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Rating:

Mature

Archive Warning:

Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Categories:

F/M

Gen

M/M

Fandom:

Naruto

Relationship:

Hyuuga Hinata/Uchiha Sasuke

Characters:

Hyuuga Hinata

Uchiha Sasuke

Hyuuga Neji

Akimichi Chouji

Nara Shikamaru

Inuzuka Kiba

Rock Lee

Uzumaki Naruto

Shiranui Genma

Haruno Sakura

Additional Tags:

slowburn

Alternate Universe

samuraiAU

Historical References

SasuHinaMonth2023

Enemies to Lovers

bisexual Sasuke because I say so

BAMF Hyuuga Hinata

Choji Appreciation

War violence

War Trauma

Confident Hyuuga Hinata

No Uchiha Massacre

Konoha still exists sort of

Language:EnglishStats:Published:2023-07-06Updated:2023-08-28Words:41,714Chapters:12/?Comments:139Kudos:191Bookmarks:35Hits:2,579

Courage Sharper Than Steel

theduelumchampion

Summary:

When the Hyuga Clan receives a non-negotiable conscription notice, Hyuga Neji prepares for war. Hinata knows that if her beloved cousin doesn't return home, her clan will lose their ancestral land and nobility. She decides the best thing she can do for the people she loves is serve in his stead and fool the entire country into thinking that she is Hyuga Neji, heir of the Hyuga Clan and son of the legendary warrior, Hizashi.

A Mulan AU

Notes:

Meiyo-Honor

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

A red sun breaks over the endless sight of rice fields. Most of the people have already gone to work, wading through the water to pick the plants that will end up on the rest of the village's table. A rooster lets out a loud crow, waking anyone else that might have been trying to doze.

Hinata awakes with a start and lets out a curse. The sun has begun to rise; she's already late! She shoots out of bed and hastily pulls on her kimono that had already been laid out on her desk. The robe itself is a pale yellow with a gentle design of orange poppies. It wasn't her first choice, but the color is supposed to represent romance. Hinata goes through the steps of the makeup that is intended to make her desirable. She covers her face in a pale-white powder, smears red paste onto her lips, dabs blue and yellow dyes onto her eyelids, and outlines the creases of her eyes in black. By the time she's done, she barely even recognizes herself. She looks like the women that cross through the countryside in fancy carriages and escorts of strong men.

With a motion that's basically second nature, she twists her hair into a neat bun on the top of her head. After Hinata ties her matching orange obi, she exits her home.

The village is a decent walk away, so she settles for her horse. Hinata knows it's not very ladylike to ride in on a horse, but she can't imagine it's very attractive to arrive at her matchmaking appointment all sweaty and dirty from the spring morning heat either.

"Hinata! You were supposed to leave forever ago! You're going to be late!" Her younger sister calls to her from the middle of their courtyard. Hanabi has a basket full of eggs on one hip, and a bag full of feed on the other.

"I'm leaving now! Don't tell Neji-kun!" Hinata pleads as she kicks her horse forward. Hanabi rolls her eyes dramatically. Hinata knows just from this action, she'll be safe from her cousin's wrath for just a little longer.

Neji has forbidden Hinata from meeting with the matchmaker. He insists that he can take care of the Hyuga on his own. But Hinata has seen their coffer numbers. Even with her clan working day and night to sow and harvest, it's still not enough to save their farm. So, as a last resort, she'll try to marry rich. The plan is obviously flawed, but she fears it's the only way she can contribute.

Hinata pushes her horse into a trot as she makes her way down the main road. The red sun has now turned into a gentle yellow and Hinata has to squint. The roads are busier than normal as soldiers and samurai with twin swords on their backs go into the village.

The appearance of samurai warriors is never a good sign, but Hinata doesn't have time to question it. She hurries forward, avoiding their lingering gazes.

At last, she reaches the main square of their squat village. The whole thing is quite small with a few shops, a small, hardly used inn and merchant houses. Hinata doesn't know if it ever has been a hub of commerce. In her mind, it's always been a place where people come when they have nothing left.

There appear to be even more soldiers in town. These ones must be of lower rank since they're not loaded down with the heavy armor. Hinata immediately swallows in a mix of sadness and shame as she thinks of her father. But now is not the time to think of him.

She gives her horse's neck a quick pat, smoothes her wrinkled kimono, and tightens the knot on the top of her head. Then, she walks up the steps and knocks on the front door. Hinata rolls her shoulders and places her arms at her side like a true lady. Even after the years of farming and secretly sparring with her cousin, she'll never forget the etiquette lessons her mother and father drilled into her.

The familiar and beautiful Senju Tsunade opens the door. The rumors about the elusive woman who runs their small village have been rampant ever since she moved in years ago. Some say she's a descendent of the first emperor of their country, Kasai. Others say she's a washed up old drunk who got into trouble in every other place she lived in, so she ended up here. Either way, Hinata likes her presence. She brings good things to their village.

Tsunade's golden eyes flit around their measly square before pulling Hinata into her home.

"What are you doing out here alone, girl? Don't you see the streets are crawling with soldiers?"

"Those men are commanded by samurai who follow the code of bushido. I would've been okay, Tsunade-sama." Hinata tries to reassure.

"No. Those men may be led by samurai, but I'm afraid the bushido has left these lands long ago. Where's Neji-san? I thought he would've come with you as your escort."

"Neji can't know about this. Please don't tell him. He doesn't understand that this is my unfortunate way of helping." Hinata says.

Tsunade raises an eyebrow. "Unfortunate? You're not here in a position of your own desire? You don't seek a match?"

Hinata eyes the room warily, looking for the paunchy suitor that must be waiting for her somewhere in the shadows. Her experience with men is almost non-existent. She grew up with her cousin who was practically her brother, but he doesn't count. And the rest of her family doesn't either. They were her protectors, and in return, she was one of their unfortunately fated leaders.

She's seen the way her father used to look at her mother. It was as if she was a partner, but not a lover. He held her mother at arms reach, almost as if he had never allowed himself to be true around her. Arranged marriages were standard for the Hyuga clan. But still, the thought of Hinata's future being similar terrifies her.

"I am here on my own desire." Hinata says bravely. Her family is more important than her happiness. Neji and Hanabi and the other Hyuga's are all she has left. She's determined to do whatever she can to help them.

"Okay. Then raise your chin higher. And don't forget, even though you're a farmer's daughter, you're still a lady. The Hyuga name holds nobility in Kasai. You're one of the ten regal families. Use it." Tsunade says quietly next to her ear. She threads her arm through Hinata's as an act of escort and leads her into another room.

Tsunade's living room is wide open, and the sunlight streams through the wide windows. Hinata wants to pay attention to the silk curtains and pillows, the finely woven rug, the hand carved chairs, but she doesn't. Instead, her eyes land on a man in the corner. He stands with his hands behind his back and his legs planted on the tile.

His hair is blacker than the wing of a raven and he wears a black yukata with a red and white fan sewn on the back. His shoulders are broad, but not bulky and his exposed forearms appear to be riddled with old scrapes. For a man of nobility, Hinata guesses he's done his fair share of fighting.

"Uchiha-san, I present Hinata-san of the Hyuga clan." Tsunade announces. The man turns around and Hinata has to stop her eyebrows from lifting in surprise. He's more handsome than she thought he'd be with high arching eyebrows, dark eyes, and full lips. His black hair is shaggy for a man of a noble clan, but Hinata kind of likes the way it falls against the nape of his neck. Despite his attractive features, his stoic face still gives him an intimidating mask to hide behind.

Hinata steps forward and bows. She knows from her old lessons that her eyes must not lift to his for too long and she must not speak without permission. She was raised in a way where women were taught to work and sometimes even fight. But unfortunately, this isn't the norm.

"I am honored to meet you, Hyuga-san. I'm Uchiha Sasuke."

Tsunade also gives a slight bow before sitting in a chair in the opposite corner of the room. Hinata knows that there must be a chaperone present for their meeting, but it's still strange to have somebody else listening to every word that might be spilled.

"Please, have a seat." He says as he gestures to the embroidered pillows next to the tea table. Hinata bows in response and gathers her kimono around her in order to sit in a way where she can still remain proper.

Sasuke sits across from her, his hands already on the teapot. He pours them both a cup and leans back slightly.

"I've never done this before, Hyuga-san. So please, excuse my nerves. How are you feeling?" He asks her as he takes a sip of his tea.

Hinata clears her excessively dry throat as she prepares to respond. "I-I'm also honored to meet you." She stutters. She internally curses. Men don't want women who stutter! She's just never been this shy before. Maybe it's because she talks to the same three people day after day. But Hinata's mind is uncharacteristically blank.

Sasuke appears surprised at her stutter, his lips slightly parted. "Do you know anything about the Uchiha, Hyuga-san?" He asks her as he empties his cup. Hinata attempts to sip her own, but it's so hot it burns her tongue. How did he manage to drain his when she can't even think of drinking hers? It's as if his throat is made of fire.

"It is a noble clan o-of the east, The Uchiha have been s-second only to the first emperor's clan since the formation of Kasai." She recites. There are at least nine noble families in their country. The Senju and the Uchiha are the founders. They've been taking care of the lands long before it was a country. Then, there are the Inuzuka, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Nara, Aburame, Sarutobi, and of course, the Hyuga.

Other clans that weren't technically noble but still rose to the roles of samurai and even royalty include the Uzumaki, Namikaze, and Hatake. Their current rulers are an Uzumaki and a Namikaze, but she can't remember which one is which. Hinata knows that her father served next to a Hatake who had been promoted just for his talent.

But the Uchiha Clan is ancient, as old as the Hyuga. Maybe even older. They have a long history of being generals and protecting Kasai's borders with their almost subhuman strength and strategy. Her potential suitor's last name is just as powerful as Tsunade's. Hinata would've never imagined her potential match would be a man of such status. She supposes she should be grateful, but all she can feel is anxiety. Why is an Uchiha interested in someone from her clan, from her position? Is it a power thing for him to have someone weak? Because if so, she wants nothing to do with him.

"The Uchiha have protected these lands with our own blood for as long as anyone can remember." Sasuke begins, almost angrily. "Would you be able to uphold that kind of pressure? I know that my question may be too presumptuous, but there is conflict coming. I am not in a position to mince my words."

"What kind of pressure?" Hinata asks quietly. She wants to ask more about the conflict too, but she has a feeling he wouldn't exactly be open to share on the subject. Plus, this conversation is already feeling less like an initial meeting and more like an interrogation.

"The pressure of becoming a lady of the Uchiha clan. One who is willing to bear sons and send them to war. One who will have to face the constant fear of losing a husband." He informs as he begins to drink his second cup.

Hinata is too stunned to speak. She thought she'd be discussing her favorite books, hobbies, maybe even some vices. But Sasuke is asking her about how she handles grief?

"I have lost people before." She begins to answer. "I-"

Sasuke holds up a hand to silence her, almost as if her voice was already a nuisance. "If I'm allowed to speak informally, we both know that this is not a match of love. You need my wealth, and I've been told I need a wife. So, I don't see a point in the niceties of small talk. You are attractive enough to not be an embarrassment. Your name holds some sway in these parts, but you'd basically be alone in the capital. There, your clan is mere legend. But still, you have managed to meet my standards. I just need to know if the higher class life that my clan would bring onto you would be too much, Hyuga-san." He says almost in a bored tone. "Besides bearing my children, your responsibilities would be few. The life of farming you've unfortunately grown accustomed to will have to be extinguished. My wife isn't allowed to roll around in the dirt."

Hinata feels her anxiety grow to anger. Obviously, Hinata is not in it for a love match. But this? He intends to buy her. Her loose palms curl to fists against her robe. "I-I am not a mare that gets sold at an auction," She begins quietly. But after the first round of words, her volume grows. "If you want an obedient, disciplined concubine, I am not interested. If I am to get married, it will be as an equal, not as a subservient. Good day, Uchiha-san." Hinata stands up, spilling her half-filled teacup across the table. Sasuke lets out a hiss as the mildly hot tea spills across his thighs. Hinata debates apologizing, but she has already gotten up and made her way towards the door. She has no intention of turning back around.

Tsunade peeks up from her book in shock as Hinata attempts to storm past her. But the Uchiha moves faster than either of them would have guessed.

"That was quite rude, Hyuga-san. At least apologize for the tea." He says strictly as he maneuvers to step in front of her. Now, it's Hinata's turn to surprise him, and she gracefully evades his advance.

"You'll be okay. I'm sure the Uchiha clan can afford another yukata." She replies back sarcastically.

Tsunade debates rushing to their aid, but she's not sure who would require her help. So instead, she sits back down in her chair and takes a long swig of her sake. The young Hyuga and Uchiha could figure this out without her. She smirks into her glass. The two of them are quite interesting.

"What did I say that offended you? I told you, I don't have time to call you beautiful, or to gift you with fineries. I thought you were okay with that too since you're on the verge of losing your land."

Hinata spins on him with furrowed eyebrows. "How do you even know that?" She seethes.

"You're the elusive eldest daughter of the Hyuga, a clan that many have been trying to infiltrate for quite some time. You wouldn't have seeked out a match unless your clan was in trouble. You'd be wise to accept my help. You're lucky that I'm even offering it." He retorts.

Hinata hates how he's correct. She hates how a marriage to him would basically guarantee her family's salvation. But so far, her hatred for him outweighs her logic. Tsunade could find her another match.

"I don't need your help. I'll find someone else. Someone who has something more in their heart besides pride and arrogance. Good day, Uchiha-san. I hope our paths never cross again." She moves around him once more and opens the door.

Hinata steps out into the light of the morning and takes a breath of freedom. She knows that he's watching her from the doorway, but she doesn't care enough to turn back around. Instead, she stomps back down the staircase and towards her horse.

Hinata is about to mount up when the sound of a large gong rings out over town. She was so preoccupied with her unpleasant thoughts about the Uchiha that she didn't even notice the ensemble of warriors that stood in the middle of the square.

"Attention residents!" One of the samurai booms to the dozen people that were walking around town. Families have also made way to their doorways and they listen intently. Announcements from the bushi are never a good sign. Hinata is sure this is no different.

"Invaders have breached our lands once again. Our enemies have teamed up in order to weaken us. In response, one man from each family will be required to join the emperor's army."

The samurai begins reading off names, but Hinata can't listen. None of these families come from a warrior family, but still. Men from each family would also mean men from each clan.

Her entire vision blurs as she begins to fully realize what this announcement means. Her father and uncle had already given their lives for their country. And now, would Neji be required to fight too? Her cousin is too important to her, to their clan. He's the leader, not Hinata. Without Neji, everything would fall apart.

Before thinking better of it, Hinata starts forward. "Please, sir. My clan has already lost almost everything for the emperor. My father and uncle perished after the last conscription. My cousin is all that we have left. Don't take him too." Hinata attempts to plead. The soldier takes one look at her, pulls his hand back, and slaps her soundly across the face.

Hinata's ears ring and she falls to the dirty ground.

"Silence, foolish girl. These are orders from the emperor. No family will be spared from the command. You bring dishonor to your clan for even asking." He scolds.

Hinata tries to stand from the dirt, but another shove sends her back down. These men know they hold power over her. Even if she is of nobility, they're soldiers. Their honor outweighs her just on title alone. Even though she's Hyuga, she's still a woman. A different soldier moves to beat her, but his leg is caught and thrown backwards.

"I think she's learned her lesson." Sasuke says strictly. He steps in front of Hinata and places a hand behind him, warning her to stand down. Her kimono has torn, her cheek has already begun to swell, and the white powder of her makeup has turned into a mix of brown from the dirt.

"Captain Uchiha! We had no idea you'd be here. This woman spoke out of turn and raised her voice. We were only giving her what was owed." One of the men says.

Sasuke links his hands underneath Hinata's arms and pulls her to her feet. He clicks his tongue at the sight of the disheveled woman in front of him. He already assumed she was a fighter by her earlier reaction to his proposal, but for her to speak to a man in the army about something she couldn't hope to change was unexpected.

Hinata pulls her arms away from Sasuke harshly. She mutters an apology to the man that had smacked her before turning around and making her way back to her horse. The conscription notice would be at their door soon enough. And Hinata needed to be there when it arrived. She may not be able to change the emperor's mind, but she won't let them take her cousin.

After one last look at Sasuke, who she assumes must be a high ranking samurai himself, she kicks her horse forward. Hinata doesn't plan to stop until she arrives home. Neji will be awake by now and he'll be questioning where she is.

"Faster, Zenzai," she commands her horse. He gives her a neigh in response before galloping even harder over the even ground. Hinata is done with interruptions. She was foolish to think that a match is what her family needs. She'll serve them by taking Neij's place in the conscription. The rules for women in the military aren't incredibly strict. Women were allowed to serve as medics. But the Hyuga's are a noble, warrior family. Hinata's own father was a samurai. She wouldn't be allowed to take Neji's place as herself and serve as a medic. No, she'd have to become someone else. If she were to be found out, the consequence of her charade would be death and dishonor.

So, Hinata's solution is quite simple. She'd disguise herself as her cousin and fool the entire country. It couldn't be that hard. Right?

Chapter 2

Chapter Text

After Hinata puts Zenzai back in the stable, she attempts to rush back into her room to change, but Neji is already waiting. He stands in the courtyard with his arms crossed and face red.

"You went to the matchmaker. After I deliberately told you not to!" He exclaims.

Hinata bows her head in apology. "I didn't want you to carry this burden alone. I thought marriage would be helpful for all of us."

"Your father told me to take care of you and Hanabi-chan. So, that's what I'm trying to do. The Hyuga clan is my weight to lift." He insists.

Maybe it's from her earlier experience with the awful Uchiha, but Hinata feels another fit of anger rise to the surface of her usual dormant mouth. "So I'm not your equal, either? Am I really meant for nothing more than to work until my body grows brittle? You're to cast me aside because my father said to? I thought you respected me more than that, onii-san."

"I do respect you, Hinata. That's why I will not have you live the same lives our mothers did. I may never get to marry for love, but if there's a chance that you can, I want you to take it."

"Love is not in the stars of the Hyuga. Duty and honor are. That is my destiny, just as it is yours." She says.

Neji looks as if he wants to say more, but a gong at the front of their yard makes them both turn. Hinata's nose wrinkles at the sight of the soldier from earlier. He doesn't wear armor of a samurai, but he carries himself as if he is one. Hinata wants to knock him off his horse.

"A conscription notice for the eligible man from the main branch of the Hyuga family." The soldier says. "You are to continue your familial tradition and join the emperor's army as a samurai." Neji gives Hinata a reassuring look before stepping forward and taking the scroll.

"It is an honor to serve my country." Neji says with a bow. They bow back, already charmed by her cousin's manners and grace.

They leave as quickly as they came, spinning dust into the courtyard from the pounding of hooves. Now that they're gone, Neji eyes the conscription notice wearily.

"There has to be another way." Hinata says as she steps forward. She's sure she must look comedic right now with her torn kimono and ruined makeup, but she doesn't care. "Father and Hizashi-sama already gave their lives for Kasai. They can't have you risking yours too."

"I am the last male member of the main branch. My purpose is to protect this family. And if this is how it must be done, then so be it." He says with a voice full of steel.

"I have never asked you to be selfish in your entire life. But now, I am. Be selfish, onii-san. The Hyuga cannot survive without you. I am no leader. Hanabi is still too young. Our land and our clan will be stripped from us the moment you set foot outside." Hinata pleads.

Neji leans down and places his hands on top of Hinata's shoulders. "This world is cruel, Hinata-chan. It has already taken far too much from us. I refuse to let it torment us further. I will serve Kasai as the Hyuga warrior, for it has always been my fate. And fate is inescapable."

Hinata places her hands on Neji's forearms. She has a feeling deep in the pit of her belly that if Neji leaves to join the emperor's army, he won't come back. And if he were to die, the responsibility of maintaining the nobility and status of her people would fall onto Hinata's shoulders. She already regrets her reaction to the Uchiha earlier. If she would've kept her mouth shut and banished her pride, maybe she could've been betrothed. Maybe Captain Uchiha could've pardoned Neji from service. Then again, that's a lot of "what if's" for someone who would've treated Hinata as an arm accessory and not a woman.

"I don't think your fate is as sealed as you think it is." Hinata tells him quietly.

Neji just gives her a small smile. "Why don't you wash up for lunch? Then afterwards, I'll need help in the training room."

"Of course." She says. Hinata was supposed to be okay with him leaving. She was supposed to sharpen his blades and polish his armor as if it didn't pain her to do so. "Hanabi is not going to be happy."

"She'll understand. She's as tough as her father." He says easily. Hinata doesn't respond. She remembers the day that the samurai came to their home. They brought back Hizashi and Hiashi's weapons. Her uncle had died protecting her father. And in a rage of grief, Hiashi killed nearly an entire regiment of enemies on his own. Her father was found with multiple stab wounds, arm outstretched towards his brother.

Kasai returned their swords, showered them with medals, and gave the Hyuga a meager amount of yearly gold for their heroic service. There weren't even bodies to mourn.

Hinata buried her grief in work. She was sixteen at the time, and the realization that she had lost her father had yet to set in. Her mother had died when she was young, so she was no stranger to mourning.

As the oldest child of the clan head, her first act of business was to renounce her leadership and hand it over to her older and far wiser cousin. Her people were quick to follow Neji. He became not only their leader, but their lifeline. He controlled their money, their trade, and the small influence they had in the country.

Hinata would spend her days leading teams in the fields, sparring with her cousin, and comforting her younger sister. Hanabi was only eleven when she was orphaned. She would wake up in the night, ask where her father was, and Hinata would have to break the news all over again.

"Not by choice." Hinata finally responds. Now it's Neji's turn to remain silent.

Once they're inside, Neji puts a pot on the fire. Hinata fries a few eggs and mixes them in with plain rice, green onions, and pepper flakes. She sets three bowls on the table, and goes to her room to quickly change. After she scrubs her face in her water basin, she throws off her kimono and changes into plain slacks and a robe. She pulls her hair from its updo and it falls in long, dark tresses all the way to her waist.

By the time she goes back to the table, the mood is already downtrodden. Hinata knows that Neji must've shared the news.

Hinata takes her usual seat and picks up her bowl. She peers at her sister out of the corner of her eye.

"It's not fair." Hanabi says harshly. "This country took my father. They did nothing when raiders took our wealth and crops and almost took my sister. And now, they're insisting on taking you too?" She holds the chopsticks so tightly in her hands that they snap. "I hate honor! And I hate Kasai! Don't go, Neji." She pleads.

"You mustn't talk like that Hanabi-chan." Neji says gently, trying to correct his younger cousin's manners.

Hinata squeezes her eyes shut at her sister's words. She knows that no matter how much either of them beg, Neji's mind is made up. If he were to ignore the conscription notice, they would lose everything. If he were to go, they would lose everything.

"I think manners are the last thing that should be on her mind." Hinata replies quietly.

"You think I want to go? You think I want to leave behind the only people I have left? The only home I've ever known?" Neji snaps, his temper finally rampant. "You're acting as if they've given us a choice. Now enough talk of it. I have one night left with you two. I won't waste it arguing."

Hanabi begins to quietly cry, and both Hinata and Neji race over to cling to her. Hanabi has always been the older Hyugas' source of hope. She was their reason for fighting, their source of inspiration in the constant fear and pain of their regular lives. The three all cling to each other, each fearing different things.

"We'll be okay." Hinata reassures against her sister's soft hair. "Neji's as strong as the ox that plows our fields, as smart as the fox that steals our eggs."

Neji laughs, his arms big enough to encircle both of them. "And while I'm gone, Hinata will take over my nagging." This finally makes Hanabi's tears cease, and she rests her head against her sister's chest.

After they break their embrace and finish their meal, Neji quickly washes the dishes and drags both the girls to the training room. Hinata stares at the empty cupboards that used to hold her father and uncle's yoroi. The third set of armor has still not seen the hardships of war. The kusazari and dou are dyed a deep purple, and the kabuto is a dark gray. The flame of the Hyuga is stamped on the chest.

"You're going to have to wear that?" Hanabi asks with clear distaste. Her earlier disheartenment is gone and she's back to her normal, grumpy self.

"I won't wear the majority of it. The significance that most of my yoroi holds is for someone of a much higher rank. It was made for a true warrior, somebody of my own father's class."

"You are a true warrior." Hinata tries to reassure.

"Not yet." He says. Neji steps forward and pulls the two blades that were his fathers from their sheaths. Hinata knows that he could cut through anyone with them. He's much more skilled than she is. But seeing him hold his father's legacy within his hands makes her frown.

Hinata and Hanabi step out of the room as Neji walks through several stances. His katana blades act as an extension of his arms as they cut through the very air.

"Nobody should be able to touch him if he fights like that." Hanabi tries to reassure both of them. Hinata stays silent. Neji is a much better fighter than her. He's practically better at everything. His swordsmanship and fighting skills are most likely far superior to most of Kasai. They used to have competitions when they were young on who could run the fastest, harvest the most, fight the hardest, solve riddles the easiest. Neji would always win. He's a genius, a prodigy at everything he tries to do. Hinata is just Hinata.

She knows that she mustn't measure her life in value she brings to others, but she can't help it. The Hyuga need her cousin. They don't need her. The most honorable, courageous thing she could do for him is take his place.

"Hinata, come give me something real to practice against." Neji says mischievously.

"Why? So you can beat me easily and give your pride a boost?" Hinata says. But even with the near guarantee that she'll soon be flat on her back, she steps into the room. Neji sheathes his weapons and gives Hinata a polite bow. She quickly returns it and sinks into her stance. The Hyuga clan has always had their own fighting style. They fight freely, like flowing water.

Hinata's palm gets raised, and Neji charges at her without hesitation. His fist aims to strike near her neck, but she moves out of the way and sends her own palm near his chest. Neij turns his body at the last minute and her hit grazes his shoulder instead. He lets out a grunt and attempts to counter with a palm to her chest, but Hinata grabs his arm and uses his weight to throw him over her shoulder. He hits the floor with a resounding yelp.

She moves her body like the fall of rain, all at once. Her feet aim to find his body in an attempt to disable him further, but Neji uses the momentum of his feet to swing him back up. He throws his fist and she knocks it aside with her forearm. Their cat and mouse game of block and evade continues until finally, she manages to land another hit on him. He stumbles backwards, distracted but not completely disengaged.

Hinata then falls to the floor in an attempt to sweep his leg, but he rolls out of the way and twists his leg so it strikes her right in the stomach.

She groans in pain and falls to the matted floor. "You didn't hold back, did you?" She says with a wheeze.

"That's it?" Hanabi teases "Usually you can hang in there a little longer, sister."

"Well, I'm not exactly on my game today." Hinata tries to defend. Neji pulls her to her feet and gives her shoulder a nudge.

After they spar for a little longer, Neji heads outside to bid good fortune to their ancestors. Hinata takes the allotted time to pack essentials. She throws strong wraps to bind her chest, cloth underwear with extra padding for when she gets her cycle, and loose clothing that she can only pray will hide the shape of her body.

Soon, night begins to fall and the sun sinks in the sky. Hinata sneaks out to her horse and throws her bag overtop. She makes one last stop before heading inside and she bows in front of the stones that hold the names of her Hyuga ancestors. She traces her mother and father's before pleading with them to watch over her. Hinata doesn't know if she's making a smart decision, but she believes it to be the necessary one.

By the time Hinata comes back into the house, Neji sits at their table drinking his post dinner tea. He gestures for Hinata to join him. She sits next to him, her entire body facing him as she waits for him to deliver some kind of speech.

"When I'm gone, I need you to fight for our clan. Do what you believe is best, but don't let our land be taken. Don't let our family go hungry. And I know you're terrified of leading, but you'll need to. Just until I'm back."

"I'll do my best." She replies weakly. Little does he know none of this will be necessary. Neji isn't going anywhere. "I'll see you in the morning. I'll wake up to make you breakfast, okay? We'll say our goodbyes then."

Neji smiles and gives her a nod. She gives his hand a squeeze before getting up and heading to her room. Soon after, Neji blows out all the candles in the house and Hinata's vision goes dark. She must lay curled up on her mat for hours until finally, she deems it safe to come out.

Hinata binds her chest as tightly as she can before slipping on loose trousers and an undershirt. Then, she tiptoes to the training room and eyes Neji's armor wearily. She refuses to take something of such high value. It was one of the last gifts Neji received from his father and she would not be the cause of its disappearance.

Instead, she settles for one of her fathers old hakamas. It's a dark gray with the Hyuga flame knitted on both sides. Hinata unsheathes her father's wakizashi and before she can change her mind, cuts her own hair with it.

Neji still has decently long hair, so Hinata only chops her short enough to fall near her shoulder blades. Then, she ties it in a low knot near the nape of her neck. After attaching both her father's katana and wakizashi to her belt, she peers at herself in the reflection of the glass. With her bound chest and padded shoulders, Hinata can only hope she looks masculine enough.

After leaving a note explaining her decision, Hinata rides away from the only home she's ever known. Her cousin wouldn't be able to come for her. If she were to be revealed, her impersonation would mean dishonor for them both.

From here on out, she is Hyuga Neji. Son of Hizashi, nephew of Hiashi.

She debates looking back at her house as it grows farther away from her, but ends up deciding against it. She has already used too much courage to leave. If she were to turn around, she'd want to go back. And going back is not an option.

Chapter 3

Notes:

Chu- Duty and Loyalty

Chapter Text

Hinata paces the treeline outside of the encampment, swinging her katana aimlessly.

"This was a mistake. I can't do this." She whispers to herself in a panic. The second she'd walk into the training camp, she would have to be someone else. Hinata has lived with Neji long enough to know how to act. She would be polite, but still be defensive. She would be reserved, but strong. Hinata could portray him all day long…but to portray a man? A stinky, bad-mannered, testosterone-filled man?

Hinata knows that not all men are terrible. Her cousin and uncle are excellent examples of that. Her father was a wonderful leader and a strong person, but a lackluster parent. But still, he was a good man. He was nothing like some of the other terrible men she has met in her lifetime. If she is to be found out…Hinata shivers even thinking about it. She can only hope that Tsunade is wrong about the bushido code leaving the lands. Because if so, if she is to be found out, the best case scenario is that they'll kill her.

She gathers her courage, squares her shoulders, and heads for the encampment. There's no point in delaying her arrival. If she were to die, she can only hope her capture will be quick.

Hinata holds Zenzai's reins and tilts her chin up. As soon as she walks into the training camp, eyes already begin to fall onto her.

"Well, it looks like a little bird managed to fly its way in here," says a young samurai. Hinata can already tell he's from an ancient clan by the fang shaped cress that is stamped on his chest.

She freezes, feeling her entire face already beginning to turn red at the nickname. Hinata would stutter over her words and hurry away. But Neji would say something witty, something that would shut this person up.

"If I'm a bird, then that makes you a worm. Brainless and small." Hinata taunts, making her voice as low as possible. "And birds always end up eating the worms."

"Hey! What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" He exclaims as he grabs Hinata's collar, pulling her closer to him.

Hinata's vision goes blurry in panic. Not only is a man touching her, but he's too close to her chest, too close to her secret.

Instinctively, Hinata sends her palm straight into his chin. His brown eyes roll back and he lets out a slight sigh as he begins to fall to the grassy floor. She stares at him in shock, her palm still outstretched. She didn't mean to hit him that hard!

Another man immediately comes over, leaning down to check on the trainee that Hinata just sent to the floor. He has comically large eyebrows, shiny black hair, and expressions that could land him in a theater trope. Hinata watches him curiously, immediately enthralled with his presence.

"You knocked him out?! All he did was tease you, sir! Samurai or not, nobody knocks out my friend and gets away with it!" The other trainee says. He wears no armor and Hinata immediately assumes he isn't a samurai, but instead just a regular soldier. But she doesn't have time to ponder. Soon enough, he has a fist coming towards her as well.

This one is quick, almost as quick as Neji. But Hinata dodges all of his attacks, one hand on her blade instinctively. One of his arms tries to strike a little too close to her face, and she wraps her free arm around it, links them together, spins her ankles, and throws him onto the ground. This all happens before the smart part of her brain can tell her to knock it off. She looks at the two men on the ground anxiously.

Now, even more men are staring at her. Hinata debates on how to react. In regular circumstances, she'd find herself apologizing profusely. But would Neji? Certainly not.

"Worms always end up in the dirt. And I was the one to put you there." She tells them gruffly. She removes her hand from her blade and gives the men around her a hard look. Zenzai has already retreated, putting much needed distance between them.

"Get him!" Another soldier cries out. The roar of men around her is startling and Hinata has to disguise her squeak of surprise as a yell.

They all dive at her at once, engaging in their own different wars with each other. Hinata can't believe her luck! She turns, desperate to get out of there, but in her attempted retreat, she hits a hard breastplate of a dou.

"What is the meaning of this?!" The voice booms.

The fighting immediately halts and all the eyes of both samurai and soldiers turn to her.

"He started it!" The first person she hit yells. Hinata turns slowly to put a face to the outspoken voice. The man is tall and handsome with piercing blue eyes, and a kabuto that signifies he's of the highest rank. Even her own father wasn't awarded such an honor. Hinata thinks that he can't be any older than her, but even so, he carries himself with an air of sophistication.

The man holds his hand out expectantly. "Where are your conscription papers?"

Hinata grabs the scroll from her belt and hands it to him, immediately bowing after.

Her superior office opens the scroll and smiles. "Hyuga Neji, son of Hizashi. Impressive. No wonder nobody here could touch you." He says with a wink. Hinata has to practically stomp on her own foot to keep herself from going red."Everyone, welcome Neji-san to camp! Thanks to his mistake, you'll all spend the remainder of the morning polishing your weapons and armor. Twice." He gives Hinata's shoulder a good natured shove before walking past her again.

"I'm leaving you all in good hands! This encampment and all of you better be in fighting shape by the time I return!" He tells them all. Most people let our cries of affirmation, others bow. The general climbs on his horse and rides away in the opposite direction of where Hinata came from.

She immediately grows stiff again as all the remaining soldiers and samurai turn to her.

"You heard Uzumaki-san. Now get to work. I won't tell you as nicely as he did," commands another powerful voice. Except this one sounds awkwardly familiar.

Hinata's eyes widen as the Uchiha stands in front of the captain tent. He doesn't wear armor, but his blades are attached at his waist and his black hair is held back by a small band.

She clenches her fists against her side. If he recognizes her, it's all over. Her charade will have ended before it even began.

He points to her and makes a gesture for her to approach. Hinata feels that her legs are going to snap underneath her like noodles as she walks forward. Her only consolation is that as Hinata, her hair was longer and her face was covered in makeup. Plus, her body was slightly on display. Now, her shoulders are sort of bulky and her breasts are basically invisible. She could chalk up her and Neji having the same eyes to their familial ties.

Hinata bows and Sasuke rips the conscription notice out of her hand.

"Listen, I don't like trouble in my camp—" He interrupts his own thoughts with a scoff. "A Hyuga. Of course." He practically throws her scroll back in her face. "If I had any sense, I'd send you back to your pathetic little farm here and now. But even I know of your father's strength and sacrifice during Kasai's last conflict. Don't cause any more issues, Hyuga." Sasuke threatens as he pushes his way past her. Hinata's heart races as fast as a horse. He didn't notice her. Yet again, he acted as if he was too important to even look at her.

Hinata is sure she hates him. Never in her life has she met someone so stuck-up, so entitled! She thinks about what Neji would do. Would he talk back to his commanding officer? Absolutely not. Would he accept that kind of disrespect? Also unlikely.

She wants to respond with something witty, but she's scared he'll recognize her voice. So, she watches him walk away with a pout.

The man that would be responsible for leading her division, for bringing her back home…is him?! Fate and fortune are not on her side.

"Hey…little bird…next time we're alone… you're dead." The samurai she originally knocked out taunts.

Hinata spins around, narrowing her pale eyes. She can only hope she looks intimidating.

"Beware of your threats, worm. I already laid you out flat once. I won't hesitate to do it again." She bows to add extra dirt to the wound and walks away with a pulse that must be throbbing so fast it's audible. Internally, she's screaming. But she must speak like Neji! Her secret depends on it.

Hinata grabs Zenzai's reins, ducks behind a tent and lets out a gasp she's been holding since the first moment she walked in.

"Hyuga Neji." A monotone voice says next to the tent she was trying to hide behind. Hinata immediately straightens her posture again and bows to whoever may be addressing her.

"Take your horse to the stable. Afterwards, set up your tent. And you heard what General Uzumaki said. Polish your armor twice over. Maybe you'll have earned your lunch then." Hinata finally puts two and two together. The man who she ran into earlier, the man who has eyes that sparkle, is the Shinno of Kasai, or the son of the emperor.

"I didn't bring my yoroi," Hinata begins awkwardly. The samurai raises an eyebrow.

"You're going to war. Why would you not bring your armor?"

Hinata couldn't tell him that it was because it was never hers to begin with. So, she speaks honestly.

"I wanted to leave my family something to remember me by. When my father and uncle passed, we were stripped of their ancestral armor. I didn't want the same to happen to me."

The man squints his eyes, but ends up letting out a sigh.

"Fine, then come with me." He tucks one hand into his pocket and gestures Hinata forward. She follows, dragging her horse behind her. The man mutters something about how much of a drag this is before gesturing to the stable.

After Hinata gives Zenzai one last pat, she follows the man who seems to be grumpily leading her around.

"I'm Nara Shikamaru, Captain Uchiha's advisor. Naruto ditched me here, the worst encampment of them all." He tells her grumpily.

"It's an honor to meet you." Hinata says with a bow. Shikamaru groans.

"Enough of that. I saw you take on Inuzuka and Lee. Don't act all formal with me. You're going to be an asset, Hyuga. You are your father's son." Shikamaru stops his walk and turns to her, a hand on his chin. His eyes flit from her shoulders to her eyes, and back to her feet. "Then again…I thought you'd be taller."

"I got my mother's genes." Hinata says, attempting to brush off his assumptions. "But you knew my father?"

"No, but my father did. He was quite a fan of the Hyuga brothers. Hiashi-sama saved his life." Shikamaru says admiringly. "So you have big shoes to fill. Don't let the captain down."

Hinata's chest warms at the thought of her heroic father. She always pitied herself for losing both parents. But to think of her father saving so many lives, to think that he's the reason Shikamaru's father is still here, it helps numb her pain. She had no idea that her name held such impact, such power.

"I'm afraid I may have already passed redemption in the captain's eyes." Hinata admits. Even before her scuffle with the samurai of her encampment, even before she became Neji, Captain Uchiha's opinion on the Hyuga name was tarnished.

"Nah, he likes his warriors to have some fire. When Sasuke first began his training, he picked a fight with everyone who looked at him the wrong way. If anything, he's probably already taken particular notice of you."

Hinata wants to ask more about her captain, but she doesn't want to draw suspicion to herself either. But he picked fights and still managed to make captain. He must be good.

Shikamaru leads her back to the captain's tent. It's large and a sun-stained yellow with torches staked outside. There's a red and white fan that Hinata has come to learn as the Uchiha symbol on the door.

"Captain Uchiha's yoroi is the one on the highest armor stand. Mine is next to it, though I rarely ever use it. Polish them both. Maybe talk to the captain about finding your own set. I'll see you around, Hyuga."

"Wait!" Hinata begins to ask, but it's too late. Shikamaru has already disappeared back into the encampment. It was foolish of her to think she had already found an ally.

She sighs and fills a small, marble bowl that rests on the water basin with cold water. Then, she wrings out a small cloth and begins to run it across the different parts of the armor. Hinata first cleans the kabuto, or the crowned helmet of Shikamaru's armor. She then begins to work on the main plate of armor, or the dou. After Hinata strips Skihamaru's armor of any flaw it may have, she dumps the water and refills it in preparation for Sasuke.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asks her from the doorway. There's a towel around his neck and a bow in his hand. His face is red with exertment and his held back hair is slicked with sweat.

Hinata clears her throat in preparation for her fake Neji voice. "Nara-san was having me polish his and your armor." She tells him, already dipping her head in a bow.

"I don't need anybody touching my yoroi, especially a Hyuga." Sasuke says as he walks over and tears the bowl from her hands.

Despite Hinata's usual nerves and plan to stay as quiet as possible, her own voice betrays her. Maybe she already was becoming Neji. "I sense that you have a problem with me, Captain Uchiha. But we have never met before. So I apologize for any poor history you may have with my clan or for any misstep I may have already taken."

Sasuke's eyes slide to her own. He gives her a scoff. "Tell me, Hyuga, what superiority complex do your people hold?"

"There is no superiority of the Hyuga. My father gave his life for the emperor. And when he requested my own strength, I gave it to him, no questions asked." Hinata tells him.

He clicks his tongue and begins to undo the strings of his training tunic. The torchlight illuminates his back and Hinata can see every scar and bruise. She forces her eyes to not linger.

"I guess you just have more integrity than the rest of your clan. Get out. Set up your tent, get some food. We begin training tomorrow. Then, we'll really see how skilled of a fighter you are."

Hinata bows once more and bites back any snarky comment. So this wasn't about Neji or her uncle and father. This was about her. This was about their match appointment that she stormed out of. Did it really offend him that much? He's Uchiha Sasuke! His family is second only to the emperor. His wealth and power far outclass her. He could have any woman, any person, he wanted!

Hinata hustles away from the commander's tent. She walks over to a different one where she's given her assigned lot and gear. Since she's a samurai, she'll be allowed to stay by herself. Hinata can't believe her luck. During the day, she'll have to wear a mask and enact the role of Neji. But at night, she can loosen her wraps and allow herself to breathe.

After setting up her tent in her assigned lot, she watches a couple of other soldiers to see where they go for food. Eventually, she sees a rather large samurai with spiky brown hair and pudgy cheeks.

"Excuse me, where are we meeting for dinner?" Hinata asks him in her Neji voice.

"I'm heading there now, you can come with me!" He exclaims with a smile. "You're Hyuga-san, right? I'm Akimichi Choji. Watching you knock out the loud-mouthed Inuzuka was definitely the highlight of my arrival! And then, instead of fighting you, I gave him another knock instead!" Choji lets out a hearty laugh and slaps Hinata so hard on the back she almost loses her balance.

"Has he been taunting everyone that walked in like that?" Hinata asks as she attempts to hide how much Choji's hit actually hurt.

"Sort of. He called me chubby which I HATE! But I was too scared of Captain Uchiha to do anything about it. Not you, though. You must not be scared of anything." Choji says admiringly.

"Oh, trust me Akimichi-san. I'm scared of plenty." Hinata's scared of being discovered. She's scared of dishonoring her late father. She's scared of returning home to see their farm overrun with enemies, the last remaining people that she loves, dead.

"You don't have to be so formal. We're buddies now. Call me Choji!" He goes to pat her again, but Hinata expertly dodges it and instead claps him incredibly hard. He guffaws, clearly excited at her response.

"Good to finally have an ally, Choji. You can just call me Hi–" she disguises her slip up with a cough, "...Neji."

The two get their bowls of rice and eggs before sitting down on the soft grass a little further away. It seems that everyone has taken breaks from their respective tasks and are eating on the lawn. Hinata quickly spots the Inuzuka who sits near a couple of other warriors and she ducks her head. She's in no way scared of him, but she doesn't want to cause anymore trouble either. It's clear that Captain Uchiha already hates Hinata. But maybe he'll eventually like Neji. She just has to perform well.

Eventually, a third person sits down next to them with a sigh. Hinata is quite surprised to see that it's Shikamaru, the captain's advisor.

"I see you two have already met. Don't let Hyuga get you into any trouble, Choji." Shikamaru warns by pointing his chopsticks at him.

"You two know each other as well?" Hinata asks as she eats her bowl delicately. She knows that men are absolute slobs. But Neji is an exception. In fact, he's much neater than her and Hanabi combined. So, she'll try to embody this character trait as well.

"Almost every samurai here knows each other. Besides you, of course. You're our special exception. Choji and I grew up together. Our father's are very close. Along with the Yamanka you see over there." He says as he gestures towards a blonde farther away. " Inuzuka Kiba, the one you knocked out earlier, has been training with Aburame Shino since a young age as well. General Uzumaki and Captain Uchiha have been close since they were children. Even some of the soldiers have been tight with us for a while. Lee and Sai are always hanging around. In fact, I think if they perform well here at training, Sasuke will promote their families."

"Then why am I the exception?" Hinata asks stupidly.

"Well, we've all lived in Konoha our whole lives. Your clan split off a while ago, same with Senju Tsunade, the potential empress. None of us really got a chance to get to know you." He answers with a shrug.

"Then I'm already at a disadvantage." Hinata frowns. She knows that the Hyuga's migrated away from Konoha, the capital of Kasai nearly a little over a century ago. But why? And why has everyone grown almost uneasy around her because of it? Is there a traitorous history that she doesn't know about? A dishonorable scandal?

"Don't overthink it, Hyuga. You're here now. Just train hard and prove that you deserve your place as a samurai." Shikamaru says, trying to put her mind at ease.

After they finish eating, there's a few hours to bathe and meditate. Hinata has already noticed their encampment is on the banks of a rather pleasant looking lake, but she's nowhere near comfortable enough to bathe in front of these people yet. She'd have to wake up in the middle of the night or the early hours of morning for that.

Instead, she takes her free time to head back to her lot and settle into her tent. She unrolls her assigned cot and folds her training clothes neatly. The top is similar to what Captain Uchiha was wearing earlier. It crosses over her chest and is held together by silk ties. The pants and shirt are both a tawny cream colored with flexible fabric. Hinata immediately tries on the top and frowns as it almost sticks to her chest. She'll have to bind herself tighter. Her father's padded armor offers her more leniency than her new training clothes.

Hinata then unpacks the one thing from home she allowed herself to bring, a frame with a painted portrait of her, Neji and Hanabi. It was painted when they were a lot younger than they are now, and Hinata looks at herself sadly. She doesn't even recognize the girl that looks back at her. This Hinata's whole face is split open in a laugh, her head tilting to be closer to Neji. The artist gave her pink cheeks and long eyelashes. Her hair is pulled up in a bun and several pieces cascade down her neck and forehead. Neji pretends to be annoyed, but his smile is genuine as he holds a young Hanabi. His long hair is tied back in the exact style Hinata's is in now. Even Hanabi's eyes are still filled with life and innocence.

Hinata clutches the picture to her chest, her throat suddenly tight with tears. This would be her first night she ever spent away from home. And she has never felt more alone. In her mind, this whole thing was necessary in order to protect the future legacy of her clan. But she wishes she didn't have to do it. She wishes she was drinking tea with Neji, joking about some of the other Hyuga's. Instead, she was here, disguised as her cousin, with a captain who hated her and men who already wished her ill-being.

All she had to do was get through this night. The first night is always the hardest. Then, she can only hope that it'd get easier to sleep without the familiar sounds of home. Hinata curls in a ball, holding her knees tightly against her chest. This is the right thing to do. She'd prove it to herself, to her clan, and to her regiment.

Chapter 4

Chapter Text

Hinata rises early the next morning and binds her chest as tightly as her lungs will allow her. She goes through stretches in her tent, making sure that despite the squeezing against her torso, she is still able to evade and attack. Then, she dresses in her allotted training clothes and twists her legs into a knot.

After a few moments of meditation, she opens the flap of her tent and peeks out. It appears that the rest of the world remains silent, so Hinata slips out, determined to do some exploring.

Her first stop is the lakeshore. The waves lap quietly against the sand and Hinata places a single palm into the water. It's cool, but not freezing. She clenches her fist in the sand, already looking forward to bathing later. Obviously, bathing in the same lake that a bunch of gross men have been in isn't exactly the same as her private bath back home, but still.

After the lake, Hinata sneaks past some of the tents and to what looks like the main training grounds. There are straw dummies with targets painted on the chests and tubs of arrows a little farther away. The sight of the bows on a rack makes Hinata frown. She's never been particularly good at archery.

Hiashi was not exactly a progressive man when it came to combat knowledge. He taught Hinata the basics, like where to punch to break a bone, or what stance to use to remain strong. It was Neji who was her father's and uncle's pride and joy. In a buke family, all men were taught to fight. The other Hyuga's, such as Tokuma and Ko, two of Hinata's older relatives, were taught basic fighting like archery and defense. But Neji excelled above the rest, and since Hinata's own father wasn't blessed with a son, Neji was taught the way of the samurai.

It wasn't until the attack on her farm that Hinata began to train vigorously. Neji became her sensei, teaching her how to hold a katana, how to fend off multiple attackers, proper movements with and without the blade, and of course, archery.

Her blood runs cold as she thinks of the day enemies scaled their walls and attempted to ravage her home. Neji and the men beat them back, but barely. Lives were still lost. Even Hinata would've been six feet under if it weren't for Neji.

Hinata cringes. She must do something, anything, to take these thoughts away.

She unsheathes her blade and holds her father's katana in front of her left eye, gazing at her own reflection. Despite her short hair and masculine clothing, she still looks like herself. Hiashi's katana's handle is beautifully wrapped with black leather. The sheath that remains on her belt is black with the Hyuga flame and depictions of a golden sun.

As a child, Hinata used to trace her fingers across the sheath of her father's mighty blade with wide eyes. Her mother used to tell her stories of her father's bravery and strength. But now, they are both dead. Neither of them were strong enough to stay in this world. So what does that make Hinata, who has never been anything but their disappointing daughter?

Hinata falls into her stance as she begins to swing her blade, her knees wide and her thighs taut. Just as Neji taught her. Her katana moves as if it's another part of her, slicing through the early morning air with a whistle. After a couple warm-up maneuvers, Hinata takes a deep breath to focus her mind.

Her feet step forward in a sweeping motion, her blade cutting down her imaginary enemies. Her right arm stays close to her side in a bent position as if it's holding her smaller blade. Hinata loses herself in the music of her movement, the repetition of her footsteps.

"Whoever you're pretending to kill is dead by now." A voice says sarcastically. Hinata lets out a yelp and instinctively swings her blade towards the source. Captain Uchiha blocks her blade with the sheath of his own.

Hinata immediately retreats, dropping her left arm and stance. "Captain Uchiha. My deepest apologies, I just thought I'd get a head start on the day." She says with a deep voice and a bow.

"An early start? The sun hasn't even risen yet. If you're planning on killing my regiment before they wake up, you should've been quicker." He tells her.

"That wasn't my intention. It's my first night away from home. I found it difficult to sleep. Forgive me."

Sasuke rolls his eyes. "You sound like a whiny child. Either way, you're going to wish you rested more after today. Most of these men already hate you. They'll gang up on you in order to see your downfall. Don't let them."

"Is that advice, Captain Uchiha?" Hinata asks cheekily.

"No. It's an order. The emperor needs all the men he can get. I won't be the reason for him losing a single one, let alone the last living nobility of the Hyuga clan."

"If I die, I am survived by my two cousins." Hinata clarifies. "So the emperor has nothing to worry about." She knows very well that Sasuke is aware that there are more surviving Hyuga's of the main family. So why is he acting clueless? Hinata wonders if she should bring up their failed match as Neji. It would be interesting to get a rise out of the Uchiha. But she may lose whatever peace she has finally found with him.

"If there are two more of you, then why aren't they here serving the emperor?" He asks her as he clicks his blade against its sheathe. Hinata wants to laugh. He's not being cheeky or caring, he's just genuinely curious about her. She's sure he's looking for more reasons to hate her, and Hinata is determined to not give them to him.

"Because they are women, both daughters of my uncle, Lord Hiashi. One is fourteen and still learning how to navigate the world. The other is nineteen."

"Nineteen. Is she married?" Uchiha asks, still playing the role of an uninterested soldier.

"No."

"Is she a widow?"

"No. If I may, Captain Uchiha, why do you care so much?"

"Because if she's not married and she's not a widow, she's old enough to practically be a hag. She must be an extremely unpleasant person. I bet you came here just to get away from her."

"No, I came here because I was conscripted." She answers. Then, Hinata is more honest than she probably should be. "I love my cousins. They are my home. Are you married?"

"No. They are your home?"

"Well if you're not married, then isn't it a little hypocritical of you, Captain? And yes. They are all I have left."

Captain Uchiha sucks in a breath. She wonders if he finally realizes he's taken it too far. "We are men, Hyuga. We don't need marriage to survive. And I'm sorry for prying."

"Women don't need marriage to survive either, especially my cousins." Hinata bows before turning her back on her captain and walking towards her tent. She planned to spend her early morning in solitude, not in the company of the one person she detests. He thinks women need marriage? What an outrageous idea! If anything, men do! Without a woman to take care of them, men are whiny and insignificant!

Hinata fears that every single reaction she has with her captain will make her dislike him more. And if he's her leader, she doubts she'll get to live much longer.

She spends the rest of her morning stewing in her tent until finally, the sun releases its warm rays across the early morning sky. Multiple gongs sound and Hinata listens to the footsteps and chattering voices. Eventually, she gets out of her tent and follows the small crowd of both soldiers and samurai that cluster near the training grounds.

Captain Uchiha stands above them all, his hand on his sword. His eyes flit through his soldiers, taking in their potential strengths.

"I know most of you have learned the ways of the samurai through your families. Today, you will example those styles to me. And then after, if I deem it necessary, you will forget them. You will fight how I teach you, or you won't fight at all." He tells them. Hinata looks up at him with a frown. She was supposed to unlearn years of the Hyuga style? Not a chance.

"But before we even get to that, I'll be raising all of your endurance levels. No more eating fine foods and lounging." Sasuke swings his arms loosely and jumps down from his pedestal. "With me, men."

Another gong sounds and Hinata lets out a breath at the prospect of running. This is potentially her greatest weakness. Unfortunately, it's the natural order of things that men can run faster than women. Neji would beat her in every single race, long and short distance.

Within the first couple kilometers, she's already puffing for breath. Most of her fellow samurai have already left her in the dust, including the two men she fought on the first day.

But surprisingly, Hinata does have one ally in this specific form of torture. Choji wheezes next to her, his face as pink as a flower. Captain Uchiha is at the very front of them all, climbing over hills and rocks as if they're next to nothing.

"This…" Choji attempts to wheeze, "Is the worst!" He lets out another puff and Hinata reaches over and gives his back a slight pat. Even this movement winds her.

"Hang in there-" she gasps "Choji-kun-" she breathes in deeply, "we got it."

The two are obviously the slowest in the group, but still, they eventually make their way to the rendezvous spot where the rest of the samurai await them. Hinata immediately notices Inuzuka staring at her smugly and she tries her best to make herself appear intimidating. But with her bright red face and Choji practicalling hanging off her shoulder, she doubts it works.

The cluster of her fellow warriors and soldiers clear the way as Captain Uchiha stalks over to them. Even after their hour and a half long run, not a single hair is out of place. It's all still held back by his band.

"That was some of the most pathetic displays of endurance I've ever seen. How can you two call yourselves samurai when you can't even keep up with your regiment?" He asks with crossed arms. Hinata is surprised to hear a twinge of disappointment in his voice.

"I assure you…" Choji begins to sputter through his own heavy breaths. "What I lack in speed…I make up for in strength." Captain Uchiha's eyes fall on Hinata, but she has no excuse for her performance. If they asked her to sow the land the fastest or hunch over and pick crops the longest, she'd win. But this isn't a farming competition. Plus, if it truly were Neji here instead of her, she's sure he would've been up there with the others, perhaps even leading the pack.

Sasuke crosses his arms and frowns. They were both good candidates. The Akimichi are known for their brute strength and compassion. And the Hyuga are rumored to be some of the best swordsmen and fighters in the country. But his men were all watching him. He could not waver.

"I do not have room for two potential weaknesses in my regiment. Only one." He gestures to the top of a jutted cliff in the distance. Sasuke assumes it's two kilometers away and then another kilometer up. So in total, six. It's quite a haul. "Race up there and back. Whoever wins, stays. Whoever loses is banished from my camp and will be stripped from their title as a samurai. Got it?"

Hinata looks at Choji and sees her own pain reflected in his eyes. Neither of them want to race. Neither of them want to send the other home. But she knows that if they don't, Captain Uchiha will punish both of them.

"Come, Choji. Let's go." Hinata tells him and she loosens her shoulders and begins to run again. She hears him wheeze behind her and she knows he follows. Hinata debates her options. She could throw the race and have Choji come out on top. Her family's role as bushido would be forfeit. They'd no longer be viewed as nobles, and the little compensation they're offered from the empire would be stripped from them. Plus, it wouldn't be Hinata's name that'd be tarnished, it'd be Neji's. Her mistake could very well break open the already cracked stability of her family. Hinata can't risk that to protect someone she just met, no matter how badly she wants to.

She takes a heavy breath and pushes her legs harder. This was all the Uchiha's fault. Not only did he have to pit Hinata against her only ally, but he had to make the stakes incredibly high. Her own rage gives her a second wind and she makes it to the bottom of the cliff easily. She notices Choji is a little ways behind her, but he has also refused to give up. The rest of the men all watch the two of them with hands cupped over their eyes. She takes particular notice of Captain Uchiha who has his arms crossed in front of him. Hinata turns back to the course in front of her with a huff. She'll prove him wrong.

She remembers Neji saying something about how if you move your arms at a certain speed, your legs are forced to follow. Hinata's legs aren't nearly as long as her cousins, or even Choji's, but maybe her arms can force them to go faster. She pumps her knees up the cliff, banishing her exhaustion.

As soon as she makes the top, she hears a disgruntled groan behind her. Even turning her head takes the strongest effort but she lets out a gasp that turns into a wheeze.

"Choji!" She cries as her ally lays a few paces away from her, his arms spread out and his tongue flopped to the side. Hinata hobbles next to him. He's obviously still breathing, but unconscious. She sucks in a breath as she debates her options. She can leave him here and win the race. Or she can attempt to drag him the rest of the way back and make Captain Uchiha so mad that she's sure she'll be sent home too.

Hinata's feet turn back towards her finish line, but her heart flutters. She lets out a groan and looks at Choji once more. The code of the bushido may be foreign to some, but not to her. She can't abandon him. She won't.

Hinata leans down and grabs Choji's arms. She tries her best to put them around her shoulder before beginning to move towards the finish once more. He's surprisingly not as heavy as she thought he'd be, but still, his added weight keeps her from running. Her legs practically shake from exhaustion and she grunts in exertion. After Hinata gets used to his added weight, she pushes her legs forward faster. She just needs to get him back to the camp. She knows that by doing this, she's basically condemning herself to be sent home, but she doesn't care. Hinata refuses to abandon the code of the samurai. Even if Tsunade-sama has said that it has long left the land, she will uphold it. For her father and mother. For Neji. If her family loses their status for Hinata having decency, she can only hope she makes her ancestors proud.

After Hinata spends an eternity dragging Choji through both the dirt and the green grass of summer, she finally makes it back to her regiment. Part of her wants to completely give in here and now. She wants to drop Choji and collapse next to him. She wants to beg Captain Uchiha for the canteen of water that is strapped to his side. But she does neither of these things. She is a Hyuga, afterall. Pride is not something she lacks. Most of the men stare at her with open mouths as she kneels and allows Choji to slide off her back as gently as possible. Then, she stands once again, giving the men around her a hard gaze.

"Send us back if you want. But Choji-san," she attempts to mask her pants, "the running and the heat exhausted him. And it's not a sign of weakness. In fact, his refusal to give up and his commitment to push his body past its breaking point should be a sign of strength." Hinata looks around at the men, daring any of them to question her.

"Why didn't you leave him?" Captain Uchiha asks her as he steps past the other men.

"It would've been dishonorable of me to leave an ally for my own personal gain." She says stubbornly.

Sasuke takes a deep breath and Hinata bites her cheek in anxiety.

"Nice work, Hyuga. A true samurai never leaves a soldier behind." He looks down at Choji before returning his eyes back to the small samurai in front of him. Perhaps this will be the last time he doubts the Hyuga heir. "For your hard work, you both can stay."

Hinata can feel her breath grow easier. She can stay?! She is still a samurai?! Hinata answers her captain with a small bow.

"I want two men carrying Akimichi back! We don't leave men behind. To be a samurai means to fight for others until your last breath, your dying breath." Sasuke says to his men. Some of them look disappointed in his decision about Hyuga and Akimichi, but he forces himself not to care. He's the captain. It's his call to make.

Hinata watches as the rest of the men begin to move out once again. Her mouth feels unbelievably dry and she thinks that if she has to run back, she'll join Choji on the ground. But Captain Uchiha gives her what she perceives as a nod of encouragement. Hinata takes a deep breath, relaxes her shoulders, and begins running again.

Chapter 5

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter fornotes.)

Chapter Text

Lunch goes by quicker than Hinata would've liked. After they all eat their meager rice bowls, Sasuke escorts them back into the open training grounds. Choji is finally awake again and he sticks to Hinata's side like paste. She thinks the two of them must look funny to others. A giant, lumbering warrior and a delicate looking samurai. Hinata can only hope that her looks are deceiving.

"Most of you seem to be able to run forever." Captain Uchiha says as he addresses his men once more. Hinata peeks over Choji's shoulder to get a look at them all. "But I don't want men who run from danger. I want men who stand and fight." He hits his fist against his open palm in exaggeration. "I see you all carry your blades with a certain pride. No more. Cast them aside."

The men all look at each other in confusion, but eventually, they drop their blades. Shikamaru walks around and picks them up, mumbling about how annoying this all is. Hinata stares at her father's twin swords with a frown. But when Shikamaru stands in front of her, she hands them over as well.

"This part of the training will require you all to fight without weapons. Fight as if this is your last stand, as if the only weapon you were ever meant to wield is yourself." He tells them all. Hinata's eyebrows knit and she curses the bloom of determination that begins to grow in her chest. On her run back, she passed the time by imagining different ways to completely embarrass her captain. Even though he showed her and Choji mercy, she still blames him for the extra run. And now, it's his words that are responsible for her newfound determination? How unfair.

Shikamaru begins to lazily assign their first dueling partners. He points at Hinata before gesturing to another samurai. This one wears her same, typical training outfit, but he has attached a cloak to his top and pulled up the hood. He also wears dark glasses and Hinata frowns as she struggles to read his face.

Shikamaru leads them to a small pit of dirt that must be meant to train on.

"I'm Hyuga Neji." Hinata tells him brusquely as she sinks into her stance.

"Aburame Shino." He says as he raises his fists. Hinata waits for him to say more, but he doesn't. He doesn't tease her, he doesn't smirk. In fact, she can't even see his eyes behind his glasses.

A gong sounds and Hinata knows that their battle must begin. But Shino-san doesn't make the first move. So Hinata must instead. Unfortunately, just like running, men are naturally stronger. She knows that from her many spars with her cousin. Things would've been different if she prepared her muscles before coming here. But she didn't. Hinata had no idea she'd be fighting in the army, let alone fighting at all.

No, Hinata isn't stronger than the other samurai. But maybe she can be quicker. She launches herself at Shino, hoping that a quick jab will be enough to send him tumbling and ensure her victory. He quickly dodges and strikes her in the back in response. Hinata stumbles forward, but she doesn't fall. Shino moves to strike any vital spot towards the front of Hinata's body, but she spins around on her heels and blocks it with her other arms. After blocking, she takes a strong step forward in preparation to strike. With gritted teeth and an outstretched palm, Hinata slams her hand into Shino's stomach. He lets out a grunt, but remains standing. Even though she admires his strength, she's still envious. A hit like that would have her flat on her back.

Shino comes back with an intense swing, but Hinata forces herself to be swift. She falls to her knee to dodge before completely striking him once again in the chest. She then uses his own leg to prop herself up and deliver her knee to his chin.

She manages to knock him out. Before his head completely smacks against the ground, Hinata grabs the hood he wears and sets him gently against the dirt. She looks up from her spar to see Captain Uchiha watching her. He wears his constant unreadable expression and gives her a nod. His eyes shift from her own slowly as he looks back towards his other men.

Hinata's gaze follows his. Some of the samurai are still fighting, but most of them have wrapped up their spars as well. She notices Choji standing above his opponent and she flashes him a smile. He grins back happily. A couple others that remain standing include Inuzuka and even some soldiers that Hinata recognizes from her first scuffle.

"Those who have won, move to the next available fighter. We're doing this until the last man standing." Captain Uchiha commands his men.

Hinata notices that their company has always been on the smaller side. She guesses they have about fifty men, ten of them are samurai. She can tell the status of the men by the rings they wear on their thin training belts. If they had two, one for their katana and one for their wakizashi, they were samurai.

But of the ten samurai, two of them being Shikamaru and Captain Uchiha, five have already been eliminated. Twenty five men are left. Hinata knows that she will more than likely not be the last man, but she has to try.

She squares her shoulders and moves to the next pit. It's not a samurai, but a soldier. He has a rag on his head and what looks like a piece of sweet straw from the field by the lake within his mouth. Hinata immediately frowns as he smirks cockily. Her bow is only half-heartedly returned. She tries to relax before the spar, but all she can feel is Captain Uchiha's eyes centered on the back of her head. Why is he still watching her? Is he waiting for her to fail? Is he trying to find another excuse to send her home?

She moves her leg back and places her left hand forward. If he's waiting for her to fail, he's going to be disappointed. She'll make sure of it.

She imagines the person in front of her is not a soldier with knobby knees, but Captain Uchiha himself. As soon as the gong sounds, he rushes at her with a yell. She moves her foot in a calm circle, forcing herself to take a deep breath. She can practically hear Neji in her head telling her where to plant her feet, where to strike her enemy. It's strangely comforting.

Her other foot locks itself with her opponent and she immediately makes him fall into a heap. She unlocks her leg, twists herself out of the way of his lazy fists and smacks her open palm into his throat. He lets out a sound that would make her laugh under different circumstances. But even though Hinata is almost positive her opponent can't breathe from her strike, he still manages to catch her hand and yank it to the ground. She rolls to avoid falling on top of him, throws her legs towards the sky and pulls herself back up.

Hinata raises her palm once more, waiting for her opponent to make his next move.

"What's wrong?" He groans as he holds his neck. "Too scared to strike while I'm on the ground?"

"It is dishonorable." She replies, her legs still taut. He twists his legs in an attempt to bring her back onto the floor, but Hinata is too light on her feet. She jumps over them and plunges her palm down into his chest. He lets out a cough and raises his hands in surrender.

"Okay, Hyuga. You got me." He says quietly. Hinata gives him a smile before offering her hand. He wraps his hand around her forearm and pulls himself to his feet. They each give the other another bow.

"Shirunai Genma." He says with a genuine smile. "And I know who you are, Neji-san. What an honor to be beaten by one of the last noble Hyuga's. My father knew your father. You're a lot…smaller than I thought you'd be."

"That's what everyone says. But even with my size, I still managed to take you down." Hinata says slyly in her deep voice that has practically become second nature. Genma looks at her with an eyebrow raised before his face bursts open in a laugh. Hinata thinks he looks much better laughing.

"Were you two given permission to socialize? Hyuga, move on to your next match!" Captain Uchiha scolds. Genma gives her an apologetic look as he scrambles out of their ring.

Hinata figures there has to be about twelve of them left. However, she didn't give herself enough time to analyze her remaining competitors. So when a golden haired samurai slides into her ring, she has no prior knowledge on what he may be capable of. Hinata gives the standard bow which is quickly returned.

They square off and Hinata immediately knows this one is going to fight differently. The other two attempted to barrage her with fists. The blonde samurai crouches low to the ground, his hands outstretched in a circle. His blue eyes analytical, his body tactical.

Hinata doesn't think it'll matter. He'll lose to her anyway. Neji could easily beat all the samurai and soldiers here. And he taught her everything she knows. She cannot tarnish his name, his honor.

Hinata closes her eyes for the briefest second and imagines Neji next to her, guiding her through the steps. She charges forward, mentally seeing every weak point in his body.

He goes to hit her chest, but she blocks it away with her forearm and counters with her other hand aiming straight for his stomach. The samurai lets out a grunt, but also dodges her advance. Hinata allows her feet to carry her in the dance of the Hyuga fighting style and she practically floats around him as he attempts to barrage her. Eventually, he slips up and Hinata drives her palm so hard into his chest that he flies out of the ring. She slowly lowers her hand, knowing that she has won.

Both the samurai and Shikamaru look at her with almost surprised expressions. She just bows.

"Well, I guess we can't really be surprised." Shikamaru says with a laugh.

Hinata has now beat three opponents. The final fight must be getting closer, right? She turns to scan her competition, but only finds the eyes of Captain Uchiha instead.

"All of you that have won, come forward." He commands in a monotone voice. Hinata steps out of her ring and towards her captain. Her eyes flit around to see Choji, a samurai who appears to be no more than a boy, two soldiers, and the Inuzuka who hates her. He's made it this far? Strange. Hinata thinks he must have had easy competition. There are six of them left. Six out of around fifty.

"You six are either here by skill, talent, or plain dumb luck. My guess is the latter. Either way, we can do this two ways. You can pick your opponent, or I can pick for you. Whoever wins it all gets to skip tomorrow's run." His eyes slide to Hinata and Choji at the last part. "And I know to some of you, that's the greatest reward I can offer."

Hinata's eyes slide over to the Inuzuka and she practically begs him to pick her. She raises her eyebrow at him cockily and he takes the bait, pointing a fat finger in her direction. Choji ends up getting paired with the soldier with extremely bushy eyebrows, and the extremely young samurai will fight the other soldier who has almost translucent skin.

Captain Uchiha looks between all of his men before taking a step back. They're not the fights he would've chosen, but either way, he's impressed. He holds a hand up, signaling for all of them to ready themselves.

The Inuzuka holds his hands out as if they were claws. One sits near his face while the other is near his chest. His legs are wide, but not sturdy. Hinata can tell just from this that he doesn't fight with technique. He fights wildly, like an animal.

He snarls as he makes the first move, his right hand intent on slashing open her face. Hinata dodges, almost sloppily, surprised by the boldness of his attack.

Did she embarrass him that badly? Does he have no honor? If his attack is to land, he'll scar her face. However, speed and agility are not things Hinata lacks. She dodges him with a quick flip into the air and lands on the other side of him, her palm at the ready. She needs to send him to the ground, and fast..

She sends her left arm quickly towards his face. It first collides with his cheek, and then comes for a second retaliation against his chest. She hears him groan, but he doesn't give up yet. Her opponent finds his way back to his feet, and raises his hands once more as if they were claws. Similar to her own Hyuga dance, this must be the way of the Inuzuka. It was violent and terrifying, but it was effective.

This time, Hinata makes the first move. She almost smirks as she finds an opening and punches her palm straight into his chin, just as she has done the day of their first encounter. Part of her wants to mock him for allowing her to have an opening that she had already had, but the majority of her still retains her honor. Despite his initial rashness, he fought well.

Whenever Hinata fights someone, it feels as if time almost moves in slow motion. But then, once it's done, she realizes mere minutes have passed. The strategizing and build up and execution all happen in rapid succession. This has been the case with all of the spars today and she begins to wonder if it'll be the case with any real battles. The thought makes her palms uneasy and she wipes them against her pants.

Eventually, Inuzuka raises his head from the mat, his eyes spinning comically. "You beat me. Again. How? You're tiny, like a little girl!" He wails. Hinata has to fight to keep her eyes from widening.

"Inuzuka! If we die, it's with honor. Same goes for losing. Stand up and walk it off." Captain Uchiha orders. He gets up with another grunt, avoiding Hinata's gaze. She turns away from him to see who's left. Both Choji and the smaller samurai have been eliminated. It was now her and two soldiers, one of them being Lee.

She walks over to them, extending an arm in congratulations. They both take it. Lee gives her a grin while the other one remains almost intimidatingly neutral.

"There are three of you left. That's clearly a difficult number to narrow down. Why don't we make things more interesting?" Captain Uchiha says as he shrugs off his blades. "What do you think, men?" He roars to the rest of the soldiers and samurai. They all let out convincing cries of agreement. Hinata gulps. He's not taking his swords off for some inexplicable reason. He intends to fight.

He unties his training tunic and drops it down on the ground next to his blades. Unlike Hinata, Captain Uchiha has had plenty of time to work on building his figure. His chest and arms are broad, and his stomach looks like it would hurt Hinata's hand to try and hit. She wants to roll her eyes. But that would be an action Hinata would do. She's Neji.

"Fight me, Hyuga. Let us see who's family trained them better." He says as he raises his fists. "And you two," He starts as his eyes slide over to the remaining soldiers. "Whoever wins may get something of a recommendation from me."

The men have all gone silent as they scoot closer around the two remaining matches. Most of the soldiers watch the match between Lee and the other one, while all of the samurai and some of the soldiers crane their necks to get a better look at Hinata and Captain Uchiha.

Sasuke's stance is different from all the other men she's faced. His feet are planted and squared off, but his hands are in loose fists. Her eyes flit from them back to his face as she tries to form some type of plan. Unlike all her other opponents, he's more than likely both faster and stronger than her. Plus, if he manages to strike her chest, he's smart enough to potentially realize that something is off. This isn't just a fight to skip out on running the next morning. This is a fight to keep her identity a secret.

The nerves already bundle in Hinata's stomach and she takes a deep breath to calm herself. She will not be herself at this moment. Technically, she hasn't been herself all day. But for this fight, she has to believe it. She has to truly think she's Neji. Because Neji doesn't lose, he doesn't waver. He fights with everything he has. He's protected her and their clan over and over, almost forfeiting his own life in the process. He was Hinata's hero. No, that's not right. She is her own hero. For she is Neji.

Hinata takes a different stance. It's not the one that she's comfortable with, but it's the one Neji is. Her right knee is bent at her side while her left leg points straight out and down. Her right arm is pulled back and over her head while the left hand is straight out in front of her, loose. This technique and style had never been taught to her. It's for the heir of the Hyuga to use. Neji attempted to teach it to her once, back when they were kids, but she had hushed him quiet and told him she'd never need it. That she'd always have him to protect her. Her white eyes narrow and she finally releases the breath that she had been holding.

Sasuke had been paying close attention to Hyuga Neji. The Uchiha clan has always been known to be able to quickly learn and replicate their enemy's style, but the one that was now in front of him was incredibly different. He could tell it was something ancient, something near impenetrable. The Hyuga's eyes are alight with a fire that Sasuke had not yet seen from him. So far, he had gathered that Neji was reserved, but strong. He was polite, but would not accept disrespect to himself or his clan. Sasuke was actually starting to respect the cousin of the stuttery but strong heiress he had originally encountered. Then again, he respected her too.

The men begin to cheer for their favorite. Captain Uchiha's name is obviously the loudest, but Hinata does hear an odd "Neji-san" here or there. She forces her ears to shut out the noise, to shut out everything.

Sasuke moves first. He runs forward, his right hand cocked to strike. Hinata moves the arm that's low to her side, quickly knocking his hit aside. She forces herself to remain neutral at the feeling of his fist against her forearm. Sure, it hurt. But Neji wouldn't make a noise to indicate the pain. Neji would move his right leg forward in an attempt to enter his enemy's range. So she does. Her palms are open as she aims for his vital points. The heart, the stomach, the throat, the weak spot on the collar, the small spot on the corner of his under arm. Her eyes feel as if they're going to fly out of her head as she attempts to keep up with his speed. Luckily her own limbs are moving on pure instinct. She moves her other arm now, attempting to bring it into the offense of the situation instead of a strict defense. But her captain flips out of the way, sending a swift kick into her thigh in order to do it.

The impact sends her back slightly, but she quickly regains her balance and spins, sending one of her palms towards him. He grabs her wrist and uses her own weight to attempt to yank her to the ground. But Hinata twists while simultaneously throwing one of her legs backwards.

Their momentum keeps trading off as they constantly fight for any kind of upper hand. Captain Uchiha is much stronger and every hit he lands makes Hinata wince. He's also equally as fast as her, probably even faster. She hasn't dodged any of his hits. All she can do is redirect them to different, less important parts of her body.

He lets out a frustrated snarl as she continues to absorb his attacks. The rest of the soldiers watch them in a mix of shock, admiration, and jealousy. Uchiha Sasuke's talent was known throughout the encampment. He was placed in his position by General Uzumaki himself for his fighting abilities. They all thought of him as an untouchable legend. But now, a Hyuga heir who had never seen war was able to keep up with him.

Hinata knows that she doesn't have much left in her. The earlier observation of her battles feeling as if they lasted mere minutes seemed almost laughable in her mind. She had been fending off Sasuke for years, decades. The exhaustion from her run begins to return and she knows that if she doesn't try to end this soon, he'll humiliate her. She searches her brain for some secret strategy that Neji may have taught her that she somehow forgot about. The other men fell under her attacks as if they were stalks of wheat. But Captain Uchiha is sturdy. Her palms aren't able to catch him off guard.

At the last minute, an idea pops into her head. She's not sure how well it'll work, but she knows if she doesn't try, her fight will end without her landing a single blow. Hinata gathers all of her courage and practically throws her own body into Sasuke's fist. She lets out a gasp as his hand connects with her stomach and the remnants of her lunch threaten to spill up. But she can tell by the ache in her own hand that her idea had worked. Captain Uchiha had been hit. In his own desperation to hit her where it matters, the meat of her palm had finally made contact with the side of his cheek. She strikes him so hard that he immediately takes a step back.

Hinata falls to a single knee, holding her stomach and squinting her eyes. "Don't throw up." She whispers to herself over and over again. By the time she finally lifts her gaze, she sees Captain Uchiiha rotating his jaw from one side to the other. If she wasn't fighting with her own body, she'd smile.

In the long run, she didn't win. She's not the superior samurai. But she doesn't care. Hyuga Neji would be remembered all throughout her encampment as not only one of the best, but the one to hit Uchiha Sasuke.

Notes:

I accidentally wrote eight pages of Hinata kicking ass and I won't apologize- hope you enjoyed

Chapter 6

Notes:

Rei-Respect

(See the end of the chapter formore notes.)

Chapter Text

Hinata pulls back the string of her bow, positioning her elbow just as Neji taught her long ago. She squints at the target in front of her. Most of the men around her have been hitting the hearts or heads of the straw dummies. Hinata had not been so lucky. She had managed to lodge some arrows in the neck and the stomach, but Captain Uchiha had already lowered himself to be right in front of her face while telling her this was not up to his standard. He didn't want their enemies to have messy deaths. It was either the chest or the head, or nothing. This made Hinata's mouth dry. Sometimes, she forgets the training she's currently undergoing is not some extreme sleep away camp. The samurai and soldiers present are training for war.

She releases her hold on the bowstring and her arrow finds the chest. Hinata allows herself a sigh of relief. Finally.

"I was never taught archery. My father didn't think it was necessary for a warrior of my size to learn." Choji tells her as he pulls back his own bowstring.

"I was taught it. But it was not one of the things that I was regularly trained in." Hinata says in agreement.

Choji lets out a snort. "Yeah that's apparent. Your father and uncle must've made you fight until you dropped. You're incredible, Neji-kun." He compliments as he misses his mark. He then turns to her, flashing a big smile. "The thought of you with your blades terrifies me."

It's been a week at the training camp and Hinata is doing her best to survive. Her days have been full of morning runs, afternoon spars, evening special training sessions, and lonely nights. But Hinata thinks she's making decent progress. Her stamina has already begun to improve and other skills that she never thought to drill at home, such as archery, were becoming easier.

After her fight with Captain Uchiha, the men had begrudgingly accepted her. Lee, the final standing soldier, even declared her as his friend. She was surprised at this since their initial interaction ended up with him on the floor, but she wasn't complaining.

"Hopefully you'll never have to see me with them." She responds quietly as she strings another arrow. Choji doesn't seem to notice her words.

"Nock your last arrow! If anyone misses the chest or the head, not only will they receive dinner last, they'll have to run the entire perimeter of the lake before receiving it!" Captain Uchiha's voice booms. Hinata has a theory that he likes to be feared. Or maybe he wants respect and overcompensates. Either way, her opinion on him the past week hasn't exactly changed. He pushes her harder than all of the other samurai. She must not only fight the best, but shoot the farthest, ride the swiftest, even eat the most! Hinata's not sure why, but she's sick of the attention. She wishes he'd focus on someone like Kiba who actually wants to be here. If Captain Uchiha walked up to her and told her that she could go home with no repercussions, she wouldn't look back.

"Loose!" He commands. Hinata releases her arrow and prays to her ancestors that it will find its mark. She relaxes her bow at her side when the arrow sinks into her straw dummy's head. Some of the men around her groan and begin to run. Hinata does not envy them.

Choji throws an arm around her in shared relief and they make their way to the dinner line. The food at the camp is almost the same every day. Fruit, rice and boiled eggs for breakfast. Fried eggs, rice and steamed vegetables for lunch. Dinner is where the most leniency happens. Sometimes, it's skewered chicken on a bed of rice. Other times it's noodles with fat slabs of pork. But most of the time, it's fish and rice with the same, spicy sauce overtop. Hinata is sick of all of it. And whenever she thinks about eating it, her nose wrinkles in disgust. But just as the food is always similar, so is her reaction to receiving it. She sits next to Choji and gobbles it down without complaint. Training to please Captain Uchiha was famishing work.

Today was fish and rice. Hinata receives her bowl with a frown and follows Choji to their usual slab of grass. Most of the time, they sit alone and Hinata listens to Choji talk about almost everything. His family, his clan, the girl he admires, the strength of their emperor, and the state of their world. Hinata always listens, happy that he doesn't press her to talk about her own home life.

Sometimes Shikamaru-san joins them. But that's only when Captain Uchiha takes his food in his tent. When Captain Uchiha eats with his men, almost all the other samurai swarm him.

But today, their slab of familiar grass is already occupied. The smallest samurai, Sarutobi Konohamaru, sits in it, his head down in what Hinata assumes is defeat. Besides Choji, Konohamaru is Hinata's favorite. He's Hanabi's age, a mere child in her eyes. After a few days, she finally gathered her courage and asked him why he was here. Konohamaru told her that he would be trained under Captain Uchiha and then brought back to Konoha before their regiment joined the fronts. This filled Hinata with undeniable relief. It was one thing for Kasai to draft men from every family and clan. But to force children to fight? The thought made her ill.

"Hi Konohamaru-kun. Everything okay?" Hinata asks as she sits next to him and balances her bowl on her knee. They were friendly to each other in passing, but usually Konohamaru spent his time with a younger soldier and Senju Hashi, a samurai and distant relative of Tsunade. Since she fled the capital and her life as a clan head, it was then passed down to someone else.

Hinata didn't know enough about Konoha politics, but Choji had been slowly filling her in.

Apparently, Tsunade fell in love with a soldier. And when he died in the war before the one that took Hinata's own father, she fled, leaving behind her titles and her land. Hinata never knew her older friend's story was so tragic.

"It's my uncle. I got news that his regiment was moving out." His eyes find Choji's. "Asuma's going to the front."

Choji's eyes widen in recognition and Hinata immediately squirms, almost feeling uncomfortably out of the loop.

"Don't worry, Konohamaru. Asuma-san is strong. He's a great leader and an even better fighter. He'll be able to take care of himself." Choji reassures. Hinata nods her head in agreement, even though she has no idea what either of them are talking about.

Konohamaru looks at Choji and gives a slight nod. "That's what Shikamaru-san said too. But after what happened with Grandfather…I just can't help but be nervous."

"Your nerves are a weakness." A voice says from above them. Hinata looks up to see Captain Uchiha. He looks down at the young Sarutobi with a frown. "People die. It's a part of war. Your grandfather died with honor. Don't take that away from him by whining or crying. You're a man, Sarutobi. Act like it."

"Yes, Captain." Konohamaru responds routinely.

"There is nothing wrong with being worried about someone you love. It doesn't make you any less of a man." Hinata tells him, ignoring her captain's hard gaze. Konohamaru looks down at his food, too nervous to react with Sasuke standing above him.

"Are you suggesting that I'm wrong, Hyuga?" Sasuke says coldly.

"Your idea of masculinity is unflinching and cold. Mine is different. That's all, Captain." Hinata responds as she tilts her head to meet his gaze. The setting sun shadows his back and makes it hard to read his expression. But she assumes he can't be happy with her. Then again, he never is.

Sasuke leans down, poised on his knees. He looks between the three of them, deciding that they all need to hear his words. "Loving makes you weak. There is no room for it in this world."

"I have loved and been loved." Hinata argues. "And I am not weak. My family makes me fight harder. Without it, I doubt I'd be here."

"You'd put your family over the emperor? Over your country?" He asks with a raised eyebrow. His words don't sound mad, they sound almost surprised.

Hinata swallows, debating on what to say. She would put her family over anyone. But then again, that was her own answer. Would Neji agree? He has more honor than her. As soon as the men rolled up to their home with the conscription notice, he was ready to give his life to serve. Her own father chose his country over his family. At least, that's how she always saw it.

"Loving my family and wanting to protect my country obviously correlate." She answers, finally understanding a part of her father's sacrifice. "Konohamaru-kun's devotion to his uncle just proves his faith in our country."

"If you believe that, then maybe you are a fool." Sasuke says while standing back up. He doesn't give them a second glance before walking over to the rest of the samurai.

"He's right." Konohamaru says stiffly. "If I am to be a true warrior someday, I need to let go of love. It is not written in the way of the warrior."

"Well, maybe it should be." Hinata says tersely while picking at her food. She has strangely lost her appetite.

~

The next morning, Hinata and Choji still run alone. But at breakfast, Konohamaru joins them. Then, after their spars, he brings Hashi over too.

Hinata learns that Hashi was named after the first emperor of their country. He is a nephew of Tsunade's, at least that's what Hinata thinks. She didn't want to pry.

Then, after lunch, the samurai and soldiers separate for different types of training. Soldiers go over more combat skills while the samurai all sit in a circle and discuss strategy. Hinata thinks this is even more exhausting than their other training.

Captain Uchiha will call on them randomly on what choices they would've taken in past battles. If it's an answer he agrees with, he remains silent. If it's not, he'll berate the man and tell him he's responsible for their imaginary regiment's death. Hinata has never been ridiculed, but she knows it's only a matter of time.

However, this strategy lesson goes by almost uncharacteristically smooth. Their captain doesn't yell at anyone. He just gives absent nods or blank stares.

Dinner was Hinata's biggest surprise. Soba, tofu and peppers. She and Choji are once again joined by Konohamaru and Hashi. Then afterwards, Hinata heads to her tent for another uneasy night. Most of the time she lays awake thinking of her irreversible fate of going to battle. Other times she thinks of her family. And sometimes, on a particularly painful night, she thinks of her father. She thinks selfish thoughts like if he would've lived, she wouldn't have to be here right now. Then, she feels guilty for even considering horrible things. The guilt keeps her awake and her mind delves deeper inside itself.

These nights are as consistent as her training days. And tonight, when Hinata's eyes still refuse to close, she gives up. She throws on one of Neji's shirts she brought from home, grabs her soap, and heads down to the lake. Hinata knows the rest of the world is sleeping, but she sneaks anyway. Every time she bathes here, it's in the middle of the night. She can't see a foot in front of her, but that's just how she likes it. If Hinata can't see herself, then some odd soldier who woke up to pee or something won't see her either.

She follows her usual path and squints at the steam coming off the lake. Her hand finds the water and she gives a small relieved smile. It's warm. Hinata looks around before taking off her loose top. She bathes in her undergarments, but still, without loose clothes, she knows she looks extremely feminine. Her chest and bottom betray her.

Hinata slides into the water, allowing herself a quiet sigh of relief. The warm waves immediately relax her tired muscles. She paddles around on her back for a bit before turning back around and quickly scrubbing her body down. As much as she wants to, Hinata can't spend any extra time in the lake. Of course, her favorite place is also the most dangerous.

"Who's there?" A cold voice cuts through the foggy night. Hinata's stomach immediately tightens in pure fear. It's Captain Uchiha! He's in the water! What could he possibly be doing here at this time?!

"It's Neji, Captain." She says quietly. "I couldn't sleep again. I thought I might as well use my night wisely. But, I think I'm just going to head in now. Sorry for the disruption." She says, her usual deep voice almost non-existent.

"Wait." He tells her. Hinata doesn't want to wait. She wants to drown herself here and now.

She can hear Captain Uchiha drawing closer and she immediately tries to back up in response. The water moves around her sloppily and she's squatting to keep her entire body besides her head covered. Her hair falls flat against her head in a dark helmet. Eventually, she sees him in the water. He's not hiding himself like she is and his entire chest and part of his stomach are bare.

"You truly miss your family so much that it inhibits your sleep?" Her captain asks her. His hair is damp and fans around his face. She's so used to seeing it pushed back that the sight of it against his cheeks and forehead almost surprises her. Hinata lowers herself deeper into the water, dipping her chin in.

"Yes, among other things." She answers honestly. Her hands are crossed in front of her chest and she feels more naked, more exposed than ever. If he were to take two steps closer, he may be able to see the curve of her breasts in her wraps.

"Why are you sitting like that?" He finally asks her.

"Because it's colder in the air." She says lamely after the pause of silence gets too long.

Sasuke drops his own body into water, only allowing his head to poke through. If she wasn't so terrified, the sight of just his head floating above the water would make her laugh. "Huh. You're right." He says. He's now level with her and he moves his arms through the water in a swimming motion. They draw so close to her that she could reach forward and touch him.

"Well, enjoy your swim. I should go try to sleep, I'm sure we have a long day tomorrow." Hinata attempts to back up, but a sudden thought occurs to her. Even though the fog and lack of stars makes it hard to see, she'll still have to pull her womanly body out of the lake. She needs to stall. Maybe she can make him so uncomfortable that he has to leave? But that could backfire in more ways than one.

"I push you hard for a reason, Hyuga." Sasuke says shortly, ignoring her farewell. "At first it was for the emperor. But I intend to get you home to the family you're so obsessed with."

Hinata blinks in surprise, but his own expression remains emotionless. He must mean it.

"I appreciate it, Captain Uchiha. But I meant what I said the other day. I fight for my family by serving the country." Hinata swallows as she considers the words that sit on the tip of her tongue. "To die protecting them would be an honor." And she means it too. The realization stuns her and she begins to shiver, but not from the water or the cooling air. She is willing to die for her family, yes. But the extent of her loyalty has grown. The thought of condemning Choji or Shikamaru, or even Lee fills her with dread. She would die for them too.

Sasuke continues looking at her with emotionless, black eyes. Hinata has always thought the Hyuga eyes were so unique. They were void of all color in a way that reflects everything. When Hanabi was a baby, Hinata used to stare at her sister's eyes in awe as they would change with the passing of the day. They were colorless but still so full of reflections of the rest of the world. But now, after looking at his eyes, she realizes there's an opposite beauty. His are colorless in a different way. A sturdier way. No matter the time of day, color of the sky, or even emotion his face registers, they will remain unflinchingly black. Consistently his own. Hinata likes it.

"Have you ever lost someone, Hyuga?" He asks her.

"I have." She responds as the list of names pops up in her head.

"Then you know how grief feels. You know the suffocating affects it entraps you in." He begins in a tone that is no longer neutral. "You cannot die. Because if you are as loved as you claim to be, it will tear your cousins apart."

Cousins. He means her. He means Hinata. She wants to question him and ask why he even cares. But for once, her fearless captain doesn't appear so fearless. He looks vulnerable with his damp hair and bare arms that float around her.

"And what about you?" She finally asks him softly. He lets out a scoff.

"Uchihas are raised to give themselves over to the emperor, to our country. I am no different."

"Yes, but your family? They'll grieve for you too." She reminds him.

His eyes finally show a hint of emotion. "I live to die for the Uchiha and my emperor. There will be no mourning. There will only be a new man to step up and replace me."

Hinata doesn't know how to answer. This situation has grown far too awkward for her taste. She's talking to her captain, to the man who she could've married, while they both wear the smallest amount of clothing possible in a lake mere paces away from their encampment filled with her fellow samurai and soldiers. But the situation seems like it needs something. Hinata can't talk to him. But Neji can. After another long pause, she clears her throat in an attempt to bring back the gravel of her fake voice. "We would mourn you, Captain Uchiha. The samurai here all look at you as if you conquered our land yourself." She tells him honestly.

"And you? How do you look at me?" He asks her, his chin resting against the top of the lake.

She used to look at him as a stuck-up, snarky, intolerable man who only cared about himself. But even though their conversation was short, he was now different. Sure, he's still difficult and insulting, but he is not heartless. Even if he pretends to be. But why does he care about Neji's opinion?

"I look at you as a capable leader and a fierce warrior." She answers, hoping it's what he wants to hear.

Sasuke lets out an agitated breath. Her answer must've been incorrect. For some strange reason unbeknownst to her, she wants to change it. She wants it to be right. Despite his constant criticism of her, their initial first meeting, and his overall cold demeanor, Hinata still finds herself wanting to find some way to make him feel better. But would it be too out of character for Neji?

The time she could've used to answer passes and Sasuke rises from the water, suddenly towering over her still crouching frame. She averts her gaze and stares at the position he was just in.

"Get to bed soon, Hyuga. Just because you're not tired now doesn't mean you won't be tomorrow." He tells her as he walks past her.

"Yes, Captain." She responds quietly. He pulls himself onto the shore almost silently and she adverts her eyes. Not that she could see him, even if she wanted to. Not that she wants to! Hinata counts the seconds in her head. When she gets to 500, she lathers herself up one last time before padding back towards the tents.

This time, when she returns to her bedroll in her private tent, her mind is full of all different things, including her captain.

Notes:

All of your comments on my last chapter were SO KIND I cannot thank you all enough. It makes it sooo much easier to write knowing I have people that actually enjoy my work and appreciate my story. Thank you thank you thank you :)

If you ever want to reach out to me for story questions, writing requests, or just to have a buddy, feel free to contact me on Tumblr! My name is the same as on here. Hope this chapter was fun for you all hehe

Chapter 7

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter fornotes.)

Chapter Text

Hinata's dulled practice blade clashes against Konohamaru's and she quickly disarms him. He lets out a groan as his blade flies farther away and clangs against a practice dummy.

"I can't beat you, Neji-kun! How did you ever learn to fight like that? Not only is your hand-to-hand incredible, but your skill with a blade too?!" Konohamaru raises his hand in exclamation.

Hinata gives him a bow and a small smile. She can't take any of the credit for her bladework. Neji taught her everything.

"Who were you trained by?" She asks in an attempt to change the subject. Hinata's trying to lie as little as possible. That way, in case she somehow manages to get her stories crossed one day, there will be as little damage to patch up as possible.

Luckily, Konohamaru takes the bait. "Well, Uncle Asuma taught me a lot. And then I had this one sensei," he rolls his eyes dramatically. "He was boring, but efficient I guess. But Naruto-san! Man, he was one good teacher."

She looks at him in surprise. "You were trained by General Uzumaki? That's incredible!" She gushes. Her voice slips from its usual deep tone at her excitement and she has to pass it off as a sneeze. Hinata has gotten quite used to passing off any voice changes as either a cough, sneeze or throat clear.

"Yeah, he's pretty cool." Konohamaru says admiringly. "But I think you may be able to face off with him, Neji-kun. You're incredible."

Hinata snorts. "I doubt it. I still can't even beat Captain." Hinata leans closer as if she's telling a secret. "And I heard that General Uzumaki is a way better fighter."

Konohamaru shrugs, either unable to answer or unwilling. He peeks at Hinata's swords that rest against one of the straw dummies.

"It's crazy cool you get to wield Hiashi-sama's weapons. For relics, they appear very efficient. I would hate to be on the other side of them."

Hinata raises her eyebrow. "My uncle's weapons are hardly relics." She argues with a gentle laugh. "How old do you think I am?"

He shrugs with a smirk. "You're an old man." He creeps past her and grabs the handle of her father's katana. After pulling it out of her black and gold sheathe, he admires the blade with an uplifted face.

Hinata crosses her arms and spreads her legs slightly. Her mannerisms have grown more and more masculine by the day. And one thing that she's picked up is that men love to stand as if they can't ever be knocked down. She thinks it's quite humorous.

"One day, I hope my blade is as legendary as this one." He says in awe. Despite his kind words, Hinata's shoulders still droop. Konohamaru immediately detects the mood change and he sheathes the blade, almost apologetically.

"Our weapons are not meant to be ogled, Sarutobi. They are tools, not souvenirs." Captain Uchiha says as he steps into their ring. Hinata immediately frowns. Today was one of their rare days where all of the samurai and soldiers had the day off to do whatever they wanted. Some people, like Kiba and Shikamaru, have spent the entire day sleeping. Choji was in the kitchen seeing if there was anything extra he could siphon from the cooks. But Hinata was not good at sitting around and doing nothing. So, she recruited Hashi and Konohamaru to train with her. However, Hashi quickly got bored and is now reading by the lake.

Seeing her captain was the last thing she wanted to do today. It had been about a week since their conversation in the lake. He chose the route of acting like it didn't happen at all. In fact, Hinata thinks he's been taking it extra hard on her during their spar sessions. She still has bruises on her stomach from where his left knee made contact with it during their last session.

"Yes, Captain." Konohamaru replies glumly. Sasuke takes the katana from his hand and investigates it. He takes a step away from the young samurai and swings it over his head with such force that Hinata flinches.

Sasuke has been watching Neji's bladework since he originally came to camp. The Hyuga is very skilled with his katana and wakizashi, just as he is with his fists.

"If I may ask, Hyuga, why do you use your uncle's weapons and not your fathers?" Sasuke implores. He doesn't know why Neji interests him so much. Maybe because unlike all the other people at this camp, he doesn't look at Sasuke like he's some indomitable force.

"My uncle was head of the Hyuga, just as I am." Hinata answers hurriedly. "It only makes sense to wield his blades. Will your father's blades be passed to you someday?"

Konohamaru flinches at the question. He always forgets Neji was not raised in Konoha. He's unaware of Fugaku's death.

"No." Sasuke answers shortly. "I am not meant to lead the Uchiha. My brother wields them."

"Your brother already wields them?" She asks gently, knowing what this means. Just like her, Sasuke's father is already dead.

Sasuke's jaw hardens, but he doesn't snap at the Hyuga. Out of all the people here, he assumes Neji is the one that understands the pain of losing a father the most.

"My father died in the same war that took your own. But his death is not a spectacle. He served his country well. That's all any Uchiha could ask for." "His death may not be a spectacle, but it's okay to mourn him. It's okay to feel the pain of his loss. And I don't mean from a strategic point of view. I mean from the point of view of a son losing a father." She reminds him.

"Mourning makes one weak. And I cannot afford to be weak." His voice has grown venomous and Konohamaru automatically takes a step back. There are few that can reason with Sasuke. He's seen Naruto do it firsthand, and it wasn't pretty. He wishes he could pull his friend Neji out of there as soon as possible.

Hinata debates on how to respond. She knows Sasuke quite well at this point. He doesn't need coddling or comfort. He needs reason. She stands on the balls of her feet and takes a deep breath.

"There was a day a couple years ago when foreign men, I'm guessing they were deserters, attempted to overtake my lands. I lost people I cared deeply about." She feels her heart slow at the memory, but she still forces herself to keep talking. "I wasn't strong enough to fight yet. There were mothers who needed me, children who I couldn't defend. I almost lost my cousins." Hinata looks up at her captain, banishing the shadow of the memory away. "I will mourn the people I lost from that day for the rest of my life. Do you believe me to be weak?"

Sasuke's gaze softens. The Hyuga in front of him was many things. Annoyingly persistent. Extremely slow. Strangely short. Frustratingly opinionated. But not weak. Never weak. He gives a slight shake of his head.

Hinata nods in response. Sasuke remains quiet, but he resheathes her blade and runs a hand along the hilt.

"It's a fine blade." He finally says.

Despite Sasuke's tone, Hinata finds herself stepping closer to him anyway. She holds out her hand with a single eyebrow raised in question. Her captain slowly grabs his own katana and hands it to her.

She eyes the straight-edged blade that appears so different from her own. After taking an elegant step backwards, she holds it out in front of her. Hinata's left leg makes the smallest circle in the dirt as she spins the blade in her left hand. Her right hand remains close to her side, two fingers pointed upwards as if she were sparring her cousin. She closes her eyes, feeling nothing more than the movement of the weapon in her hand and the earth around her.

Sasuke watches Neji with his hands clenched against his sides. He's always thought himself so unpolished in his movements. Sure, his stance and attacks were always effective, but he looked angry, spiteful. But this was something entirely different. He's seen Hyuga trip over his own feet on more than one occasion, but the display in front of him was more than elegance. It was a living version of a rainstorm. Terrifying. Powerful. Capable of washing away everything. But still graceful. Still entrancing.

Hinata finishes a final spin and completely hacks off the head of one of the straw dummies. At last, she opens her eyes and takes a deep breath. When she turns, Konohamaru stares at her with a bright smile. Sasuke, however, looks at her in what she can only describe as shock.

"Apologies, Captain. I've just never held a blade of such power. It's quite impressive." She says as she hands it back to him. Sasuke accepts it with a slight dip of his head. He then turns away and walks away from her without a further word.

Hinata turns to Konohamaru with a raised eyebrow. "Did I offend him somehow?"

The young samurai just gives her a knowing glance. "I suspect it was quite the opposite."

~

Yet another week has passed of their training and Hinata knows the time for war is closer than ever. Shikamaru and Captain Uchiha officially announced that they sent word to Emperor Namikaze for evaluation. Soon, somebody will be at their encampment to decide who's fit for battle. The thought is more than terrifying. She knows that skill wise, she's ready. But mentally? Hinata still seizes up in a panic every night at the thought of even stepping foot on a battlefield.

But the war outside their peaceful camp rages on. Every few days, Captain Uchiha will get a report and he'll head to his tent with a frown. Then, he won't return for the rest of the day. The front is drawing closer and closer to Konoha. Hinata can only pray that her own village and lands remain unscathed. She knows it's selfish, but Konoha has some of the finest samurai in Kasai guarding its borders. Her farm has nothing.

Hinata currently sits with her legs knotted together and her blades across her lap in the giant tent that shields them from the rain that currently holds them indoors. Captain Uchiha had attempted to make best use of their time by going over strategy, but eventually, even he got tired of the never ending discussion of their past country's failures.

"I truly don't understand how you sit like that. Isn't it painful?" Choji asks her with a wince.

"Yeah. I mean, it's gotta be splitting your dick wide open." Kiba says distastefully, interjecting himself in their conversation like always.

Hinata begins to choke on her spit in surprise and Choji gives her back a hard clap. She quickly stretches her stubby legs out and adjusts the seam of her pants in an attempt to make it look like she's making herself more comfortable. Unfortunately, the constant adjustments men make to their crotch are not something that have gone unnoticed to her.

"M-my undercarriage is none of your concern!" She retorts, her voice sounding more like Neji's than ever.

Kiba lets out a howl of laughter and Lee giggles, wiping away a fake tear. Even stoic Sai allows himself a smirk.

"What in the hell is an undercarriage? Why are you so prissy, Hyuga? For once in your life, curse! Talk about something inappropriate! Do anything that isn't the boring Clan Head behavior we're sick of." Kiba teases.

Hinata's face grows red and she looks at Choji for backup, but his face is trained on the ground.

"I don't see how my s-swearing proves anything! And I am not prissy, I'm classy!" She attempts to defend. But this makes her companions laugh even harder and she throws up her hands in defeat. "Fine!…Shit!"

They all grow silent. Kiba leans forward, his hands curling in the grass of their tent.

"That's disgusting, Hyuga. How do you ever expect to find a wife when you use such profanity?" He shakes his head in mock disappointment.

Choji betrays her and laughs. He then lets out a large fart which makes them laugh even more.

"You all are disgusting." Hinata says as she scoots farther away from the line of fire. "You act as if you were raised with pigs. So much for nobility and honor." She says as she tilts her head up in protest.

"Despite Neji-kun's resistance to cursing, I still believe he will be the first one of all of us to find a wife." Sai says suddenly, his voice cutting through their laughs and gas passing. Hinata peeks a nervous eye open. She doesn't like when they talk of marriage.

"And what makes you say that?" Lee asks as he leans his head on his elbows.

"You've seen the women that bring us our produce. Despite his lack of height, they still giggle and blush whenever they see him. He's just…pretty." Sai responds with a shrug.

Hinata feels her face grow red. He's right. On delivery days, Hinata tends to hide in the taller grass around the lake. For some reason, she has been flirted with more than once. Hinata wouldn't mind it if she was actually allowed to be herself. But she's not. She's Neji.

"I am not pretty. I am handsome!" She responds, forcing her voice to go as deep as possible. She puffs out her chest for good measure. Choji claps her on the back once again, but this time it's so hard she falls forward and sprawls out on the ground.

Before she knows it, the men begin to jump on top of her. First Lee, who gives her head a noogie. Then Kiba, who jumps on top of Lee and digs his hands into her shoulders. Then Choji, who practically wraps both arms around all three of them. Even Sai wraps an arm around Hinata.

In this moment, she allows her anxieties about the war to fade. She allows her anxieties about her femininity to fade. Because the person she is now, Hinata's Neji, has bonded with these men. They're her family. And of course, she misses her clan more than anything. But the persistent warriors who climb all over her back matter to her too. Despite the pain of their crushing weight and the lack of air in her lungs, Hinata smiles.

Notes:

Writing Hinata as Neji is so fun :) this chap had a mix of a bunch of emotions, hope you all liked it!

Chapter 8

Chapter Text

Hinata stands in a straight line with her hands behind her back. There are two samurai to her left and two to her right. Five others stand on the opposite side of her, including Captain Uchiha and Shikamaru-san who are on the end near a new, fancy tent. While her captain and second in command wear their formal armor, the rest of them wear a step down from it. It's similar to her father's hakama, but the one she wears now matches her fellow trainees.

Hinata has been training for well over a month. And while her growth was originally slow, she's proud to now say that she believes she is a capable samurai. Her hand-to-hand combat has flourished under Captain Uchiha's direction, and she can now run alongside the rest of the men without being left behind. Her blade skills were second only to her captain, plus she had been working closely with a couple of soldiers, almost as if she would soon be assigned her own squad. The thought was terrifying. Hinata never considered that she'd have to lead and take care of anyone but herself.

But today wasn't about her. Today, her entire regiment was getting evaluated. The samurai all click their heels together as a few horses clop into their camp. They were all instructed to look straight ahead, but Hinata's eyes still wander.

The first person she sees is General Uzumaki. He does not wear his samurai armor, and is instead dressed in more regal attire. Choji has told her about the fearless Uzumaki Naruto more than once now. He is loved all throughout Kasai for his bravery and compassion to all people, not just nobility. He had even married a clanless woman, one who Choji explained as "a rare beauty."

Hinata's eyes slide to the woman who rides next to the general and she has to stop her mouth from opening in astonishment. She may be the prettiest thing Hinata has ever seen. Her skin is fair and flawless,and her hands are adorned with all different kinds of gems. Even her dress is made of what Hinata can only assume is the finest silk. It's a spring green with imprinted gold flowers and the skirts and long sleeves blow dramatically behind her. Her pink hair is held in a regal bun on the top of her head and despite her royal status, she wears no crown. She smiles proudly at the soldiers who call to her and General Uzumaki. Hinata immediately knows she likes her.

Behind the general and his wife ride two fully armed guards. Neither wear armor, but Hinata can tell just by looking at them that they don't need it. The one closest to her has silver hair and a black mask pulled up over his nose. His katana and wakizashi rest on the side of his horse and he eyes her and her fellow men almost lazily. The other one holds his chin up extremely high and has short black hair. Hinata squints in an attempt to get a closer look. Not only does he have the symbol of Kasai, but the fan of the Uchiha is on his arm. A member of Sasuke's clan then. But he only has one blade at his side, so he's not a samurai. However, Hinata knows that his status must not matter considering he's helping watch over royalty.

"Sasuke!" General Uzumaki calls as he pulls his horse to a stop. He gets off his first before offering a hand to his wife. Hinata stares at her longingly. She has never wanted to be married. The idea of belonging to someone terrified her. But if marriage meant that she'd get to look at someone the way the princess looks at Naruto, maybe it wasn't such a bad thing.

Captain Uchiha steps out from his spot in the line up and gives them bows.

"General Uzumaki and Hime Sakura. It's an honor to have you both here." He says.

"Don't be so formal with us." Naruto says, giving the shoulder of his armor a punch. In return, Sasuke gives him a small smile. The ten samurai all feel as if they could faint in surprise. A smile from their fearless but terrifying captain? It couldn't be real.

Hinata looks towards the samurai directly across from her in order to avoid any chance of accidently meeting her captain's eyes.

"So, these are this regiment's recruits then, huh?" Naruto says as he faces them all, his hands behind his head in a relaxed position. "At ease." He commands. Some of the samurai immediately break away to go talk to him, including Choji. Others elbow each other to get closer to the princess. But Hinata is frozen in place. She didn't grow up with the heir to the throne like everyone else did. Choji made it sound like they were practically best friends. Naruto, Shikamaru and him used to hang out and cause trouble around the palace. Hinata was always desperate to hear about any flicker of Choji's pre-samurai life.

"And you must be Hyuga-san." A voice says, breaking her out of her concentration. She looks over to the source and sees the man with the mask. Despite only half of his face showing, he still looks quite kind.

Hinata gives him a bow. He's clearly a higher rank than her, but unlike the men that beat her in the street over a month ago, he's respectful. Maybe it's because she's now Neji. Or maybe it's just because he's genuinely a good person.

"H-how did you know?" She asks, suddenly nervous. Even though only half of his face is showing, Hinata thinks he's very attractive. He must be at least in his late thirties, but he appears youthful. His posture is relaxed and one of his fingerless-gloved hands is tucked into a pocket.

"You look just like your father, Hiashi-sama." He says as his other hand raises to his covered chin.

Hinata bows again. "Hiashi is my uncle. My cousin, Hinata-san, technically became the heir. But she rescinded her position to me."

His eyes widen. "Oh, my deepest apologies, Hyuga-san. I see the resemblance to Hizashi-sama too."

"It's quite alright. Just call me Neji." She tells him with a nod. He smiles underneath the mask.

"I'm Hatake Kakashi. But please, just Kakashi. I've never been one for formalities." He says as he waves his hand in front of him. The switch in Hinata's brain finally kicks. The Hatake are not a clan, but a smaller family. They were elevated to a much higher position by Emperor Namikaze after Hatake Sakumo's heroics in the war. Choji didn't tell her much else, but he said Kakashi's history is a little darker. Hinata didn't pry.

"Well it's wonderful to meet you…Kakashi." Hinata says at last as she decides to listen to his request on informalities. He gives her a pleased nod.

"Hyuga." Hinata immediately recognizes Captain Uchiha's voice and she turns to see not only him, but General Uzumaki and his wife.

"This is the famous Neji I've heard so much about, huh?" The son of the emperor says. Hinata's eyes widen at his words and she bows so low she's sure her back must crack. If he has heard anything about her, it must've been straight from the mouth of Captain Uchiha. Hinata can't figure out if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

"Your High–" she begins to say, but Kakashi quickly elbows her. She perks back up, ignoring the formalities.

"You're the one who caused a near riot the last time I came to visit!" He exclaims as he points at her. "Ah, you should've seen him, Sakura-kun. Short as he may be, he was swinging around some of these samurai like they were nothing."

Hinata finally makes eye contact with the beautiful princess and she feels her insides turn to goo. "I-I was just-" She takes a deep breath to gather herself. She is Neji. He does not stutter. "I didn't mean for it to get so out of hand that day, General-san. I'm sorry you had to witness it. I just don't like to be picked on."

"And I bet they don't anymore." The princess says with a wink. Hinata feels her cheeks begin to turn rosy and she immediately forces her mind to think of something other than Sakura's flawless smile. She can't tell who fascinates her more. Sakura or Naruto.

"Hyuga is by far the most skilled fighter that was produced from this group." Shikamaru says with a smile. "He can keep up even with Sasuke."

Naruto looks between her and Sasuke with a surprised expression. "Now that would be something I'd enjoy seeing." He says. "You haven't had competition since me."

"I wouldn't exactly call him competition." Sasuke says with an eyebrow raised at Neji. "But he puts up a decent fight. Maybe someday, he'll be able to beat me."

Hinata grows confused. Was that a compliment? Or another dig? She doesn't have time to process because General Uzumaki comes over and gives her a hearty clap on the back.

Sasuke then escorts Naruto to meet the rest of the men and Hinata is once again left in the company of just Kakashi

"I taught those two everything." He tells her proudly.

"That's quite impressive. You must've been an excellent teacher. I hear General Uzumaki is the most skilled fighter our country has to offer."

"Luckily, our country has a lot of talented fighters, you included. Has Sasuke offered you a team to lead yet?" He asks her casually.

"No. I don't think he will. Captain Uchiha isn't exactly my biggest fan. Plus, I'm not sure if I'm cut out to lead." She says honestly. Usually, Hinata wouldn't be sharing this much with anyone. But Kakashi seems trustworthy.

"Your uncle was a natural born leader. And I see a lot of him in you." This makes her smile. Neji's uncle, meaning her own father. If Kakashi, a guard for the emperor's son, believes that Hinata is similar to her heroic father, she wasn't going to argue. "And Sasuke likes you. Although, I have to say, he probably likes your cousin a little bit more." He tells her as he nudges her shoulder with a wink. However, since he's so much taller than her, he ends up just resting his arm on her.

Hinata freezes. "W-what?" She asks, completely dumbfounded.

Now it's Kakashi's turn to look confused. "I mean, the heiress sent out a matchmaking request to the capital, didn't she?" He snorts. "Sasuke basically demanded that nobody gets to meet her or even consider her besides himself."

Hinata's fists squeeze into tight balls at her side. Just as she was beginning to think he was different from her initial opinion of him. But no. This just further proves the point that the spoiled Uchiha has only ever viewed Hinata as something to own. Neji may be respected. But Hinata is not.

"I actually didn't know that. What a barbaric thing to do." She says harshly. If the future rulers of her country weren't currently with him, Hinata thinks she'd stomp over there and demand a conversation.

"Okay," Kakashi attempts to try and back pedal. "I think that came out wrong. What I meant is that I've never seen Sasuke get excited about anything before. And the initial idea of the match between your cousin and him didn't seem to excite him either. But once he sent word of their meeting back home, his words seemed different. He seemed almost enthralled with the idea of your cousin. I'm sorry, I keep referring to her as that. What's her name?"

"Hinata." She tells him quietly. "Her name is Hinata."

Kakashi can tell that the topic of Neji's cousin is a sensitive one, so he stops his badgering. Eventually, he gestures back towards Naruto and the two make their way over to the rest of the group. Hinata glares at Sasuke, but it looks like he's intentionally trying to ignore her.

The rest of the day will consist of various evaluations. Each samurai will be escorted into the large tent with the cress of Kasai for individual assessments. First, they'll be grilled on all different types of strategy. Most of the samurai are evaluated before Hinata, and she waits outside on a bench around the cooking fire, absent-mindedly pulling out patches of grass. But eventually, Shikamaru calls her name and she is ushered into the large tent. She gives a bow to her evaluators which consists of Captain Uchiha, General Uzumaki, Hime Sakura, and Shikamaru-san. Hinata swallows nervously. Answering questions from Shikamaru and Sasuke would be no big deal. But if the princess asks her any questions, she knows she'll freeze up.

"Just try to relax, Hyuga-san." Sakura tries to reassure. Hinata gives a nod and squares her shoulders.

Captain Uchiha stands up and walks over to their giant map of Kasai that hangs on the loose canvas of the tent. He places a marker for their own troops before placing another one for the enemy.

"This regiment," he points to a marker farther away than the one he placed, "has been sent to reinforce yours," he gestures to the one nearest to the enemies. "But they've been held up by bad weather. Your men are drained and outnumbered. But if you don't continue with your scheduled attack," Sasuke sets another marker down. "This village will be ransacked and potentially destroyed." He faces away from the map and stares her down. "What do you do?"

Her eyes flit around the map. Hinata is clueless on strategy. Her thoughts are always "save the innocent", even at the expense of her own men. But sometimes, that is the wrong answer. She looks from the map to the table of her superiors that all await her answer. One thing about Captain Uchiha is that he doesn't like questions. He wants a response without any further knowledge than what has been given. Hinata hates that.

"We don't move against them in an open field. We instead march to the village for a chance at a surprise counter move. The village will give us cover and opportunity to hold off the enemies until reinforcements arrive. Plus, it will allow my men a chance to protect the people." She says as confidently as possible. Hinata's too nervous to look at her other evaluator's reactions, but Sasuke doesn't wear his usual face of disappointment.

"And then what if the reinforcements don't show up?" General Uzumaki asks her, his fingers drumming against his desk. "What if the weather completely wipes them out?"

Hinata wants to laugh. If a bad storm were to wipe out her chance of reinforcements, then Kasai has more issues than just enemies. But Naruto's face is serious.

"Then I'd send out communication to a different regiment and inform them of not only our position, but our own numbers. My men would fight and die against the enemies with honor." She says, feeling that it must be the wrong decision based on the blank stares she receives.

"Thank you, Hyuga-san." Naruto says. Hinata nods, still too nervous that her voice will accidentally betray her. They all ask a couple more questions until finally, she's dismissed from the strategy section of her evaluation. She leaves the tent as quickly as possible and hurries back over to her bench. But she doesn't even have time to recharge her mind before the samurai are all called forward once again.

Luckily, all of their skills aren't being evaluated. Instead, just close combat and swordsmanship, two of the things that Hinata is best at. General Uzumaki announces his intentions of having them all face off and Hinata steps forward. But before she can make her way to her first opponent, Captain Uchiha grabs her wrist to stop her. She gives him a glare before ripping her arm from him. He may be her superior, but that is in no way permission for him to touch her.

"Not you." He tells her without emotion.

"Why not?" She questions with a frown.

"Because I've relayed your skill level to Naruto. He doesn't need to witness it firsthand." He responds matter-of-factly.

"What if your word is not something I trust?" She says harshly. Her version of Neji has never been anything but respectful of Sasuke. But after hearing what Kakashi told her, she's angry. His eyes show a hint of hurt, but the emotion quickly fades into the dull look she has grown used to.

"If you don't trust me, then you've truly learned nothing." He says as he puts his face closer to hers. She hates him. She hates that he towers over her. She hates that he's stronger than her. In past spars, he's lifted her entire body with one arm before slamming her back to the ground. She hates that even as a man, he ranks higher than her.

"I've learned plenty." She responds as she looks him up and down in a way she hopes is intimidating. A match begins behind them, but both are too preoccupied to pay attention.

"What is your problem, Hyuga?" He asks strictly. "You chose a hell of a day to be insubordinate. Did you forget respect is a required bushido?"

"No, I could never forget. But you did. I heard what you think about my cousin. Hinata was not yours to claim. She is nobody's."

Sasuke's eyes finally lift with understanding. "This is about your stuck-up, disrespectful cousin?" He asks, his voice growing louder.

Stuck-up?! If anyone was stuck up, it was him! But she can't reveal that she knows how he treated her. "I know you told other potential prospects to stay away from her. She needed a husband. It could've saved our land, our farm. And you robbed her of that opportunity." She seethes. Some of the men around them finally notice their intense conversation. Even Sasuke grows more aware of the level of heat they carry.

"It doesn't matter. Now that you're here, you'll get to keep your measly farm anyway." Sasuke says in a bored tone.

Her hands begin to shake and she tightens them against her side. All of the masculine instincts that she has picked up these past few weeks urge her to lash out at him. But that would taint not only Neji's honor, but her entire family's.

"Why are you so worried about it? About her?" He asks. "If you get the approval from General Uzumaki, your land will be yours to keep. And even if you don't, why is your younger cousin responsible for carrying the entire weight of your clan on her back?" His voice almost sounds accusing.

"She's not solely responsible. But we all must do our part. And unfortunately, since she's a woman, she believes her hand is the best she can offer." She responds, feeling the need to defend Neji, even though he would agree with Sasuke's words.

Sasuke scoffs, giving a slight shake of his head. His eyes move away from Hinata and he begins to watch the spars once more.

"You believe General Uzumaki does not need to witness my skill level. But I disagree." Hinata tells him harshly.

"Fine." Sasuke says as he rolls his shoulders back. "If you're so eager to show off, you'll face me. And once I win, you'll have to bow in front of Naruto in defeat."

"You won't win." She says coldly. And she means it.

The current match ends without further discussion and Sasuke raises his hand, declaring his claim to the sand arena. They both strip themselves of their blades, and Sasuke takes it a step further and unties his shirt too. He lets it drop to the ground in front of him and raises an eyebrow at her. She just rolls up the sleeves of her formal wear in response. Even if she wasn't a woman, she still wouldn't understand the appeal of fighting someone without a shirt. It feels more intimate, more dangerous.

Instead of questioning the sudden change of plans, Naruto just laughs heartily, pulling Sakura on his lap in their chairs that sit elevated above the arena.

Today, Hinata isn't going to use the sacred technique of the Hyuga that screams "I am the heir, Neji." Today, she's going to fight like herself.

Sasuke runs at her first, wielding his left arm like a blade that's meant to slice her in half. Hinata bends backwards, allowing herself to show off the flexibility that she has hidden since coming here. Men can be flexible just like women can be strong. But when Hinata moves, she moves like a swan, not a crane. After she bends, she lands on her hands and springs herself off the ground elegantly, completely dodging another one of Sasuke's advances.

After another dodge, she strikes with her fists.

Sasuke's eyes widen at her change in technique. This is not the open palm that he's used to. This is aggressive. Angry. He dodges her first couple punches with his forearms, wincing from the impact. Usually, he's not on the defensive like this. She continues her advance by shuffling her feet forward and barraging him with light, distracting jabs. Then, as soon as his dominant arm is occupied with a block, she digs her right foot into the ground and throws her left forward. It slams into his side and he lets out a groan, stumbling backwards from the impact.

Hinata doesn't let the opportunity go and she leaps forward, wrapping her shorter legs around one of his thighs and throwing him back onto the ground. He raises his arms, still blocking her hits, but she knows that now, she has him. For once, she was the one to knock him down first. He attempts to use his own palm to strike her chin and get her off, but she grabs his hand, pins it to the ground and sends her other fist into his face.

His head snaps back against the sand and he lets out a groan. Hinata pulls her fist back again, but she doesn't release it.

"Do you yield?" She asks harshly. He squints an eye up at her, the bruise already beginning to form along his jaw. At this point, Hinata is practically sitting on top of him. Her thighs have moved upwards from his leg and now squeeze his stomach and her other hand still pins his arm into the ground. Their faces are so closed that Hinata can feel the warmth of Sasuke's breath on her cheeks.

Finally, he gives her a stiff nod. Hinata stands up from on top of him and takes a step backwards. Some of the men begin to cheer, including General Uzumaki, but Hinata can't hear them. She can't hear anything or focus on anything besides the fact that she just beat Uchiha Sasuke. Of course, if it were a life and death fight, things may have been different. But she brought him to the ground.

She gives Sakura and Naruto a bow before walking out of the arena. Her feet carry her towards Choji and she tries to hide behind his bigger frame. What did she just do? What did she just make Neji do?! She'll be lucky if Captain Uchiha lets her keep her title after the poor attitude she just exampled, let alone stay a samurai! Her only hope is that General Uzumaki likes her well enough that Sasuke has to let her stay. But even if that's the case, as soon as he leaves, Sasuke will punish her somehow. She'll have to clean every single thing of armor in the encampment. Or maybe he'll make her run until she pukes. Or perhaps, he'll have her stand in front of a target while he practices shooting.

Hinata can't even watch the rest of the fights. She hears winners announced by Shikamaru, but his voice is drowned out inside her own anxious head.

After all the fighting ceases, Shikamaru announces that he will be retrieving samurai and ashigaru for individual assessments after dinner. They're all dismissed. Hinata hurries away from Choji and flees to the mess tent with stiff hands and twitchy eyes. Even though she's proud of her friend for doing well in his own public fight, she's not in the mood to talk about her own spar.

Hinata taps her foot anxiously as the on-duty cook loads up her bowl. She knows that if she gets called for an individual assessment, Sasuke is going to rip into her. He's going to embarrass her in front of the general and the princess and there's nothing she can do.

After she gobbles down her tasteless meal and returns her dishes, she sits with her knees pulled to her chest and her white eyes fixated on the lake. This whole day had been a disaster. First, her poor strategizing, then her very verbal argument with Captain Uchiha. And of course, the physical altercation where she flaunted abilities Neji himself isn't capable of.

"You made me eat my words." A voice says behind her. Hinata's shoulders droop and she has to fight to stop her eyes from rolling.

"Well, you're a great captain. I guess you finally gave me the motivation I needed to beat you." She responds sarcastically as she plucks at grass. Sasuke moves silently, like a shadow. And before Hinata knows it, he's lowering himself down so he sits next to her. The breath she was holding hitches in her throat.

She knows that his anger is coming any minute and she cringes, bracing for impact.

"You really impressed Naruto today. Your strategy could use a little work, but your raw combat skills are more than subpar. If you continue to do well here, you may be able to pull a higher rank." He tells her.

Hinata is completely surprised at his tone of voice. It's not angry. It's not even bored. It's almost apologetic. After a beat of silence, she finally responds. "Well I don't want that." She replies in her deep voice. "Despite my farm being measly and my family being stuck-up, I want to return to them. I'm here to serve Kasai in their time of need. Nothing more."

"If you are a true servant of Kasai, the job is not something you get to decide to turn off. But I understand. Your life is far more peaceful than anything the life of a captain would offer you." Sasuke says. She just gives a slight dip of her head in response at the longing in his voice. She remembers Sasuke's words when he first met her and when they spoke in the lake. In his eyes, the Uchiha are nothing more than servants to the country. He believes his purpose is to fight, nothing more. The thought makes Hinata sad. She wishes it was her place to tell him that was wrong.

"Where did you learn to move like that?" He asks her. His voice is more curious than angry and Hinata freezes.

"I taught Hinata how to fight. And she taught me how to…dance?"

"You taught your cousin to fight? That's very progressive of you."

"Our country has many enemies. But a woman has even more." She answers vaguely. Hinata does not feel like diving into the unfortunate side effects of being a woman.

"Well if she fights anything like you, I'm sure she's strong enough to take care of herself."

"I hope so." Neji answers absentmindedly. Then, she turns to her Sasuke. "Is that a compliment, Captain?"

"It's the truth." He answers. Hinata remains silent. She has no idea how to respond to the unexpected praise. Or maybe it wasn't praise? She doesn't give herself time to think about it.

Sasuke clears his throat and stretches his legs out in front of him. His dark pants are stained with the orange sand of the arena. "About Hinata-san..Kakashi must've given you false information. Because I never said anything of the sort. And even if I did, it doesn't matter," he pauses, "she didn't want me anyway." He says the last part almost bitterly and it makes Hinata pause.

"Maybe you were impolite or something. Hinata is not easy to upset." She finally responds.

"I do not believe her to be stuck-up, either." He clarifies. "She was sure of what she wanted. Assertive. It was interesting. I can see you two share more similarities than just physical features."

Hinata's eyes begin to blur at his words. He believes she was assertive. Well, he believes Hinata and Neji are assertive. "Hinata-chan has lost a lot in life. Even though she passed on her title to me, she still feels guilty for not doing enough for our clan. Marriage was never a goal of hers until recently. I'm sure you got the short end of her attempt at matchmaking." She explains weakly.

Sasuke just lets out a slight scoff. "Don't worry, Hyuga. Your cousin will never have to see me again. And if you're really concerned about it…" He takes a deep breath. Hinata isn't used to hearing him talk with so much emotion. "I'll tell the men of Konoha she is available and a worthy match."

Hinata finally turns her head to look at him, completely stunned. His cheeks hold the slightest blush and his dark eyes appear to be forming into a wince.

"Thank you, Captain Uchiha. But I'm not the person that gets to make that decision. She is." Hinata says in an attempt to reiterate her earlier point to him. Neji is not in control of Hinata's life, just like Sasuke isn't. And while technically, the Neji Sasuke knows is Hinata, he still thinks she's Neji…it's all too confusing for her to sort through in her head.

Sasuke gives her another stiff nod before getting up and heading back towards the rest of the men, his blades stiff at his sides. Hinata watches him go, feeling an unexplainable emotion begin to bloom in her chest.

Chapter 9

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter fornotes.)

Chapter Text

When General Uzumaki left, he gave Hinata and the other men their assignments. It lined up with what Sasuke had originally said. Since her strategy was still a little more merciful than he wanted, she would not be sent to lead her own regiment. Instead, she would be one of the samurai to march alongside Captain Uchiha's larger regiment. She would go to the front and either command or fight adjacent to Sasuke. Hinata didn't care where they sent her. As long as Hyuga Neji's honor was still intact, she'd be fine fighting a wall if they asked her to.

Now that training was over, half of the samurai were either sent home, or sent to other regiments. However, Choji, Kiba, and Shikamaru were still with her. Plus, some other soldiers that Hinata has grown quite fond of, including Lee, Genma and Sai. Their regiment was bigger than the one she trained with, but still nothing as monumental as one others may fight in.

The everlasting march to war was not a pleasant one. Day after day, they'd walk through rice fields, mud puddles, tiny villages, vast farms, and towering forests. Then, at night, the samurai would all sit around a fire in silence, already dreading the thought of waking up and doing it all again the next day. Hinata always knew that the idea of war was terrifying. She saw firsthand what it did to her father, to her home. But being the one to march to it, the one to face the dangers that she knows await her is a whole different story.

The thought makes Hinata grow more anxious by the day, and by the time she's on her second week of nightly fires, she swears that she's going to completely unravel. The mood around her doesn't help. Almost all of the men have become antsy with nerves.

"Are you going to finish that?" Kiba asks her, finally successfully breaking her train of thought.

"Hm? Oh. No, it's all yours." She replies as she pushes the remnants of her dinner over to him.

"You know you should really finish your food if you want to keep your strength up." He says as he forks it all into his mouth.

"I think Neji-kun's strength is already drained." Choji replies, his own shoulders slumped. She looks up at him and tries to flash a reassuring smile, but her mouth falls flat.

"I mean, can you blame him? This is so…never ending." Lee says as he traces his hand in the dirt.

"You guys should just do what I do." Kiba says with a shrug. "Always makes me feel better."

"And what's that?" Shikamaru asks with an eyeroll. "Pretend we're wolves or some weird shit like that?"

"No!" Kiba retorts. But then, his eyes lift and he smiles. "Actually, that's not a bad idea either. But no, that's not it!"

"Then what?" Shikamaru urges as he leans back.

"Think about all the girls that we're going to be able to go home to. We're fully-fledged samurai now! We even got the Emperor's stamp of approval. They're going to be all over us when we go back." He sighs dreamily. Hinata rolls her eyes. Of course that's what he's thinking about.

"My lady's serving in a different regiment." Genma says from farther away. Choji, Kiba and Lee lean across the fire at his words.

"Tell us about her!" Lee urges excitedly. A couple of the other soldiers yell in agreement. Hinata nervously looks to Captain Uchiha, expecting him to shut them all up. But he doesn't. He just leans against his saddle with his blades across his lap. Even his eyes are trained on Genma.

"Well, she's terrifying. But in a good way! She's an incredible medic and an even better cook." He beams. "Plus, I happen to think she's quite beautiful."

"She sounds like the one I love." Choji says dreamily. Hinata looks at him, completely stunned.

"Choji-kun…you're in love?!" She gasps. She remembers hearing about a beautiful blonde girl, but Hinata has never heard the word "love" used so casually.

Choji giggles and begins kneading his hands anxiously. Hinata laughs at his reaction and Shikamaru lets out a groan.

"This dobe has been in love forever. It's been quite a drag. He refuses to tell the poor girl how he feels." Shikamaru tells them all. Some men yell out encouragements while others tease Choji further. But for once, he doesn't seem to care. He's too focused on whatever woman he sees inside his head. Hinata smiles at him.

"Yeah, even I know that you're mooning over Ino-san." Kiba says with a wink. Hinata doesn't know who Ino is, but she's sure she'll be able to bother Choji more about it when they're alone.

"I don't care who I end up with! I just want them to be strong like Naruto-sama and beautiful like Hime Sakura!" Lee declares to the group. This immediately earns him a head tousle from Genma.

After Shikamaru and Sai are both prodded by the other men, they finally share their types. Shikamaru says he doesn't care as long as they let him be lazy when he wants to be. This makes Kiba and Choji snicker, almost as if they know something Hinata doesn't. Sai also declares he isn't picky and just wants someone who can get along with his brother. Other men begin announcing their types. Some like stout women who are loud. Others like fragile women who need to be protected. And of course, there are many men who are already married. Some happen to be in love with medics or other soldiers in far off regiments. Hinata pities them the most. She can't imagine being so far and in such a compromising position from someone she cares about.

"And what about you, Neji-san?" Lee urges. Hinata's stomach flutters. What about Neji?! He's not married. He's never really even expressed liking anyone. She knows Neji is an enjoyer of all things beautiful, but practical. He likes the cherry trees that spring beautiful flowers because they offer shade in the summer. He likes the small pond that's in their garden because it houses fish. But just like her, Neji has expressed he'll marry for duty, not for love. And it's not like they're exactly exposed to a lot of people at their farm.

"I-I.." Hinata trails off. She can't make Neji seem lame! They're all talking about beautiful men and women they've fallen in love with! "I've never thought about it. I've always been busy taking care of my family. But coming home and finding a partner does sound tempting." She says, flashing what she hopes is a convincing smile.

"Okay, but what's your type? I mean, there has to be someone at home you think is hot." Kiba urges.

Hinata's eyebrows knit. Someone hot. Temperature hot? Is that what he means? Or attractive? A dark scowl immediately flashes in her mind, but she pushes the image away. Neji would not find him attractive. Would he think Sakura is hot? Hinata thinks she's beautiful, but she also doesn't want to disrespect the princess. In fact, she doesn't want to disrespect any woman! Isn't she technically objectifying them by basing her own desire for them off their "hotness?" The word makes Hinata cringe.

"First off, Kiba-kun. A woman's attractiveness is not a trait that should matter. Their heart and soul is what's truly important." She lectures. Half of the encampment lets out a loud groan.

"Stop being so self-righteous and just give us your answer!" One of the soldiers yells. Hinata wants to question why they all care what her type is so much, but she doesn't. She racks her brain. If Hinata had to choose…she thinks Tsunade is very attractive. But they'd all know the former heiress, so that's no good.

"Well, uh…I like women who are…nice. And…smart." She says slowly. More groans follow.

"Hyuga has more to worry about than who he thinks is pretty." Sasuke says with a scoff. "Helping me keep track of all of you, for example." Hinata attempts to flash him a grateful look, but he ignores her.

"Okay, Captain Uchiha. But everyone else has gone. You have to too." Genma says mischievously. Hinata knows that most men can't get away with addressing Sasuke like this. The few exceptions are probably Naruto and Shikamaru. But for some reason, he doesn't snap at Genma or make him run the perimeter or do one hundred push-ups. Instead, he just sighs.

"If I have to say, I'd be interested in someone who is assertive, yet kind. This person would also have to know when to be strong and when to be gentle. And… I prefer a partner with silky hair." He looks around at his men murderously, daring them to challenge his taste. The samurai all let out "oooo's" while the soldiers begin to holler and whoop in agreement.

Hinata wants to laugh at his answer. Based on what he said at their initial meeting, he did not like assertive or strong women. But then again, it seems her heartless captain has changed since that day. In fact, a couple weeks ago he had told Hinata's version of Neji that he found them both assertive. Her laugh dies in her throat. He couldn't be referencing her, could he? There's no way.

But when Hinata looks up at Sasuke, he's staring straight back at her, almost defiantly. She gulps.

What would Neji do if someone talked about her like that? He would defend Hinata's honor with his own, but Sasuke wasn't exactly tarnishing her image. She may be exaggerating. He may not even be talking about her.

"Yeah good luck meeting someone like that. It's a nice sentiment, Captain Uchiha. But women can't be gentle and strong." Kiba argues.

Hinata is about to retort something, but Sasuke beats her to it.

"Actually, I've already met a woman like that. And I can assure you, she's all the things I mentioned and more." Sasuke says with a tilted chin. He doesn't say it in a smug way. It's more of a defensive thing, like he's already looking out for Hinata, who still remains unnamed.

A roar goes up through the regiment. Soldiers fall over themselves to ask their captain who he's referring to. Even Shikamaru, who is usually so refined, leans in closer, his mouth open in shock.

"Who is it!" Lee shouts as he scrambles overtop of Sai.

"Captain Uchiha's got a lady!" Kiba cries out with a laugh. The demands for who it is grow louder and finally, Sasuke raises his hand to silence them.

"It doesn't matter who she is. And she's not my lady." Sasuke says, his eyes sliding to Hinata's. Her cheeks begin to ignite and she forces her blush away. Neji wouldn't blush. He'd grow defensive about his cousin! But Hinata can't. She can't feel anything besides a warm pit forming in the bottom of her belly.

She's having a hard time figuring out if he's trying to reassure Neji or if he's trying to compliment Hinata. Or maybe neither. Or maybe both. Hinata takes one more look at him, but his face is still characteristically unreadable.

The rest of the night is spent trying to get a name out of Sasuke, but he holds strong. Eventually, he gets so annoyed he snaps at them all to go to sleep. Hinata obeys and curls into a ball next to Choji and Shikamaru. Now that she's in a marching regiment, they only take the time to set up their tents if they're staying for more than one night. Technically, Sasuke's still supposed to have his every night. But even he elects to sleep with them under the stars. Hinata likes the company her friends offer, but she misses her privacy. She misses being able to sleep without her chest wraps on, she misses bathing under the moonlight. And most of all, she misses being able to cry about her family in peace. It's been over two months since she left them. Part of her fears that she'll return and see her farm has been sold, her family gone. But that can't be the case. Neji will protect the Hyuga, just as she protected him.

Eventually, Hinata wraps her arms around her chest and falls into a troubled sleep.

~

The next morning, the regiment is quickly roused awake and forced to march. Shikamaru grumbles, but the rest of the men seem to be rejuvenated. Hinata even catches Genma humming.

Despite his annoying attitude and loud mouth, Kiba was right. Having someone to dream about really did make their march easier. But Hinata can't find herself looking forward to something so foolish. If she survives her time here and returns home, she'll still force herself to be married. Hinata doesn't want her military service to temporarily save her clan. She wants the Hyuga to spread their roots and be officially involved in Kasai. And she believes her marriage may be the key to that. She peers around at the samurai and shudders. Will she have to court one of these men? Or can she settle with a lesser branch member of a noble clan? Maybe she can make Choji introduce her to an Akimichi. She likes him well enough. Perhaps she can be reintroduced to Choji as Hinata and their friendship can continue.

"Choji-kun, do you have any available relatives?" Hinata asks. Some of the samurai's horses, including Zenzai, are busy carting necessary supplies to the front. So Hinata marches on foot in between Choji and Shikamaru who are both atop horses. Kiba marches at the back, watching over the ashigaru. Sasuke is in front of them all, also on foot. His horse is busy carrying the wagon that holds the armor of all the samurai. Hinata still does not have her own set, but General Uzumaki insisted on loaning her one. It's a vibrant red with the signia of Kasai stamped on the dou. She's not exactly a fan, but she is in no position to refuse armor.

"Available for what? Hire?" Choji asks as he swipes his spiky brown hair out of his face.

"No, for marriage." Hinata clarifies. Choji's eyes grow wide and Shikamaru lets out a brief cough. Even Sasuke slightly turns his head at Hinata's words.

"Marriage? You want to marry an Akimichi?" Shikamaru lets out a laugh and Choji shoots him a look.

"No, it's not for me. The former heiress of my family, Hinata-san, is looking for a match. And I just figured that since we get along so well," She says as she looks at Choji. "That maybe they could too."

"No, your cousin can't be introduced to the Akimichi!" Choji exclaims as he shakes his head furiously. "Since she's nobility, she'll be forced to marry me! And I have to stay available. Just in case."

This makes Shikamaru laugh, his shoulders shaking with the movement. "Choji-kun, don't be ridiculous. Wouldn't you be honored to marry Hinata-san?" He says. Hinata's face immediately grows red and Shikamaru turns to face her. "Why marry her off to an Akimichi when she could have a Nara? I'm holding off on the whole marriage thing for as long as possible, but I'm sure I could hook her up with someone." He says with a wink. "Of course, unless she'd be willing to wait for me."

Hinata doesn't even want to think about marrying Shikamaru or Choji! She could never! They'd figure her out too quickly. Plus, she knows every single one of their disgusting habits after spending so much time with them.

"You shouldn't be making decisions for your cousin, Hyuga." Sasuke says from in front of her pointedly. She glares back at him, but his gaze is unyielding. Against her own will, she begins to think of Sasuke's habits. Unlike Choji, he's very neat and meticulous with everything he does. Even his hair is washed in a certain pattern. Water, then soap, then water, then soap again. And unlike Shikamaru, he isn't lazy. He's often the first to rise and the last to sleep, taking at least an hour to meditate either in the morning or at night. Hinata knows that he categorizes his food and eats it by certain ingredients. Rice first, then vegetables, then meat. He also sleeps with his wakizashi at his side and his katana tucked against his chest. In fact, Hinata can't think of a single habit of his that disgusts her. Hinata stumbles over her own thoughts, confused on why she's noticed so much about him.

"What about me asking Choji-kun if anyone in his family is available means that I'm making her decisions for her?" She retorts. "Hinata-san can choose whoever she likes. I just happen to think the Akimichi clan is respectful and would make for a good match."

Hinata knows that she was asking for trouble by bringing up matches in front of Sasuke. But as Neji, she needs to make it clear to him that Hinata will only receive the best. And she thinks the Akimichi are the best. If they're as kind as Choji, that's all she needs. She'll stomach the rest.

"And what of you, Neji? I know you have no 'type'," Shikamaru rolls his eyes when he says it, but he continues talking anyway. "But what does marriage look like in your future?"

She sees Sasuke look at her in the corner of her eye and for some reason, she grows nervous. How would Neji answer?

"I will seek a companion when the time is right. Hopefully for love. If not, then for security. To keep my clan safe." She answers slowly.

Sasuke turns his head slightly at her words, and Hinata tries to intimidate the defiant expression he gave her the night before. His lips twitch and his free hand spasms.

"Well, there are a couple clans with deep pockets. The Sarutobi are pretty rich. I'm sure a dowry for them would be fat. Or maybe an Uzumaki. There's a girl around our age. But she's pretty fiery compared to you." Shikamaru suggests as he rubs his chin.

"I would never peg you for a matchmaker." Hinata teases him.

"Better you getting matched than me." He says with a wink.

"Just wait, Neji. Once we get to Konoha, the people will be swarming over an attempt to marry you." Choji says with what Hinata believes is pride. She smiles at their words, but still knows they don't meet anything. The real Neji may never even get to Konoha. Sasuke turns his head once more, time holding eye contact with her. His unreadable mask has a slight crack in it. Hinata almost believes he looks saddened.

"You know, there are Uchiha that are unmarried." Shikamaru says with another sly smirk. "Sasuke's got some fun relatives. But of course, I doubt they'd stoop so low." He says the last part sarcastically and Sasuke whirls around. The men are far enough behind us to be unaffected by the halted march, but Shikamaru and Choji immediately pull their horses to a stop in response.

Sasuke's eyes graze Hinata's before he looks at Shikamaru. "I don't think Hinata-san or Hyuga would want any old Uchiha. They're too…cursed." He says at last. Then, he turns back around and waves his arm, signaling them all forward. Shikamaru and Choji flash each other a confused look, but neither of them are about to question their captain. Even Hinata wants to know more about this supposed curse. She remembers that Sasuke told her the Uchiha live and die to fight for Kasai, but she doesn't think that's a curse. She's practically doing the same thing.

Their march and Choji's easy conversation continues until the regiment finally makes their way up a steep hill. The grass wraps around Hinata's boots and she has to hike her knees high to keep herself from falling. Her lips form a frown as she investigates the ground. But when she hears Choji gasp and Shikamaru curse, she looks up.

Hinata's face falls and her shoulders slump as she investigates the world that had been set on fire. The long grass below the hill has been burnt black and the village that sat at the base is nothing but ash and rubble. Hinata can make out remnants of what used to be. There's a burnt well towards the center of town, a stone archway that leads to the foundations of the old houses and matching stone walls that have been crumbled.

"I-it's gone." Shikamaru whispers. Hinata is too horrified to respond. Sasuke holds up his arm and his horse is immediately brought over to him.

"Nara, with me. The rest of you stay here." He says stonily. Shikamaru gives Choji one last look of fear before moving forward. Hinata watches the dust of Sasuke and Shikamaru's horses kick up as they move towards the town to investigate.

"It must've been evacuated." Choji says as he attempts to reassure himself. "There's no way a whole village is just…gone." Hinata doesn't allow herself to be hopeful. The pattern of burns, the destruction of the walls…that kind of damage doesn't signify an evacuated village. This was an invasion.

The wait for Sasuke and Shikamaru to return is too long to be good news. But eventually, their figures continue to grow bigger. The men in Hinata's regiment remained silent as they awaited their captain's return. None of them were too anxious to have casual conversations. Hinata's face falls as soon as she sees Sasuke's body language. Usually, he has a straight back and proud shoulders. But right now, he's hunched over his horse.

"How is it?" Choji asks as soon as they are within range.

"Exactly how you think." Shikamaru responds glumly. "We'll go around. There's a lot of," he pauses, "damage."

Sasuke raises his fist in a command, and they all begin to move forward again. Despite her initial reserves to stay as far away from the village as possible, she can't help but raise her voice in question.

"Captain Uchiha. Even if there is carnage down there, the people of Kasai deserve a burial." She says bravely, her voice sounding more desperate than she would've liked. All she can think about is that if it were her village, and her body was down there laying across some burnt stone or patch of black grass, she'd want somebody to return her to the earth so she can join her ancestors quickly.

Sasuke turns to look at her on the top of his horse. His eyes are weary. "There's nobody down there to bury."

Hinata looks down at her feet in shock. Nobody left? How is that possible? Either Sasuke's bluffing, or she has severely underestimated her enemy. She has only heard rumors of their brutality from Kiba and Shikamaru. But she heard they have men so fast they can run on water. Men are so tough they can cut down trees in a single swoop. Men so stealthy they can fuse into shadow. They come from a different land. One where the rain never stops falling. Choji told her that one of the men from Ame killed a man of Kasai. In a desperate fit of revenge, a family member of the killed man went and sought revenge. And then, the Ame retaliated again. The cycle continued and the hate built. Apparently, this all happened years ago. But Choji said that Ame's men have grown stronger and seek revenge against the country they think wronged them so terribly.

Hinata knows Kasai has no shortage of enemy's. Their entire country is practically surrounded by those who would happily see them die off. But to begin a war out of an old spite? Hinata used to think it was ridiculous. But after seeing the ruins of the village that now sit off her left shoulder as they move farther away, she understands. She wants to rip apart the people that did this to her country. She wants to avenge the life of every mother and child that must've been left defenseless while the men of Kasaii went off to war. She clenches her fists at the thought of Hanabi and Neji. Her clan must be safe.

"What are you thinking about?" Choji asks her quietly.

"Home." She responds.

"Me too."

Since being here, Hinata has learned that the Hyuga have been separated from the majority of Kasai's nobility. She grew up without the refineries and connections the capital would've provided. And now, she knows she grew up without the safety of it too. Her farm, her home, is so far removed from the Emperor Namikaze's guard.

She wants to snap at Choji and tell him he's being ridiculous. Nothing will happen to his family. But hers? The thought makes her sweat begin to pool near her lower back. But despite her jealousy of the Akimichi safety, he's allowed to be nervous.

Hinata's worries carry over into the night while the regiment begins to set up camp in the grassy field. She looks around nervously with one hand against her blade.

Sasuke approaches her from behind, his hand shadowing her own defensive position.

"I don't like it here. We're too exposed." She tells him anxiously.

"I agree. But as you can see, there's not a lot of concealment in these hills."

"Then we keep moving."

"The men are exhausted. You're exhausted. We can't fight if we can't rest."

"The people in that village didn't have the option to rest." She says angrily. "The people around the country don't either."

"I understand that you're worried for your family," Sasuke begins pointedly. "But a samurai always keeps a level head. You're a higher ranking officer now, Hyuga. I need your strength."

Hinata squeezes her eyes shut. She doesn't want to be a samurai. She just wants to go home.

"I've already informed Shikamaru of this. But there was supposed to be another regiment protecting this area. And since the village is gone…they probably are too."

Hinats turns to Sasuke after hearing what she assumes is pain in his voice. He stares straight ahead at the falling sun.

"They could've gotten different orders. I know you said the remains of the village was grim, but if an entire regiment died there too, I assume there'd be a lot more carnage. Maybe there truly was an evacuation." She attempts to reassure.

"Maybe." He replies, still unconvinced. At last, his dark eyes lock in on her own. "Get some sleep, Hyuga. Tomorrow, we march for Konoha. There, we'll protect the people and the Emperor until either the war ends or we die."

He walks away from her, stepping through the long grass as if he's floating. Hinata looks back in the direction of the abandoned village with a frown. She sends out prayers and pleads to whatever may be listening to keep her family safe.

Notes:

I had "A Girl Worth Fighting For" on repeat while writing this one

Chapter 10

Notes:

gentle warning: this chapter gets graphic

(See the end of the chapter formore notes.)

Chapter Text

There has been no more talk of love or women. There has been no more talk of anything. Only the sound of the endless march towards the capital. Captain Uchiha and Shikamaru have been receiving reports of different regiments from all over the country. But still, Sasuke hasn't heard anything of his brother's regiment, the one that he was supposed to meet with at the ruined village. It has only been a few days, but still, he waits for a raven, or for some sign that his older brother is alive. But there has been nothing.

The longer it takes for them to hear anything, the more sour Sasuke grows. He snaps at anyone who questions him, or anyone who even draws too close to him.

Surprisingly, Hinata had not found herself on the receiving end of his tantrums. But at this point, she wishes he'd yell at her. She wishes he'd acknowledge her at all. Ever since their conversation above the ravaged town, Captain Uchiha has been practically icing her out. He won't even look in her direction. Hinata wishes she knew why. She wishes she didn't care at all. But she does.

And even though his anger is not new to the rest of the regiment, their own disheartment is. Even Hinata is seeing its effects. She gets almost daily headaches from either stress or fear. She doesn't know which it is. She doesn't think it matters at this point.

"I can't wait to eat something other than undercooked rice and dried meat." Shikamaru mutters next to her, suddenly pulling her from her stupor.

"What's the first thing you're going to have once you get back home?" Choji responds, clearly excited to be talking about something that's not their own impending doom. Their voices dull back into the background and Hinata's eye twitches as she begins to think about the exact thing she was trying to avoid. Even with her angry captain, her constant raging headaches, and fearing for her family's safety, her own fate was still constantly on her mind. This time next week she might not be alive. Her death could be decided by blade, arrow, or even just exhaustion. She could leave the world she still hasn't seen enough of without even putting up a fight.

And if the enemy found out she was a woman…Hinata shivers at the thought. She just knows her death won't be quick.

But then again, none of the men around her have figured out her true gender yet. She smooths her canvas jacket, wondering what they'd do. In a perfect world, none of them would care. They'd have a good laugh and send her home for her troubles. But she knows that's unrealistic.

She knows it's not necessarily against the law for women to serve. Female samurai are rare, but Hinata has heard of legendary warriors before. So the law is only part of what she has danced around. The real issue is her honor. And Hinata fears that may be even worse.

She has lied to the Emperor, Captain Uchiha, and her regiment. If found out, nobody will trust a Hyuga again. Her lie will cause her ancient clan to lose their land and their weak claim to nobility would be stripped. Neji would be furious. He probably already is. Hinata has never considered that if she gets home after the war, Neji may send her away again. He may be so fed up with her deceit that he no longer wants to be associated with her. The thought makes her take a shuddery breath. If she can't go home to the two people she loves the most, will this even be worth it?

"What about you, Neji-kun?" Choji asks as she shoves her shoulder.

"Hm?" She asks as she lifts her head to look at him. The bowl of food in her hand remains untouched. Hinata has grown too tired to eat. She's too tired to talk too.

"What are you going to eat in Konoha once we win this thing?" He asks. The way he refers to the war as a "thing" makes her frown, but she doesn't say anything.

"Konoha? What do you mean?" She asks as her brain slowly puts two and two together.

"Well, after we win, it's traditional for samurai to stay in Konoha until the emperor dismisses them back home. And since you're an unmarried heir, I'm sure political connections will try to be made." Shikamaru waves a hand absently. "You'll probably be married before you ever go home."

"M-married?" Hinata asks in horror. "I mean, we may have joked about it, but I don't want to be married right away and I don't want to go to Konoha. I want to return home to my family." She says, her voice probably a lot higher and whinier than it should be. But she can't find it in her to care.

"Relax. Nothing is for certain now. If you get a special exception from Naruto or Sasuke, I'm sure you'll be able to go straight home." Shikamaru attempts to reassure. He had no idea that a vacation to the esteemed capital of Kasai would grant this kind of reaction from his friend.

An exception from Sasuke. She wants to laugh out loud. That's not exactly easy. He'd probably make her stay in Konoha longer than everyone else to just be especially mean.

"You always seem so against the idea of Konoha, Neji-kun. Are you against the idea of us too?" Choji asks, his voice sounding more nervous than Hinata knew possible.

Hinata leans forward. "No of course not!" Her voice still is cranky, but technically in character. Neji can get whiny. Sometimes, when he skips his morning tea or doesn't get to sleep on time, he is as cranky as a goat. "You guys are my brothers."

They both smile at my words. Shikamaru gives my shoulder a nudge. "I know you're a farm boy who misses his fields. And I respect that. But you'll always have a place with the Nara Clan."

"And with the Akimichi." Choji says in agreement.

Hinata hesitates on how to respond. Part of her knows that it's unreasonable to grant them shelter within her own clan, but she can't help it. If someday, Choji or Shikamaru needed her, she'd gladly reveal herself as the Neji they once knew. "And if you two choose to ever leave behind the lives of samurai and nobility, the Hyuga will welcome you with open arms."

"Please. You'd put me to work the moment I step through the gates. And that is not something I want." Shikamaru says in lazy exaggeration.

Hinata smiles, feeling her initial worry ease slightly.

The forest they currently rest in must be ancient. The trees are gigantic, their branches stretching so high and so long that the setting sun above them is unnoticeable. Yet, the lack of light is not intimidating. Instead, it's almost welcoming. The mossy ground underneath her is gentle, and even the breeze is warm. Hinata is so used to the open fields of home, the endless skies, the flowing streams. But she is not opposed to her new surroundings. Its beautiful and cozy. Hinata almost allows herself to be lulled into a sense of peace.

But, the world does not allow her to relax for long. Their lookout sounds his horn and Hinata practically throws her bowl of rice into the air in surprise. They all hold their breath as they wait for the frequency. Hinata's fists clench as the horns sound off in short bursts. Danger.

She immediately stands up, her hand already on her blade and her eyes knitted as she looks in the distance for the people they are about to face. She swallows her fear. This could be it. This could be the day she dies.

The laxed body language Shikamaru wore a mere minute ago is already gone and he stands. It only takes him another half a minute to form some type of plan. He rolls his body in preparation for the fight that lies ahead.

"Choji, gather up the soldiers! Put them in defensive teams. Protect the armor and the weapons! Neji, gather your team and hook in from the left. If they're going to try to surprise us, we're going to have to hit them back hard. Show them it's not worth it." Shikamaru commands.

"What about Captain Uchiha?" Hinata asks frantically as she gestures to her team. Lee, Genma, and Sai were all assigned to her striketeam. The three best ashigaru with the second best samurai. They were meant to execute enemies as quickly and efficiently as possible.

But Hinata's question is answered for her as their captain jumps on his horse and brings his own striketeam towards the front. He's armorless, just like the rest of them. Sasuke gives her one last hard look, his expression halfway between pained and determined. She attempts to return his clear confidence with a nod, but his horse is already far past her.

For some reason, she wants to call him back. But this is a battle. And Hinata is a soldier.

Her regiment was clearly not expecting a fight. In fact, some of the men were sleeping. None of the samurai have time to don their armor. Even some of the ashigaru rush forward without tunics and belts. Hinata stares at them as they run past her, giving each one encouraging looks.

"I am with you." She whispers to one who accidentally brushes her left shoulder in his rush to join the battle. He either ignores her, or is too focused on the distinct threat in front of them to care. "I am with you all," she says a little louder. But there is nobody listening.

Lee runs up to Hinata, holding the reins to Zenzai. She gives him a hard nod and climbs on. Genma and Sai make their way to her side, each wearing grim expressions. This would be her first time leading them. It might also be her last.

"We're going to drive them away from the captain. We have to protect our leader. Sai, shoot down anyone who gets too close. Genma, protect him from the rear and work as our eyes. Lee, you're with me. We take them on from the front." She holds out her forearm and Lee grabs it, climbing on behind her. He immediately knocks an arrow and Hinata already holds her blade loosely in her left hand. "Cover the right side. I'll get the left." Then, she kicks her horse forward.

The thundering of Zenzai's hooves are almost immediately overshadowed by the cries of pain and death. Hinata wrinkles her nose at the smell. Her eyes begin to water from the overall mist of red blood.

She kicks Zenzai to the left, and Lee begins to shoot his arrow towards the men who attempt to charge them. Her blade is her wrath. It's cold steel cuts through approaching bodies too easily. She forces herself to not hyperventilate as she watches life drain from the eyes of the people she kills. One after another. Body after body. The only thing grounding her from completely falling into the trance of her own personal hell is Lee behind her. He's warm and alive. And he's fighting for her, just as she fights for him.

Another horn sounds, signaling the potential to drive the enemy away. Lee says something to her, but the blood that splashes in her face from the limb she just completely cleaved from the body of the soldier distracts her.

"Neji!" His voice finally breaks her from the trance of death and she pulls her eyes back towards the front. She only has time to let out a curse before an Ame samurai spins his blade and completely cuts through her horse's legs. The impact sends both her and Lee tumbling towards the ground. Hinata manages to throw her blade farther away from her so it doesn't split open her own stomach.

She quickly grabs her smaller wakizashi and unsheathes it, holding it in front of her as the enemy attempts to descend onto her. Her own blade cuts into her unarmored hand at the impact of the enemy's samurai steel against it, but Hinata doesn't have time to assess her own wound. She flips to her feet and swishes her blade, attempting to cut into his armored thighs. He dodges it and moves around her, wielding both his katana and his wakizashi.

"You're a puny little shit, aren't you?" The enemy taunts. Hinata can barely see his face through his kabuto and mask, but she doesn't care. The more inhuman it looks, the better. It'll be easier for Hinata to kill him.

She knows that without her katana, her chances for victory are slim. But her blade is somewhere behind her, probably already buried in blood and body parts.

Hinata crouches low to the ground, her arms extended in the Hyuga fighting position. Her small blade is high in the air, and her left hand remains empty. All she needs to do is turn his own force against him. Then, she can steal his katana and puncture his own heart with it.

"You killed my horse." She snarls.

"And you're next." He sneers. The enemy moves first, his blade slicing towards her vulnerable shoulder. Hinata bends backwards, using her flexibility to her full advantage before springing back up and carving into his sword-swinging arm with her small blade. He lets out a hiss and blood spurts from his wound, staining her already pink arms.

She dodges his attempt at a retaliation and grabs a layer of his heavy armor, throwing him to the ground. He raises his blade at a last ditch attempt to save his own skin, but Hinata quickly slices through his wrist, causing both his hand and katana to fall to the forest floor helplessly. The enemy begins to scream and Hinata drives her knife through his skull. She heaves a deep breath at the sight of the man she just murdered. His hand lies next to his now lifeless head.

She doesn't allow her eyes to linger. She knows her brain has already memorized every detail of him.

The hilt of her katana shines against the surprisingly green patch of grass and she quickly grabs it and places it back in her sheathe. Hinata's head whips from side to side as she looks for the rest of her team. Zenzai's dead body is a few paces away, but she can't locate Lee. She can't locate Genma or Sai either.

But she does see Sasuke. The sight of him fighting fills her with an overwhelming sense of relief. He calls out a loud "Hyuga" but before Hinata can answer, multiple men in heavy armor swarm him. Hinata glances around one last time for her striketeam, but they still are out of her range. So instead, she breaks protocol and runs for her captain.

She has to practically crawl over the bodies to get to him. Plus, foot soldiers from Ame try to intercept her. But they're nowhere near as trained as Kasai's. Hinata cuts through the first few that attempt to prey on her. The rest see the blood staining her cream attire, her blade held at a skillful angle, and her determined gaze and hightail it the other way.

"Hyuga! Retreat back towards the others! Now!" Sasuke commands. She knows that since he's technically her superior, she should listen. But there are about three high-class looking samurai charging straight for him, and Hinata can't force herself to leave him. She'd do the same for any of the men in her regiment.

Hinata grabs her wakizashi and grips the cold steel of the blade. She squints one eye shut, brings it up by her head, and releases it with all her strength. It lodges into the soldier attempting to stab Sasuke in the back.

He turns his head as he deflects another blade, eyes wide in surprise at the dead men next to his feet. He was seconds away from being dismembered. Seconds away from going down without a fight. But Hyuga had saved him.

Hinata practically throws herself in front of Captain Uchiha and into the mix of all the fighting. She grabs Sasuke's sheathed wakizashi from his belt and launches it into the enemy samurai that attempted to descend onto her. It didn't kill him, but it did slow him down. She then deflects the blade of another enemy and uses the far stronger samurai's force against him by twisting her own wrist with such speed that the sharpened side of the enemy's katana flies into his own face. He falls to his knees instantly, dead on impact.

At this point, she's panting. But the enemies continue to pour from the trees. Sasuke's back is pressed against her and they both hold their blades, ready to kill whoever tries to cross them.

"Where's your strike team?" Sasuke asks her through his own huffs.

"I don't know. I lost them when I was thrown from my horse. Where's yours?" She asks.

"Dead. You disobeyed me. You should've ran when you had the chance. Now you'll die here." He replies in what Hinata can only describe as an apologetic voice.

"Maybe not." She responds, giving his back a nudge with her own. He remains silent. He owes the Hyuga his life. And unless they both manage to make it out of here, the debt will never be repaid. He'll perish owing the one person that drives him mad with all different kinds of emotions. The thought is enough to motivate Sasuke to sink back into a defensive stance.

Another horn sounds, but it doesn't belong to their regiment. Hinata is too cautious to move and she grabs her sword with both hands as a new attacker approaches. And then another one swarms her. And another. She lets out a slight yelp as she barely misses one of their parries, but she knocks their steel back with her own and ends up slicing through the first enemy's arms. Then, she spins, raising her katana above her head, and bringing down into the weak spot in his armor. The man lets out a scream and he falls into his own puddle of blood. Hinata has to stop herself from screaming. It's either them or her. She repeats this to herself over and over again, but no matter what, she's still killing people. She's still ending lives faster than she knew possible.

Her legs take her towards the next opponent almost unwillingly. The man in front of her is gigantic. Wider than Choji and taller than Sasuke. He raises his sword high above his head with a roar. Hinata readies herself by attempting to swing her own blade up into his neck. But even for a man of his size, he swings his katana with such speed. She cries out as he brings it cascading towards her. Her own blade stops it, but just barely. Hinata's arms shake with effort as she tries to push it back. He quickly runs his blade along hers in an attempt to drag it across her throat. Her only hope is to have it slice something much less vital.

Hinata's eyes widen as it draws closer, and she loosens her grip enough to get it away from her throat. Instead, the sharp steel cuts into the side of her waist. Her katana flies out of her hands from the impact and she can feel the warmth of her own blood begin to run down her leg. Hinata winces in pain and the right side of her body immediately begins to go numb. The man raises his sword to officially cut her down, but Sasuke's own katana appears from behind her and sends it away. The enemy gives her captain a murderous look before pulling his fist back and hitting Sasuke as hard as he can.

Captain Uchiha lets out a slight grunt before he falls backwards and tumbles into Hinata. Their enemy is still reeling from Sasuke's retaliation and she evaluates their situation as quickly as possible. She barely has time to cover Sasuke's body with her own before their attacker roars and runs at them once again. Her back is pressed against his chest and her arms are spread out in front of her in a position she hopes is defensive. Their legs are entangled and she can feel his pants against her neck. One of his hands grabs her side in an attempt to move her off him, but she holds firm. There's no point in both of them dying.

Hinata's eyes flit away from the enemy for a moment to see the scary amount of blood that now stains her and her captain's clothes. It's all from her wound. She's out of options, out of strategies. She could attempt to block the oncoming attack with her hand and lose the limb in the process. Either way, she knows she's going to die. She had already lost too much blood. Having her limb stripped from her body would only increase her rate of death. Hinata swallows her terror and accepts her fate. Because maybe with her body, she can save Sasuke. Maybe she can give herself one last purpose.

She attempts to press herself tighter against him. Hinata nestles her face near his neck and he turns and looks at her, his own eyes filled with fear. She debates blurting out her secret, but that would be foolish. She wants to have a companion in her last few moments of life, not an enemy.

Yet despite her clear hopeless attitude. Sasuke's hand finds her wrist and his thumb presses against her veins. There is still blood within them. Her heart is still beating.

"Get up, Hyuga." He tells her desperately. She turns her face away from his neck in shock.

"I can't." She replies weakly.

Sasuke hooks his other arm around her waist and spins them onto their sides. Now, they're both exposed to the oncoming attack.

"Then we die together." He says gruffly.

The sudden thoughts of her death dissipate. She can't go out like this. Her eyes flit around the tree-shaded sky as she forces her brain to think. She narrows her eyes and catches sight of the shining wakizashi that's still lodged in a fallen body.

"Captain!" She cries. Sasuke eyes her wordlessly in understanding, and he pulls them both away as the enemy's blade attempts to strike. Hinata raises her hand in a last-ditch attempt to defend her and her captain. But before the blade can even descend, Sasuke jumps up, stands over her, and drives her smaller blade into the heart of the enemy.

As soon as the imminent threat is taken care of, Hinata's left knee hits the ground and she begins to pant. Her hands are shaky against her wound and the ground almost immediately begins to sway underneath her. Her captain leans down next to her, his eyes locked flitting to her for a second before focusing in at the scary cut on her side. He grabs her hand and moves it away from the wound. His face falls.

"I don't have anything to patch this up. We need to get you back to the regiment." He says. His voice is much less calm than it usually is. Hinata tries to respond, but her entire world seems to move in slow motion. She just grabs his hand that rests against her wound and squeezes it. His eyes knit in either confusion or anger, but she doesn't care.

Hinata can feel the tears that threaten to spill over. She's going to die here. She's going to die far away from her home, her sister, her cousin. And then, once people take a closer look at her body, her honor will be lost anyway.

The stench of death, the sounds of battle, and the sight of murder fades into the background as she looks into her captain's face. "I want to go home, Sasuke." She says quietly.

"You're going to get there, Hyuga." He says. Sasuke's head spins to the side as a soldier attempts to sneak up on them. He quickly brings him down with his own blade and sheathes his weapons. "We need to get you out of here." He repeats.

Hinata knows that her blood loss isn't a good sign. She knows that if Sasuke were to take care of her, he'd slow himself down.

"Leave me here. Get back to the other men." She tells him with all the courage she can muster. She grabs her wakizashi and sets it in her lap. The second her captain is out of view, she'll use it to open her own stomach. Maybe if she gives herself an honorable end, nobody will question her breasts and overall femininity.

"That would be the smart thing to do, wouldn't it?" He says in an annoyed voice. Before Hinata can protest, he picks her up. One hand supports her back while the other cradles the back of her knees.

"This is so emasculating." She says with a grumble. Neji would never allow himself to be carried like a bride, especially by Sasuke.

"It's either this or have you bleed out on my back." He retorts. Hinata wants to make a smart comeback, but the numbness in her body extends to her head. With nothing more than one final sharp inhale, she passes out. Her head almost snaps back, but Sasuke quickly supports it.

"Hold on, Hyuga. Just hold on."

Notes:

I'm sorry for posting this later than usual. But here is the looming ambush you all were expecting! time to turn up the intensity.

Chapter 11

Notes:

Honesty/Sincerity-Makoto

(See the end of the chapter formore notes.)

Chapter Text

There is so much blood. His own, his enemy's, Neji's. It stains his hands and his tunic and his blades. Sasuke feels his eyes leaking and he gives an annoyed huff. Despair is a distraction. And he has one mission. Save Hyuga Neji.

"Captain Uchiha! We've got the enemy on the run!" Kiba exclaims as he brings his horse next to Sasuke.

"Lend me your horse, Inuzuka!" He commands. Kiba looks down at the practically lifeless body in Sasuke's arms and gasps. "NOW!" Sasuke barks.

Kiba jumps off his horse and Sasuke completely lifts Hyuga's frail body over his head before climbing onto the saddle. He has felt Neji's sinewy muscles underneath his hands many times before. Part of him used to scoff at Neji's clear petiteness. The warrior is short in stature and lean, like an arrow. But now, he's grateful for Hyuga's stature.

Sasuke holds his head against his own chest and kicks Kiba's horse into a run. They speed past Sasuke's victorious regiment who all work to gather the wounded and the dead. He knows that as their leader, he should be addressing them on their next move. But he can't think of commanding right now. All he can think of is Hyuga curled against him.

The horse takes them to Sasuke's private tent blissfully quick and he carries Neji inside. Luckily, he was trained in how to handle every medical possibility by Sakura, Naruto's wife.

The first thing Sasuke does is unclasp Neji's swords which fall to the ground noisily. Then, he lays the warrior on his own bed before rushing and grabbing the medical bag that sits in his trunk full of personal things.

Sasuke grabs the required items he'll need to address Neji's wound and kneels down next to him. He forces his hands to steady themselves before he unties the training tunic that sticks to Hyuga like a second layer of skin.

After he peels off the shirt, he stares down at what lies underneath in initial confusion. His entire chest is covered in…bandages? A thumb travels down Neji's collar until it immediately curves upward. Sasuke immediately stops breathing and rips his hand away. Neji is no man.

But even with the realization of Hyuga's current body, unless he acts fast, Sasuke will still lose the person beneath him.

He grits his teeth and cuts around the wraps that conflict with her wound. Then, he cleans and stitches her wound as best as he can. Luckily for Hyuga, Sasuke had the best teacher in Kasai.

Hyuga still looks incredibly pale, but her bleeding has stopped. Sasuke stares down at her, pleading with his Uchiha ancestors to bless her with some of their strength.

She lost a lot of blood, but after getting a closer look at the clean wound, no arteries were punctured. So there's a chance for her.

Sasuke has always thought the Neji he knew was pretty. Before Hyuga, he had never noticed things like gracefulness or eloquence. But of course, that all changed after he got to know the persistent samurai. Sasuke had allowed himself to care for Neji. And not in the same way he cares for Naruto or even Shikamaru. It was more than that. And it confused him. Not in a bad way. Sasuke had never had any reservations against men. Or women. He just…was never interested before.

Of course, that all changed when the Uchiha Clan elders insisted on finding a wife to produce heirs. Then it didn't matter if he was uninterested, he must try. He had met countless noblewomen. But none of them even sparked his attention until the Hyuga from the countryside. Except Sasuke had to go to war. And Hinata-san had rejected him. So, he had given up on the notion of finding someone to attempt to enjoy life with.

Until he got to know Hyuga Neji. Then, the formative idea of heirs seemed to suddenly leave his mind. Sasuke didn't care about that anymore. He only cared about Neji. But this person is clearly not Neji.

He curses as it all clicks into place inside his head. He had been a fool. How had he not seen it sooner? Neji is Hinata.

"Sasuke, the men have all returned—'' Shikamaru begins to say from the other side of the tent

Sasuke throws his own body over Hyuga's, shielding her secret.

"Take care of it! Leave me be! Get out!" His voice comes out in a desperate jumble, but Shikamaru gets the hint. Even though Hyuga Neji is much more of his friend than Sasuke's, he's seen the way his captain looks at the soldier. If anyone can take care of Neji, Sasuke can. He leaves the tent without a further word.

Sasuke looks back down at Hyuga with a frown. Even though her wound has been treated, there is still much he should do. He can't have her laying in her own filth. But then again…he feels that he cannot undress her.

Sasuke does exactly what Sakura Hime told him. He shuts off any and all emotion before returning to work on the girl beneath him. She is not Hyuga Hinata, or former Hyuga Neji. She is nothing more than a patient who needs more assessing.

First, he cuts off her wraps. Then, strips her of the rest of her blood-soaked clothes. Next, he rinses all signs of carnage from her body. His eyes remain analytical and he watches the carnage leave her body with relief. Then, he wraps her in his own robe.

He steps away to take in his work, but after a pause, he realizes there is still something off about her appearance. So with more delicacy than Sasuke knew possible, he rinses her hair and begins to loosen it from its tie. The knots are slow to workout, but eventually, he returns the once tangled strands to their former, silky glory.

At last, he wraps his blanket around her as best as he can before moving her to a new, clean cot in the corner.

Sasuke pulls up a chair, sits down, and places his unsheathed katana in his lap. Even though his enemies on the battlefield have been temporarily defeated, there is now a new secret he must defend at all costs.

~

Hinata awakes with a start, launching her fist at the person nearest to her. Captain Uchiha catches it with a frown.

"What happened? Where are our enemies? Is my striketeam alive? Am I alive?" She asks all at once.

"The heavy man we killed with your wakizashi was their captain. They retreated shortly after we heard that initial horn. Apparently, they thought my regiment was Itatchi's. They weren't expecting our numbers. Your strike team is fine. Shirunai was badly wounded, but he's stable now. And you're obviously alive." His voice is different. It's more cold than she would've liked.

Almost reluctantly, Sasuke releases her closed fist from his grip.

Now that Hinata's initial panic has faded, she takes the time to try and assess where she is. Her legs are tucked into a thick, unfamiliar blanket, and one of their canvas tents is raised around her. There's a small tray of food in the corner that includes a bowl of rice, some sort of meat, and a water basin. There's also another small looking cot that is a little farther away from hers.

Her hair is down, combed and falls near her shoulders. Hinata hasn't worn her hair this way in front of anyone since before she left. There's nothing wrong with men having their hair down, but it makes her feel more like herself and less like Neji. She wears a black, silk robe that she's seen her captain wear, and she can tell by the looseness in her chest that her wraps are no longer there. Hinata's heart sinks in realization. Somebody had to take her wraps off. Somebody has to know her secret. And she can almost guarantee the person that knows is the man sitting right in front of her.

"Then where is everyone? How long have I been asleep?" She asks slowly. "Why am I in your tent and not the medic tent?" But Sasuke doesn't have to say anything. Hinata already knows that he knows.

"It's been two nights." He pauses. "You saved my life." He says quietly. "More than once, actually. You fought for me when you didn't have to. I told you to run and you disobeyed me."

Hinata stares at him blankly. Are they still playing a game? Or is he too ashamed of her to acknowledge her clear dishonor? She doesn't know how to respond. He knows the truth. He has to.

"You would've done it for me." She finally says, still using her fake voice.

"I would've done it for Hyuga Neji. The samurai who taught me it was okay to feel. The warrior who taught me love and strength can coincide. But for you? For a woman who has been playing at being someone else?"

She dips her head in shame. "You may hate me if you choose to. But I did this to protect my family. And to serve my country."

Sasuke lets out a huff. "Enough acting. Who are you really?" His voice is rigid.

"I am Hyuga Hinata. Former heiress of the Hyuga clan. Daughter of Hiashi. Samurai of Kasai." She says, lifting her head defiantly. "I am still the warrior that has been training alongside you for months. I'm still the person that saved your life."

Sasuke just wanted to hear her say it. He knew she was Hinata. He began to know from the minute he tore off her training tunic in fear and saw thick wraps covering her chest. He knew after listening to her whimpers. While asleep, she cried about a person named Hanabi. And a Neji. And Sasuke. She cried out for him. His own name sounded so delicate on the lips of the Hyuga who could not keep up her ruse in her sleep.

"You made quite an impression on me, Hyuga. And I'm not talking about your swordsmanship or your combat knowledge. I'm talking about your spirit. You're a fighter."

Hinata blinks. She has told him everything. Uchiha Sasuke knows that she is the one who he met with long before their entry to the war. He knows that she snuck into their camp, posed as her older and more skilled cousin, and lied to the country. But he did not let her die. After discovering her secret, he could've easily allowed her wound to take her. But not only is she stitched up, he also cleaned her and dressed her in silk. He doesn't sound pleased with her. But his words are not unkind. She debates opening her mouth and questioning him further, but he looks down at his flexed hands with a frown.

"When I met you back in your squat village, I knew you would make an excellent Uchiha. You stood up to me. You stood up to the samurai in the street. You were fearless and beautiful. But then, I met who I believed was Neji. And I didn't want Hinata anymore. I wanted her cousin. Her stubborn, defensive, prideful cousin. And I hated myself for it. A warrior shouldn't want anything, let alone a fellow warrior. And now, I know the two have been the same person the entire time." He takes a deep breath and his face grows cold. "You're deceitful. Dishonorable. Manipulative."

"Let me explain," she attempts to engage, but Sasuke lifts up a single hand to silence her. Hinata bites her tongue in frustration. He must eventually let her speak!

"But even with your piss poor qualities," his eyes finally meet hers again, "I still find myself desperate for you. Even the idea of you."

He now looks at her as if he's expecting her to answer. She begins to gather her courage, knowing that she herself has much to say. There are confessions of her own she wants to share. But Sasuke moves close to her, his face analyzing her own. Hinata's gaze softens.

"You were willing to die with me. You were willing to lose your own life so I didn't have to leave this world alone." She whispers.

She attempts to sit up and move the blanket away from her, but the pain in her side makes her pause. Her wince sends Sasuke immediately to her side and he lifts part of her robe and scans the bandaged wound. Hinata wants to be embarrassed at the clear implication that he has already seen her, but she's not. He's her captain. His motive for removing her wraps was a noble one.

"I don't know why." He replies, his voice clearly confused. "I'm a captain. I have more responsibilities than you could ever imagine. But your life…Hyuga, I was terrified I was going to lose you."

She gives him a smile that has only ever belonged to Hinata. He's stuck-up, pretentious, and cold. But he cares deeply about his men. He cares deeply about his country. She knows that when Sasuke cares for something, nothing will stand in his way of protecting it. And now, she's on the short list of things that matter to him. The thought makes her head spin. Because she knows he has made her list too.

"You make me weak. You strip away everything I'm supposed to be and leave me with everything that I am." He says softly.

Sasuke puts a hand against Hinata's. His calloused fingers trace her bruised knuckles gently. She has felt the hardness of his hands and his body more times than she can count. But this is different. It's curious, not angry.

His hand travels from her hand to her arm. Her breath hitches in her throat and his eyes do not stray from her skin. He leans forward, as if he has found something worth investigating. Hinata's face grows red as his eyes meet hers mere inches away. She feels his touch against her cheek as the tips of his fingers rest in her hair.

The last time she was conscious, she had thrown her own body over his in an attempt at self-sacrifice. She refused to let him die. He had clearly lived, saving her own life in return.

Sasuke blinks slowly, his eyes looking from her nose, to her chin, to her lips. But despite the desperate look on his face, he releases her from his grip and pulls away.

"But I cannot act on my selfish thoughts. You have lied to me Hyuga." His face falls and he turns his head away from her. Then, he stands. "Get out of my encampment. Get out of my regiment. In the eyes of the emperor, your conscription has been fulfilled. The nobility of the Hyuga will remain, but you're no longer a family of warriors."

"Captain, wait, please." Hinata yanks the blanket off her legs and is surprised to see them bare. Her face tinges pink and she looks up at Sasuke drinking her in. His eyes rake across her newly powerful calves and up towards her thighs. His fists tighten and she sees him swallow.

"Get dressed and get out. I'm no longer your captain." Sasuke forces his eyes to lift past her figure. He forces his mind to think of something, anything, other than her hand in his, her loose hair, her real voice.

When Sasuke turns and leaves their private tent, he doesn't turn around.

Notes:

lot of truths coming out here. I hope you all enjoyed!

Chapter 12

Notes:

Yu- Courage

Chapter Text

Hinata stares at the now closed flaps of the tent with a mouth parted in shock. She had been barred from the regiment. Her life has been spared. And Sasuke was responsible for both of those decisions.

With a huff of annoyment at his departure, she plants her wobbly legs on the dewy grass and looks around the tent. She grabs the first pair of pants she sees and shoves her feet back into her boots. The steps she takes out of the tent are initially slow, but she's determined to catch up with Sasuke. How could he just walk away? He stripped her of her samurai status, refused to let her speak, and still found time and energy to tell her he desired her?

The entire regiment is sleeping and the absolute silence of the field makes her frown. Usually, there's a lone group of soldiers who chatter amongst themselves, or even a fire that still has hot embers. But not tonight. Not even the moon provides its usual comforting glow. But the torches around her tent provide her some much needed light and she glances around in an attempt to trace Sasuke's steps.

"Neji? You're awake?" A comforting voice calls from behind her. Hinata sucks in a breath. She was so concerned with catching up to Sasuke that she completely forgot to conceal her identity. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Choji standing guard near the outskirts of her tent. She assumes his presence is Sasuke's doing.

She hears his footsteps draw closer and she crosses her arms in front of her chest. But of course, Sasuke's clothes don't have the same baginess that her own do. Plus, her hair is down.

"I was so worried about you. Captain Uchiha wouldn't let any of us see you, not even Shikamaru. And even though he told us you were recovering, we wanted to see it for ourselves. But now you're awake! I can't wait to tell–" He puts his hand on her shoulder and spins her around. His eyes immediately widen in surprise.

Hinata sees his gaze flit around her face and apparel in confusion. She takes a deep breath, stands up straight, and drops her arms to her side.

"Hi, Choji-kun." She says quietly.

"W-what? Neji? I mean, you're Neji. But you're not." Choji holds up his hand as he tries to piece together who the person in front of him is.

"I'm the Neji that you have come to know. But my name is Hinata." She whispers, already feeling self-conscious. Neji is the confident one. He's the heir to the Hyuga, their fearless leader and defender. She's just a former heiress, a farmer, a fraud.

"And you've always been like this? The entire time? You've been Hinata?" He asks. She nods. "I have told almost every detail of my life to a woman? I have been carried when I could not continue by a woman? I thought you were someone else. You duped me." His face remains somber.

"I had to do it, Choji. I had to–" but before she can finish, she's lifted off her feet in a bone-crushing hug.

"You don't have to tell me anything, Hinata-san. Thank you for choosing me to be your friend. I'm so happy that you're okay." He didn't question her sudden appearance of breasts, her feminine voice, her lack of armor. He didn't care.

Hinata squeezes her eyes shut and hugs him back. She ignores the pain from her wound and allows herself to be completely engrossed in Choji's warmth. He knows she lied. And the only emotion he feels towards her is relief. It makes Hinata's heart swell with love.

Eventually, Choji sets her down and gives her shoulder a shove. "Does this mean…you want to marry someone in my family?" He asks with an eyebrow raised.

Despite her current situation, Hinata laughs. "Not at the moment. Right now, the only thing I need to do is find Captain Uchiha. He told me I must leave here and go home. But I can't bring myself to do that. I won't leave you all, not until the war is won."

She expected Choji to quickly agree with her. But instead, he just shifts on his feet anxiously. "Neji…er…Hinata, the men here respected you. But once they find out the truth, things may be different. I'm sure Captain Uchiha is only trying to protect you."

Hinata's fists tighten. Choji has accepted her. But now that she is no longer Neji, he's refusing to listen to her. Why is it that when a woman talks, men suddenly become deaf?

"I don't need to be protected. I shall do the protecting." She insists.

"You know the laws of our country. If you are to be found out, you will be dishonored. Your life may be surrendered. And that absolutely cannot happen." Choji says. He has always been silly and easy-going. But now, his arms are crossed in front of him and he wears a hard expression. Hinata knows he will not budge on this matter.

"So what? I just have to go home and act like nothing has happened to me?" She says, her voice raising in anger. "I am a warrior. Possibly one of the best this regiment has. I will not be turned away simply because I'm a woman."

Choji places a giant hand on her shoulder. "You will go home and live another day. You will have the honor knowing that you fought incredibly hard for your country. That you saved your captain."

"And what if I refuse?" She whispers. "What if I continue to wear the mask of Neji?"

"Then you will eventually be discovered. And I'll lose my friend for nothing." He matches her anguished tone. Hinata steps forward to embrace him once again and his touch no longer feels warm. It feels final. "Leave, Hyuga Hinata. And live," he says against her.

"Thank you for everything, Choji-kun. I could not have become Neji without you." Her voice grows wobbly and she pulls away before she truly begins to cry. Then, without a further word to her best friend, she leaves.

Live and feel cowardly only to wonder if she could've done more. Die and feel heroic only to have her clan potentially lose everything. She hates that she has to choose.

But in the end, she ignores her heart. She won't seek out Sasuke. She won't check in on her striketeam. She'll leave the Neji that they have all come to know behind. She is Hinata once more. And she fears that is not enough.

~

Hinata kicks her new horse forward with a frown. Since they had defeated so many enemies, the number of horses their regiment took care of had grown dramatically. She is still mourning Zenzai, but her new mare is very temperate. They trot down a path back towards Hinata's home village. After spending the past week marching towards the capital, it's almost laughable that now she has to go the entirely opposite way.

She knows she should be grateful for her return. Sasuke's practically bargaining everything by keeping her secret. But all she feels is anger. Why did he wait to tell her how he felt until she was practically dead? Why did she even care? He didn't want her, he wanted the Neji she had invented. And she didn't want him either. All she's ever wanted was to go home. But now that she actually is, something feels wrong.

She's now been on her own for around a day and a half. It has been…strange. She never thought she'd miss Choji's constant chortle, or Shikamaru's persistent sighs, but she does. She misses the late night sounds of polishing metal, the meals with her regiment, even sleeping surrounded by people that'd give her life for her. Hinata's the loneliest she's ever been.

And even though her family has never left her mind, she's nervous about returning. Neji has always looked after the Hyuga with a level head. What if he decides her departure could have potentially brough more shame to her family? What if he decides she no longer belongs amongst them?

Hinata shakes her head in order to clear the thought. Neji is her family. He would never do such a thing. Sure, he'll probably be furious, but he would never abandon her.

Her thoughts continue to swirl as she makes her way up a particularly large hill on a wide open plain. But when she reaches the top, she lets out a gasp.

The scars of battle are clearly evident. Her first fight had been incredibly different. It was camouflaged by the cover of the forest. The carnage had faded into the long grass and leftover leaves long before Hinata could even register the damage. But this one is like a dark stain against the yellow grass of the wheat field. Dead bodies from both sides have been left for the crows.

There are samurai and soldiers from Kasai holed up in what appears to be an abandoned outpost. The stone walls have already begun to crumble in some spots, but the men of her country hide behind them anyway. She knows the building will withstand their defensive position for a week at most. And after that, the enemies that surround them will manage to get in and slaughter them. Hinata's stomach grows tight. What can she do? How can she help?

"Nothing. You're not a samurai anymore. You never were." She reminds herself bitterly. But despite her shattered connection to the way of life she had only just come to learn, the code she is meant to follow shouts itself over and over inside her head. It is not in her to abandon those who may need her. With a frustrated sigh at her own stubbornness, she begins to turn her horses reins back towards her old regiment. Back towards Sasuke.

The strategy lessons that had been drilled into her head tell her that the regiment in the outpost is basically doomed. They have no way to send for reinforcements, no way to get in contact with anyone. The smart thing to do would be to ride out, face their enemies, and die with honor. So…what's stopping them? What could possibly be worth defending?

Her eyes widen in realization as she puts it all together. The burnt down village is less than a day's ride. The lack of bodies. Sasuke waiting for a letter. It's them. It's his brother's regiment! They're alive and attempting to defend an entire village worth of people on their own! She's about to hustle towards her old friends, when the pounding of newly arriving horses makes her freeze.

"It's a woman!" She hears one say.

"Then why does she carry blades?" Another calls out.

Hinata debates her next move. She could move her horse now and hopefully outrun them. But if any of them are good with a bow, she'd probably die. And then, the people at the outpost would die.

So that leaves having them draw closer where she can disarm and kill them. They know she's a woman. Hopefully, they'll underestimate her. She puts her left hand on the handle of her blade as they enclose her.

Four against one. One samurai. Three ashigaru. Surprisingly, the soldiers are on horseback alongside their leader. Hinata has two blades and one injured side. She has to prevail.

The samurai whistles. "You're gorgeous. Where did you come from, little hime?"

"I-I'm just traveling to the countryside to visit my grandparents." She says. Luckily she doesn't have to fake the stutter.

"With weapons like that?" One of the ashigaru asks with a frown. The samurai gives him a glare.

"T-they're my fathers. I'm returning them to his p-parents." She answers.

"Why don't you take your hand off the blade and come with us instead?" The samurai asks with a smirk. Hinata cautiously lifts her hand away. So far, her ruse is working.

"Captain, her robe."

The samurai's face loses its look of lust and is instead replaced with rage. "Uchiha." He seethes. Hinata knows she wears the fan on her back and on her shoulders, but she didn't think it would matter. But of course, even without his presence, Sasuke's still causing her trouble.

"Put an arrow in her. She'll be easier to take if she's bleeding. And before we send her head to Captain Itachi, maybe I'll allow you all to have a turn with her." He sneers. "After me of course."

An ashigaru shoots an arrow at Hinata faster than she would've expected, but she still manages to knock it away with her katana.

"If you want this Uchiha, you'll have to come get her." She taunts as she wraps her other hand around the leather handle of her blade. If that is how they choose to perceive her, so be it.

The samurai clicks his tongue and her four enemies begin their descent onto her. One continues to fire arrows, but Hinata knocks them all aside with ease.

The first enemy collides his steel against hers with a yell. His blade is so dull, her own force manages to slice clean through it. She then slices his stomach and chest without further fanfare, and he crashes to the ground.

The other one attempts to take off her own head, but Hinata dodges by laying flat against her horse. She then whirls her blade around and removes his head from his shoulders. Hinata shifts her blade in her hand before slicing the saddle of the remaining ashigaru's horse, sending him tumbling to the ground in front of her. Then, she picks up his own arrow that ended up in her lap, twirls it in her hand, and brings it down with all her force into his head.

"You are no mere woman. You're a she-devil. A spy of Kasai." The samurai accuses.

"No. I am no spy. I'm Hyuga Hinata. A samurai." She tells him. Then, she takes his arms off one by one with her father's katana. His screams make her flinch, and she forces herself to not pity him. He would've done much worse to her.

The enemy samurai is unable to catch himself when he falls, and his head hits the ground first with a satisfying crack. Hinata stares at the damage she has done while she pants.

Then, without a further moment, she kicks her horse into a run back in the direction she just came. She'll lose her honor. She might lose her life. But she doesn't care. There are people in that outpost that need her help. And she won't let them down.

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