regarding the previous chapter! BOY OH BOY. i loved the general sentiment of 'jiraiya boutta catch these hands', really warmed my soul. but tbf, gotta give the man Some credit for rolling with the news. (just a little though.)
if you wanna see an insight into my brain that i dont want to spam here regarding the bloodroom scene, go read DreamReel's essay of a comment on Chap 23 because it's MASTERFUL.
as for this chapter, it's mostly setting the scene, getting some bg work done whose payoff we'll see in the coming chapter, and giving our girlie some CLOSURE. i wanted to extend the final scene further, but then i realised that the chap would take another 2 weeks-ish if i did that, so instead, i added one more chapter to the chapter count and decided to make it into a 2 chappie arc.
as always, let me know what you think!
Chapter Text
Hinata wasn't surprised to wake up with the sun; it was instinctive at this point, and her level of exhaustion no longer translated into how much sleep she'd get.
What was surprising was finding Kiba and Shino already awake as well, Kiba at his desk, reading and taking notes on a textbook so thick, Hinata wasn't certain she'd be able to lift it, while Shino was diligently polishing his weapons.
"Good morning." Shino greeted quietly, not even looking up from his task, and Kiba hummed something distractedly but didn't let his attention waver from the tome in front of him. "Don't mind Kiba, he's working on his attention span; he's got two minutes left."
Hinata just blinked, not quite following, but it didn't seem important enough to question further. Kiba and Shino were there, awake, content in each other's presence, happy to include her, and that was all she needed.
Maybe also to have Kurenai there, but Hinata felt like their sensei's absence was part of a longer conversation that she wasn't sure they were all prepared to have, especially not fresh after waking up.
So she let herself just breathe, stretching absently on the bed and trying to process a reality in which someone knew that she had time-travelled and she was still free to roam around and not rotting in the deepest cell of T .
It hadn't stopped feeling completelyinsane.
"Alright!" Kiba declared, startling her out her musings as he snapped the book shut with gusto, turned on his chair and grinned. "Morning, sunshine! Sleep well?"
"Very." Hinata confirmed, smiling softly at Kiba's easy cheer, particularly when Kiba threw his pencil at the back of Shino's head. Shino caught it and launched it back without even looking, though it bounced harmlessly off Kiba's chest, a clear contrast to where it would've been aimed at in their first few weeks as a team. "Have you been awake long?"
"Ehh," Kiba replied, wiggling his hand side-to-side in a so-so gesture, "Shino's shiftin' around woke me up, though I've got no idea what time that was."
"About an hour ago." Shino answered, and he looked almost chagrined, the expression easy to read without his high collar and dark glasses, and Hinata wondered what could've happened to makeShinorestless.
"Wanna tell us what that was about?" Kiba asked, voicing the question Hinata wasn't sure how to word, and Kiba's voice was almostgentle,as if aware he was treading on delicate ground. At least until he added: "You usually sleep like the dead."
"Do not." Shino denied reflexively, then scowled, though he seemed more annoyed with himself than Kiba. Finally, he put the polishing cloth down and stashed all his kunai away, buying himself the time he clearly needed to compose himself.
"I've been- thinking." He began, ignoring Kiba's muttered 'bad start', and that alone was enough for Hinata to realise the gravity of the situation. "And I- I'll need your help."
"Anything." Kiba replied immediately, and Hinata was briefly struck speechless by the fierceness of the word, but she nodded, seconding the declaration without needing to think twice.
Shino smiled, just a brief quirk of the lips, but some of the tension left his shoulders.
"I'll need you two to beat me up." He announced bluntly, glancing first at Kiba, then Hinata. "Bad enough that I'll need to go to hospital."
"What?!" Kiba demanded, rising to his feet, though it quickly became apparent that he only did it to move to the bed and sit beside Hinata. "Have you hit your head?!"
Another quicksilver quirk of a smile accompanied Shino's dry reply of: "Not yet."
"Shino-kun." Hinata chastised, laying a calming hand on Kiba's wrist when it looked like Kiba was torn between laughing at the snarky comment and pushing further. "A little more explanation?"
"I've told you about my brother." He began, and Hinata shifted uncomfortably, belatedly realising just how much more the Shino of this timeline trusted his teammates thanherShino had. She hadn't known much about Torune, beforehand. This time, Shino had told them about his brother after barely ayearof being teammates. "I…have a suspicion he's been- there. When I've gotten hurt before."
"A 'suspicion'?" Kiba pressed, and Hinata was glad that he seemed to have realised this wasn't their usual brand of serious conversations.
"I've never seen him." Shino explained haltingly, and if Hinata needed proof of how much this was weighing on him, all she needed to do was look at how Shino was picking at a loose thread on the polishing cloth he'd been using. "…First, I thought it was a dream. But then-"
"It's okay, Shino-kun." She murmured when he faltered, clearly struggling with picking his words. "Take your time.
"I carry his insects." Shino tried after a few deep breaths, the non-sequitur a little jarring, but understandable. "The thing that nearly killed me in our first C-Rank, what made Torune so valuable- his colony."
"The flesh-eating one, right?" Kiba checked, getting a wordless nod from Shino that instead of reassuring him, made him suck in air through his teeth. "Shit, this is bad."
Hinata shot Kiba a startled look, not understanding the reasoning, nor the wry smile pulling at Kiba's lips despite the way his eyes were completely serious.
"Shino's stressed enough to not care about semantics." He explained, side-eyeing Hinata and adding sotto-voce: "They're notreallyflesh-eating."
It spoke to the seriousness of the discussion that Shino barely twitched at the observation, further confirming Kiba's assessment of his stress levels.
"Whenever I've been in the hospital, they've beenhappierafterwards." He opted to continue his explanation, and his frown was now pronounced enough that Hinata wondered whether they were the first people he was confessing this to.
The fact that she had a sinking suspicion theywereonly made matters worse.
"Which doesn't make sense, biologically. Prolonged hospital stayreducesthe number of antibodies in my system that allow me to host them comfortably; if anything, they should rebel against the hospital, notthrive." Hinata made herself pay attention to the explanation, wondering where Shino was heading with this. It didn't seem to be anywheregood,judging by his frown and nervous wringing of the polishing cloth, but she almost expected it.
"There's only one other factor that could've made them happy in such a way." Shino continued, and Hinata twitched when Kiba twisted his wrist in her grasp and twined their fingers together, squeezing briefly. She made herself release the breath she'd unconsciously been holding and focused all her attention on Shino. "And- when I asked sensei if she'd ever seen anyone she didn't recognise visit me when I was in the hospital, she said yes."
"Not to doubt you, but that could've been anyone." Kiba interrupted gently, and Shino shot him a flat look that nonetheless held an appreciative glint. As if aware that Kiba wasn't saying it to be cruel, but the opposite.
"She described Torune-nii's eyepiece."
"Ah." Was all Kiba said, and Hinata reasoned that that was essentially all thatcouldbe said.
"So, what's the plan?" Kiba asked after a few seconds of silence, tilting his head. "We knock you about, take you to hospital, you pretend to sleep and confirm or reject your hypothesis?"
"No." Shino corrected, shaking his head, though there was a relieved glint in his eyes. "You 'knock me about', we go to the hospital, and then the two of you come with me for the night to my Compound."
A beat of silence passed between them, then-
"That's a really weird way to invite us for a sleepover."
"Kiba-kun!" Hinata exclaimed, covering her face with one hand and squeezing Kiba's fingers in reprimand with the other, though Kiba only laughed, utterly unapologetic.
"You know I'm right." He grinned when Hinata dropped her hand from her face, and even Shino seemed lighter now than he had mere minutes ago, so Hinata couldn't hold the tactless comment against Kiba much longer. Especially since she had a suspicion that it had been entirely intentional. "Anyway, once we're there, and he comes, I assume you'll wanna talk to him or something, right? So what's to stop him from bolting as soon as he realises we've noticed him?"
"The seal I asked Hinata to make for me." Shino announced, holding up the notebook with the handful of seal-tags tucked between the pages that Hinata had drawn up for him once she'd ran the seal by Jiraiya. "The way she explained it, it works similar to the Nara's Shadow Possession."
It was in that moment that Hinata realised that she probably should've pressed Shino for an explanation forwhyhe'd needed the tagsbeforemaking them for him, but she couldn't bring herself to regret the decision.
Kiba just glanced between them for a few seconds, then hung his head and laughed.
"You two are freakin' terrifying." He announced, chortling still as he stretched his arms above his head and levelled them with a fond, if somewhat incredulous look. "I'm the one with literalwolf DNAbut you two are somehow the scary ones."
"Will you help me?" Shino asked, and though he didn't sound as wary as he had when he'd started explaining his plan, there was still something fragile in his eyes that Hinata yearned to chase away. "I think- trapping Torune will unfortunately be theeasiestpart of all this."
"Yeah man, of course." Kiba assured, knocking his foot lightly into Shino's thigh. "Of course we'll help you."
"I would rather it didn't have to involve hurting you, but I understand your reasons." Hinata confirmed, smiling gently at Shino when he glanced up at her.
And finally, whatever weight had been on Shino's shoulders eased, and he sat up straighter, his usual confidence and unflappable air slowly returning.
"Thank you."
Neji was sitting in the room that had unofficially become 'his' at the Inuzuka Compound, trying valiantly to achieve his usual meditative state instead of slipping down the existentialist slope he's been teetering on since being disowned.
All his pride, all his posturing, all his hard work and progress and prodigy status, and now he wasn't even a Hyuuga anymore. JustNejiof the Leaf.
It stung. More than his pyrrhic victory over the lazy Nara. More than Hinata making chunin before him. More than being told that his Father hadchosendeath over life in the Hyuuga Clan, even if it meant not being there to see Neji grow up.
And then there was whatever Hinata was planning.
They had talked over it when Hinata had first told him, when the main – and only – obstacle they could see in their way was Hiashi. Neji had gathered the Branch House for her, watched his Clansmen reel in awe and confusion upon realising that there was a future in which they would no longer be slaves to the Main House. Had felt the blow of the revelation of what their Grandfather had done to Hinata's coils like a physical pain, had struggled to understand Hinata's non-reaction afterwards, but they weren't close enough to discuss things like that.
Close enough to discuss a Clan-wide revolution, yes, but notfeelingsand fears and everyday difficulties.
It was funny, sometimes, how family worked.
Which was why Neji was surprised to hear a knock on his door, and, upon opening it, finding Hinata on the other side.
His cousin looked well-rested but grim-faced, the remaining faint burns he could see on her neck and shoulders only adding to the air of 'shinobi' she now radiated, though Neji struggled to pinpoint the moment that change had occurred. What was more, instead of the anxiety he'd gotten used to seeing in her posture, there was only cold determination.
"Neji-nii-san." she greeted, slipping into the room on silent feet when Neji stepped aside to let her in, and Neji didn't have the energy just then to correct her on the title. "I need you to hold on to something for me."
No preamble, no pleasantries, no explanation. Neji worried a little at just what sort of sword had to be hanging over Hinata's neck for her to resolve to such uncharacteristic directness.
"Why?" he demanded, waving Hinata over to the bed even as he remained standing, his last few encounters with his cousin leaving him off-balance and in desperate need of the sort of manufactured power dynamic the position granted.
"I will be heading to the Compound today." Hinata murmured, obligingly taking a seat on the edge of the bed, though she kept herself perfectly still, and that stillness, more than anything else, told Neji of the gravity of the situation. "I don't think anything will happen, but…it's something I'd rather not have Grandfather see."
Neji did a double-take.
"What do you mean 'you don'tthinkanything will happen'?!" he demanded, louder than he'd meant to, but Hinata seemed to have a gift for completely obliterating his composure.
"Nii-san…" she sighed, as if disappointed at Neji's naivete, and Neji shuddered.
"Don't." He warned her, the word sharp, bitter, full of teeth and feelings he could never voice. "Tell me why the Uzumaki handed me a scroll three days ago that had ahandwritten explanation for how to remove the did you feel like you had to do that, to give me that? And why use a messenger?"
At the time, Neji had taken the scroll with bemusement, not seeing anything wrong with the Uzumaki's cheerful 'it's from Hinata-chan!' beyond the honorific used, but the moment he'd unrolled it in the street, he'd paled so badly that the Uzumaki had offered to take him to the hospital.
With the information detailed meticulously in the scroll and the directions for where to find additional fuinjutsu texts to supplement his understanding of the art, Neji could've taken that scroll and singlehandedly led the Branch House revolution against the Main House, Hyuuga or not.
But he had not. Because he'd needed answers, needed closure, needed an explanation for why him, why now, why at all?
But all Hinata had to say was: "Because I wanted you to know."
"Why?" Neji demanded, the word bursting out of him, and it spoke to Hinata's credit that she didn't even twitch at his tone. "Grandfather is- what he did to Hanabi- to us- all that aside, he wouldn'thurt you."
At that, Hinata's face lost what expression it had had, and Neji only realised how much Hinata naturally let her guard drop around the Inuzuka Compound, aroundhim,when he was suddenly faced with her with all her walls up, eyes empty, face blank, chakrasilent.
It what had prompted it was the mention of theirGrandfather.
"Hinata." Neji urged, nearly pleading now, no longer feeling like he had the strength to demand anything. "What do you know."
The words were too flat to be a question and they both knew it, but Hinata only sighed.
"Read the scroll if you want to know, nii-san." she murmured, producing a scroll out of nowhere, and it didn't escape Neji's notice that it was dog-eared instead of sealed properly.
"And," Hinata began carefully, not holding the scroll out to him yet, her eyes on the folded corner, as if far away, though her voice was strong when she finished, "if you're wrong, take it to Shikaku-san."
"Shikaku-?!" Neji echoed, completely lost, "What could theNara Head-?"
He cut himself off at the way Hinata's arm twitched as if to put the scroll away once more, as if she'd changed her mind about giving it to him, and he was moving before he quite made the conscious choice to do so, snatching the scroll out of her hand and throwing it on his desk, mindless to the way it half-unrolled in mid-air.
"Notthe Nara Head." He realised, studying Hinata's reaction and filling in the gaps between his assumptions and reality. "The Jounin Commander. The ex-kageregent. The man with more political power in his pinky finger than the entire Civilians' Guard 'swho you want."
Hinata didn't even have the grace to deny it.
Hotaru had been…curious, about what he would find upon Hinata's return.
His granddaughter had always been soft, weak, wearing her heart on her sleeve for all the world to see and stomp on. All of Hizashi's ideals with none of his drive, seemingly content to fade into the background and never, ever be seen again, especially once her sister had been born.
And then, something had changed.
Hotaru hadn't known what had happened to prompt the change, but even with his disinterest in Hiashi's eldest, he'd heard mentions here and there, both around the Clan and the Village itself, of his granddaughter's more notable achievements.
Achievements he wouldn't have thought herevercapable of, much less barely a year after Graduation.
If Hinata had possessed even an ounce of ambition, Hotaru may have even been somewhat concerned about the development. From genin to chunin in a year, in Kumogakure no less, not to mention having the Nara Head and Hatake brat in her circle? If she had had Hizashi's initiative, Hotaru would've told Danzo take her instead of Hanabi, beat any thoughts of upsetting the status quo out of her.
As it was, however, when he looked at his granddaughter as she stood before him, dressed in a modest yukata instead of her uniform, hands clasped in front of her, eyes lowered as she waited for Hotaru to speak first, all he could see was a ghost of Hiashi's late wife. A kunoichi in all senses of the word, more suited to healing than combat, a follower, but by no means a leader, despite her pedigree and connections.
"Welcome back." He murmured, wondering whether the girl would pick up on the subtle rebuke for how long it had taken her to step foot in the Compound after returning to the Village. "Have you been cleared for fieldwork?"
"I am glad to be back." Hinata replied with a polite bow, her face perfectly blank, voice quiet, even. "Light sparring only for another week, but I should be cleared after my final check-up."
Hotaru hummed, watching the girl and her complete lack of expression with idle interest. "Were you successful in Kirigakure?"
Only Hinata's head moved as she nodded once, murmuring a barely-audible 'yes'.
"And?" Hotaru pushed, hiding his surprise with the impatient tone. "Do you have it?"
"It's being stored at the hospital." Hinata replied, continuing before Hotaru could interject to demand an explanation. "The Godaime agreed to perform the transplant. It seemed...convenient."
"Transplant?" Hotaru repeated in disbelief, curious who the girl had consulted before making such a decision. "Do you have a recipient in mind?"
It was a trick question and Hotaru could see that Hinata knew it. But instead of backing down, she squared her shoulders, took a breath that she clearly thought was discreet, and met his gaze.
"Yes." She confirmed, and her voice was surprisingly stable. "I was thinking of Daiki-san from the Branch House."
"A Branch House member?" Hotaru echoed, eyeing Hinata sharply. "Your reasoning?"
"An olive branch." Hinata murmured, not cowing in the face of Hotaru's clear disapproval of the suggestion. "I worry about potential dissent among the Branch House after the recent situation with Neji."
Hotaru stared at the girl, torn between intrigue and suspicion. "Have you heard anything to imply that there is dissent?"
"No." Hinata denied, and Hotaru realised that he hadn't been prepared for what she followed it up with: "But I believe that there is no harm in acting proactively in this regard."
Hotaru studied his granddaughter for a beat, sending a silent prayer of thanks to the gods for her lack of ambition. That was a Hizashi move through-and-through, but Hotaru could not detect even a hint of doublespeak or hidden intentions in the explanation, Hinata's motivations just as simple and clear to see as her emotions.
Still, he tilted his head at the girl and asked the question that had been on his mind since he'd learned of Hinata's request to the Mizukage: "Who taught you politics?"
Hinata blinked, clearly not having expected the question, then hung her head demurely. "I have had luck with my teachers."
A deflection and an answer all wrapped up in praise of others, but Hotaru reckoned he understood what the girl was really saying. It was less that she had beentaught, and more that she had learnt by watching. Always in the background, always keeping to the sidelines, yet navigating the elusive and treacherous echelons of society reserved for Clan Head and heirs with surprising grace.
Hiashi's failures when it came to his eldest were becoming more and more obvious by the minute.
"As you were the one to recover the eye, I will allow it this time." Hotaru finally declared, bringing their conversation back to its original topic. He didn't miss the way Hinata's posture straightened even further, clearly hearing the 'but' even before he uttered it. "But all future decisions you make that concern the Clan are to go through me. Understood?"
To her credit, Hinata's answer was immediate, and adequately repentant. "Yes, Grandfather."
Hotaru nodded, then opted to test a concern that Hideki's death had raised: "At the very least, you are more reasonable than your sister."
He catalogued the way Hinata froze for a split-second, but her chakra remained mercilessly muted, her expression enviably even in a way Hotaru hadn't thought her capable of.
He pushed a little more.
"Anything to say about Hanabi's situation?"
Hinata took a deep, slow breath, then shook her head.
"She challenged you while not even a genin." She replied, her voice perfectly toneless, only the corner of her mouth twisting down in what Hotaru cautiously labelled as distaste. "Consequences were to be expected."
Hotaru raised an eyebrow, intrigued and entertained by the blunt answer. That didn't sound like the words of someone who had used a forbidden technique to kill a Clan Elder in defence of said sister, yet it also matched up with Hinata's previously-established trend to fold to the will of the highest bidder.
And in this situation, that highest bidder washim.
Whatever her true thoughts on the matter were, Hotaru had no doubt that she would not allow herself to even acknowledge them, much less voice them out loud.
"That's unexpectedly ruthless of you."
The words carried more praise than he had been intending to give, but Hinata's answer was reflexive, and, in retrospect, to be expected: "I apologise."
The look in her eyes, however, was anything but apologetic, and Hotaru wondered how Hiashi could've missed his daughter becoming a shinobi in her time away from the Clan. How Hiashi hadn't seen that it was he who had been the biggest obstacle in Hinata rising up to the mantle of the Hyuuga heir. That the moment Hiashi had been removed from the equation, Hinata suddenly fit the role thrust upon her to a T: successful, ruthless, proud, but, ultimately, subservient.
"It was not a complaint." Hotaru corrected, and the flash of genuine surprise that broke through Hinata's mask nearly made him laugh.
Yes, he could see just where Hiashi had failed with his eldest. Hinata wasn't like Neji, she wouldn't thrive from challenge and scorn; she was soft, needed a gentler hand, but, like clay, she was malleable. If Hotaru refused to make the same mistake as Hiashi, he could have Hinata fulfil the role that had been planned for Hanabi, and not only secure Hinata's loyalty with the recognition she'd been so starved of, but also end up with a much better-connected, rational successor.
Perhaps with Danzo's help here and there to teach Hinata how to manage those pathetic sentiments of hers, but that shouldn't prove too challenging once her loyalty was established.
"Due to Hanabi's disgrace, your position as heir is secured." He broke the silence that had fallen between them while he had been reflecting, noting with satisfaction that Hinata hadn't even entertained the thought of breaking it herself.
He reached for the bookshelf, pulling out three scrolls and laying them out on his desk on the side where Hinata stood, absently noting the way she frowned in confusion.
"You will need to learn that which your father has failed to teach you until now. We will begin with the theory." He told the girl frankly, making the first steps towards granting Hinata the recognition Hiashi had so clearly deprived her of, but still controllingexactlywhat it was she'd be learning. "You have a week to familiarise yourself with these texts. Once you're cleared for fieldwork, we will work on the practical. Any questions?"
Hinata took the scrolls wordlessly, not bothering to check their titles before she tucked them into the sleeves of her yukata and shook her head.
"No, Grandfather." She murmured, bowing the perfect depth to convey both thanks and the end of the conversation on her end.
Hotaru felt the corner of his lips threaten to tick up, but he squashed the reflex down and nodded in return.
"You may take your leave."
And Hinata didn't hesitate, slipping out of the room on silent feet and closing the door behind her, a deep exhale shuddering out of her just before the door shut fully. But when Hotaru tracked her ascent through the Main House with his Byakugan, he noticed that even as her shoulders lost their tension and her steps gained more urgency, she didn't release her chakra even after arriving safely to her room, keeping it stifled so thoroughly that Hotaru might've passed right over her if he hadn't tracked her every step.
Curious.
Kurenai wished she could say that she was surprised to open her door upon hearing a knock and finding Hinata on the other side, despite no hint of a chakra signature to betray the girl's presence. Then, she got a proper look at her student's face and stepped aside, ushering the Hyuuga inside.
"Going by that look on your face, you're not here in a social capacity." She greeted as she set about preparing water for tea for the two of them, Hinata's utter stillness making her mentally prepare for the worst.
"I'm sorry." Hinata apologised reflexively, but it sounded wooden, forced. "I can come back another time."
"You will do no such thing." Kurenai denied, pushing on Hinata's tense shoulders to get the girl to fold down into the dining chair. "What do you need?"
"Sensei." Hinata sighed, and with the exhale, some of that rigid tension left her shoulders, the title seemingly grounding her, as ifrelievedto have an adult to turn to. "Did you mean what you said about not caring about plausible deniability?"
Kurenai very carefully did not react to the question and all it implied, only nodded, keeping her expression as open and unassuming as possible.
"Of course." She replied, effecting as close to a normal tone as she could as she pretended to bustle around preparing the tea. "Hinata. Tell me what's on your mind."
"You used to work with T , didn't you?" Hinata asked out of nowhere, and it took a conscious effort from Kurenai to not let her hand knock into something as she reached for the box with her tea leaves.
"I did." She confirmed evenly, aware that her past in T was something of an open secret amongst the higher ranks.
"Did you ever work with any Yamanaka?" Hinata pressed, and Kurenai wondered where this conversation was going.
"Yamanaka Inoichi was my direct supervisor in the programme." She informed the girl, not seeing the harm in revealing her senpai's name. She'd already been in Hinata'shead,once. It wasn't too unexpected for the girl to have extrapolated a connection between what Kurenai had done and the Yamanaka. "What are you getting at?"
"Did you ever find out if there's any way to trick the Mind Walk?"
Kurenai dropped the box with her tea.
"Hinata." She gasped, torn between genuinely startled andscared,the reaction startled out of her.
She held up a hand when Hinata looked a step away from bolting, freezing her in place. " I will need you to tell me precisely what you're planning before I tell you anything."
At that, Hinata sagged in her seat, her next sigh seemingly draining the tension that had held her upright along with whatever decorum she usually carried herself with.
"I was worried you'd say that." she almost grumbled, speaking mostly into the wooden tabletop, and Kurenai hid a fond smile as she bent down to grab the dropped box.
"But not surprised?" she asked idly, switching off the water that threatened to boil over and measuring out their tea.
"No." Hinata huffed, then pushed herself up and composed herself once more.
"I am going to confront my Grandfather." She admitted, and Kurenai was surprised at the mix of emotions she could detect in the girl's voice. "It is…rather likely that he will demand a Mind Walk to be performed on me to disprove one of my accusations."
"You do not have to agree to any Mind Walk." Kurenai assured her, finally bringing over the teapot and their cups and settling opposite her student, propping her chin on her hand as she watched Hinata struggle with voicing whatever was on her mind.
"I know." The girl eventually replied, sounding both relieved and resigned. "But for the purposes of officially removing the Caged Bird seal, I will need the Mind Walk to prove my lie."
"Prove alie?"Kurenai parroted, not having expected that turn in the conversation.
"The public domain laws about fuinjutsu require the sealwork to have been placed without the individual's consent." Hinata explained, seemingly working through her reasoning at the same time as she was presenting it to Kurenai. "I consented to it. In fact, IcommissionedJiraiya-sama to put it on me."
"But you want the Mind Walk to prove otherwise?" Kurenai checked, and Hinata huffed again, unexpectedly unguarded considering the subject of their conversation.
"I want the Mind Walk to prove that Elder Hideki put it on me." She corrected, and Kurenai slammed the breaks on any reactions that might have escaped her.
"The dead one." She checked tonelessly, getting a similarly bland 'yes' in response. She sighed, moving the hand that had been propping up her chin to pinch the bridge of her nose.
"You're too young to be this shrewd." She despaired, not looking at Hinata, because she didn't need to look to know that she would find a look of complete incomprehension on her student's face. "I'm sorry for the circumstances that forced you to grow up this way."
When Hinata didn't say anything in response, Kurenai gave in.
"The Mind Walk views memories. But memories can be blurred, mistaken, manipulated." She explained, finally daring to look up at her student. "What you're asking- it would require the last one."
Hinata didn't pause, just asked, calm as could be: "Can genjutsu be used to manipulate memory?"
And Kurenai felt the first stirrings ofsuspicionsince the girl had walked in.
"You're too calm about this." she pointed out shrewdly, and Hinata had the grace to look chagrined even before Kurenai added: "You knew before you asked, didn't you?"
When Hinata neither confirmed nor denied the accusation, an answer in and of itself, Kurenai sighed. "What do you want from me, Hinata?"
"Can you manipulate my memory?" the girl asked, not a hint of hesitation in her mien.
"To confirm." Kurenai checked, needing desperately for them to be on the same page and hoping against hope that she'd misunderstood. "You want me to put you in a genjutsu so invasive that it physically overwrites your memory?"
But instead of backtracking, Hinata just nodded. "Yes."
Kurenai sighed again, and this time, it was she who sagged against the table, all the fight drained out of her.
"When you were assigned to me, I thought you'd be my easiest student." She half-laughed, half-groaned, speaking more to the table than Hinata. "I was both right and wrong."
"I'm sorry."
"No, you're not." Kurenai laughed, because she'd learned quite quickly which of Hinata's apologies were genuinely remorseful, and which were warnings for the future. A line between 'I am sorry for causing you grief with my actions' and 'I am sorry for causing you grief with my actions, but Iwilldo it again'.
This was the latter.
"Genjutsucanbe used to mess with memory. It's sometimes used that way to secure identities for deep undercover." She told Hinata brusquely, then pushed herself into a more sat-up position, squinting at her charge as she added, "But it's not a pleasant process, I need you to be aware of that."
"Okay, sensei." Hinata replied, then; "Thank you."
"You're still going to go through with it, aren't you." it wasn't even a question, because they both knew what the answer was going to be.
"I have to." Hinata sighed, and for the first time, she seemed genuinely distraught, but no less determined. "But I trust you."
Kurenai wasn't certain what her face did at Hinata casually admitting that, but she wasn't surprised when Hinata picked up on it, though the gentle,fondexpression her student was levelling her with nearly threatened to break her.
"Sensei. You have done everything right with me." Hinata told her, and there was not a hint of hesitation nor deceit in her eyes as she added, "There are not many people in the Village I trust more than you."
"You really are too perceptive for your own good." Kurenai declared after a few seconds of silence, her voice wet, and she finally gave in and laid her hand over Hinata's, squeezing her fingers briefly, comforting and grounding them both.
"Alright. I need you to tell me exactly what you want the new memory to entail." She ordered, leaning over to grab a notebook from the basket on the windowsill and accepting the pen Hinata oh-so-helpfully held out to her. "Every detail you can think of, even – and especially – the innocuous."
She didn't know how Hinata planned to confront someone as untouchable as Hyuuga Hotaru, but she'd be damned if she didn't support her student through every step of the way.
And if that support meant sharing knowledge of Yamanaka Clan techniques she'd sworn to take to the grave in the name of throwing a dead Elder to the wolves?
Then so be it.
Shikamaru should've probably been more careful with how much he complained about being bored during his forced medical leave, but he had genuinely not expected for his dad to saddle him withpaperwork, of all things.
He probably could have retired to his room when his mom had called it a night, but after a certain point in the evening, it had become a point of pride to not give up before his dad, since Shikaku had not stepped away from his assorted files and folders since he'd finished clearing away dinner.
And so Shikamaru stayed where he was, legs curled under the kotatsu, folders spread around him, the tea his mother had made them before she'd gone upstairs long cold and his eyelids growing heavier by the minute.
But his one-sided battle of wills with Shikaku also meant that he was right there when three rapid-fire knocks sounded on their front door. He exchanged a baffled look with his dad, looking up for the first time in what felt like hours, because it was nearingelevenat night. Nobody should've been at their door at this time, and ANBU wouldn't haveknocked.
Shikaku got to his feet and ambled towards the door, but nothing could've prepared Shikamaru for the sight ofHinataon the other side. Even his dad, for all his unflappable mien, froze for a split-second before he moved aside to let her into the house, but Hinata shook her head and signed something Shikamaru wasn't fast enough to catch, looking the most flustered Shikamaru had ever seen her.
"I apologise for disturbing you, Shikaku-san." she managed, sounding very out-of-sorts, and the breathlessness in her voice only added to the sense of urgency her knocks had implied. "But I need your help."
"Go on." Shikaku allowed, but Shikamaru didn't think he was imagining the concern in his dad's voice.
Once she had permission, Hinata didn't waste time beating around the bush.
"We trapped a ROOT agent." She told Shikaku quickly, activating her dojutsu for a split-second, then deactivating it just as fast and adding; "Torune-san."
Shikamaru didn't miss how the line of his dad's shoulders grew tense at the news, but he had little to go on regarding what 'root' was.
"'Trapped' how?" Shikaku demanded, and he must've already known who 'Torune' was, because there was a new edge to his voice that Shikamaru couldn't decipher.
"Fuinjutsu." Hinata relayed dutifully, and Shikaku's back wentrigid.
"Where?" he pressed, voice gone toneless, but Hinata, instead of cowering, was looking steadier by every second that passed.
"Shino's room in the Aburame Compound." She murmured, and Shikaku nodded once in acknowledgement, though Shikamaru didn't for one moment believe that his dad was done with his interrogation.
"Why come to me?" his dad asked after a beat, and Hinata blinked, seemingly not having expected the question.
"Neither Shino nor his father can be objective on this matter." She replied easily enough, but there wassomethingweighing the words that Shikamaru couldn't quite identify.
Shikaku, it seemed, had no such problems.
"I don't think anybody would expect objectivity from them right now, and I know you know that." his dad pointed out, not quite snidely, but certainly sharply, and Hinata flinched slightly. "I'll ask again: why come to me?"
Shikamaru watched as Hinata sized his dad up, then seemingly remembering the urgency of whatever situation she'd come to them with, gave in.
"Because I trust you to be fair." She told Shikaku quietly, somehow sounding old andexhausted,despite nothing about her having obviously changed. "I trust you to give him a choice."
Shikaku sighed, then reached out and laid a hand on Hinata's shoulder, murmuring a weighted: "Your trust is a dangerous thing."
"I'm sorry." Hinata replied, clearly reading whatever expression was on Shikaku's face.
"You came alone?" his dad asked instead, not acknowledging the apology, but it seemed that Hinata hadn't expected him to.
She shook her head. "With Akamaru."
"Can he lead me to your teammate's room?" Shikaku checked, and Hinata nodded, but she was frowning.
"Yes, but-"
"You came to me for help, so we will do this on my terms, or not at all." Shikaku interrupted, and Shikamaru winced when Hinata shut her mouth so fast he was sure her teeth clacked. "You will stay here. Stay out of it until I come back, understood?"
Then, his dad turned around, shooting Shikamaru a serious look. "Shikamaru, this applies to you as well. Stayput."
Shikamaru nodded automatically, but couldn't help asking, "What's going on?" though he didn't actually expect an answer.
"I don't know yet, but I intend to find out." His dad replied, surprising him, but his expression was grave. "And I do not want to have to worry about you while I do that, understood?"
"Shikaku-san-?" Hinata called, but Shikaku shook his head, reaching out to grab her shoulder again and use it to pull her into the house, effectively flipping their positions as he stepped over the threshold and out into the night.
"As you aptly reminded us a few weeks ago, you are achild, Hinata." His dad cut in, and Shikamaru couldn't help but wonder what he was referencing. "This is not your battle. Stay. Rest. Let the adults handle this. Okay?"
For a moment, it seemed like Hinata wouldn't reply, and with her back to him, Shikamaru had no idea what expression was on her face, but finally, she gave in and offered Shikaku a single nod and a whispered '…okay'.
Shikaku squeezed her shoulder briefly, nodded at Shikamaru, then stepped out fully and closed the door behind himself.
Once the door closed, Hinata just stood there for a beat, simply breathing. When she finally turned around, she looked almostscaredto meet Shikamaru's gaze and Shikamaru…Shikamaru wasn't certain what to think, so in the silence that had fallen between them after Shikaku's departure, Shikamaru took a moment to simply study Hinata, cataloguing the differences between present and the last time he had seen her.
Finally, after over a minute of standing there and staring at each other in silence, Hinata took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. "Shikamaru, I'm-"
"I'm not mad." Shikamaru interrupted her, not wanting to hear another 'sorry' when he wasn't sure Hinata actually understood what she owed him an apologyfor. At Hinata's blatant surprise, Shikamaru cringed and added a grudging; "Anymore."
If anything, Hinata seemed reassured by the correction, but Shikamaru also didn't want her to torture herself over their fallout, especially now that they were, for all intents and purposes, going to be staying under the same roof again. So he swallowed his discomfort, grit his teeth, and tried to word as best as he couldwhyhe had interrupted her.
"I'm not mad, but I'm too tired to have this conversation right now." he explained, drawing a second surprised look from Hinata in as many minutes. "And, sorry to be blunt, but you don't look much better. So, come on."
And without waiting for her reply, he turned on his heel and headed for the linen closet, pulling out two of the thickest blankets they had in the house, some pillows, and a bedsheet, throwing half of his loot at Hinata and then gesturing to the sofa.
"Mom will chew me out in the morning, but you'll back me up, right?" he asked rhetorically as he began to half-heartedly spread the sheet over as much of the sofa as he could, more to minimise the complaints he already knew he was going to get than any actualneed.
"Of course." Hinata murmured, tucking the sheet in the few places he'd missed, seemingly content to follow his lead. Then, when Shikamaru was done, having apparently already toed off her sandals when Shikamaru hadn't been looking, she hopped on the sofa and curled up in one corner, pulling the blanket almost up to her ears, her eyelids drooping to half-mast almost immediately afterwards.
"Alright." Shikamaru muttered as he took the change in, wondering whether he had the energy to go and wash up properly before bed. Just as the thought crystallised, however, a wave of exhaustion suddenly slammed into him, and he realised that the answer was a firmno.
Well, he was already going to get a stern talking-to in the morning, so what was one more thing? With that thought in mind, he crawled onto his end of the sofa and finally allowed himself to relax, biting back a groan when he realised how tense his muscles had gotten. "Good night, Hinata."
"Good night, Shikamaru." Hinata murmured, sounding half-way asleep already, though she still added an almost inaudible 'thank you'.
The words were so quiet that Shikamaru wasn't sure if he'd actually heard or imagined them, but he reckoned that his grumbled 'don't be an idiot' applied regardless.
And so, they slept.