Huge thanks to these people for reviewing: km987001, dumdeedum, ferper, sasuhina479, LaCrazyWriter, bogusbabe, ElyBet, LavenderEyedAssassin, a guest, and RinGakupo.
Enjoy!
ooOOoo
Wind Blows
Hinata is finally feeling well enough to attempt a small walk around the compound. Two women accompany her. Hinata knows they are there to spy on her as much as they are there to help her and answer any questions. She is not offended. Iroha is not a stupid man, and she knows she is still capable of being a threat.
And the compound itself appears so small. So breakable. The Hyuga have lived here for many generations, but the houses are huts compared to the sprawling manors of the future. Everything is made of wood and rough hewn stone instead of concrete with power lines buzzing overhead.
Pein destroyed much of the compound in the future, but it still appeared more formidable than this.
However, she likes it. She likes the lack of clutter, of the wide expanses of carefully tended gardens and footpaths.
She is exclaiming over a beautiful grouping of peonies when a man leading three others walks up to her.
"Cousin," he says.
Hinata slowly stands straight before bowing deeply. She does not know who this is, but by his haughty demeanor and the proud upwards tilt of his chin, she assumes he thinks himself important. He glares at her and she tries her best to appear submissive.
She keeps her eyes low even as she comes up from the bow. "I am Hinata, Sir."
"I am Ichiro," he sniffs.
Ah. He is Iroha's son. She sneaks a glance at his face. He has a little bit of Iroha in his cheekbones, but his face is wide and his eyes are small. She wonders if he gets it from his mother. He appears a bit younger than her. In his early twenties or late teens, maybe. His hair, however, is the same shade as her father's.
"Lord Ichiro," she swiftly corrects herself.
"Father said you're Goro and Hana's daughter."
This surprises Hinata. She thought Iroha would share her true origins with his son. Maybe Ichiro is waiting for privacy to address it, but he sounds convinced of his words.
"I am. My mother was in hiding with me for a long time before she escaped to come here. She… she didn't survive the journey." Hinata says quietly.
It was easy for them to pick a family of the Main Branch that died in battle. So many people have in this Warring Clans time period. It is chaotic enough that long lost cousins appearing out of nowhere is not too fantastic a lie.
Ichiro scoffs. Hinata pretends to jump in surprise. His anger is unexpected and shocking.
"They say you were sick after your trial and confined in bed."
It is not a question but he waits like he wants an answer.
"Yes, my Lord," she responds dutifully. "I was feverish and spent the time sleeping to recover my strength."
He steps closer and looms into her space. "Then why did you have someone sneak into your rooms? Who are you working with?"
Hinata's head snaps up. This time, her surprise is genuine. She had a dream, while she was confined. She thought she had been visited by Kiba, then Shino, then Sasuke. And then, towards the end, Madara showed up to ask her a lot of questions. It had been a strange and upsetting dream, but just a dream.
Apparently not.
She does not have to fake her fear as her legs tremble. Her companions reach out and steady her. She feels dizzy.
"I… Someone was in my room?" She asks, her voice full of fear and dread. "Who… who was there? Is someone following me?"
She falls forward, clutching at Ichiro's sleeve. "L-Lord Ichiro, you must believe me, I-I didn't know!"
He throws her off and back into her minders' grasps. His face is full of disgust but the men behind him look doubtful.
"You're lying!" he says.
"I dunno, it sounds like she's telling the truth." One of Ichiro's entourage says.
"What did he-what did he look like?" she asks.
Ichiro spins to face one of his group. The man in question looks sorry he is even involved.
"Well?" Ichiro barks.
The man speaks in a slow, hitching manner, like he is doubting himself now. "He.. uh… he had long, thick hair. And he, I… I could've sworn he had an Uchiha crest on his clothes. When his hair moved, I saw it."
Hinata allows her knees to give out from under her.
"My lady!" One of the minders cries as she falls down to her knees to keep Hinata's upper body from hitting the ground.
"Lord Ichiro," the other minder says, "please, my Lady is recovering. Can't you see? She does not know what you're talking about!"
"The Uchiha are being bothersome," the last of Ichiro's men scoffs. "They keep sniffing around, trying to spy on us. They probably learned we have a new clan member and were trying to take advantage of her."
Hinata's anger and desperation boils up inside of her. Hot tears stream down her face and she presses her palms to her eyes.
Fucking Madara is going to ruin everything. How is she going to fix the past if no one trusts her because Madara is poking around?
"She's crying!" The man who saw Madara exclaims.
Hinata does not believe in hysterics. Her father never allowed her or Hanabi to cry even when they were injured. In fact, Hinata feels a bit stupid for being so angry that she is moved to tears.
However, she does not mind people underestimating her. She prefers it. Maybe because her self esteem is so low at times, that it is only half acting. It comes naturally to her.
If she cries loudly now, they will never take her seriously.
Good.
Taking in a deep breath, she lets out a sob. It sounds dramatic and very fake, but there is the sound of feet scrambling on the gravel. She moves a hand to wipe at her chin and sees the whole group of men scramble backwards as if she is now sick and contagious. It is almost funny.
"What-what would a-a-an U-Uchiha want with me?" she gasps and sniffles again.
"We need to tell your father!" One of the men hisses at Ichiro.
Ichiro gives a halting nod, and the men turn in the opposite direction. They do not run but they move very quickly.
Hinata allows her companions to lever her to her feet, and escort her to her room. One of them gives her a cool compress for her eyes while the other closes all the shutters to keep out the light.
She lies in bed, fighting a migraine, as she thinks.
To make this work, Hinata needs to appear blameless and completely loyal to the Hyuga. She cannot do that if Madara is sniffing around, making her look like a spy. He probably wants more information on the future from her.
There are a few options open. She could ignore him, and continue to pretend she does not know who he is and why he is after her. That will not work as he is clearly pursuing her. She could tell him to fuck off. But he is an Uchiha and they never listen to anything anybody says. Or, she could feed him enough information to keep him cooperative.
That last option, she hates the most. But it might be the only effective one she has.
But how will she get him to meet with her?
How is he finding her? She might have to simply show up somewhere private and wait.
oOOo
Madara is returning from a diplomatic trip outside the village with Hashirama. They walk side by side, while a team of carts carrying gifts and supplies trails behind them. Hashirama is laughing at his own joke, but Madara cannot manage to pay attention.
"I am very pleased with the Aburame clan's interest," Hashirama rambles. "They will be a strong clan to add to Konoha."
Madara blinks, briefly activating his Sharingan. There are tendrils of a familiar chakra color.
They are very near to Konoha and the closer they get, the stronger the signature.
"Madara?" Hashirama asks. "Do you see something?"
Madara tilts his head to the side. "I need to check this out."
"Do you want me to come with you?"
Madara shakes his head before addressing the Uchiha with him. "Go back to the village. I will follow."
They bow and Madara walks off the road and into the woods. He makes sure that no one follows before breaking into a sprint. It is Hinata. Why is she outside of the walls?
He soon arrives at a small spring and waterfall. It is tucked in a copse of trees and impossible to hear the water unless someone is on top of it. He looks around at the shaded glen, a little impressed by the scenery.
A woman in a simple gray kimono sits at the bank, watching the water.
"How do you know about this place?" Madara asks.
"The Hyuga know everything about the Nakano. There is no part of the river that is hidden to us," she replies without turning around.
He hates that she is not looking at him. Stomping up to her, he stops beside her and peers down.
"Why are you outside the village?" he demands.
She obliges him and turns her head up to face him. But she does not stand, or bow, or do anything to acknowledge his status or superior power.
"Please do not visit the Hyuga compound anymore. They saw you and thought, briefly, that I was a traitor to my clan."
Madara scoffs and rolls his eyes. "No one was nearby."
Her eyes narrow in thought. "You… you do not know about the Hyuga dojutsu?" Her voice is filled with surprise.
"Of course I do," he hisses and crosses his arms. But he does not offer up any information.
"We can see very far distances."
That, he knew.
"We can see through walls."
That actually startles him. "Walls? How do you have any privacy?"
Her face is expressionless and blank as she says: "We don't."
Madara feels like he turns a little green. She stares with that dead face before a small, almost sadistically gleeful smile forms. It flusters him a little.
"That's disgusting," he hisses.
Her smile does not fade. "So please, Lord Madara. If you refrain from visiting, I would appreciate it."
He crouches and presses his face near hers. Her mirth disappears quickly.
"What are you willing to give me?" he demands quietly.
"I will answer a question of yours at a time. Give me long enough to complete my mission and I will come here once a week to answer you."
"And what if I want more than one question answered? What if I force you to tell me everything you know?"
"That is not how you negotiate, Lord Madara."
Tired of this, he reaches out, lightning quick and wraps a hand around her neck. "I will do as I please!"
For a long moment, everything is still. All he can hear is the water, birdsong, and their breaths. Hers does not speed up but he can feel the soft skin of her neck and the pulse of her rapid heartbeat pressing into his hand.
"Have you figured it out, yet?" she murmurs.
"Figured out what?"
"When I am a human and when I am a clone?"
He startles back and removes his hand from her. "You're a clone?! How do you do that?!"
She tilts her head to the side. Combined with her white eyes and her pretense at being unafraid of him, it makes her look inhuman.
"Is that your question?"
Madara wishes he could strangle her. "I never agreed to your terms."
She stands, with both the grace of a highborn lady and of a nin. It reminds him of the water right next to them. Standing with perfect posture, and her hands tucked into her long sleeves, she peers down at him. Since there is no expression on her face, she cannot look haughty, but Madara still feels as if he is being judged. He too, stands, just so he can be the one with the advantage.
But she still wins.
He wants to know everything, which means he cannot kill her.
"Your book. Your history book. It says I killed Izuna. I would never harm my brother, so why would it say that?" he finally asks.
She presses her lips together and looks away. For the first time, she appears vulnerable. "I… I'm not saying the book is incorrect. But… history is always written by the victor."
Stepping back, she gives a low bow. "Until next time, Lord Madara."
"And what if I come into your compound again?"
"I'll ask my clan leader to complain to Lord Hashirama."
Angered, he dives forward but she disappears in a puff of smoke. Madara yells out in frustration. Even the echo is muffled by the trees and it makes him even more angry.
He closes his eyes to breathe, but behind his eyelids, he sees an afterimage of her. The long line of her body and how she could make simple, cheap fabric appear elegant and clingy. She is infuriating but she is also beautiful.
It burns him from the inside out.
ooOOoo
Coming up: Hinata learns more about her new clan. Madara sees her without stalking her first.