Journey of the Three Failures Chapter 31: From the Ashes, a naruto fanfic

J3F\\\Journey of the Three Failures

Chapter Thirty-One

I never thought this story wouldn't manage to beat the manga to completion, lol.

That being said, remember how I predicted that this fic was only a short conclusory chapter from completion? Bad estimating again, but with this chapter and Chapter 32, which is already complete, typed, and proofread, we'll be done! It's like I had all that needed to be wrapped up outlined, but just predicted the writing of it being a lot shorter than it turned out to be. You'd think I'd be a lot better at this by this point, but yyyeah ^^;

As for what I've been up to - (note that this paragraph is a bit word for word from a journal I posted on dA recently) I finished the 19 hour semester I had in the Spring, had summer field session, a requirement at my school that teaches a lot of practical skills for your major, and this semester took 18.5 to start out my junior year (in engineering physics, which is generally regarded as one of the most conceptually difficult and high workload majors at my school, even without following a combined program track to master with an extra year (which I am) and additionally taking an honors program liberal arts class - toward a minor in public affairs - which itself has a higher-than-average workload for the 3 credit hours it's worth) and got a part-time job washing dishes for the school dining hall. It's been intense, but I'm making it through!

And now I've got two chapters for you! However, I'll probably wait a bit before releasing 32 - the reason being, I want to avoid as much confusion as possible. Remember last year when I released 27-30 in quick succession? Twenty-eight, which came out a day before twenty-nine, has significantly fewer views than either 29 or 30, and I can't make much sense of it (outside of potentially double hit counts for the later ones if people jumped to latest chapter at whatever time before realizing the need to double back), but it seems that back-to-back releases might throw people off. For this reason, I intend to release the final chapter on December 31.

In the time until then, I'll post some final artwork for the main characters on my deviantART account. I'll recommend you read this chapter before viewing them, though!

Also, as another 'thank you' to the readers, I plan to hold an event of sorts in which I'll take up to ten story-related drawing requests, first come, first served. Anyone can send a request, just add it to your review or send it as a PM, dA comment/note, etc. The only limitation I'll ask is one request per individual (i.e., please don't make one request on FFnet and another with a dA account; be honest!). Depending on if there's not enough interest for slots to fill up, I might open to multiple requests upon posting ch32. I'll make a journal on my dA profile keeping track of slots filled and available, as well as linking to the drawings I complete for this; I'll add a link to this journal on my FFnet profile. Drawings will be fairly quick/sketched (think the average quality in the mock-AMV a while back, except better in the sense that I've improved quite a bit at drawing since then). Essentially how this will work, though, will be that you can make your request as general or specific as you want, as long as it's related to Journey- or even Gaiden of the Three Failures; for example, if you ask me to draw the Terminal Kick scene, I'll use my imagination and choose the moment I think will be most visually interesting (probably Naruto in the air behind Shodai, the instant before he Shadow Swaps and lands the hit), but if you ask me to draw the Terminal Kick landing, I'll of course draw the blow actually landing instead. If all that makes sense, feel free to put me to work!

Thanks for reviewing JGResidentEvil, bearishmouse, LordofDrow, UnlimitedFreeIceCream, Omega the darkness, AnonOne, Arymed, narutos vixen, Presh Sauce, Gremlin Jack, MagykjayEmmax, Jrwest, Guywithafish, zigmas, Bardad101, KoreanGal5, Veraozao, awkarddnnja, mundanebeast, kurifu gari, YuukiAsuna-Chan, adngo714, Chargone, Soraya the All Speaker, drevagon, graceful warrior of ashmeadow, SunnyLunar, Storylover Vodhr- Dux Ducis, castrjoa001, equastar, Digitaldestiny360, Uberlemming, Animefreak0831, semihemidemisemiquaver, Hazza25, MrVenom10, xXxFutureMrsKuehlxXx, TitanSteel, and anons signing BananaPeel, Darknessrising, Dan, Emkyle, Amatarasue12, anonymous, crusader5643, kyle, Guest (July 7), Guest (Sep 28), and Guest (Nov 16)! Thank you for your feedback, whether it was praise, criticism, encouragement, an immediate reaction (positive or negative), a thoughtful response, you name it. There was a lot more diversity in feedback to 30 than any other chapter has yet yet received, and while my reply rate was a bit lacking this time, I want to say that every one of your reviews tells me very much.

Finally - I'll be honest, amid how busy I've been and this large range of responses, I reiterate that I didn't respond to as many reviews as I would have hoped to. But I would like to say that I do understand that many of you have a lot of emotional investment in this story, as one put it, and I admit many of you reacted a bit more strongly to the plot twist last chapter than I anticipated (and I definitely anticipated backlash). But it makes sense - it's been a long journey getting this far, for all of us. Most of you have read some 640,000 words of J3F up to this point, right?

But I'd like you to also consider this.

When someone has invested the time and effort that I have, writing a story I started about a third of my so-far twenty-year life ago, one does not simply write a plot twist to troll or hurt the fans who have been following and supporting this story for so long. If you think I'm that sadistic - to 'upend' my own story, as many saw it, simply to be cruel - well, I'd have to be amazed. It took me a lot of consideration, and courage, to hit that button to submit chapter thirty.

This story is precious to me; its writing has been an adventure. And when I mentioned at the end of the previous chapter that I'd been waiting years to throw that curveball, it was to say that I planned this - that I know where I'm going, and have a plan as to how to get there. I didn't write it just 'for the lulz' or on the spur of the moment, and I'm honestly a bit insulted at the suggestion that I'd write a 'joke' into my story.

But you're here now, and I hope it's because you had faith that I knew what I was doing, and in my ability to write this story. I don't think I'll let you down, anyways; I know and regret that I can't please everyone, but if I thought I was ruining my story to everyone, I wouldn't have written that. So while I'm sorry to have hurt anyone's feelings or genuinely offended anyone, I won't apologize for writing my own story exactly the way I intended, and incorporating a twist I'd considered carefully. So for those of you who relish in a solid plot twist, like I do - I'm happy to have delighted you back there. For those of you who've been steadily enjoying the ride - I'm glad you weren't disappointed, and I hope to continue to please. For those of you who thought Hinata vs. Neji was entirely too long - a different matter, of course, but sorry about that; once I've written something out, I don't excel at finding places to trim it down, and describing action does tend to go slowly. And whether you loved or hated the battle overall, for those of you who were appalled by the end of 30, I don't believe this'll end as atrociously as you're expecting, but let's see.

I write because I love writing, and I write because I love writing something that others can enjoy.

With that, I hope you enjoy the chapter, and the conclusion on New Year's Eve!

Disclaimer: I don't own NARUTO. In fact, I think if I owned Naruto about now, I'd be living in fear of being shanked in the streets by the more... zealous NaruSaku fans O.o

Journey of the Three Failures

Thirty-One: From the Ashes

Part One: Aftermath

Hinata ヒナタ

"Release him."

There was weight to my words now; what I had just done had made it so.

I steeled my heart against the coldness permeating my gut, against expressions ranging from bewilderment to horror, and against the sense of Naruto's shocked eyes boring into my skull, and I strode forward, head up. When I repeated the stern command, the Hyuuga holding Neji's strengthless form flinched. Casting uncertain looks from me to Ojii-sama, they took their hands off my cousin, letting him collapse.

"Wh–what are you playing at, child?" Grandfather's slack jaw remembered itself to form the words. The old clan head glowered as I stood between him and my cousin, and faced him down.

That look couldn't buckle me – not now, not when the suddenly fragile life of the one behind me depended on how I defused this situation. It was not with overt belligerence that I spoke then, but the challenge remained painfully clear. "You heard us, Grandfather. Now will you go so far as to strike down me, the clan's leader, to kill my betrothed?"

He scowled, a dangerous look in his white eyes. "You, our leader?"

"Hai."

I knew the wakizashi hilt that cracked into my cheek had all of the old man's strength behind it; I let slip a stifled grunt as hot pain pulsed out across my face. But my arms stayed at my sides, and I didn't give an inch from where I stood. He had clearly meant to knock me down, and I wouldn't let him.

"Hinata…" Neji said behind me.

"Step away from him, child."

"I am no child," I persisted, blinking to clear my head even as I held his glare. The solid hilt still pressing into my cheek shuddered; blood trickled from my nose and mouth. "Here in this place, I say before the eyes of our ancestors that I am the rightful leader of the Hyuuga Clan." And I am stronger than you.

The fact that I would not bend proved either infuriating or terrifying to him. Eyes wide, jaw tense, he drew back his blade's hilt and prepared to strike me again.

"Please wait!" Hiryuu boomed, his voice startling enough to interrupt the swing. Grandfather raised a scornful eyebrow as the New Leaf jounin pushed through a few others, and hastily bowed his head. "If I may speak!" He looked up, face fraught with tension. Here was a man who had sworn allegiance to the Main, a man who had protected and nurtured Hanabi, and who had despised and desired the death of Neji.

And this Oji-san, not sure of my plan, was dutifully supporting whatever my goal was all the same. Even if he believed the Main should lead, he trusted me more than he did the old leadership, with our clan's delicate fate and future.

"She – Lady Hinata received the blessing of Lord Hiashi in his final breaths. We the witnesses saw it all, and can only attest that his faith in her suitability as his successor was restored. She is also the one – the savior – spoken of by Lord Hikaru, meant to deliver us from a path to our destruction. A-and– she has bested the usurping clan head–," his uneasy expression, already half-confused with the situation, grew almost bewildered as his gaze darted toward Neji– "in a fair duel. I would – respectfully – assert that she is exceptionally qualified to succeed the title of clan head, as was her birthright. Sir," he added, bowing neatly at the waist. Perspiration dripped from his nose.

The air had shifted; the faction of Main House supporters Ojii-sama had brought with him, minutes ago so resolved to their task, had been fazed by my farce but now truly wavered. With Hiryuu's argument presented, with my validation as a member of the Main Household with a claim to power, a tiny piece of the old leadership's righteous pedestal went crumbling out from beneath his feet. There was no way for Ojii-sama to carry on quite as he pleased, lest he was prepared to cross a line into being viewed as a despot.

"I am doubtful," Hiryuu added amid the rustle of whispers, his polite tone perfectly clipped, "as to whether you might strike her again without consequence."

"Nonsense. Is she so qualified?" Ojii-sama countered. "What is your proof that she is indeed Hikaru-sama's prophesied savior? What of the Lightning Hyuuga?"

"Hanabi-sama?" Hiryuu blinked, unconcerned. "Well… m'lady Hanabi has already succeeded the Seer."

I started. It shouldn't have been all that surprising, in truth. She had received vision from the eyes of our ancestors, and somehow conveyed it to me. I had only shared what she'd given me with Neji; it was miraculous that I was so connected to them both. Perhaps the precognitive power had been lying dormant in many of us of the clan, and only begun perusing its potential vessels upon Lord Hikaru's death.

But while only one could, Neji and eventually I had resolved to lead, even if Neji, finally defeated in the duel for said leadership, was by our customs forever barred from returning to power. Hanabi, contrarily, had never desired to lead. So the gift, hanging in limbo between us, had chosen Hanabi, who'd already begun to exhibit her affinity, settling to make her its master for the rest of her life.

At Hiryuu's revelation, Hanabi stiffened. "I – have," she said; what had been the beginnings of a confused outburst of rebuttal had morphed into a statement, its truth clicking into her consciousness as she voiced it. Then the haze of this calm enlightenment slipped from her face again, and her eyes grew. "…Wait, what?!"

"You've already delivered your first prophecy," Hiryuu pointed out softly, for once tentative. "Do you remember? You said with Hinata-sama's victory that the Sun has returned, to shine again upon our clan. Your words calmed out hearts…" He turned to Ojii-sama. "I had my suspicions, but even before she gave those words the Lady repeated something Lord Hikaru had told me word for word – something I had merely paraphrased when I conveyed it to her. With that there was little question."

An elder's wrinkles deepened as he regarded Hanabi and me in turn. "One who has wielded the Gift, and inherited the Eye that Sees the World, must not also lead the Hyuuga, and serve as the Hand That Shapes the World. Our rules are clear… However unfortunate, fate appears to have rendered Hanabi-sama ineligible for leadership."

"Right," I said, drawing back Ojii-sama's aghast look. "I am the only leader you've got who can continue the line of succession." Considering its circumstances, it felt strange, terrible, to capitalize on the present vacancy of the leadership seat. However, right or wrong, I had to play every card in my hand. "And if you would still execute my beloved, you can say goodbye to me."

"Cease this foolishness! Whatever the case, the usurper must die–!" Ojii-sama's words cut off when my nails cradled my throat.

I held his eyes levelly. I had no problem with making this promise. No matter how strongly I wished not to carry it out, it had already been determined that Neji and I both must live, or we both must die.

"You wouldn't dare…"

You know I would. "Do you seek to risk it?" I answered aloud. "You might reclaim leadership, certainly, but without my strength do you really think you could survive the backlash of so hurriedly executing a man widely adored and idolized by the Branch?

"His subjugation seal is gone," I continued, "as are those of his followers. They will not readily be deprived of the relative freedom they've enjoyed even under Orochimaru's rule. If you want to arbitrate and dish out your hasty justice here, you'd best ensure you're prepared to get it right back. I ask you this – can you maintain order with your current power, Ojii-sama? Can you prove to your fellows your right to lead?"

"Can you? If we've fallen to such a state that power precedes custom, what is there to stop the most powerful Hyuuga and her supporters from reordering our clan as she sees fit? Why are you unwilling to reinstate and impose the proper order, Hinata?"

My eyes narrowed a fraction, catching a glint in his own. He was sharp, of course; he knew. He knew that my will for the clan and the Main House's will for the clan were not so neatly aligned, even if he left them to be assumed synonymous.

Why not impose the will of the Main, with an iron fist?

Because the ways of the old leadership were wretched. I had lived through their recent effects, but they had been wretched since the day one house had happened to triumph over the other in a blood feud born of a misunderstanding, and proceeded to eradicate its warriors and write the rules for both. But in the traditional clan, these feelings of sympathy were treachery.

Why not impose my will, strike him down, and reshape the clan beneath me until it conformed to a forced peace?

Because I wanted no more blood on my hands. I wanted to head no violent revolution against my house. I had said no more must be made to follow Hikaru-sama or Hiashi – or indeed Neji, stained forever by the sin of their murders. But in a lawless clan, this aversion to enforcing my ideals was weakness.

So, to return to the question, why was I presently unwilling to impose order?

"Because, I love this man."

I swear, I once was not a person so adept at lying through her teeth.

"I love Hyuuga Neji. It's why I was able to keep fighting for him."

True, in a rather distinct sense from that implied. It didn't make it much easier, especially not when I heard a small, strangled sound from somewhere amid the group of onlookers. The one I truly loved in that way was in pain, because of me. So much pain… What did it say, that I was able to continue?

But I had seen the visions of catastrophe meant to unfold if either Neji or I died prematurely, while the other survived.

I lowered into a crouch, keeping my head up to prevent any semblance of bowing. Turning to slip an arm around Neji, I helped my sightless cousin to his feet, releasing him only once he was steady. Tying our lives together – this was how the clan's destruction could be assuredly averted. I gritted my teeth.

"My betrothed and I are as one; by our laws, our honor is shared!"

Is this right? How can this be right?

"There is no more of 'my' honor or 'Neji's' honor. To question his is to question mine!"

Because it has to be. We both must live, or we both must die.

"And if you would still deem this man, my equal, depraved and fit for execution… you must deem the same of me!"

I was panting in the ensuing silence, a sweating hand still at my throat. The way I was now, I couldn't turn my nails to claws; if I absolutely had to do this, I did not doubt I could, but it would be messy.

Ojii-sama scowled, sweat breaking down from his brow. His voice was low. "You would share your honor with him? With that wretch?"

I held his eyes. It's that, or forsake him… and become a hero to the Main, a tyrant to the Branch. Simply protect him, without the supposed motivation of a bond of love, and I will be perhaps a friend to the Branch, but a despot and blatant traitor to the Main – and powerless to change a thing, short of resorting to violence.

"Yes. My honor is my beloved's. Now, shall we both die for his sins, Ojii-sama?" Or might we balance out somewhere in the middle?

The old man studied me sternly, his face red with withheld rage. I took it as a promising sign – a sign that he wasn't getting his way just yet, and he knew it. "Our laws will have you as equals – if after review, at the council's discretion, your engagement is approved."

That was the last word he would hear on it, just then. He ensured this when his left hand flickered in before my face and, as my eyes followed it away, pain knifed into the juncture of my jaw and neck, just below my ear.

I heard a surprised little gurgle as spots flared across my vision; my hand slipped, deadened, from my neck, and my knees buckled in the moment before feeling seemed to vanish in my legs altogether. He couldn't have stabbed me…? No – two fingers of his right hand were still extended – the knife had been his chakra, punching into me. With a thud, I was on the ground. Gasps shook in my throat as my pulse throbbed through my skull, waves of nauseating white noise.

My name, hands on my shoulders – Neji leaning over me, distraught, the little space left between his eyebrows pinched into a wrinkle. I sensed outrage, and found its source as my eyes twitched toward the Chosen.

'Don't!' I thought sharply, for one moment lucid in panic. All prepared to spring, they paused. Ojii-sama had been so oblivious to the threats at his back…

Good… I told myself halfheartedly, seeing them calm.

It's good… If no one dies for now, that's 'good,' right?

Hanabi was standing in front of me, fierce, as if to shield me. Her voice was strikingly severe for being directed toward our grandfather, but he was already turning away, after offering me one more look of contempt.

But this was good enough for now.

I'm… so tired.

People weren't dying around me anymore. Even if all was not right with the world, this was true.

Safe – it felt safe.

Heavy eyelids dropped shut, and I knew they would not have reopened even if I'd had the will to try them.

In the confusion, I didn't know whether I wished I had glimpsed Naruto before they closed, or if I was thankful I had not.

Naruto ナルト

Being someone who practiced so diligently to maintain control of myself, my emotions, and my power, and had come to take pride in this fine control, didn't seem to help much.

I was dizzy, as if physically ill; it was getting increasingly painful to breathe. My open mouth twisted in an erratic fashion, but there were no words to be voiced. And while I wasn't mad enough to slip up on my perpetual restraint of a certain bijuu's power, I wrestled with a very real impulse to break through the crowd and wring Neji's throat until I felt the life slowly disappear from the worthless sonofabitch's convulsing body–

"Naruto-kun?"

Lee's voice was cautious, gentle. When he grasped my arm in precaution, my hand snapped into a fist.

"Will you strike me?" he asked, noticing this.

I suddenly wanted to – I could've knocked him flat on his ass. I wanted to hit something – but Lee hadn't done anything, even if it might be satisfying to knock that wannabe-understanding look off his goddamned face – I shook my head rapidly, not trusting myself to speak.

I needed to be away from here. Away from all this – this. I yanked my arm free, feeling, amid the fire in my skull, a distinct pressure behind my eyes. I glared about, scowling. Those cursed fellows, and Hanabi, and Lee, and the old Sound Four, and Ne–fXXX!– they'd make sure nothing happened to Hinata. Right now, I couldn't be here.

"The situation in the village," I stammered, not hearing my voice, or barely remembering the words the moment they'd passed. "I'll go – check it out."

Something to do – breathe, focus. Things that needed to be done. If I could concentrate on them…

"Will you be alright?" Lee asked quietly.

"I'll be going, then."

"Naruto. There is nothing you could have done differently – it is not fair, but this happening was beyond your control–!"

I'm not sure what he saw when I looked at him, but he flinched. Mouth shutting, he looked down.

I distanced myself from Hyuuga grounds as quickly as I physically could.

–"A regular Purple Flash of the Leaf… You're an impressive kid, all right. I'll pray the day never comes that we should meet as enemies on the field of battle."–

The old Iwa commander who'd said it might or might not have been someone whose Oto adversaries I had cut down in the midst of battle; there was no way to remember them all, neither all I'd killed nor all I'd aided or saved, and no definitive way to weigh them.

Either way, in surveying the aftermath of the battle and spending the last hour or so running about on a miscellany of tasks, I'd found not a few reverent stares upon me when I passed. Not just from our foreign allies, who held distant respect for a powerful shinobi, but even from Leaf shinobi who had once regarded me warily.

It was uncanny.

But finally, with the most rudimentary sense of order reinstated, the remaining Oto and New Oto-nin contained, and Kakashi and some others taking care of coordinating current priorities and objectives, I had at last gotten to what I'd spent the battle yearning to begin.

The atmosphere of the triage I'd settled into was anything but relaxing, and that was fine with me. What I needed now wasn't time alone to think, but this chaos and urgency. There were grisly wounds that needed attention, groans from pain that might be alleviated with the right touch – and these were endeavors within my power to undertake. This was also why I had sought to join the triage medics, and more eagerly the longer I was made to run about detaining fleers and conveying information. With such important work to occupy my mind, my hands, my energy, my concentration, I was rendered incapable of dwelling on things like the ache that throbbed inside.

Dwelling on it would inflame it, and by comparison to it, even the most horrific wounds I faced were easily healed. So I healed others, since I could not heal myself. It was the most productive course of action available, and it was therapeutic, even if largely, terribly, as a diversion.

I had done enough destroying, today.

I lifted my hands, and their soft glow ebbed. The rough gouge I'd been working on, that had gone through to a man's femur, was sealed; he wasn't bleeding to death anymore. On to the next one.

The kunoichi whose side I knelt at had dried blood spattered across her face and the New Oto insignia on her forehead. With chakra from my palm I ran a cursory check of the flesh beneath blood-darkened bandages, and split the wrap with a chakra scalpel. It was almost mindlessly that my hands peeled back bandages and converged toward her wound – paused. I blinked dully. Then I set to healing the clean naginata injury that had opened up the muscle between her shoulder and neck, a slash that had passed through her body to an inch below her collarbone.

"Uzumaki-kun," another medic called, his voice quick, steady as he hurried down another row of the wounded. "Please help Takaharu-san with number forty-three after that one."

"Understood," I answered, wiping a damp rag over the skin at the edges of the wound, even while my other hand still bathed it in light. I dropped the cloth into a bucket at my side; an assistant medic had already replaced the bucket of red-dyed water with one of clear water that still steamed lightly in the cool air.

I raised an eyebrow when a weak hand grasped my wrist.

"Uzum-maki…" the New Sound kunoichi croaked past blue-tinged lips, her breath unsteady. "Uzumaki Naruto? You're th-the one they're saying killed Orochimaru-sama?"

"Word travels fast," I muttered, unable to feel any normal relish in the idea that people knew my name. "I'm the same Uzumaki Naruto who probably slung a wind scythe your way and moved along without stopping to see that a lethal blow hit, without looking back or so much as remembering your face. It's by my mistake that you're alive to feel this pain, but if you'll let me, right now I'm an Uzumaki Naruto who can remedy that 'in pain' bit for you. But if you'd rather die, there's no shortage of people around here who could better use my time."

The words were flat, almost detached. I hadn't meant to unnerve her, but there was trepidation in her eyes as she released my wrist. I continued to work.

What could be remedied would be; what could be done had to be.

The obligations of a medic, wrapped around me to hold me steady – they would ground and sustain me for now.

Lee リー

My footfalls were light up the hidden path through the wooded mountains behind the village – a path visibly worn by recent use. When I passed through the discreet doorway in a wall of stone and emerged from its complement at the end of a hall, many pairs of tense eyes locked on to me. I felt, from several directions, a sudden intent to attack, and realized that no one had entered the shelter in a fair amount of time. As quickly, however, I was recognized by enough of the people in the room for the startled suspicion to fade. One shinobi rushed out toward me, not to attack, but to clasp my forearm as I clasped his.

"You're alright," Gaara said, a minute but anxious smile on his face despite an arm in a sling and the pallor of his skin. "The others?"

"Naruto-kun and Hinata-san are in one piece, as well," I confirmed, scanning the room. A flash of pink hair caught my eye, and I noticed Sakura-san gawking at me, a blush surfacing on her cheeks. Internally I grimaced; my shirt had been more or less destroyed with the fight with Shodai-sama, and I had yet to replace it. I offered a quick smile, and turned my attention back to Gaara. "Have you yet to receive word from outside of here?"

A nearby man in grey prison garb overheard. "I was hoping you might have come bearing something of the sort," Nara Shikaku remarked, acute eyes sharp in his too-pale face. He was clasping the hand of his unconscious son, who along with Anko, Gaara had transported here; watery white slugs of various sizes still clung to the wounded, which meant a number of the creatures scattered about the room.

The human occupants of said room had remained focused on me. I lifted my voice. "The battle is over in the village; remaining Oto and New Oto shinobi are being detained. Orochimaru lies dead."

Many of those who were well enough gave shouts or cheers – and so many at once launched questions my way that I could not catch them all. I answered as many as I could. Who had done it? Uzumaki Naruto. Really – him? Yes, really. What is going on in the village? Kakashi-sensei and some others are trying to organize– How did the Uzumaki kid do it? A Rasengan fortified by Hinata-san and I, but Naruto-kun struck the decisive blow while Orochimaru was distracted, fighting with Neji–

I paused. It was a strange thought, but Neji had been instrumental in our bringing his master's demise so simply.

More questions – Orochimaru and his pet Hyuuga had a falling out? Yes, after Hinata-san defeated Neji in a rather intense duel…

I trailed off as the room went quiet, and a nonchalant voice came from the door behind me.

"That stuttering mouse took down Neji? I wouldn't have thought the kid had it in her, but I guess it's good that someone finally kicked the soap box from under his feet…"

The room had a similar initial reaction to Sasuke as it had to me – a key difference being that the tension only amplified the moment the Uchiha crossed the threshold. Kiba sprang toward him, furious. The battle-weary Inuzuka's speed was nothing short of impressive; he was one moment sitting close by his mother and older sister, and in the next was being lifted and carried backwards by my arm across his waist, his claws having swung out to within an inch of the other boy.

Kiba staggered back as I lightly tossed him the way he had come. I turned my head. "You also thought to see if help was needed at the shelter, then? But there are things you did not think through, it seems."

"What are you doing, Lee?!" Kiba growled, as a bristling Akamaru barked from beside him. "He's a traitor!"

"Yet in the deciding battle, he fought alongside us," Gaara remarked at my side. "It's doubtful we would have survived and won the clash with Orochimaru's reanimated puppets without him."

"Puppets?" Sakura echoed.

"The First and Second Hokage," I clarified. "Reanimated to fight at Orochimaru's side – they were his trump cards."

"You fought with the First and Second?" an old man – councilman Homura – scoffed, stuck somewhere between skepticism and horror. "And won?"

"A victory Sasuke helped us secure. I will not pretend to know of his history with New Leaf, but he has apparently been on our side for a long time. Shikamaru-kun knows more than anyone–," I winced as Shikaku's hand silently tightened, "but Kakashi-sensei can vouch for him as well."

"But he…?" Kiba began, confusion pervading his outrage. I noticed Sasuke would not meet his eyes, however aloof the Uchiha usually aimed to appear.

"The battle is over," I reiterated. "Those who have committed crimes against the Leaf will be tried at the appropriate time. For now, the time for freely fighting and killing has passed."

"So I missed my chance…"

"Kiba," Sakura hissed quietly, grasping his arm.

"You think I came here to attack a guarded shelter? After the battle's ended?" Sasuke said, gaze idle on some corner of the room. "And you think if I had, you'd be the one stopping me, Inuzuka?"

"Enough," I intervened. Sighing, I gripped Sasuke's arm. He did not try to resist. "Sorry," I said quietly, "but you will probably need to be tried as well. Will you come along willingly?"

"It's fine," he said, shrugging. "By all means – detain me, Commander."

"It should not be for long," I provided, steering him from the room. "Naruto-kun, Shikamaru-kun, Anko-sensei and Kakashi-sensei – we will protect you."

His gaze was distant. "Yeah. I know…"

Indeed there was much work to be done, but it was work of a distinct sort; the time for bloodshed had mercifully passed. There was Naruto's work of healing the wounded, which he kept at until he was forced by his colleagues to rest, after which he would pick up tirelessly again.

There were diplomatic considerations, communications with the villages that had assisted in the attack, and more official meetings tentatively scheduled. The nukenin who had joined our force and who did not vanish immediately in the wake of the battle, understandably, laid low – ready to turn tail at any hint that they might be turned over to their villages, though we had no intentions of reneging on our words. If they had risked their lives to lend us their strength, those who wished to start anew would be welcome here.

Logistical and administrative concerns posed a monumental challenge – identifying deaths, recording survivors, ranks, loyalties, and preparing for a full overhaul of the ninja registrar, which concerned everything from accounting for rank appointments made within the divided village to figuring out how large an order would need to be placed to replace destroyed Leaf hitai-ate.

Aside from those medics like Naruto, who dealt with trauma of the physical sort, there were also those – especially needed in times of and after war – whose spheres pertained to the wellbeing of the mind. They had seen little work in Orochimaru's village, where cruelty had been endorsed and encouraged and a warrior's need for such attention had been regarded as indicative of anything from weakness to treachery. Now such specialists, many of whom had gained experience with the scars so often left on the minds of shinobi in particular, and had begun their work as long ago as the Great Ninja Wars, rose again to the call, tending the battered souls of combatants and former prisoners alike – souls that had been subjected to terrors that no human should be made to endure.

Tentatively, life began to move on.

Naturally, there was also the discussion of how to deal with the detained shinobi who had sided against Konoha in the war. They began to be sorted, and information collected – origin, rank, role in Orochimaru's administration, potential involvement in crimes of war, actions in the critical battle (for many, such as Shino, Ino and Tenten, along with a handful of entire clans, had indeed defected back to the Leaf at this opportune moment). That there would be some number of executions was likely, but the extent was anticipated to be small: some process would be determined for reintegrating New Oto shinobi – former Leaf shinobi, many of whom had genuinely thought to be protecting the village in the best way they could – and perhaps even Oto shinobi, but all pending the results of their trials.

Naruto sat next to me at the meeting to draft this process, half-dead in his seat; he truly was not allowing himself enough rest, if his rest was even restful. But even with his thoughts who knows where and dark eyes tired, he sat up straight at one suggestion and spoke out vehemently – that above all else, the reintegrated shinobi must not be relegated to a status of second-class citizens. To do so would only breed further contempt for those in power, bitterness that might be directed toward the Leaf itself, and tear it down from within. I did not hesitate to voice my agreement.

And he was the young man who had slain Orochimaru. It was inevitable that his words swayed the course of the discussion.

But no official decisions holding permanence could rightly be made by our interim martial government, which currently held its power only in its dominant potential for force over the contained remnants of Oto, whose captains had surrendered. When the daimyo's men rode to the village gates – "Late," I heard Kakashi mutter rather ironically beside us, "as to be expected" – Naruto and I stood with him, Tsunade, and the other able-bodied commanders of the Leaf forces to formally greet them.

By that day's end, the overturning of the Oto leadership was acknowledged by the political government. The village was officially renamed Konohagakure no Sato, and the Leaf reinstated as the chief martial power of the great shinobi village of the Land of Fire. The usurping New Otogakure no Sato was no more, nor would it ever again be. The thought was like fresh air, inspired after a prolonged period of bated breath.

But throughout this one of our commanders, as with all the meetings and dealings up to then, remained conspicuously absent. Though Naruto no doubt felt this fact as strongly as I did, he made no comment on it; I had not expected him to. And while I would not prod him on the matter, I knew that, whether or not he could show it, he was at least as worried as me.

No – forget it. Forget not prodding him about it. It had been more than a week since the battle. I had to ask.

"Have you seen her?" I asked him, as we waited in a soup line for supper that evening.

"Who?" he asked in a moment.

"Naruto-kun…" I said, and he took a bowl with a quick thanks and hurried away. Not to be evaded so easily, I got my bowl and followed him.

"What do you want me to do?" he demanded, quiet but sharp, as he found a spot at one of the simple tables and plopped himself down. "Nothing's physically wrong with her. Granny Tsunade's a lot better with mental stuff than I am, but even she couldn't do anything. Another medical ninja won't be any help. I can't fix everything, Lee."

"And you think I have visited because there is a damned thing I can do for her?" I almost laughed, suddenly irate. I bit back the frustration in my tone. "I went because I am her friend. I do not know what you two are, or will be, or can be now, but I do know you care about her."

"You do, huh?"

When I rose to my feet and reached across the table to lift him roughly by the shirtneck, some people who had been talking near us went quiet. A spark of something combative flickered through the glum and lately perpetual disinterest in tired indigo eyes. For just a moment, he considered striking me.

"…I don't want to go there, Lee. I don't want to see her surrounded by the idiots she cares so much about, who're frantically biting their nails because they can't use her power, and because their future is struck in political limbo until she wakes up, instead of just worrying about her wellbeing because they're supposedly her goddamned family or something.

"But I'll go and see her sleep, Lee, if it'll make you feel better. Just let me finish my soup."

I released him without a word, and sat down again.

He ate very slowly at first, but soon with gusto, as if to hurry along before his resolve abandoned him. The task he had initially been utilizing for delay became swiftly an obstacle but necessity. The soup portion was not large to begin with; he was finished soon, and then was off in hasty steps, vanishing into thin air almost before his empty bowl had passed into a surprised volunteer dishwasher's hand.

Naruto ナルト

I don't know what impelled me to race there at top speed, as if simply because I could. What'd I expect to find here? What was there left to be done, if she had people watching over her condition and tending to every need?

It was too late to turn around now, though. The two men standing guard at the front gate had long since spotted me, and grown increasingly nervous in the duration of my slowed approach. I flashed a headstrong grin for good measure, but knew it was weak. Even so they tensed, no doubt unsure what sort of potential news to expect from the village.

"Good evening! A visitor for the young clan head. I'm her friend."

"You're…?"

"You know who I am, right? If you'd take me to see her, that'd be swell." I didn't mean to be presumptuous or tart, but this place, the sight of white eyes that felt so cold, suddenly made my skin crawl. The sooner I could see her, the sooner I could be done with them.

"Of course," one of them said, nodding. "Come with me."

The grounds were expansive, and all but deserted. I saw a few friendly faces – old man Hiryuu, though surprised, nodded as we passed. But the Hyuuga were shorthanded; I had recognized that both of the gate guards, posted for appearances' sake, had been members of the mob that had supported the Main House by following that geezer out into the field that day to try to have Neji put down. The majority of the Branch's Hyuuga had been detained by the village along with most Oto and New Oto-nin, since the 'loyal' Hyuuga were too few in number to be expected to oversee their traitors themselves, as a number of clans able to currently were.

The only former New Oto-nin staying here were the cursed Hyuuga who had fought Orochimaru's ANBU with us after the duel. The Sound Four, who were also supposed to be around here somewhere, were considered trusted enough to keep an eye on them.

"Here we are."

He'd cleared his throat before he spoke, and I'd given a start; I hadn't noticed it when we'd stopped walking. I blinked at the door in front of me, and nodded at Hikujaku, who stood sentry beside it. Standing from his chair, he knocked on the doorframe and pushed it open for me. Just like that, I really had nothing left to do but walk in.

I didn't look at her straightaway, though there was no blocking out the steady beep of a heart monitor that had been muted outside the door. I nodded at her little sister, who rose from her seat on a cushion beside the futon, her eyes brightening. She at least seemed to be getting her strength back.

"Naruto-san," she said.

"Hey, kiddo," I answered, but I couldn't stand that hope in her eyes, hope that I of all people could do something. So I looked the only other place left to look, and trudged to the bedside as the screen door slid shut behind me.

I sat. Well…

Her porcelain face was calm, and I had the stray notion that she balanced out all the sleep I'd missed in the last week through her slumber, and all the stress I'd restlessly invited with her unshakeable peace and thoughtlessness. But there was tension on that face; hers was not a perfect oblivion.

I don't know what I'd expected to feel, when I saw her – anger, pain. But the thought that I might have felt nothing was what frightened me most of all. I grasped her hand, waiting. "Hinata…"

There was something there, right? There was something inside me? I shook my head with a half-grimace, speaking as I felt.

"You can hear me, can't you, Hinata?" My voice was low, steady. I pressed my thumb into her palm. "You've made a fine mess of things, and you know it. But are you that scared to face it all? That you can't be bothered to wake up for the people who're worried sick about you?"

My scowl deepened. "I'll say it; you're a damned fool. You already know that. But even so… there are people who're alive because you protected them. You fought for them, and they're alive!"

I knew the feeling – I had visited Shino and Ino in the hospital, learned they were both expected to recover after all, and been for a few minutes, incredibly, at ease. Shino, who had been bleeding out in the mud. Ino, whose heart hadn't been beating when I got to her.

"Stand up, Hinata – stand up, like we always do. What about your old man? Didn't he die so you could live on? He trusted you with following your way. And didn't he trust you to look after the imouto your mum left you with? They believed you could be great. And that – it just makes this even more pathetic, Hinata. You said you would be a leader, and you said a hell of a lot more. You wanna take back your words? After all you've been through, you want to hide away from the consequences of your own actions? Stand up. You can't take it back, so wake up and deal with the mess you made."

I stood up. My voice had stayed firm, but something was burning inside me. Without a word to Hanabi I walked toward the door, but it opened before my hand could reach it.

I didn't care that the nasty look I directed at the old man was harsher than I should have let show through.

"Uzumaki?" he asked, furrowing his lined brow.

"Gramps," I answered, an eyebrow raised. "You just had to knock her out, didn't you? Showed her who's in charge of this glorious, hollow kingdom of traitors that she cared enough to actually want to fix, rather than rule?" And you gave her an excuse to stay down…

"This is not my doing," he said, gruff. "When Neji took to rest, he did not awaken for three days himself. The sheer chakra fatigue–,"

"I know." I lifted a hand as I said it, surprised by how defensively he'd reacted; he really was concerned he had somehow put her in this state. But I had my doubts he felt merely the concern of a loving grandfather. I shook my head, starting to walk past him. Then I froze. "Her ears…"

"Her what?"

She was still in pure human form. "Has she been in that room the entire time?"

"Why?"

I groaned. Idiot. "Take her out in the moonlight tonight. Are you listening to me? Listen to me, Hikujaku," I said, turning to face him and Hanabi, who had also come to the doorway of the room. "Have someone bring her outdoors tonight. That's the first thing. What's going through the IV she's on?"

The old man's face was growing irate. "Whatever typical–,"

"Garbage," I said, forming an 'X' with my arms, and made a buzzing noise. "Nourishment? Barely; not for her. You saw the discoloration of her eyelids and lips? It's been increasing over the last several days, hasn't it?" Idiot, I was just as much an idiot. I'd bet money her emotional state had contributed, but even Hinata couldn't stay in a coma through sheer willpower. She had atypical needs; conventional healers wouldn't know how to care for her or revive her, in a situation like this. "Let her taste someone's blood – if it's a Hyuuga, one who's already got the Blood Seal. Seriously. Pick a Hyuuga who doesn't, and they might have one soon."

"Oh, really? What else? Should we offer her one of our goats as an animal sacrifice?" the old man spat sourly.

"She probably won't have enough appetite for a goat right away. When she wakes up, a good-sized rabbit or a chicken ought to work wonders. Don't cook it, either."

I shouldn't have been surprised, in the ensuing silence, that even Hikujaku and Hanabi were looking at me like I'd sprouted an extra head. I cleared my throat.

"And she will wake up, granted you follow my advice." I gave the old-timer an exaggerated bow. "You're very welcome, sir. I'll be seeing myself out, then."

With that I strode down the walk, a spark in my step. There – I'd done what I could do. That being said, visiting a sleeping Hinata had been difficult enough; I did not relish the thought of seeing her when she woke up.

"Uzumaki – wait."

The clenching of my jaw was immediate – almost painful. I did not turn. "You. They let you stay here?"

"I must not leave Hinata's side–,"

I didn't think about it. I couldn't even register my rage before I found I'd somehow traversed the space between us and locked a hand around his throat. I could do it – I could kill him for that. I could crush the life out him.

"Her name," I growled, lifting him. "Don't ever let me hear you pass it through your filthy lips again."

Now release him. This is the part where you release him. But it was more than I'd been able to feel in over a week – this heat sizzling in my skull, this satisfaction at his sputtering breath. Why is he blindfolded? If I had looked him in the eye, I could have stopped myself easily. I swear it.

"Th-this life – belongs to her!" he croaked, scowling. His teeth were bared. "I won't let you threaten it… even if you a-are the one – who told me she would cry if I lost it!"

He couldn't really have defended himself; the solid metal cuffs on his wrists were chakra inhibitors. It was how he'd inadvertently gotten so close to me unnoticed. There were two more on his ankles. I had only ever seen such extensive precautions taken by the Sound against a captive Jiraiya. The difference here was that the bangles on Neji's wrists were attached by a short length of chain, which he used, while locking his hands about my forearm, to pinch my wrist so sharply it bled.

I released him with a gasp, and he let go of me. It shouldn't have ticked me off as much as it did to see that he hardly even staggered. No – focus. This was dangerous. I needed to rein it in.

"Your chakra's disturbed," he noted quietly. Real helpful.

"Shut up," I spat, suppressing the fox's presence. But the root of the surge of malice had been all my own. "Speak her name again," I said, "and I will hurt you."

Neji shook his head after a moment. "I wonder whether what you'd do to me could be worse than what has already been done."

I studied the blindfold; the edges of bandaging peaked out beneath it. "You're not…?"

Silent, he pulled the band of fabric away, and I watched as he felt and began to unwind the wrap as well.

My eyes grew.

He smiled bleakly, and began wrapping up again. "I don't love her the way you do – maybe I don't love her at all. I'm not sure if I'm able to feel such things, anymore. All the same, she is the reason I breathe. When she saved me from Orochimaru, she told me to live a long, harsh life. You can hurt me as much as you like, Uzumaki, but as per those instructions – those words, that tell me that she believes in me – I will not readily forfeit this life to anyone."

I frowned. It was almost an invitation – and gods, did I want to hurt him. But if I started to, I might not be able to stop. Would that make me a twisted person, like he was? "Don't think I trust you for a minute."

He nodded toward his cuffed hands. "I'm untrusted as can be. My detention is on clan grounds because any number of people might like to kill me in vengeance, before I can receive a proper trial for my crimes."

"How considerate," I thought, turning away. "I'm going. I've got somewhere to be tomorrow." How much time would I spend here, chatting with a wannabe lord fallen from grace – a prisoner in his own home?

"What you said about the rabbit – was that true?"

My lip twitched grudgingly. "Of course it was. Make sure they follow my instructions, would you?"

"I can…try."

If he could help her, I could tolerate him for a moment.

"You do realize she tops the Blood Seal's chain of command now, Uzumaki? If she were endangered, it would be impossible for me not to protect her."

"That in no way means I can trust you, y'know."

"I'm quite familiar with hatred, Uzumaki," he said suddenly. "I'm sure you're aware."

–"When you seek to relish in another human's suffering – when you accept that in your own heart the world's 'cruelty' is your 'justice' – will you have any right to call me depraved?"–

"She was right," he went on. "The capacity for evil is in all of us, even if that for forgiveness is not."

I was done with this conversation. I walked away.

Hinata ヒナタ

"Deal with the mess you made…"

What… whose voice…?

No… I'm… so tired of fighting.

I can't. I can't do this anymore…

"There are people who need you…"

No. I don't want to face the pain I've caused…

"Come back to them…"

What does it matter now? What can I–

What can I… come back to?

"Come back to us."

I gasped into the blinding white light. My eyes were open. I blinked as the glare faded, and found myself staring at the gibbous moon. I was conscious of a cramped feeling in my tail, as if it had grown out in insufficient space.

I was being held in a pair of strong arms – in the corner of my eye I caught the bewildered look on Hiryuu's face. But I was mesmerized by the moon. I was gripped and enthralled by an impulse, a bursting need to give voice to a great howl pressing and building in my throat – but the resumption of han'you state had drained all I could boast, a relatively minor form shift though it was.

My open mouth expelled a shaky, soundless breath, and I slumped as things went dark.

There were people arguing, but I could only seem to catch every other word; at that, I couldn't retain the snippets that did reach me long enough to put any number of them together before they slipped through my grasp again.

'Blood.' That one was popping up a bit, right?

I detected a touch on my mouth, felt cool air reaching my tongue. Yet every bit of me seemed to be numb, every sensation distant, as if I were buried under several feet of cotton balls – just enough to be uncomfortable, not quite enough to really crush or suffocate. But when the first drop met my tongue, vibrant feeling seemed to sizzle from the spot, spreading outward like fire. A second drop, and the electrifying beads of liquid went rolling toward my throat.

Ulp.

My eyes snapped open – this time, on the ceiling of a gently lit room.

"Ha! It worked, see?!"

I wasn't immediately sure who Tayuya was proclaiming this to, as I lay there and blinked confusedly; she was grinning at me, as were the rest of the once-Sound Four. She'd pricked her thumb. My eyes were drawn to the spot of red, as if magnetized. She had let it drip through the air. My tongue shivered with a lingering taste. I was awake. Gods – I hadn't wanted to be awake, but now I was, and they were evidently happy about it, and I couldn't stop thinking about how much better her blood would taste directly from her body.

Then I remembered the events that had transpired before I'd first blacked out, and I tensed. "Neji – how is he?"

"Alive," Kidoumaru groaned. "Don't you worry about that, now. The oldster there kept his word."

"I don't believe this…" Ojii-sama was in the room. Hanabi and her bodyguards were, as well.

I didn't want them to see me behave like a demon.

But my spurt of strength was already burning up again.

"Tayuya," I almost whimpered, "More?"

She actually blushed. "Just – don't suck me dry, okay?" she snapped, but swept her bright hair to one side as she leaned over my immobile form. I pressed my nose weakly to her flesh, thirsting for the pulse that ran beneath it.

"What are you doing to her?" Ojii-sama demanded of Tayuya.

"Just shut up and – oh!" she yelped, as I bit in sharply. I felt any tension in her melt away, as she gave a high, mirthful groan. And as I drank hungrily, relished in the taste of fresh and tender lifeblood, strength blossomed within me, filling me with a vigor that felt boundless as it raced at last to every corner of my flesh.

I remembered, thankfully, to stop before I came close to taking too much; even if one of the other three would have stopped me, the more control I could exhibit, the better. Inwardly I groaned. Here I was, awake for not two minutes and already acutely self-conscious, focused on defending my worthiness to lead.

Tayuya was thoroughly relaxed in my arms, which I found had begun to encircle her. My teeth slipped from the punctures they'd made, and she gasped.

"Thank you," I said, lapping once at the slight bite wounds. "Do you feel alright?"

"What do you think?" she drawled, and I might have heard her chuckle.

Even barely having noticed its opening, I heard the screen door shut. Ojii-sama was still in the room, his expression a silent mixture of bewilderment and revulsion. I shifted Tayuya's weight to the side, laying her down gently on the futon as I sat up. "Rest for a minute, if you need," I said, and rose to my feet.

"Careful," Jiroubo chided, steadying me as I nearly dropped again.

"You were out of it for more than a week," Sakon pointed out. "Still remember how to walk?"

"Of course," I said, frowning. A week? How much had I missed? "Thanks, Jiroubo." I walked carefully to the door, and opened it.

I was for a short moment dazzled by the chill night air on my skin, the endless plethora of stars, the same bright, enlivening moon that smiled gently upon the wildness in my heart. Then I took a breath and turned my head, finding the one who stood beside the door, her back to the wall.

"Hanabi-chan?"

"I'm f-fine," she said, and clenched her teeth for a second. "The fear of blood – I'm mostly over it anyway. Really."

I hadn't been thinking of that; I had been afraid of seeing disgust in her face, like it was on Ojii-sama's.

"I'm glad you're awake," she said, very softly.

"Hanabi-chan, I'm sorry. For leaving you alone for a week."

"But I'm not alone," she shrugged, and I followed her gaze to see her own four protectors crowding by the door behind me. Hiryuu, steadfast and vigilant, quietly fierce; Harumi, with her calm power; Hikujaku, easygoing but sharp; Hitaka, attentive and kind. These four would not have stopped caring for Hanabi simply because a crisis had passed.

"Of course," I said warmly, turning to face them fully. "I can't thank you all enough…"

Hanabi's hand had slipped itself into mine – her fingers grazing my palm as if testing the feel of me again, but not quite trusting enough to clasp.

"Don't apologize for staying out so long, Onee-chan. I can… sympathize." She cleared her throat, but her voice stayed distant as she spoke to my back. "There are some things that might feel nice to forget…"

–"Your old man – didn't he die so you could live on?"–

My teeth gritted. I slumped back against the wall, highly aware of a pain that seemed to sink slowly, but so sharply, into my chest. That's right – he sacrificed himself protecting me, and I'd yearned to turn my back on living out the future he'd paid dearly to give me.

"There are things it would be less painful to leave behind, to forget." I paused, panting for breath, cold sweat stuck to my brow. "There are things that are hard to face. Expectations you feel like you could never reach."

"I know, Onee-chan."

"And things you don't know… how to begin… trying to repair… But… but…"

"Nee-chan?" Hanabi said, facing me as I gasped tiredly around the words, and trailed off. I caught myself, pressing a hand to the wall behind me as I began to slide down. I shut my eyes.

"I'm – s-starving," I admitted, blinking to clear my head as I shivered. I pushed from the wall, taking a few steps to put the concerned faces behind me. "I need to hunt…"

"I think," Hiryuu said, pointing a finger, "that you might be in luck."

I looked up. Emerging from the trees at a run were three pale-skinned Hyuuga, one of whom, meeting my eyes, lit up in mirth and brandished triumphantly the hare he held by the ears. The others whooped when they saw me, behavior that no doubt brought a cringe to Ojii-sama's face. But they evidently thought nothing of such opinions as they approached, beaming at me and supremely proud of their work.

I shambled out toward them, new energy budding from the promise of a meal. Even so, I was not ten yards from the walk when they reached me.

"Hinata-sama," Hyuuga Hajime, the youngest of them, greeted; in light of his cheerful smile, I was almost struck by the memory of the boy's acrid scowl – apparently more than a week ago – when I had arrived on the dueling ground to protect Hanabi, struck his leader, and demanded to fight in my sister's stead.

Now he and Neji's other two witnesses held nothing but glowing respect for me – even if their presence aroused tension in Hanabi's trusted ones. I would have to sort through just how much an impact the Blood Seal had on their will later. For now, the people currently living on Hyuuga grounds had at least tolerated each other for the last week, whatever their differences, a fact I would tentatively deem promising.

"We caught this for you," the one holding the fresh kill said, snapping me out of my reverie. They'd caught it with no weapons between the three of them… were they not quite trusted enough to keep any?

"That's a beautiful hare," I said, nodding.

"Would you like us to prepare it for you?"

Oh? Then even if these cursed ones had perhaps come to notice their carnivorous leanings, they had not happened across the seemingly unnatural prospect of catching wild prey and consuming it raw. I wondered if the companions' giddiness stemmed not simply from the opportunity to present a gift to their new alpha, but also from the thrill of even so briefly hunting by moonlight together, tapping the same strong wildness in their veins that pulsed so comfortably through mine.

"It's perfect as is," I said, and thanked him as the hare was passed into my hand. We bowed to each other – thus completing the exchange as humans would, I noted wryly.

I paused, checking my eagerness to begin eating. There was no eliminating this consciousness of Ojii-sama's eyes on my back, and of the curiosity directed toward me by many other sets of eyes. The initial impulse was to keep this activity hidden, to be as tame and undeniably Hyuuga as possible. But…

I turned, looking back to all the others. The people around me were Main, Branch, former Sound, former New Sound and New Leaf, and bore three different types of seals between the lot of them – and were largely, for a vast span of reasons, people who cared about or trusted me or both.

I had to ask. "Do we have any estimate of the percentage of Branch Hyuuga who have been…" Infected? "…exposed, to the Cursed Seal of Blood that Orochimaru created?"

"It seems around forty percent," Harumi provided, eyeing the cursed ones at my back. "I examined several in the village's holding places, a few days ago. There are many who were primary cases, afflicted by Neji, but the number multiplies drastically through cases secondary, tertiary, and so forth. All seem to share common attributes, however – the seal's strength does not appear to permanently attenuate in the transmission process. As soon as a carrier's seal matures, it can be shared again."

"It's a virus," Ojii-sama lamented in disdain, though I had little doubt he had heard this news before I had. "Orochimaru's curse remains to plague our clan…"

"No," I replied with a frown. This motley lot had survived each other's proximity, hadn't it? "It is a part of us now; we have some differences, that's all. Even if it seems frightening, some things will have to change."

However much I wanted to focus, all I could smell was the fresh meal in my hands. It was losing warmth as we spoke.

"But if the Hyuuga are to have a hope of resuming coexistence in this place, there are some things I'll absolutely need to teach the cursed ones. I have… experience."

I swallowed a buildup of saliva in my mouth. I could have excused myself and shuffled off quietly to take my meal; I could have bent to the urge to at least turn away, to hide my face from human eyes. But if I showed shame for meeting basic needs, the ones like me would only learn to do the same, to be meek and invite loathing, and present a weakness at which to direct belittlement. I needed to be upfront.

I was a leader. I was here because Hyuuga Hikari and Hiashi had left me their gifts, and trusted me to get this far by following my path. Trusted me to walk into the future my own way.

"You see…"

I was Hyuuga Hinata.

"I am han'you."

And I would never show the people who wanted to believe in me a pitiful face, ever again.

My claws sharply rent skin from the hare's side. I didn't avert my gaze from the contempt in Ojii-sama's eyes, or the horror, as I sank my teeth deep into warm flesh and tore it out with fierce relish, barely testing twice with impulsively snapping teeth before I tipped my head back and swallowed. This was me.

Then I let my purposeful glower fade, and pressed the prize to my parting fangs to wrench another hunk free. I gave in to my hunger, heedless of any who cared to observe, and focused on feeding, feeding, feeling the syrupy blood coating my mouth and burning my lips, and the tough, sweet and ample gobs of flesh that slid down my throat.

There were things that would be easier to forget, easier to avoid, easier to forfeit, damaged so badly that it would be considered a daunting and formidable task to begin to contemplate their repair.

But there was this life, human and demon, that wasn't only my own; there were acts that it would be a grave insult to forget or ignore. And with this life, this revitalizing, overflowing life, there were things worth mending.

That I was wide awake after a week unconscious didn't change the fact that my waking had occurred in the middle of the night. Everyone had left to retire shortly enough; there was nothing much I could do but lie on my futon in the silence, thinking about the stunt I'd pulled and waiting for morning. My sleep would probably be irregular for days, whatever I did. I turned onto my side.

I could hunt; though my body was still readjusting to processing the solid food I'd taken in so rapidly earlier, I craved the taste of blood more than anything, now that it had substance to rest on. On the other hand, I wasn't yet close to full strength again, even if catching small game was easily within my ability. So I lay there, alternately forming a list of things I needed to ask about the state of the village in the morning, and weighing the prospect of catching a meal not quite for the sake of hunger (though I would certainly eat what I caught), but to taste fortifying blood, even if only mildly enticing animal blood.

My ears stirred. Someone nearby was awake – walking.

Far more surprising than this fact was the soft but clear knock that soon rapped on the frame of the screen door. I frowned momentarily. I could sense no chakra.

"…Enter."

When the door slid open, I sat up with a start. His voice drifted in – familiar, but different in manner or bearing, how it was used. "Please relax… You know better than anyone that I'm no threat now, right?"

"A… a lot of things happened, between us," I noted, though the tension was fading from me. It was true that I sensed no malice now, but still I winced. I never liked to inflict harm, but in the course of one ruthless battle this person and I had plummeted into savagery, and dealt each other more injury and agony than I was comfortable even reflecting upon. "I'll need a bit to stop seeing you as someone who causes pain," I said honestly, quiet.

He only nodded. "I… understand. Um… I was unsure whether or not you would want to see me, but I sensed your desire for blood, and–,"

The wind blew, tossing his hair, and he turned to close the door – first reaching past it, then finding it and sliding it shut.

He 'sensed' my thirst…? I thought, studying him. He was waiting for me to say something – to tell him to come, to tell him to leave. My brow furrowed.

"Why have you covered your eyes?"

His lip twitched only once. He turned his head away for a moment, as if averting his gaze – or fleeing from scrutiny. "…I can show you," he said finally under his breath, facing me again, and began to walk closer.

It was true that I could sense the present lack of malice in his heart, but this was the man who had tricked and killed my father, and who would have slain my young sister with a smile. He had been a man of dangerous ambitions. I could not forget that.

The bond of his alignment to me left him perceptive enough to pick up on my thirst, and from a distance at that; I wondered if he now felt me instinctively shrink back as he approached. He must have, but he still did not falter. Each move was measured as he sat down at the edge of the futon, and reached up to begin unwinding the wrap about his eyes. I watched the bandaging fall away, and peered in the half-darkness at the shut eyes beneath it.

"These scars…?" I wondered, reaching up. My hand was smaller than it had been then, but I had the vague remembrance of swinging immensely powerful claws, striking thoughtlessly at a fellow monster's face. Only one of the four slightly raised, pale lines actually crossed his eye; they were more or less evenly spaced, one dashing a gap through an eyebrow, one starting just above his lips and having been fully visible even before he unwrapped. They ran from beside his nose almost to the distance of his ear.

That was the left side of his face. The right was scarring differently, from a single, calculated slash that began at his eye and stretched outward, tapering toward his ear – a kunai wound, from Orochimaru. The otherwise smooth eyelid in its path was crossed by a dark, indented line, still mending from being sliced open. I gulped.

"Will you… show me?"

His brow, which I hadn't noticed was so tense, relaxed to the slightest extent. His eyes opened slowly on mine, and I started.

In a moment I registered his frown, and tried to suppress my reaction. "I-I'm sorry."

"Don't be." He shook his head, smiling bleakly. "It's appalling, isn't it?"

"N-no…!" I gripped at my stomach, looking away. "I can't believe I did this to you…"

He peered patiently into my distraught eyes, as if first opening his own had been his greatest hurdle. "Look at me, Hinata. See me."

I held his gaze again. He did not need pity; to treat him with such would be an insult. So I stared into his eyes, seeing him.

His right eye, slit deliberately by his master's knife, was turning a dull, blotchy, clouded white – sightless.

But the left, damaged by my hand, was in a sense worse.

It was green. Green.

The iris saturated a vibrant and dark green, about a black pupil.

The effects of years of upbringing in this clan could not be shaken completely; the sight of such a condition in one of our own was innately and deeply alarming, even to me. Blindness was a regular inevitability of Hyuuga life, for any of us that lived long enough. But against all reason, among people who routinely gauged the potential of each other's Byakugan by the whiteness of their eyes, the emergence of one's natural eye color was an unparalleled disgrace. Repulsive.

"Wh-why…?"

"I'll never see out of my right eye again; my chakra was too depleted for even the Blood Seal's healing capacity to begin restoring it immediately. But this one… In Apocalypse state, it was able to heal enough, rapidly enough, to retain vision – but evidently the Byakugan couldn't be restored."

"I'm–,"

"No more apologizing, Hinata."

"I wasn't e-even – thinking about where I struck…"

He raised an eyebrow. "So is it better, or worse, than a deliberate act? I'm telling you it doesn't matter now. Thanks to Orochimaru's curse healing it after your chance attack, my left eye is like this; thanks to Orochimaru's deliberate attack after you'd put us in the New Moon state and I chose to defy him, my right eye is like this. So I've got one useable but repulsive eye, one useless but mildly acceptable eye, and no Byakugan to speak of. My perfect face is ruined," he added, almost snide. "But I'm alive. None of this–," he swept a hand to indicate his eyes, "is even remotely adequate punishment for the things I've done."

"You've thought a lot about this…"

"I had a week." He shrugged slightly, though I could tell he was more affected by it than he let on. "Don't cry," he said quietly, brushing a thumb across my cheek. "We're alive, aren't we? The clan you wanted to protect will live on. Don't cry over someone like me."

"Neji-nii-san…"

He pressed his hands to my shoulders, pushing me onto my back, and studied me silently, so close that I could feel his breath on my skin. "…Does this face frighten you, Hinata?"

"No," I said. It was disturbing, all right. So I would hold his gaze and be disturbed, and get it out of my system.

"Do you regret your efforts now? After everything, are you sorry for making me live, just because I am now disfigured like this?"

"No," I said more firmly. I refused to let myself regret that.

"Then I'm just fine," he said, his glare softening. Without further discussion, he turned over beside me, slipping his robe off of one shoulder and gathering his hair to the other side. He settled with his back to me.

"If you please…"

I almost laughed, silent and humorless in the near dark. Then I took the offer, pulling to him and sinking my fangs into his neck. His jaw clenched as I began to draw his blood; he turned his head away, shivering.

I had never fed upon someone else with the curse before. The interaction connected us in a distinct way – it laid bare the balance of power between us. It was nothing like when I'd been subjected to Hiyuki's bite; that had been an attack, an assertion of dominance, meant to crush my heart and force me to succumb. Nor was it like when Neji had stolen my blood, desperately, in the midst of our duel, and our warring spirits had struggled for control – him to subdue me with the thrall of his bite, I to resist long enough for him to instead slip under the thrall of my blood.

Instead I felt the unspoken understanding that had been realized – his calm acquiescence, his readiness to willingly submit to me alone, and the implicit trust that entailed. He lay helpless as I drank, and was content to do so; he felt my gratitude as I felt his, and knew as well as I that as his leader, I would look after him, do my best not to do wrong by him, and would treat him with respect.

Strange or not, in this exchange was the unquestionable power of the Blood Seal's alpha, of order amid wildness, manifested in its purest form – used not to assert superiority, but to exude power. Used not to demand and enforce servitude, but to accept it from the loyal. This was a peaceful, somehow blissful exchange.

He grasped my hand, speaking softly between gasps. "If I can b-be of use to you… if my blood can give you strength… then I'm just fine."

My fangs relinquished their hold on him. My forehead rested against his back, and I sighed drowsily in appreciation, content for this brief moment of calm.

Thank you…

Naruto ナルト

Word was already floating around that morning, as I headed to the meeting, of a report that the Hyuuga Clan's young head – or heiress – or hero – no one was sure what to call her just yet – was healthy. Which meant that the special case that was the Hyuuga Clan, the trials pertaining to which had been temporarily postponed, would probably be moved back up in the schedule; they could face the court's examination as soon as possible, now that this key witness and representative could be present.

I massaged my forehead. There was no time for these aimless thoughts now. The inner workings of the Hyuuga Clan were none of my concern. Heck – maybe if I told that to myself enough times, I'd even believe it. But for now, I needed to focus. This should be a happy day, right?

"Yo!"

I looked up; I'd made my way to the temporary council hall, having learned its location so well in the course of the last week. Kakashi leaned against the wall outside, one hand in his pocket, the other propping up a book before him.

"You're not actually getting the jitters, are you, Naruto?"

I chuckled, rubbing my head. "Jitters, Kakashi-sensei? Don't you know who I am? I'm just a little… preoccupied, y'know."

"Wouldn't have thought it possible," he said, flicking the weathered book shut, "for someone with a one-track mind." His hand clapped onto my head before I could complain. There was a soft smile in his eye.

"Sensei? You're creeping me out, big time."

He shook his head, chortling. "However briefly… I'm proud to have had you as my student, Naruto. I mean that from the bottom of my heart. You and the others really pulled through for this village."

"O-oh…" I remarked, face growing warm. Then a grin broke out across my face, and I shut my eyes. "Yeah!"

He opened the door, and we walked into the hall together.

Hinata ヒナタ

"How about that… one week ago thrashing the living daylights out of each other, yet now recuperating in the same bed…"

My sleep had been light, but mercifully peaceful. As such, the mutter that came from the door was plenty to snap me to alertness. I might have sat up immediately, but for the fact that my arms were snugly around Neji, and his weight thus pinning one of them down.

My face went red as my head swiveled toward the door, and Ojii-sama's pointed look of reprehension.

Quick footfalls sounded from the walk outside. "Were you able to find him–?!" Hanabi stopped at Ojii-sama's side, glancing into the room. Her teeth clenched sharply as she fixed the waking Neji with a cold glare. Neji sat up, blinking, and found the source of this harsh intent with his working eye. He offered a look of question.

Hanabi turned, and vanished from the doorway.

"Imouto-chan!" I called, rising to my feet and hurrying for the door. Grandfather caught my shoulders as I began to pass him, and I suppressed a scowl. "Listen, Ojii-sama–,"

"Forget it. If your strength has returned to you, prepare for the day. I've spent enough time babysitting an out-of-commission 'leader,'" he said, almost spitting the word. "The sooner you're up to speed, the sooner the Hyuuga's presence will be felt again."

"Yes…"

He raised a brow, unimpressed. "And to think I missed an important village council meeting this morning – worrying about you, when evidently you've recovered your health quite swiftly."

I opened my mouth to voice a question – and snapped it shut as Neji nonchalantly clasped my hand.

"Nothing of the sort occurred, sir," he said, bowing at the waist.

"I-it's true!" I sputtered, receiving only a look of renewed suspicion.

"Your betrothal is not yet approved," Ojii-sama pointed out, sternly eyeing us in turn. "Get ready for the day, Hinata. I will have Harumi prepare a bath."

After several moments I bowed my head. "Hai."

As he walked away I shared a dry look with Neji, and he withdrew his hand from mine. "No harm in keeping up appearances, I suppose," he said quietly, having averted his gaze in discomfort.

I sighed. "That's true…"

"But," Neji said, "there's no need for you to act obsequiously as well. He has no true claim to the seat of leadership any longer; the council members heard Hiryuu-san's and the other witnesses' testimony. They won't readily trifle with Hiashi's will or… or Hikaru-sama's words, that name you a hero."

"Then…?"

He nodded, his face taut. "The greatest concern was of how long you might take to awaken – but there is little question, Hinata. The leader of the Hyuuga Clan… is you."

I shivered. "I'm too young…"

"You'll spend a few years with close advisement – indeed, probably by Ojii-sama. But his word is no stronger than yours. Do not let him handle you as though it were. Please," he added, looking away. "You must not be controlled by him."

"Neji…" I nodded. If you can actually feel so strongly about something even now, when you're only alive because I dragged you along… "I'll do my best."

He nodded his appreciation meekly. He drew himself to stand straight and tall, clasping his shackled hands together before him. "Very well," he said, suddenly terse, "I wish you a fine day, m'lady. Summon me if I may be of service."

"A fine day to you as well," I answered, a brow quirked. He bowed slightly.

"Also, if I may make a request to access the library…" He shifted uncomfortably. "I admit that I used it extensively in the last several months, but…"

But you feel it is proper to ask permission before continuing to do so? I studied the man before me, whose brow was furrowed as he awaited my response anxiously; however tall he stood, there was something feeble in his face. I had seen it last night as well – his eye, peaceful and yet devoid of something. His gait sagging with deflated meaning. I knew that he had no ambitions to chase or fulfill in the library; he simply wanted to be able to use it.

"I see no issue with it," I said carefully.

He nodded again. "Thank you," he said, some genuine relief cautiously flushing his tense features. "Excuse me, then."

I frowned as he turned and started down the walk. Well – I could imagine plenty of reasons for him to feel troubled. Now was not the time to dwell.

Naruto ナルト

Old man Homura, once a teammate and then advisor of the Third Hokage, straightened the papers before him with a sigh. Over the course of a slew of meetings, I'd watched him recuperating, so slowly, from his long imprisonment in New Sound's village prison – seen the dullness receding from his eyes, seen the pallor of his skin lessening from an extreme. He might never be the same as before, like many of the people in the room – but like any Leaf shinobi, he refused to stay down indefinitely.

This meeting was almost over. He sat up straight, eyes sweeping the clan heads, generals, and other council members assembled, before he addressed the room.

"Much has happened in the past week. The daimyo of Hi no Kuni, and his council, have unanimously recognized our government's rightful claim to the leadership of this village, at once and forevermore to retain its name as the Village Hidden in the Leaves. The regime instated by the Leaf traitor who assumed the name of Fifth Hokage has been dismantled, his rule deemed unlawful."

Koharu, the other chief elder, continued. "However, to attempt to forget the events transpiring in the wake of the Chuunin Selection Examinations held in the Leaf the fall before last, no matter how abhorrent or grave, would be a glaring disservice to our integrity and to our fallen comrades. As such, though the name 'Godaime Hokage' will live on to history in infamy, its reviled holder unrecognized as a proper ruler, the title will not be reassigned to his successor…"

"This brings us to our final order of business today," Homura went on. "As you know, our need to instate a leader is presently dire – crucial to the village's resumption of function. We have received word today from the capitol, that with the blessing of two loyal sannin and nomination by jounin Hatake Kakashi, the feudal lord's council has at last approved the one shinobi among us who shall bear the name of Rokudaime.

"He has demonstrated unparalleled will, wit, and valor in combat, and boasts the power to defend our village. He is loved by his comrades, and loves them in turn; he is respected by our allies abroad, and in traveling the ninja world has grown well-versed in the present times. He can act with clarity and precision, whether to commandeer battles or heal wounds."

"In light of these qualifications, and of the crucial role that he, among others, played in liberating our village and its people from the tyrant Orochimaru's reign, through nigh countless, and selfless, acts of heroism, he has been selected as the flame that will assume the lead in bringing our Konoha out of these dark days and back onto a path of peaceful prosperity. Following inauguration, he will stand as our Rokudaime Hokage and chief representative of this village, under advisement until he comes of age and has grown fluent in the ways of leaders. He shall inspire our people as we confront the immense tasks that lie before us. The shinobi we speak of, our young Lord Sixth Hokage, is, of course…"

The entire room was already watching as I took one stabilizing breath, and rose to my feet. I walked to the head of the room, and took a few moments to survey the assembled shinobi, to meet their eyes, before I gave a hearty grin of gratitude. Smoothly I bowed to them.

"I, Uzumaki Naruto, look forward to serving you. I promise – I'll give it my best."

As one they rose, and bowed in acknowledgement.

My dreams…

I beamed at the smiling faces around me, the nods of approval. Then I found the eyes of the one who had not stood – Jiraiya, in his wheelchair – and he gave the warmest smile, with a nod of encouragement.

Somehow… they've come to be right before me.

They believed in me. Those hopes would be my strength, so I would not fail to protect them.

"Something on your mind, kiddo?"

I made a sound. "Oh, come on!" I whined. "Since when does a student have to have ulterior motives to go out with his master for some sun and fresh air?"

Jiraiya chortled as I pushed his chair along the path – a deep, warm rumble of laughter pouring from his chest. "It was written all over your face, Naruto. Out with it."

This was not the time to selfishly bring up my own problems – not before I'd addressed something else, first. That much was plain.

I had nothing to delay with. "I haven't really had the chance to talk to you since… the battle. Before it, really. But I wanted to s-say… how sorry I am." I shut my eyes briefly, and the memory of the Nidaime's kick smashing into the back of his neck flared up in my mind, causing me to shudder. "I screwed up. I lost my head, and you had to distract yourself protecting me, and…" I hung my head, catching myself before I took off rambling. "…I'm sorry."

He was silent for a bit. "That wasn't your fault. It was our mistake to force you to endure so much–,"

"No," I argued. "I decided to grow up, then – I decided I wouldn't make any excuses. And now – how am I supposed to protect everyone if I won't be held accountable for my mistakes?" I frowned. "…It's not right. That I should be Hokage, while my recklessness did this to you."

"You're not saying I'd do a better job? Trust me – I don't want the spot."

"Why aren't you angry at me?"

"You want me to get mad at you?"

I paused. It was amazing, how calmly he took all this – if he was upset about it, he didn't show it. But for someone so strong to be brought down like this, and not show a thing… "I don't know."

"Can I claim some responsibility for my own actions, then? I chose to risk my life protecting you, and I'd do it again. If I hadn't jumped in when I did, you would have died. So I'm in bad shape? That's leagues better to me than having failed him."

My brow furrowed. "Who?"

His fingers flexed and relaxed; I remember Tsunade saying that he might be strong enough to wheel himself around, in time, even if walking again anytime soon remained a remoter prospect. "Forget it," he said.

My mind whirred; I'd been diverted with a similar tone, months ago. "…It's the Rasengan person, isn't it?"

"Th-the– what?"

"It is, isn't it?" I pressed, confidence boosted. "What's he got to do with me, anyway?"

"You'll find out," he said, "when the time's right. There's no question about that."

"This again?" I complained. "Ero-sennin – I'm going to be named Hokage. If I'm going to take on that much responsibility… could you at least quit hiding things from me?"

He didn't answer. I sighed; I shouldn't be heckling him now, anyway.

I decided to change the subject. "By the way – do you know anyone named Minato?"

He sputtered in surprise. "When did you hear that name?"

"It was Orochimaru's last word. He was screaming it as I drove my Rasengan into his heart, and killed him."

After a brief silence I heard a defeated chuckle. "Let me see your face, Naruto."

"Huh? Well, okay…" He couldn't really turn his head, I knew. I guided us into the grass just off the path, stopping under the shade of an oak, and walked around to stand in front of him. He scrutinized my face, his look knowing.

"A bit, I suppose…"

At the vague musing, I wanted to groan in frustration. "Was he someone important?"

"How many history classes did you sleep through, Naruto?"

"H-huh?"

He shook his head. "Expanding your knowledge is something we'll need to work on soon. But… yes, he was important. Like you, he was an old student of mine. Once upon a time, Orochimaru actually competed with him for the seat of Fourth Hokage… and lost."

I blinked. "Wait. He's…?"

Jiraiya gave the slightest nod, looking past me.

I whirled, catching sight of the fourth stone face on the mountain. Yondaime, the Yellow Flash, was known as one of the most gifted shinobi to have walked the earth.

"Probably rather wisely, Sarutobi-sensei – who you know as the Third – trusted Minato with that power, over Orochimaru. As the story goes, Orochimaru's betrayal and defection from the village resulted in large part because he felt spurned by this choice. I'd venture to guess that Orochimaru considered himself fairly safe in seizing the village and naming himself Godaime, with neither Minato nor Sarutobi-sensei in the picture to stop him. But obviously he left a bit out of the equation… To think you of all people used the jutsu Minato invented, to defeat him. Orochimaru could never really be rid of his old nemesis, after all."

"I see…" I said, still sensing that he was omitting something.

He looked to me, from the stone faces. "…I've lived a long time, Naruto. I'll never regret that I protected you, and it's all the better that I survived to teach you things you'll need… and also because if I hadn't, I would never be able to face him."

I scoffed. "What's so special about me?" Why would such a bigshot hero care anything about me?

"As long as you live, Naruto, Minato's will to protect this place will not die. That's what I believe. Naruto… you see, Namikaze Minato was…"

The wind blew. I saw his lips move, heard the words come out, but took a moment to comprehend.

My eyes grew. A bead of moisture I didn't notice forming escaped from the corner of my eye.

I fell to my knees. "There's no way… I can't live up to that."

"Oi – that doesn't sound like you."

When the weight fell onto my head, I looked up to see that Jiraiya had reached out to me. The hand resting on the crown of my skull tensed, and very slowly, haltingly, tousled my hair.

"You're already getting there; you did great." Jiraiya smiled. "Stand up, Naruto. He'd be proud of you."

I stood, wiping my eyes. To be a great Hokage like he had been, I would grow – stronger, and wiser – so that next time, no one would have to get hurt.

Hinata ヒナタ

A weary sigh escaped me as I leaned against the wooden beam, tilted my head back, massaged my temples. No time had been wasted bringing me up to speed. With hours of meeting, briefing, discussion, and tense argument with the most prominent members of the Main House faction that Ojii-sama had gathered – the people who wanted my cousin dead – this could not quite be considered an ideal way to use a day, but a necessary one.

If they had held hopes of catching me off-guard in the wake of my stint of unconsciousness, I was at least confident I had seen them to failure. I had learned of the events of the last week, the state of affairs, and what to expect in the coming days. However draining, I had also solidified my sense of, and reinforced my place in, the balance of power in this clan. It was true that as things were, they had insufficient grounds to deny me leadership; the role meant they could not easily dismiss my words.

I had probably prolonged things considerably by expressing and holding firm on my intention not to permit the re-branding of the Branch Hyuuga with the subjugation seal. Orochimaru had done a single good in removing the Hyuuga curse mark from every one of Neji's clan – a feat even we lacked the knowledge to replicate. I wouldn't let them damage this opportunity for a half-fresh start, and entrench a generation in bitterness again.

–"Let me first prove that order can be maintained without that thing. Meanwhile, if we can separate the subjugation mechanism from the formula and leave only the part of the juin that will terminate the Byakugan upon tampering or death, I will gladly see every Hyuuga marked with such a seal, beginning with myself. Until then–,"

"So you would leave us unable to protect ourselves from–?!"

"From our brethren? If you treat them decently, why should you need so deeply fear their betrayal at the first opportunity?"

"Simple for you to say. So we're forced to depend on your power to protect us? Are you not simply intending to use them as leverage to hold us in check, young Miss?"–

I scowled, blinking in the late-afternoon sun. Pushing from the pillar, I set off down the walk.

Pigs, all of them… swine grown too infatuated with privilege!

I shook my head. The discussion had been closed for the day before things could grow too heated, and I had been sent to see the clan tailor and armorer – two more Main House supporters – to be fitted for new clothing. The village was working through a difficult time, and here I watched old men squawk about saving face and was expected to prioritize looking proper and presentable for the upcoming hearing, in which the clan and village would negotiate the punishments of the vast number of New Sound shinobi we'd turned out.

Betrayed at the first opportunity… and what the hell does that say about the way things were?

I'd obediently gone for fitting before setting out to the village on a brief errand; I'd returned in heavy spirits. But I wouldn't do any good by sitting around groaning about my luckless day.

I sniffed, ears quirking. There was tension, unease intermixing in the air. I looked up to identify Hiryuu-san and Hyuuga Hokuten, the oldest of Neji's witnesses to the duel, walking in opposite directions and studying each other distastefully as they neared. The men gave each other a noticeable berth, relaxing only once they had passed. I frowned, but I had found two people I was looking for.

"Hiryuu-oji-san," I called in greeting. "Are you busy at the moment?"

"No," he said, halting. "How may I be of service, Hinata-sama?"

"If you could find Harumi-san and the others, I'd like to talk to the four of you. Say we meet outside the clan head's… er, my office?"

"If that is your wish," he said, bowing slightly.

My lip wrinkled. "Thank you," I said, bowing my head. "I'll join you shortly."

"Hai."

I watched him go. Nearby, Hokuten-san had paused; he waited until Hiryuu was out of earshot to speak. "May I help you with anything, Hinata-sama?"

"I'm fine," I said, smiling. "But there was something I wanted to ask you…" I glanced about as he nodded, waiting patiently. "The full moon passed a few days ago, correct?"

He nodded. "Of course. We were fortunate; before the battle, Orochimaru supplied the clan with enough anti-transformative pills for all of us with the seal to pass one full moon, in case anything went wrong. I… doubt this is the sort of 'anything' he had in mind, but we were able to distribute the medication to all of the cursed ones being held in detention as well. It was a hectic evening. The guards did not believe us at first; we barely got to everyone in time."

"I see. You did very well," I said.

"But the supply was sufficient only to serve us all for one full moon…"

"That's fine. Skipping a moon is unfavorable to us, anyways."

"Skipping? Skipping what?"

I winced, reluctantly recalling a vivid image from the recent past, amid the stream of visions Hanabi had given me. "If you would hold that thought… What do you do on an ordinary full moon? This couldn't have been your first…?"

He blinked. I practically saw it in his eyes as the thought rose up – triggered one heartbeat of confusion – and collapsed on itself, diverted. "What?" he asked, expression blank.

Inwardly I swore. My brow knitted. "Focus. Can you remember anything from another full moon?"

After a moment of effort he shook his head, clearly troubled. "Orochimaru would request the lot of us, except for Neji. And in the morning we would always feel… rejuvenated, if you will. Maybe disoriented, but not bad at all. But the night itself… How have I never thought about this…?"

"It's not your fault," I said. "Listen. If I told you that you'd been manipulated into doing something horrific or cruel – perhaps repeatedly – and had your memories tampered with each time, would you want to know what had taken place?"

"I…?" He pressed a hand to his head, grimacing.

"You don't need to answer now. But please think about it, and tell Hajime-kun and Hitsui-san to do the same. Can you do this? I can tell them myself if you forget what I've told you just now. Just know that I can remove the tampering any time if you want me to."

"Okay," he said, nodding slowly. "Then – what will we do a month from now?"

"Don't worry about that just yet," I said. "It'll take some effort, but… I'll make sure everyone's ready. When the time comes, I'll be with you."

He smiled, tentatively reassured. "Understood."

I wish I could say I felt as sure as I sounded, but I'd figure it out. I needed to.

I surveyed the four Hyuuga before me, wondering where to start.

"No luck, I take it?" Hikujaku nudged.

I hung my head. No – none of that, now. I had to meet their eyes. "I got permission earlier to search Orochimaru's labs, but… it seems he left no record of the removal formula." I chewed my lip. "Neji's mark is still very faintly visible, if inactive, because he was the guinea pig; the technique was clearly smoothed out as it was used for more of his followers, since for most there's not so much as a visible trace. But to perfect such an intricate technique, and leave no documentation… It doesn't make sense. I'm sorry."

"You need not apologize for things over which you have no control, m'lady," Harumi said.

Hitaka nodded. "You went and looked, just for us. That counts for something."

"I know I can't repay you, for keeping my sister alive, but this much I want to do," I persisted, urgent. "I haven't given up. I'm not bad with fuinjutsu, myself. For your courage and service, I swear I'll work out the process on my own."

Hiryuu's eyes, usually so stoic upon me, actually softened slightly as I straightened from bowing. "Don't you have quite a bit on your plate, Hinata-sama? No doubt you're fighting the council to not have the others' marks reapplied…" He smirked at my surprise. "If you're doing that much already, that is plenty. Hanabi-sama also wished to see the way of things changed; she feared the ability to hurt us, to the point that she shed tears in conflict. She feared that using such an absolute power might turn her heart cruel." He looked up. "If you are intent on… mending parts of the old system, we will support you regardless."

"Oji-san…"

"Besides," Hikujaku added, "we trust you plenty. You think we don't realize neither you nor Hanabi-sama will activate these things?" he asked, pointing a thumb at his hitai-ate. "Granted, either one of you could kick our asses if you really needed to, so–,"

"Baka," Hiryuu muttered shortly, thumping him lightly over the head.

My brow worried. "Then if only to allow you to bare your foreheads without shame, as can the rest of our clansmen…"

Hikujaku gave a lopsided grin, sharing a knowing look with the others; smiles tugged at their lips. They reached up, untying their headbands to leave their juin marks exposed, clear and green.

"Until such a time," Hiryuu said, "we might just bare our foreheads in pride… with this as the mark of those who, when called upon, defended Lady Hanabi's life – the young Seer's life – in her time of need."

My mouth fell open. They were smiling; the brand, the symbol of submission that had haunted Neji and maddened him with resentment, had no power over them any longer. Sniffling softly, I grinned back at them and bowed deeply at the waist.

You four… are truly strong, indeed. My teeth clenched. Hanabi was blessed to have you at her side…

"Hinata-sama?" Hitaka asked, as water droplets pattered to the ground at my feet.

I fell to my knees, head down. "But there's one… wh-who didn't make it this far with you, right?"

It was Hiryuu's firm voice that answered. "Hiyuki fought bravely, and probably saved Lady Hanabi's life… but she was ultimately captured by Neji, and executed for treason against New Sound. It was an honorable death. Any one of use would readily have shared her fate, if needed…"

"I wish that was the truth – you c-can't imagine how much I do…"

"What…?"

"She was… your niece, wasn't she, Oji-san? And Hireiki, your sister?"

I wish I didn't have to tell them how twisted the Blood Seal could be, or how Neji, whom I now shielded, had exploited its power and warped her will.

I didn't want to tell them she had died by my claw without once recalling her former self.

But I needed to tell them of a death. All I could do was tell them the truth of the tragedy under the blood moon in the burning Gunromachi, and offer the small consolation that I would never abuse the Blood Seal in the same way. I would teach the Chosen control, and earn their respect – not force loyalty to run through their veins.

Lee リー

I waded out into the river that crossed the training ground, drawing the two katana from their sheathes.

I had spent the day assisting in construction and repairs in one of the more hard-hit residential areas; while a certain ANBU fellow – a Mokuton user – was contributing a great deal to the construction effort in replacing buildings that were beyond repair, there was only so much chakra he could expend each day. Everyone able to help was needed to pitch in.

As one who had held the rank of a commander in the Leaf forces, I had been high on the list to be assigned new housing. And as one of the Leaf's strongest, I was expected to be among the first deployed on the most crucial of the relatively few missions the Leaf was presently able to accept. I would probably be leading a team of chuunin or jounin.

I would be ready. But first, it would help to understand the power at my own disposal.

I held the katana out before me, blades pointed down, and plunged them into the calmly flowing water. There was no difference to be seen between them.

Yawarakai Te, I thought, looking to my left. And in the right… Juuchi Yosamu.

The holy blade, the demon blade… With both in one piece, their powers remain inactive now. But something has changed within them. They are no longer so tightly bound to each other… but are instead a part of me.

The Yawarakai Te first, then. I remembered the feeling of its warm power tumbling gracefully through me, soft white and gentle – and I connected with its essence again, drawing just a fraction of its terrific power up my arm, into my body. I watched the water swirl past the blade in small rivulets; if I focused, I could expand or confine the scope of its effects.

I lifted it only long enough for a nearing fish, devoid of caution, to pass beneath it, and thrust down again.

The fish squirmed against the muck below, pinned beneath the tip of the blade.

I had not pierced it.

I lifted the blade, and watched with some wonder as the fish flitted away and continued on unharmed.

Then I swung out before me, unleashing in one move the tremendous power I'd contained. A line of light flashed across the water from bank to bank, a twenty meter span, a ways before me. For one heartbeat there was a quake, a stirring of the surface, before a wall of water broke upward, spraying thirty meters into the air, cresting, and tumbling backward the way it come.

The water level at my feet had fallen; I watched as the stream ahead ran in reverse for a handful of seconds, stilled, and continued on its proper course. What I had glimpsed of the bed was unmarked but for a bright proliferation of grass and algae that had sprouted along the plane of the slash, a line that extended to newly blossoming flowers a few feet out on either bank.

"Unreal," I breathed, as water swept back over my feet. With a brief look at the sword, I returned it to its sheath.

But this one… I thought with some apprehension, strengthening my grip on the Juuchi Yosamu and feeling the temptation of power throb urgently against my fingertips. This blade identified with a different part of my spirit, but a part of me no less real.

I did not let this katana's energy permeate any further than my forearm when I drew upon it. To control the Tender Hands was a dance, tricky but cooperative; to control the Ten Thousand Cold Nights was a war. It had the capacity and will to consume me, and yet I showed no fear as I steeled myself against its potent madness. I watched the water meet the blade as if no obstruction existed, but the liquid was unquestionably split. It rejoined neatly an inch behind the blade.

A leaf neared on a course with the blade, and it was too easy to watch it meet the edge and be split soundlessly in two.

Another neared, and I wrenched the katana under my control. The leaf was only barely nicked, and ultimately swept aside.

I released a breath. I could not control it perfectly. But even if I could use it safely, I would summon its true and terrifying might only as a last resort.

A high-pitched buzz sounded by one of my ears. Without thought I released the hilt to swat at my face with a palm. My mind left the insect (or whatever remained of it) quickly enough, however, when the still-awakened blade's weight dropped it up to its pommel into the stream floor.

I cursed at a mutter, grasping at the hilt. I forgot to focus before I touched it.

My sight flashed red. A burning sensation shot up my hand.

"Huh?" I breathed, and mud, water, and earth exploded outward from all around me.

Th-this is bad! I thought, growling as my arm shuddered with strength, as malicious will rushed into my being. My forearm was cloaked in the same deathly glow that poured from the blade, my fingers sprouting short claws. The sword jerked toward my other arm, and halted an inch from spilling my blood in its outrage.

"That is enough!" I cried, gaze snapping forward – the village – not that way, when I had no idea what was about to break free. In a convulsive move I turned, glaring intently off into the woods, and lashed that way instead.

A blast of calamitous intensity tore from the move, striking outward to tear through the earth and trees, to twist and crack and scatter the air. The noise was incredible.

I caught a hold of the still boundless energy screaming through the Juuchi Yosamu, and banished it.

I was covered in mud as I trudged out of the dust, hand locked on the hilt and dragging the katana behind me before I collapsed on the bank. The grass browned and withered where the blade had touched. Swearing, I thrust it into its sheathe. Cold sweat stung in my eyes. I swore again.

It will take a bit of work yet, then…

After a minute catching my breath, I sat up.

I grimaced.

Beyond where I had stood, the stream was going dry. The water was pooling in a crater, you see, and then following a fresh, deeper channel – a channel lined with dead grass – off into the woods.

I cast my eyes about nervously. Were these perhaps the sort of problems that shinobi with ninjutsu faced? I felt that changing the course of a river might be rather frowned upon.

Deciding this was plenty for one day, I stood up.

Upward… Next time, if anything, I must be ready to throw it away from anything, upward.

Hinata ヒナタ

So there's a lot to be done still, but… I'll try my best. I'll try to do right. I know you might not agree with everything I'm doing, but please trust me for now. Please rest comfortably…

I lifted my head as I lowered the hands pressed palms-together before me. My eyes opened to see strings of smoke from the incense swirling from the motion, rolling gently against the small portrait before us, and the urn at its side. Beside me, Hanabi already sat with her hands in her lap, gaze fixed silently upon the white eyes of our father.

It was a framed, smaller copy of an official portrait of a head of the clan; the Hyuuga were not keen of photography, so the pictures of him were limited. This one showed us a younger Hiashi, the one who had risen following Ojii-sama's retirement. His face was familiarly stern, but not yet cold.

Even if this was not quite the father we knew, it was Hyuuga Hiashi. My hand rose to my ear, where I could still feel the ghost of his last touch, where shaking fingers had brushed my cheek and nestled up into my hair.

–"My two, beautiful daughters… A-already so big and strong, and with so much further still to go…"–

"I'm sorry," I said softly, "for missing your cremation…"

"You were asleep through the village's mass funeral, but within the Hyuuga, there'll still be a clan memorial service," Hanabi pointed out. "Once the rest of the clan will be able to attend."

"Yes…"

I drew my hand from my ear, folding my hands in my lap.

"I can't forgive you, you know." Hanabi didn't look at me to say it, but her meaning was clear. "Even if you're not the one who struck the blow, you and Neji both played a p-part in…"

I sighed as she trailed off, shaking. "The same with Hiyuki, right…?" Hanabi had known of Hiyuki's fate, and all the circumstances surrounding it, the moment she had first manifested the Seer's power, and shown me our history, our past, and two bleak futures. "One of us condemns, the other kills… Has fate been toying with us so? Perhaps we truly are bad for this clan. But where Neji would have condemned himself, it seems I failed to follow this curse of ours through…"

Though he sought his own death whilst we fought, he also sought to destroy me. But he knew, perhaps inherently, that my spirit would not be destroyed by force. Getting me to kill him – that's the thing he counted on truly destroying me. I shook my head. We both must die? While I maintained that we both must live… Did the two of us hold the two answers within our hearts all along?

"I wouldn't say you've broken free of it yet," Hanabi noted, expressionless. "Should he condemn himself again, you'll share the blame. And in such a case, you've already decided you'll be the one to see that you both go to death, right?"

She finally turned her head to me, an eerie calm in her voice, as the incense burned out before us. Its subtle glow faded from the room, and in Hanabi's eyes one spot of its reflection dimmed, and vanished.

"Imouto-chan," I began, reaching toward her – faltering, as she averted her gaze.

"I need some time, Onee-chan. But never doubt that I am glad you're alive. You're my sister. And I haven't forgotten that you saved my life, and our clan. I will never forgive Neji, but I can forgive you; I will. But even him… Even if I cannot forgive him, I can at least understand that he mustn't die."

I nodded, head low. "Fair enough… Is that you talking, or the Gift?"

She made a face. "I'm not sure if the two can be separated any longer." She began picking up the incense. "…Chichi-ue told us to look after each other, too. But that's not the only reason I can say I'll stay on your side; it's a no-brainer, Onee-chan."

Her smile was sad, but genuine; its warmth diminished just a bit of the distance between us. But she'd said it herself that she could forgive me, if not now then someday. If I could be worthy of that forgiveness, then just maybe, when she did, things could be something like 'normal' again between us.

My lip quivered. "Thank you, little sister," I said, returning her smile, but did not reach to embrace her. "…I love you."

"I love you, too."

A minute later, I slid the door shut behind us as we left the room. Hanabi had paused outside on the walkway, but not particularly to wait for me; she was troubled.

"It's strange," she said. "I didn't think about it then, but… I couldn't find you earlier."

"It was a pretty busy day," I reminded her, a brow raised. "I was all over the place."

"No," she said, shaking her head quickly. "I couldn't sense you. And you can't sense me, can you?"

I realized with a start that it was true. Like a subtle but sound compass inside me, once ever-present, had slipped itself quietly into the dust. Had we really taken it for granted for so long – the ability to locate each other on shockingly accurate intuition, to feel each other's emotions and pain, to spontaneously extract one's stream of thought from a smattering of cues, eyes and face and voice…?

"Well," I said, "The Seer's power found its home in you, right? It won't start scoping out another generation of potential hosts until we're hopefully old and gray." I could still read a bit, and piece things together, from her physical cues, but there was nothing extrasensory about it; the enigmatic power had probably only manifested to such an uncommon extent through the strength of our bond to begin with.

But the fact remained that in the time we'd spent apart, we both had matured considerably – and as a result, we did not know each other as intrinsically and completely as we had before. Adding in our shaken relationship… "I guess I'm not too surprised it's faded," I admitted, looking at the setting sun.

"But it doesn't bother you at all?"

"Huh?"

Her eyes on me were fierce, but shining with moisture that had not a prayer of escaping them, for her pride.

She was shy of nine years old, after all, and a lot was changing around her. When would anything feel like normalcy again? But her look… "To you… it was our special thing, right?"

She blushed – at the sentimentality of it? – but her lips quirked upward at the corners. Even if it wouldn't change anything, I'd hit the nail on the head; she was happy enough that I'd understood her.

"Lady Hinata!" That was Neji, coming up the walk. His eyes were still wrapped, making me wonder at how well he knew his way around.

I turned to face him. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head as he reached us. "I sensed tumultuous emotions from you a few minutes ago; I simply wanted to see that you were quite all right…" His nose twitched. He turned his head a bit, sniffing the air. "Is that… Hanabi…sama?"

I opened my mouth, but didn't get a full word out before Hanabi turned and strode crossly away. I considered calling out after her, but hesitated. "Yes, it was," I instead answered Neji, though doubtless he had confirmed it by now. "It was Hanabi-chan. I'm sure you can understand that she's not your biggest fan. You can probably smell the incense we were burning for our father? That's why my emotions were in such a tangle, probably… You don't need to worry about it. Forget it." The wind kicked up slightly; I lifted a hand as cold nipped in my ears.

"I… see." He had lowered his head. "H-how are you holding up? Do you need blood?"

"No, I'm fine for now…" I paused, hand resting at my ear.

–"Lend me your ear, Hinata…"–

"What's the matter?"

"I… almost forgot…"

–"If it's at all possible, wh-when this is over… there is something that absolutely must be shown to Neji…"–

"Hinata?"

"Please – come with me."

Neji ネジ

The room she brought us to was the Clan Head's study; I knew from the path we took to get there, and definitively from the particular smells of parchment, wood, and ink that it shared with the library, if in different quantities.

"Hidden in plain sight," Hinata was saying. I heard something – a scroll – slide from a shelf. "The Byakugan won't discern the text within a closed scroll or book – but even a quick scan would pinpoint something unusual as a hidden compartment within a room, or the disturbances caused by blocking seals or genjutsu. So he 'hid' this here, amid a bunch of menial scrolls, where only someone with a description of it would think to find it."

"And… what is it?" I inquired.

"I… It's actually addressed to you," Hinata said quietly. "I think you should read it yourself."

An eyebrow rose against the wrap about my eyes. Still I began to unwind it, as Hinata continued to speak.

"He said he wanted to give you this when the time was right… so I guess, in the brief, feigned peace after the chuunin exam, he still wasn't sure when the 'right' time would be."

"And you think that time is now?" I said wryly, drawing the bandaging away and blinking in the dim light of the room. "Would you suppose the creature I've become is ready for…?" For whatever this was?

She shook her head. "I don't know, either, but we never will without knowing what this is. Father said it was important. Neji… the meeting tomorrow will in all likelihood be what decides whether you live or die. There might not be another chance."

"I'm aware," I said, shutting my eyes briefly. But what could Hiashi have written to me that he couldn't have told me himself?

Then I saw the handwriting of the first word – my name – on the scroll Hinata offered to me, and I realized that Hinata's father hadn't written this at all.

My hands were trembling.

"What… uh, what did it say?"

I swallowed. My voice was taut, higher than normal. "H-Hinata? Thank you… for leaving me an eye with which to read this…"

"Neji?"

"There was nothing in it we didn't already See, per se. The agreement in the events is undeniable. It's not that I doubted the authenticity of those visions anymore, really… but if I'd had any prayer of them being less than genuine…"

She gripped my shoulder.

The tears came from some dim, unexpected and unremarkable place inside me – a place I seemed to keep finding my way back to, no matter how twisted the path, no matter how many times I'd felt sure the capacity had at last been forgotten.

The scroll – what it had said? – that was what she was asking of me, stark concern panicking her face.

"Ah… simply put, my father… sacrificed his life to protect his older brother… The uncle… I killed…"

And I fled the room, as that place inside me, choking, emotive, and unfailingly astounding, swelled and spilled over with the great pain in my chest.

This was what it was, to live? Yes. This was being alive.

So on what could have been one of my last nights of this world, I would suffer thoroughly, and do so without regret. Even should I regret everything else, I would not regret feeling this self-loathing and pain I had dared to face in all its blinding might and intensity – least of all in my last chance to.

"Oi!"

My bare feet slid on the smooth finish of the walk. I had nearly barreled straight into Hanabi, coming around a corner on my blind side. I held her eyes for a long moment, panting as Hiashi's younger daughter regarded me warily.

"What's wrong with you?" she asked, guarded and perturbed. I didn't want to picture what I looked like right now, sweating cold bullets, struggling to breathe, shaking and distraught.

But this child… This absurdly powerful child whom I had arrogantly taunted, whose life I had played with, whose resistance I had scorned as we clashed and I fought to break her – she had never truly faltered. When she had faced an imminent and premature death, I had mocked her for the paltry sum of her accomplishments, should her life end in its next minute – yet, defying all understanding, she had held firm.

Such a manner of life, and manner of death… not hours before I fought her, I had seen the very same in one who had lived a full, long life. That there could be no difference between the two…

–I go to my death not as a sacrifice made to protect the head of the Hyuuga's Main House, but as one man willing to protect his beloved older brother.–

The right to love that Hinata had spoken of… a right that should never be denied. Expressing that right had come in an act of defiance, through love. It was an outstanding thing. Yet I had callously deprived Hiyuki of that right, along with the power to die with her convictions intact, dismissing the love that she felt simply because it was for a member of the Main House.

And both Hyuuga Hikaru and Hyuuga Hanabi – one so old, and another so young – were people who, true to their hearts, were willing to face their deaths head-on with a smile, just as my father had.

It was an outstanding thing, a phenomenon that I had been drawn to as if magnetized, wherever it was to be found, and in my great blind fanciful wisdom and sanctity trodden impetuously upon it again and again.

"Is there no end to the wrong I've done?"

It was with this whisper, mournful, that I slumped to my knees. I felt sick. Tears were still rolling down my face as I stared into the wood flooring, shocked. "I tried to clip your wings…"

"H…hey…" Hanabi eyed me uncomfortably as my hands rested upon her shoulders, but she sensed no threat.

"I'm sorry," I said, "I can't take back my sins. I've slain Hiashi-sama and Hikaru-sama, and no amount of remorse will return them. But should I live through the morrow, Hanabi… I vow to protect you as well, with all my strength."

The girl scowled, but did not push me away as I wept. Teeth clenched, she shook her head, glum voice halfhearted. "…What're you playing at, Hyuuga Neji…?"

Thirty-One, Part Two: Judgment

Naruto ナルト

Sasuke's trial was unlike the majority of those I'd been made to sit through. The first reason for this was that he had not so much as a handful of clansmen to either support him, turn against him, or stand trial at his side. The second was that his approaching the military court hall on this cloudy morning aroused an immediate and vicious reaction in the crowd of spectators, the scale of which I had yet to witness in prior proceedings.

But the overpowering, despairing cries of "traitor" and "murderer" seemingly rolled off his back as he strode up the path, walking between me and Kakashi-sensei with his hands bound behind his back. As a known dojutsu user he was blindfolded, but this could not have kept the bombardment of insults from his ears, or nullified his senses to the harsh intent in the air.

"Kakashi-sensei, what's going on?" I asked, with no need to lower my voice amid the noise. The chaos was unusual enough. Did it have to do with the fact that this trial was closed to the public?

"Like Shikamaru said," the man answered, "among those who joined New Oto, Sasuke is second to few in notoriety. What's worse – word may have gotten about that he's practically guaranteed a pardon."

"But once we explain everything – er, testify – it should be better, right? If they trust us…"

"It doesn't change the fact that I've committed crimes, knucklehead," Sasuke said simply, still facing forward as we walked. "No amount of rationalization will convince the people directly impacted to see anything but a lack of justice."

"You see the look in their eyes, right, Naruto?" Kakashi added.

"Of course I see it…" Saw it. Knew it. But to see such a dark animosity directed at Sasuke…

"If not for us walking at his sides, they might be tempted to throw trash or rotten fruit his way…"

I blinked, still unable to help but wonder at the thought that my presence could deter rather than attract such conduct.

I had taken note of a number of trials – Jiraiya and Kakashi had advised that I take advantage of the opportunity to learn about our system, even with the hope that I would never see the need for such an extensive slew of examinations arise again.

It was Tsunade who called the court to order, Koharu and Homura at her sides; Kakashi had also presided over a number of cases, but someone too directly involved was not permitted to exercise final decisions.

All in all, the process this time was thorough but smooth. His situation was summarized – his adoption of the role of a double or triple agent, as a student of Orochimaru. His crimes were detailed – his feeding information, however trivial, to New Sound; his poisoning of the New Konoha food store in anticipation of a feast, and the casualties that had resulted.

Aburame Shino – still cocooned in bandaging from waist to neck beneath his coat, I knew, but able to gingerly walk – noted that Sasuke, even haunted by the apparent recent death of a friend, had been the only one of Hyuuga Neji's 'squad' of sorts to dare to speak against him. Tenten offered a similar picture.

I noted that, when Sasuke and I had clashed over a year ago, he had been working in a squad under Neji's command but fought me due to a personal conflict. The end result of the encounter, of course, had been that he'd informed me honestly and completely of the situation in the village – knowledge that had spurred me, along with Hinata and Lee, to the actions that would ultimately bring the seeking and securing of allies, the freeing of the imprisoned Leaf elites, and the amassment of the very army that had now proven victorious in overturning a usurper's rule.

Sakura provided accounts of how Sasuke had saved her life, and that of Hyuuga Hanabi, on two occasions prior to his becoming a spy, both times fending off his fellow New Oto-nin in their defense.

A pale-faced but stoic Hyuuga Hanabi, accompanied to the courtroom by Hiryuu-san, detailed with apparent disinterest the lengths to which he'd gone to help her hone her Raiton, and to at one point attempt deliberately to leave her equipped to survive an impending assassination attempt; Hiryuu also admitted that Sasuke had done his best to strengthen Hanabi as an asset to New Leaf, if only in the hope that she might defeat Neji where Sasuke himself had failed.

But the last Hanabi had seen of Sasuke, he had deceived her, used genjutsu to ensure she wouldn't eat the food that turned out to be poisoned, and promptly fled New Leaf. The girl didn't look once at Sasuke as she spoke.

Shikamaru, once the court had again come to order, then did a commendable job of condensing his theory on Sasuke's convoluted scheme of layered self-hypnosis. He explained its function, its driving force, and the mechanism of its cancellation, after asserting his high-percentage certainty that Sasuke was indeed the one who began to serve New Konoha as a mole shortly in the wake of his last defection to New Oto, funneling back information that had been integral to the Resistance's continuing survival. And finally, of course, he explained how Sasuke had hurled a wrench into Orochimaru's plans by betraying him at a critical moment.

The crowd of shinobi listened, bewildered, as Kakashi, Anko, Shikamaru, Lee, and I – five commanding officers – testified to the fierceness with which he had fought Orochimaru and the First and Second at our side, with plenty of opportunities untaken to turn against us. In fact he had fought earnestly until I, embarrassingly, was caught in Shodai-sama's genjutsu and accidentally knocked him out of the battle myself.

Yamanaka Inoichi – who, along with the clan that followed him, had betrayed New Sound with premeditation upon the start of the great battle – probed Sasuke's mind, and reported its present loyalty and lack of alteration.

Tsunade shook her head. "A saboteur's methods may not be the most admirable… but it is clear that the accused acted ultimately in the interest of the Leaf Village. His actions have contributed immensely to securing New Konoha's survival and the Leaf's victory; he made sacrifices as a shinobi, only with careful consideration. For his service to the village, I am willing to pardon Uchiha Sasuke's crimes. He will be exempt from punishment."

"In agreement," Homura assented in a moment. Koharu repeated the utterance.

Whispers stirred in the crowd: "Impossible," "Can't be true," "Is this okay?" I saw Kiba glowering, eyes dark with distrust; beside him, Chouji seemed similarly doubtful. Sasuke only sighed as the manacles on his wrists were unlocked.

"As the council has decided–!" Homura spoke out, after failing to quiet the room again, "Let it be known that the contents and transcript of the trial of Uchiha Sasuke are hereby confidential! No mark of this shall be placed upon his file! The proceedings are not to be spoken of, under penalty of – quiet! Quiet, everyone!"

I frowned, simply watching him as Kakashi removed Sasuke's blindfold. "The confidential nature of this specific trial… why the special treatment?"

"Why do you think, Naruto? They said you'd grown sharp…"

I turned my head to Sasuke, watching his eyes adjust to the light. "…They want to maximize your usefulness in espionage. I get it… but do they expect anyone outside this room to just take our word for it that you're loyal?"

"Of course not," he said, turning. He knew Kakashi and I would keep at his sides, without having to ask. "I'm not a glorious hero like you, Naruto; I never will be."

"And you're okay with that?! With… just being used?"

"If an existence in the shadows is where I'll be able to wreak the most hell on our enemies…" I caught the subtlest smirk as he paused at the door. It was a dangerous look, but all the more a reason to appreciate that its wearer was on my side. "Then, yes. I am."

There was a grin on his face as he shoved the double doors open before us, and stepped into the chill morning air an innocent – and hated – man.

Hinata ヒナタ

It was midmorning when I opened the fine door of the clan library and peered inside. Quietly I entered.

Two candles on one of the nearer tables had been burned to stumps. The rest of the table's surface was scattered with a miscellany of things: piles of various scrolls and open tomes speckled profusely in the colors of protruding sticky notes; a spiral notebook and pen; a more or less empty inkpot, a decidedly empty inkpot; a blackened brush, still poised against a blot on the scroll it had been filling, with gradually worsening handwriting deteriorating into a gibberish of scribbles just before its present location; and my cousin, slumped silently over it all with a cheek pinned to the wood, the slow, rhythmic rise and fall of his back providing the sparsest sign of life.

He was too elegant in frame, even passed out asleep sprawled over a library table, in a simple cotton shift and breeches. Despite the poor sleeping condition, he was more tranquil than I could remember seeing him in a long time.

I picked up a closed scroll outwardly similar to the one Neji had fallen asleep on; there was a pile of them, small and neat and freshly written in. My eyes widened slightly as I scanned the parchment. This…?

It was the content of our visions of the past, but more. There were specific names where the visions had provided none; he had matched the knowledge to existing documents, to make his account more complete. He drew in relevant information, and commented on the sources from which they came; he noted where the truth directly contradicted misconceptions that were widely taught in the present day.

In the first of the scrolls, he succinctly introduced himself, how he had come to be in possession of such insight, and the circumstances under which he wrote. Then he had dived into the considerable undertaking of transcribing what we'd learned, in vivid detail.

Of his own volition, he…

I straightened as I detected the change in his breathing. "You're awake. Busy night?"

An "Indeed" rose from a dry throat; a long-fingered hand combed hair out of his face as he sat up stiffly in his chair. "It's… time, isn't it?"

"Almost," I said honestly, and he let out a hoarse chuckle.

"I am grateful you left me this eye, Hinata – Byakugan or no. I was able to delve into the histories, even if perhaps for the last time…"

He spoke almost fondly, or however close to the sentiment he could get from within his detached manner. The task brought him comfort, then, even if it had not been a mere recreational perusal of the archives. "This place… is your sanctuary," I ventured, "isn't it?"

"Heh. I used to think this library held everything – every guarded secret the Main House had kept cloistered away for generations. There are diaries, journals, poetry collections; compiled accounts of events and battles and conflicts and eras… explanations of techniques and rituals, every art from the principles of Juuken to yuumiya crafting to the secret techniques of the Main, and forbidden jutsu like the Hachiman; biographies, family trees, reports, maps, transaction documents, population records and statistical information…"

He had stood, his working eye drifting across the shelves' contents as he passed before them. An upraised hand, two fingers brushing delicately across the volumes, fell from the shelf as he paused, lowering his head.

"But no matter how much I scoured the past, there wasn't a single clue as to what might bring about the destruction Hikaru foretold." He smiled bitterly. "Of course, it was a threat from without. The answer to my question was right under my nose… no. Right here on my neck," he said, grasping at the point where I knew the Blood Seal to lie. "I thought that with this much knowledge one could do anything, so I consumed all I could. I learned and I learned… and yet I remained blind."

I didn't know how to respond. 'You couldn't have known'? 'It wasn't your fault'? I put a tentative hand on his shoulder. "The time you spent in here… it wasn't a waste. Even members of the Main, with access to the library resources, remained unfamiliar with them; Hanabi and I were made to study a distorted and biased version of our history, as if it was long ago decided what a Hyuuga to hold power should know and think, to best maintain our ways, and the rest was allowed to sink forgotten into the past. Do you see? You probably hold a more thorough comprehension of our history than any Hyuuga alive can claim. And the compilation you've done…"

"Is incomplete," he hissed, eyes shut in disdain. He looked sidelong at the things strewn across the desk. "This is a tremendous project; I only wish I'd thought to begin it sooner…!" His teeth clenched. "If things go badly…"

"They won't," I said. "If they did, even I would finish it for you, if it were possible. Not like I'd do as good a job of it, but I remember the things we Saw as well. And Hanabi is smart; she could do quite a bit, if we can't."

He smirked softly. "There are my notes, as well, but surely the Head and Seer have no business with such menial tasks."

I smiled, trying to look steadier than I felt. "All the more reason we'll make sure this doesn't go badly." I grasped his hand, impressing a thumb gently in his palm. "Let's go. There's still enough time for you to stop and straighten up."

"Hinata…" he said as I led him from the room. "I'm sorry."

"No more apologies, remember?" I said. "The same goes for you."

"Alright…" He wrestled with a grimace. "…Dear."

I couldn't help it; in spite of everything, I choked on a laugh.

"J-just getting into character!" he muttered, flustered.

"Right. We ought to get all the laughs and grimaces out of our systems now, either way… anata."

My mouth felt suddenly unclean.

"Let's… not, perhaps," he suggested. "No endearments. I daresay your acting is even poorer than mine."

"You're probably right," I admitted, scratching my head. It was certainly something, to say truthfully that I couldn't fake this if someone's life depended on it. "If we just remember the goal, we can still do this. And because your life depends on it, they should understand if we're a bit tense."

"A fair point," he agreed, and we walked quietly for several moments.

"You realize," he then said abruptly, "that I don't consider you a woman."

I gave him a look.

"Y-you know what I mean," he insisted. "Think about it. What do you consider me?"

I opened my mouth, but realized as quickly what he meant. While consciously I realized he was a man, overwhelmingly, as far as I was concerned, he was simply Neji-nii-san. "I get it," I admitted. "Maybe we just… go back too far, or have been through too much, or both. But you're not a man, to me. You're a person." It still sounded curious to voice it. I sighed. "Is this really the time to be talking about this?"

He nodded. Thus we continued on in silence.

We had an engagement to finalize.

Ojii-sama sat at the head of the meeting room, his visage firm. On the stone wall at his back was a large rendition of the crest of our clan, a simple flame of chakra painted a red that had dulled with age. Before him was his ceremonial wakizashi, lacking its sheathe, a grim and rather boorishly pointed reminder of what lay at stake. I remembered its edge nearing my cousin's throat, to kill a man who was prepared to die with his regrets – but who now sat at my side, across from our grandfather. His hand was still clasped in mine as it had been when we'd entered earlier; to the two of us, it was a show of solidarity if nothing else. A few more choice members of Ojii-sama's faction sat on the cushions that lined either side of the room.

"You two have made your case," Ojii-sama's voice rumbled out. "You plead that Neji was heavily manipulated by the enemy. You seek to be betrothed, your honor shared. In such a case, you understand that Neji must still be punished for his crimes, as severely as the clan and village demand, but he will be spared the traitor's execution – the trip to the gallows – he has earned."

"We understand this," I said solemnly, and Neji nodded. "We simply cannot bear the thought of losing each other again. We will face whatever we must." I looked meaningfully at my cousin, a gesture he returned, and I tightened my hand on his for good measure. "Losing him once, to the chaos Orochimaru brought upon him, was enough to show me just how much he means to me. This love was the reason I absolutely couldn't give up all this time."

One of the others scoffed. "And Neji – what say you of this pure heart that yearned to protect you all this time? Surely you remember the animosity you expressed when the two of you dueled – the way you shattered her legs and broke her arms, perhaps, and relished in it as no more than a base and loathsome beast?"

"That foul hatred was not me," he asserted quietly; the unease in his eyes at the memories was not feigned. He ducked his head. "It was a cold, dark place inside of me, that had grown out of control. I'm appalled to have done such dreadful things, to someone I love; now that I'm free of Orochimaru's influence, while I know I don't deserve to stand at this woman's side, even stronger is the feeling that I just can't bear to leave it!"

Another man spoke, dubious. "You claimed Orochimaru's curse has the power to sway hearts. How do we know, then, that you are not manipulating Hinata-sama into protecting you as we speak? Hinata-sama – can you prove you are not bewitched by this Blood Seal, and being used for the wretch to weasel his way into a position of power in the reestablished Leaf?"

"It is true that the Blood Seal naturally generates a chain of command connecting its hosts. But after I received the seal from Neji, we did not come into contact again for some time; there was no opportunity for the curse's hold to establish and defer me to subordinate stature." Extensive control on the level Neji had exercised over the Chosen would have to have been imposed consciously with the alpha's power, rather than the curse itself, probably shortly after the curse's transmission – and only sealed through an exchange of blood. I looked up.

"The fact that I was able to fight him at all is proof that I was not under his control then, for one fully under the thrall of the curse would be incapable of so much as raising a hand or speaking against the curse's top wielder. The fact that I won proves not only my independence, but means that I have now taken his place at the top of the hierarchy; it's why the three cursed ones who witnessed the duel chose to protect me afterward, even when Neji's life was in more imminent danger."

"I suppose…" the man conceded.

"Are you satisfied, then?" Neji said, brow furrowed above mismatched eyes. "Neither of us would control the other, and we'll never fight each other again. I know that I would never be permitted to fight for leadership; the most 'power' I might boast is access to the leader's ear, and if you fear that I should taint her with some residual depravity, you know naught of Hinata's strong will. I have nothing to gain but the right to wed my beloved; we seek this union purely for that. With my life at stake, we simply could not hide this secret…"

Grandfather studied us for a long few moments. "You're both well aware that marriage of such close blood is usually forbidden without question, without warranting so much as consideration or the discussion we're holding here. Thought the rules are unwritten, typically in-clan marriage begins to become acceptable with four generations' separation from the nearest common ancestor, preferably more."

"But here you are talking to us," Neji observed glibly, "a breathing reminder of how miserably my love and I fail to meet that qualification."

The old man glowered at the interruption. "Exceptions have in exceedingly rare cases been permitted to wed, but oft attached to certain conditions – conditions to which we cannot bind a clan head, who will carry the responsibility of producing heirs."

I swallowed. Even if he was only repeating facts, at this point this wasn't sounding good. "So…?"

"But," he went on, gaze shifting to me again, "the Hyuuga are in a critical state. Our standing in the Leaf has plummeted, and may not ascend to its former glory for many years to come. First and foremost, we must anticipate the means by which we might restore the village's faith in us as the wealth of power we once represented. While we can scarcely trust the value of Neji himself as a weapon, due to the shame he brings, he has one virtue yet…"

It was true, then – when it came down to it, our 'love' hardly played a part in their decision. It was all about agendas, objectives, the worth of the clan. Was this what it was, to owe oneself to the wellbeing of many? "You don't mean…"

He didn't waver. "You were always thought to be poor for the strength of the bloodline, Hinata, but your immense growth has illuminated your one distinct virtue as well. The chance of your tenacity surfacing alongside Neji's raw genius… might entail potential worth gambling on."

Love? What was selling them was the prospect of breeding Neji's innate power, always marveled at but considered wasted and lost, into the Main House. Preserving his coveted power, even as he was discarded as a disgrace and a wretch.

The others were softening up to Ojii-sama's stance. "The progeny, then…" one said with a stoic air, sharp eyes picking apart my form. "They'll be wolf-humans like young Lady Hinata, yes? Strong-bodied and firm of constitution…"

"Yes," I answered his speculation, as my ears twitched self-consciously. "Barring very specific circumstances, my future children will be born part youkai…"

"Fascinating," the chief medic mused, smoothing the ends of a gray mustache as he made his deductions. "She herself may have become a genetic anomaly; her genes are those of a half-monster now… Depending on the genetic makeup and distribution of her monster traits, it is possible that she shares even less genetic overlap with Neji, or anyone, than the chance average in two unrelated humans…"

"And if adverse traits do develop, they can always try again…"

The train of discussion had grown repulsive, as if our bodies and genes were but choice commodities to be put to use at the clan's brutally utilitarian discretion and convenience. Still I quirked a brow at that; the man's remark didn't align with their objectives. "By our laws, my firstborn will be heir."

The one who had spoken gave an uneasy look, shared a furtive glance with some others, and averted his eyes.

–"There were always whisperings of ways the clan's establishment planned to push you aside, Hinata; not a few were rather insidious…"–

"I am done with this discussion."

"Hinata…" Neji murmured, watching my fisted hands shake.

"'Done,' you say?" Ojii-sama said. "Don't be foolish, lass. We have not yet approved the betrothal, but this case may prove the strongest you have."

"Your handling of this case is disgusting and inhumane," I spat, glowering. Even as the wolf in me could almost sympathize with the logic, my human heart was decidedly more repulsed. "Just say it – you would so readily run the risk, and cull the defective?"

"It is not particularly common, but given your unique position–!"

"I will hear no more of this!" I said firmly, rising, my voice heightening to such an unfamiliar boom that the room's occupants shifted uncomfortably. There was something amiss within persons capable of condoning such practice. For these people, my own blood, it wasn't a far leap to consider arranging to knock off an inadequate successor, for fault of possessing a weak bloodline – to end lives for convenience.

"You do not command this council, Hinata!" The old man's face was turning purple in rage; his words, now that he'd found his voice again, were heated. "You, with your fickle heart, have no right to critique the lengths to which we go to maintain this clan's strength! None at all! I have spent a lifetime ensuring the survival and power of this clan. Yet you now fancy yourself a proper leader, girl? As you let yourself be governed by sentimentality? Know your place! An ignorant, naïve whelp that lacks the resolve to sustain in this clan in the ways that have served it successfully for centuries barely has a place to be heard here, whoever she may be!"

I flinched, stung. His subject had broadened to relate to our earlier debates as well – my refusal to accept their pleas for reapplication of the subjugation seal. "You define the unsightly manner in which we've survived as 'success'? And you would assert that an aversion to cruelty is weakness…"

His old eyes were cold. "Sit down, Hinata. Perhaps the day will come that you will learn to respect the sacrifices necessary to stave off a risk of collapse, but evidently that day is not today. You hardly have enough weight to throw around that we might be convinced to permit a betrothal that would spare a traitor's life simply for young love's fancy. Sit down now, Hinata. Countless Leaf shinobi also seek your beloved's death; ultimately we must decide whether preserving the rare potential of his blood is worth tempting their ire for shielding him. Take your seat."

I hung my head. "…Iie. I don't believe I will," I said, blunt.

His thin eyes narrowed. "Come again?"

"Cowards who are unwilling to take any risk for the sake of progress, who are too weak to face their followers on level ground, have no business giving orders to me."

Ojii-sama's face, struck with confusion, began to pale visibly at the words.

When I came to be before him, snatching his wakizashi deftly from the ground, he toppled onto his backside in terror.

When I flipped the hilt in my hand, curtly poising the blade's fine point upon my stomach, the elders quick enough to have begun rushing toward me stopped cold.

Only Neji, directly behind me, remained seated as he had been, calm and undisturbed.

Ojii-sama was aghast; to my right, the graying medic raised his hands. "L-let's not do anything rash!"

I smiled peaceably, thought my tone was light and devious. "Ohh? But even I can only entertain for so long. It's a curious thing – if I'm truly such a petty nuisance to you great men, if I have so little in 'weight to throw around,' why could it be that you all react so tensely to an imminent threat to my life? To say nothing of my considerable esteem with the Leaf forces… Ah, that's right – if you try to seal the Branch Hyuuga, they will revolt, and you can't stop them."

Sweat was rolling down grandfather's face; I offered a wolfish grin, half mad.

"Of course, even if I am alive, if they revolt in response to such an unreasonable plan, I might not stop them. Perhaps you really are too blind to see that our present crisis and narrowly averted destruction are products of our precious old ways. I will speak in a language you better comprehend, then–,"

"Y-you're insane – selfish, irresponsible–,"

"I am speaking, Grandfather," I said patiently, level, severe. "Obviously, you realize it would be your suicide to attempt to reinstate the juin system in my absence, so you won't. So, humor me this: would you lot prefer to deal with treating the Branch families with human dignity and respect while I carry out my means of maintaining order without the seal… or to try to rule the unmarked Branch via your own great authority, without my power to even counteract the chance violence that will almost inevitably flare up?"

"Listen to me. No leader can maintain peace in this clan without the juinjutsu," he ground out. "It is impossible – old scars run too deeply through this clan."

"I'm telling you to trust in my power," I said. "Whether it has been done before or not has no impact on the fact that I can do it."

He was silent a long moment. "You're a fool. Return my blade, Hinata."

I sighed. "All of you," I said, surveying the others, "if you have not already, please activate your Byakugan."

I watched them uneasily comply. My eyes returned to the medic, close by.

"Elder Horine," I said, "what say your all-seeing eyes of my current predicament? Is this blade leveled at a vital organ?"

"Y-yes, it is…"

"How certain are you?"

"Without question, it is a vital point."

I looked at another frazzled elder. "And if I were to thrust it straight back through my body from where it now rests, can you attest that it would indeed inflict a fatal wound, that I should promptly perish?"

"Hai…"

"Then you, whose judgment is infallible, are in agreement," I remarked softly. "Alas, I am slain."

I clenched both hands on the hilt, and thrust the weapon straight through inches of flesh, that it punched from my back and the hilt pressed against my front. I withheld a screech; the only cries in the air were thrown from the stunned elders around me.

Though I was not facing him, I felt as Neji jerked where he sat, face taut, eyes screwed shut.

–"If I have to do it, will you Soul Link with me, and split the pain? It is the type that would still hurt if you had to bear only a twentieth of it… but even so, going from all of it to half is still something."

"Do you even need ask? If you can bear all of it along with the physical wound, there's no reason I should be unable to spare you some by shouldering half."–

You said it bravely… but your pain tolerance is a bit poorer than mine, it seems… I gazed coolly at the ground, watching as blood spread thickly upon my shirt and plitted to my feet. Even shaking a bit, I straightened to offer Ojii-sama a calm, hard glare.

"What madness is this?!" he demanded.

I quirked a brow, one hand still at rest on the hilt. "It seems that the impossible has occurred. Several seconds have passed, yet I have not d-died–," my breath caught, and I lurched to spew a mess of blood onto the ground. But as I retched, the strange phenomenon of phantom pain proved too much for Neji, and our unpolished Soul Link frayed and snapped.

My eyebrows jumped inward as the doubling pain hit me. I gasped a moment, but did not buckle. "D-do you know – why Uzumaki Naruto, Rock Lee, and I have been called the Three Demon Generals of the Leaf? Any among those who call themselves our comrades could trust us to command a legion of even the finest shinobi. But, naturally, there are other reasons… In my case, I am nigh unstoppable. Look."

To their quiet horror, I twisted the blade, sharply, sending more crimson spattering to the floor. My eyes grew, but I kept my voice steady. "If anything will destroy this clan, it is the forced stagnation you call 'success'; your ways may bury and defer our problems, but they will never resolve them. You would have this ill-fated rift persist until it destroys us!"

My breath was shallow. "Say again that I am a child of no consequence… But answer me this. Can the lot of you even measure up… Can you dig inside your withered hearts, look me in the eye, and say that you're physically, mentally, or emotionally capable of offering the amount I'm willing to sacrifice – and suffer – for this clan?!"

My eyes were intense upon Ojii-sama, my breath hissing past bared fangs. He was dismayed, teeth clenched, a pitiful furrow in his wrinkled brow. He wanted desperately to avert his gaze, but could not. And perhaps most significantly, he could not seem to recall his trick of perpetually looking down at me, anymore; I had stripped his spirit of that lofty arrogance. I let him squirm in discomfort, to remember this feeling – this degree of powerlessness that he had never once experienced. He felt it now, crushing and terrible. He would never dismiss me again.

"I thought so," I said evenly. Bracing myself, I wrenched the shortsword from my gut, pointing it skyward as I did.

He tensed as the blade fell toward him – shrinking, wilting where he sat, but presently lacking the capacity to process an instinct to fight.

I swerved the blade aside and back again, savaging the air above his head.

My blood, whisked from the steel, was cast in a sharp, splattered arc of crimson across the dull paint of the emblem on the wall behind him.

"Are you so desperate for blood on your blade? Here, then," I said, holding the richly streaked blade level between us. "Take mine, that you needn't wound the clan any further in your cowardice."

It was with an air unlike that with which he had earlier demanded the wakizashi's return that he now stood, cautious and meek. Even as he stood a bit above my height, he did not resume looking down at me. It was clear that it was with my permission that he rose and took the offered sword.

He remained disgruntled. "The wound…"

I cocked my head, expression dry. "Go ahead – activate your Byakugan, and see what has struck everyone else silent."

He did, and was dumbstruck.

I gathered a wad of the ruined shirt at my front, wiping excess blood from a sealed wound.

"I am not only strong; I am nigh unstoppable," I reiterated seriously. "Trust me. I will not fall; ergo, this clan will not fall. Will this suffice?"

He grimaced, humbled. "Hai…"

"Good. Never dismiss me again."

"Hai."

The air had no longer been hospitable for discussion following my stunt; there was discomfort inherent in any incident of blood spilled in a council chamber, whatever its circumstances. All the better that it had been my own, and no one else's.

A brief recess had been welcomed, for a chance to clean the floor, though the wall had to be left as it was for the moment; removing the blood marking the chalky stone wall would require scrubbing, which might well wear away the faded paint of the insignia.

Neji produced a handkerchief for me to wipe my mouth, but I did not bother leaving to change out of my ruined clothes. So I stayed at my cousin's side, seated on the steps outside the meeting room, as the others reconvened quietly behind the shut door. I drank appreciatively at an offer of blood, and then leaned wearily against him as we waited in the silence. We would be invited back inside once–

"You may enter," one of the councilmen said blandly, as he slid the door open.

The room's occupants had come into agreement.

I met Neji's eye. We got to our feet.

When we stood before the council, still hand-in-hand for cool, calming stability if not for love's warmth, Ojii-sama eyed us carefully.

"I shall be frank," he said. "The betrothal is approved."

I let out a breath. I was engaged to a man I did not love, but, circumstances demanding, this was presently good news. "Thank goodness," I whispered, while Neji shut his eyes and nodded softly.

"As a war criminal, he will not go without penalty and appropriate security precautions, as will be negotiated with the village. That being said, we will argue that he be spared execution, and with his betrothal to a clan head, we are confident we can win. You, Hinata, will be expected to show vigilance, keep Neji on a short leash, and monitor him for signs of regression. Assuming nothing goes foul, the two of you shall wed on Hinata's eighteenth birthday."

"Thank you very much," I said, bowing.

"And what do you think of our council's decision, Neji?" Ojii-sama prodded. "Hinata's honor is shared with you; you are fit to be spared execution, fit to live, if barely."

"I am eternally grateful," he said with a tone of sincerity.

"Aye," Grandfather said, "you have four years to not screw up, and you're home free."

We have four years to establish Neji's harmlessness, I thought. No – more than harmlessness. His worth. That he may live on the acknowledgment of his own value and character, without the lifeline of my hand in marriage.

The old man was speaking again. "Loosen up now, would you? For the moment, perhaps you may breathe a bit easier."

"Indeed," I said, smiling amicably as we straightened.

"It is a momentous day; the two of you must be overjoyed! Yes, why – let us see a kiss from the happy couple!"

My smile faltered much too sharply to go unnoticed. You old coot…! I somehow forced a laugh to rise up from the hollow that had replaced my gut. "Surely this is not the place for displays of affection," I covered, adding a girlish giggle for good measure.

"Nonsense!" the man laughed, and I caught the measured sharpness in his eyes. "You remain so impressively reserved, but there is no need for modesty in the joyous moment of the clan head's betrothal!"

My lip twitched. He knew. He must have known. Did the rest of them know? No, they couldn't have all figured it out. How sure was he? Kuso!

"Hinata…?" Neji said, too carefully. Asking me what to do. Willing to risk death to spare me a kiss. He would drop the act, drop it all if I wanted desperately enough to back out now. For the kami's sake… We've acted too suspiciously now.

I beamed up at him, shyly. "It's simply so embarrassing, love," I sighed.

He slipped into the act accordingly, seamless. "Don't worry about them for a moment, my sweet. For just a moment…"

Just a moment. Just a moment, I repeated behind my smile, behind eyes half-lidded in professed bliss. His hand slid to the small of my back; I draped my arms about his neck, inclining my head as I guided him near.

Just a moment. Just convince them.

We met.

It was a tepid thing. Everything in me squirmed in aversion, in a decided impulse to break contact, to pull away, that I fought so hard I shivered. Everything in me was stiff; he sensed my conflict, and was unsure how to – whether to – respond.

Hardly a heartbeat had passed when I involuntarily twitched away – a centimeter, two. I could feel the farce begin to crumble.

But I had one idea left.

Imagine it's Naruto! I thought, eyes still shut as I shoved my lips against his. The sudden move surprised him, along with energy that had been absent a moment prior. He began to reciprocate, to push back, however uncertain. And when I pressed my chest into him, Neji – no, not Neji, 'he' – groaned incoherently and became considerably more… natural, in his movements.

A sensual person… But I had no place to judge.

How I had longed to kiss Naruto again, chastely or passionately, in any way at all, to embrace and be embraced by him. But I whimpered, muffled, as the self-imposed dream was jarred. This was not Naruto's taste, nor his deft and gentle manner; the hair I braced my fingers in was much longer and sleeker than the blond spikes to which I'd grown accustomed; my head was tilted up too high, my partner's body temperature was distinctly and unusually similar to my own, and the arms around me gave not a fond, warm squeeze of security, but locked in a tightened state, firm, pressing me into him to render me breathless.

There was no affection, no thought, just a frantic outflux of his pent-up emotion and pain. These crushing lips, this sudden, fierce, uninvited tongue that I was drawn into a losing battle with– H-how can I pretend it's Naruto, when you're such a rougher kisser?!

Then we broke apart, and the world returned to us. I blinked dumbly at a half-dazed green eye, gasping lightly, and he blinked back, a disconcerted blush creeping into his cheeks. My skin crawled as I noticed the thread of saliva hanging between us. I resisted an urge to spit.

A clearing throat. My face reddened as I looked clumsily toward Ojii-sama, scratching my head and working up an embarrassed smile as Neji and I separated. "Forgive us," I said, "We got a bit carried away."

"Not at all…" The man's seemingly cheerful smile betrayed nothing, but it seemed we had successfully deceived most of them; one elder shook his head with a stifled chuckle, and the medic muttered something distasteful about 'youngsters.' Perhaps they had grown dully unfamiliar with the sentiment known as love, if they had unanimously failed to detect its curious and utter absence in our exchange. Able to gauge only intensity effectively, they had been convinced, for the moment reassured.

That might have changed, had all of them been scrutinizing us specifically for a ruse.

"It is settled, then," Ojii-sama said, calling me from my contemplation. "If we have nothing more to discuss on this matter, I believe we are done for the morning. Hinata, of course – don't forget to return this afternoon, so that we may finalize and draft the penalties for the Branch."

For our former New Oto-nin, I wanted to say, but enforcing the distinction would be meaningless to them. With the afternoon meeting to look forward to, we would have plenty of time to argue in a few hours.

"Yes," I said simply, "Thank you all for your time. This meeting is adjourned."

My pace was brisk down the walkway. I had no destination in mind.

"Hinata…" he said, having remained silent in following.

"We've both said 'no more apologies,' haven't we?" I reminded him. "We did what we needed to protect the ruse. It worked. That's all." I wouldn't apologize for provoking a reaction, and I wouldn't chide him for his lack of restraint. I was too rattled to speak of it directly either way. Nonetheless, I glanced at him. "Aren't you also uncomfortable with this?"

"Naturally," he said, bemused, "but I think it's a bit overshadowed by surprise. To think my shy little cousin is a better kisser than Tenten…"

The remark had come thoughtlessly, almost with a chuckle. Yet by the time I rounded on him, a fist clenched, his eye was wide, his look distant.

"I-I'm sorry," he stammered, though he didn't seem to see me. He shrank where he stood, a hand grasping at one side of his face. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry…!" He was breathing too rapidly, as if suffocated, as he trembled in remorse.

"Neji! Snap out of it!" I said. I gripped his shoulders, and held him close after he began blindly to pull away. "You're okay. Do you hear me? Calm down."

"Hina…ta?" he said slowly. I heard his breathing return to his control, as the panic passed. He straightened in a moment, looking away, but I saw that his eye, so clearly against the green of its iris, glistened at the verge of an excess of moisture. "P-please – let's go on."

"Are you alright?"

"Do not waste your concern, cousin," he said, his face still pale. "It's nothing."

"Okay," I backed off. I continued to walk, and he followed. "On the previous matter," I said, lowering my voice as I reluctantly returned to the topic, "what do you think of Ojii-sama? He knows, doesn't he?"

Neji seemed relatively comfortable speaking again. "I can't tell if it's a passing suspicion or confidence, but I'd say so. He will be watching closely."

"But they want to breed us, remember?" I laughed, hoarsely, against the sting of bile in my throat. "What is he watching for, if they're done flashing their fangs at your life?" I hopped lightly from the walk, heading out into open grass. Neji kept at my side, but one stride behind.

His quiet voice was disdainful. "To keep you under his thumb? On the 'chance' that you're funadmentally opposed to their ways?"

"Maybe."

I heard a short growl. "They don't understand the potential crisis," he said, scowling, "so if they learn that your rationale for protecting a Branch leader is so calculated, they'll simply assume you're a traitor to your house. By exposing you as such, he could curb your influence with the council again, and use you only to maintain the line of succession…"

"A threat, then…" I groaned, kicking through a hunk of earth in my path; this part of the field was in poor shape. "Even if he can't dismiss me any longer, he can still give me a hard time."

"Hinata."

"What is it?"

"I mean… You and I are both easily, well… quite a bit stronger than Ojii-sama."

I stopped cold.

Neji took a step back in a moment. "Ah – forget it. I shouldn't have suggested…"

"He won't dismiss me any longer. We've already won that much; if he will regard me seriously, then I can definitely make him believe in my strength and decisions, in time. And for all we know, his threat is not to leash me, but to ensure I will not come to dismiss him. Either way, he will not act aggressively against me now that his command of the council's support has been weakened.

I turned my head enough to face him. "So, no. No more death. I will not do it, nor will I allow you to dirty your hands any further. I will rule this clan with respect – not fear. Never fear."

"Yes…"

We continued on, but my pace was less frantic. "Anyways – as far as your life goes, you're almost in the clear, for now. It's unfortunate that they'll have you kept on such a short leash, though…"

He chuckled. "Come, Hinata – do you think the suggestion I offered was with my own life in mind? I'm… a bit insulted, honestly…"

"What?"

"I – I don't want to just be someone who drags you down all the time. Aren't you at all perturbed that he can use me to exert leverage on you?"

"Well…"

He sighed. "That aside, do you not concur with the wisdom of keeping me restrained?"

I paused as we reached the trees. "You're different now. I can tell."

"But surely you're not coming to believe your own lies that my actions were fully explainable by Orochimaru's influence on me?"

I frowned. "…Of course not," I admitted. "Wishful thinking can only reach so far."

"Good," he said, surprising me.

"You're glad?"

However subtle his tone, I could sense he was troubled. "Please understand this, Hinata. That part of the ruse… It's an appealing thought, but even should everyone else be made to believe it, as we hope, you must never forget that it is untrue. You must never trust me unconditionally… for this heart is capable of unfathomable evil."

"I know that…"

"Do you? Can you accept that I will never be the way I once was, after having dwelled in true darkness – having willingly indulged in that sea of hatred, rage, and pain?"

I turned, leaning against a tree. "What is it you believe now, then – that people can change, but can't necessarily change back?"

His solemn smile was meek. "My hands will never be clean, Hinata, no matter how desperately we wish it could be so. Not in a thousand years of repentance could I die an innocent man."

I winced. "So that's why you're alright with the extent of the penalties they intend to place on you?"

"Are they excessive, or cautious?" he asked, patiently. "I would prefer to be handled with fear. It's ironic that I once mocked people who could made to desire to be controlled, for I have my own reason now. Do you question its soundness? I don't want to live running a risk of succumbing to that darkness again."

"So you want me to control you…"

"You're the only one I can trust to. If you won't… only then might I regret that I chose life, and took your hand that time…"

"Neji…"

"Please – you of all people don't owe me any compassion!" He moved to stand before me. "I'm shocked at all you've done for me… This sacrifice you made, even after all I've done to you – I mean, I'm extremely grateful, well – more than simply grateful…"

I had straightened. As he stumbled over his words, brow furrowed in concentration, he looked for once, for all the world, like an awkward teenager. Human, after all… "Onii-san. You already know that I don't give compassion because it is owed. And I have already sworn, if you should revert as you fear, I will see us both to death. You won't hurt anyone else."

"Yokatta…" he said softly, and his smile of relief was true. Eyes shut, he knelt in the dirt and bowed his head. "You already know I owe you my life. But if you're the reason I can feel safe in living, allow me to live my life for you. I can never repay what you've done for me, but I'll do all I can. My life is yours, to use or abuse as you deem fit. My power is yours alone to draw upon, and wield as your own.

"As my own? It's true that you've journeyed through darkness for a time. But if you don't learn to live for yourself, Neji, how will you ever know whether the things you're doing are right?

"Because I will do them at your command."

I looked down, at my bare feet. "Your faith in me is appreciated… but if its cost is that you would deny your own capability to exist in the light, there's no way I can accept it."

"I can't go it alone," he persisted. "I can't risk it! Your life is worth something. If you were to end up dying for one of my mistakes…!" His shoulders shook. "Please! Won't it be easier this way? I'll serve you for as long as I live. I'll do anything for you!"

"Anything?"

"Anything, Hinata-sama."

His eyebrows had drawn inward in his supplication; when he looked at me, hurt and confused by my reluctance, his face was pale. And his dark green eye watered.

You don't want to go back into the cage… but you've decided alone that you must? And that if someone must cage you, it should be me? My teeth clenched. That's not fair. If you're asking me to decide, right now, to permit you to live the rest of your life terrified of yourself…

I stepped away from the tree, and passed him. "Let me think about what you've said… okay?"

He didn't speak. I walked away, head down.

You think freedom will inevitably bring you to rain down suffering again… but that can't be right. You've still yet to truly leave your cage; the one Orochimaru gave you was a sinister thing, that masqueraded as freedom and made your wings grow ugly and crooked.

But if we simply shuffle you off into yet another confinement, to restrict the damage you might deal…

I looked up, gazing coolly into the clear blue sky.

Then you'll never straighten them out, will you?

We'll never see how beautiful your wings might have turned out.

Neji ネジ

The library called me back to it again.

From the time Hinata left me, to well into the night, I turned my eyes away from the hollowness within me and toward focusing on the immense task before me, scraping my mind for knowledge, digging through the archives, progressing in the documentation. If nothing else, I had changed from the man who had eventually spent unproductive hours, half-mad, racing through texts to retain naught but an occasional frantic, biased realization. I was capable of concentration again, of comprehending and ordering the things I took in.

I know not how many hours I spent letting the quill dance, etching down precious progress, after the sun set and I paused only to light the candles. I was woken by Hinata's hand pushing on my shoulder.

I blinked at the scroll before me. A scowl. "There's too much…"

"It's all right," she said. "I wish you'd have slept."

"Gomen…" Rubbing my brow, I turned to examine her fully. She wore, over a soft blue robe, a dark blue piece of traditional-looking armor that covered her torso, hanging from her shoulders and secured at her waist by a wide belt that sported the clan crest. Slits must have been appropriately placed in her breeches and robe, to allow her tail to hang free behind her. Her leather vambrace was in its familiar place on her right forearm, while the white breeches were cut off below the calf by the usual footwraps that dressed her shins and the arches of her feet.

A bright scarf had been slung lopsided from about her left shoulder to the other side of her neck, its ends hanging against her back. That she wore her Konoha hitai-ate conspicuously on her forehead made for a bolder look; her almost neatened bangs had been combed aside to ensure the mark of the Leaf was displayed prominently. The hair in back that fell to her shoulder blades, typically bound in a simple tie, was now restrained in a single thick braid.

"What is it?" she asked, ears giving a flutter as she crossed her arms in discomfort – a gesture that softened the impressive aura she unwittingly projected.

"Nothing. The tailor and armorer did well; you look like a general."

"I am considered a kunoichi the Leaf could trust as a general… Or, well…"

"They might be having second thoughts," I said glumly, walking past her with feet half-numb with cold. "Given your questionable fiancé."

She was silent a moment. "It's important that I look like this," she explained, following me from the room. "The head's strength is the clan's strength. The Leaf trusts my loyalty implicitly. The more trust they have in my aptitude as a warrior and a leader, the more likely they are to believe me when I say I'm capable of breaking my clan into shape and working order – and to trust that the penalties we've worked out are sufficient."

I rubbed feeling into my hands. "Then you should refrain from fidgeting."

"Huh?"

"The Hinata who dueled me – the woman who hefted me off my feet and slammed me to the ground – wasn't someone who would fidget or waver. Try to look straight when you speak, as well. Chin up; you are not guilty of anything. This is not the time to be meek."

"Neji…"

I glanced back from my good eye. "I led the Hyuuga Clan to err. It's unfortunate that you're the one burdened with leading it back to a proper course, but I don't want those who followed me to face persecution for my mistakes."

"I understand," she said sternly, eyes going deceptively cold.

I smirked through an innate shiver. There was no questioning that the aura she'd developed through her adventures was a formidable one, when she did not behave so as to diminish it. "There – don't forget how strong you are. The clothes don't need to do all the work."

She sighed. "Hanabi had to testify at Sasuke's trial. She told me what to expect…"

"I don't…" I stopped at the door to the room I'd been placed in temporarily – a room in which I'd spent fewer of the last nights than I had the library. My voice fell. "I don't want to – prepare. I'm guilty of almost every accusation they will place, either way. I just want it to be over."

"Fair…"

"Is Hanabi testifying against me, as well?"

"Inevitably. She says you tried to have her killed. Twice."

"The first time, my orders were no more than 'teach her a lesson'…"

I heard a pop behind me – her clenching fist. Her voice stayed calm. "And the second? Sending the Chosen on an assassination mission in New Leaf?"

"Rather more premeditated…" I admitted, wincing. The resulting abduction of Hiyuki, at least, had been purely a whim. I had done a lot of things on whims, those days… "I'm not remotely proud of either one. I swear it." I slid the door open. "I-I'll see you soon, then," I said, and fled into the room.

Inside it, I found the simple gray shirt and breeches that had been left on the futon. Atop the quickly folded clothes was a dark eyepatch, the ends of which clasped comfortably behind my skull. To protect my blind eye… or to conceal the unsightly mismatch? I shut my good eye, and watched the world turn black. I blinked, and dressed in silence.

It was true that Hinata's presence seemed to function as a buffer for the threats that the powers that were believed me to pose. It was not until she had regained her strength that I'd had my shackles removed. Now that I was to set foot outside of clan grounds, however, the handcuffs went back on. As our party gathered in the courtyard, Ojii-sama prepared to cuff me before Hinata requested them, and did so herself without meeting my eye.

It was better, somehow kinder this way. She would be the only one allowed to bind me.

"Chin up," I whispered in a reminder. "You are not the guilty one here."

She took a breath, and nodded.

Then she led us all through the front gates.

Today, the Hyuuga stood trial.

Hinata ヒナタ

When we arrived at the court, I caught a distant glimpse of purple.

My stony expression crumbled for one moment.

He… he was on the council for this one?

I did not so much hold Naruto's eyes as fall into them, at a glimpse ensnared. I was for that moment fully unguarded, bare and small, before the scrutiny of his aloof gaze.

A flicker of perception, and I turned to swat too sharply from the air a misshapen tomato on a course for Neji's skull. My scowl as I shook juice and tomato flesh from the back of my hand only slightly bared my teeth, but my look upon the crowd was calmly severe. I saw them shrink, shinobi and civilian alike, but their rage was clear, eager and vicious. I looked to Naruto again, but his gaze had turned pointedly elsewhere.

We needed to keep walking. The crowd continued to hurl shouts in lieu of fruit as we passed.

"Let him hang!"

"Tyrant's lapdog!"

"Gonna get what's coming to you!"

"He deserves to burn! To burn!"

"Savage fiend!"

"Hand him to the torturers – see how he likes it!"

They were all but frothing at the mouth. This was hatred at its purest. It was too familiar. It was not difficult to imagine that if Neji's sentence proved unsatisfactory to them, more than one might be tempted to let fly shuriken in favor words, regardless of consequences.

All I could do was keep my head up, guiding Neji's tense and brittle-seeming frame, by a grip on his forearm, toward the seats reserved for us. In the noise and commotion, I surveyed the dozens of quiet, uncertain Hyuuga, fresh from detention, who filled the rows behind us and watched with mixed expressions – anger, confusion, doubt, guilt – as we moved. I silently met several sets of white eyes before I turned to take my seat.

The general clansmen went first, as proceedings got underway. A pattern seemed to arise, as the examinations went by in a rather methodical fashion; there became apparent a rough handful of groups each former New Oto-nin fell into as he or she was tried.

There were "opportunists" found to have participated actively in advancing New Sound's aims, supporting its administration for their own interests. While these types faced harsher judgment, their prevalence within the Hyuuga left a glaring impression of the negative impact the clan's traditions 'might' have had on their decisions.

Much quicker, of course, were those who wound up being deemed effectively innocent – as much so as they could be, as shinobi who had fought under the emblem of New Sound. Such were those who had sought no positions of power within the new village order, or who could not be found to have displayed either eagerness of relish in carrying out their tasks – those who had felt no choice but to comply quietly with the clan's majority decision, or face the scorn of their brethren at best, a one-way trip to New Sound's dungeons at worst. The ones who had defected to serve Hanabi would likely have fallen into this category, had not their actions since cleared them from any need for examination.

The individuals in these groups would face the same sort of penalties that had been established during trials up to this point; marks of varying severity would be placed on their register files, and for the majority who would be permitted to resume service as Leaf shinobi, certain percentages, ranging by case, would be taken from their mission pay, some of the deduction to go to the village, the rest to the leadership of the clan.

When a certain sum in this taxation was reached, the individual would be relieved of this; so they were required to serve the Leaf and continue to risk their lives as shinobi, and their behavior would be especially subject to scrutiny, and they would live just meanly enough to be reminded that they were earning their way back into the village's trust – but might in several years have the penalty lifted, even if the black marks placed on their files today would always remain.

Allowed to speak on behalf of my clan, I stood firm as I professed the guilt of the Main House as my own, and my intent to redress it; I announced the decision (so painstakingly won) that the abolished juinjutsu system employed in the past to hold the Branch families in check would not be reinstated in my clan. In the wake of this and other changes, I requested that the mission responsibilities of the returning Hyuuga be suspended for three weeks' time.

"Three weeks, Hyuuga-shou?" It was Naruto who spoke. "No clan or shinobi has asked for more than two."

"A correction," I appended, stubbornly keeping my voice steady as I bowed at the waist. "I request the right to release my shinobi from this suspension as I deem them ready, with my deadline for doing so set at three weeks from today – at which point all those yet to return to duty will be placed once more at the village's disposal. Many will be permitted to return to service much sooner, but a considerable portion of them will need a bit of guidance before the full moon arrives – for reasons I believe you can understand."

When I gave a quick twitch of my ears as I lifted my head, said reasons clicked behind the pair of purple eyes that had remained determinedly disinterested.

"I promise you," I continued evenly, crossing a fist over my heart, "this period will not be wasted. When I am done with them, the shinobi I offer you will be ready to be put to use, as a fine and steady resource to hasten this village's return to its former stature. We of the Hyuuga Clan will play our due part – of that, you need not fear."

Though I still bowed, my head was up, my eyes projecting a challenge from beneath a lightly furrowed brow. I was thankful, suddenly, for the hitai-ate to conceal that tension.

"I'm in favor of permitting it," Naruto announced. "If it is on this matter, I will trust the commander's words."

My jaw clenched, but my heart rose in gratitude and shallow relief. He was helping me. The councilman Homura, as well as Tsunade, who presided over the day's proceedings, followed suit; the request was approved.

The final Hyuuga to face trial was a special case – an outlier in every regard, who would be examined thoroughly and face a unique set of consequences.

"Hyuuga Neji," Tsunade said, glancing at a sheaf of notes. "Former apprentice of Orochimaru and leader of New Oto's Hyuuga during his reign. This man is said to have served the wretched Godaime with particular zeal; it is alleged that he actively combated rebels, and delighted in torturing prisoners, even those whom he had once called comrades. The one widely considered to be unmatched in his guilt, in the depth of his treachery, his loyalty to Orochimaru and instrumentality in his regime, and the remarkably unusual enthusiasm with which he unscrupulously carried out all duties and flagrant acts of treason his position demanded… Will this man step forward?"

The crowd was silent but intent, rendering the air thick with scorn. Neji rose stiffly to his feet. I stood with him, leading him to the small table before the council at the head of the room. My cousin's deep green eye was wide but dull as he dipped his head briskly, and took a seat.

The people who spoke against him seemed endless; such were his crimes. Their accounts told the story of the escalating corruption in his heart. There were shinobi who recounted joining New Sound at his coercion, being made to desecrate their Leaf hitai-ate and swear allegiance to Orochimaru's regime. There were those who remembered him, when not standing proudly at Orochimaru's side as a symbol of the new order, stalking the streets in search of the disloyal, employing his strength as terror.

Former New Oto-nin noted his considerable contributions to the early tactics and measures developed to oppress suspected rebels.

A few Branch Hyuuga reluctantly explained Neji's charismatic argument for joining New Sound, with Neji as their leader, and his use of his favor with Orochimaru to have Hyuuga associated with the Main kept in prison, the typical option to go free with the oath of allegiance rescinded.

There was a council jounin who recalled, his face pale, the day that a fiendishly calm young man had visited the prison and happened to first try his hand at torture, replacing one of the regular interrogators – and the fascination this young man had eventually begun to display for his grisly task, as he returned of his own volition and made personal, extended projects of wringing information out of the prisoners. His voice shook as he spoke, visibly disturbed, glowering wildly at Neji as contempt and terror clashed within him. Many others gave accounts, in vivid detail, of his eagerness, sharpness, and creativity as a torturer.

Shikamaru, Chouji, and Kiba described an incident in which Neji had beaten Shikamaru severely in the middle of the market district, and given a speech promising similar suffering to all foolish enough to rebel.

On it went – his role as a commander in battles, his assassination attempt on Hanabi, his attacking civilians without warning and triggering a riot at a rally; his part in devising a plot to poison NewKo's food supply, his sudden murder of a beggar he'd begun to argue with in the street – until there were accounts of his absolute expression of terror and authority in the form of regularly and very publicly cutting down individuals in whom he suspected disloyalty.

My hand, that held his in solidarity, shook at times, but did not release him. There was blood on the hand I held – Hikaru-sama and his attendant, Otou-sama, and more others, I was finding, than I could even track. But I held his hand and listened, facing each speaker with him. These were the crimes of the man I was protecting.

And it was sick. I would have liked to see him face justice for the atrocities he'd committed, for the people he'd wronged, but such would be to see him hang. Thus I would lend him my irreclaimable honor, and hold my tongue but to speak in his defense.

There was no denying any of the accusations against him. Rather, Ojii-sama vouched for our determination of the significant manipulation Orochimaru had subjected Neji to, and the psychological instability that had resulted from the strain.

"You're arguing that his mind was tampered with?" Tsunade asked. "Outside his own knowledge?"

I spoke. "I used the Soul Link technique to help Neji resist Orochimaru's reincarnation jutsu. In the process of breaking free of it, several… abnormalities in his mind seemed to shatter. Altered memories, tricks of perception to reinforce feelings of loyalty toward Orochimaru. It was after this…" And after he saw the future of the snake's plans, and trusted it… I looked into the slug sannin's eyes. "It was then that Neji betrayed and attacked Orochimaru, distraught and enraged, as all those who were present can attest."

"And it was while they fought that Orochimaru blinded Neji's eye." Tsunade was studying a paper. "Then Orochimaru was prepared to eliminate Neji when Naruto utilized the distraction to slay Orochimaru first. Is this correct?"

"Hai."

Tsunade spent a moment in thought. Her gaze shifted elsewhere. "Yamanaka Inoichi – you're the expert here. If Hyuuga Neji's mind had been tampered with, would you be capable of discerning any signs of it, even after the alterations themselves have broken?"

"Evidence should remain," the man said, standing. Tsunade gave him a nod, and he approached us.

He smiled wanly as he passed before me, and I nodded. When he stopped before Neji, though, his look turned grim.

"H-how is… Ino…san?" Neji muttered, abashed.

"She and Aburame-kun should recover completely, in time," the Yamanaka head said. "Thanks to Uzumaki Naruto."

Neji looked down, and said nothing more as Inoichi-san placed his hand on the crown of his skull.

"Try to relax…"

When two minutes had come and gone, he lifted his hand with a breath. His eyes opened as he turned to face the hearing's council. "There are definite marks of tampering," he said. "I would need to conduct a more thorough probe to provide specifics – but the scars are there, even if the mechanisms' effects have now faded. Also…" He studied Neji carefully. "His remorse… It's sincere."

"And if you could gauge the influence Orochimaru's manipulation had over him…?" Homura inquired.

Inoichi looked down. "I'll be blunt – long-term seals of the sort that were used on him, however sophisticated, cannot directly control a person's mind or actions. They must build upon existing notions; if the boy here had possessed a strong will, or stood firmly opposed to Orochimaru, no amount of such subtle behavioral tampering would have affected him. That being said… his foulness should be, at its roots, his own. It's strange that the removal of the spells and restoration of his altered memories should have had such an extensive impact on his views and conscience. Something more must have happened to him…"

"Perhaps it was a miracle," Neji said under his breath, but his hand tightened briefly on mine.

"Oh?" the Yamanaka said. "My daughter claims your mind was rife with madness, of such an intensity that she could not bear to inhabit it. It's difficult to believe that the calm I felt could exist in such a soul…"

"You may take your seat, Inoichi," Tsunade said. "Thank you. Would anyone else care to be heard in Hyuuga Neji's defense?"

I began to raise my hand, at first tentative, but remembered myself. I would not falter through my words. "I would like to emphasize this, a final time. Let it be noted that Hyuuga Neji, a man who had known nothing but the anguish of understanding that his life was to be lived out in an inescapable cage, was granted freedom, favor, and power, with a swiftness surpassing his comprehension. If his behavior was largely driven by self-interest, it was to escape the wretchedness of the life the old Main House imposed on him."

"The old ways you are seeing changed… but though Neji may be the worst and last monster your clan produces in such a way, the crimes in his name cannot be undone. Your words are heard, Hinata, and though your house bears its own share of responsibility, Neji must answer for his own actions."

I bowed my head. "Of course."

"If there is no more to discuss, the Hyuuga Clan may now present its terms for the traitor's punishment."

At this, Ojii-sama stood. Withered gaze steady, he accepted a paper from his assistant, and read.

"With your approval, Lady Hinata will from here on out take full responsibility for the traitor's actions. The traitor is stripped of all independence, as well as his occupation as a shinobi. He is to obey Hinata's orders. He is not permitted to leave the boundaries of Hyuuga grounds unless explicitly instructed, and will be timed strictly with limits set appropriately for his tasks; even chance or situational tardiness will require punishment.

"In addition, he is to be accompanied by a competent chaperone, ranked chuunin or higher, to leave for errands requiring greater than one hour, without exception. He can leave the village only in the company of Lady Hinata; conversely, he is to be confined to clan grounds when Hinata is outside of the village.

"Naturally, he is barred for life from holding a seat on the clan council. As Hinata's responsibility, he is required to protect her from harm to the fullest extent that he is able; outside of protecting Hinata, he is forbidden from using any form of ninjutsu or genjutsu, or voluntarily activating his Cursed Seal of Blood to engage in combat, without Hinata's express permission. Finally, Lady Hinata has sworn to use her strength to put him down should he demonstrate further inclinations for disloyalty."

Ojii-sama looked up from the list. "We of the Hyuuga Clan believe the aforementioned precautionary sanctions are adequate and suitable means of controlling and monitoring the high traitor Hyuuga Neji."

Tsunade voiced her acceptance of these terms, but my neck was cold. Relying so heavily on me to control him… Is he even being treated as possessing the rights of a human any longer? Is this any different from turning him into property?

Naruto's voice, calling out to Neji, drew my attention again.

"What think you of these restrictions, high traitor?"

Neji raised his head, numb. "That I am alive is more than I deserve. I will gladly submit to these terms…"

"You don't believe you'll come to harbor bitterness again? Do you feel this much remorse for the things you've done?"

"I do. I am scum, lower than the dirt proper humans walk upon. My purpose is only to repent, if such a thing is possible to me now."

"A purpose, huh?" Naruto said with a sneer, unimpressed, causing Neji to wince. "I'm in agreement with Tsunade-sama," the blond said curtly.

"In agreement," Homura finished.

"The restrictions are approved," Tsunade declared. "Now… you also requested to choose the immediate punishment that he is required to face in lieu of execution. Let the council hear it, to determine whether it is adequate in severity."

"Right," Ojii-sama said. "We have chosen as Hyuuga Neji's sentence public flagellation. The pain of the duration of this punishment will be bound into a memory-based seal that will cause the sensation to resurface upon activation. This shall serve as a final precaution to subdue him, in the event that his unstable mind cannot indeed be trusted, or we should otherwise lose control of him. However, Hinata reserves the right to hold sole access to the activation technique."

This was all I had been able to win on the matter. It was a primitive version of the juinjutsu, one that wouldn't threaten the bearer's brain or even (if such had still been a concern to Neji) his Byakugan. It would inflict pain, from a source. I couldn't stop the decision to make him bear this mark, but I could claim the responsibility over it myself, and be certain such a thing would not be abused.

"As for the extent of the punishment…?" Ojii-sama began.

Tsunade's face was glum. "I had someone keep track, as you requested ahead of time…"

She turned her head. I had wondered throughout the trial what Naruto had been writing. He now read expressionlessly from the paper in his hands.

"For enjoying a position of power in Orochimaru's administration, three lashes. For coercively recruiting countless Leaf shinobi to New Sound and forcing their defilement of the Leaf insignia, three lashes. For his countermeasures against the early resistance, one lash. For heading the betrayal of the Hyuuga Clan, two lashes. For beating the leader of the resistance, one lash. For the repeated torture of jounin Aogawa Tsuru, two lashes. For the repeated torture of jounin Nara Shikaku, in attempt to induce him to appeal to his clansmen to betray the Leaf, two lashes. For the repeated torture of jounin Inuzuka Tsume with similar intent, two lashes. For the murder of a shopkeeper aiding the resistance, three lashes. For the two shinobi he personally killed in the first major battle between New Leaf and New Sound, six lashes…"

For all my goal of remaining stoic and strong, my eyes couldn't have grown wider as he went on. What was this? He'd been keeping track?

"…For the coordination of an attack on New Leaf ground and the attempted assassination of Hyuuga Hanabi, two lashes. For the abduction, torture, and subsequent heinous manipulation of Hyuuga Hiyuki, two lashes…"

The list went on and on. Even as a mere recap of the hearing, it was too much. And the offenses grew more densely packed in time, once Neji had begun systematically seeking and killing disloyal shinobi and civilians, always so publicly, to keep the rest in line.

"…And finally, for the murders of Hyuuga Hikaru, Hyuuga Hatsuo, and Hyuuga Hiashi, nine lashes."

My face was very cold. I hadn't thought early enough to begin to add them, but even before Homura announced the total weight of the sentence, I knew it was an outlandish sum.

"That's excessive," I said without thought, my voice high.

"Ah – the young leader of the Hyuuga Clan reminds us that she is capable of speech!" Naruto said, his words flippant, his tone almost hostile. "Do you take issue with the high traitor's punishment?"

I opened my mouth automatically, but was cut off.

"Think carefully, commander. Was a single crime assigned a punishment exceeding the amount of death or suffering he dished out? Is this punishment even extensive enough to atone for his crimes against our village, and your clan? For all the people this man has murdered, or the good shinobi and kunoichi he's subjected to humiliation and torment, and made to beg for death?"

I clenched my teeth. Had I not wanted justice? But living with his guilt, his sins, may be what proves harsher than death to him.

"…Yes. Hyuuga Neji was being controlled by Orochimaru; he cannot be held fully accountable–,"

–Father falls against me, blood gushing profusely from the wound as Neji looks coldly down at us, hand drenched in bright crimson–

"–f-for any of the actions taken in this dark and tragic time," I said, biting back a stutter. I averted my gaze. "The sum you have proposed is… reasonable."

Naruto nodded, arms crossed. "While we might assert that one who cannot survive a punishment thus meted does not deserve to live to begin with, he is strong, correct? So his life should not be jeopardized…?"

He already fXcking knew. "Yes," I said crisply, without looking up. My face burned. "This is true, m'lord."

"In that case, I will offer my assent," Tsunade said softly.

"I as well," Homura said.

"With this council and the Hyuuga Clan in agreement," Naruto finished resolutely, his eyes cold.

So cold, I couldn't bear to focus on them for long.

The Hyuuga walked together back to our compound. We were flanked, observed by no small sum of Leaf shinobi, and trailed by plenty more, along with several civilians. Such a mass of humanity ultimately gathered itself along the street behind me, and poured through my clan's open gates.

When we reached the largest courtyard of the grounds, I walked with Neji to the center of it and unlocked his handcuffs for the last time.

'Are you afraid?' I asked gently, as he slipped off his plain shirt. His back was smooth, and I remembered that he'd never so much as been stabbed, at the same time that I realized the absurdity in that I could view being stabbed as such a trivial matter. Where my body was riddled with marks of battle, with my taking full, almost reckless advantage of my regenerative power as I fought enemies I had no right surviving, his only clear scar outside those upon his face was a dash of lightened skin where my last arrow had nicked his arm.

'Afraid?' he echoed, terse. 'Would you think I am allowed to be?'

But as he discarded the shirt on the ground, and idly massaged his wrists for a moment, his hands shook.

Two of Ojii-sama's men took his arms, securing each wrist in a metal cuff, each affixed to a distinct, solid length of chain.

"So he fancied himself quite the interrogator…"

Forlornly I turned my head; there had been a grim chuckle in Ibiki-san's voice.

"Oh," he said, "don't get me wrong. I don't hold any ill will toward your fiancé, Miss Hyuuga. But I'm the one who tends to be assigned to things like this, because I've got a level head, but everyone also knows I won't hold back."

My brow creased behind my headband as I gazed at the flog resting so comfortably in his hand. "…Of course."

The two holding the chains had moved to either side of Neji, separating until the restraints were taut with his arms extended.

"Please kneel," I said to Neji. When he had, I swept his hair to either side, clearing it from his back. I felt Ojii-sama's eyes upon me as I drew the New Moon Blade, and activated my Byakugan. A small incision from the mystic blade, placed carefully at a point near Neji's Blood Seal – as I had promised, this would suppress the superhuman healing capacity and pain tolerance, for long enough.

It was Hiryuu who handed me the ink bottle and fine brush. There were no secrets worth guarding with this sealing jutsu; it was a crude, rudimentary incarnation of the Branch's juin, an effective but relatively simplistic concoction of seal work. It had not been difficult to memorize its layers and iterations, which I now scrawled upon Neji's back, focusing on the task without regard for the endless flow of spectators that continued to line the edges of the yard.

After several minutes I had completed the ink pattern across his back, as well as its extension into a radial diagram, a few yards in diameter, upon the dirt around him. With a deep breath, loosening my state of concentration, I realized the crowd had more or less settled.

I rose to survey my work. Ojii-sama circled at the edge of the diagram until he stood before us, also eyeing the patterns.

"If I recall," the old man mused lightly, "the very first test subjects for the creation of the juin were in fact the clan's criminals…"

At that Neji almost sneered, though his face was pale. "Of all the history to retain…"

The man frowned. "Is it ready, Hinata?"

"Yes…" I ran through the series of hand seals, and pressed the heel of my left palm to the nexus of the seal formula, its center between Neji's shoulder blades. "I'll initialize it now."

He nodded, watching as light spread from beneath my hand and whitened the ink to gradually illuminate the entire sealing circle. Markings were drawn along his skin and to my palm, pulling the circle inward, until I lifted my hand from his back. The air shimmered momentarily with an effuse glow as the remaining markings fell again, slipping along his back, and settled onto the ground, leaving a gap in the pattern.

I noted the simple mark on the palm of my hand. "It's recording," I provided.

"Good. Step away."

I did as told; Ojii-sama raised his voice as he spoke to the assembled audience.

"Let it be known that this man is hereby stripped of the Hyuuga name, and never to reclaim it. He is now punished as a criminal over whom our clan holds jurisdiction."

The chains were pulled tight. Ibiki's arm rose, and fell with a sharp whistle of the lash.

My eyes snapped shut the instant a wicked crack snapped at my ears, and Neji's wail burst forth with it.

Neji ネジ

The pain was shocking.

When the next strike fell, I bit back my cry. With the third, a choked sound wrestled its way from my throat. The fifth followed more quickly than the fourth, eliciting a bark of pain with its suddenness. If I convulsed at a blow, the restraints on my wrists were pulled tighter in warning. I clenched my teeth, my body locked up, rigid.

"Ten," someone called, a report of progress. Ibiki barely paused. Flecks of spittle were flung to the dirt by my shout. M-my back – it was burning. It burned.

"Twenty."

I blinked on moisture, gasping through an open mouth, a trembling jaw. My eyes widened at another violent sting. Water was falling steadily from my chin. My gaze lilted skyward.

"Thirty." The voice – Uzumaki?

Vaguely I felt the blood dripping away, impossibly hot, heard it splatter to the ground as strikes cast it about. A lash so terribly placed, hitting already torn skin upon the edge of a shoulder blade and snipping through as it passed. I yowled.

"Forty."

The countless condescending eyes around me looked on with scorn, quietly gorging themselves on a feast of wretchedness and anguish. Few were those who felt human empathy or sorrow, for the likes of me.

"Fifty."

Screams became yowls, long, mindless and pitiful.

"Sixty."

Yowls became howls – mad, pathetic, hoarse.

"Seventy…"

Howls became croaks, hurt, broken and dreadful. Croaks became thick sobs, haggard, miserable, weak.

When I shuddered on the brink of consciousness, muscles spasming irregularly, someone cast icy water into my face, and I screamed and convulsed and tossed my head, eyes wide as the frigid liquid, infernal, fell across my body. One of the men was nearly pulled off his feet with the thrash; in answer the chains were pulled painfully tight, as the whip cracked into me again, scattering my gasping breath. I vomited.

There was no end to this. I was retching, choking on acrid blood.

Then one blow fell distinctly different. No – it was not the blow that was lighter, but my perception of it.

G-get out, Hinata… You've committed no crime.

I felt her wince sharply with her half of the pain, but she limited her outward reaction remarkably. Her toes curled as the lash landed again on the raw, shredded flesh of my back. 'This is excessive,' she argued, venomous.

This is justice, remember? I thought brokenly, hapless. When she faltered, I tore into but an ounce of the memories that haunted and plagued me – breaking others' bones, dragging my claws through their flesh, smashing fingertips. I could never again stand as these people's comrade. I had broken Hiyuki's fingers and felt absolutely nothing as I watched her scream. I had held the bold eyes of a dissenter, and struck him down. I had felt the struggles of Hikaru's assistant as I so easily strangled him, without qualm or remorse, and tossed him aside…

My power to focus was shaken when the lash fell again, but the message had been clear – and the images well more unbearable to Hinata than the pain we split. She could stand her own pain better than she could bear others'. Still the pain of one's own utter and irredeemable vileness was a brand of agony she did not know, and that I would not have her shoulder. J-just let me–agh!–endure this…

A moment's hesitance. I felt the next bite of the whip in its harsh entirety.

Thank you… I thought, though she would not hear it. My shoulders shook as I lifted my heavy head enough to see her a ways before me, standing just a bit closer than the dense crowd at her back. Her face was conflicted, her shoulders slightly slouched; the hands at her sides trembled as she watched.

I could see Lee in the crowd, head up but brows drawn in, whatever emotion he felt muted on his face. Holding his hand too tightly was Tenten, who seemed unsure what to think. Hanabi was near them, head turned aside, gazing determinedly into the ground. She would not have been present for such a grisly spectacle were she not expected to be. Some Branch Hyuuga within my single eye's field of view wept, so quietly; some had teeth clenched in outrage, despair, or disgust. I knew not how many spectators filled the courtyard, watching me shudder powerlessly with each bolt of pain sent shattering through my flesh; I could not have counted accurately those in view, much less those at my blind side and back.

But one man, standing solemnly at Hinata's back…

I blinked.

Hallucinating now, huh… A stunning, splattering crack whitened the edges of my vision.

I felt the urge to explain – how had I ended up here? But there was little to say, and naught would excuse me.

I've… done a lot of bad things after all, Father…

I've spilt enough blood to drown myself in…

CRACK!

"Urk–!"

But… I-I'm glad I'm alive… I'm glad I didn't die a fool. I would have broken your heart, if I'd gone like that to your side…

Even now, with borrowed honor… I can't face you… yet…

The specter seemed to nod. At some point, it must have faded.

"Enough." That voice, echoing against the throbbing in my skull – it had only called numbers, and numbers, at even intervals. What was…? "That's it."

"Had enough, boy?" Ibiki's tone was somehow good-natured, knowing; there was no malice, nor was there compassion. His was simply the hand of the Leaf.

I blinked dully, lifting my head in a shaking, laborious motion. A thick strand of blood suspended from my chin swayed with weight and broke for the dirt, joining a puddle of the like. My limp form had come to hang in place only by the chains that held my wrists. My one-eyed sight was blurring as my parted lips twitched, expelling fog in the cool air. I wrought a rasp from a dry throat.

"F-for good measure… p-perhaps t-two more…"

"Hm…?"

Hinata's Soul Link had spanned four lashes.

She ducked her head with a grimace. "…If he insists, Ibiki-san."

Given the strength, I might have smiled. Instead I yowled, face twisting as the switch struck with a vengeance, and returned with the backhand, with a hideous crack of finality.

"He's done," Ibiki said as I slumped and coughed, nauseated by the pain.

Hinata came to me. Reaching over my bowed head, she pressed a palm, as carefully as she could, between my shoulder blades. "Fuin."

The sealing diagram glowed again on the ground, and was drawn now into the place she touched; the half of the seal she had held onto – a lock, to end the sensory recording – would have joined it. A dull burning, and it was set.

"It won't inflict physical damage," she said softly, "so it shouldn't be lethal. The only risk is in the potential physiological reaction to this amount of pain…"

I looked feebly at her as she drew her hand away; it dripped. My pulse was blaring distractingly in my skull, and my body was burning, radiating steady heat into the cold air around me as it ran with sweat and blood. I was seeing in myriad lights and darks, colors muted, but her silhouette before me was clear; her hand dripped, from touching my back that I would guess was in a horrid state.

Hands on my arms – the shackles were coming off. Another figure stopped Hinata from catching me as I was allowed to fall. I gasped brokenly into the dirt.

Ojii-sama's voice– "Let this serve as your lesson, high traitor. From here on you have a new name – a name yours alone, never to be inherited by your family. You shall identify in full as Gedou Neji, that none may forget your fiendish nature, or the heinous crimes you have been punished for today."

But… I want…

…to move on…

My hand clenched feebly. I shut my eyes. That is not even a name!

"Did you hear me? Answer, Gedou!"

"H-h-hai…!"

Footsteps.

"Scissors? What are those for?" Hinata.

"It would not be appropriate for him to continue wearing his hair in the style of an honorable Hyuuga–,"

"How many humiliations do you intend to heap upon him? What more will you have this man endure?! He is not even Hyuuga any longer; what does it matter that he now happens to have his hair at such a length? His honor is mine; the punishment is complete."

"…Very well, then. On to the next matter – stand up, Heretic."

"Are you mad?"

"He will stand – on his own power."

I pressed leaden hands down, teeth grinding. He thought I couldn't do it… By all means, he should have been right.

But whether or not I could ever be cleansed of my wrongs, I still had the power to rise. That was something I desperately wanted to believe. Hinata's eyes were encouraging when I found them; I focused on that. The simple yet incredible power to stand that she had learned, that she had shown me as our battle had concluded – that small miracle would be… my inspiration…

Shudderingly, I came to be above a crouch. Try as I might, my knees would straighten no further; I shook unsteadily, my head so light I almost lost sense of it.

"Good," Ojii-sama said, even so. With that I succinctly toppled, with an exhausted breath; Hinata swept forward to catch me, supporting my weight as I slumped against her.

"You're okay," she soothed quietly. "It's over. You did great."

"Hinata," Ojii-sama said, "Test that the seal is functional, if you would be so kind…"

"With the state he's in?"

"We must ensure that it is effective."

I blinked apprehensively at the face before mine – at pale lavender eyes, edged with surprising hardness. Her jaw set.

"I refuse," she said frankly, and my half-lidded eye grew – and then shut – as she pressed her lips to mine.

D-don't… I wanted to say. I'm… disgusting…

She pulled back promptly, but my eyelids were finally too heavy to open again. My head fell.

"Harumi-san, the stretcher," I heard her call. Hinata shifted, and in a second I was rising smoothly – draped carefully over her shoulders – we were moving. "Let's get you patched up, Gedou no Ouji…" Her voice rose after this mutter. "There is nothing more to see here! Hyuuga may reinhabit their quarters. Aside from roll call at dinner in one hour and at breakfast tomorrow, you have until morning the day after tomorrow to rest and readjust as you please!"

"Gedou…" I rasped, dazed. The name was not so foul, when she said it.

Harumi's voice – everything was set up in a nearby room, if Hinata wished to simply carry me the rest of the short way. Unlike the cases of most of those I'd tormented, I really was about to see a team of medics…

I hissed. The name really did carry too much weight.

"It's just a name, Onii-san," Hinata whispered, firm. "A label is hardly as strong an encumbrance as a brand. It's over now. If you will never forget the shame you feel, never forget the fortitude you've shown today, either. You're strong."

"Hai…"

'Prince of Fiends,' you say in jest… or is it in a challenge?

You were called a young lady of the Main House… a weakling, a disgrace… and finally, a Failure, weren't you…? And look at you and your comrades now. You owned that name, which Fate insensitive would have prescribed you, and owned the hand you were dealt.

Heretic Neji, Prince of Fiends…? Fine. Never shall there live a finer fiend, to rise further from such depths as whence I was plucked… than this one, whom you've brought under your wing.

It was the last thought I remembered, as perception faded completely.

ナルト / リー / ヒナタ \ ハナビ \ ネジ

End Chapter Thirty-One

Hinata: I am strong. Very strong. Much stronger than you guys!

*Councilmen staring as Mikasa-speech unfolds*

(static-)

Naruto: A Boxed Bird Seal, huh...

Neji: (eyebrow twitch) Er... why do you call it that?

Naruto: It's too shXttily put together to be analogous a fancy cage, right? So I figure it's more like your ancestors just grabbed a cardboard box the first time around, because they didn't know what the hell they were doing!

Neji: (eyebrow twitch intensifies) Hmm...

(-STATIC-!)

Sasuke: I guess that guy taught me something, in the end. He showed me a type of person I didn't want to sink lower than, no matter what. Anyways... There are people here whose wounds won't start mending if they have to see me around all the time, and there are things I need to see, to validate for myself, that I won't find here.

Naruto: If you're sure you're alright with this...

Hanabi: I don't feel like a wiseperson at all...

Hiryuu: Mastery will come in time, for a fine person makes a fine Seer.

Kurogiba: WHY did you wait so long to check up?! Baka!

Hinata: Sorry, sorry!

Lee: I will help those who need me. I will keep growing, and become truly strong, for this village!

Hinata: Does there seem to be a problem?

Hyuuga (unnamed): Yeah - the problem's right here!

Hinata: I see. Then shall we settle this as Hyuuga?

Hanabi: We've always behaved like wolves, haven't we? Now it just... shows more readily to the forefront...

Neji: Hinata can tame that unruly bunch. She's got experience.

Lee: By day, the head of the Hyuuga puts her proficiency on display for all to witness and test as they dare. By night, she prepares the cursed ones for the full moon. But to them, the presence of a defeated, former alpha is just barely tolerable... In the village, a new Hokage is inaugurated. The Leaf is getting surely back on its feet; for everyone, life moves forward. But for my two dearest friends, something remains inevitably amiss...

Hinata: I never meant to hurt you...!

Naruto: I can't do this anymore, Hinata. I just... can't.

What can exist between the Hokage-to-be, and the engaged head of the Leaf's strongest clan?

Hinata: The story comes to its close in Chapter Thirty-Two. Naruto... I always...

Welp, there we are - one chapter to go to completion!

Note that I believe there is an anime/manga discrepancy in that in the manga, Hiashi simply tells Neji about Hizashi's choice, while the anime has Hiashi actually give Neji a scroll Hizashi left for him. Went with the anime version/the scroll existing, for obvious reasons...

How was the chapter? The aftermath, Naruto's reaction, Naruto's selection for Hokage, his chat with Jiraiya... Sasuke stands trial, and is pardoned... Not much Lee this time around, but he does accidentally change the course of a river, lol. Hinata and Hanabi have a bit of interaction, and Hinata butts heads with the clan council. Sorry for no face-to-face Naruto/Hinata interaction this time; that's for next chapter.

Oh yeah, Seeress Hanabi! Though I'd predict a lot of you saw that coming. If you remember, at a point in chapter 27 when Hanabi's arguing with Hinata, Hanabi tells her part of Hikaru's "He has chosen destruction" prophecy word for word, and it's noted that Hiryuu reacts oddly; around the same place she also asserts that Neji "will drive this clan to hell", causing Neji to start (since Hikaru told only Neji that). Then, of course, she receives the vision sequence in a chapter titled 'The Eye that Sees the World', and finally, as the battle concludes, she reinterprets Hikaru's prophecy of destruction, and none of her protectors question her certainty.

Interaction between Hinata and Neji is a bit tricky to write, but the way I picture them generally regarding each other is that as stated, on an unconscious level, Neji doesn't inherently consider Hinata a woman, and Hinata doesn't consider Neji a man. Of course they realize they are, respectively, but see each other as just Hinata, just Neji. Not to say they're detached, as a lot still goes into that (for Neji, Hinata represents a person he respects, is indebted to, and seeks to follow, for instance, while for Hinata, Neji represents a person she must protect, etc). If that makes any sense... How well does that come across?

Finally, Neji's keepsakes of this whole ordeal - blindness in one eye, some serious scars, no Byakugan/a green eye, the knowledge that he stepped on his father's sacrifice, a new subjugation seal, revoked freedom, loss of the Hyuuga name and labeling with the derogatory 'Gedou' (外道 : demon, fiend, heretic, heterodoxy, brute), pariah status, and potentially a messed up back for the rest of his life... Anything along the lines of what you would have expected? What did you think of his introspection - his reaction to Hizashi's scroll, his thoughts about Hikaru, Hanabi, and Hiyuki, his contemplation of his mistakes during his sentence... Or do you just not give a crap about him in general?

This is probably the last massive end-author's note I'll give, because I'm going to try really hard to just not add anything after 32. It'll just have the ending, and the word END, like it is now, and it'll be nice and clean and pretty without my rambling! XD

Anyways, please tell me what you thought of the chapter, and don't forget to submit drawing requests to me (as mentioned in the opening A/N) if you're interested!

Final chapter on the morning of New Year's Eve. See ya then!

Hinata0321