Hinata of the White Lotus

Enter: Sasuke

Naruto wasn't sure what he wanted to do next.

The way he saw it, there were several paths that laid before him. The first option was to turn around, march back into the Hokage's office and demand information about the Uzumaki clan.

Before now, it had never seemed so important to him. Meeting Tayuya changed all that. She was an Uzumaki, just like he was. That meant his parents hadn't been the last family he had, like he always assumed up until now. His people might have been out there somewhere, he just had no idea where.

He already knew asking the old man Hokage would be meaningless. If he was going to tell him about his lineage, then he would have done so already. For whatever reason, he had kept it a secret up until now. That meant there was no point in going back and asking questions. It would only make him more angry when the old man refused.

No, his best bet was going to Tayuya first. She claimed to not know much about their clan either, but maybe together they could figure something out? For now, it was the only clue he had. The problem with that was… he had no idea where Tayuya even was. He knew she was being interrogated, but where did they even do things like that? He didn't know.

Which was why he was here, sitting on the front step in front of the Hokage Tower like some kind of bum, arms crossed and pouting in deep thought. In the end, he had only been able to come up with one idea; He would just sit here and wait for Hinata.

She was smart, after all. He had no doubt she knew where Tayuya was, and more importantly she had been able to secure permission from the Hokage to look after her. That's right, Hinata was on his side. She trusted Tayuya too, perhaps the only other person in the whole village who did.

That was why Naruto could rely on her.

He just needed to wait until she finished whatever business it was the Hokage had with her. Must be nice being a Chunin, he thought. Hinata was the only one from that tournament who had been promoted. Too bad he had never gotten to show his stuff. If Sasuke had just been on time…

"Oi, Naruto!" It was almost as if his thoughts had an influence on reality. Uchiha Sasuke approached him, stalking forward with both hands in his pockets and back hunched. It looked like an incredibly uncomfortable way to walk. Naruto couldn't help but wonder if he did it on purpose, the constant discomfort a way to keep perpetuating his bad mood. And make no mistake, Sasuke was clearly in a bad mood.

"Yo, Sasuke!" Naruto pretended not to notice, waving cheerily at his teammate. "Long time no see, you miss me so much that you just couldn't wait to see me?" He chuckled bashfully, knowing full well the act would only further deteriorate Sasuke's already foul temper.

"Shut it!" Sasuke's mood was even worse than Naruto had assumed. The moment he was on his blond teammate, he had grabbed him by the scruff of his orange jacket and hefted him up to his feet. "Talk. What happened on your mission?" He demanded.

"Shut it or talk, which is it?" Naruto asked obliviously, sticking a pinky in his ear and pretending to clean out the gunk. If he was being honest, he was a little disappointed. He thought that he and Sasuke had been getting on better lately. They had been looking forward to their first match in the exam against one another and had both been disappointed when it was canceled. They had even promised to one day have that match, just before he had been called on for Hinata's mission. What the heck had changed in that time?

"I'm not playing your stupid games right now!" Sasuke raised his voice, drawing the curious attention of the surrounding bystanders. Most people hurried along, attempting not to get involved in whatever fight was brewing, but a couple remained to gawk. Not that Naruto cared either way.

"And I'm not a damned mind reader!" Naruto raised his voice in return, reaching up and grabbing Sasuke's wrists to pry his grip loose. "If you want to know something, ask me properly, dammit!"

Sasuke didn't respond right away. Instead he seemed shocked by Naruto's grip. Rather, he was focused in particular on the grip of Naruto's right hand. He released his hold, letting Naruto shove his hands away and stumbling back a couple steps from the force.

"Your hand?" He asked, apparently calming down somewhat as he massaged his left wrist.

"Lost it during the mission." Naruto shrugged as if it was no big deal. "Just replaced it with a wood arm. That's all." He really didn't get why everyone seemed so surprised about it. It was the arm of his clone. Of course he would be able to use it, wasn't that just common sense?

"That's… no- nevermind." Sasuke shook his head, giving up on trying to understand Naruto's broken logic. "More importantly than that, what happened to my brother? I heard he was killed… but that can't be, right?"

"Oh yeah." Naruto snapped his fingers as if only just remembering. "So that Itachi guy really was your brother, after all. I thought as much when I heard his last name." He had no idea what he was supposed to say in this situation. "Umm… sorry for your loss?" He asked more than actually stated.

"Tch," Sasuke clicked his teeth so loudly, Naruto was afraid he might break them. In a second, Sasuke had crossed the distance between them again. He refrained from grabbing Naruto's clothes this time, but he pushed his face as close as he could without actually head butting him. "It's true then!? That shy, weak girl from our class killed my brother!?" He yelled, not seeming to understand Naruto could have heard him even if he whispered.

"I know for a damn fact you're not talking about Hinata…" Naruto growled, unable to ignore the way in which Sasuke just referred to her. "Last I checked, she was the only one of us that got promoted to Chunin, y'know?" Which was kind of the least impressive thing she had done recently, as far as Naruto was concerned.

What did Sasuke even know? He hadn't seen her fight at all recently. He missed both her matches against Neji and Gaara, and he hadn't gone on the mission. Maybe the last thing he remembered of Hinata was her being timid and a little weird, but Naruto would not hear her called weak in front of him without there being hell to pay.

"I don't care if they promoted her to Jonin! There is no way that weakling fought and killed my brother." That was the final straw. If a growing crowd hadn't been gawking at them, then Naruto would have decked Sasuke then and there. However, he knew he couldn't throw the first punch and come out looking like the good guy.

Fortunately for him, he didn't have to. He had just the way to press Sasuke's buttons and get him to swing first. Reaching into his backpack, Naruto pulled out a hefty pouch filled to the brim with coins. More money than Naruto had ever seen before in his life and ever imagined he would have.

"If you don't believe it then look at this." Naruto shook the bag. "One fourth of your brother's bounty. It was technically Hinata's, but they shared it with me too, y'know." The last words didn't even finish leaving his mouth when Sasuke's fist came flying in from the side.

It was slow. And utterly predictable. Compared to the fights he just experienced on the mission, Sasuke's wild haymaker was a whole several levels down. Naruto leaned back, dodging the punch by a hair's breadth.

In the same movement as he dodged, he tossed the sack of coins in the air. It flew in front of Sasuke's face, obscuring his vision for half a second. In that half a second Naruto had already stepped back forward and returned fire with a left hook.

Sasuke's eyes went wide. He couldn't dodge. Naruto's fist was centimeters from his face by the time he even saw it coming. Just as it was about to collide, someone caught him. That same person also caught the bag of coins Naruto had thrown. She spun between them, using the full force of her body to knock them several steps apart from one another.

Hyuga Hinata was on the scene. She continued to hold onto Naruto's wrist. Silently and without a single word, she held up the sack of money he had thrown and handed it back to him, placing it in the hand she caught. The look she gave him as she did didn't accuse him of anything. Yet the sadness in the depths of her Nichiren Byakugan hurt him more than any glare of anger ever could.

"Sasuke-kun." Hinata let go of Naruto's wrist and turned to face the last surviving Uchiha. She bowed to him deeply, holding the pose for several wordless seconds. Even Sasuke was at a loss for words, unsure what to say.

Was it the surprise at Naruto's sudden jump in skill? Or at the way Hinata had so effortlessly stopped them both? Maybe it was even at the deep regret Hinata was projecting with every fiber of her being? More than likely, it was all of this and even more in which Naruto couldn't possibly comprehend.

"I am terribly sorry for your loss." Hinata stood back up straight, making the words Naruto had used earlier actually sound genuine. "I understand you and your elder brother had a… complicated history." She said diplomatically. "However, I cannot imagine the weight you must feel knowing he is gone. If there is anything I can do to ease the news of his passing, please do not hesitate to ask me. I would be honored to share all the details of his final moments if it would but bring you even the smallest amount of closure."

The flowery language she spoke with reminded Naruto of something he had forgotten; Hinata was part of the Main branch of the Hyuga Clan and had once been its heiress. While Hinata was usually awkward and soft spoken, she had no doubt received extensive tutoring in the art of diplomacy from her family for her entire life. And that experience was now on full display, revealing another side of her he had never seen before now.

Unbeknownst to Naruto, Hinata's legs were shaking so bad she was certain that they both could see through her facade. She had no idea what kind of situation she had walked in on, and she was absolutely terrified her actions just now would only make things worse. Naruto and Sasuke were practically brothers. Maybe for them it was only natural to fight in this situation? Had she just inadvertently caused more harm than good?

"So you don't deny killing Itachi?" Sasuke asked, fortunately for her having calmed slightly despite her fears. However, his question left her confused and she tilted her head to reflect that.

"Me?" She asked. "No, Itachi-san was slain fighting another S-ranked bounty by the name of Hoshigaki Kisame. We simply happened to be there." She prayed to whatever god was good that he believed her and let it go.

"You happened to be there?" He scoffed in incredulity. Of course he wouldn't believe something so convenient. Hinata had gotten so used to Naruto just accepting whatever random excuse she gave him, that she forgot how terrible at lying she actually was.

"…We believe the organization Itachi-san was a part of was after something we had." Hinata tried again, feeling sweat dot her forehead now. "I am sorry to say, but we never discovered what. In the chaos, some kind of disagreement happened between Itachi-san and his partner, which resulted in their mutual deaths. We only played a small part in the actual battle, but it would seem that had been enough for strange rumors to begin circulating." She really hated the rumor mill right now. Why did they have to assume she was the one to deal the finishing blow?

"…I see. So you weren't the one to kill him, after all." Sasuke said, his voice full of some strange emotion that Hinata couldn't place. All the tension that had built up in his body seemed to deflate and he let out a sigh far too tired for his age. "Not that I care or anything, but did my brother have any final words?" He asked.

This was the most difficult question he asked her yet. Hinata had just spoken with Itachi in depth and they had shared a fair amount of information with one another. Yet the topic of Sasuke hadn't once come up in that conversation. Did Itachi even care about him? No, she had no doubt he did, but there was no reason to tell her such things.

Which unfortunately meant she had no good answer to give Sasuke. There was nothing she could say that would quell his pain, because she didn't know what answer he wanted to hear. Maybe Itachi would have known, but she hadn't thought to ask. So in the end the only thing she could tell him was the truth as she had seen it back when the fight against Kisame ended.

"His throat had been ripped out, so I'm afraid not." Hinata hated how heartless it sounded when she said it. That was one unfortunate fact about being a ninja, however. Sometimes things like this happened and you had to report it as it was, regardless of how you felt about it.

"…Thank you for the information." Sasuke responded robotically. Like it didn't even actually concern him. He simply nodded to her and with that turned to leave.

"Oi, Sasuke!" Naruto called after him. Sasuke didn't bother to turn around, but he did at least stop to show he was listening. "Are you really okay with this? That was like… your ambition or whatever, wasn't it?" Despite the fact they had been fighting until just a moment ago, Naruto truly was worried about his teammate. Their tempers had simply flared up and their anger got the better of both of them.

However, it wasn't like Naruto couldn't sympathize with him. For Sasuke, losing the chance to kill Itachi would be like if Naruto had to give up on his dream of becoming Hokage. Such a loss… he didn't want to even fathom it.

"I don't know to be honest." Sasuke admitted plainly. "Give me some time to think about it." When Naruto didn't give any further response he walked away, leaving him and Hinata standing there to simply watch him go.

The silence that hung over Naruto and Hinata was both heavy and awkward, neither one of them knowing how to break it. Perhaps predictably, Naruto cracked first.

"So uhh… sorry you had to see that." Naruto rubbed the back of his head awkwardly as he apologized, unable to look Hinata in the eyes. "Thanks for stopping me, by the way. I probably would have felt bad about slugging him after. He did just kinda lose his brother and all."

"You don't have to apologize for anything, Naruto-kun." Hinata said with a shake of the head. "I was worried that perhaps I had done something unnecessary by interfering." She admitted.

"There's no way!" Naruto waved his arm dismissively to emphasize the point. "Besides, you looked really cool stepping in at the last moment like that. I think even Sasuke was surprised by your skill, y'know."

"My skill?" Hinata squeaked, face turning slightly red. "You're exaggerating. What I did wasn't anything special. I was just desperate to stop things before they got worse. I'm sure I must have looked absolutely panicked."

"Huh? You didn't look panicked at all though?" Naruto didn't get it. Why was the Hinata he saw so much different from the version of herself that she seemed to see? She had been the very picture of calm and collected throughout the entire confrontation. If she hadn't been, there was no way Sasuke would have listened to her so calmly.

"Thank you for saying that." Hinata said, but it was obvious she didn't actually believe him. He wasn't positive, but Naruto felt like he was starting to see what was going on. Hinata had always had low self-esteem, and that image she had of herself had somewhat accurately reflected her outward appearance at one point in time.

However, the Hinata that had awakened the Nichiren Byakugan had survived numerous near-death experiences now. Neji, Gaara, Itachi, Kisame, and Kimimaro. With each victory, Hinata gained experience and power. To the point that the gap between who she was and who she still saw herself as had formed a massive chasm.

The only problem was he had no idea how to actually help her.

"I just want to make sure," Naruto said without even really thinking about it. "But you remember that you and I are rivals, right?" He asked.

"W-what?" Hinata blinked, looking at him as if she had no idea what he was talking about.

"We promised to fight each other during the Chunin exams." Naruto clarified and Hinata's eyes widened in realization. "I almost had my match against Sasuke just now and let me tell you, I think I can take him… so you better be ready. I ain't gonna hold back against you either." He held up a fist, waiting for her to bump it.

"Yeah…" Hinata smiled. Not one of those nervous, jittery smiles she usually had, but one that was truly happy from the bottom of her heart. "Thank you, Naruto-kun." She said, bumping his fist with hers.

He had no idea if it actually helped her or not, but at least she didn't look so down anymore.

"Anyways, what now?" Naruto asked, turning to face the street ahead. "You on your way to get Tayuya?" He hoped to go with her if that was the case.

"Actually, I was going to head to the hospital first." Hinata answered. Only then did he remember she still had to actually meet her teacher. "You should come too." She then suggested.

"Ehh…" Naruto shook his head awkwardly. "I don't really know Kurenai-sensei all that well to be honest." He also didn't think it would be appropriate to intrude on a reunion between teacher and student.

"What?" Hinata blinked in confusion. "No, not to meet Kurenai-sensei. To get your arm finally looked at." She said as if she couldn't believe he had already forgotten about it.

"Oh, right." Naruto still didn't get what the big deal was. It didn't even hurt anymore. "Well, I guess I'll tag along with you then." It wasn't like he had anything better to do and if getting his arm looked at would get everyone to quit asking, then he would just as rather get it over with. "After that we can go see Tayuya though, right?" He asked just to be sure.

"Yes, Naruto-kun." Hinata agreed, just barely managing to hide her exasperation. Their plans decided, the two of them started walking in the direction of the hospital. It had been over a month since the two of them made a similar journey together, back before the final stage of the exams.

So much had changed in such a short period of time that neither one of them could barely believe it. Now they were both aware of their status as reincarnations and they had a duty to help one another out.

"Naruto-kun." Hinata talked in a hushed tone now. The streets were wide enough that the people around them shouldn't be able to hear her and even if they could, it was unlikely they would pay attention anyways. All the same, she felt that she could never be too careful. "About that thing Asura-san asked me to look into. The identity of his brother's reincarnation."

"Yeah, I know." Naruto cut her off, simply shrugging casually like it wasn't actually a big deal. "It's Sasuke, right?"

"You knew!?" Hinata asked, having to keep her voice from squeaking loudly.

"Well, I didn't know-know." Naruto didn't know how to explain it exactly. "It's more like I just kinda felt it. I think in a way I kind of always knew about it. It just wasn't until recently that it all came together. Or something like that." He hoped what he was saying made sense.

"I think I get it." Hinata nodded slowly, coming down from her shock. "Kali mentioned that Asura-san is always drawn to Indra-san. Maybe that is what you have been sensing?" She wondered aloud.

"Probably." Naruto agreed with a shrug. He didn't know much about it either way, and he would rather not think about the ghost haunting him at all if he could help it. "Anyways, what am I even supposed to do now that we know for sure it's Sasuke?" He still didn't understand the first thing about what his duties were. Ever since that joint meeting with Hinata and Kali, he hadn't seen Asura in any more of his dreams.

"I'll convene with Kali about it later, but in the meantime it would probably be faster for you to ask Asura-san yourself." Hinata said, also not knowing the answer. "If you want, I can teach you how to meditate in order to speak with him."

"Nah, that's okay." Naruto said. "If he wants to talk to me, he can reach me the same way he did last time." In truth, he just didn't want to have to be the one looking for a ghost. The less interaction he had with the whole situation, the better.

"Alright then." Hinata failed to hide her disappointment and Naruto almost thought about reconsidering his position to have her teach him. Before he could, Hinata asked him, "Do you think Sasuke-kun will be alright?"

"He'll be fine." Naruto said with more confidence than he actually felt about the situation. "Sasuke is a tough guy, y'know!"

He really hoped he was right about that.

Sasuke sat on the dock of a riverbank near the old Uchiha clan compound.

How long he had sat here for now, even he wasn't sure. It must have been several hours, as dusk was beginning to set, casting the sky in an orange glow. In truth, he didn't even know why he had come here of all places.

He supposed it was because this place held special significance for him. Back when he still had a father. It was here that Sasuke practiced the Great Fireball Jutsu and under his father's tutelage mastered it. The joy he felt when his father praised him was a distant memory now. From a time before he knew what tragedy was.

A time when he had also wanted his brother's praise.

That was something he would never be able to receive now. It was this thought which confused Sasuke the most. He had done exactly as his brother said. He hated him, cursed him, detested him from the deepest depths of his heart.

So why did it hurt so much to know he was gone?

At first, Sasuke assumed it was because he hadn't been the one to do it. It was his ambition, his life's purpose to avenge his clan. To know it was done by someone completely unrelated was laughably ironic. And it was only made worse by the fact the person who finally killed Itachi died along with him. This left Sasuke's anger without anywhere to actually go.

At least if Hinata had been the one to do it he could fight her and when he won, he could view it as having indirectly killed Itachi. Even that was robbed from him now.

None of this explained his earlier sentiment, however. This only made sense if you assumed the source of Sasuke's anguish was being unable to carry out his revenge. Yet he could tell. That wasn't the real root of his despair.

In the end… hadn't he wanted to talk to his brother? Ask him why he did it? Didn't somewhere deep down he had hoped there was some kind of circumstance behind everything? His hatred hadn't been strong enough and in actuality he wanted to forgive Itachi despite everything.

Which was no longer possible.

Regardless of the true source of Sasuke's anguish; Be it his revenge stolen from him or the loss of being able to ask his brother for the truth, the end result was the same.

Itachi was gone and Sasuke had lost his purpose in life.

"Everything's not lost yet, Sasuke-san." A voice answered Sasuke's thoughts, as if he had somehow been reading his mind. Turning around, Sasuke saw some boy about his age he didn't recognize. His skin was terribly pale, eyes closed as he gave the most fake smile Sasuke had ever seen. Whoever this kid was, he gave him the creeps.

"What do you know?" Sasuke snapped, turning away from him and looking back over the river and the reflection of the orange sunset.

"I know my own name for starters." The boy said. It almost sounded like he was trying to make a joke, but the humorless tone in which he spoke suggested he wouldn't have even known how. "It's Sai, by the way."

"I don't give a damn about your name." Sasuke snapped back in monotone. He couldn't even summon the energy to be truly angry. All his hatred, along with everything else, felt so muted right now.

"Then perhaps you will care about this?" Sai continued undeterred. "What if I told you Itachi-san was alive?" In the blink of an eye, Sai's back was pressed up against the ground. Sasuke didn't even know what happened. One second he had been looking over the river. The next he was glaring down at Sai, hands around his windpipe.

The previous muted anger had risen up twice- three times stronger than he had ever felt before. The curse seal on the back of his neck flared, threatening to burst past the seal Kakashi had placed on it to hold it in check.

"You're lying." Sasuke seethed. It took every ounce of will power he had to loosen his grip. Only enough to allow Sai to breathe. If the words he said next angered Sasuke further he couldn't promise he didn't snap his neck then and there.

"I'm just the messenger." Sai said in a dead calm, completely oblivious to the perilous balance his life now hung in. "Whether Itachi-san is alive or not, I haven't actually seen it for myself. However, I can introduce you to the one who is able to prove it."

"Who?" Sasuke asked, although he already had some suspicion. If this boy said Orochimaru, then Sasuke wouldn't hesitate to kill him. For if it was Orochimaru, then it was obviously just a trap to lure him away from the village and steal his body.

However, to his surprise, the name Sai said wasn't Orochimaru or any other one he recognized. "Allow me to take you to the foundations of our village. Where all the ugly truths go to hide and serve as nourishment for the roots. There you will meet our leader,"

"Shimura Danzo."