"New connections."
Hinata now understood Sasuke better. It wasn't to the same extent, and she didn't feel the hatred that he did, but it hurt her to no end. In order to save her, her beloved cousin, who was almost like a brother, jumped in front of her, and his life was taken away by the Ten Tails. After their bitter past, after growing closer over the years, after everything he did for her, he was snatched away.
At first, she didn't want to believe it, but as she listened to Neji's final words and watched the mark on his forehead disappear, it began to slowly sink in. Her heart was shattering into a million pieces. Her body trembled, tears fell down her pale skin, and her hands gripped her legs tightly. She could barely breathe, and she was paralyzed for long moments. Her mind raced, and it took all she had not to crash all together.
This was all her fault! Because she was in the way, Neji risked and lost his life. She wasn't strong enough, smart enough, or good enough to save him. She hadn't been skilled enough to attempt to heal him.
However, unlike Sasuke, she had no time to grieve. No time to process her loss. Her comrades were becoming disheartened. The enemy was still attacking and was threatening to do more damage. She couldn't let them kill any more hope and no more friends. She had to live for Neji's sake, to live up to the convictions he maintained up until the end, and to keep him in her heart.
In order to do so, she had to pull herself together by drying her tears, standing up again, and helping her comrades. She also had to speak courageous words to the boy that originally taught her courage, the boy she once loved but no longer. She still felt a bond to Naruto and even risked her life to save him, but she no longer wanted to be rejected.
By fighting side by side with her comrades, she could push past her pain temporality. Until the second boy that taught her courage appeared on the battlefield along with Orochimaru, the reanimated former Hokage, and a few others she didn't recognize.
As Sasuke made his way across the battlefield and interacted with a few of his old acquaintances, his onyx hues meet her lavender ones. A jab of pain shot through Hinata along with old memories. She remembered how comfortable they were becoming around each other before he left, how he finally thanked her for what she did for his family, and how she now felt the horrible sting of a fallen relative. Even after he left, she continued visiting his family's graves, not that he would know. He left her alone to pay respects to his relatives.
When he stopped in front of her, Hinata sucked in a deep breath, trying to remain calm. "Hello, Sasuke," she murmured, no longer shuttering around him. He simply gave her an acknowledging nod. "I visited your family up until Pain destroyed the village." The words hurt to even say, but she knew he had a right to know.
At first, it wounded him, losing what was left of his family, but with a deep breath, he felt shockingly composed. With everything he learned recently, he realized that he still had his relatives with him and that he had to move forward in order to live up to Itachi's convictions. "It's okay. Thank you," he mumbled, actually meaning it.
Sasuke glanced around the area again, and his gaze landed on Neji's motionless body, sending shock waves through him. His gaze softened on the pale girl in front of him, noticing the dry tear stains on her cheeks and grief in her expression. He felt a new connection between them. "It might be my turn to return the favor." As confusion flickered across her face, he simply explained, "I'm returning to Konoha. I want to become the Hokage so that it can change. That means nothing like this will ever happen again." He not only wanted stop war, but also other devastations like his own tragedy.
All their friends were astonished, throwing questions and concerns at him, puzzled at his sudden change. At first, Hinata was just as stunned, but it passed quickly. She saw the determination in his face, heard it in his voice, and felt it radiating from him. The Hyuga thought that he felt the same way as she did. That they didn't want their brothers' deaths to go by in vain or for their beliefs to die with them.
Unexpectedly, the corners of her mouth twitched, and she almost wanted to smile. His bold words managed to bring back some of her faith. If that was the kind of future he wanted to build, then she would believe in him. It was what she wanted. No more pointless agony. His hatred was finally turning into the courage that she remembered from many years ago. It was what she sympathized with, and she was so touched that it was coming back. She wanted to be by his side and to help again, but in a bigger way than bringing flowers.
In the past, she wanted to reach for Naruto's hand and walk by his side as they went for his dream. Now, she almost wanted to reach for Sasuke's hand, a new emotion that left her speechless. At Sasuke's perking eyebrow, she jerked up straighter, took another deep breath, and moved so that she stood by his side. "Well, we better start by ending this war, right?"
The Uchiha smirked, sensing the shifting emotions between them and surprisingly feeling amused at how he could approach it later. He also knew that she was right. This war had to stop before they could move forward. "Right."