hi! thought in italic , dialogue in " ", POV alterning and Naruto's still not mine.
Chapter 8
Sasuke had been right. It didn't take long for their entourage to notice.
Neji Hyuuga was the first.
He saw his little cousin often at the Anbu headquarters. How she even got clearance to come and go as she pleases was beyond him.
But then he really thought about it.
Only two people can make that happen: The Hokage or The Commander of the Anbu.
And since Hinata wasn't really on speaking terms with Naruto at the moment, he figured it was the Uchiha's doing.
She did spend a whole lot of time in his office when she brought him lunch.
Oh, dear god. She's bringing him lunch.
That was Hinata speak for 'I care about you'. Friendly or otherwise. What was really concerning was that Sasuke didn't seem to mind.
Yes her food was excellent, but the Uchiha was basically a recluse and had no patience for anyone.
And he's allowing her to visit whenever she wanted!
Neji had gasped and clutched his metaphorical pearls like a scandalized old biddy.
He really needed to spend less time with Hanabi.
Then the Hyuuga genius had groaned out loud and received a couple of odd looks for it. Now he had to have the Big Brother what-are-your-intentions-towards-my-sister talk with the Uchiha.
Why is it that Hinata always attracted attention from powerful man?
The Uzumaki. The Kazekage if Ino Yamanaka was to be believed (there was no concern there, that was still strictly happening inside the blonde's head), and now the Uchiha.
It made threatening them much more challenging.
He nodded to himself, he was still doing it.
Except Hinata had stuck her head inside the break room to say hello and wish him luck for his upcoming mission after she spent a lunch break doing god knows what with the commander.
And she had this beaming smile. He really had missed that smile.
Her slumped shoulders were gone. Her eyes had lost that sad look.
Damn it! The Uchiha was good for her.
Neji decided to delay the talk for when Sasuke started officially courting her. Oh, he knew it was only a matter of time.
And then there was Konohamaru Sarutobi who's been sniffing around his youngest cousin.
Wonderful. Intimidating Hanabi's young suitor will be a piece of cake.
Still, his cousins were a handful.
Neji's reaction had been by far the mildest.
When Kiba Inuzuka had spotted his teammate with the last Uchiha at a vegetable stand one afternoon, he stood there gaping like a fish out of water for a few minutes.
Until Shino Aburame, who had been walking beside him poked him on the shoulder.
"Is that Hinata?" He asked still not believing his eyes. His pretty friend was picking tomatoes, while the Uchiha was standing near her; one hand in his pocket, the other holding their purchases.
It was such a domestic scene.
"yes" Responded Shino
"W-why?!" Kiba's brain completely short-circuited at the sight of the small quirk of Sasuke's lips when Hinata turned around to speak with him.
"I believe they are friends." Shino stated as if all was well in the land.
"But why?! He's such an asshole! And Hinata's so sweet." Kiba groaned as the Indigo haired girl gave Sasuke a dazzling smile after he said something.
All was not well!
His precious teammate was being all cute with the Uchiha.
"Get in there and make it stop." Kiba scrunched his face. This was a disaster. He really hated the Uchiha bastard. He always rubbed him the wrong way for some reason.
As if he could sense his gaze on him. Sasuke glanced his way with a chilly glare as if daring him to interrupt.
Kiba's hackles rose. He was going to march in there and rearrange his pretty face. If it weren't for Shino holding him back by the collar.
"Leave them be. Hinata looks happy" The Aburame said.
"But..But.." Kiba sighed defeated. She did look happy. And if Sasuke's friendship made her happy then fine.
However, if he so much as gets a whiff of more than friendly intentions from the Uchiha. He was going to go feral on his ass.
It was his sacred duty as her teammate and close friend.
Thankfully Hinata was spared from her overprotective teammate's dramatics.
However, that wasn't the case for her sister.
Hanabi Hyuuga was far from clueless.
She noticed when Hinata started coming home with bumps and bruises after what she said was training but still adorning a lightness she had been missing since things exploded with Naruto.
Learning it was Sasuke Uchiha who was training her sister had been surprising to say the least.
She immediately pulled back her spies.
No need to alert the elders about this new development.
They had a tendency of ruining things for her sister. She somehow always ended up being collateral damage in their schemes.
Not to say that Hinata still bent to their will. But old habits die hard.
Thank goodness the young future leader had been careful and had her sister followed by a branch member loyal to both heiresses.
Hinata had taught her well;
"Always choose your allies carefully Hanabi-chan. And remember fairness and kindness inspire true loyalty."
That was exactly what she did. She needed a partner in crime with no ties to the clan.
Luckly for her she knew just the woman for the job.
When Ino Yamanaka was approached by Hanabi about a possible new development in her friend's personal life, she had squealed a note so high that had all the Inuzuka clan wincing.
Sasuke Uchiha was an excellent choice!
Still, she pouted about her Kazekage scheme being shot in the head.
Oh well there was always room for threesomes.
To which Hanabi had hit her with a newspaper on the head and told her not to jump the kunai and would you be bloody realistic for once. They still needed to confirm if there was something there.
And so, they took to following them around and observing their interactions.
They never went near the training area because both ninjas would've been on high alert and there was a higher risk of being spotted.
What they had seen almost had Ino squealing again if it weren't for Hanabi's hand on her mouth.
"Stop. You are going to give our position away" Hanabi scolded.
"Hanabi-chan! He likes her!" Ino squealed with a more reasonable volume.
Sasuke Uchiha hung to every word Hinata Hyuuga said. It wasn't visible if you weren't looking for it.
To everyone else it looked like he was simply listening to her talk.
But Ino could see the tenderness in his gaze and he slightly smiles.
Not smirk. Smile.
There was a great deal of smirking involved too when Hinata gets flustered for one reason or another.
Her friend, bless her soul didn't seem to notice.
That wouldn't do.
"Hanabi-chan. It's time for an intervention." Ino smiled deviously
"Hai" Hanabi's answering grin would've made Neji shudder.
Hinata had been glad to spend time with her little sister and best friend.
They sat at a table in a new shop waiting for their pastries while Ino poured the tea for them ( both metaphorically and literally speaking).
"Soo..Hinata how's your training going?"Ino asked casually
"It going great! Sasuke-san and I were discussing this new strategy the other day. A distress signal that could be used long range so whenever a team is in trouble, headquarters would be informed immediately." Hinata said animatedly "I initially thought about using some kind of mind Jutsu. I was going to ask for your help Ino-chan. But then Sasuke-san made a few good points about making a chakra infused object…"
"And what do you think of Uchiha-san?" Hanabi interrupted her sister's tirade.
"I think he's brilliant." Hinata answered
"Good. That's good." Ino said "What is it that you do exactly in these training sessions?" Ino used air quotes when saying 'training'
"we…train" Hinata answered with a quizzical look.
"He just trains you?" Ino raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. What else would he do?"Hinata was even more confused now.
"Oh, I don't know. Push you up against a tree, rip your clothes off and ravish you. That sort of thing." Hanabi said looking at her nails.
Hinata spat her tea.
"H-Hanabi!" Her cheeks had flamed so much she could feel steam coming out of her ears.
"What? I promise you; it did cross his mind." Hanabi answered.
" W-what?! N-no. S-sasuke-san w-wouldn't...He…" Hinata took a breath to stop her stuttering " i-it's not like that. H-he doesn't see me that way."
" Face it Onee-chan ,he wants to get in your pants" The younger Hyuuga answered.
"He does not!" Hinata was scandalized. Where did her sister get such an idea?
"But if he were to be interested it, would you be open to it?" Ino said cutting off the argument between sisters.
"I..W-what?..that's irrelevant." Hinata fidgeted with her fingers.
" hah! I knew it! You're blushing." Hanabi exclaimed victorious.
"That doesn't mean anything. I'm always blushing." Hinata scowled.
"But you do think he's hot right?" Ino redirected the conversation. What was wrong with Hanabi? they need to at least establish a mutual attraction between both parties before pushing any agenda.
"Sasuke-san i-is certainly…I m-mean..he's.." Hinata put both her hands on her flaming cheeks, her mind kept replaying his teasing comments on a loop.
His intense gaze.
There was no denying it; he was irresistibly magnetic.
And when he smiled, her heart skipped a beat.
It was a normal reaction.
He was just ridiculously attractive.
She was not going to have a crush on Sasuke Uchiha!
No matter what those two devious she-devils said. She knew Ino's tendency to play matchmaker and she apparently roped her little sister in it too.
"Come on admit it! You think he's hot don't you?" Hanabi grinned at her sister's stammering. "just admit it!"
"Fine! I think he's hot ok?" Hinata's voice raised a fraction.
"What's hot?" A new voice asked from behind her.
God. She wished the earth would open and swallow her whole.
Because you guessed it. Uchihas had great timing.
"Suna's Kazekage!" Ino blurted.
"The new rumor!" Hanabi cringed
"The weather!" Hinata squeaked
The three kunoichi spoke at the same time.
"Really Ino, again?" Hanabi looked annoyed at the blonde.
"What? it's true. Plus, they would look good together" Ino clasped her hands.
"My sister is not moving to the desert!" The young Hyuuga huffed.
"Why are you moving to the desert?" Sasuke frowned looking at Hinata.
"I am not. Because the weather is so very…Hot" The indigo-haired kunoichi fanned herself with her hand.
It was a useless endeavor. Her face was stuck on the red setting now.
"Are you okay Hyuuga?" The Uchiha asked his mouth twitching.
Whatever conversation he had interrupted must've been interesting to get that sort of reaction from the Hyuuga princess.
"I'm fine, it's just all the.." Hinata's voice was high.
"Heat?" Hanabi helpfully added. Both her little sister and friend snickered at her glare.
Traitors, the both of them!
"Anyway. I've been summoned by our esteemed Hokage so no training today." Sasuke ignored the by play.
Hinata was a bit disappointed to hear that.
"Don't pout." Sasuke poked her forehead playfully "I'm all yours tomorrow and the day after that."
Yep, her blush wasn't going anywhere.
The Uchiha then nodded to the rest of the occupants of the table and left.
"Did you hear that Ino-chan he's all hers?" Hanabi said her grin wider, now that she saw an interaction between them up close.
"Yes, for tomorrow. And the day after that. And the day after that" Ino grinned as well
"And the day after that." Hanabi fluttered her eyelashes teasingly.
"I hate the both of you." Hinata buried her face between her arms resting on the table.
Their answering laughter could be heard from the street.
Elsewhere Naruto was adorning his own grin at seeing his bastard of a friend.
Conversation had been scarce in the Hokage's tour lately. Sakura had taken to avoiding him unless they were discussing the health of their future child.
He was still processing the thought of his impending fatherhood. He was ecstatic about it of course.
The point is with the upcoming event he had been planning, Naruto had little time for socializing outside his office.
The arrival of Teme provided a much-needed reprieve. Even though the conversation will mostly be work related.
"You called?" Sasuke strolled in the office, hands in his pockets.
Thankfully, he used the door this time. His Anbu subordinates were tired of being humiliated repeatedly whenever he sneaked past them.
Sasuke thought they absolutely should be. If Hyuuga was capable of detecting him easily nowadays, the Anbu operatives should manage it too.
The Uchiha ignored the fact that Hinata used to be a tracker primarily and that she benefited from his private lessons on top of that.
"What? no hello, how are you Naruto?" The Blond said
"You called me here to chat? I have other plans you know." Sasuke crossed his arms. He was missing pinning the Hyuuga princess against a flat surface for this?
Something he did enjoy doing constantly especially with how breathless she gets. He hoped it was his proximity that did that.
"Cancel them. I have an assignment for you" Naruto reclined on his chair " I need you to organize our forces for maximum security around the village."
"Does this have to do with the Kazekage's rumored visit." Sasuke was intrigued.
"Partially. We're about to have an influx of foreigners for an international event hosted in Konoha"
"Isn't a bit early for the Chunin exams?" Sasuke asked uncrossing his arms.
" Not the Chunin exam. We're hosting a fighting tournament for high-level shinobis. There are a lot of bored strong ninja that need to blow off some steam." Naruto's tone took a serious timber " With this new area of peace, missions for chunins and jonins have been scarce."
"Most of them are going stir crazy."Sasuke seemed to catch on. Tension was bound to mount with boredom. Ninjas were not made for a sedentary life.
"Yes. A tournament would provide a good outlet and further improve political ties between the five nations." Naruto said.
"Are we hosting all the Kages?"
"Just Gaara for now and a few prominent clan heads from the other nations" The blond replied
"I'm guessing you need security at the Nara estate for the Suna royals" The commander of the Anbu figured that with the courtship between Shikamaru and the sand princess, that the Nara clan would be hosting.
"Yes and maybe the Hyuuga estate" at Sasuke questioning look he added "although I still need to talk to Hinata-chan about hosting the welcoming ceremony there."
"Talk to Hiashi. She doesn't need another thing on her plate now." The raven-haired shinobi suggested.
"Oh" Naruto raised both his eyebrows "How's she been? You haven't reported in a while."
"She'll be better if you just back off." Sasuke's lip thinned. His friend tended to disregard the comfort of others for his own stubbornness. "And I'm done being your mole."
"What is that supposed to mean?!" Naruto rumbled.
"It means you are constantly flaunting your relationship with Sakura in her face and keep hounding her to make her accept your apology" Sasuke gritted his teeth.
"How would you know?" The blond growled. The fact that he was failing at having so much as a conversation with both Sakura and Hinata was grating.
"Because she told me." Sasuke remembers her ranting while sparring. Cinnamon rolls weren't the only method to get her talking.
Naruto blinked.
Hinata was confiding in his friend.
And Sasuke was refusing to elaborate any further about his findings.
"You care about her." The blond haired Hokage stated.
Sasuke didn't deny it.
Naruto smiled.
"I'm glad that she has you. And you do need another friend other than me" He exclaimed.
" Hyuuga is surely an improvement on you." Sasuke didn't acknowledge his friend's hidden blessing. Not that he needed his permission to pursue her for friendship or otherwise.
"Is it because she's prettier than me?" Naruto pouted.
And just like that their small spat was over.
AN: I love big brother Neji! And adore meddling siblings and friends.
Also every time Sasuke looks at Hinata I imagine the chorus of 'I Wanna Be Yours' by The Arctic Monkeys playing in the background.
Oh, the plans I have for the next chapters.
Review please. See how fast this chapter was posted? All because of your encouragements!
Love
Lady Thunder Storm.