Define Destiny

A/N: I love all of your reviews; they encourage me to write the next chapter! Well, here is chapter 11 and I can't say I'm completely happy with it. The middle just seemed so off but whatever. Read, hopefully enjoy, and review!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Hinata, or any other character.

Chapter 11

"Hyuga Hiroki," the words were spoken quietly, slipping past Neji's lips seconds before he took a sip of his tea.

"What?" She set her cup down, the sharp sound of porcelain connecting with wood echoing in the room. For some reason, that name struck fear in her heart, though she had never even heard it before. "Who's that?"

"A distant cousin of ours," was his reply. He moved to take the small, wrapped parcel Hanabi was handing to him.

"Happy birthday, nii-san," she murmured before sitting back.

"What about him?" Hinata prompted.

Neji slowly and carefully ripped the wrapping, giving Hanabi a thankful nod. It was a brand new set of kunai, collector's set. The girl had even had his name engraved in the hilts, the letters a silvery color. He had to admit he was impressed.

Hinata frowned, well aware of his evasion tactics in play. She took his gift and practically shoved it at him. Neji took it gracefully, the paper coming off with ease. A leather bound photo album was revealed; already full to burst with pictures. On the cover, the words 'Moments You Never Forget' were displayed, surrounded by the various –and slightly ridiculous- signatures of the Rookie 9, Team Gai, their teachers, and even the Hokage herself.

She barely caught the flicker of a smile on his face before he looked up. "Thank you," he said.

"It t-took a while to put together," she said. "Tenten and Lee h-helped a lot,"

He nodded and their eyes met. "Hanabi-sama, can you give us a moment please?" he asked, not bothering to look away.

"But—"

"Please,"

Hanabi let out a sigh of frustration but stood, making her way out the door. She shot Neji a dark glare before closing it with a snap. Her angry stomping as she walked down the hall was heard for a few seconds before fading.

"As you know, my sources always manage to gather interesting bits of information," began Neji. "And they report back to me,"

"The servants, right?"

"That is confidential."

She chuckled, amused. But Neji's serious look killed her amusement quickly.

"S-sorry," she said. She was starting to feel anxious now, and the delay was only making it worse. "S-so, who is he?"

"The Elders have decided on your fiancée," It was all said without pretense, no warning. "They plan on having you both meet soon. Of course, it will be without telling you beforehand, just to catch you off guard."

"They won't c-catch me off g-guard now, will they?" Her tone was thickly coated with bitterness, so much it was almost overwhelming.

"It's better to be informed, don't you think?" He was watching her with his cold, calculating eyes and she knew he could see right through the tough front she was putting up. She knew that he knew just how much she wanted to crawl into a corner and cry right now.

"T-thank you for telling me, Neji-nii-san," she bowed low before standing. Giving her small smile, she paused, "…Happy birthday," Hinata was half-way out when his voice stopped her.

"We're here for you, you know?" he said.

She took a shuddering breath and nodded though it was invisible to Neji. "I know,"

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"What!" He stood, slamming his fists onto the table. The cups on it rattled, sliding to a stop precariously close to the edge. "How could they do something like that to her?"

"Simple," Neji responded coolly. "Exactly the same way they placed the seal on me."

"But it's not fair!" Naruto's eyes narrowed on him. Pointing an accusatory finger, he said, "You told us waiting would help, that they would change their minds if she just kept on doing her stuff."

"I never promised anything, Uzumaki," his hands clenched into fists. "Apparently she wasn't perfect enough for them." Closing his eyes, he sighed, "Nothing ever is."

Complete realization of the whole situation hit Naruto like a ton of bricks. He sat back down, a blank look on his face. "So, that's it then?" he said, his voice devoid of emotion.

"I don't know,"

His head snapped up, cerulean blue eyes meeting white, a tiny glimmer of hope shimmering in his depths. Neji shook his head. "Don't count on a miracle, Naruto," he said. "All we can do is keep hoping this fiancée," the dark-haired Hyuga spat the word with disgust. "Isn't a complete asshole,"

"Do the others know?" Naruto's voice was low.

"Tenten and Lee are telling them now."

"There's no chance for us, right?"

"There never was."

"Even if—"

Neji interrupted, "Even if she didn't have an arranged marriage, the Hyuga would never allow it."

"But—"

"Naruto, all you can do now is be there for her, support her," Neji felt somewhat bad for the boy, his rational side battling with the Hyuga filled side of him. "Not encourage more fantasies of 'What ifs'. It'll only hurt worse in the end."

A pained look crossed over his face before being replaced by an impassive one. "Where is she now?" he asked.

"Most likely meeting with her father,"

The blonde ninja gave a short, stiff nod. He stood and left quickly, leaving the Hyuga to his thoughts.

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He ran blindly, leaping from rooftop to rooftop, slipping on the occasional loose tile. But he always caught himself before he tumbled to his death below. He didn't know his destination. And he supposed he had none.

So many thoughts were racing through his mind, so many it was overwhelming. He knew he shouldn't feel so betrayed by the lack of result their work had given, knew he should be able to just accept it.

But he couldn't. He felt something more could be done. Yet everyone, even Neji, said there wasn't anything else to do.

Hinata… She was probably really upset. Or had she too accepted her fate as easily as the others? He shook his head, thinking, she wouldn't. This was done to reassure himself more than anything.

Too caught up in his thoughts, he almost didn't see the roof he was running on was about to end. He barely managed to make it to the other roof. He thanked the Gods he had been quick enough chakra at the last minute.

Naruto continued on his way, ignoring the looks he was getting from the villagers below. He knew it was altogether his fault it hurt so much. He was the one who had insisted on them meeting, insisted they keep up a relationship behind everyone's back.

It was his entire fault.

He scowled, jumping down from the roofs to the street. All these thoughts were full of self-pity, and he knew it. Behind everything was the fear that he was going to be alone again. He would never find someone who cared for him as much as Hinata did. Ugh, there was that self-pity again.

He paused and glared hatefully at the sky, positive there was someone up there who gained some sadistic pleasure from seeing him unhappy.

"Naruto!"

He turned slowly, for once in his life not wanting to speak to his teammate. And she had Ino with her too. He had to stop himself from cringing at the sympathetic looks on their faces. Both girls linked arms with him and began dragging him down the street.

"W-that are you doing?" he sputtered, eyes wide.

"Naruto, we know everything, k?" said Ino. She flashed him a bright smile, patting his shoulder lightly.

"You do?"

"Of course we do!" Sakura's grip on his arm was getting just a little too tight for his taste.

"I still don't know what you're doing,"

The two exchanged a look and nodded. They slipped into an alley, ignoring his loud protests. His pink-haired teammate grabbed his shirt and pulled him down. Faces inches apart, she hissed, "You go along with this and don't make a scene or you're dead."

He gulped and nodded, "Um, whatever you say, Sakura-chan."

Ino's grin widened. "Glad you agree," she said. "After all, you are one of the main guests."

"Main guest?" He was beyond confused now. "For what?"

"You'll see," they said in unison. Returning to the main street, both girls began prattling on about random things, things such as their favorite flower and such. Yet Naruto couldn't help but be apprehensive. They were smiling like they knew a very funny joke but weren't planning to share it any time soon.

He knew he should've made a run for it the moment he saw them…

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It felt like the scene when her father named her heiress was about to be replayed. She stood fidgeting outside, waiting for him to call her in. She was biting her lip nervously, tugging on the hem of her shirt. The silence was unnerving, even more so than the waiting.

She couldn't say she had been surprised when a maid had come saying her father wanted to see her. She had actually been expecting it since Neji had shared that bit of her information with her that morning. But just not so soon! She tugged on a lock of her hair, willing all the questions racing through her mind to just go away.

"Hinata, you may come in,"

She slid open the door, bowing low. "Otou-san," Glancing up, she could see there was another person in the room, a boy she could not recognize. Hinata crossed the threshold, closing the door behind her. She moved to a kneeling position, several feet of space between her and the person. "You asked to see me?"

Hinata withstood his silent scrutiny of her appearance, wishing he could just tell her and go. After a minute or so, he finally spoke, "The Elders have been thinking, analyzing, and they have come to the decision that—"

"I al-already know, otou-san," She said the words without thinking, interrupting her father in the process. She had done something completely out of line. Her breath hitched in her throat as she hesitantly looked up at her father.

Hiashi was staring at her with a curious expression, one of his eyebrows raised. "Who told you, Hinata?" he asked.

"Hikari-sama," she answered.

"Really?" Judging by the tone in his voice, Hinata came to the conclusion that Hikari had told her something she shouldn't have. The more malicious part of her was cheering in glee; sure the woman would get a good scolding now. But that also meant…

She had completely and utterly fooled her. All her words of 'wait and see' were nothing now, had been nothing then too. She had set her up and Hinata had fallen. Hinata had placed her hope on false words, she had made the others do all that work for nothing.

Nothing they did was going to change her fate. Everything had been decided from the very beginning.

Her destiny was set in stone, stone that was weather-proof and kunai-resistant. It was a futile struggle.

"She did not say a name?"

She shook her head, "No, she didn't."

"Ah, well, then everything is not ruined."

No father, she thought, everything is.

"Hinata, this Hyuga Hiroki, your fiancée and future husband,"