First I would like to thank my reviewers for their kind reviews, and apologize for how late this chapter is. Sorry I'll try better the next time. So Thank you all.
Chapter 2
No Hyuuga has never let any predicament phase them, and if it did they took the passive approach. However, for the current leader of the Hyuuga clan Hiashi, it was hard to school his passive facade when his eldest child was back from the nether world.
"Hinata?" Her father asked. Hinata nodded wordlessly.
Once the angry shock wore off, Hanabi veiled her anger, which was simmering in her eyes. "This is great." She started. "On of all days to return, you picked this one. Gee, what a coincidence."
Hinata smirked, hearing the loathsomeness in Hanabi's words. "Yeah a coincidence or maybe its fate, even destiny. Wouldn't you agree Neji."
He replied in typical Neji fashion. "Hn." Neji scrutinized the young woman before him. She held an aura of confidence, and certainty. The shy, timid, mousy, stuttering girl was done away with. He admired that, but he also caught a hint of mischievousness, and resentment within her. It had rang clear when she regarded Hanabi with a suprising coolness.
Neji was drawn from his inspection, when he spotted his uncle, elders, and Tsunade-sama in conference. The Hokage took a stand in front of the podium. The buzz and chattering of the dining hall ceased almost immediately.
"In light of these new events, the elders and myself have agreed to postpone the crowning ceremony, until further notice. I ask all of you give this family privacy, so please just…leave." Tsunade glanced around seeing none of the guest were making a move to leave, and clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Damn it I said leave!"
Puffs of smoke were heard around the room, while others made great haste toward the exit. Satisfied Tsunade turned to Hinata, with the notorious Ibiki Morino flanked at her side.
"Hinata." Tsunade called. "I expect a full report on your whereabouts, first thing tomorrow morning."
"Yes Lady Hokage " she answered nonchalantly, which Tsunade caught the brazenness in Hinata's remark.
"Keep in mind Hinata, this is an serious, and official investigation. You could be charged with going AWOL, or even treason." Tsunade bit out evenly. "So when I say I want to know of your whereabouts, that means everyone you have come in contact with."
Hinata merely nodded. Tsunade spun on her heel, with her entourage of ANBU guards falling in behind her. Hinata smirked and looked toward the rafters for Sakura who was taking her own leave.Tthe ever observing Neji, saw the briefest hint of pink, before it vanished.
"Was that who I thought it was?"
"That depends on who you thought it was." Hinata followed after the family who had left to a smaller setting, leaving Neji who was shocked to silence twice in one night.
After a very vexing dinner, mainly because Hanabi kept on asking her questions, trying to catch her in a lie, she wondered the halls re-familiarizing herself with the house. Unknowingly her feet carried her to her past one that held her most painful memory.
The shadows of the hall played over her features, as she walked her footsteps seemed to echo in her ears. A memory escaped its confines. Hinata started to breathe deeply and leaned against the wall of the traditional Japanese home, as the memory came roaring back.
Her twelve-year-old self was standing, as she was now listening to her ex-sensei Kurenai and her father as they spoke. According to her father, the clan had regarded her as irrelevant and a failure. Hinata tore away from the repressed memory, hearing stealthy footsteps. They were too light to be a man's.
Hanabi rounded the corner, smiling as she found her target. "Quite a show, you put on earlier."
"Really now did I do that." Hinata answered her calmly.
"We all know why you did it. I just don't know what you hope to gain from it." Hanabi stood in front of Hinata trying to intimidate her with words. "Nothings going to change, so your trip was all for not."
"If that's what you think, you're a foolish little girl. You give yourself far too much credit, Hanabi." Hinata knew she had angered Hanabi. It was apparent when her smirk fell out of place. "You're foolish to think they'll over look centuries of tradition, and foolish that you think, you can handle responsibility of leader."
Taken back by the young woman's surprising boldness. "Oh, look who finally grew a backbone." Stepping away from Hinata. "There may be hope for you yet. Oh and another thing don't disturb me in my room." She said pointing to the room that was reserved for the heir or heiress of the clan. Hanabi walked on her way, but before she was out of hearing range Hinata spoke.
"Tell me when you found out I was gone, did you move into my room that same hour, or did you wait a whole week out of respect for the dead?"
Hanabi turned to Hinata only to find an empty hall. She hadn't even heard Hinata leave. Hanabi jumped when she heard a faint whisper of Hinata's voice. "Having that room doesn't make you a leader Hanabi, onlyits occupant."
Hanabi searched for her sister, but only heard her voice. Walking to her room Hanabi wondered what her sister had planned.
Under the pale hue of a full moon, Sakura sat at the top of Hokage Tower that peered over the slumbering Hidden Leaf Village. Her long lashed eyelids lay closed, hiding the distress of her unhappy thoughts of the past few hours.
She had left the Hyuuga estate, for her own home. Only to find it lay in ruins. Based on the brick foundation that was left and the ground texture she'd say it had been three to four years, since anything was there. She then proceeded to Hokage Tower and broke in. It was an easy task, seeing as most of the shinobi were at the ceremony. Finding civilian records were no longer kept at the tower, she checked in on her guys Kakashi and Naruto.
To her astonishment they were on an A-ranked mission, in wasn't due back until tomorrow evening. On top of that cell seven had been reformed. A new guy named Sai joined the team, but what surprised her most was the third member. The true deserter to the village Sasuke Uchiha had been reinstated as a shinobi. He, Naruto, and Sai had just passed the Jounin exams a month ago.
So here she was on the tower, facing the possibility that her parents may be dead and knowing she had been replaced not by Sai, but Sasuke. They never moved to reform the team when Sasuke left or when Naruto split to do his own training. Only when she "died".
Sakura felt small droplets of rain and laughed. "How fitting, so much for my great return." She had no home, to go too. The Hyuuga estate was probably heavily guarded by now, so Hinata was out of the question. She needed find shelter. Jumping off the tower, she leapt from building to building until she saw Kakashi's pad. Picking the lock she made sure to check for traps, before taking a look around her mysterious ex- sensei apartment. She saw his personal bedroom to his "impressive" book collection from the very first edition. She ran her finger over the spins of a few books.
Feeling tired from the journey and tonight's events, she crashed on his couch falling into a light uneasy sleep. Tomorrow she would need her strength to see her other ex-sensei of one-year Tsunade.
Morning soon came and Hinata stood in front the Hokage dressed in black pants that most shinobi wore with wrapping for her holster. Her hair tied in a ponytail at the base of her neck hung over her shoulder, with her hitai-ate in its usual spot around her neck. Tsunade sat ironed faced reading Hinata's report. Her bottle of sake sat unopened giving a clue to how serious she was. It wasn't until she stopped at the name Sakura, did she glance up at Hinata.Hinsts's eyes danced with amusement as Tsunade clenched her hands tightly, staring down the young woman in front of her. Shizune who was standing next to Ibiki felt the anger radiating off her sensei, and stepped up to her desk and opened the sake and poured.
Just then a puff of smoke was heard emerging from the smoke was Tsunade's former apprentice.
"Tsunade–sama." Sakura greeted. Tsunade downed her sake pushing the report to the side.
"Alright I'm listening."
Not my best, but I need to give you the setting of the other characters before I start writing more in depth. Oh don't forget to REVIEW!
"Tell me when you found out I was gone, did you move into my room that same hour, or did you wait a whole week out of respect for the dead?" I sure you all know this come from The movie/book The Princess Bride.