Neji smoothed his face as he walked down the streets of Konoha, lips tightened to a thin crease, all his senses extended even though the probability of an attack in broad daylight in the most well protected part of the city was highly unlikely. Better safe than sorry, by his terms.
The summons had been curt. Not unexpected, just unusually curt, and that was enough to spark a small piece of worry that Neji refused to let shine through. Wasn't worth it in the end result.
The Hyuuga compound was always clean. Impeccably so. Every cobblestone swept, ever door chip less, every window clear, and every step perfect. Hyuuga reputations were something nearly as respectable as the byakugan that the family held, and Hiashi was very sure to keep it that way, outside and in.
Which was probably what this was about, though Neji chose not to dwell on that as he walked briskly down the open pathways towards the center of the compound, feeling minimal chakra signatures in the area. Which was to be expected on a day like today.
Neji stopped in front of the rice paper doorway, silently holding his breath and counting to three. Clear the mind, let go.
"Come in." Neji stopped his knuckled from hitting the side of the wooden frame a centimeter away, letting his hand drop back down to his side before sliding open the door.
Hiashi was a commanding man, nearing his mid-fifties with stern lines that just barely creased his face. He sat traditionally, a pot of tea beside him, his hands on his lap, staring straight at Neji. He did not seem old, but he was the closest that Neji would ever come to regard as a father.
Neji knelt down on the floor and bowed respectfully, before resting his own hands in his lap and regarding Hiashi quietly. Curt summons were not generally a good sign.
"Neji." Hiashi's voice was roughened with age and time, but strong and willful. Commanding. "How is your day so far?" He asked.
Common courtesy. General rules to be followed that were set down by strict etiquette. Neji nodded his head. "Very good, sir. It has been a pleasant day."
"Good, good." Hiashi dipped his head the slightest. "And I'm gathering your team is all right? I know how Gai can be a bit… exuberant." Hiashi gave a sigh. "He was like that even in the academy."
Neji's lip quirked. "They are all very well, and I do believe that Gai-sensei is out training." With Lee. Hitting trees repeatedly.
Hiashi smiled, small and reformed, more as a mannerism than anything else. "And you've heard of our Lady Tsunade? She is busy at the hospital currently, right?" Hiashi inquired, a small dip in his voice. Neji's eyes narrowed minutely at the detected change.
"Yes. A few other teams besides my own came back recently, a few of them in disrepair. Lady Tsunade has her arms full." Neji chose his words carefully, nitpicking his way around any subject that could possibly be used to fuel a fire that was brewing.
"I'll have to send her my regards." Hiashi said, somewhat stiffly. Old or not, he had once been a great ninja, and Neji wasn't hiding his wariness. "You're last mission… was a infiltration retrieval mission, am I correct?"
Neji's guard went up immediately. "Yes, sir." He said, throat tight.
"And your team was with the Aburame and the Nara, correct?"
A tight nod.
Hiashi nodded, pale eyes watching Neji with a calculating wariness. "I assume it was successful." A statement, otherwise known as an assumption. Neji felt his hackles rise. Assumptions about anything were not to be made, correct or otherwise. "But the Aburame boy… He is on Hinata's regular team?"
"Yes, sir."
"Ah, then I trust this shall be easy for you."
A muscle in Neji's jaw twitched. More assumptions. Who'd said he would take whatever mission this was?
"I need you to watch her. Use the Aburame boy as leverage. She has been straying away from what her family deems of her for interests in a mutt." Hiashi practically spit out the last word and the muscle in Neji's jaw twitched once again. His skills were being downgraded to those of a useless guard-dog? And there wasn't even room for a yes or no option.
Hiashi reached for the pot of tea and poured himself some into one of the cream ceramic cups sitting beside it, raising the lukewarm drink to his mouth. "As a branch family member, it is your duty-" Neji's fist constricted on his lap. "To keep the main branch in purity, and I will not have my firstborn messing around with a low-bred dog."
Neji suddenly had the urge to stand up and storm away. Not only was he being reduced to a watchdog, but it was for a conceited old-fashioned tradition and the petty interests of a bored father. Neji's teeth squeaked as the ground together in strictly concealed anger.
"And if she is not?" He managed to grind out.
Hiashi took a drink. "Then you are not further needed for this assignment." He looked at Neji over the rim of the cup, eyes daring him to say anything otherwise or outside of his rank. "But they are, and you are going to stop it." The eyes dropped, as did the hand holding the cup. "Dismissed."
Neji stood up, back ramrod straight as he bowed stiffly to Hiashi and let his feet step him out of the room, the door sliding shut behind him with barely a whisper when Neji felt it should have slammed as loudly as his thoughts.
All those assumptions. Every single one regarded him as a thing, mindless and only good until it's use wore out. Neji's nails dug in to his palms tightly and there was slight dampness as they drew blood. No room for him to say no, no room to think otherwise. The words hadn't been barbed or wired, they were straight and blunt. The words of a man who couldn't even imagine the idea of any opinion other than his own.
Neji suddenly whirled, fist slamming into a wooden post with a resounding crack. The wood split his knuckles, but the post had taken far more damage than Neji's hand had. He pulled it free of the wreckage, ignoring the wide-eyed look one of Hiashi's mistresses gave him before she hurried on, scurrying away like a pitiful mouse. With a scowl, Neji shook his hand free of splinters roughly; rage not even close to dimming. Even as he rose through the ninja ranks, proved himself over and over, he was somehow still a trapped bird, a slave to a house that wouldn't- no, couldn't- move outside their old ways.
And knowing himself the way he did, Neji would do it. Though he would hate every minute of it. Neji's lips tightened as he stalked off the grounds towards the training area. Suddenly, going to join Lee and Gai in smashing trees didn't seem like such a bad idea.
Why is this chapter up so quickly? Because it was done, and I was online. 'nuf said.
Hey look! Neji! I've never written from your point of view in my life! I think I've ruined you! Yay!
Why do I sound so masochistic today? Jeez... I need an energy drink...
So yeah. Neji got mad. I think though he patched it up with Hiashi in the chuunin exams, he didn't quite ever get on... good, per say, terms with him. Which is okay, cause everyone has issues with their... parental figure. Uhrm... awkward...
Maybe I should have emphasized the WRATH part of it more... but while Neji is angry, he's more composed about it than most people... right?
Urg. Tell me what you think. Please. I'm begging. On hands and Knees.