AN: I try very hard to keep my stories varied and alter things as much as I can since my OC's are based in part off me..it affects their demeanor which I cannot help. What I can do though is make certain you don't ever read about the same people and situations as much as I can. This was really meant to explore the dynamics of Lee who doesn't get enough attention from people trying to write him differently and evolved. At some point it sucked in the Hyuuga too! So when things seem to veer remember I try to make it where you aren't reading the same story over and over, even just in my fics. :)

()()()()()

"Ziwei." yes just my first name, curt and strict. It was highly impolite but as I never said anything, neither did the Hyuuga elders when Neiji would call me out in such a way.

"What can I do for you?" I turned from where I had been working on directing chakra into objects at a distance, under cups of all things that Kou would then try and detect which one I was enhancing. Without his eyes. It was a way for him to train his senses while resting the byukugan.

"Come."

Sharing a shrug with Kou I did just that. I knew Neiji fairly well after as long beating each other up as we had. It was something of a ninja truism that if you really wished to understand someone you needed to fight them. Neiji and I did that a lot and I felt comfortable being alone with him. It said something he'd even use my first name without the sneer.

"It has been a while and is not being discussed." Translation don't talk to anyone even your family about what I am going to say.

"Understood." Because if I told Neiji to get on with it I would likely never hear anything at all. He did that. I have some hope that my trolling nature is contagious and I am melting the icicle up his backside as I did to Kou.

Neiji glances at me, and then swallows. He doesn't meet my eyes but instead is watching the movement of a leaf in the wind. When his voice starts again it is so faint I have to draw near, almost touching our shoulders together.

"Over a year ago an Uchiha snapped from the pressure of being assigned to ANBU too young even though they always bend the rules and do so..as a result they wiped out more than a third of the Uchiha clan. You are most likely going to be on a team with an Uchiha. I did not wish you to make things more difficult for yourself when that happens."

I committed a huge sin and grabbed Neiji's sleeve to steady myself. That he allowed it, even placing his other hand to brace my elbow and just waited told me he was fully aware of the shock he had just used to disconnect my cerebral cortex from functioning.

The Uchiha Massacre had happened...but it didn't happen the same. Already?

Throwing myself back on the training granny had insisted on I held my breath and let it out slowly. Even more carefully I refilled my lungs, all the way into my diaphragm and felt my hands shaking. A third of the Uchiha were admitted to being gone. That meant it was the opposite, because ninja always skewed information so that in the eventuality of it leaking out which it would on something like this, it would be spun to the best angle.

The truth was undoubtedly that two thirds were gone. The likelihood was any elders, active nin..perhaps any but children and civilian's..

"Not all. The Yamanaka have been very busy." Neiji murmured, softly. I only realized at that moment how good the socially stunted Hyuuga was at reading me. Must be all those spars of ours.

"So many..how..."

Neiji shook his head. He started with his left though which meant he didn't know. For some reason when Neiji was not telling something because he shouldn't he always started the head shake from the right.

Yeah considering I knew that, it wasn't so surprising how easily he could read me.

That in mind I could not absolutely could not speculate! Because I knew..no.

I didn't dare think on what I had known before because I couldn't question or seem to know anything now, but the thing is when you tell yourself not to think on something that's all you can do so I had to commit the really really horrible plan that I knew I may need some day to avoid questions. I just honestly expected to use it on Kou.

I focused on how pretty Neiji is.

He was right there, his hair shining in the light and pale eyes that drew your attention and with long lashes that gave some actual depth to his gaze. His face was still young, we were children after all, but it had a pleasant structure and would be something striking when older. My eyes moved up to where I knew his seal was under the wrappings and then back down, along the high cheek bones and just thinking all along as I had not allowed my childish brain to do so before, that really Neiji was uncommonly cute for a Hyuuga...

I could feel the blush starting even if the first sign was the drawing together of Neiji's brows before he stiffened and felt his fingers spasm in shock where they held my elbow. Pale eyes blowing wide in confusion Neiji got away from me as fast as he could though not before I saw his ears turned a soft shell pink that was really not at all masculine and preciously suited him.

That worked.

I politely excused myself the lingering traces of a blush visible to Hyuuga eyes across my cheeks still as I left, and my unease and nervousness would be easily waved away as the coming onset of hormones and not even blinked at.

It was entirely worth it for people to think I had suddenly gotten an innocent crush on Neiji, even Neiji himself though I imagine I'd have to pull a few more tricks in our next spar because I had learned awkward Neiji was a more brutal Neiji the first time we had sparred after his apology. You know. The second time we'd ever sparred.

But away from the compound I found a place to sit and put my head in my hands and groan.

It was safe to freak out now. If by any chance I was observed it would be put aside.

Oh gods.

What had changed with the Uchiha? Was it Shisui? Did Itachi actually kill them? Was it someone else entirely? Or even as Neiji had said just the stress of a promotion too young during peace time? I had learned there were oodles of prodigies by living here, I was still narrowly avoiding the title myself but the Hyuuga knew. My clan knew. That meant probably at least fifty people unrelated to those two groups were aware because that is just how it is in a society like this.

The only thing I came to the conclusion of regarding the Uchiha?

Since Hizashi was still alive, and indeed proud of Neiji and loved watching us spar...since I existed, since Kou existed..I needed to keep with the assumption I knew nothing and what I did know would get me killed at the least if not tortured and interrogated and ripped to a drooling creature first.

Also, I needed to stay as far away from the Uchiha as I could. I was never so grateful that Kou had started to respond to me that fateful party back at the Yamanaka's as tots before this. It may have been the only thing that until now had kept me from running into the Uchiha clan besides the academy because they just didn't mesh with the Hyuuga.

I could just feel the claws raking down my spine as if from a ghost. Metaphorically of course..but somehow I knew that I wasn't escaping the Uchiha mess easily.