to each other since their marriage.
Neji was just returning from a rather gruesome three-day mission when he remembered that Hiashi-sama had ordered him to report immediately to the main house before heading back to his new 'home'. Neji was sure that his uncle wanted an update about Hinata's relation ship with Uchiha, and who better to give the report than him? There was, however, nothing to report as every day since Hinata-sama's marriage the couple interacted minimally. So without a second thought as to his attire (he was soaked in blood), Neji turned on his heels and sprinted to the Hyuuga compound.
"Kurosu-sama, konnichiwa." Hanabi greeted with a recently perfected doll like smile.
"Konnichiwa." Hiroyuki replied, smiling boyishly. "I hope you do not mind, my younger sister is attending to me today." He motioned to the girl next to him. She's tiny, Hanabi mused as she surveyed the girl. She tried to recall the young girl's name. It was Sa- something. Saya, I think. She's the second youngest of the Kurosu family, and one of the two daughters not enrolled in the Academy. She's about thirteen, I believe.
"Konnichiwa." Hanabi nodded in the girl's direction. She looked like her brother, with long dark hair and sharp unnaturally hued amber gold eyes.
"Konnichiwa, Hanabi-sama. I am Kurosu Saya, Aniki's younger sister. I am sorry to intrude on your date, but Otou-sama insisted." Saya bowed low, her unbound hair brushed the ground.
Hanabi dismissed the apology with a wave of her hand, like how Hinata used to do it. "No, if your brother doesn't mind I won't either." Mentally Hanabi was congratulating herself for remembering the details of Hiroyuki's family. She had spent long nights memorizing his relations, as well as her own. Who knew that the Hyuuga family tree could be so confusing? How her sister managed to greet everyone by name and remember whether they had children, grandchildren, siblings, or close relatives was still a mystery to her.
"Oh but I do." Hiroyuki muttered under his breath in a teasing manner. "Now I won't be able to spend some alone time with you, Hanabi-sama."
Hanabi blushed prettily, like how she was supposed too, but her eyes hardened and she looked away, unwilling to take the bait. She could feel her Protector hovering in the shadows, and wondered if Hinata ever felt caged with Neji shadowing her every movement. "Shall we head out now, Kurosu-sama?" Hanabi asked, stepping towards the main gate. Hiroyuki nodded and offered his arm which Hanabi took without much thought, her mind was still going over her sister's seemingly small accomplishments.
Neji was just exiting from his meeting with Hiashi when he met Hanabi and her fiancé heading out to town. Hanabi greeted him lightly, and Neji noted that the younger girl had gotten better at acting. Hiroyuki greeted him also, but he only had eyes for the Hanabi, something Neji took note of also.
"Neji-san, may I ask a favor of you?" Hiroyuki asked after Neji had return their greetings.
Neji nodded.
"This is my younger sister, Saya." Hiroyuki gently pushed the girl forward. "I know you must be busy, but if you could watch her for a few hours... She will be bored all day if she just follows us around." Hiroyuki said.
The girl did look a bit resigned at spending time following her brother around on his date. She glanced at him, almost pleading, to accept the offer. Did she not notice that he was covered in blood, and smelled horribly? After all he had been, more or less, rolling around with dead bodies for nearly three days.
"Nii-san," Hanabi started. "Maybe you could take her to see Hinata-chan, she must be bored..." Hanabi trailed off. She knew about her sister's situation, and probably felt ashamed, or guilty, for it. Neji felt a twitch wanting to develop under his eye. Did nobody notice he had just got back from a deadly mission? Was there not enough blood? Maybe he should show them the hand he cut off as proof, but he had given that to another member to take to Tsunade-sama, so that wouldn't work.
"Very well." Neji replied stiffly. The girl, Saya, smiled brightly up at him. Neji held back a sigh. Maybe it was because the girl didn't really want to spend time watching two love-birds and he pitied her, or he had just fallen for one of Hanabi's attempts to make his life miserable as revenge for the last time he won one of their 'spars'.
Whispers. Whispers. Whispers. The hall during passing was filled with it. Fellow peers talking behind her back, students questioning whether she really was the new Uchiha, or betting that her marriage wouldn't last. Hinata was used to it, years in the Hyuuga house, years spent under constant scrutiny had prepared her for it. Their opinions, their gossip, and their stares were easier to brush off than her family's.
"Hyuuga-sensei!" Shizumasu Akio, a new recruit to the Academy, called out to her. Hinata turned, fumbling slightly with the papers in her hand.
She beamed at the boy, she had to at least act her part if people were to believe the marriage. "Nani, Akio-kun? Do you need something?"
The boy fidgeted under her colorless gaze. "Ano, Sensei, you aren't really married are you?" He asked.
Hinata paused, surprised. "Ah, yes, actually, I am. I guess I should tell my students to start calling me Uchiha-sensei from now own." Hinata said laughingly.
"Oh." Akio seemed deflated. "I wish you a happy marriage then!" He yelled before running off.
Hinata, though confused, continued on her way to the teacher's lounge.
"Hyuuga-san--"
"Neji, call me Neji." Neji interrupted.
Saya scrunched up her nose. "Um, okay, Neji-san, where are we going?"
"Home." Neji replied.
"My home or your home?"
"My home."
"Who's?"
"Mine."
"Oh, okay."
Silence.
"Ne, Neji-san, you're a shinobi, right?" What did the blood give it away? Neji bit sarcastically in his mind as Saya skipped ahead. "Can you help me with something?"
"What?" Neji asked.
"Ne, can you use your Byakugan and see if I have misplaced, um, chakra points?" Saya leaned forward a bit, her eyes curious. Why is no one afraid of me now? Neji asked himself as the girl smiled cheerily.
"Why?"
"Otou-sama says I don't, so I can't go to the Academy, but I want to become a kunoichi no matter what! Plus, I have the feeling that Otou-sama was lying to me. If Ari-chan has them, then I should too! So, will you check for me?" Her hands were clasped in front of her. "Please?"
Neji couldn't find a valid reason to deny her, and if he agreed to help she wouldn't bother him afterwards, and if he didn't, then the girl would most likely bother him until he died, or killed her for annoying him. He wasn't the most patient of people. "Very well." Neji answered finally.
"Thank you!" Saya bowed low. For a moment it looked as though she was about to hug him; secretly Neji was glad she didn't.
Silently Neji activated his Byakugan and mentally compared Saya's chakra system to that of an average shinobi. He started at her legs and slowly moved up. Her chakra system was highly unusual, it was no wonder Hiashi-sama wanted a relation to the girl's small clan. If a child between Hanabi and Hiroyuki were to yield both the Byakugan and the unusual chakra pattern of the Kurosu clan, the child would be powerful.
"Well?" Saya asked nervously.
"Yes, you have your family's unusual chakra system." Neji replied tonelessly.
Saya squealed and this time she did hug Neji, blood and all. Do they NOT notice the blood? Neji demanded mentally. He was covered head to toe in the sticky, still slightly wet, substance and the girl was HUGGING him.
"I knew it! Thank you! Now I just have to convince Otou-sama that I can become a decent shinobi!" Saya clapped her hands together in excitement and was suddenly thrown back by a wave of power. "Ouch." She muttered sitting up.
Neji raised a curious brow. "Maybe you should practice control first." He said.
"Hinata-chan!" Ino greeted cheerily. "Oh, my, GOD! I absolutely have to tell you about this new restaurant in the shopping district! It has the most amazing pastries EVER! We should go there after you finish filing? It'll be a girl's day out, what do you say?" Ino grinned.
"Hey, Ino-san." Hinata greeted back, shuffling through papers. "New restaurant? Um, I'll have to ask my...my...my h-husband." Hinata squeaked the last word. One month. She repeated the words in her head. And I still haven't gotten used to him.
"Ask me what?"
"S-S-Sasuke-s-san!" Hinata jumped from her seat, scattering files every where. Sasuke smirked at his wife's action. "W-w-what are you d-doing here? D-didn't you h-have a m-m-mission?" Hinata asked.
"Ah, it got canceled last minute after the lord croaked. Heart attack ." Sasuke shrugged. "I came to pick you up."
Hinata hid her blush as she scrambled for the papers. "T-thanks." She muttered when Sasuke handed her some papers she missed. Hinata swore Ino was giggling behind her back.
"Let's reschedule, Hinata-chan! I'll see you tomorrow!" Ino chirped as she pulled the rest of the teachers out with her. Hinata gulped.
"Look we have to talk." Sasuke said as he took a seat at the edge of her desk.
"A-about what?" Hinata tried to force her stammer out, but it wasn't working.
"Your father approached me today." Which was why he had to cancel his mission in the first place. The lord didn't really die, but it would have been nice if he did. Sasuke was sure that if he told Hinata that her father had made him pull out of a mission she would demand a full on explanation and some how reassign him to said mission, which he hadn't really wanted in the first place; the lord was a bastard and he annoyed Sasuke to no end. He was kind of happy that Hiashi had a 'talk' with him. At least now he didn't have to deal with that pompous ass of a lord.
"Oh?" Hinata had the feeling that what ever they were going to talk about wasn't going to be good.
"We need to start dating." Sasuke stated.
"N-NANI?"
Sasuke ran an agitated hand through his spikey black hair. Hinata would have said he looked nervous, but Uchihas don't look nervous, did they? "Hinata, will you go out with me to lunch?"
There was squealing coming from the door. Sasuke glared at it before turning his attention back to his wife.
"Ah, well, ano... What did my father tell you?" Hinata asked, she was playing with her fingers, a habit she was sure had gotten rid of a few years back.
"We need heirs." Sasuke said bluntly.
Hinata was sure she reached a new level of red. "A-ah..." She was tongue tied. "W-well... we should get going!" Hinata stood up abruptly, fumbled for Sasuke's hand, before pulling him along with her into a mob of gossiping teachers.
Later she would comment that Sasuke let her drag him halfway across Konoha without complaint.
"What about that restaurant there?" Hinata asked, pointing to a Chinese styled restaurant. They had already walked passed five different ones that Sasuke deemed either too greasy, too sweet, or just plain no. "I love Chinese food."
"Okay." Sasuke answered in a bored tone.
Hinata was prepared to walk away when Sasuke's sudden acceptance stopped her. "Really?" She glanced up at
her husband; he looked as passive as ever. Sasuke nodded and she beamed. "Thank you!" She cried before ducking into the restaurant with Sasuke following.
Sakura was moping in her bedroom when Ino barged in declaring something about dates and cute little Sasuke babies with chubby cheeks.
"Go away Ino-pig, I need some time alone." Sakura said throwing a pillow at her friend.
Ino caught the object easily. "Okay, I know you're still moping about Sasuke-kun." She started. "But it's over, he's married, and you have to be happy for him. Knowing Sasuke-kun's personality he would have never dropped down to one knee to propose to you or me. In fact I don't think he'd even try to propose, he seems more like the type of person who threatens you with a butter knife to marry him or die." Ino took a big breath and continued talking. "Anyways, I'm here on a mission!"
"Go away!" Sakura muttered.
"C'mon Billboard-brow, lets go to that cute little restaurant with the tofu! Let's call Ten-Ten-chan and we can have a kunoichi's night out; Hinata-chan can't come tonight, she has stuff to do, so what about it?" Ino plopped herself on Sakura's bed. "It'll get your mind of Sasuke-kun."
Sakura sat up and glared at Ino. "You aren't going to leave me alone anytime soon, so why not? Get out so I can get ready."
Ino grinned triumphantly. "I knew you'd see it my way."
Half and hour later, with a lot of cajoling from Ino, Ten-Ten and Sakura entered the restaurant that said blonde declared had the best tofu ever. "Trust me, the tofu here is to die for." Ino chirped happily.
"Ino, not all of us are on a diet of soybeans and tofu." Ten-Ten sighed.
"Hey, I'll have you know that I'm only one percent fat and ninety-nine percent muscle. Tofu makes you lean, and not burly. Have you seen some of the kunoichi's these days? Can you say 'ew' ?" Ino flipped her hair haughtily. "You don't have to forgo looks to become a shinobi."
"Maa, maa, I think you're getting too into it." said Ten-Ten. "Ne, Sakura-chan, you're awfully quiet tonight. What's up?"
Sakura, who had been thinking about Sasuke, laughed nervously. "Nothing, it's nothing." She said. "Just, you know, tired from training that's all. Tsunade-sama is a slave-driver."
Ten-Ten didn't seem to buy the argument, but dropped the subject. If Sakura didn't want to talk about it then she wouldn't pry. "You're so lucky Sakura-chan to be training with the great Tsunade-sama! I'm so jealous of you!"
"Iie, not really." Sakura laughed.
"Bah, just because you have a big forehead." Ino commented with a teasing smile. "A table for three please."
"Right this way then." The waitress said, leading them through the lunch bustle. She sat them at a table near the middle of the room, and took their drink order before leaving.
"You're just jealous." Sakura smirked. "I'll beat you any day Ino-pig."
Ino raised a perfect blonde brow. "Oh? You wanna bet?"
Ten-Ten giggled at her companion's rivalry. "Maa, not in here you two. Oh hey, it's Hinata-chan! Hinata-chan!" Ten-Ten waved to the opal eye girl who had just exited the bathroom. Hinata waved back and made her way over with a small smile.
"Hey Hinata-chan, I thought you were busy?" Ten-Ten said.
Hinata looked confused for a moment. "Busy?"
"Yeah, Ino-pig here said you were busy and couldn't come out with us!" Sakura put in with a playful glare in her perky companion's direction.
"Ah." Hinata started toying with her fingers. She had to break that habit again. "I'm here with Sasuke-san." She said, motioning to her own table that was on the other side of the room.
"Aw, you're on a date with you husband! That's so cute! Okay then, go back and forget all about us!" Ten-Ten grinned, she shooed Hinata away. "Don't keep your hubby waiting."
Hinata blushed as she stumbled away.
"Ne, Sakura-chan, are you okay? You look a bit clammy." Ten-Ten asked worriedly after Hinata had left.
Sakura offered a weak smile. "Yeah, just tired." Sasuke-kun doesn't like Chinese though...
"Did you get it off?" Sasuke asked after Hinata returned to their table. Hinata nodded shyly and the couple resumed eating in silence.
"How are we going to make this work?" Sasuke asked after a while. "You do remember the agreements, right? We have to have a child this time next year, or your sister gets the seal and our contract is broken."
Hinata tried to force down a blush as Sasuke continued.
"So we have to reach some sort of understanding here,"
Did he have to sound so bored when he spoke? And what was up with the way he was looking at her?
"If we want to make this marriage work. Going out together in public, and getting to know each other is all part of it, of course, but it doesn't mean we'll miraculously fall in... love. " Sasuke paused thoughtfully. "Do you still want to share a bed?" He asked abruptly.
"N-nani?" Hinata was confused, one moment he was talking about agreements, and the next he was asking if she still wanted to share a bed with him. "I- I honestly don't mind." She whispered, embarrassed. "Unless you don't want me to, then I understand!" She added hastily.
Sasuke snorted. "I don't care about that either, it's just that you're a blanket hog." There was a wisp of amusement in his voice. "I never thought that you of all people would be the type that hogs all the covers."
Hinata blushed in mortification. "A-ah, sorry." She muttered.
"Never mind about that." Sasuke said dismissively. "We need to talk about kids. How many do you want?"
"E-eh?!"
"How many children do you want?" Sasuke repeated impatiently.
"One or two, maybe three at most." Hinata answered. "What about you?"
Sasuke shrugged. "I don't care." He said. "Enough to restore my clan. Let's move on now. How will we go about conceiving them?"
"W-what?"
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Did your father never give you the 'talk'? I don't want to explain it to you how babies are made." Hinata felt her cheeks heat up at Sasuke's last remark.
"I-I know how babies are made!" She cried, embarrassed.
"That's good to know." Sasuke said. "Now answer my question."
"D-do you want to do it now?"
Sasuke looked a bit surprise. "In front of all these people? I didn't know you had it in you." He said mockingly.
Hinata blushed heavily. "I-I didn't mean now, now!" She corrected hastily. "I meant.. when we got home-- if you wanted to-- ano, I, ah!" Hinata felt like pounding her head on the table, why was he asking her all these questions?
"You meant you want to try tonight?" Sasuke clarified.
"If you want to. I mean, we're m-married aren't we. There's n-nothing w-wrong with d-do-doing it!" Hinata said sinking further and further into her seat. They were in public! Why did he had to bring it up now?
Sasuke had to lean forward a bit to hear what his wife had said. "You do know that I'm not going to force you to do anything."
Hinata hid her face in her hands.
"Are you done eating?"
Hinata nodded.
"Good, lets go." Sasuke called for tab, paid it, and grabbed Hinata's hand. "We have a lot of things to work out before we can have sex."
Hinata nearly died of mortification.
"Neji-nii-san!" Hanabi pounded on the door; she was dressed in her usual loose training clothes that her father forbade her to wear around Hiroyuki.
Neji opened the door and seeing Hanabi, promptly shut it again. Hanabi frowned and was about to pound on the door again when Neji opened it again.
"It isn't a nightmare." Neji muttered as the bouncy heiress breezed in.
"Thanks Neji-nii-san for taking care of Saya-chan today!" Hanabi grinned cheerily. "I've come to thank you by allowing you the honor of sparring with me!"
Neji restrained the urge to roll his eyes. "Thank you, Hanabi-sama, but I'm tired, and I would be honored if you could leave and let me sleep." He said, vainly hoping that his younger cousin would actually listen to him for once.
"Kurosu-sama and I had a great time in town today! We went and saw a that new movie, you know, the one about the Snow Princess, it was so sad!" When Hanabi made herself comfortable on his spartan couch Neji knew he was doomed. "Is Onee-sama back yet? Kurosu-sama and Saya-chan just left, so I thought I should come visit!"
So Hinata was still out with Uchiha, and that was the reason why Hanabi had come to 'visit' him.
"Ne, Neji-nii-san, let's train together! It's still early and I don't have to be back at the compound for another two hours!"
Two hours... Two hours!
"Neji-nii-san, are you all right? You know you should get some more sleep if you're going to fall over like that!"
KairaKi:OOh, this was one of my longer chapters. It was basically full of little scenes of Hinata's current life. There was a small part about her wedding night too. I pondered over that little piece for a while and decided that Sasuke, while cold and maybe a little unforgiving, would not actually force Hinata to do anything. He understands as much as her that the only reason for their marriage was, more or less, personal gain of some sort.
Hinata and Sasuke are married a month before he actually takes her out on their first 'date'. Surprising? I don't know. He didn't even try until Hiashi-sama 'approached' him. I thought that the restaurant scene was done pretty well, in my personal opinion. I think that I managed to retain most of the characters' personalities. Sakura was a bit hard, but as you can see she's still trying to get over Sasuke. She isn't mad at Hinata though (surprise?) and is slightly confused by her friend's relationship with Sasuke. She knows that Hinata-chan likes chinese food whilst Sasuke doesn't, and that makes her sad knowing that Sasuke would never have done that for her. Sakura will come to terms with her feelings soon. She just needs some closure to a love that never took off.
I just love picking on Neji. At the rate it's going he might become an aspirin addict. He's such a fun character to toy with. As you noticed I brought in another OC, and you get a reason why Hiashi-sama wants Hanabi to marry Hiroyuki (it's like a field day for him Sharingan-Byakugan and a near unlimited chakra reserve with the Byakugan. I think he's having fun.) I didn't want to give my OC some super crazed bloodline or whatever, but I don't know... Is it too much? Was bringing in Saya over kill? I have ideas that involve her for later chapters, but I don't want to use her too much. I want to be cautious when bringing in an original character.
Did you guys notice it? This is the chapter containing the story summary. XD Poor Hinata-chan was picked on by Sasuke. This chapter as well as the previous chapters were all ready written and ready to go, but I decided to wait a while before posting each one. I edited this one a couple times to add in extra info where it was needed (mainly Neji and the blood) until it was ready for posting. I think you'll like the next chapter too, more SASUHINA action, but that particular document won't be posted until I finished chapter 5!
R&R