I'm back!

Also, the beginning of this story is gonna be similar to the movie, but not exactly. Everything is gonna be different after that, so just wait for it ;)

Let's begin!

#2. The Matchmaking Session

"Oh, honey, you look beautiful!" Hinata's mother complimented.

Hinata made her way to the nearest long mirror to check herself, while her mother kept on complimenting her on how beautiful and gorgeous she was.

She stood there as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. And she had to say, the ladies did an amazing job at everything! Her kimono was a beautiful crimson red color with flowers decorating all around it. A gold sash was tightened around her waist, making her chest pop out a bit more than usual. That certain detail was a bit embarrassing for her. Almost every girl in the village had a nice petite chest. But no, not her. She just had to stand out. At first she had felt really self-conscious, but she later learned to love herself more and be less insecure. Turned out there were a lot of girls who told her they wished they had her chest, which Hinata felt embarrassed and secretly happy about.

Overall, she looked stunning. Her hair was tied up into a nice, sort-of-messy bun with two chopsticks sticking out of it. The make-up was OK, she felt like she had a bit too much, like if she had tripped and fallen face-first into a cake or something. But she didn't mind it though - she could hardly believe this was her!

Hinata smiled at her reflection in the mirror and turned towards her mother. "I-I guess I do look lovely, Mother."

"Honey, you look amazing! All the men in Konoha will be after you like lovesick puppies!" Her mother turned towards the stylists. "It's all thanks to you, good ladies! Thank you very much for making my daughter the most beautiful woman in Konoha!" she cried delightedly.

Hinata grimaced a little. She loved her mother to pieces, but she didn't like the fact that her mother believed her to be above any other girl in the village. Her mother expected her to be perfect in everything she did. She hated to see Hinata doing something non-girly, telling her she would never get a good husband if she kept at it. She remembered that long ago when she was little, she was caught playing in a puddle of mud, making mud cakes. She had gotten the scolding of a lifetime that day. Her mother had ranted on and on about how it was so un-lady like of her; and if she kept being like that, she would never get a man to look at her as a woman, even less as a wife. Having a husband is such a big deal here in the village, as you can already see.

"Oh, my goodness gracious, Hinata! You have a little over five minutes before your matchmaking session begins! Go! Go! Get out and climb into the carriage quickly, the coach will know where to take you. Now hurry!" Hinata's mother lead her quickly outside and helped her climb aboard a carriage that was already there.

Once Hinata was secured inside, her mother smiled at her. "I'm so proud of you, honey. You are about a step away from adulthood. Your father, your sister and I will be waiting for you at home when your session is over. I can't wait until you return and tell us how it went. I love you!" She waved goodbye to Hinata as the carriage started moving away.

Hinata smiled and nodded at her mother before she turned to look at the front. If she said that she wasn't nervous, she would be lying. Her hands were starting to get sweaty and she was shaking a little. She hoped that the notes she had taken this morning would help her survive through the session...

Suddenly, it hit her.

Did she still have her notes from this morning? The ladies had bathed her, so the writing might be gone by now! Hinata quickly pulled up her sleeve to check her arm where she had written her notes on. She almost fainted when she saw that all the hard work from this morning had been washed off! Now Hinata had a reason to die. She suddenly felt like having a heart attack. How could she let this happen!? Now she was doomed for sure!

And as if things couldn't get any worse, she had just arrived in front of the matchmaking house.

"Alright, Miss, we have arrived. Yer mother ordered me to wait out here 'til you're done to take ya back home." The coach jumped out of his seat and opened the carriage door for Hinata.

Hinata couldn't breathe. She couldn't move. She felt stuck.

"Miss...?" The coach looked inside the carriage. "Do ya need help getting off, my lady?" he asked as he extended his hand towards her.

Hinata finally got out of her trance. "H-Huh? O-oh, uh, yea, th-thank you, sir." She flushed in embarrassment and took the coach's hand as he helped her off the carriage.

"Now, I hope i-it isn't a bother if you wait f-for me, i-is it?" she asked, feeling more embarrassed of her usual stutter.

"Nothing is ever a bother for me, my lady. I'll just feed my horses some carrots while I wait." The coach smiled at her as he turned around and walked towards his horses.

This is it, she thought. Hinata started climbing the small set of stairs in front of the mansion, until she came to stand before the big double doors. She was practically sweating bullets at this moment; it was a miracle she hadn't fainted yet, like she often did when she was in unbearable situations. She was about to knock on the doors when both of them abruptly flew open.

"Hyuuga, Hinata?" asked an old fat lady.

"Y-yes?" she answered.

"You're one minute late. I hate tardiness," said the older lady, "But I will give you just one more chance. Be grateful I give second chances, or else I would be kicking you out right now. Come in." The woman stepped aside and motioned for her to go inside.

Hinata made her way in until she heard the doors close shut behind her.

"Hello, I am Madam Tussa, your matchmaker." Madam Tussa walked towards Hinata and started circling around her, looking her up and down. Hinata felt really nervous and awkward, but decided to take this moment to look around the room. The walls were a dark lavender color. There were some flowery scented candles here and there, some urns, plants, and a few lanterns hanging from the walls. It was a very nice and neat room.

"Hmm..." Hinata snapped her attention back to the matchmaker.

"Your hips are good enough to bear a son, but you're too busty; it would have been better if you had a small chest..." Hinata felt a little offended at her comments, but she just listened to every word the old lady was saying. "My chest wouldn't be this big if I were your size..."

After a few more comments like those, Hinata drowned out her voice as she started noticing how funny Madam Tussa looked. She had on some weird make-up, blue and black on the eyes, red on the lips, and a fake painted birthmark on her cheek. It certainly did not fit her image at all. No wonder the older woman sounded, well, dare she say it, jealous of her. Hinata tried to hold back the amused grin that was slowly starting to spread on her face. She felt guilty for having such thoughts, but she couldn't help it. A small chuckle managed to escape her lips.

"What's so funny?" Madam Tussa remarked, giving her a small glare.

Hinata immediately stopped her incoming giggles, a deep red color starting to spread on her cheeks as Madam Tussa arched an eyebrow at her. "N-Nothing, ma'am, I-I-"

"Don't stutter, it's annoying! No man likes a woman who trips on her words!" Madam Tussa turned around and made her way to a small table, which had a small teapot and two china cups placed on it.

"Take a seat." She pointed towards the cushion that was on the other side of the table while she sat on the opposite direction. Hinata obeyed and made her way to the table too.

"Now, I want you to pour the tea while I ask you some questions." The woman gave a nod and motioned towards the teapot.

Oh no, I'm not ready for questions! How will I get out of this one? Hinata nervously grabbed the teapot with both hands. She was so nervous that her hands started sweating again, making the teapot a bit too slippery to hold on to. As she was about to pour some tea into the two china cups, she suddenly got a goose-bump, making her shake a little. Big mistake. The moment she trembled, the teapot slipped out of her slim fingers and crashed onto the shiny floor. The spilled tea started making a long trail.

"Why you clumsy-" Madam Tussa had stood up and made her way around the table when she stepped on the tea, slipped, and fell butt-first onto the floor.

Hinata gaped at the whole scene, horror evident on her face. She wanted to help her up, but she couldn't move a muscle. She felt stuck, again.

Madam Tussa, seeing that Hinata wasn't helping her up, got angry, and attempted to stand up by herself. "You little-" she was cut off as she slipped once again, slipping on the tea trail all the way towards a wall and slamming right into it. She fell down on some scented lighted candles that were placed on another small table.

"AHHHHHH!" she screamed. Realizing she was now on fire, she started jumping up and down. "PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OOOUUUTTT!"

Hinata immediately snapped back to reality. She acted quickly as she grabbed the fan hidden inside her kimono and ran towards the old lady.

"Don't worry! I'll put out the fire!" Hinata, wildly, started fanning the matchmaker's bottom until the fire would disappear. But instead of putting out the fire, the fan had just increased it, making it worse!

"OOUUAAAAHHHH!" screamed the matchmaker in agony.

Hinata stood back in shock, but then started looking frantically around the room for something that could help her put out the fire. She caught sight of a small water tank and ran straight towards it. Not noticing the two small fish inside, she grabbed it and ran back to the old lady.

"Here I go!" shouted Hinata as she swung the tank backwards before throwing out the water in it at full force.

"WAIT! NNNOOOOOOO!" the matchmaker screamed in horror.

Too late. Hinata threw forth the water while still holding the tank in her hands. There was a huge splash and smoke rapidly filled the room. The fire was out.

Once the smoke had cleared out, Hinata made her way towards the old lady. She stood right beside her, and then noticed that the matchmaker was on her knees, gaping at the floor. Hinata followed her gaze. She gasped.

Right there on the floor, there were two small fish - one black and the other white. These fish were inside the tank of water that she had thrown to the matchmaker! She had killed both the fish! The thing is, the fish weren't just any fish. These fish were the most expensive and rare on the market, said to be good luck, the yin and yang. They were worth a fortune!

"My babies..." whispered the matchmaker as she visibly started to tremble.

Hinata put the palm of her hand against her lips. "I-I'm so s-sorry..." She now felt like crying. She needed to get out of here. Hinata slowly backed away from the scene and made her way towards the doors before opening one and walking outside. Needing to leave as fast as possible, she started going down the stairs, when suddenly-

"YOU!" screamed the matchmaker as she burst through the doors. Her face was all wet and dirtied from the dripping make-up. Hinata froze in place when she turned around and stared at Madam Tussa.

"YOU ARE A DISGRACE! YOU MAY LOOK LIKE A BRIDE, BUT YOU WILL NEVER BRING YOUR FAMILY HONOR!" The matchmaker practically spit on her face. She turned around and stomped back into the house, slamming the double doors hard.

Hinata stayed still for a moment, then noticed there was a rather large crowd gathering around the matchmaker's home. She clearly heard them whispering and murmuring to each other-

"Poor girl."

"She didn't get a match.."

"That's what she gets."

"What did she do?"

All Hinata could hear were the whispers of the people. They were all looking at her, making faces and pointing at her.

I need to get out of here NOW!

Hinata's tears started cascading down her cheeks like a waterfall. She pushed through the crowd, sprinting back home as she cried, never stopping to take a breath until she would reach her house.

Hinata opened the gates leading into her home. She stepped in and closed them back up before she paused.

What am I going to tell mother and father?, she thought, They'll be so disappointed in me.

Hinata was dreading to look at her parents right now, not wanting them to see what a failure of a daughter she was. She had failed them both big time, even after all they had done for her. This was how she had repaid them.

Not wanting to face her parents yet, Hinata made her way towards the small pond in their large garden. She walked around the edges of it, looking at her reflection until she finally decided to sit down by the pond.

She stared at herself for what seemed like an eternity. She looked at her clothes. The rich red of her kimono was stained with a few splashes of tea; there were even a few black parts and ashes clinging to her due to the fire. She then lifted her eyes towards her face. All the make-up that was once beautiful, was now completely ruined. The black around her eyes was dripped all the way down to her chin, already dried due to the wind, making her look like some type of ghost. She hated it.

Not being able to stand looking at herself anymore, she harshly brought down a hand on the water, making a wild splash that blurred her reflection. She then cupped her hands together and scooped up some water before splashing it on her face. She kept repeating the process until she was sure all the makeup was gone, and decided to look at herself in the water once more to make sure.

Her face was now clear, with no makeup left. Her skin shone like porcelain, her soft, beautiful light skin was now fully visible after having splashed her face with the water. Though her eyes were still red and puffy from crying.

Unable to help it, Hinata broke down and started to sob. Everything just came crashing down on her. The humiliation was too much for her to bear, especially since like half the village had witnessed the whole scene. It would only be a matter of hours before the entire village knew about it. Hinata wouldn't be able to take it. She sobbed even harder.

"Hinata?"

Startled, Hinata paused her crying and turned around swiftly, coming face to face with her younger sister, Hanabi.

"Big Sister Hinata! Why are you crying?" exclaimed her younger sister with a worried look on her face.

"Oh, Hanabi! I'm not crying, silly! I was just washing off my makeup here in the pond, haha..." replied Hinata in a really light tone, trying not to sound sad, but her voice just trailed off.

Hanabi stared at her elder sister with a concerned look on her face. "Do not lie to me, Big Sister Hinata. I know you weren't just washing off your face. I clearly heard you crying," Hanabi said firmly, a frown forming on her cute features.

Hinata knew that she wouldn't be able to fool her sister. She knew Hanabi was a very smart girl; she could detect a lie as quickly as it came. There was just no way she could hide it, so she had to tell her the truth...but now wasn't the right time.

"Oh, Hanabi... I know it would be stupid of me to try to fool you since I know you can't be easily fooled...but I want to be alone, please dear sister...I need to be alone right now," Hinata told her softly.

Hanabi was about to protest when she suddenly saw the look on Hinata's face. Her face seemed, so sad. It didn't have that glow that she usually carried around everywhere. It seemed faded, opaque. Even if she hadn't heard her sister crying, it would've been obvious she had done so, due to how puffy red her eyes looked. Hanabi nodded towards Hinata, letting her know she would leave her alone for now.

The Hyuuga heiress nodded back at her younger sister with a smile, then turned to the opposite direction and walked away. Hinata hadn't meant to be so dismissive towards Hanabi, but she really needed some alone time right now, needed to figure out what she was going to do. How was she going to break the news to her parents? How were they going to react? Will they dishonor her? How was she going to deal with them? All these questions kept swarming in her mind.

After a little while, Hinata arrived to her favorite place of the Hyuuga household - where the cherry blossom trees were located.

These trees were really beautiful today, the petals falling down like droplets of water after a rainy day. The sun shone brightly and illuminated the trees, making a nice, sweet, warm glow. She had only seen this type of scenery once, and now this was the second time. What a beautiful scenery for such a horrible day. Why couldn't this happen on a happy day? Why couldn't it have happened on the day she'd turned fifteen and her parents had thrown a huge celebration, inviting everyone in the village? That had been Hinata's best birthday ever. Or why couldn't it have been when she finally graduated from her school in the village?

But of course, mother nature was cruel, only showing the best things it had to offer on the worst of times. Hinata then remembered that the first time she had ever seen this scenery, was the day the news of her cousin Neji's death had reached her and her family.

Neji was Hinata's favorite cousin. He had cared for her, protected her, had done everything for her. Hinata loved him so much. She had been sixteen when her cousin Neji had to serve in the Land of Fire's Third War due to selective service; he'd been barely eighteen at the time. Hinata had been so devastated, hadn't wanted him to leave her. But of course, it was his duty, so Hinata had to let him go. But before he left, he had gifted her his favorite necklace, a yin and yang, the one he always wore everywhere. He had told her it was his lucky charm but that she could have it, so that way, he could protect her even from afar. Hinata, with tears of joy, had accepted the gift and never failed to wear it everyday.

Soon, the weeks had passed, turning into months and so on. One day, Hinata had decided to take a walk out in her grand backyard, looking around at the beautiful day. She had kept walking ahead until she reached the cherry blossom trees. They looked so beautiful that day, just how they looked now. So beautiful. Hinata had never felt so calm in her life, the scenery made her feel warm and relaxed. She thought nothing could destroy the peace she was feeling inside at that moment. That was, until Hanabi had come running towards her, shouting her name.

"Hinata, Hinata!" Hanabi had made her way towards her elder sister, stopping to take in a few breaths once she had reached her.

"What is it, Hanabi? What's wrong? You look so pale," Hinata questioned once Hanabi stood in front of her. Hanabi glanced at her older sister before lowering her head to look at the ground as she pulled out a scroll. Because of the insignia on it, Hinata knew who the scroll belonged to: The Land of Fire's Army. She immediately took the scroll and unrolled it.

Her eyes could not believe what she was reading. It was about her dear cousin, Neji. He had died bravely on the battlefield.

It couldn't be true, it just couldn't! Cousin Neji couldn't...! She kept reading and reading it over for confirmation, every time her heart becoming heavier and heavier. Without even noticing, thick tears had started streaming down her face, not stopping. Hinata immediately glanced at her parents who had just come out of the house, a sad expression evident on their faces. Without a thought, Hinata went running towards them and hugged them, before turning into a crying wreck. "We're sorry," was the only thing they kept murmuring to her that day.

A few days later, Neji's body had been sent back to them. They had held a large funeral for him. Nearly everyone in the village had attended, all knowing who he was, and considering the fact that Neji had been declared a war hero by his generals. He had brought honor to the Hyuuga family.

Hinata shook her head quickly, wanting to clear her mind from such depressing memories of the past. She walked a few more paces when she saw a stone bench and decided to sit down to rest. She needed time to think of what she was going to do, how was she going to break the news about her failure to her parents. In all her years, she had been trying to please her parents as much as she could. She wanted to be a good daughter, to make them happy, to bring honor to her family as her late cousin had. She didn't want to disappoint them, especially her father, who she had developed a close relationship with barely a few years ago.

Right after finding out about Neji's death, she hadn't been able to feel surprised at the fact that her own father had let her hug him, when he was usually so stoic and cold. During the time of mourning, which for Hinata had been longer than anyone, her father had started to become less cold towards her. He had unexpectedly tried to get closer to her during that time. Hinata had slowly begun to stop her depression, appreciating her father's strange but welcome signs of affection. Even though it had been so untimely and she hadn't understood it, she was grateful that her father and her now had what one may call a warm relationship.

She couldn't say the same thing about her mother, though. They used to be kind of close when she was a child, but that mostly changed when Hinata turned eighteen, about a year after Neji's death. That's when her mother really began nagging at her about being the perfect girl, in order to find a great husband. She began fussing over her a lot more than before. Because of this, Hinata just knew her mother wasn't going to let her get out of this one; she wasn't going to make it easy for her.

It seemed that while her father had started closing the distance between them, her mother had started distancing herself from her.

Hinata just didn't know how she was going to face either of them, but she needed to keep it together. Just sitting here thinking about what happened at the matchmaker's house was making her want to cry again. Why am I so weak?, she wondered sadly.

Just then, she heard some footsteps and she immediately turned her head to see who it was. Hinata's eyes widened at the sight. It was her parents. She opened her mouth to say something, when her mother quickly brought a hand up to silence her. Hinata closed her mouth slowly and waited for the scolding that was sure to come.

"Hinata, it's okay. We know what happened," her father spoke in a soothing manner, one of the new ways he used to talk to her now. It made Hinata startle slightly, having expected him to go back to his usual cold mannerisms.

"Hanabi told us she saw you crying and being depressed, so don't hide anything from us. From what she told us, we can easily guess that the session didn't go well?" Hinata's mother made her way to the stone bench and sat next to her while her father followed suit.

Hinata didn't understand why her parents were being so kind to her. It made her feel a sliver of warmth inside. She wanted to give them a hug but the only thing she could do right now was look at the ground, too ashamed of herself to look them straight on.

"I-I'm s-sorry mother, father. After all you have done for me, this is how I have repaid you! I'm sorry f-for being such a-a failu-" Hinata's mother silenced her with a finger before she broke down again.

"Shh, Hinata. You're not a failure. We are glad we have you and Hanabi as our daughters; we couldn't ask for anything better. We love you both and nothing will ever change that, honey. So don't cry, cheer up." Her mother started soothing her head to calm her down. It surprised Hinata that her mother was being unusually affectionate like this. When was the last time she had done so? When she was six or seven years old?

"Your mother's right. We love you and nothing can change that. Besides, there are hundreds of other ways for you to get a husband without needing the help of that horrible matchmaker." Her father, Hiashi, closed his eyes and gave a curt nod, as if having given an important statement.

"Yes! There are other ways to find a husband, dear. You don't need the help of that filthy matchmaker!" Hinata's mother cupped her face excitedly. "I know! We'll both be your matchmakers! Wouldn't that be fun? Remember a woman needs a husband to protect her, as us women aren't strong enough to protect ourselves. Your father and I will start looking for single wealthy bachelors in other villages too! You need someone with class, not someone who can barely feed a family! Yes!" Hinata's mother spouted as she stood up quickly from the bench, motioning her husband to do the same.

"There is no time to waste! Let's look for a husband fast! She can't be left unprotected any longer! Don't worry, honey, leave this to your father and I. We'll take care of everything!" Hinata's mother sped-walked towards the house, her father calmly trailing behind. He looked back at his daughter, looking as if he wanted to say something but didn't know how to even begin, so he just faced the front again, seeming unusually awkward.

All Hinata could do was stare in shock at her parents for what seemed like the longest time. All her tears were mostly gone. A part of her felt extreme relief that her parents had forgiven her, had not dishonored her for the matchmaking failure. She was truly happy and thankful about that.

But another part of her was not. Why did she feel a sudden pang in her chest when her mother had prattled about finding her a husband? Was that not what she wanted? Did she not want to get married? Why am I feeling this?

All of her incoming thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a sudden thumping noise. Hinata couldn't register what was going on. She turned her head towards the sound as she recognized the beating of the drums somewhere off in the distance.

What's going on?

Hey, guys! Sorry I took nearly a month to update, but my computer has broken down, so the only way to write this for now are the school computers, waa! D:

Anyways, I made this chapter long, woohoo! Well, at least I hope it's long enough for you guys!

Next, we'll be seeing what triggered the beginning of the war a few days earlier.

Until next time! I'll try to bring you guys the chapters more quickly because I hate hiatus. ;P