Mari Makinami
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Chapter 22. A Failure
Of all the bad days in his not that long life, this one was probably the worst so far. At least the young chūnin couldn't remember another day when he'd had as much misfortune as he did today.
It already had started just as soon as he had opened his eyes back in the morning. The instant the boy had walked out of his room, he had been told that his father had died in a fight during his last A-rank mission. Ridiculous, considering that his dad was one of the strongest ninja of the Hyūga clan and the task itself wasn't supposed to be even remotely hard for someone like him. Yet still the man had been killed, protecting his genin team – the children had disobeyed his orders, following their sensei after the mission's rank had been updated to a higher one due to some unexpected circumstances … and now this was the cost of their reckless behavior.
His dad was no more.
He was left completely alone to take his rightful place among the other Hyūga. And whereas some could've argued with this, telling him that he still had the entire clan that cared for him deeply, the boy knew it better than those who had no idea how the things in their clan truly worked. Basically, he didn't really have anyone close to him any longer.
But the sudden overwhelming feeling of depressing solitude wasn't what was the most bothering and devastating for this young man now that he stood near the entrance to the Ninja Academy of Konohagakure, leaning against the wooden fencing and gazing at the sunset, lost in his thought.
Without a doubt, he grieved the demise of his only remaining parent deeply, and surely he always was ready to face the remorseless fact that it was his sacred duty to inherit his father's responsibilities one day, as well as that this day could come anytime without warning.
No, the shinobi didn't feel broken, and neither was he depressed. Perhaps he simply had yet to embrace what exactly had happened, but in either case, at the moment his mind was being tormented by a simple, clear truth.
He wasn't good enough.
Ever since his early years, with him being the only child in their family line, the clansmen had been putting their trust and hopes in him. They always expected him to become a prodigy just like his late father always had been … but the boy never grew up to become strong, smart or cunning at the very least. His only relatively good qualities were kindness and honesty … he always was sincere with the others, and, more importantly, with himself as well.
And no matter what future awaited him now, he would never be able to withstand it, he just knew it and there was nothing to do with this.
He smiled sadly, lowering the white eyes to the ground.
If he tried to voice out his current thoughts to anyone, they most likely would decide that he's in a nearly suicidal state.
Yet still, in fact, he wasn't. And probably would never be. The more he thought about it, the clearer he realized that the only possible way for him to willingly sacrifice his life would be doing so for the purpose of someone or something he loved, and there was no such person or thing in his life … yet or anymore, or perhaps both – the ninja wasn't quite sure. What he had no doubt about, however, was that the life was a treasure bestowed upon him by his parents whom he loved and would always love no matter what, and it wasn't up to him to make a decision to simply waste it like that.
And no matter how much of a torture his life would become from now on, he was going to keep passing through all the ordeals and pain that lay ahead. Fate could kill him, but it would never be able to break him, of that he was absolutely sure. Because there was a purpose in his life, and the ninja intended to serve it until the very end.
Simple as that.
A sudden gasp of surprise and the following feeling of someone's small frame stumbling upon him interrupted the young man's silent vow, making the shinobi turn his head and look down at the winced face of the raven haired kid who was groaning, avoiding to meet the older boy's eyes as he was slowly getting up from the road.
"Ugh … sorry. I didn't see you, was reading something about ninjutsu …," the tiny fingers of the kid grasped the unrolled scroll, flicking the dust off its surface and rolling it back quickly.
"Don't worry about it," he smiled, squatting so that their eyes would be on the same level as he was nearly twice as taller than his unexpected disturber. "Are you hurt?" He frowned, looking at the boy's knuckles that were clearly damaged.
"Nah, it's fine!" The child replied quickly, finally closing the scroll up and putting it into his bag. "It's after the spar with that Inuzuka. If anyone needs care right now, that's him," he added, smirking pridefully.
His face was literally radiating with confidence …
The fake confidence that he was so familiar with.
He already could see it in the kid's onyx black eyes. The deep belief that he was a 'no-good' child of his parents, always compared to his older sibling …
Albeit it was no wonder considering who was his older brother.
The Hyūga smiled broadly, rustling the boy's dark hair and then getting up.
"Without a doubt, Sasuke-kun. After all, they say that you are a prodigy the Academy hasn't seen in decades. That must be taking some really serious training."
The kid's eyes widened in surprise and his cheeks reddened slightly as he stared at the face of the foreign shinobi in shock, confusion and disbelief at the same time.
"Really …?" he drawled quietly, narrowing his black eyes suspiciously. "And who told you this? I've never seen you before."
He sneered. It was just like he had anticipated. Deep inside, the boy was pretty similar to the heir to the head of the Hyūga clan. Although unlike this little Uchiha, their beloved Hinata who actually studied in the same group with this boy never tried to hide her insecurities and shyness …
But this child was from another clan and obviously was raised differently, so that difference was hardly surprising.
Besides, his father wasn't Hiashi-sama ...
"You are correct on this one, you haven't. But the word reached me, and you know, the rumor mill is never to be underestimated in Konoha … many people are pretty sure that you're going to surpass your brother in just a few years." It wasn't a complete lie – he really had heard it how Hinata was praising an Uchiha from her class for always being the best in all the subjects and winning every single spar back when her father had questioned the girl concerning her grades, though it only had happened once as far as he could remember.
But it worked. The kid's face lighted up with truthful happiness and pride now, and this time the seeds of doubt weren't visible anywhere in his posture.
"I see … anyway, I have to go!" Sasuke waved him a goodbye, running towards the Uchiha district with a wide grin on his face.
The shinobi sighed, shaking his head and smiling. This child most likely would never realize how lucky he actually was. He probably would never have to bother with any responsibilities regarding his clan, having all the privileges that being a son of the clan's head granted yet being the younger child at the same time.
"I hope he didn't bother you that much," came the familiar voice from behind, making the chūnin flinch and turn around.
Of course.
"No, not at all." He smiled warmly, meeting the eyes that looked exactly like Sasuke's. "It's been a while, Itachi-san."
The Uchiha lowered his head a bit, as if in a greeting nod, though his face remained impassive.
"You shouldn't call me that. We used to be classmates, after all."
The Hyūga gave him a weak smirk, sighing and looking away.
"True … but I can't ignore the difference any longer. You are on a completely different level than all of us now."
Itachi gazed at him thoughtfully for a few seconds before replying,
"It doesn't really matter. We all live to get buried in the end, sooner or later. All we can do before death comes after us is to make sure that the ones we love get a chance to live a life better than ours. That's all."
The Hyūga's eyes widened as the Uchiha passed him by, walking in the same direction his younger brother ran just a minute ago.
But then he stopped, as if feeling his old comrade's troubled look on his back, and uttered quietly yet distinctly,
"I'm sorry for your loss."
So he knew … no wonder, considering that he was an ANBU now.
The white eyed ninja gave his former classmate's back a weak smile again, unsure what to say.
Itachi had everything the Hyūga could ever dream of: a loving family, a sibling to take care for, and, moreover, he had the power to stand up for everything he had.
Unlike him, the Uchiha was strong enough to serve his duty.
"I wish I was like you, Itachi-san."
There was an odd pause, and he nearly began thinking that Sasuke's brother spaced out for some reason, but then something strange occurred. Something the image of what burned into his mind so clearly that he would remember it afterward many, many times, even years later.
Itachi slowly turned his head to glance at him over the shoulder, and the chūnin gasped as his white eyes meet the bizarre pattern that reminded of a shuriken in his bloody red iris.
"I wish you will never become anything like me," with these words his peer disappeared in a smoke of cloud.
Kage Bunshin …? So he created it for the sole purpose of watching his young brother's back … and apparently now Sasuke was home, so there was no need for the clone any longer.
He didn't know it back then, but that was the last time in his life when he saw Uchiha Itachi.
Swallowing heavily, the shinobi let out a deep sigh and strode towards his own home.
...all we can do before death comes after us is to make sure that the ones we love get a chance to live a life better than ours.
Itachi loved someone, without a doubt … at least he obviously loved his younger brother enough to watch him even when there was absolutely no threat for Sasuke. Perhaps this love was the source of his power?
But whom he himself could give his love to? Who could become his source of power …?
"U-um … g-good evening … h-have you c-come here after m-me?" he flinched, looking down at the cute, pale girl with short black hair and the white irises that looked much like his own. He recognized the heir to their clan's head instantly, frowning as he eyed her up and down critically - although she never showed any signs of being in pain, he could see that her fragile body was covered with bruises all the way, and her lower lip was cracked.
"No … yes … what on earth happened to you?" he mumbled, sounding a bit demandingly yet worriedly at the same time, but apparently it was enough to scare her – the girl looked away sheepishly, biting the bleeding lip as her cheeks reddened in embarrassment.
"I … I was s-sparring … and that b-boy ..."
"Which boy?" he asked carefully, grasping the child's shoulder gently.
"Um … I-Inuzuka-kun ..."
He tightened the grip a little bit, making the little girl raise her head to look into his eyes with fear, but her miniature features softened quickly as she noticed his reassuring and kind expression.
"Did you beat him?" he asked, giving her an acknowledging smirk.
She sighed, looking away again.
"N-no … U-Uchiha-kun did."
He took her tiny, nearly shaking palm into his own, making the girl look up and give him a slightly baffled gaze.
"Don't worry, Hinata-sama. I'm sure you're going to defeat both of them one day."
Her lips curved into a barely notable smile which gave him the previously unknown feeling of warmth in the chest.
"T-Thank you … Kō-san," she said, making the shinobi's heart twitch as they walked towards the Hyūga compound.
Maybe he had someone to love and protect, after all? Perhaps he actually could become like Itachi one day …?
*******
A single tear came out of Sasuke's eye, slowly flowing down his face as he glared at the man he intended to kill just a second ago, feeling too conflicted now to make any decisions after watching the shinobi's memory about meeting Itachi and himself many years ago. With too many questions popped out of nowhere all of sudden, the Uchiha decided to deepen both of them into the illusory world of Tsukuyomi.
"I've read your memories … about your last conversation with Itachi. Although I wonder why did you choose to show me that exact thing." There was no denying this fact – Kō was fast enough to focus on this particular event of the past, which could only mean that he had been expecting Sasuke to use Ningendō on him.
The man looked at the teen impassively, not saying anything at all, as if expecting the Uchiha to continue voicing out his thoughts.
"Why did you attack Hinata? You love her, don't you?" asked Sasuke, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. The pattern of the story was way too familiar ...
"Yes, I do," the answer was immediate, which made the Uchiha frown.
"Then why? Don't tempt my patience and just answer the question, or else I'm going to either torture you here for a few weeks straight or to simply ravage your mind with my Rinnegan."
The light grin on his face was incredibly unnerving to Sasuke, and if Kō didn't start talking right away, Sasuke most likely would've fulfilled his threat.
"Because she needs to stay away from the village and our clan, and she also needs to get much stronger than she is right now in order to be able to protect herself. I can't look after her anymore, otherwise both of us are going to simply get killed by our clansmen. And this way, she gets a chance to survive."
"This way …?" Sasuke muttered, not moving his eyes from the white ones of his supposed enemy. "What do you mean? What really happened in your freaking clan? And how the hell is she supposed to survive this? You've poisoned her, remember, genius?"
Kō sighed, closing his eyes.
"Hinata's father, Hiashi-sama … he's insane, that's what happened. He's obsessed with the idea that Hinata is destined to destroy our clan. I don't know what caused this obsession, but it must be related to her mother's demise somehow, because it all started back then. He wasn't always like this, I tell you that much for sure."
The Uchiha peered at him searchingly, rapidly thinking on his next move.
"What makes you think that I care about the past, about her, or any of you for that matter?"
Kō smiled ironically, making Sasuke grit his teeth in irritation.
Because both of them already knew the answer.
"We wouldn't be having this conversation right now otherwise. Your reaction to what I've done said it all. You do care about Hinata, and you do want to save her. And there is a way. This poison works only on those who possess the certain genes … mainly the genes of Hyūga. Don't worry, you have more than ample time. The more chakra she has, the faster it spreads. And she has close to no chakra at the moment as I have seen. Your work, as I presumed ..."
"What needs to be done?" the younger man barked, interrupting him, still fighting the temptation to make the man beg for his mercy.
"Take her to your old master, Orochimaru. He knows the way to cure her. And after this … please, Sasuke-kun. You saw the memories I've shown you, you must be able to understand ... I only want to protect the only person I love, and I know that you are the only one who can do that. I have nobody else to ask for it."
The teen didn't hold back the sinister smirk as he finally noticed the Hyūga's emotionless mask giving a crack at his last line.
"Is that it? And you wanted to achieve your goal by blackmailing me like this?"
"Yes," Kō replied simply, making the Uchiha's eyebrow **** at his blunt confession. "I didn't know if you'd agree to this. No … to be honest, I was sure you wouldn't, considering what they say about you in the village, and all the other things I know about you. That's why I had no other way. I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun."
Sasuke looked at him grimly for a few seconds before sighing in defeat, closing his eyes.
"Fine, whatever. But you do realize that she's going to hate you from now on, don't you? And mind you, I'm not going to help this in any possible way."
He smirked again, though there was a hint of sadness and resignation in his expression this time.
"I know. It's better to be this way. Hatred is what she needs to get stronger. After all, wasn't this what helped you years ago ...?" he broke off, noticing Sasuke's cold glare.
"Don't pretend to be anything you aren't. You are just an Itachi-wannabe, this is all there is to it." Kō's eyes widened while the teen continued, "Your plan is ridiculous, and you have no idea who you are trying to mess with. However … consider yourself lucky, for I've already decided to look after her. I'm also a shinobi of Konohagakure, and it doesn't matter what you believe to be true about me. When the time is right, both she and I will come back to the village, one way or another. I will also deal with Hiashi if he tries to stand in my way. Same goes for you," Kō let out a loud sigh of relief, closing his eyes and lowering his head in submission.
"I understand. I expected nothing less from you, Sasuke-kun, and I can tell you the same thing – it doesn't matter what you think about me. My part of this is already finished anyway. Do whatever you believe is right to do, just please, protect Hinata-sama. This is all I'm asking for."
"Hn." The Uchiha snorted, undoing the genjutsu and getting back into the real world, turning towards Hinata and her anxious teammates.
*******
"Sasuke …? Is that you?"
"Yes … It's been a while, father."
Uchiha Fugaku gave his grown up son an examining look, stopping his eyes on the teen's face and frowning.
"Your left eye–"
"It's none of your affair." He already had started regretting replying so harshly even before he finished the sentence, suddenly feeling pretty bad as he noticed the well hidden glimpse of hurt in the dead Uchiha's expression.
"I see ..."
Sasuke nearly groaned both in impatience and shame. After a few seconds of thinking, he decided to explain himself in spite of the lack of time – after all, it was his father whom he missed incredibly to say the least every single day over the last decade, and the man certainly didn't deserve such attitude.
"It's Rinnegan. I've awakened it not so long ago."
"Rinnegan …?" The man's eyes widened in awe – apparently he was familiar with the term, which was hardly surprising considering that he had been the head of the Uchiha clan for many years prior to his death. "How ...?"
"In nutshell, it's a natural step of Sharingan's evolution. The final step. I'm the second person to ever awaken it," he added without really realizing why did he even bother elaborating on the matter like this. Could it be that deep inside, some part of him still wanted to impress his dad?
The ludicrous idea nearly made Sasuke blush.
Nonsense … I'm long past those times.
"The second?" Fugaku drawled slowly, activating his own Sharingan and taking a more careful look at his son's dōjutsu. "Who was the first?"
"Madara."
Fugaku's eyes widened a bit, but then he nodded nearly casually, apparently realizing something that Sasuke didn't know.
"I understand these are Itachi's eyes, then?"
"Yeah," came the simple response, though it was probably obvious to Fugaku by now anyway.
The man didn't look surprised at all – he nodded again with the slightest hint of satisfaction, as if he had just checked Sasuke's table with marks from the Academy, turning his head to Orochimaru and Yutaka. "Mind explaining why did you have to revive me, then? And since when you are working with him?" he pointed at the sannin, although there was no aggression neither in the gesture nor in his voice – just pure curiosity and a tiny note of disdain.
"You see, I used to be Sasuke-kun's sensei, Fugaku-kun. Right now, we are teamed up for an S-rank mission of Konohagakure. He asked me to summon you to this world, though I can only be guessing why."
"Is that so …?" Fugaku looked at Sasuke thoughtfully, apparently silently trying to find the answers to the multiple questions concerning the events that had taken part between his death and the present day.
"Yeah. I need to ask you a few questions, and yes, everything Orochimaru said is true. However, I think you might as well find what I'm about to tell you rather pleasing." Sasuke smirked pridefully, meeting Fugaku's perplexed gaze. "I killed Danzō, and Konoha is under our control right now. We're working on securing our positions in the world at the moment."
"Under … your control …?" Fugaku gasped excitedly, staring at his son in disbelief and amazement. "Are you trying to tell me that you are the Hokage?"
Sasuke's smirk dropped just as quickly as it had appeared.
"No … but I–"
"Then you don't have the control over Konoha, Sasuke. Trust me, don't be delusional. We've been fooled like this for decades, never receiving any the real power with our voices always getting ignored by the majority in the village. They are going to use you and your children like weapons, and then they will throw you into a trashcan with the first opportunity they'll get." The bitter and sorrowful look of his eyes made Sasuke clench his fists in frustration, losing control over himself for the first time in a very long time.
"No, father! You're wrong! My power–"
"Your ancestor Madara was incredibly powerful, too. You said it yourself, he even had the Rinnegan. But it didn't help him much."
Sasuke gritted his teeth, unsure what to say. How was he going to tell his father that he didn't care about power anymore? How could he tell him that he entrusted the tittle of Hokage to Naruto?
Was he even right to do so …?
The young Uchiha wasn't as confident anymore.
"Sasuke …, " Fugaku stepped closer to his son, making him snap his head to meet the unexpectedly warm black eyes of his dad. "I've made many mistakes in the past. And so did Madara and Itachi. It's totally up to you and only to you what to do with your life – after all, I'm a mere relic of the past, and I have no idea what kind of a man you have become … I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you throughout all these years." He put his hand on his son's shoulder, suddenly making the teen feel as if he was but a silly, naive brat once again. "I just want you to always remember – don't trust anyone. And I mean anyone. Otherwise you may end up getting killed by your own child one day." Sasuke sniffled, suppressing the tears.
"I know," he uttered quietly, avoiding Fugaku's gaze. "When I found out what really happened that night, I wanted to destroy Konoha. I nearly did … but I was stopped."
The older man gave him an understanding sad grin.
"A Senju?"
"Yeah … no. It was the son of the Fourth. We nearly killed each other, and lying there on the brink of death, we've decided to rebuild Konoha together. Father …," he finally found the courage to look into Fukagu's dark eyes. "Each of us has the power to end this world. There is no other way – either both of us are dead, or we try to work things out together. I chose the second option because I intend to revive our clan."
"Oh …?" The former head of Uchiha looked surprised again, but now there was something else in his expression.
Respect and admiration he was trying to hide yet failed as the feelings overwhelmed the dead man.
"Yeah … basically, that's the reason why I made Orochimaru summon you. I need you to answer three questions, and I'm pretty short on time right now for I need to make a vital decision as soon as possible."
Fugaku let go of his shoulder and nodded intently.
"Of course. Ask whatever you want, I'll try to help you as much as I can."
Appreciating the understanding, Sasuke nodded as well and pointed at Yutaka who was watching them silently throughout the entire conversation, apparently listening carefully to every single word.
"This is Yutaka, he's the son of an Uchiha outcast who has been banished from the clan long ago … I've found him during my travel, which made me wonder if you might know of any other outcasts I could look for. The more I find, the easier it is to ensure the clan's survival."
Fugaku glared at the third Uchiha in the room who met his eyes with his own Sharingan activated, which made Sasuke's father snort offhandedly before turning away.
"Smart strategy, I must admit … yes, this is probably the most valid way of securing the clan's survival. Unfortunately I don't think I possess much concrete knowledge about specific persons. What I can tell you for sure, however, is that there certainly were a few outcasts during the age of the First Hokage. They followed Madara shortly after he fled from the village, and among them were your very grandparents."
"Huh?" Sasuke gasped in surprise. "I thought they died during the Third Great Ninja War …?"
"Yes, that's my parents. And I'm talking about your mother's. Wherever they went, they are most certainly dead by now, but who knows? Perhaps they had another child born, or even a few of them. In either case, you should start looking for their traces in Nami no Kuni and follow it to the Land of Mists. That country used to be our domain centuries ago, so it is very likely that they tried to settle somewhere in that area."
"Land of Mists …," whispered Sasuke, turning to Yutaka. "It seems that everything leads us to Kirigakure, after all." The other Uchiha nodded, making Sasuke smile reassuringly and turn face Fugaku again. "Thank you, father. That's what we're going to do. Now, to the other questions … what can you tell me about Hyūga Hiashi?"
Fugaku's eyebrow cocked as the unexpected question certainly took him by surprise, making the man feel pretty baffled.
"Hiashi …? Why would you–"
"Please, father, we don't have much time left. My next question will answer yours."
The man nodded slowly, albeit the confusion and even a bit of suspicion didn't leave his eyes.
"Well, I can't say that we ever were either friends or rivals – at least I never considered him to be mine, for obvious reasons – Hyūga are no match for Uchiha. But I can say for sure that he was a good man, at least until the last few years of my life."
"The last few years?" Sasuke frowned, recalling the memory Kō had shown him months ago. He mentioned it too that Hiashi wasn't always the way he was nowadays, and now it was becoming obvious that something had happened to him which made the head of the Hyūga clan change dramatically. "What do you mean?"
"Well, like I said, we never were friends. We had to work together when it came to the matters of the council of the village, but that's basically about it. I also never cared about their clan that much – after all, they were always inferior to us." It sounded pretty arrogant, but Sasuke preferred to ignore the last line – not that he could argue with the statement anyway. "But I can tell you for sure that he was considered a good man. A man of honor. He always tried to be fair and reasonable even when that was putting his own clan at disadvantage, something I could understand. However, that only lasted until his wife's death."
"How exactly did she die?" Fugaku shrugged indifferently – apparently he really couldn't care less about the Hyūga clan, and it still remained a mystery to him why his son was so interested in them.
"I don't know. But it happened shortly after his second daughter's birth, perhaps even on the same day. You are aware that neither me nor your mother were the persons to pick an interest in gossips, and Hyūga remained very secretive about the incident. I don't think anyone aside from the Third knows what exactly happened there, and I'm not sure even about him."
Sasuke sighed disappointingly, lowering his eyes. Apparently there was no other way but to interfere the fight downstairs and to read Hiashi's memories in order to find out the truth, because everything the young Uchiha had found out until now was leading him to the conclusion that there was a very dark secret behind the man and his family. The secret that caused all the mess they were currently in …
And that was vital for him to know if he wanted to save Hinata from walking the sorrowful path of pain and regrets very similar to the one from his own past.
"I see … now, as for the last question … it's also the answer to the one you've asked. I'm going to marry Hiashi's older daughter."
Now that was something that truly made an impact on the dead man. He stared at his son in complete shock and disbelief for a few seconds, but then, seeing as the teen remained calm and impassive, he opened his mouth slowly,
"Whereas your previous question makes some sense now … why a Hyūga of all people, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Because I love her." The answer was simple and truthful, but apparently that wasn't enough for Fugaku – he could easily see that there was more to it than Sasuke told him.
"Is that it? Do you realize that we're talking about the heir to the Hyūga clan right now?"
"No, that's actually false. Hiashi banished Hinata from their clan and labeled her a nukenin. And right now, it's up to me to decide his fate."
Fugaku sneered, rolling his eyes.
"Banished his own daughter? Is he completely out of his mind? What the hell did she do to deserve something like that? Don't tell me that it's because she started dating you," he smirked mockingly, and it felt a bit awkward for Sasuke – he had never seen his father joking like this during his childhood. Fugaku always was very serious and collected, at least in his child's presence, which made his son wonder how much he didn't get to know about this man.
Suppressing the feeling of heartbreaking sorrow, Sasuke replied calmly,
"Nothing, that's the point. For some unknown reason, he's dead sure that she is destined to put an end to his clan or something like that. I want to marry her so that she joins the Uchiha clan – perhaps in this case he will calm down a bit so that I don't have to slay him. But to make it possible, I need to perform the specific ritual, and I wasn't able to find anything in our archives on the matter. Can you tell me how do I do that?" It was true – despite the bluff he had pulled on Hiashi back in Konoha, in fact, Sasuke hadn't managed to find anything in the old scrolls of his clan, so he had little to no idea how the ritual was supposed to be performed, which was the deciding factor for his decision to make Orochimaru use Edo Tensei to let him talk to Fugaku.
"Oh … I see now. Very interesting … such a marriage wasn't a common thing back in the years to say the least. That's probably why you weren't able to find anything about it – but at the same time, it's because the ritual itself is relatively simple. First, the bride needs to give up on her family name and thus on the clan's chakra insignia – each clan has its own specific way of doing so, but usually females are aware of the way it's done as it's a part of their traditional education."
"Yeah, I know. But what comes afterwards?" asked Sasuke even more impatiently than before as he felt the strong outburst of familiar chakra somewhere from downstairs.
His own chakra … which could only mean ...
"Well, that's the tricky part of it. It is nothing special in general, but it has something to do with the way every chakra signature works. As you could've guessed, it always reacts to the type of chakra you're having in your system. For instance, if you're completely drained, and some foreign chakra refills your body, it's going to resonate with your signature, making it possible to change the insignia. The insignia itself is naturally protected from such possibility, but if you give up on it beforehand, the empty spot will be taken by a new one which will be formed based on the injected chakra."
"In other words, all that has to be done is to make sure that the amount of my chakra in her system prevails the amount of her own?"
"Yes. But it will only work if she's already done her part of the ritual."
And then the breathtaking realization hit Sasuke. He snapped his head towards his former master, growling,
"You knew it, didn't you ...?" The quiet giggle of the sannin and his slightly mocking gaze were all the answers he needed.
"I suspected, yes. But you never asked me anything about it, Sasuke-kun. After all, it would be an insult to offer you my help against someone like that man ... wouldn't it?"
The pieces of the puzzle finally came together, making the young man grit his teeth in anger and frustration as he glared at Orochimaru who simply stared at him with curiosity, apparently realizing that the Uchiha finally understood it all and eagerly expecting him to make the next move.
...my part of this is already finished anyway..., the weird phrase from his memories echoed through his mind, making Sasuke wince.
There was no one else to blame but himself. He has been tricked since the very beginning … by the very man he had spared back in Tanzaku-gai half a year ago.
******
"So you have come, after all," Hiashi smirked, pulling the bone out of his body and throwing it away. "Apparently it was true, and you really have awakened this legendary kekkei genkai."
"You won't be seeing it again in your life. Consider yourself lucky," Hinata snapped, though not moving from her spot at the entrance to the immense hall, focusing her eyes on the man that was floating a few yards away. "My aim isn't perfect yet, so it seems," she added, watching through his flesh with her Byakugan - his heart remained untouched while the wound was rapidly healing itself which apparently was one of the side effects of Hiashi's temporary chakra mode.
"Or perhaps it's just that fate is on our side, don't you think so?" asked Hiashi, sounding nearly friendly, as if he wasn't going to attack his older daughter at all.
"What are you talking about?" Hinata raised her eyebrow questioningly. "You are in the middle of the lair of Akatsuki. Even if I don't kill you right now, our leader will finish you off the second he feels that I'm in trouble."
Hiashi sneered, grinning wickedly.
"Your leader?" he kept laughing, raising his arm and forming a shield out of the Truth Seeking Orb in front of him. "You mean that man with the Sharingan? Make no mistake, he's already being dealt with."
"Oh, really?" Hinata asked idly, still not moving an inch. "And by whom, exactly?"
"Your old classmate, Uchiha Sasuke. He was kind enough to escort us to this place and to make sure that we are not interfered here. Therefore I suppose you are the one who's made a grave mistake, Hinata." Her shocked expression only made his bloodthirsty grin widen. "You will die here today, and there is nothing you can do about it. We've made a deal – our clan will support Uchiha-dono in the village and will help him reclaim his good name, and in exchange, he is to make sure that you will die. And whereas I have to admit that you truly have become much stronger than before, even making me feel proud for you, I think you understand it yourself – none of you are a match for someone like him. You are doomed, and so are your newfound accomplices."
She could feel her knees starting to shake as the thought of Sasuke's possible betrayal pierced her heart like an icy, poisonous needle.
Could it be …? Could it be that he had been simply using her throughout this entire time, after all?
"Don't listen to him, nē-chan!" Hanabi yelled desperately, raising her face from the floor and coughing out some blood. "It's all according to his plan! It's–," the sound of a deaf smack made Hinata snap her head to look at the younger kunoichi who had just been rendered unconscious by Kō's heavy kick on the nape.
His plan …?
The young woman frowned, watching as the man she had once known as her father laughed at her, not even paying any attention to his younger daughter's condition, apparently thinking that Hinata was trembling in fear after he had mentioned Sasuke's name.
...no matter what I do in the following days … trust me. Please.
It sure sounded a bit weird at the time … but now that Hinata remembered Sasuke's soft, nervous voice back when he was telling her that, it was beginning to make sense.
Sasuke would never betray her. He loved her, just like she loved him.
And her father was a mere fool. He didn't even pay attention to Hanabi's words, too busy enjoying his moment of triumph …
Hinata raised her hand, shooting another bone in the direction of Kō which made the younger shinobi jump away, taking his Jūken stance instantly.
"Enough with the interlude. Your chakra is burning off, I can see it clearly … let's settle it once and for all, Hyūga Hiashi," she uttered, raising her second arm.
The older man stopped laughing, narrowing his eyes at his daughter instead and focusing on the certain tenketsu somewhere in her chest.
"I see … you gave up on your name. Your chakra signature looks different now, but the place of the insignia is empty. What an irony … I intended to give you an honorary burial, but now you will die as a nobody. I suppose it worth it, doesn't it? At least you are completely independent now … like a true kunoichi I always wanted you to become."
"That's not why I did this," she replied harshly while both of her hands began sparkling with her lightning infused chakra. "I've been proposed to marry someone, and I agreed. No pompous things, as you can see. Sorry to disappoint you again ... father."
Hiashi gasped, and Kō paled to the point where the shade of his skin reminded that of a list of paper.
"To marry someone …? So you've decided to take the name of some filth instead of keeping your own? You are right, now I'm truly disappointed. I suppose you haven't changed that much, after all. Once a disgrace, always a disgrace."
She gave him a thin, barely notable smile.
"You are still as oblivious as possible … even your 'right hand' has already figured it out, just look at him." Confused by her words, the head of the Hyūga clan turned his head to glance at Kō, and that was just the moment Hinata had been waiting for – the moment she got out of his line of sight, the kunoichi shot another bone at the man, the one charged with lightning this time – and although the shield moved in front of him nearly instantly to protect its owner, Hinata was fast enough to rush forward, striking Hiashi with another sequence of deadly blows which he blocked successfully without much effort.
What made her feel worried, though, was that the bones she was using to attack him turned into dust the instant they came close to the shield. Analyzing the familiar picture for a few seconds while she was dancing around Hiashi, dodging his own attacks and trying to land a hit, she realized it rather quickly that the shield was made of a Gudōdama – an orb much like the ones Naruto could utilize in his Six Paths Sage Chakra Mode. She'd already seen them in action during the war – Uchiha Obito was much more proficient than both her father and the Uzumaki when it come to using this technique, and Hiashi certainly was no match for a jinchūriki of the Jūbi.
Still, it basically rendered all of her ninjutsu useless, which meant that she could only rely on taijutsu if she hoped to defeat Hiashi … which also was not an option since she wasn't fast enough to dodge the Gudōdama.
"It's pointless, Hinata. Just give up. I've calculated every possibility in my simulations when I was preparing for this fight – none of your, I must admit, pretty impressive techniques will work on me."
"Yes …," she uttered, jumping away and standing on the ceiling of the hall. "As far as I know, only senjutsu-infused techniques can damage you right now. And judging by the rate of decreasing of your chakra's activity, you still have about five minutes to do something that kills me. Do you think I manage to kite you for a while?" She smiled, preparing to dodge the upcoming attack.
"Such tactic would be good," said Hiashi, lowering his hand and meeting her mocking gaze. "If you weren't already done for."
Hinata's eyes widened as she felt the burning cold in her abdomen - the orb identical to the one that Hiashi used as his shield slowly passed through her body, destroying the flesh on its way.
"How ...?" she gasped, feeling the blood flowing down her chin and realizing it way too late that her regenerating ability also was a ninjutsu - and right now, it was being negated by the second Gudōdama.
"I only have one minute left now ... but it doesn't matter. It's already over, daughter. Close your eyes and let the oblivion consume you."
Her chakra flow stopped, and the kunoichi fell down heavily, feeling distantly how a few of her ribs broke the moment her body touched the cold surface of the floor.
No ... it can't be. I can't give up. I can not die here ...!
Everything around her began to darken, and Hinata clenched her fists, trying desperately to stay conscious.
Senjutsu ... if only she could acquire a piece of senjutsu chakra somehow, her body would start healing itself. But how ...?
She smiled weakly, feeling herself an utter idiot.
Perhaps some things just don't change no matter what we do, huh ...
Activating the Cursed Seal on her neck for the first time in her life, Hinata stood up slowly, starting to feel much better the same second Sasuke's chakra began streaming through her tenketsu while the multiple black magatama covered her skin. The potent energy of the seal forced her wounds to start healing themselves despite the orb still being dangerously close to the black haired girl.
"What the ...?" Hiashi growled quietly, moving his hand to command the Gudōdama to attack Hinata again, but it was already too late - the young woman jumped away, and before he could react, Hiashi felt the burning claws shredding through his skin down his spine, making the man gasp in pain and back off from Hinata whose body was now bathed in fire ... or rather in her fire infused chakra which formed a complete avatar of a lioness around the kunoichi.
It wasn't as huge as Sasuke's Susanō or Naruto's Kyūbi Bijū mode, but it was just big enough to cover her entire frame while she was standing in the middle of the chakra construct, panting as her body was still recovering from her father's attack.
"How ... how is this possible?!" Hiashi shouted out, moving the second orb closer to himself and forming a spear out of it.
"You ... still don't see it ... do you ...?" she smirked, breathing heavily and narrowing her white eyes at his shield and the weapon.
The man ignored her question, charging towards her again - apparently he only had a few seconds of his Chakra Mode left, so it was the last resort for Hiashi.
Hinata closed her eyes, draining even more chakra out of the cursed seal, hoping to channel just enough energy to block the upcoming attack, but instead, something completely unexpected happened.
Hiashi stopped midair just a yard away from his daughter, staring at her in complete and utter horror as the fire that surrounded her body changed its color to obsidian black. And even though he had some knowledge of the Uchiha clan's kekkei genkai, Enton, also known as Amaterasu, so he knew that coming in contact with her chakra avatar would mean his imminent death, that wasn't what stopped him from lending his final strike.
It was the long belated realization of the fact that he had lost this fight before it even had started.
"You ... will not ... hurt me ... ever ... again ...," Hinata hissed, glaring at the man hatefully while he watched her chakra signature changing into the one that was familiar and foreign to him at the same time while his borrowed chakra faded away for good.
The lioness raised its paw, and the black flames were about to reach Hiashi's chest to rip it apart and thus to put an end to his life ...
"Do it! Kill him, Hinata-sama!" Kō yelled desperately, which made the kunoichi hesitate for a split second, looking at him in confusion - and that moment was just enough for the invisible force to throw the father and his daughter away from each other, making their backs slam into the opposite walls of the hall.
"No ... no, you bastard! What the hell are you doing?!" The younger Hyūga shinobi nearly screamed, falling onto his knees and silencing the next second, grasping his throat.
"Shut up, you silly rat ... you have lost. Nobody is going to die here tonight," Sasuke's voice echoed across the hall as he turned to Hinata who had just got back onto her feet, staring at him angrily through the black flames of her chakra avatar.
"What's the meaning of this, Sasuke?" she asked demangingly, crossing her hands on her chest.
He smirked warmly, ignoring his bride's frankly enraged expression.
"I've found out some interesting things concerning these two, as well as your former clan ... and now I'm going to make them reveal all the secrets to both of us before we decide their fate together, as husband and wife."
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Although the flashback about his dialogue with Sasuke was obviously bound to happen anyway, haha. xd
The word is 'сосk', though, obviously. :lol And yeah, I used to be a hardcore WoW player in the past so I had the same idea on my mind when I was writing it about Hinata XD
Though I'm not sure when the next one will come out, but I'll try to finish it asap.
