AN: Chapter title: "Devotion" Part 2
The Praefectus Castrorum must've been at the limit of his patience by now. He had ordered his Praetorians to intercept any more of her paperwork to prevent any more "delays" to their meeting. The same "delays" that had prevented them from meeting for the past few days.
He never forced her to agree to a meeting him, couldn't in any way, but it had become strongly encouraged.
Her work was now being constantly interrupted. And, by consequence, was now piling up.
So she had set up their meeting today.
'He may be upset with me.' She was understating it and knew it. The entire atmosphere of the tower had changed and she knew exactly why.
The Legionnaires even seemed to have come up with a name for it. One Hinata couldn't help but feel was fitting:
Decimation.
Correct, if a little crass.
"The behavior of the Seventh and the Eighth Cohorts, has it regressed at all?" As she asked the question, her Byakugan was active, ignored the Tribunes scurrying like caged rats in Naruto-kun's tower and instead focused on where the Praefectus Castrorum was busy in his own office. He seemed to be meeting with the Primus Pilus of the two Cohorts in question.
They were passionate about whatever they were speaking with the Praefectus Castrorum about. Hinata didn't need more than one guess to know what it was.
Offhandedly, her expanded gaze focused on Karin for a moment. She was with Kiba as was the norm since the Inuzuka's arrival to the tower as a Tribune. They were leaving, a new part of their normal routine for the past week since Sasuke had left the village. With them, unknown to Kiba, a near Century worth of Praetorians followed Karin's every step.
"Not in the slightest. They remain diligent in following your orders. Their previous disruptions have fallen to nothing."
"And what did you think of my method to stop those disruptions?"
"It was unfortunate but necessary." Gaara's opinion of it all was almost the same as her own.
It had been necessary.
"Is that all?" Pale lavender eyes focused on the once Hidden Sand Genin.
"No." Most would be unnerved by a Hyuga's undivided focus on them, the sight of the Byakugan. Gaara was all but uncaring in his seat. "It was brutal but effective. They refused to listen to their commanders, to you, willfully ignored the Legate's standing orders. If they weren't punished in some way, they would've caused more problems. It had to be done."
"The Praefectus doesn't seem to agree. He's upset with me about it."
"Then he should've intervened before you did. In the Legion or outside of it, those in command are responsible for the behavior of those under them. Jonin of the Hidden Sand are expected to deal with disobedient squad members in the same way a Centurion, Optio, or Decanus of Caesar's Legion is expected to instill discipline and uphold order in the Legionnaires under their command. Under the Fourth Kazekage, failure to do so would see the Jonin temporarily stripped of their rank. If a mission was failed because of their lack of leadership, they were more likely to be executed than imprisoned."
"I'll be sure to remind him of what could've happened when we meet later today."
The two fell silent.
Hinata saw no reason to break it.
Even if he had disagreed with her, found her actions too extreme like the Praefectus must have, there was nothing he could do against her. She outranked him. Courtesy of the Legate personally empowering her and raising her as his Tribune, she outranked everyone save for him and Naruto-kun. Although, that line of thought did lead to her wanting a question answered.
"What do you think of not being raised as a Tribune?"
"To me, the position is useless. If Karin is threatened, I'll simply kill everyone who threatens her. The same as Caesar would. The rest of the Tribunes are here to prevent that from happening." Gaara's answer was immediate. Hinata only smiled at the answer.
"Naruto-kun should've just asked for you to keep her safe."
"That wouldn't have worked. The Legate considered the same idea before he left. When he asked Karin, she told him she was afraid of me." Gaara didn't seem hurt or shocked at such a thing. "She can likely sense the Ichibi. Or my former nature left a greater impact than I thought on my Chakra."
"Which one do you think it is?"
"Her survival instinct keeps her away from me."
"And do you think she needs to be?"
The silence was back with her question. She didn't press for an immediate answer, wasn't bothered that Gaara needed a moment to gather his thoughts. She was only curious after all.
She examined Gaara as he thought, as he considered everything.
He didn't have a very expressive face, didn't have a telltale sign of deep thought. He didn't clench his fist, worry his lip, chew on his cheek, or any of the familiar nervous tics she had seen from others. He seemed utterly calm. Or perhaps that was because of the shell of sand surrounding him, colored to appear as his flesh courtesy of his immense Chakra. Even if he was obvious with whatever his tic was, there was no way to tell with how diluted the movement would appear to the naked eye.
Besides, his body hadn't changed at all.
It was the gourd of sand set down at his side that spoke of his emotions.
At her question, the sand had rippled, had behaved similar to water when a stone was dropped into a lake.
It had calmed down shortly after but it had been clear to her. He had been surprised at the question.
"She's right to be cautious around me, to keep her distance. Even if the Ichibi has retreated from my thoughts, is fearful of Caesar, the seal holding it within me is inadequate. And my past obsession has left the seal frayed, unable to reach its limited potential in suppressing the Ichibi. While I'm capable of calling on the Ichibi's Chakra, I'm limited to that alone. Attempting to make use of anymore of its abilities, such as the cursed markings for Fuinjutsu, would only cause unnecessary problems. She is better off if our contact is limited until either Caesar or the Legate returns." Gaara's answer was candid and, from what Hinata could tell, there was no deceit in his words.
His sand was also motionless in the gourd.
Her Byakugan allowed her to cast her gaze across the entirety of the tower.
The Praefectus was on the move. The Primus Pilus of the Seventh Cohort was gone but the Eight's Primus Pilus remained in his office, was likely waiting to hear how this meeting went.
"The Praefectus is on the way." Hinata turned her full attention to Gaara as the veins around her eyes shrank as she ceased the use of her Byakugan. She offered Gaara a smile. "I won't take up anymore of your time Gaara." Her smile became…slightly malicious. "I think you should visit your siblings again. They've been given enough time to rethink their foolish rejection of Caesar's generosity."
She was sure Gaara didn't know the two had been close by during the 'Decimation'. Her Byakugan, activated for the entirety of it, had caught sight of them near the beginning.
She hadn't intended for there to be any more of an audience than necessary when she disciplined the unruly Legionnaires, had waited until the rest of the Tribunes had been dismissed for the day before beginning. The two prisoners may not had seen it directly but they had heard enough of it:
Her order.
The shouts of outrage.
Her next command to Gaara.
The roar of his sand.
The sobbing pleas.
The visceral sound of blows raining down on flesh.
The crack of bones and the screams.
It had likely painted a vivid picture in their minds, had informed them of what could await them if they continued to refuse Naruto-kun's generosity.
Gaara seemed surprised at such an idea.
Hinata only offered him that same malicious smile.
"It can't hurt to speak to them, right?" He took his dismissal for what it was, collected the pair of Centurions from the Fifth Cohort that had accompanied him to her office from her door as he did so.
She was left alone when the door closed behind him.
She closed her eyes, thoughts focused on her Caesar for what laid ahead. 'Naruto-kun…I won't disappoint you. I won't let anything get in the way of your dream.'
No one could stand in the way. Not if she could stop them.
There was no knock on her door, no announcement.
The Praefectus Castrorum simply barged into her office, what would usually be the Legate's office.
Two Praetorian Centurions entered with him, part his bodyguards and part his aides for his vast duties. With the Legate and, more importantly, Caesar both gone from the tower, his normal duties had vastly increased and necessitated the aides. The look the two gave her was…strange. Neither were afraid of her but they seemed cautious, their gaze more assessing of her after what she had done in front of them both only a few days ago.
"Tribune Hyuga." When he stopped in front of her, the Praefectus Castrorum didn't bring his fist to his armored heart.
Her pale eyes narrowed at the clear slight. She didn't rise from the Legate's desk either at his entrance so she supposed it was only fair he responded in kind.
"Why did you request this meeting?" She skipped any and all pleasantries. They both had a fair enough understanding of why this meeting was happening. It was more of a formality to ask.
Or perhaps Hinata wanted to see how he would react.
The Praefectus Castrorum didn't answer her. At least not immediately. He turned to the two Centurions who had entered with him. "Leave us." Hinata couldn't see his face but his expression must've been enough to make the two jump, rush to follow his orders.
The two Centurions did all they could not to run out of the room. She saw them share a look between the two of them before the door to the Legate's office was closed behind them.
The Praefectus Castrorum turned his gaze back to her. If his expression hadn't changed, the cold fury that dominated it, she could understand why the two Centurions were quick to leave. She remained unmoved in her seat.
"You're upset with me." She stated the obvious.
"I'm infuriated with you." He corrected her. "What you did was inexcusable."
Her eyes narrowed. "That is an odd way of saying I corrected a problem."
"That is what you call it? You call that barbarity 'correcting a problem'?" His red eyes tried to cut her down, tried to admonish her for doing what was needed. "You dared to force my brothers to attack each other, to nearly maim each other, with death the only alternative!" His voice didn't rise. His words fell from his lips as if they were the vilest curses imaginable. "You call that a solution?"
"I do." Hinata evenly met his gaze. "And, if required, I'll do it again. Neither the Seventh or the Eighth Cohorts suffered any permanent losses from my methods. They can dislike me, revile me, but they now listen to my orders. There's no risk to them staining Naruto-kun's reputation any further now."
The Praefectus Castrorum snarled at her. His red eyes, the fangs that filled his mouth, they gave more credit to him being a beast than anything else.
"We would never dare to dishonor Caesar! Not a single one of my brothers in the Legion would dare to bring such shame to his Cohort, to his Century, to even his Contubernium ! They would never fail in their mission!" The Praefectus Castrorum forced himself to control his rage even if his crimson eyes remained locked on the Hyuga, even while his fists remained clenched at his side. "I can admit to the men being more unruly than most but they didn't deserve that! They were alternatives, a thousand other ways to solve the problem instead of that sickening display."
Hinata refused to be scared, refused to be threatened.
"Would you prefer it if I had beaten them into line myself? Wasted days of my time in instilling order your Praetorians had already failed at time and time again? It wasn't my first idea. It wasn't my second. It was my last resort. And, when everything else proved useless, it became the only solution when the Legionnaires of both Cohorts refused to follow orders, refused to behave. And, despite your anger with me, neither of us can dare to say my method was ineffective. None of them will be stepping out of line again."
Her smile was like frost. Even if the Praefectus Castrorum had been at Caesar's side, had seen the heights of his own rages, her smile was what chilled him to the bone.
"Everything I did was for Naruto-kun, for his Legion, for his Empire. If it will be as great as I know it will be, if he will succeed like I know he will, then everyone must play their part exceptionally well. Out of love for Caesar, out of devotion to Caesar, everyone must follow their orders. Without question. Without hesitation." Hinata rose from her seat.
Even in his armor, the Praefectus Castrorum took a step away from her.
"I will not stand by and watch as those who serve as the very foundation of Naruto-kun's dream turn themselves into problems, obstacles. If they desire to become such things then I will do everything in my power to destroy them, to ground them into nothing." Before he could move, her hand was laid on his heart. The Byakugan wasn't needed. Blue eyes, outrage giving way to a cold panic, met stone-like lavender. "Do you understand what I am telling you? Or do you still disagree with me Praefectus Uzumaki?"
One look into his eyes was all it took for her to have her answer.
He did. He hated her, despised her, but he understood her point.
He could rage all he wanted but the truth remained:
He couldn't deny how effective her method had been.
Not only had the Legionnaires from the Seventh and Eighth Cohort fallen into line, all of the Cohorts in the Land of Fire had found a fresh wellspring of devotion and obedience inside of themselves in regards to her and her orders. They no longer seemed set to question her commands, to "creatively interpret" her orders as they would regularly do with the Legate.
Even if the Praefectus Castrorum wouldn't admit it, would refuse to do it time and time again if asked, even his Praetorians had become better behaved.
All at the cost of a, in the grand scheme of things, handful of crippled Legionnaires. Twenty-five crippled Legionnaires who would heal, physically, soon enough.
In her eyes, a more than worthwhile trade.
Naruto-kun's dream could not be at risk, could not be compromised, before it had truly begun.
She could never allow such a thing to come to past. Not while she could stop it.
AN: 3/4 chapters for this update.