Disclaimer: This is written just for fun for all the Naruto fans out there. My only payment is in reviews and people's happiness. Sorry this chapter took so long to write guys, but like I've said, this last month has been super busy and October isn't looking much better, but we shall see.

And now, chapter 2 for all of you!

~The Lions' Den~

Hiashi knew Naruto was going to propose when he requested a meeting with the Hyuga council.

The Head of the Hyuga clan quietly watched as the elders began to assemble in the great hall. Requesting such a gathering was not to be taken lightly, but the blond was handling this with a great deal of care.

Hiashi had noticed the signs for quite sometime that Naruto was planning something. It had started out small, over the last few months the boy would stop by from time to time and inquire about different Hyuga customs and traditions. But overall, Naruto seemed particularly interested in ones pertaining to family contracts or marriages.

It took a great deal of Hiashi's control to fight back his smile when he came to this realization. And when Naruto finally requested that the council be called, Hiashi found he could no longer do so.

"Is there something you would like to ask me, Son?" he slyly questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Hai," confirmed Naruto with a deadly serious stare. "I know we have only been dating a little over a year, but my intent has always been... and always shall be, to marry your daughter."

The boy then deeply bowed. "I ask of you this day, Hyuga Hiashi, Head of the Hyuga clan, that you bestow upon us your blessing, so that I might take your daughter's hand in marriage."

Naruto then glanced back up at him with expectant blue eyes.

The genuine emotion reflecting back, only made Hiashi's smile grow all the wider.

"Since you first started dating Hinata, I've noticed a drastic change in her. She has become more confident in herself, and dare I say, even happy."

With this Hiashi stood from his chair and stared intently back at Naruto. "And I believe the only one who could ever make her eternally so, is you. With this in mind, and with Hinata's best interests at heart, I grant you both my full blessing."

Naruto's back snapped right back into place and he positively beamed with joy.

Hiashi had to cough into his hand in order to help contain his laughter. But immediately after, sobered, knowing what he now must tell the boy.

"But I'm afraid, Son. I'm not the one you're going to have to convince..." Hiashi admitted solemnly.

"Don't worry, Hiashi-sama. I have a plan," answered Naruto back with a wide foxy grin.

And now here they were, the council was assembling... without the presence of Hinata or Hanabi.

The council had decided that Hanabi would also be absent for the vote, because they felt that her opinion would not be entirely unbiased considering the nature of what they were discussing. Hinata was out on a mission and Hanabi was busy in her room, leaving both women none the wiser of the gathering taking place.

Hiashi had been vehemently against the decision, but as always the council elders out voted him. Hanabi's vote would have been very helpful, knowing the manipulative nature of the elders, but it would not seem to be.

Hiashi watched sternly as the last few members filed into the room. He didn't want to admit it to Naruto, but he was rather concerned about how this vote was going to go.

It was then that a hushed whisper beside Hiashi interrupted his turbulent thoughts. "Do not worry, Hiashi-sama. Naruto has more supporters here than you realize."

Hiashi turned toward the voice inquiring, "Ko?" in a rather surprised tone. He had no idea the man's opinion of Naruto had changed so drastically.

Ko merely nodded his head and turned away just as Hiashi's father entered the meeting hall.

"Just sit back and watch the show," he hastily responded and took his seat with the rest of the council.

Hiashi's eyes narrowed at his cryptic wording, but there was no time to ponder it, for his father had just called the council to order.

"As you all know, we are gathered here today to vote on the request being offered by, Uzumaki Naruto," his otousan stated coldly. "Come forth and formally present your request."

The sliding doors to the hall opened, and Naruto walked in, dressed in his finest sage robes. He bowed to Hiashi, the elders, and to the rest of the council.

And then he began, "Ladies and gentlemen, arigato, for attending this meeting today. I know all of you are very busy, so I will strive to keep this as short as possible."

Naruto cleared his throat. "As most of you know, I have been dating Hiashi-sama's daughter, Lady Hinata for over a year now. It is my intention to ask her to join with me in the union of marriage. And it is my request that council grant me permission to do so."

This sent the hall in to a flurry of muttering between the members. "Order!" declared Hiashi as he stood from his seat and addressed the room. "We will discuss this venture calmly and rationally."

To this the rabble began to settle down.

That is until Hiashi continued,"As you all know, from the very start I gave Naruto permission to date Hinata. And I wish for all of you to take into consideration, that I publicly support this union."

"Hiashi-sama!"

"How on earth could yo-"

"Order!" declared his otousan as he stood at Hiashi's side. "We are Hyuga! And we will have order!"

The hall immediately calmed back down into a chorus of hushed whispers.

"Now, who wishes to speak in rejection of this request?" asked the elderly man to the room.

Hiashi narrowed his eyes at his otousan. He already knew his father's view of the couple. The elderly man had apparently made some vague threats to prominent individuals within the branch family that they had better vote against the request. And while their votes didn't count as much as ones cast by members of the main branch, it was no secret that the branch family had come to greatly respect Naruto because of Neji.

"I do," declared Hana as she clutched her walking cane with all her might. "Need I remind all of you that this boy is not Hyuga? He is not one of us, and has quite publicly denounced our traditions. Not to mention, the Kyuubi still resides inside of him. There is no guarantee that the byakugan will be passed to any of their offspring. It might even become a mutation because of the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra."

This statement set off another round of muttering.

"It is my understanding that marrying outside the Hyuga is not unheard of, especially for members of the main family," Naruto addressed the woman's concerns calmly, putting all of Kakashi's diplomatic training to use. "And since Hinata is no longer in consideration to be the head of the clan, whether or not our children would inherit the byakugan would not reflect back on you in any way. She and our children would then be Uzumaki. As you all know, I am to be Kakashi-sama's successor when he retires. Having a marital tie to the leader of the village would be very advantageous for you."

"Naruto makes a valid point," agreed Ko, adding in his voice. "Both he and Hinata-sama were also part of the team that saved the entire ninja world. It would be seen as a powerful alliance for generations to come. And the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra could give birth to a new bloodline limit that would only increase the notoriety of the clan as a whole."

"And yet," said his otousan cautiously, "I notice, young Naruto that you have yet to address the accusation that Hana-sama made. Is this 'arrangement' part of a bigger plot, perhaps?"

"I... beg your pardon?" asked Naruto coldly, clearly unprepared for the direction Hiashi's father had taken the conversation. "What exactly are you implying?"

The Hyuga Elder stood from his seat and glared down at the blond. "I am implying, boy, that this is part of a larger plan on your part, one to destroy the Hyuga, from the inside out."

Several people in the room released scandalized gasps at such a suggestion.

"Otousan!"declared Hiashi, positively disgusted that his father would make such an accusation. "That is outrageous and uncalled for, this boy-"

"Has repeatedly and publicly declared that it is his ultimate mission to change the Hyuga!" growled the elder in indignant fury. "What better way than to marry one of our own and crack it's very foundation from within?"

"How dare you," said Naruto coldly as his eyes flashed to Kurama's slitted ones. "My request has nothing to do with my promise to Neji! This has always been about Hinata, and only Hinata!"

"So then you deny that you have any intention to change the laws of this clan? The branch family and the curse seal both exist for important reasons, child! Or did you forget about what happened to the Ōtsutsuki Clan?"

Naruto simply glared back at the old man. "I did not forget. The real meaning of 'Hamura's celestial decree' was misinterpreted and the branch family destroyed the main branch because of it."

"Precisely, we Hyuga, who are also descended from that line, were informed of what had transpired decades ago by a few survivors of that massacre. Which was why we developed the tradition of using the curse seal on the branch family in the first place. So that an atrocity such as that would never come to pass again!"

For a moment, the room as a whole sat in stunned silence. And then, the quiet suddenly shattered and all hell broke loose.

"Wait you mean that is why-"

"They are the reason that-"

"Otousan, you're saying you knew about the Ōtsutsuki Clan?" asked Hiashi with deadly calm. "Why on earth was I not informed of this?"

"It is only to be spoken of when the Head Elder steps down and the next takes their place. There was no time to inform you. Besides, the information I had would not have helped much in the grand scheme of the battle anyway," the man explained in a dismissive manner.

"That is not the point, Otousan!" yelled Hiashi. "That information could have helped, you had no way of knowing-"

"It is tradition to never-"

"The entire world was in danger!" roared Hiashi at his father. "Don't you think that was more important?"

"In my eyes... no," confessed the elderly man as he once again turned to address Naruto. "So I ask again, Uzumaki Naruto. Do you still have any intention of changing the Hyuga, even after all you have learned?"

Naruto took a deep breath that shook his entire body. "My only intention in gathering all of you here was to ask for Hinata's hand in marriage. If I disregarded all of your traditions, I would have just proposed to Hinata outright. But... simply because something has always been done, does not mean it must continue. Nothing in life is ever permanent, order and tradition simply give us the illusion that we are in some way in control of it. And when all is said and done, it is you in this room who will truly decide whether or not to change the Hyuga, not I."

"Cleverly put," conceded the elderly man. "But that was not an answer, boy."

"Very well," relented Naruto with light sigh, "I promise that I will not actively strive to change the Hyuga..."

Hiashi's father grinned down at the blond in triumph.

That is... until Naruto continued with a wicked smile, "Because, I don't have to."

The elderly man's smile fell right off his face.

"What?" he inquired.

"I was never the real threat to you, Sir. Time was. Neji and Lady Hinata started changing the Hyuga without your knowledge years ago, simply by proved that members of both branches don't have to be enemies, but what you were always meant to be, a family. The younger generation of the Hyuga, already honor their views and philosophy; they don't have to be present to enforce them. The hardest thing to kill is an idea. And theirs is thriving. The damage is done, the Hyuga has already changed, you just haven't noticed that it has yet."

"Why you-"

"I believe we have all heard enough," interrupted Hiashi as he placed a hand on his father's shoulder. "I think it's time to put this matter to a vote."

"Hiashi-sama," requested Naruto with pleading eyes, "there is one last thing I wish to say, if I could."

"Very well, Son. You have the floor," agreed the man with a gesture of his hand.

"Arigato," thanked Naruto as he turned toward the council. "I just wanted to make it clear. I love Hinata, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her. I'm not asking in order to gain any political standing or status, and I have no ulterior motive. You are her family and I respect that; all I want is for Hinata to be happy. Which... is why I would also like to request that all these proceedings to be considered null and void in the event-"

Naruto then swallowed hard, fighting back the lump that suddenly appeared in his throat.

"-that Hinata-sama rejects my proposal."

Many of the council members who knew Hinata personally, either scoffed at the ridiculous notion or simply shook their heads. Most of the elders though, simply looked disgusted that Naruto had even uttered such an emotionally driven request.

But Hiashi... he only smiled. This was the final bit of proof he needed that this boy, truly was deserving of his daughter's love.

"Yes, how very... honorable," uttered the Head Elder in a condescending tone. "All those against, raise your hands, now."

Unsurprisingly, Hana, the Head Elder, and many of the older members of the council raised their hands.

But, Hiashi was rather surprised by the fact that there were quite a few who hadn't.

"And all those for the request," stated Hiashi as he, Ko and several others in the room raised their hands.

"It would seem, Otousan. That we have a tie," stated Hiashi turning to his father in victory. "And since the Head of the Main House decides in this event-"

"But you have already voted," countered his father quickly. "And since everyone else in the room has as well, I'm afraid-"

BANG!

Went the front doors to the hall as they exploded into splinters and bits of paper.

The rest of the ninjas in the room instantly leapt into defensive positions, but there was no need.

The dust cleared, leaving a rather angry looking Hanabi standing there as she quickly fixed her hair and kimono.

"There is still one person left who has yet to vote, and since I am the next in line as head of this clan, I believe that decision falls to me," she stressed and then approached the main table, while sneaking Naruto a quick wink as she passed.

Before the council had assembled, Naruto had told Hanabi what was going on. Hiashi later discovered that Naruto had bugged the room beforehand so that she would be able to hear what was going on from her room.

It would seem that the cavalry had arrived just in time.

"How dare you barge in like this!" exclaimed Hiashi's father. "You were barred from these proceedings for a reason young lady!"

"In case you didn't notice, Elder. I did not vote in the main meeting. But in the event of a tie, the Head of the Family, the Acting Head, or a main family member who didn't vote may break the tie. And since I am the only one left to vote, my decision will stand."

"Why you-"

"And my vote is... yes."

Several younger members of both the main and branch families stood up and started clapping and cheering. Hanabi then rushed over to Naruto and gave him a big hug while laughing, "I'm so happy for you two!"

The majority of the elders simply got up in disgust and left the room, while a few others stuck around to speak with Hiashi and congratulate Naruto. It had been a hard fight, but ultimately, they had won.

Hiashi approached the blond and enthusiastically shook his hand. "Well done, Son."

Naruto's first part of his big mission was now complete. But he still had a lot of things to prepare in order to make sure that his proposal to Hinata would be one that she would never forget.

To Be Continued...

Author's Notes: Well guys I warned you, the wait for new chapters on this will be long. But I'll try to at least get one out a month if not more. Oh and just so you know, the cover pic and the style I drew it in will play a part in the story, so LOL! I hope you like it!

Please remember to read, fav, and/or review! Because they help inspire me to write faster! ;) Thank you to everyone who has already done so. They really all bring me so much joy.

Thanks again and I'll write more as soon as I can!