caged bird

by Lazydaily

Uploaded for TTS. Hinata back in time to the start of the series.

18. Chapter 18

When Hinata came to, she kept her eyes closed, taking a moment to get her bearings.

The first thing she noticed was that she couldn't feel her chakra, and felt her heart rate pick up in response. The second was that whatever room she was in was cool and damp, and the surface she was lying on was cold and hard, only a thin sheet separating her skin from what seemed to be a metal frame.

With a start, she remembered the events of the final few seconds before she'd passed out – or been knocked out? – and she sat up in alarm.

T&I.

Her eyes snapped open and panic began to claw at her lungs and throat when she was greeted with the sight of stone walls, and only the cot she was lying on and a metal toilet and sink to furnish the room.

Or rather, cell.

Because that was undeniably where she currently found herself: in a cell in Torture and Interrogation.

Hinata was distantly aware that she'd began hyperventilating, her breathing the only sound in the otherwise silent cell, her heaving breaths echoing eerily off the stone walls.

Only three walls were stone, she noted with the part of her mind that wasn't panicking, the fourth taken up by floor-to-ceiling metal bars, leaving no doubt as to the fact that she was currently a prisoner.

Hinata put her head between her knees and wove her fingers into her hair, pulling harshly in a desperate attempt to ground herself. She was too lightheaded to think, too terrified to objectively evaluate her situation and decide how much trouble she was going to be in if they brought in a Yamanaka.

Or if they'd already brought one in while she'd been unconscious.

"Hinata."

Hinata jumped, startled, her hand automatically flying to her senbon holster, only to brush up against the fabric of her trousers, her weapons pouches gone.

Tense and defenceless, she let go of her hair and jerked her head up towards the voice, only to almost double over with relief at the sight that greeted her.

"K-Kagane-san!" She breathed, the words almost a whimper, and pushed to her feet, swaying only slightly at the unexpected headrush the movement brought.

"Are you injured?" Kagane inquired, her sharp gaze missing little, and Hinata shook her head as she made her way towards the woman, stopping an arms' length away from the metal bars.

"O-only bruised." she replied, though now that she was thinking about it, she realised that the place where she'd gotten hit by the Kumo-nin's rock-covered fist was throbbing with a dull, constant pain.

Probably more than bruised, but she couldn't afford to think about it now.

"How are you feeling?" Kagane probed instead, clearly deciding against questioning Hinata's assessment of her state.

Hinata bit her lip, wondering whether to lie or be honest, then took a deep breath. This was Kagane-san; Hinata hadn't lied to the woman about her mental state yet, and she wasn't about to start.

"Scared." she whispered, the admission falling from her lips like a confession, but Kagane merely nodded, no judgement in her gaze, instead looking as if she'd expected the answer.

Then: "Do you know why you're here?"

"No." Hinata replied honestly, because while she knew who'd likely brought her to T&I, she didn't fully understand what she'd done to deserve it. "Should I?"

Kagane's expression didn't change, but Hinata got the oddest impression that the woman softened slightly.

"When you decided to help the Kiri-nin." Kagane began, her eyes never leaving Hinata's face, cataloguing every reaction and microexpression. "Were you coerced by anyone? Threatened? Under genjutsu?"

"N-no!" Hinata denied, waving her hands in front of herself as if to dispel the sheer notion that she hadn't acted out of her own free will. "Kagane-san, what-?"

"They need proof that you were of sound mind." Kagane cut in, and Hinata shut her mouth with an audible snap. "I'm no Yamanaka, but you've been my patient for over a year. I know you, Hinata."

Kagane met her gaze and, from the woman's expression alone, Hinata had no delusions as to the severity of the situation.

"They will take my word for it without the need for a Mind Walk." Kagane reassured her, and Hinata swayed at the weight that came off her shoulders at the words. "But I need you to be completely honest with me."

Hinata nodded wordlessly, too relieved to speak, and held Kagane's gaze expectantly.

"The Kiri-nin." Kagane began, and Hinata held her breath as she waited for the woman to finish. "Why did you help him?"

Hinata released the breath she'd been holding and took another one, deeper, letting it out slowly.

"It was Haku." she admitted when she was finally ready.

"Ah." Kagane uttered, the single word encompassing multitudes, the corner of her lips quirking up wryly. "Of all the Kiri-nin..."

Hinata felt her own lips twitch, but her fear of her predicament kept her from fully sharing in the rare show of humour from her shrink. She took another deep breath, steadying herself, and elaborated, sharing with Kagane what she hadn't admitted before.

"During the Exams, he told me Kumo used to hunt his Clan." She whispered, dropping her gaze from Kagane's and wrapping her arms around herself, not wanting the woman to see the wave of anger that washed over her at the memory. "The same way they hunted mine to get the Byakugan."

Kagane was silent for a moment, then she sighed, but her voice, when she spoke, was inflectionless, factual. "You related to him."

Hinata's eyes jumped to Kagane's then, needing to see what the woman was thinking, but Kagane's poker face was better than Kurenai's.

"He uses senbon for the same reason I do." Hinata said, her words almost pleading, needing Kagane to understand. "A-and- it was Kumo that attacked him-!"

"And even you're not so nice as to not hold a grudge for something like that, I get it." Kagane cut her off, though not unkindly. If anything, she seemed almost proud for a second, though she sobered quickly. "I can't promise that there won't be consequences from your decision, however."

When Hinata blinked, startled by the unexpected urgency in Kagane's voice, the woman sighed again.

"You aided a foreign-nin, Hinata." She explained flatly, finally shedding a light as to why Hinata found herself in T&I. "Without explicit orders to do so."

When Hinata just stared, processing the realisation that she wasn't being imprisoned for her time-travel, Kagane smiled humourlessly, misunderstanding the reason for her bafflement. "Inter-Village individual friendships aren't exactly common. But I guess you are part of the peace-time generation."

Hinata let the words sit for a beat, basking in the relief she was still feeling, then refocused on the situation at hand. Even though helping Haku was much easier to explain than the fact that she'd lived once before, she was still in T&I.

Making eye-contact with Kagane, for once feeling entirely like the child she now looked like, she couldn't help but ask, "Am I in trouble?"

This time, it was undeniable that Kagane softened slightly.

"Many people are in your corner." She told Hinata sagely, and the certainty in her voice was reassuring. Grounding. "But you might be called in for questioning at some point."

Hinata didn't want to ask, didn't want to remind Kagane of the possibility, but she had to know. "And…the Yamanaka?"

Kagane smiled, and her expression was proud and smug.

"Won't be necessary." She told Hinata curtly, and that was definitely satisfaction in her gaze. "You didn't even think to lie to me."

Naruto made his way down the corridor Mitarashi-san had indicated, doing his level best to repress a shiver.

No matter how many times he walked through T&I with Sasuke, the place never stopped being creepy. And yes, he knew that was the point, shut up, Sasuke, but still.

He let out a relieved sigh when he finally found the cell number Mitarashi-san had told him, though he stopped just out of sight.

Hinata was…meditating?

She didn't look the way Sasuke had told him the prisoners Mitarashi-san had allowed him to see had looked. Though her clothes were stained and bloodied and she was sitting behind literal bars, her face and hands were completely clean, the skin pinkish, as if having been scrubbed raw, and the way her hair was pulled back for once allowed him to see the expression of utter tranquillity on her face.

It was almost eerie.

"Naruto-san?"

Naruto jumped, having missed the moment Hinata must've sensed him somehow, because when he refocused, he found Hinata looking back at him, her eyes wide with clear surprise and something that looked uncomfortably like apprehension.

"Uh, hi Hinata!" Naruto managed, waving reflexively, Hinata's gaze unnerving in its intensity.

"What are you doing here?" Hinata asked, not losing any of that sharp-edged focus, and Naruto fought the urge to fidget, finding Hinata's scrutiny almost as intimidating as Raido-san's.

"Thought I'd come visit you!" Naruto explained, shooting the girl a grin he hoped was friendly instead of creepy. "Kaka-sensei said you might like some company and Mitarashi-san told me where to find you, so here I am!"

Hinata just stared at him for a beat, looking oddly like Sakura's poisons guy just then with the utter stillness of her face and body. Then, she sighed, an almost reluctant-looking smile worming its way onto her face.

"You're very kind, Naruto-san." she murmured, and Naruto felt himself flush. "How have you been?"

Naruto paused, eyeing Hinata carefully, then decided to just ask. "Do you actually want to know, or is this one of these questions old people ask to be polite?"

And Hinata laughed, the sound quiet though not unkind, and when she met Naruto's gaze again, her eyes were warm. "I genuinely want to know. You're a good storyteller."

Naruto spluttered, feeling his cheeks heat, then crossed his legs and unceremoniously sat himself down by the barred wall, launching into a recount of what had happened in his life since the last time he'd seen Hinata.

It was rare he had a captive audience, after all. And even rarer still when said audience was a very pretty girl who was actively listening to his every word.

Sasuke was walking with Anko to the cafeteria, having finally managed to drag the woman away from the reports on Sound sightings at the southern borders of the Land of Fire, when there was a commotion around the main entrance.

The door to the lower level of T&I banged open and Team Eight's sensei stalked through, looking like a woman on a warpath.

Anko cursed quietly upon catching sight of Yuhi, eyes intent on the direction the other woman was heading in, then pulled Sasuke along, veering them off their path to the canteen.

"Kurenai, stop!" she called, and Sasuke reckoned it was a testament to the friendship between the two women that Yuhi listened and slowed down long enough to allow them to catch up.

"You can't see her." Anko said the moment they were close enough that she didn't have to shout, and Yuhi's expression immediately soured. "You need to step away while you still can."

"I can't see my own student?'' Though the words were said calmly, Sasuke didn't think he was imagining the undercurrent of threat in Yuhi's voice, and Anko definitely didn't miss it either.

"She's not your student anymore. She's a chunin, she made her own decisions, and seeing her now will only make things worse for both of you." Anko replied sharply, then seeming to realise that it was not what Yuhi wanted to hear, softened marginally, "Sorry, Rei, I-!"

"Don't." Team Eight's sensei cut Anko off, holding up her hand and screwing her eyes shut for a second before she let out a breath and shot Anko what seemed like an apologetic smile, though it was closer to a grimace. "I'm- trying to remember this is your job, and you're just doing your job. Don't make it harder."

And Sasuke watched as whatever softness had been on Anko's face vanished, a cool mask settling over her features, the expression in her eyes growing cold and flat. A mask more effective than the porcelain of the ANBU, and despite the earlier admission of friendship, Sasuke reckoned that Hinata's sensei was currently too preoccupied with her own situation to notice Anko's withdrawal.

"Then let me offer some professional advice." This time, Team Eight's sensei flinched, some of her earlier anger abating as her gaze snapped to Anko's face, but Sasuke knew it was too late.

"Those who were against giving you a promotion, much less a team, will use this against you. Hyuuga's decision, on the backdrop of your past, particularly your actions after your sensei's death, looks less like a spontaneous but well-intentioned choice of a kind kid and more like a soldier carefully groomed to eventually help her teacher commit treason."

Sasuke twitched, fighting the instinct to turn and stare at Anko incredulously. It seemed ridiculous that someone could accuse Hinata of treason.

…Right?

"Walk away before someone here decides to shove you in a cell, too." Anko concluded, her voice cold and hard and the very opposite of friendly.

And Team Eight's sensei, a woman so dangerously feminine that Sasuke couldn't help but think back to his own mother, cursed, a string of words so ugly and vicious falling from her mouth that Sasuke winced at the crude words before he could catch himself.

But, with one final, betrayed look at Anko, the woman spun on her heel and stormed back towards the door, out of T&I, and Sasuke only noticed the tension that had gathered in Anko's shoulders when it loosened once the door slammed shut behind Yuhi.

He decided to give his senpai the time to collect herself, seeing as it looked like she had forgotten he was next to her, then, once Anko looked more like her usual self, Sasuke spoke.

"Would someone have?" he asked, pretending not to see the way Anko's hand twitched towards her hip at the sound of his voice. When she glanced at him, eyebrow raised, he elaborated with a huff; "Shoved her in a cell?"

"…Not out of their own will." Anko replied after a beat, her gaze even more scrutinising than usual before she seemed to deem him worthy of the information. "But she is in a precarious position."

She frowned then, staring at the door Team Eight's sensei had slammed behind herself, then shook herself off and pinned Sasuke with a weighted look. "And that's all you're getting out of me."

Sasuke, more than used to the fact that Anko occasionally clammed up on him at this point, simply nodded, wondering who he could recruit to help him figure out what Team Eight's sensei had done in the past to put her in such a 'precarious' position.

Then, another thought occurred to him, and it was Sasuke's turn to frown as he mulled it over.

"What's that look on your face for?"

Sasuke bit back a startled curse, not having realised that Anko was still watching him, and unlike Kakashi, who, even if he noticed his students' moods, rarely commented, Anko had never let him get away with keeping his moods to himself.

"Nothing." He tried regardless, not willing to admit what his brain had jumped to. But when Anko's eyebrow merely hiked up her forehead and her expression told him she wouldn't be letting the subject drop anytime soon, Sasuke sighed. "I just- even now, I don't think Kakashi would do that for us."

He didn't think he needed to elaborate on what 'that' meant. Then, unable to quite hold back on the bitterness in his voice, he added: "He's made it quite clear he never wanted students."

Anko hummed, the same forced-neutral sound she usually adopted when the topic of Sasuke's sensei came up.

"Let me let you in on something I don't think anyone's told you yet." She offered, turning so she was fully facing Sasuke and frowning down at him thoughtfully. "Hatake's like a burr. Once he attaches himself, he'll burn the world to the ground before he gives up on you."

Sasuke twitched, not having expected that of all things to be a quality his senpai would attach to his sensei.

Kakashi with attachments? Kakashi caring about other people beyond the official capacity of a senior officer?

He's learnt to trust Anko's judgement, trust Anko, over the months she's been his mentor in T&I, but that seemed…farfetched.

Anko smiled at whatever she could see play out on his face, a tiny, sardonic quirk to her lip that was almost sad as she gazed at him. Then, she reached out, wrapping her hand around the nape of Sasuke's neck and finally steering them both back towards the cafeteria, and Sasuke realised with a start that he'd forgotten that had been the plan before they were interrupted.

"Not many people get that questionable honour, though." Anko murmured, her gaze ahead, but her words undeniably for Sasuke's benefit. "And fewer yet survive it. I wouldn't take it personally."

And Sasuke, albeit occasionally accused of harbouring slightly masochistic inclinations by the grief counsellor from Psych Anko had made him sign up with if decided he was serious about being her mentee, didn't bother asking if Anko would ever do something like that for him.

The warmth of her hand on his neck, her insistence on him seeing the grief counsellor in the first place, the fact that, even if she couldn't tell him things directly sometimes, she always encouraged him to find the answer himself, and rewarded him when he succeeded – they all spoke for themselves.

"I'm not." Sasuke finally replied, aware that far too much time has passed between Anko's comment and his response for it not to sound disjointed, but he knew Anko understood when she glanced down at him curiously. "Naruto has Raido-san and Iruka. Sakura has Shiranui, and the Godaime's assistant, and the ANBU grandmas-"

Anko laughed, startled and genuine-

"-I'm not sure the survivors of the first ever ANBU squad would take too kindly to being reduced to 'ANBU grandmas', Uchiha-!"

"-and I have you."

Anko's laughter cut off abruptly, the hand she still had on Sasuke's nape spasming briefly before it settled, but tellingly didn't move.

This time, it was Sasuke who kept his eyes ahead, feet moving with intention, keeping their momentum going even when Anko seemed like she wanted to stop and absorb the unexpected confession.

Finally, when they were almost at the door to the canteen, Anko responded, her voice ever-so-slightly more choked up than before, but the grip of her hand on Sasuke's neck warm and comforting.

"…Brat."

Tsunade watched the Hyuuga girl be led into her office, her hands cuffed in front of her in chakra restraints, her clothes rumpled and bloodied.

They hadn't let her change from mission gear.

But beyond a minute widening of her eyes as she took in the crowd gathered in Tsunade's office, the girl seemed mostly nonplussed, her posture lax and expression placid to the point where Tsunade couldn't tell if she was hiding whatever nerves she had at being brought before the Hokage, the Head of T&I, and the Nara and Yamanaka Clan Heads, or dissociating.

Tsunade didn't, however, miss the frown that made itself known on Kagane's face as the woman doubtless noticed what Tsunade herself was seeing. Her only comfort was that Kagane had been brought in to observe only, saving them from hearing the woman's thoughts on her patient's state. And given that Kagane was standing off to the side, hidden from view of the main door, Tsunade doubted the little Hyuuga even noticed her shrink's presence, given that she was currently deprived of her chakra sense and dojutsu.

"Hyuuga," Tsunade began, not seeing much point to delay any further once the Intel-nin who brought the girl in shut the door and left, "do you know why you're here?"

"No, Tsunade-sama." The girl replied quietly, but her voice, much like her posture, was calm and steady.

"Do you know why you've spent the last 48 hours in a holding cell?" Tsunade pressed, curious despite herself at the fact that the girl didn't even hesitate.

"No, Tsunade-sama."

"Not even a guess?"

The girl remained silent, and Tsunade reluctantly commended the Hyuuga for her discipline, even if she would've preferred Naruto's brand of dealing with authority just then; the silence and stillness of the Hyuuga was disconcerting. Unnatural.

"Can you explain, in your own words, the events following the completion of your main mission, on the journey back to the Village?" She asked instead, deciding to get down to business.

"I was scanning the area with my Byakugan when I picked up a distress call from a familiar chakra signature. I requested to diverge from the route back to help out. The request was granted." The girl relayed evenly, sounding like she was reading from a pre-written report and not being questioned by the Hokage in front of her team captain, the Jounin Commander, the Head of Intelligence, and the Head of T&I.

"Your team leader's report reads 'go, but I am not ordering the team to support you'." Tsunade quoted, staring at the report in question and wondering absently how Hatake had gotten as far as he had in his career with such awful penmanship. "Can you confirm that?"

"Yes."

"And you went regardless." It wasn't a question and the girl seemed to know that, seeing as she remained silent. "That's some confidence in your abilities."

This observation also went without comment from the Hyuuga, and at this point, Tsunade was beginning to get frustrated, so her tone was less factual when she next spoke.

"Kiri is not an ally. You split off from your squad, all of whom were your seniors in age and rank, to aid an unknown shinobi from an unallied Village, who, up until recently, was a mercenary alongside Momochi Zabuza." She listed, voice sharp, then eyed the girl consideringly. "Objections to that summary?"

"No, ma'am."

Tsunade repressed a twitch, belatedly remembering the only other brat who'd had the nerve to 'ma'am' her. Figures that they'd be teammates.

"Do you know what your behaviour could be called?" She asked instead, not dropping her eyes from the Hyuuga, though the girl didn't so much as twitch under the continued scrutiny. "Desertion. Treason, even. Anything to say to that?"

"No, ma'am."

Resisting the urge to grind her teeth, Tsunade picked up the letter that was responsible for three of the five headaches she'd had to heal so far that day.

"This is the only reason it's not being called that." She told the Hyuga, letting her see the Kiri seal on the envelope. "This is a letter with an offer for a provisional military alliance between Konoha and Kiri, signed and sealed by the Fifth Mizukage herself."

She let the silence ring in the office for a moment, feeling Morino and Hatake's shock at the announcement, Shikaku and Inoichi being the only ones she'd told about the letter beforehand.

"Did you know the kid you saved had enough weight with the Mizukage to get us something like that? Had he said anything of the sort in his letters?" She asked, her tone sharp, her words demanding, but the Hyuuga shook her head again.

Like Tsunade had known she would, even, because she'd personally combed through the copies Intel had made of the letters the girl had exchanged with the Kiri-nin in question, and they'd all been entirely devoid of any identifying details or sensitive information.

But the girl still made a point of replying with a quiet, "No, ma'am."

"Then why did you help him?!" Tsunade couldn't help but ask, the words ripped out of her, staring at the girl in a desperate attempt to understand her reasoning, unwilling to believe that what Kagane had written in her report could really be it.

The Hyuuga took a breath then, seeming to count five seconds, then let it out, and when she spoke next, it was to murmur, "Because Haku is my friend."

The silence that rang after this declaration was louder and more disbelieving than after Tsunade's announcement of an unprecedented offer for an alliance with Kirigakure.

"Do you hear how childish that sounds?" Morino demanded, his harsh, booming voice ripping mercilessly through the silence that had fallen in the office, and for the first time since she'd walked in, something other than placid acceptance flashed through the Hyuuga's eyes.

Something that looked almost like anger.

"Respectfully," She began, and if she were anybody else, Tsunade was certain her tone would've been far from respectful, "but I am a child."

The disbelieving silence was replaced with a hot burst of shame when Tsunade realised that the girl was right.

On the backdrop of the men gathered in the room, it was obvious that she wasn't smaller and slighter by virtue of being a woman, but because she was barely a teenager.

And Tsunade had forgotten.

Judging by the slightly stricken faces of the gathered adults, she wasn't the only one.

Kagane, when Tsunade glanced at her, looked almost smug, however, so Tsunade mentally retracted her assumption that everyone had forgotten the Hyuuga's actual age.

"There is one more thing." Tsunade announced, electing to barrel on instead of dwell on the startling realisation that the girl single-handedly leading the revolution against the Hyuuga Main House has barely entered puberty.

"The Mizukage claims that one of the genin you helped save through your intervention recognised your chakra. Said that about six months ago, you killed their jounin sensei, but left them under genjutsu and allowed them to escape."

The girl paled, the first proper reaction she'd showed since stepping foot into Tsunade's office, so Tsunade continued.

"The Mizukage has offered you a boon, of sorts, within reason, of course. Given that it's the second time you've 'helped her people'." Tsuande hadn't intended for her words to be so pointed, but she caught Shikaku's sharp look from the corner of her eye and took a breath. "So, Hyuuga, is there anything you'd want?"

It was a trick question and everyone in the room knew it. There was nothing that the girl could reasonably ask of the Mizukage; the correct response here was to say 'no, thank you' and appreciate that she was getting off easy for something that the Elders had already tried to push Tsunade to strip the Hyuuga off her rank for.

But then, after a few seconds of thought, the girl opened her mouth, and Tsunade went still.

"The jounin sensei of the Kiri team in Kumo has a Byakugan eye." The girl murmured, her words quiet and even, but the look in her eyes chilling Tsunade to the bone. "I would like him to return it."

It felt as if the temperature in the room had dropped at least ten degrees, and it was suddenly so quiet that Tsunade could hear Shizune's pen scritch across the page in the adjacent room, through the closed door.

"I need you to be very, very careful with what you say next," she began, pinning the Hyuuga with a weighed gaze, "but how do you know that?"

"I briefly used my dojutsu in the final round of the knockout stage." the girl confessed, still so impossibly, infuriatingly calm. "The Byakugan is…recognisable."

"...I'll ask." Tsunade finally agreed, not knowing what else to say. "But, Hyuuga, that is an insane request."

"Perhaps." The girl allowed quietly, a telling concession all things considered, though her expression didn't change. "But it is my request."

At that, Tsunade had no choice but to laugh, short and sharp and snide.

"Yeah, no, I'm never sending you on a diplomatic mission." She huffed, the tension in the room breaking along with her composure. "Ibiki, take off her cuffs."

When Ibiki belatedly moved to do just that, Tsunade allowed herself a few seconds to study the Hyuuga now that she wasn't being cross-examined.

She had the uncomfortable suspicion that the girl was, in fact, dissociating, or at the very least suppressing whatever she was feeling to an unhealthy degree. She was too still, too calm; even Hatake had been more emotive than she had, for all that the man had a mask that covered three-quarters of his face.

"Hyuuga." Tsunade called when Ibiki was done, drawing the girl's attention back to herself. "Individual inter-Village friendships are not common. Few in the Village would have been aware of the correspondence you've had going with the Kiri-nin prior to this incident. If you don't want to develop a certain reputation, I'd be more careful with how you show your allegiance."

The girl tensed, the reaction far more visible now that she'd relaxed briefly at being freed from the cuffs, but Tsunade barrelled on, merciless now, needing the girl to understand.

"Hatake's soft on you so I'm unsure of his objectivity in this, which is why I need you to know that if anyone else had been your captain, your actions would've been reported as unequivocal treason." She paused, waiting for any objections from Hatake, but none came. "Do you understand?"

The girl met her gaze and held for a beat, something steely passing through her pale eyes, but eventually she nodded, offering a resolute, "Yes, ma'am."

Huffing again at the title, Tsunade waved the girl off. "Alright, scram, and I better not see you here for at least a week."

Some life finally returning to her, the girl nearly tripped over her feet in her haste to get out of the office, and only then seemed to notice Kagane's presence in the room, if her miniscule pause was any indication.

But she carried on with no visible acknowledgement of the other woman, opening the door and slipping out, stifling her chakra the moment she was past the threshold and letting a sealless Shunshin carry her away in a show of coordinated chakra-manipulation Tsunade was going to have to discuss with Yuhi at some point, because those were not baby-chunin level skills.

Tsunade let out a relieved sigh once the girl disappeared from sight, but it caught in her throat when Shiranui Genma slipped into the room right before the door closed behind the Hyuuga, melting out of the shadows in the way only the veteran ANBU seemed to be capable of.

"Hokage-sama, good afternoon, I just have a quick question to Shikaku-san." He greeted jovially, though when he turned to Shikaku, the good humour melted from his face. "I thought we had agreed to keep Hinata's presence in T&I on the down low."

Tsunade didn't miss the way Shikaku stood up straighter at that. "Yes. We did."

"Then why is half the Village whispering about the Hyuuga heiress being a deserter?"

Shiranui's tone was idle, but at this point Tsunade knew better than to believe that tone.

Then, the man's words registered fully, and she stilled. "They're what."

"The only people aware of the full extent of Hinata's situation are the ones in this room." Shikaku replied, but he was alert now, serious in a way he hadn't been when the Hyuuga was being interrogated. "T&I had been informed about the delicate nature of this case, and Kakashi claimed his teammates all agreed to camp out at his compound until given the all-clear. The options for who leaked the news are not plentiful."

"Only four people in T&I have been made aware of the reasons behind Hyuuga's presence in the holding cell, and I know for sure it's none of them." Ibiki added, a finality to his words that drew everyone's attention.

"How can you be certain?" Kakashi asked, speaking for the first time since he'd stepped foot into the office, and the smile that stretched Ibiki's face was far from pleasant.

"One of them is Anko."

Tsunade winced, having been made aware of Mitarashi's particular background. She reckoned that Morino's certainty was justified - if anybody in the Village would be willing to protect someone from being judged prematurely for associating with 'the enemy', it would be the woman whose credibility and career had been nearly destroyed by Orochimaru's desertion.

"Expand, then." Shiranui suggested, and Tsunade wondered at who had cultivated the sharp mind she now glimpsed behind the usual lackadaisical facade. "Who actually knows about Hinata even knowing the Mist-in?"

Shikaku stilled.

"What?" Kakash demanded sharply, spotting the reaction at the same time Tsunade did.

"The signature on the T&I admission form." Shikaku managed as he pushed away from the wall and headed to Tsunade's desk, his voice sounding far-away, his mind likely already ten leagues ahead of the rest of the room.

He began rifling through the paperwork this situation had already created, and when he found what he'd been looking for, he cursed and fell back onto the chair opposite Tsunade's desk, sighing and raising a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose.

Tsunade snatched the paper and pulled it towards herself, eyes scanning the document – an entry log of the Hyuuga's arrival to and internment in T&I – until she came across what Shikaku had already figured out:

Signed by: Yamanaka Fuu

"...Oh, fuck."

"This is bigger than we realised." Shikaku announced after Hatake, Yamanaka, and Ibiki had all looked at the entry log, his voice slightly muffled as he ran his hand down his face. "Now it's not just someone actively sabotaging a Clan heiress, it's someone playing on Village-wide assumptions to sabotage and get away with it."

Shikaku straightened and ran his gaze over everyone in the room, sweeping over Kakashi, Ibiki, Inoichi, and Genma, then coming to rest on Tsunade.

"Nobody blinked at this signature. Even I skipped right past it the first time I saw it." He began, the corner of his lips twisting in a bitter smile. "Why?"

"For the same reason nobody used to blink at Uchiha in the red-light district." He continued, the earlier question entirely rhetorical. "Because they're probably with the police force. Why nobody blinks at Aburame loitering around the hospital's greenhouses. Because bugs. Why nobody blinks at Inuzuka having twice as many disorderly conduct complaints than the other Clans – ninken nature, rather than issues with anger management."

Shikaku sighed explosively, frustration evident. "We see Yamanaka on Psych or Intel or T&I documentation and we don't think twice."

"Those assumptions are systemic, though." Shiranui pointed out, the first one to dare break the silence after Shikaku's declaration.

"Yes." Shikaku agreed, a humourless smile on his face. "And they're played to by someone really familiar with the system."

"But what does Shimura gain from sabotaging the Hyuuga kid's reputation?" Tsunade asked, standing up and moving so she was leaning back against her desk instead of sitting behind it, and crossing her arms at the startled glances the question got her.

"What? I didn't approve for the general public to find out about this. Whoever did this clearly wasn't scared of going behind my back and me finding out about it, and there are not many people who are moronic enough to do that."

"It...depends." Shikaku offered after a beat, and Tsunade could tell he had an idea in the works, but was, for whatever reason, hesitant to put it out there.

"On?" She pressed, not having any of the same reservations.

"On how far back this goes." Shikaku revealed, then, turning to Shiranui, added, "I spoke to Shibi."

Turning to face Tsunade, Shikaku steepled his fingers and leaned back in his seat, meeting Tsunade's eyes evenly.

"When Shikamaru was born, Shibi already had a son. Then, a few years later, Shibi suddenly had two kids, the second one older than the first. Then, one day, the older one disappeared. Shibi never said why and we never asked because, well," Shikaku smiled sharply, though the expression was devoid of humour, "assumptions that any sort of asking wouldn't be welcome, because Aburame."

Kakashi huffed a quiet breath, a ghost of a laugh, if that, and Shikaku carried on, "But when I spoke with him last week, on Shiranui's advice, I asked."

"Turns out the second child was the son of Shibi's clansman, Mifune, who had a unique version of their Clan's insect colonies. One he passed on to his only son." Tsunade sucked in a quiet breath at that, having an inkling as to where Shikaku was going with this and dreading the thought.

"As you've probably guessed, ROOT somehow caught wind of this unusual colony, offered the man a spot in the ranks outright. He refused on the grounds that he had a young son to care for." Shikaku smiled bitterly then, and Tsunade fought a shiver at the haunting expression. "Two months later, he and most of his team were KIA on a mission. The report cited 'bad intel'. The only squad member who made it back admitted himself to Psych after, and when asked, said that, before he died, Mifune had requested for his body to be burned on the spot and for Shibi to take in his son."

Shikaku allowed the room a moment to absorb the news, and Tsuande didn't miss that only Shiranui appeared unaffected by the reveal. As if he'd already known that part of the story.

"Who was the squad member?" Ibiki asked after a few seconds passed, and Tsunade frowned, not having considered the question but recognising its importance once it was asked.

"Ebisu." Shikaku replied, smiling ruefully now, and Tsunade didn't miss Shiranui's sad smile at the name. "He's been mentoring Shino, Shibi's son, since Kurenai introduced them. He was Genma's genin teammate."

Tsunade blinked at that, not having been aware of either of those particular tidbits, then frowned at Shikaku's expression. "You're not done, are you?"

Shikaku had the grace to huff a regretful laugh and shake his head. "I wish."

He sighed, then leaned forward again, and when he spoke, there was barely-suppressed anger in his voice. "Shibi said that, five years to the day Mifune was KIA, Shimura approached the son, Torune. The son who Shibi had taken in after his clansman's death and treated like his own."

"Fuck." Tsunade hissed, eyes wide. "That's shameless."

"Torune had been with Shino at the time and luckily had enough common sense to send his insects to inform Shibi of an intruder on Clan grounds. Shibi says Shimura offered ROOT to both kids, though pitched it specifically to Torune under the usual shtick of 'think of all the good you could do'." Shikaku ground his teeth, the only sign of anger he allowed himself, then continued. "Shibi refused, for the both of them. As Torune's legal guardian, he had that right."

Nobody dared interrupt in the few seconds Shikaku took to get himself under control, and when he spoke next, his voice was steadier, though his words no less damning. "Well, Shibi thinks someone had to have gone to Torune when he was alone, because he disappeared a few days later, though there was no sign of struggle in his bedroom."

"While that is horrifying to consider," Ibiki uttered, the first one to recover from Shikaku's reveal, "do enlighten the rest of the room as to how that ties in with ROOT sabotaging the Hyuuga kid's reputation?"

"Because it begs the question of just how far back Danzo's machinations extend." Kagane spoke up for the first time, and Tsunade reckoned that if the situation had been less grave, the older woman would have delighted in the way Kakashi, Shikaku, Inoichi, Shiranui, and Ibiki jumped at the sound of her voice.

"If we assume that the attempt to recruit Aburame Mifune and his son – Clan shinobi, with a special ability on top of their Clan's hiden, one of whom with close ties to the Clan Head – was not an isolated event but merely one instance of a pattern of behaviour, we can look at all the other worrying or tragic events that happened around that time with a new perspective." Kagane declared, and, watching her speak, Tsunade had an inkling as to who the Hyuuga might have learned her preternatural composure from.

Curious.

"What are you saying?" Inoichi asked sharply, the only one in the room outside of Tsunade herself with the status to question Kagane outright, "That Elder Shimura would try to- to recruit people with special abilities, and when that didn't work, he'd sabotage them?"

"Special, but not too special." Kagane agreed, not seeming at all affronted by Inoichi's tone. "Influential, but not obviously so. Isn't that right, Shikaku?"

Tsunade watched as Shikaku twitched, and the focus shifted from Kagane to the Nara Head, though this time, nobody quite let themselves forget that the woman was there. Had been there from the start.

"There's a difference between extrapolating and speculating." Shikaku huffed, oddly uncomfortable now, and Tsunade wondered when the last time had been that somebody had arrived at the same conclusion as him, at the same time as he did.

"Humour me." Kagane requested blandly, and Tsunade had to admire the woman's sheer nerve.

"If we assume that it's a pattern and not a one-off, we can look at other suspicious disappearances or shinobi who were declared missing or KIA in unusual circumstances." Shikaku ground out, then let out a tense breath and met Tsunade's gaze once more.

"The Iburi Clan. The two dozen orphans who disappeared from the orphanage after the Nine-Tails' attack. Hyuuga Hizashi. Uchiha Shisui. Hatake Sakumo. Chakra-sensitive civilian children who fail the Graduation test. There's just- a lot."

"My dad?" Kakashi asked brokenly, at the same time as Inoichi demanded "Why Hizashi?"

"Are you telling me Anko was right?" Ibiki demanded, and for the first time since Tsunade had been introduced to the man, he sounded almost scared. "She was insistent for months afterwards that there was no way Shisui would've killed himself. Are you saying she was right?"

"I don't know." Shikaku admitted brokenly, and that, more than anything, seemed to make everyone in the room fully grasp the severity of the situation. "This is why I said that there's a difference between extrapolating and speculating, and why I'm wary of doing the latter."

Tsunade sighed, finally uncrossing her arms and staring sightlessly at her hands. Was it possible that Hiruzen-sensei hadn't been aware of ROOT's machinations during his tenure?

Worse yet, had he been aware of it and allowed it to continue regardless, out of some misconstrued fondness for his old friend?

She didn't know which option was worse, and she struggled to reconcile her sensei with the sort of man who'd allow the sort of cruelty ROOT seemed to be based on. But then again, she hadn't spoken with Sarutobi-sensei for over two decades prior to succeeding him; he could've changed in that time.

The Village certainly had.

"He has records." Kakashi murmured at last, his voice far quieter than Tsunade was used to, sounding almost as if the words were causing him pain. "Danzo. He has records in his office of all the missions he ever ordered. If there's anything about- about Shisui or anyone else that Danzo had targeted, it'd be there."

"And you're only telling us this now?" Tsunade demanded in the silence that fell, and Hatake had the grace to wince, though he did mutter a petulant 'Shikaku told me to step away' that Tsunade staunchly ignored.

"Can you still get into ROOT HQ?" Shikaku asked sharply, clearly fighting his frustration with Kakashi for the sake of more concrete evidence.

"Not by myself, or at least not through the main entrances." Kakashi replied, and at the odd looks the weird wording earned him, he shrugged uncomfortably. "I was never sealed."

Shiranui sighed then, sounding resigned but resolute. "We'll need Tenzo."

"I don't want to bring him into this." Hatake denied, his frown obvious despite his mask.

"That should be his decision." Shiranui corrected sternly, meeting Hatake's gaze head on, and Tsunade couldn't hold back her raised eyebrow. "You owe him at least that."

"Who is Tenzo?" She demanded when the two seemed to forget that they were in the middle of a meeting, and Shiranui huffed, breaking the staring contest with Hatake and turning to her obligingly.

"Tenzo is Yamato. He used to be a ROOT agent, was rescued by Kakashi on a mission-gone-wrong, then was reassigned to ANBU with 'Kashi as his captain as means of 'keeping an eye on him'." He explained succinctly, and Tsunade's other eyebrow joined its twin at the news.

"But with the dissolution of my ANBU team when I was made a sensei, he had to go back to ROOT." Hatake added flatly, and though there was no detectable resentment in his voice, Tsunade couldn't help but wonder why Sarutobi-sensei had retired a man who clearly had had no desire to leave the shadow ranks. "I haven't seen him in over a year."

"But you have a way to contact him?" She pressed, and Hatake paused, then nodded sharply.

"...More or less." He allowed, and that was good enough for Tsunade.

"Alright." She sighed, then pointed decisively at the man. "Hatake. Contact your ROOT kid. Shiranui, make sure they're not followed. Inoichi, I need you to go through your Clan's MIA and KIA lists from around the time of the Kyuubi's attack and cross-reference their names with the signatures on the sensitive Intel and T&I paperwork. For whatever reason, Danzo is not having them use aliases, so it'll be tedious, but manageable. Ibiki, I'll need you and Shikaku to brainstorm any reasonable charge we can call Danzo out of his lair for. I don't care what it is, I need it to hold water so that he has to come here."

"Respectfully, Tsunade-sama," Shiranui began, and Tsunade arched an eyebrow at the address, "What about Hinata's situation?"

Tsuande sighed at the reminder, but she knew that she'd already made up her mind. "I think the best way to diffuse it is to announce the alliance with Kiri."

"Are you going to accept it?" Ibiki asked, sounding justifiably sceptical.

"It's unprecedented, but if the military alliance is successful, a more thorough alliance could follow." Tsunade explained, walking back around to her desk to begin drafting a letter to Jiraiya. She'd need his input for this. "And since Suna is down in the dumps after their invasion, we could do with an ally."

"And you're going to acknowledge Hinata's part in it?" Shikaku queried, and it was only then, at the familiar address, that Tsunade recalled that the girl had lived under Shikaku's roof for weeks, at one point.

"I almost don't want to do it because of all the headaches the brat has given me, but she doesn't deserve to be called a deserter." Tsunade replied, frowning and crossing out half of what she'd already written. "Especially if I didn't, and I actually left."

"So we just gotta find a way to keep Hinata away from the worst of it before the news spreads." Shiranui summarised, sounding relieved. "That's doable."

"It's also already handled." Shikaku cut in, and when Tsunade glanced up at him curiously, there was a tiny, satisfied smirk curling the corner of his lips. "I told my wife to intercept her on her way out of the Tower and take her to our Compound."

"Even you couldn't have predicted that she'd get off scot-free." Ibiki huffed, but he looked more curious than wary.

"Initially, no, but after reading Kakashi and Kagane's reports? Beyond the optics of helping a foreign-nin, Hinata hadn't actually committed any crime; Kakashi had allowed her to go, after all." Shikaku shrugged, melting back into the chair, clearly deeming the official proceedings to be over. "And Kagane's confirmation of Hinata's reasoning proved that it wasn't even insubordination on her behalf, just a justified decade-old grudge and- honestly? Sheer ballsiness."

"So the Hyuuga's handled, we've got a plan for ROOT, and we've got the bones for a military alliance with Kirigakure." Tsunade summarised, ticking off the points as she listed them and shooting Hatake a measured look. "I gotta hand it to you, Hatake, barring Iwashi's arm, this might be your most successful cock-up of a mission yet."

"Ah, about that, Tsunade-sama," Hatake replied, moving towards her desk for the first time since slipping into her office and unsealing a severed foot from his belt, "this belonged to one of the shinobi that attacked my team."

Tsunade glanced from the charred stump of a foot to Hatake's face a few times in disbelief, then her gaze caught on a smudge of ink by the webbing of the big toe.

"For clarification, yes, that is the ROOT seal." Hatake had the gall to add, his tone not changing, and Tsunade froze once the words registered.

"...You've got to be fucking kidding me."

"Hinata-chan!"

Hinata startled, turning towards the voice as she made her way out of the Hokage Tower, not having expected anyone to be waiting for her.

"Yoshino-san?" she murmured, too dazed from the exchange in the Hokage's office to manage a proper greeting.

"You look like a stiff breeze could knock you over!" Yoshino tutted as she came up to Hinata, her arms laden with shopping bags. "When's the last time you had a good meal?"

Hinata hesitated, still not fully present, her words sounding far-away when she replied honestly: "...About a week."

"Come to our house for dinner." Yoshino ordered, somehow managing to shift the bags around so she could hook her arm through Hinata's and begin tugging her along. "Come on, I've just finished shopping, I've got more than enough food to make a plate for you."

Hinata tried to blink past the ringing in her head, some of her usual propriety returning to her, but not fast enough. "I really can't impose on your hospitality again."

"Nonsense." Yoshino denied, ostensibly handing Hinata one of her bags to keep her from running away. "I can lend you some clothes, you look like a shower could do you some good, and the guest room is always open for you."

Recognising when she'd lost, Hinata tried for a smile. "Thank you, Yoshino-san. That's very kind of you."

It was only after they lapsed into comfortable silence for a few minutes that another thought occured to Hinata. "Is…Is Shikamaru home?"

Yoshino's smile dimmed slightly, and if Hinata had been more present, she would've noticed the way the woman's hold tightened on the shopping bags.

"He is…in a way." She replied, and Hinata didn't like that caveat. "He's been in the forest around our Clan grounds for the last two days. Hasn't come out."

Hinata didn't know how she reacted, but whatever it was, it had Yoshino sighing tiredly, a sad smile pulling at her lips. "He had a difficult mission."

"Is he hurt?" Hinata inquired, a weight making itself known in her stomach.

"Not physically." Yoshino answered, and the clarification didn't ease Hinata's worry in the slightest. "You can go see him after you eat, but don't take it personally if he doesn't engage."

And so Hinata did just that.

She showered, scrubbed herself clean and tied her hair up when she couldn't find a brush, then dressed in the clothes Yoshino had laid out for her and headed downstairs, finding the dinner already waiting. She had a nice, quiet meal with the Nara matriarch, helped with the clean-up despite Yoshino's protests, then ventured into the forest on Yoshino's assurance that she had her explicit permission.

Not sure where to begin, Hinata activated her Byakugan, though she almost recoiled at the sheer volume of chakra that radiated from the forest.

But- there. A chakra anomaly that had no place in a forest.

Yet, the closer Hinata got to the pool of chakra her Byakugan had picked out, the more her worry increased.

Because, as soon as she got visual, it became clear that Shikamaru was sitting right in the centre of the chakra anomaly she'd spotted with her dojutsu, but the chakra around him wasn't chakra at all but shadow.

A dark, sprawling mass of shadows, stretching out in a radius of at least three metres in every direction, with Shikamaru as the central point.

More alarmingly, dead creatures littered the edges of the circle: squirrels, mice, birds, and other critters Hinata didn't pause to identify lay around the perimeter, seemingly killed the moment they had tried to cross the threshold into Shikamaru's circle of shadow.

For a moment, Hinata was uncomfortably reminded of the Fifth Kazekage's sand defence, but she squished the thought down.

"Shikamaru?" She called quietly, trying not to startle the boy, but Shikamaru didn't even twitch.

He looked far too still, now that she was looking more closely - staring straight ahead, unblinking, his legs drawn to his chest and his arms wrapped loosely around his knees, chin propped up on a bent arm.

He looked like he'd been there for hours.

Growing more concerned by the minute, Hinata flared her chakra, but received no reaction. Activating her Byakugan again, she sucked in a quiet breath when she looked closer at Shikamaru's shadows and saw what she'd missed before: Shikamaru wasn't the one sustaining them.

The forest was.

It looked like the life force of the critters lost to the technique was what was keeping it going, and Shikamaru was merely the anchor for the jutsu.

Still, in order to reach Shikamaru, she had to get closer. And there was only really one way to do that.

Considering everything she'd worked out about the Nara hiden, both with Shikamaru's help and from her own observations, Hinata studied the mass of shadows on the ground, wondering whether she wasn't about to walk head-first to her very painful death.

Then, deciding that there really only was one way to find out, Hinata coated her feet and legs in chakra and stepped over the edge of the circle.

Immediately, shadows rushed up her legs and immobilised her, and, since she was looking for it, she felt the moment they began to drain her chakra.

It quickly became quite clear to her what fate had befallen the critters who'd dared approach the circle.

But the shadows weren't draining her chakra at a random rate, she noted after a few seconds; rather, her chakra was being drained at the same rate as she was supplying it to her feet and legs. Curious, she decreased the supply and noted that the drain on her reserves decreased proportionally.

Interesting.

Hinata gave it a few more seconds, then, keeping her chakra wavelength constant and her movements slow and measured, tried to take a step. Immediately, her muscles protested and every inch of ground won felt like she was moving through molasses, but she did manage to pick up her left foot, the shadows never once detaching, and put it ahead of her right leg.

She glanced at Shikamaru then and squeaked, nearly losing her balance, when she found the teen already looking back, his eyes shadowed and bloodshot, but looking at her, instead of sightlessly ahead.

He didn't say anything, just watched as she slowly repeated the process and, eventually, after almost three minutes, made her way over to the center of the circle. She hesitated once she was directly next to Shikamaru, only then entertaining the thought of whether she was actually welcome.

But, just as she was just wondering whether she shouldn't Shunshin out of the circle of shadows and go back to the house, she noticed Shikamaru's eyes flicker to her face, then down to the ground, then back to meet her gaze in clear invitation.

Relieved, but still moving slowly, Hinata lowered herself down, taking care to extend her chakra up to her waist as she sat down.

Then, she leaned back against the tree Shikamaru was leaning on and finally allowed herself to relax. But, as the tension finally drained out of her body, the stress of the mission, of waking up in a T&I cell, of being cross-examined by the Hokage herself, hit her full-force, and Hinata found herself choking back a sob.

And then it was as if the floodgates had finally opened, and as the first tears fell, Hinata brought her hand up to cover her mouth and try to muffle the worst of her crying, but she couldn't completely hold back the tears nor her desperate, heaving gasps as she tried to draw breath.

When she finally calmed down, her gasping sobs replaced by sporadic hiccups, she felt exhausted and drained, both physically and emotionally.

"How did you know," came a murmur from her right, and it took Hinata a moment to realise that the hoarse, ragged voice she was hearing belonged to Shikamaru, "that you could get through the shadow?"

Hinata sighed quietly and intentionally didn't turn to look at the other teen, keeping her eyes resolutely ahead when she whispered back; "I didn't."

"...You're crazy." Shikamaru said after a few seconds of silence, but where there would've once been humour, there was only hollow exhaustion.

Hinata hummed neutrally, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the assessment, her own nerves feeling far too frayed and her cheeks still raw from her earlier tears.

"You're not gonna ask?" Shikamaru asked after another few minutes of silence passed peacefully between them, and Hinata bit back a sad smile as she leant her head back against the trunk and closed her eyes.

"Do you want me to?" She answered Shikamaru's question with her own, keeping her voice quiet and unassuming, and the response was almost immediate.

"No."

"Then no." she replied lightly, not taking Shikamaru's sharp tone personally; she'd been where he was before, and the mere fact that he was allowing her close when he was this emotionally vulnerable already meant the world.

They fell into another silence, this one so long that by the time Shikamaru next spoke, Hinata had fallen into a light doze.

"The mission was to Wave." Shikamaru whispered, and Hinata blinked back to alertness at the admission, though she didn't otherwise acknowledge Shikamaru's words for fear of making him change his mind on sharing.

"There was a shipping magnate subjugating the whole village. Gato. The villagers tried to build a bridge to connect them to the mainland, but he was hiring unaffiliated shinobi to keep them in line." Hinata frowned, the description of the situation in Wave striking a chord, though she didn't remember why.

"I got sent as part of the team whose job was to assess the extent of the abuses of power Gato was committing." Shikamaru scoffed, the sound bitter and humorless. "What hadn't made it into the briefing was that Orochimaru had killed Gato some time ago and replaced him and his hired muscle with his people."

Hinata froze.

That hadn't happened in her time.

"But there was something wrong with those shinobi. They weren't fully human, and their chakra was- it felt evil." She felt the way Shikamaru shuddered and pushed her shoulder into his gently, offering whatever comfort she could. "When they spotted us, they tore through everything in their path to get to us. Civilians. Children. Their own allies. My team."

Shikamaru took a shaky breath, and his next words felt like they were ripped out of him. "I was the one who devised the strategy that ended up getting us made. I'm the reason seventy percent of my team didn't make it back."

"Were you team leader?" Hinata asked, not liking the self-loathing she could hear behind Shikamaru's words.

"No. But what does that have to do with-?"

"Your Clan is known for your intelligence, that's true." She cut Shikamaru off, gentle but firm. "And other shinobi take advantage of it on missions. But your team leader still approved your strategy. The responsibility is not solely yours to bear."

"Whether it's 'solely mine' or shared doesn't matter, it doesn't change the fact that they're dead." Shikamaru bit back, and Hinata hummed, reading between the lines of what was not being said.

"Is that all that's bothering you?" she asked then, and Shikamaru rounded on her, his eyes wide, expression twisted with grief and disbelief.

"Is that all?!" he echoed, voice rising. "Did you seriously ask if my dead teammates are all that's bothering me-?!"

"-Shikamaru." Hinata cut in, not raising her voice, not raising to the bait, and Shikamaru deflated immediately, like her single utterance of his name was enough to steal all the wind from his sails.

"I hate you a little right now." He muttered brokenly, and Hinata winced, but she determinedly waited him out.

Finally, after a few more minutes of silence, Shikamaru sighed explosively and seemed to give in, slouching and sliding his back down the trunk until his cheek ended up being smushed against Hinata's shoulder, though he didn't seem to mind it when he spoke:

"During the battle, the Sound-nin could break out of my Shadow Possession. Not the way you could, but with sheer brute force."

Despite how violently he'd reacted to Hinata's question not five minutes previous, Shikamaru's voice was quiet and pained, and Hinata was more than familiar with the undercurrent of helplessness she detected in the boy's words.

"I can strategise and predict how someone is going to act provided that their behaviour is logical." Shikamaru carried on, and Hinata nodded, though she didn't dare speak. "But the Sound shinobi we fought- they weren't reacting like people, weren't acting rationally. All of my strategies were useless against them, because I couldn't think like them."

Shikamaru paused for a second, then snorted, sharp and bitter. "I was useless."

Then, before Hinata could interject and object to the self-deprecating declaration, Shikamaru carried on.

"And I remembered you telling me, when I was preparing to fight Neji," he mumbled, and Hinata stilled, wondering what part of what she'd said had stuck with the Nara, "that long-range combat and elemental ninjutsu 'weren't your cousin's forte'. As if it should've been. As if even genin should've known better than to focus on only one specialisation."

Hinata winced, but Shikamaru clicked his tongue when she opened her mouth to speak, as if sensing she was about to interrupt.

"I'm not blaming you. I just didn't understand it then." He explained, and Hinata subsided, willing to allow Shikamaru the time to get whatever thoughts that were clearly plaguing him out of his system. "I thought of that saying 'jack of all trades, master of none'."

Shikamaru huffed, a shadow of his usual chuckle, the sound tired and jaded and threatening to bring tears to Hinata's eyes. "Half a year later, I remembered the rest of the goddamn proverb."

'But better than a master of one'

"I get it now, though." Shikamaru laughed wetly, and though it saddened Hinata that he was crying, she was glad that he wasn't trying to hide it from her. "Trust me, I get it."

They lapsed into silence again while Shikamaru cried himself out and tried to get his breathing under control, but Hinata wasn't prepared for the next question Shikamaru asked: "What do you think I should do?"

"S-Sorry?" she stuttered, startled, and Shikamaru huffed against her shoulder, though he sounded more like himself this time, more amused than bitter.

"You figured out the downside of tradition before anyone else." He replied, and Hinata blinked owlishly, not quite following. "What would you do, if you were in my place?"

Oh.

She…had missed the moment she'd become someone whose opinion Shikamaru valued.

'Shikamaru called you smart! Smarter than him, even, I think!' she suddenly remembered Naruto saying all those months ago, but it was still unbelievably odd to see proof of it in person.

"...I'd go to Psych." She offered after a far longer silence than the question required, but Shikamaru merely sighed, as if he'd expected something similar. "Then, I would talk to your sensei."

"I'm a chunin." Shikamaru refuted, and the way he spat the title told Hinata all she needed to know about Shikamaru's feelings on his promotion.

"So am I." She replied evenly, shifting till she could make eye-contact with the Nara, needing him to understand. "But, Shikamaru, we're barely teenagers. You can ask the adults around you for help."

Then, remembering Kurenai's words from what felt like – and was – a lifetime ago, she managed a crooked smile as she added: "And, much like parents, sensei never stop being sensei."

Shikamaru held her gaze for a few seconds, then slid down until he was lying flat on his back on the ground and sighed. A frown twisted his brow for a second, then, with a feeling not unlike pulling the plug in a bath, the circle of shadows that had been around them all this time finally began to recede.

"How the hell are you so wise?" Shikamaru demanded tiredly, and Hinata couldn't help her startled, bitter smile when the irony of the words registered.

Because this is not my first go at life, she itched to say, but even in her state, knew that it was not the right time for that reveal. Knew that it might never be 'the right time' for something like time-travel.

Instead, she sighed and slid until she was lying next to the Nara, eyes on the canopy above them even as, with the last dredges of her chakra, she wove the kindest genjutsu in her repertoire and tried not to think of the circumstances she'd first encountered it in.

"Go to sleep, Shikamaru."

And, as the blanket of feathers the illusion brought with it fell around them, Shikamaru obeyed, and Hinata, drained both of chakra, and energy, followed.

Hinata stayed at the Nara Compound until noon of the next day, Shikamaru having insisted she sleep over when they'd both woken up in the middle of the night, the few hours of sleep they'd caught on the forest floor the most rest they'd been able to get in days.

So Hinata had reclaimed her guestroom, stayed for breakfast, tried to ignore Yoshino's grateful glances, and offered to walk Shikamaru to the Psych building when he'd announced his intention to go, all the while trying not to wonder at how different her relationships were in this life when compared to before.

Yet, on the way to Psych, Hinata couldn't completely ignore the whispers and side-glances some shinobi were sending her, and, judging by his wide-eyed state, neither could the Nara at her side.

"You're responsible for an alliance with Kiri?" Shikamaru demanded after a particularly loud whisper reached them, and Hinata felt her face flush.

"No." she denied, because that accusation was just preposterous. "The alliance was not my intention, and I had no hand in it. I just cared about helping my friend."

"Your friend the Kiri-nin." Shikamaru pointed out snidely, making Hinata recoil, but before she could respond, Shikamaru held up a hand, his expression frustrated and apologetic. "Sorry. That was- sorry. I shouldn't have said that."

And while Hinata tried to blink through her shock at getting an – unprompted! – apology from the boy, Shikamaru continued; "How did you meet them, though?"

At that, Hinata smiled wryly. "Kumo Exams."

Shikamaru did a double-take, then hung his head and laughed quietly.

"You could be scary if you wanted to, you know." He told her quietly after a few seconds, a smirk pulling at the corner of his lips and a gleam in his eyes like he knew something Hinata did not. "I don't think people realise just how lucky they are that you're such a nice person."

Hinata stumbled.

Though she regained her balance quickly, her thoughts were not as easy to recover. "Um-?"

But while she hadn't been paying attention, they'd arrived at the side entrance to the Psych building, and Shikamaru glanced at it warily but determinedly scaled the steps, cutting off their conversation before Hinata had the chance to recover from his earlier words.

"I'll catch you later, Hinata." He saluted her with a lazy wave, the smirk from earlier still apparent. "Thanks for yesterday."

And walked through the door to Psych without a backward glance, leaving Hinata alone on the busy street outside to pick her jaw off the floor.

Eventually, she did have to head to the Hyuuga Compound, and her reception upon walking through the gates was about as warm as she'd expected.

"Hinata-hime. Your Father is expecting you in his study." One of the gate guards told her flatly, giving no other indication that he was aware of what she'd done.

Heart in her throat, Hinata made her way to the study, surprised when her hand didn't shake when she reached up to knock.

"Hinata." Her Father greeted once she'd closed the door behind herself, his frown more severe than usual. "There are rumours about your recent mission."

"Yes, Father." Hinata replied, because walking through the Village with Shikamaru less than an hour previous had proven that statement to be undeniable.

"Are they true?" Hiashi demanded, and Hinata was distantly surprised at being given the opportunity to deny or defend herself.

"Depends-" Hinata began, though her courage ran out after the first word, and she had to clear her throat and take a deep breath to get the rest of the reply out; "depends on which rumours you've h-heard."

If Hiashi was at all surprised by her flippant reply, he didn't show it, his gaze never once leaving hers, its weight pinning her in place better than any jutsu. "Those that claim that you helped a Kiri-nin."

"Then yes." Hinata confirmed, her heart skipping a beat. "Those are true."

"Why?"

Hinata did a double-take, not having expected the question. It was…unusual of her Father to ask for motives. Even more unusual to ask her to explain herself before he judged her.

And Hinata- Hinata had an opportunity.

The Hokage and all those who could decide if she deserved to be allowed out of T&I already knew the truth.

'Hiashi-sama doesn't care about the truth, he cares about the Clan. Use that.' She remembered Neji saying back at the Inuzuka Compound, when Hinata had bared her soul and shared her plans with her cousin, and instead of judgement, had received his trust and worry and support.

He doesn't care about the truth, he cares about the Clan.

Hinata could use that.

"I met him during the Exams in Kumo. He told me that he is close to the Mizukage." She began, the lie sour on her tongue, but necessary. "For my help, the Mizukage has offered me a…boon."

"What could you possibly have to ask of an unknown kage?" Hiashi inquired, but he sounded curious more than anything, and Hinata didn't know what to think of the lack of judgement. It felt like someone had flipped the script on how her interactions with her Father always went and she didn't know what to do.

"The Kiri-nin I helped- his jounin-sensei during the Exams had a stolen Byakugan." Hinata took a steadying breath when Hiashi's eyes narrowed, but it didn't stop the rest of her words from coming out as a whisper. "Its safe return was my request."

"Ao of the Mist." Hiashi declared thoughtfully, and now that the name had finally been uttered, it jolted Hinata's memory of the War, and she nodded.

"I- believe so, yes."

Hiashi hummed, his intense focus never waning.

"I had been informed of the theft a decade ago. But given that the report had come from an Uchiha, I hadn't thought it credible." He murmured, his voice sounding far-away, as if lost in his own thoughts. Then, his attention sharpened on Hinata once more, his frown growing more severe. "This was your reasoning for helping that Kiri-nin? Recovering the stolen Byakugan?"

Hinata took a breath, held it, then let it out slowly. He doesn't care about the truth, he cares about the Clan.

"Yes, Father."

Bizarrely, almost unfathomably, the corner of Hiashi's lips twitched, as if he was going to smile, but, in the end, his expression didn't change.

"You've once again proven to have an understanding of politics that I never cultivated in you, and Hanabi, for all her talents, has never grasped." He told Hinata consideringly, his intense focus lightening for a moment, a spark of warmth appearing in his silver eyes for a split-second before it was snuffed out.

"Regardless of the outcome of the boon," He continued, and there was an odd note in his voice now, something almost-

"I am proud of the shinobi you're becoming, Hinata."

-proud.

And Hinata, receiving the first proper praise she'd ever heard from her Father in either of her lives-

-fainted.

The next morning, Hinata was jerked out of her morning stretches by Kiba's arrival to their usual training grounds, and she couldn't hold back her laughter when, upon spotting her, Kiba immediately whooped, picked her up in a hug, and spun her around cheerfully.

"How is it that you were so calm and quiet in the Academy, and now you're the scariest of us all?" he laughed as he put her down, then, before Hinata could reply, turned to his left, "And you!"

And as Hinata watched, sitting back down to resume her stretches, Shino emerged from the treeline, missing his usual jacket but still wearing his trademark glasses, a bokken strapped across his back.

"I leave for a month! A month!" Kiba exclaimed, jabbing his finger at Shino's chest. "And when I come back, it's to find that you, Aburame Shino, got into a fight!"

Hinata blinked at Shino, not having heard anything of the sort, though she also hadn't heard anything from or about Shino since being released from T&I, so maybe she shouldn't have been surprised.

Kiba always did have a nose for gossip.

"I didn't get into a fight." Shino huffed, and Hinata didn't have to be looking at his face to know that he'd wrinkled his nose in distaste. "I disabused a career genin of an incorrect assumption."

"You scared him with your bugs and made him piss himself!" Kiba corrected, half-yelling, still jabbing his finger into Shino's chest, but there was laughter in his voice and he sounded proud.

"I am not responsible for his lacking control of his physiological functions." Shino sniffed, and Kiba burst into startled laughter then, and even Hinata couldn't fight her quiet giggles at Shino's affronted tone.

"Your kids are a hoot." Came a familiar drawl from behind Hinata, and she jerked her head around just in time to see Kurenai and Jiraiya step onto the training grounds.

"That they are." Kurenai agreed readily, but unlike Jiraiya's comment, there was no sarcasm in her voice.

"Sensei!" Kiba cheered, flash-stepping to Kurenai's side for a quick hug, then going back to Shino to resume their earlier bickering.

"Shino, I noticed you didn't deny Kiba's accusation that you used your insects on a Konoha shinobi." Kurenai observed, raising her voice to be heard over the boys' squabbling. "Your justification?"

"He was spreading misinformation about my teammate." Shino replied flatly, and Hinata didn't miss the way Kurenai's eyes flashed before she shot Shino a sharp grin.

"Good boy." She praised, making Jiraiya snort while Shino preened, the action considerably more obvious without his jacket to hide half his face.

"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear that." The Sannin told Kurenai, then his gaze fell on Hinata and hardened. "Kid. Come here a sec."

Obligingly, Hinata got to her feet and followed Jiraiya deeper into the forest, trying her best to keep herself from reacting when she felt her ears pop, a clear sign that the Sannin had placed a silencing seal.

"Jiraiya-sama?" she prompted when the man merely watched her wordlessly for a good minute, and Jiraiya huffed at her prodding, smiling wryly.

"Smart, telling Hiashi that it had been the dead Elder who'd put the seal on you." He told her evenly, but that earlier contemplative gleam was still present in his eyes. "That actually lets you use the argument of 'public domain'."

"Thank you." Hinata managed, unsure of what else to say, most of her focus dedicated to maintaining eye-contact with the intimidating Sannin.

"I found a way to remove the seal." Jiraiya told her finally, and Hinata's heart skipped a beat. "But, kid. It's not a cure-all. The seal interfaces with the nervous system; that's how it causes pain. Removing it, particularly from those who have had it for many years, could result in damage to the central nervous system. Talk to your Inuzuka teammate about what that can lead to."

Hinata's ears were ringing, her head spinning, the new information almost too much for her to wrap her mind around.

It was…possible?

She thought of the Branch House members with their foreheads bared but their eyes milky-white; thought of those with empty sockets where their eyes should've been; of those who had chosen to live blind over living a life that wasn't fully theirs.

After decades of inter-House conflict, of subjugation and suffering, it was possible to just…remove the seal?

"A seal's a seal, kid. And I'm the Seal Master." Jiraiya told her quietly, correctly guessing the direction her thoughts had headed in, yet he didn't sound like he was bragging.

Thinking of it, none of her interactions with the Sannin had panned out the way she'd expected them to, and she wondered whether, much like Kakashi, Jiraiya had also gotten used to putting on an act, preferring superficial judgement to people looking more closely and asking uncomfortable questions.

"Listen, I'm not gonna tell you how to lead your revolution."

Hinata startled, her gaze jumping to Jiraiya's, her earlier joy and contemplation of Jiraiya's real character cut short in the face of her sudden fear at what the man's next words might be.

"But," Jiraiya carried on, eyes intent on Hinata's reactions, a humourless quirk to his lips, "I would request that, when you tell those who need to know that you can remove their seal, you tell them of the dangers as well."

Hinata blinked, not having expected that to be Jiraiya's only condition, but her answer was obvious, instant, reflexive: "Of course."

Jiraiya held her gaze for a beat, then nodded sharply, pulling out a scroll from the folds of his kimono. "Everything you need to know to remove the Caged Bird seal is written in this scroll. The design for the version you have is also in it."

Hinata's thoughts were running haywire, her head was ringing, and her hand, when she reached for the scroll, was shaking.

Still, she wrapped trembling fingers around the scroll holding everything she'd worked for since she'd woken up in this time and took it from Jiraiya with a stuttered exhale.

"I-I cannot thank you enough." She whispered as soon as she could trust her voice, tucking the scroll into her weapons pouch, its weight, though negligible in reality, feeling like an anchor dragging her down. "W-what do I owe you?"

"Your word." Jiraiya told her evenly, his expression serious, his words measured. "I thought I was being recalled to the Village to finally teach my godson. Turns out, there's political drama that I'm needed for, and who knows how that will end up."

With the part of her mind that wasn't trying to reconcile the reality where she'd just had all of her wishes granted, Hinata wondered what sort of political drama was going on that would require two of the three Sannin on scene, but she didn't dare ask.

"I know you know more about sealing than you let on. More than that, you've got Minato's diaries and you're familiar with Shiranui." Jiraiya began, but Hinata was only half paying attention to his words. "My price is that you teach Naruto as much as you can about seals, until I can take over his training."

Hinata startled and tried to hide her surprise, but whatever Jiraiya saw on her face had him smiling crookedly, though Hinata detected little humour in the expression. "Do we have a deal?"

And there was very little Hinata could've said in response, other than: "Yes, sir."

Jiraiya patted her on the shoulder then, the single pat nearly knocking Hinata straight off her feet with how unsteady she already was, and Hinata took the dismissal for what it was, disappearing from the man's side with a final, grateful nod.

"Kurenai-sensei," She murmured as soon as she was within range, interrupting the woman where she was coaching a blindfolded Kiba through a controlled spar with a bokken-wielding Shino, "may I be dismissed for a moment?"

A part of Hinata wondered what she must've looked like, because Kurenai did a visible double-take at whatever she saw on her face. But, eventually, Kurenai nodded her approval, and Hinata didn't waste time waiting for verbal permission.

A dozen rapid-fire Shunshin took her to the Hokage Tower and the notice board on the first floor where genin sensei and non-Clan shinobi could reserve training grounds. Finding Team Nine and Maito Gai's cheerful penmanship took seconds, getting to the training ground itself another fifteen minutes on top of that, but, half an hour after receiving the scroll from Jiraiya, Hinata walked out of the treeline on the edges of Team Nine's training grounds, immediately drawing the attention of all three genin and their sensei.

"Maito-san, my apologies for interrupting." She murmured, her eyes on the taijutsu master while she fought not to fidget under the weight of Neji's gaze. "My name is Hyuuga Hinata. May I speak to Neji-nii-san for a moment, please?"

"You're very polite!" Maito Gai cheered, and Hinata repressed a flinch at the man's volume. "Go, Neji, take your break and talk to your youthful cousin!"

Though hesitant, Neji obeyed the instruction and met Hinata at the treeline, ignoring his teammates' curious glances that they weren't even trying to hide.

"Hinata-sama?" Neji asked once he stopped at an arms' length from Hinata, his brows furrowed, expression suspicious. "Do you need anything?"

Hinata offered Neji a shaky smile and shook her head.

"When you can, I'll need you to gather any influential Branch House members that you trust and tell them to meet me at the top of the Hokage Monument tomorrow at noon." She told Neji quietly, her voice still shaking from adrenaline and more emotions than she knew what to do with.

If anything, Neji's frown only deepened, and Hinata couldn't even blame him for his suspicion. "Why?"

"I need to tell them-" Hinata hesitated, suddenly wondering whether it was wise to discuss it out in the open like this, but when she looked at Neji's expectant face, when she considered the importance of what she was carrying in her pouch, she didn't think she'd be able to withhold the news from him for long.

He deserved this. He deserved the truth, deserved to live freely, deserved someone in his corner.

This moment was what Hinata had fought for since she'd woken up in this life. And now, it stretched before her, and she was hesitating?

Shaking herself off and squaring her shoulders, Hinata took a breath, held it, and, meeting Neji's gaze as best as she could, announced:

"I need to tell them that I found a way to remove the Caged Bird seal."

She didn't think she'd ever seen Neji move so fast.