Shimi-chan: What's up all of you, miss me? Well, thanks to a majority of reviews, I had to rewrite this chapter. In the original, there was a time skip, not months or anything, but Itachi's reaction to the news was not featured. But since so many of you wanted to see it, I guess I could do that…why the hell not? It'd be funny to write anyway. Also, because I was foolish enough to feature all my reviewers last time, the thing that I'd feared most happened: I forgot someone. I knew someone would complain eventually…sigh…now I have to do it again.

Black Daimond07, there could have been many reasons I didn't reply you like I did last time to everyone else. 1) You might not have put your review in chapter nine. You may have put it in another chapter. I only replied to chapter nine reviewers. 2) You may have reviewed after I posted chapter ten. Thus missing the deadline. Or 3) I may have gotten tired of typing and thus stopped. In any case, it was an accident, so please, please don't send evil monkeys to my doorstep. I'm still trying to recover from the trauma that thefullygirlalchemist's pets caused me. Oh and, no, sorry, but Hinata is not going to undergo spontaneous mood swings and 'yell her ass off'. Although, admittedly, I wish she would.

NinaWilliamsFemaleAssasin, hey, I just wrote your entire name without looking back at the 'reviews' page! That means it's been burned into my memory. Yes, about the HinaSasu it is the age, mostly. In the early process of this story, I was going to have her marry Itachi, but I realized that they wouldn't do that. (Sweatdrops) Is Sasuke's birthday really that far away from Hinata's, then? So, yeah, I guess one of them must have had a change of date…sigh…oh well, what can you do? I could go back and do a time skip, but I'd really rather not. I hope it doesn't bother you, or anyone else, that much.

Thefullygirlalchemist, I was kidding back at Black Daimond07's reply. I found your evil cats and bunnies endearing, although, I will admit…I woke up yesterday, expecting to be scratched up again, but when I looked down to the side of my bed where they usually rested…there was nothing. That was really a bittersweet moment for me. Ah, you're a Sakura hater, eh? Many are. I'm not a Sakura hater…She's not exactly my favorite character, but I don't hate her. Although, yeah, she's kind of pathetic in her crush chough, obsession, cough with Sasuke. I look forward to reading your story! I'm sure you're not bad, have some faith in yourself! Try your hardest, k? No half-assed efforts.

Hinata6, you were one of the many reviewers that influenced the rewrite, because you wanted to see their reactions. So here they are.

Miss0made, (Laughs) Yeah, Itachi is an ego-maniac. Except for the fact that too much attention bothers him. He feeds his own ego.

Lady Rin-San, Thank you for all your praise…very kind, reviews like these make my day. Thank you!

ColourfulKyouya-SenpaiMaybeNot, you have a long name. I had to go into your profile to see the whole thing. Gasps I'm on your favorites! I know because I just checked. I'm flattered! Hmm…Ouran Host Club? I read some of that, but I have yet to read past book 2. I'll find it though! Thank you for reviewing!

Charcoal Wings, It'll probably be a while till Sasuke's fangirls even know about the marriage. This is two high profile families we're talking about: No one will ever know!! Okay, I'm lying, they'll figure it out eventually.

Kyoko, I'm glad you like it! I enjoyed writing that chapter. Hope you like this too.

AmusedMurderer, I don't think I updated all that quickly, so you're free to go…this time.

Lonniet84, Heh, thanks, I'm glad you liked it!

YUUKI, Yes, Itachi, he shall just have to suffer.

VigoreanAsakura, Things are heating up. I like writing these parts of the story.

KagomeMarie, Yes, poor pair indeed. No one is too happy about the engagement, as you soon shall see.

Akuma de soro, yes, a twist! Good job, you are a genius indeed.

Kichou, you are a regular. Thank you for your constant support!

Rewy, you don't even know how right one of your assumptions was. But you'll find out…soon.

Dani's random fox, sorry for the long update. No excuses.

LavenderkisseS, Robles? I have a friend with that last name. I'm glad you like my story so much! I try my very hardest.

Live2die, Yes, it will be fun to write too…

Newblue, thank you for reviewing, and here's your update.

MOON CHILD SERENIY, Thank you for thinking so highly of my story.

Okay, I'm putting this out there, this is probably the last time I'll answer to every single one of you. Next chapter I'll probably only answer you if your review significantly entertained me, I feel a need to retort, or if you have a question. So don't bother me if I don't reply.

Chapter Ten:

"Sasuke."

The room froze. Smiles that were once present on Itachi and Hinata's faces dissipated without a trace that they were ever there. For a moment, they were all silently staring at one another, most of their expressions unreadable. Fugaku and Mikoto's worry was evident, however.

Sasuke abruptly ended the awkwardness with a curt and simple "No."

Fugaku sighed, clearly ready for this reaction. "Sasuke, this isn't only my—"

"No," he repeated with more force. "If you want into the Hyuga clan so bad, you marry her."

"Sasuke!" Mikoto screeched. "That's no way to speak to your father!"

He only grunted in reply.

"Hinata, I trust you have no objections."

She did have an objection, she had various objections, but one look at her father and she knew it hadn't been a question. Hence the reason the author neglected to put in a question mark. She lowered her head in reverence to her father, comforting herself with the thought that he's at least spoken to her directly, but said nothing in reply.

"I have an objection."

All eyes turned upon Itachi, whose presence they had forgotten up until now.

Mikoto blinked. "Itachi? What possible objection could you have?"

"They obviously don't want to get married."

"Yes, but that doesn't in any way affect y—"

"What crack-head decided that sixteen was old enough to marry anyway?"

Hiashi stepped forward, arms crossed and face etched with impatience. "She is my daughter and so I will decide who and when she marries."

Itachi's face betrayed no emotion, but his voice was the seething calm he always used just before he made a kill. "Don't forget this is my family you're trying to fuck with." And he meant that literally, of course.

"Last I checked you weren't the man of the house."

"As if you know anything of being a man. It really takes a 'man' to give his eldest daughter away like she was nothing more than cheap garbage. You could never be half the man I am."

Hiashi's eyes narrowed scathingly at Itachi, who didn't so much as quiver under his harsh gaze. "What is your relationship to my daughter?"

Itachi didn't have a chance to reply to that question, as Sasuke cut in once more. "It doesn't matter; I'm not marrying her."

"We will discuss this further later, Sasuke," Fugaku said, abandoning his role as the loving father for his much more serious side. Both sons knew not to argue back when he used such a tone.

Itachi held Hiashi's glare with his own, wanting so badly to close the distance between them and punch the older 'man' in the face. He knew he was losing this battle. So as his last desperate attempt at stopping this, he glanced over at Hinata. But she immediately looked away when he tried to meet her gaze. When she did he felt all the anger seep out of him and he realized that this might actually be something she wanted. She hadn't once argued back, after all. His face lost its glare and instantly went cold.

"…Fine. I don't care."

And with those words he left the living room. They all heard his door slam.

Hiashi glared off in the direction he'd left. "Training indeed…"

--

Hinata scrubbed until it was impossible to see the plate through the suds. Turning on the faucet, she rinsed it out and then placed it gently on the 'clean dish' side of the sink. And as she washed the rest of the dishes, she found it impossible to think of anything but what had happened mere days before.

As soon as the dreaded announcement had been made, her father had left her behind again. Since then, Hinata had gone back to being practically invisible and no one bothered her a bit. Even Fugaku had stopped teasing her, moving to instead sending her pitying looks whenever they made eye-contact. It slightly annoyed the young Hyuga heiress, the way he seemed so remorseful over his decision. It's not like she was mad at him over it, or even over the fact that she had to marry Sasuke-kun. It was just…just that…

She sighed as she put the cup back into the sink, still full of foam. It was just that her father had decided to so effortlessly and uncaringly give her away like some cheap doll. Tears welled in her eyes for what seemed like the millionth time, but this time she made no effort to stop them as they streamed down her face and landed on the cup. Two more followed shortly after and it wasn't long before she was silently sobbing, yet making sure she made no noise to alert anyone of her mood. When her sobs grew louder, she turned on the sink in an effort to drown out the noise, successfully hiding her weakness from those in the house.

"Hinata."

She stopped abruptly as she whipped her bowed head to the opening that led to the hallway. She blushed at the sight of Itachi and instantly started rinsing the cup she'd been washing, hoping he would simply move along. She was aware of his eyes on her as she moved on to another plate, and she was aware of his steps as he drew nearer to her, but when he put a finger under her chin and lifted her face she let out a small gasp.

There was no annoyance in his expression. There was no anything in his expression. But the simple fact that he was staring into her eyes refusing to let her go brought tears right back to her eyes. He allowed her to drop the cup into the sink and bury her face into his chest. She sobbed into his shirt while his hands slowly massaged her back in an attempt at calming her.

This was what, the fifth time he'd seen her crying? And that was today alone. Though it was the first time she'd seen him see her crying, if that makes any sense at all. He didn't exactly know what was wrong, but he found quickly that he couldn't get angry this time. Why, he wasn't sure, but he just couldn't. All he could do was grit his teeth to her sobs and pull a tight reign on his temper and actually try to comfort her. Ew.

Being the good guy was getting old, but he couldn't say that he would react differently if he was Hinata. Actually, he himself was pissed as hell. Unfortunately, he had no way to vent his frustrations because if he discussed the matter, it would lead to question he simply had no answers to. His lack of reaction had led him to double his training time, which often led to him sneaking out at night to beat on some defenseless trees and such. Because he didn't want Sasuke to marry Hinata. It wasn't right. It was sick, twisted, and oh so wrong. Why, once again, he wasn't sure. And if she had to marry his brother (insert twitching here) since before either of them was born, then why all the secrecy? Why had no one been told?

Okay, that's it, his ears were getting tired and his shirt was getting soaked both from her tears and clutching, soapy hands. He brought his hands to her shoulders and gently drew her away. She blinked up at him with such confused, innocent eyes that for a moment there was a flicker of emotion in his eyes. But his stoicism quickly won it over and he simply patted her head before leaving her.

--

"…A date…?"

Fugaku nodded exaggeratingly. "Yeah, why not?! You two will have to get used to each other eventually! What better way than through dating?"

Hinata blushed, wanting to decline, but not having the balls. Because, you know, she's female.

Sasuke, however, had plenty. "No."

Mikoto gave him a hurt expression. "Why, Sasuke? You don't want to hurt her feelings, do you?"

Sasuke spared a glance at Hinata, indicating it was her turn.

She threw her hands up and waved them before her face in defense. "N-No! My f-feeling wouldn't b-be hurt…"

Fugaku gave them both a reprimanding look. "You two aren't taking to this as we'd hoped you would…"

"Well, what did you expect? We barely even like each other."

"I…W-well, I-I like you, S-Sasuke-kun…"

Hinata realized instantly that she'd chosen the wrong time to be polite when she saw Fugaku's face contort into a superior grin.

"There, you see? A confession!"

Hinata blushed furiously at the implication, denying what he'd said but it was too late. His voice did override hers, after all.

And so, against their will, they ended up in the most romantic of all places: Ichikaru Ramen Bar. Simply for the lack of knowing another place they could go. Since they were there so late, it turned out to be relatively empty, giving the two plenty of privacy…which also, in turn, made it ten times more awkward.

Hinata was nervous, to say the least. This was her first date, and yet somehow she knew this was not how it was supposed to go. Didn't people usually, I don't know…talk when on dates? Or look at each other? Acknowledge each others presence, surely they did that? If so, it wasn't the case with those two. Sasuke simply ate his food while Hinata sat awkwardly twiddling her fingers trying to think of something clever to say. Sasuke obviously wasn't going to initiate conversation, so…

Sasuke sighed. "Could you stop fidgeting? It's getting on my nerves."

Hinata blinked as his voice broke into her thoughts. She blushed. "O-Oh! S-Sorry, Sasuke-kun."

He rolled his eyes and continued to eat. "Hn. Aren't you going to eat?"

She looked down at her own half-full plate of food. She really wasn't hungry, but she didn't want to be rude. She took another bite.

This date was seriously going down the drains, until…

"Yo, Hinata!"

Hinata looked up from her bowl toward the familiar voice to see Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino approaching her. She smiled widely as she breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"K-Kiba-kun! Shino-kun! Wh-What a-a-are you d-d-d—"

Kiba, seemingly reading her mind, answered before she could even finish her question. "Today was supposed to be our team's night out, remember? Where were you?"

"O-oh! I-I'm s-s-sorry, I…I've b-been busy…"

He shrugged with a nonchallant grin. "S'okay, you're here now right? Speaking of which, what's he doing here?"

She blushed and turned reluctantly back to Sasuke, who was currently staring at the two blankly. "W-We, um, we're on…" she blushed. "W-We…"

Akamaru barked.

"Huh? No way!" Kiba chuckled lightly before turning to Hinata. "Akamaru thinks you two are on a date!"

She blushed deeper, not answering.

Silence.

Kiba's eyes grew wide. "Wait…You're not…You can't be…"

"Could you leave?" Sasuke stated in a cold voice. "You're interrupting."

"No way!" Kiba exploded, drawing the attention of people trying to eat. "Hinata, is that true?!"

She blushed. Too embarrassed to answer, she could only nod dumbly. Though she managed to shoot a look of desperation to Shino.

Understanding her instantly, he nodded. "It's time to go," he stated to Kiba.

Kiba glanced at him. "Who made you boss?"

"Kurenai-sensei is expecting us tomorrow at practice early. We should get some rest."

"Oh yeah…Are you gonna show this time, Hinata?"

"I…I d-don't know…I'm t-training with Itanii—…Um…I-I mean, Itachi-sensei…"

Kiba stared at her strangely for a moment but decided to let it slide. "Fine, whatever. Just don't forget about us, okay?"

Hinata was about to mumble an apology before she realized he was joking. She smiled. "I-I'll t-try not to…"

He chuckled as he and Shino both exited the bar.

And that, dear readers, happened to be the high point of the 'date' for the rest of the night was spent as awkwardly and silent as it had started. Once finishing his own bowl, Sasuke wasted no time in declaring the 'date' officially over by simply throwing money on the table, standing, and walking toward the exit. Hinata was left at the table staring dumbfounded at his retreating back before he looked over his shoulder and sighed.

"Well? Or did you want more?"

She shook her head instantly. "N-No! Um, I…"

"Then let's go," he said, motioning for her to follow.

She instantly stood and trailed behind him silently, on their way back to Uchiha grounds. Uchiha grounds and not Hyuga…She'd probably never be welcome there again. Her sister would most likely be taking the role of leader once their father passed…No one would even give it a second thought. They all thought that she should be leader anyway.

There was a familiar stinging sensation in her eyes. Why? Why was she so worthless? She was only good as a woman…and only because she could produce an heir. What if, after some time, there was still no child? Sasuke would most likely spurn her, having her around only to clean the house or some other slave-like thing. Why was she so utterly useless to everyone? As a shinobi, as a daughter, as a sister…and maybe even as a wife. She couldn't stop the silent sob from escaping her mouth.

"Is the prospect of marrying me so repulsive?"

Hinata blinked at the sound of Sasuke's angry voice. He was facing her now, hurt and anger flashing plainly in his eyes.

"I…I d-don't underst…what d-do you mean?"

He took an angry step toward her, giving her a small urge to take a step back, but she did not succumb to that. "You know what I mean! You've been crying twenty times a day since you figured out you had to marry me!"

She gasped. It wasn't about him at all! She wasn't crying because she had to marry him! "N-no, Sasuke-kun I just—"

"But I didn't miss the smile you gave my brother right before dad said my name! So…" his voice hardened harshly as did his eyes. "So you're like everyone else, then? Would you rather have my brother? Is he so much better than I am?"

It was such a blunt question that Hinata almost considered not answering it. And she could've had that option, because after a moment of silence Sasuke turned back around and started to walk away. But there had been so much familiarity in what he'd said…almost like how she felt. She reached out without a thought and grabbed his hand. He made no move to either yank his hand away or turn back toward her.

Hinata took his silence as he cue to speak. "Sasuke-kun…I…I'm sorry that y-you thought…I'm not sad because of that…It's just…that…"

Tears started to leak out of her eyes as she stepped closer to him, pressing her face to his back. "It's just that I feel s-so worthless! L-Like I'm only g-g-good enough to g-give away! I…" her sobbing calmed, but tears were still falling from her face as she continued. "I d-don't hate her…Hanabi…b-but I will admit th-that I'm…j-jealous of h-her…d-dad loves h-h-her so much…h-he'd never g-g-give her to anyone…b-but…I'm not…" She brought her free hand to clutch his shirt as she pressed herself closer to his back. "I'm n-not as s-strong as she is…I d-d-don't think I e-e-ever w-will b-b-be…"

After a long moment of bearing her sobs, she felt Sasuke sigh as he turned to face her. He glanced upward toward the sky, clearly not wanting to make eye contact with the crying girl before him. "Forget it. I didn't mean what I said."

She nodded tearfully.

"And…" he glanced at her briefly. "You're not as strong as your sister is."

She paused before lowering her head and nodding slowly in agreement.

"You're probably stronger. In ways you don't even know."

Hinata blinked and looked up at him, hoping to find some sense of comfort in his expression, but he was looking at the ever-reddening sky. If not for the soft pink tint of his face, she may have thought he was taunting her. She giggled lightly, earning her a grunt from Sasuke as he continued on the path toward his house…their house. When he turned away from her she missed two things: his smile and the silent 'thank you' he mouthed out.

He didn't let go of her hand either.

Shimi-chan: Okay, there you go. Hope you all like it!