A strange new life. [Naruto]

[okashihime]

"I… see." That was all the new Hokage said.

I scowled. Pushed Karin away or tried to. She had a death grip on my waist and hand.

Those were some ludicrous claims. I did bite her arm and kept biting even when she asked me to stop that one time when I first met her. Yes, that left marks on her arm, both arms. I also, yes, paraded naked in front of her. I had no clothes then; what was I supposed to do? Kill all the prisoners because they'd seen me naked? Execute them for the crime of having eyes? And we did sleep together. At first, because it was cold, then because the badgers only provided a single fur pile, and then while traveling to stave off the chill in the night.

My scowl deepened. Karin hadn't lied. But did she need to phrase it that way?

The weeks of peaceful cohabitation and talk had lulled me with a false sense of normalcy.

I had assumed that Karin's most prominent traits from the original story were learned behaviors resulting from her exposure to Orochimaru, but wasn't she saying some outrageous things here?

I didn't believe for a second she was interested in me in a romantic way. Like I said before, there was no spark, so why this? She'd done something similar in the original show, pretending to be mentally ill to keep something that let her escape later. Was this a setup for some other plan or something? No, that was silly. I don't think it was anything complicated. Maybe she was just afraid and didn't want to be alone. I could understand that.

Shisui cleared his throat. "Well, if that's the case."

I erased the words on my board. Scribbled others. "It wasn't like that." I defended myself, but even as I wrote it, I knew it would read bad.

Shisui shook his head. "It's fine, you don't need to explain yourself."

That only made things worse. I… wanted to punch him. Karin must have noticed. She snickered, still resting her head on my shoulder, looking every bit like a smug, satisfied fox. Was this payback for all those times I teased her? It wouldn't be, would it?

Any response on my part was cut short when the door to the Hokage's office opened without the visitors being announced. I had sensed the chakra bundle approaching, but I didn't think their destination was the Hokage's office. I looked back. Two old people walked inside. An old lady with squinting eyes and an old dude with a pointy goatee and glasses.

Under the newcomer's judgemental stare, Karin finally let go of me. She sat straight, with her hands resting on her lap. All prim and proper.

There was this moment of silence or a standoff between Shisui and the two old geezers. Shisui was the first to talk.

"Homura, Koharu." He didn't get up from his chair; he just dipped his head in greetings. "Our meeting isn't for a few hours yet."

The guy cast a glance at me before addressing Shisui again. "Circumstances changed," the old man said.

The old lady was the one who spoke next.

"We've explained why," her squinting gaze flickered to me before returning to Shisui. "Other shinobi agree with us."

Were they talking about me? Are these two old codgers part of the council? I never understood what the council had against me. Up until now, I always thought it was remnants of Danzo's influence that pushed people to mistrust me.

No one outright treated me badly, nor was I discriminated against like Naruto. It was more subtle than that. A few stares, some pitying, others suspicious. The lack of resources, training, and instruction.

It was never something I could point my finger at and blame one thing or another. For example, most other shinobi have their clans and families as a support network, and from them, they learn jutsu, techniques, and other clan-related knowledge. I hadn't, much like Naruto, I was on my own since I came here.

That shaped how I saw and did things. I knew I had a bad habit of trying to do everything alone. But that was how I learned. Aside from basic instructions at the academy, I had no one else to ask things from. Even the Third skimped on the knowledge about seals. I never got the chance to ask him why before I failed to save him and let him die. If Kakashi-sensei wasn't lying and the old man really was on my side, why hold back knowledge from me? Why not — selfish as it was to wish — give me a hand and some nice jutsu?

"I've read your reasoning," said Shisui. His eyes hadn't left the two old people.

If those two were part of the council, it would pay for me to learn more about them, wouldn't it? I focused my chakra perception on the two. More often than not, while inside Konoha, I pushed my perception to the background of my mind. Too many people with chakra walking about. It was easy to get distracted or even overwhelmed. Ever since entering Konoha again, I had done the same, even without noticing.

The two… weren't that different from other people. Their reserves were on the average size. Lower than an active jonin, bigger than a newly promoted chunin. I knew that wasn't an indication of their combat capabilities, but I had the impression that if push came to shove, I'd win. If it came down to pure brawling and reaction time, I was confident I could take them. I'd need to hit them hard before they could pull whatever bullshit jutsu they learned over their long life, but I was somewhat confident of my chances.

It was strange that, now that I was focusing more on their chakra, I did notice other things. Like a flavor or texture. The old woman's chakra was stale, like old, but not in a bad way, while the guy was acrid, like a bad smell. Was my perception being influenced by my dislike? Had my perception gotten more refined as well?

Their conversation hadn't ended. The two, somehow, never said it openly, but I had the impression they wanted me locked and isolated.

A new bundle of chakra popped into my perception. Then another.

I forgot about the two geezers and Shisui. I got up, the chair scrapped back with a loud screech, cutting off the conversation. For the second time that day, the door busted open again.

In rushed a ginormous blaze of chakra contained in a small-sized pack wrapped in orange jumpers.

"Hinata-chan!" Sunshine brat hollered, face already full of tears.

"Hi," I said back, eyes misting again.

Naruto grabbed me and hugged me like he was afraid I would disappear again. A few moments later, the second bundle of chakra entered the room, cool, calm, and placid. Kakashi-sensei leaned against the door and gave me one of his eye-crescent smiles.

I might have started to cry even harder. I wasn't sure. Maybe it was just Naruto crying, not me.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Wed.


Proofreader: CakeEight.

 

[okashihime]

Conversation was made impossible by much hollering and tears. Naruto wasn't even aware that there were other people inside the room. Shisui had a forlorn look on his face like he'd seen this scene many times.

Was he reminiscing about the number of times he saw the brat causing a ruckus while shadowing the third?

The nice welcome home moment ended with the old codger with glasses clearing his throat.

"Uzumaki Naruto," the man said. From his mouth, it sounded like the name was a bad thing.

Karin's head snapped toward the old man, then to Naruto.

Sunshine brat let go of me, cleared some snot with the back of his hand, turned.

"That's my name," he said. Then he turned to me, tilted his head. "Hinata-chan, who are these old people?"

I shrugged, croaked. "No idea who these old people are."

From the corner of my eye, I caught Kakashi-sensei stiffening, then turning around, shoulders shaking. Was he… laughing? Why? I mean, no one told me who these people are. I had suspicions, but nothing other than that.

"Naruto-kun, these are Councilman Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu." Shisui introduced.

I looked at the two again. Were they the ones responsible for making my life not the best ninja life it could have been? At least I knew their faces and names. Now I just need a black cover book and to write down their names on it.

Naruto scratched his head. "Council something, gotcha." Then he turned back to me. "Hinata-chan, you won't believe it! I learned this super powerful jutsu—the Fourth made it, and the Ero-sennin taught—"

Homura cleared his throat again.

Naruto stopped his recounting, looked at the old man with glasses. "Is your throat hurt? I think I have a few candies if you want."

Homura's face twitched. "We're busy with important things," he said.

"Ahh, okay." Naruto nodded like that made perfect sense. He grabbed my hand and started dragging me toward the door.

"Come Hinata-chan, let's leave these old folks to their business."

"Our business is with her," Koharu said, stopping Naruto again.

Naruto blinked, glancing around the room, at the new Hokage, at Kakashi-sensei, who was definitely laughing now, at the two grumpy council members, and at Karin, who still looked surprised and hadn't stopped looking at Naruto.

"Hinata-chan, do these old people also want your cupcakes?"

I shrugged. I don't think my cupcakes were their problem with me. Even so, I had to answer Naruto. I erased the words from my board, wrote others.

"I dunno, Naruto-kun."

Once he read the message, I erased it and wrote another. "Did you deliver the letters?"

"I did!" Naruto said, nodding. "The fat lady kept asking when you'd be back." Naruto stopped, face troubled. He pointed a finger at my nose.

"Hinata-chan, you shouldn't let people capture you, you made Ino cry."

…What? I think Naruto saw my confusion.

"Ino-chan's team went to help with your secret mission," he said. "She cried a lot when she got back." His expression darkened. I heard a bit of waver in his voice. "You shouldn't make her cry, Hinata-chan."

His eyes were misting again. Was he talking about Ino or himself?

"Listen—" Homura started, voice impatient.

Koharu stopped him by touching his shoulder. She shook her head. "Leave the young ones to their reunion."

Both councilmen exchanged looks, the kind that carried entire conversations without a single word, the way people who had worked together for decades often did.

Homura turned to Shisui. "We'll continue this discussion later."

Without waiting for a response, or even acknowledging anyone else in the room, they left.

As soon as the door closed and I felt their chakra moving down the stairs, I pulled Naruto into another hug.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun," I whispered.

"Ehh, for what?" Naruto scratched the side of his head. His ears were pink.

"You're an Uzumaki?" Karin's voice cut in the moment.

I let go of Naruto, and he turned toward the voice, answered like it was a reflex. "That's my name,"

His eyes widened as if he'd seen her for the first time. I caught a slight blush on the brat's cheeks. Teenagers, who would have thunk?

He turned to me, "Hinata-chan, who is she?"

I rolled my eyes, wrote. "Why don't you ask her?"

The brat read the message, then turned back to Karin, a little bashful now. "Uh… what's your name?"

"Uzumaki Karin," the redhead said.

Naruto tilted his head. His eyes widened. "You're my sister!?"

I face-palmed.

Kakashi-sensei was the one who answered this time. "No, Naruto-kun, it means she's from the Uzumaki clan."

Naruto looked from Karin to Kakashi and then to me. "What Uzumaki clan?"

"Kakashi," Shisui cut through any response to Naruto's question. "Why don't you take Naruto and Karin outside and explain the situation to him while I finish talking with Hinata?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Come, Naruto-kun, you'll have time to tell Hinata about your mission later." He turned to Karin and gave her one of his signature eye-crescent smiles. Cool Kakashi-sensei was such a chad material that I caught a dusting of pink on Karin's cheeks before she looked away and nodded shyly.

It was my time to have a forlorn look on my face now while I watched the trio leave the office. I wasn't sure if I should be happy or sad.

Wait. Why would I be sad?

"Please, sit Hinata-san," Shisui said, taking me out of my musings.

I gave the door one last troubled look. Turned and sat. Shisui didn't seem keen on wasting time.

"I think you noticed there are issues we must deal with."

I nodded. Was he going to demand I spill all my secrets now? Or maybe ask me to swear an oath or something?

"The council has gathered enough influence with the shinobi families that I cannot just dismiss them out of hand."

I blinked. What was he talking about?

"Nominally, I'm the village leader, but they have considerable pull with other shinobi that I more often than not have to maneuver around them."

That was strange. Should a Hokage admit to weakness in front of a chunin? A possible traitor chunin? Wasn't this how people saw me?

"Ever since Lord Hiruzen passed away, they have been pushing for drastic measures regarding you."

Shisui stopped, looked back at the picture of the old man hung on the back wall.

"Shikaku did what he could and sent you on a mission that kept you out of reach. It seemed the best choice at the time." The Hokage got up from his chair and bowed. "I apologize that this caused you such hardships."

I was dreaming, wasn't I? There was no way people would start being honest with me. Was this a trick? Numbly, I just nodded. I didn't know what else to say or do.

"I'll give you the full details later, but right now, we need to prepare for two things."

That sounded ominous as heck.

"The Hyuga clan and the Council."

Wait, what? The Hyuga, why?

---

Spoiler: AN

Next chapter Friday! (*Checks the calendar* Yep, that's the right day.)
Proofreader: CakeEight.

 

[okashihime]

"…information about the laboratory leaked…"

Night had fallen and I was back in my apartment helping Karin settle. My abode was tiny: A single bedroom, a living room, a kitchen. Karin didn't seem to mind that we'd have to sleep in the same bed. I didn't either, even if I was getting conflicted about this.

Some blessed soul kept my apartment clean. We didn't have to worry about dust bunnies or drowning in dust while trying to clear it.

On the other side of the bedroom, Karin looked pensive. She looked over my almost identical outfits and everyday clothes. She'd have to wear my stuff until we bought more for her later. That would be for tomorrow.

It had taken a while to appease Naruto once we left the tower. The brat didn't seem willing to leave, and he only did after I promised I wouldn't go on any other mission without telling him first.

I might have pinched his cheeks until he fessed up about that crying business. It left me feeling all warm and guilty and happy and sad. Best Girl Ino went to my rescue? And she even cried? I didn't know how I felt about that, but that decided what I had to do. Ino's been haunting my thoughts with increasing frequency.

He'd also told me about his new awesome jutsu— Rasengan— that the perv sannin taught him. He let slip a few more details. His mission hadn't been a peaceful one. It took forever to find the granny, and in the end, she didn't even want to come back, not to mention the two freaks that attacked them. The shark dude and bone guy.

Naruto promised to tell me the story in detail later. I even made him pink swear it. Shark guy could only be Kisame, but what about this bone dude? Was he talking about Kimimaro?

While Karin debated what to wear, I got into the showers and took a relaxing bath. It took a while to clean all the spots of dirt from the weeks of travel underground. No one had pointed it out, but I was sure the reason the councilman fled without pushing things further was the lovely smell coming from me and Karin.

"…probably due to council meddling…"

Cleaned, refreshed, and finally ready. I picked up a set of everyday clothes. Shorts, a pink shirt, and ordinary everyday shoes. I wasn't really in the mood for ninja stuff right now.

I really wanted to go out and meet Ino, but it was already late. Begrudgingly, I postponed the meeting to the next morning. That would give me the whole day to talk with her. It was better that way, right?

Karin was already aware of my plans. She didn't seem to mind staying alone while I dealt with essential matters outside. It was a shame I didn't have any of my prepared supplies. My stock was nil before the mission, and I don't think I can replenish it, at least not before dealing with the fallout.

After Karin finished bathing, we settled down, and I was out as soon as my head hit the pillow. Karin's grabiness not even registering.

I woke up the next day with sunlight streaking inside my bedroom. I got up, disentangled myself from Karin, took another bath. Hot water, how had I missed thee!

When I left the apartment about one hour later, Karin was in the bath again. I guess that like me, she was compensating for the whole month without cleaning. I wrote her a note to ensure she knew I was out. It was time. I had delayed enough. I wasn't going to delay anymore.

I took the shinobi highways and sped toward my destination. It had been just over a month, but the village looked different. I could still see marks of the invasion, the new patch of wall still in construction, and buildings that looked new compared to others nearby.

My path led me again near the GGC, but this time, I swerved away. I didn't want to meet them yet. There was only so much I could deal with, and while I liked the grannies, I had more important things to do. My already exhausted emotional battery wouldn't be enough if I had to appease them.

Without fanfare, I dropped from the highway in front of my target. I scanned my surroundings, read the familiar sign: Yamanaka Flower Shop.

I took a deep breath, steeled my nerves, stepped inside.

---

I stepped outside with a mix of relief and disappointment on my face. None of the Yamanaka were present. Ino's mom was busy somewhere else, Inoichi wasn't home, Ino was training. I had a new destination now. My old haunt, training field three.

Was there any reason why Ino chose that particular place to train?

The path there wasn't long. I knew my way around this part, and even with some of my preferred roofs missing or destroyed, finding a new path to the training field didn't take long.

I looked over my clothing, pushed a rebel strand of hair out of my face, and ensured my shirt wasn't dirty or worse. With yet another deep breath, I walked inside the field.

Ino had her back toward the entrance. She wore her usual shinobi gear, a purple ensemble with bandages covering parts of her legs and midriff. Her hair was tied in a haphazard ponytail. From her movements, she was punching the wooden dummy. Each punch sounded like she meant business.

What had the poor dummy done to her?

An idea crossed my mind. I wanted to hug Ino a lot. Only one of me didn't seem enough. My hands moved without my consent. Seals flashed, and out popped another me. We exchanged glances. Hug-chan gave me a nod, her grin almost feral.

We approached. Stopped a few meters away from the training blonde.

Hug-chan cleared her throat.

Ino ignored us.

My clone cleared her throat again, louder this time. I winced in perceived sympathy. That probably hurt a lot.

"Go away," Ino said without looking back.

I exchanged glances with my clone. She shrugged, shook her head. Okay, fine, it was my turn.

I cleared my throat.

"Leave me alone," Ino hissed without looking back.

That… wasn't like Ino at all.

My clone looked worried like I felt. I cleared my throat again.

"Are you deaf?" Ino growled. She swirled, took one step toward us, teeth bared. She had bags under her eyes, wore no makeup, her hands were wrapped in bloodied bandages. She looked disheveled, for lack of a better word.

Then the blonde stopped. Her eyes were wide. A hand flew to her mouth.

"Hinata-chan," Ino whispered, looking at me and my clone.

It seemed such a dumb idea now. Why hadn't I just called out her name? Why did I have to create a clone? Dumb idea or not, I think my clone and I felt the same. We moved at the same time. No, not moved, we flickered forward and appeared by the blonde's side. We sandwiched her in the tightest hug we could manage without breaking her ribs.

In the back of my mind, Shisui's words still echoed.

"…they're claiming you're not Hinata, but a clone…"

Ino flopped on my arms, her face a mess of tears, snot, and babbling words. She fought between hugging and touching and making sure I was real. She was the prettiest ugly crier I had ever seen.

"Hinata-chan," she said, mid-crying.

Was I a clone? Maybe. There was always the possibility. Did it bother me? Yes, it did. But right now, hugging best girl Ino and hearing her sobbing in our arms, it didn't seem that important anymore.

What council hearing? What Hyuga problem?

None of that seemed urgent. It was Best Girl Ino time now. I could deal with everything else later.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.
Proofreader: CakeEight.



Backlog update: I've finished yesterday 8.11.
Chapter 7 goes up to .21. It was getting too big and I had to cut it, for reasons.

Chapter 8 is named: Family Business, secrets and dates.

 

[okashihime]

I exchanged glances with my clone. Hug-chan scowled.

I signed a message. She scowled even more.

We were still in training field three. At this point, I don't think Hug-chan needed to be here. She could go out and do something else, like visiting the grocer to buy ingredients for a baking session.

Hug-chan shook her head. Her fingers flashed a very uncouth message.

I blinked, surprised. Was she… jealous? It wouldn't be, would it?

I don't know what I had expected when I came to look for Ino. Maybe we'd have a happy reunion, she'd tell me all the gossip I missed. Maybe she'd punch me for getting captured. That one felt like a real possibility. According to Naruto, Ino was hella pissed with me.

You know what I hadn't expected?

For Ino to cry until she fell asleep. What had she been doing?

So here we were. My clone and I were sitting side by side, holding a sleeping Ino.

I wanted my clone to bug off— I mean, go buy ingredients. Hug-chan didn't want to leave, and I couldn't just disperse her. Ino was leaning on her too. If I did, Ino would wake up.

Difficult scenario.

I glared at Hug-chan, jerking my head toward the exit. Go away already.

Hug-chan flipped me the finger.

Our silent argument didn't last for long. I felt it before I saw it. Chakra presences that made no sense at all. It was like a huge bonfire, filled with countless small ones. I was still trying to puzzle the situation when the newcomers entered the training field.

Two shinobi from Konoha. One, I knew; the other, I could guess who it was.

The first one wore dark round sunglasses and a sea-green jacket with a high, upturned collar, dark, bushy, brown hair. My friend, Shino, even though it had been a while since I last talked with him. We drifted apart after I was assigned to team seven, instead of team eight.

The other one was like an older version of Shino. The man had dark glasses with a single tassel hanging down from one side, even spikier black hair and a mustache, and he wore a collared outfit and carried a gourd on his back. Part of the chakra I felt from him also was inside that gourd. Was that Shino's dad?

The chakra I was sensing now made sense. Back in the academy, Shino's chakra felt like anyone else. After expanding my range, was I also getting better definition? It made me super icky, knowing that swarming chakra inside him was just that, a swarm of insects. I held in a shudder.

Both looked at the scene: me, my clone, and the sleeping Ino. They didn't approach but didn't leave either.

Hug-chan looked my way, leered.

I ground my teeth. Fine. Have it your way.

Carefully, I disentangled from Ino and got up. I wasn't about to let these two wake Best Girl Ino up.

With a temporary comms board and writing supplies in hand, I cast one last longing look at Ino, glared at Hug-chan, then went to meet the duo. We didn't speak. I waved both to follow me and guided them until we were far from the training field. If things somehow turned sour, I didn't want any of them near Ino.

Once we were far enough, I wrote words.

"Hello, Shino; how have you been?"

"Hello, Hinata-san," Shino said, looked at the other shinobi. "This is Aburame Shibi, my father and head of the Aburame clan."

I waved at the jonin.

He gave me a curt nod.

I had no idea what was going on. Wrote more words. "Is there something I can help you with?"

It might have come more brusque than I liked, but these two were intruding on my Ino time. It just wasn't fair.

"You stink," Shino said.

I scowled, sniffed beneath my arms, sniffed again when I felt no smell.

Shibi coughed, looked at Shino, and then at me. "Hello, Hinata-san. Please don't mind my son. What he meant to say is that you've been marked by pheromones."

"And it's stinking up the whole village," Shino added.

It was the damned bees, wasn't it? I fucking knew it would be trouble. Why, oh, why. Those damned badgers. Was this a new blood feud now? Danzo, council, Hyuga, and now the Aburame clan?

"Which one was it?" Shino asked.

I tilted my head. Wrote words. "Which one what?"

"Which insect marked you?"

"Fucking killer bees that would put grown-up Akamaru to shame," I said out loud instead of writing.

Shibi's hand reached into his jacket, pulled out a small spray bottle, tossed it my way.

"This will help eliminate the scent."

Shino looked like he wanted to say something, but a faint buzz from his father, one I felt inside my bones, held him back. The clan head turned to me.

"I'd like to invite you to the Aburame compound. There are things we'd like to discuss with you."

I looked at the spray bottle and the two insect shinobi. Under both gazes, I sprayed myself with the thing. It didn't smell like anything at all, but I caught Shino's small twitch and the agitated movements from the small swarm of chakra inside his body.

"I just returned to the village," I wrote to both of them. "I don't know how things are, but maybe next week?"

Shibi nodded, gave me a small smile.

"I'll send Shino to guide you to our compound. Would dinner be alright?"

A bit speechless at the turn this took, I nodded at the duo.

"Use the spray again in two hours," Shino said, before bowing and leaving. His dad gave me a curt bow and left as well.

That was weird as heck. What did they want? Maybe they wanted to meet the bees? I'm guessing that meeting a hive of killer bees is like Xmas arriving early for an insect-based clan?

I looked for a while longer in the duo's direction, then shrugged. I would deal with this later. It was just another thing to pile on. The council hearing in two weeks, the Hyuga problem looming in the horizon, and now dinner at the Aburame in a week.

It was good that they left. I pushed it all out of my mind. It was time to get back to my Ino time, and no one would get in my way again. I turned and moved back to the training field.

With each step closer, my mood sank.

I dashed forward, not caring about making noise anymore. I arrived at the training field like a clap of thunder. It was empty. Where once was a sleeping beauty and a traitorous clone, now there was only a scribbled message in the dirt.

Grocer. BGIWS, BTYFS.

I scowled. Torn between wanting to strangle Hug-chan or maybe hug her. I could decide that later. Now I had to go and bake sweets. Ino wanted them, after all.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter wed.

Proofreader: Bestests of cakes, CakeEight.



I've finished writing 8.15. Still debating on the ending of that one. It is something I had planned for a while, but now I keep having doubts about that particular situation.

Patreon is updated to 8.14. I've also started to look for artists for a new cover and image commissions. For now, I have requested to chibi images from Hinata and Ino. I got the wip and I think they look good. I'll post then once I receive the final version.

Discord: Link

 

[okashihime]

Hug-chan watched the Original leave the training field with the visitors. Ino stirred and mumbled, hands gripping the clone's clothing and pulling closer.

"Ah, I'm dreaming."

The clone looked at the blonde's face. Her eyes were half-lidded, and she didn't look at all there. Ino looked worse than Hinata had ever seen before. It wasn't just the bags under her eyes; her clothes were unkempt, the bandages on her hands flecked with blood, and most alarming of all, she wore no makeup.

In the years since Ino learned about it in the Kunoichi classes, this was the first time she'd seen the girl without.

Ino nuzzled her face against the clone's shoulder.

"I want to go home."

That was easy enough. The clone didn't mind taking the sleeping girl home. It was a good idea even. Put her in bed where she could rest properly. It was a shame the original wasn't here right now, but that was life.

"I want cupcakes."

Another line that sent her heart racing. Best girl Ino wanted sweets. That decided things even more.

Hug-chan got up, taking care not to jostle the drowsy girl too much. The clone adjusted Ino so the blonde's front rested against her back, and Ino's arms were draped over the shoulders. Ino's head nestled near Hug-chan's neck. Her hours of carrying Karin around gave her the know-how needed to keep Ino comfortable and stable. Before she left, she scribbled an abridged note for the original.

Grocer. BGIWS. BTYFS.

That should be more than enough. Once Original-chan had the sweets, dropping by the Yamanaka flower shop would be easy.

The clone took one last look at the training field, made sure she wasn't leaving anything behind, then left.

She didn't run, or take to the highways; no intense movement or jumping. Hug-chan Express would do her best to deliver a comfortable travel experience to her sleeping passenger. Bump and jolt free.

The walk gave Hug-chan time to think about things. Maybe it was the perspective of being a clone, but her thoughts weren't on the growing list of the original's problems. No, what concerned the clone was feelings.

Feelings or obsession?

It was difficult to tell them apart. She'd been so obsessed with the characters in the show, and so consumed with wishing to meet them that, now that she did, she wasn't sure if her feelings were real or some form of idol worship.

God knows she already did that a lot in the form of fangirling.

There was this happy feeling building in her gut, knowing that Ino cared enough to be in this state because Hinata went missing. Was it selfish to feel happy at her friends' suffering?

The original never considered a relationship at all. For all her bluster and obsession, romance had never seriously crossed her mind. Too young, she'd mostly dismiss. There are horrors in the future, can't worry about feeling right now. Every time a hint of that came up, justifications popped left and right.

When not caring about the many horrors of the future, the clone really wanted to cuddle and snog and go on dates. She even suspected Ino might not be totally against it. Maybe not in a romantic sense yet, but Hug-chan could dream.

The concept of same-sex relationships might not even exist here, with clans pushing for their children to find a good match and continue the clan's bloodline. It might even be frowned upon or outlawed. Hinata never even heard about gay couples in all her years around.

Hug-chan's steps led her to the flower shop. She pulled the door open, then stepped inside. One of the workers was on the counter. He looked startled when Hug-chan stepped inside carrying a sleeping Ino, but a quick gesture ensured he didn't cause a fuss.

It wasn't the first time she'd been here, so Hug-chan walked inside, past the storefront, and into the Yamanaka residence. The house was quiet and still.

The clone adjusted her steps and walked toward Ino's bedroom. Once there, she laid the blonde on the bed, removed her shoes, unwrapped the bandages from her hands. Hoping Ino would forgive the intrusion, she searched the blonde's room for cleaning supplies and a first aid kit.

Back at the bed, she cleaned and re-wrapped the hands. She noticed a shift in Ino's breathing. Maybe it was the stinging cleaning agent or the strong alcohol scent. Ino's eyes were open and looking at the clone's face.

"You're really back." Ino whispered.

Hug-chan smiled. Nodded. She finished tying up the bandages, put the first aid kit away. Under Ino's intense stare, she made sure the blonde was tucked in and comfortable, even bringing over the sheets.

Tucked in and comfortable, Ino spoke again.

"Are you leaving?"

Hug-chan shook her head. She was a clone; there was nowhere she needed to be. Taking care of Ino was more important than worrying about all the other problems.

Ino's hand sneaked from beneath the sheets and pulled Hug-chan into the bed, too. Ino hugged the clone, hiding her face against the clone's chest.

"Promise you won't disappear again."

"I promise." Hug-chan husked out. She wrapped her arms around Ino. It didn't take long until the blonde was asleep again.

Now, alone with her thoughts, the clone had even more time to think.

Could she promise it? At that moment, the clone knew even the original wouldn't hesitate to make that promise. That also highlighted another issue that bothered every created clone, which the original was keen on ignoring.

If the original ever wanted a real relationship, she had to be honest. About her past, about the knowledge, about her plans.

Hug-chan wasn't about to spill the beans, even if she thought that would be the best course of action, but she imprinted enough reaction on her mind just to make sure the Original knew that she had to address this sooner rather than later.

To truly be friends with Ino, and hopefully something more, Original-chan needed to be honest. It wasn't fair to the other girl to keep to herself all the secrets that could cause many problems in the future.

 

[okashihime]

I took one of the bags from the shelf and compared it with the one in my basket. The shop lady said good things about this flour, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to abandon my tried and true supplier. I put one small bag in with the other things. I guess experimenting wouldn't hurt.

What else did I need? I went over the list in my mind. Baking powder?

I rummaged through the items I had already collected, found it.

Sugar, then?

I looked inside the basket again: Granulated, brown, powdered, and honey. No, I had what I needed already.

What about flavorings? Vanilla, nutmeg, cardamom, dried fruits, nuts, and even chocolate. I found everything already. That was enough. I would need to order more, but that would be later.

Doing grocery shopping and worrying about ingredients wasn't how I imagined the rest of my day. Not that I had anything planned before meeting Ino. I didn't know how she would react. After meeting her, I got a new mission. S-Tier Mission: Cuddle with Best Girl Ino until she woke up.

That mission went into the drain when the Aburame clan decided to pay a visit—and died an even worse death when Hug-chan took Ino back to the Yamanaka residence. No, I wasn't jelly of my clone. No, I wasn't bitter either.

…

And yes, I knew I would experience everything when she unpopped. But I mean, I wanted to cuddle with Ino-chan, too. I wanted it so bad.

I couldn't even blame my clone. I'd have done the same had she gone to meet the Aburames instead. I planned to do the same if she had gone to meet the Aburames. I guess I have only myself to blame here.

But now that I no longer had the Ino excuse, thoughts kept coming.

The first problem: A lack of Tsunade.

The slug princess was my hope of getting the seal under control. In the past weeks, the amount I managed to suppress kept worsening. The more I used my chakra, the faster the suppression deteriorated.

I had been confident that if she couldn't help me, she'd be at least able to point me in the right direction. Now, I needed to decide whether I wanted to trust Shisui or not.

Along the same lines, my promise now reared its head. My meddling thwarted Rock Lee's chance of recovery. I wasn't going to leave him without help. Maybe I could convince Shisui to send me after Tsunade? I still needed to extract what happened from Naruto, but without Orochimaru to push Tsunade with the promise of bringing her loved ones back, she wanted nothing with Konoha.

But before I could leave the village, two problems needed to be addressed.

The council: Shisui's intervention was enough to push them back for now.

The two codgers of the council had somehow managed to entrench themselves in every pie available. Merchants, trading partners, noble families, and even a few allied minor villages. They controlled or influenced most of the village's non-military infrastructure by this point.

That was enough to put a lot of pressure on the Hokage position.

I suspected they had been preparing for years, waiting until the third was out of the picture. I also suspected they might be just figureheads for a third party, someone who loved to dwell in darkness and shady deals.

That man spent decades building spy networks, implanting sleeper agents, and pushing things from behind the scenes. Not even the other great villages escaped his meddling. Why would his "exile" from Konoha change anything? It just meant he didn't need to worry about appearances anymore.

Danzo had a hard-on hatred for the Uchiha. Would he leave the clan's political power intact? I doubt it.

Shisui had military power, and I'm sure he could just genjutsu his way into winning. And while the Uchiha clan was powerful, they might face years of entrenched schemes and bureaucratic manipulations.

On the other hand, Shisui had a penchant for diplomacy and vying for peace. Did this play a part in why he was selected as the Hokage? Someone who wouldn't jump to violence when presented with years of carefully curated obstructions?

I also needed to gather my allies to resist their influence. Shisui did hint that the Uchiha clan might be willing to help, but that would be best discussed with the clan's head, Itachi.

I wanted to get rid of those old codgers. Why couldn't they just leave me alone?

No, that was a bad turn of phrase. I don't think killing them would help my case. This would be a battle won with words. It was a damn shame I had no words.

The question was, what allies did I have? I was a social outcast.

Then there was the Hyuga. The clan head, my father, was also marshaling allies, the council included, to take me out of the picture. Hiashi was convinced I wasn't his daughter but an impostor taking her place.

…

That hurt, even if he wasn't entirely wrong. I wasn't just Hinata anymore, but I still was Hinata. I had her feelings and memories tempered by memories of another world and life.

Ah, yes, butter. I knew I was forgetting something.

I walked past an oba-san and her little boy; a few more steps further, I picked the butter. I think I was set. Now, to pay and return home.

Having my stuff stolen was also a big blow to my plans. All the research documents I gathered hadn't been found at the prison. My only hope now was that the new chakra-locking measures I added to my seals held. I didn't want to deal with an army of Hinata clones in a few years.

"Miss?"

The cashier's voice interrupted my musings. I looked at the man, nodded, and placed the basket in front of him.

He calculated the price. I paid, then left.

I coated my feet in chakra and walked up the walls until I was at the highway; it was time to go home and bake.

Maybe Jiraiya could help? The sannin didn't strike me as someone dependable, but Naruto seemed fond of the old man. From what I remembered, Jiraiya wasn't willing to get involved in political matters, but if not with the council, maybe with the seals?

Head full of thoughts and possibilities, I arrived at my apartment.

There were more people there besides Karin. Maybe I should have expected that. Today was a day to put my social tolerance to the test.

I opened the door and stepped inside.

"Hinata-chan!"

A mop of pink hair glomped on me as soon as I entered. I held my arms out so my grocer didn't hit Sakura-chan. From between her hugs, I cast a glance at the second visitor. The bags fell from my trembling fingers.

In my living room, sitting on my couch, no one other than Konoha's Beautiful Green Wild Beast, The Handsome Devil of the Hidden Leaf: Rock Lee in the flesh.

"Watch out!" Rock Lee cried out.

Sakura let go of me and tried to pick up my bags. It slipped through her fingers, fell, and caused a huge mess.

More details filtered in.

Rock Lee wore his iconic green leotard, orange leg warmers, and red forehead protector as a belt. His hands were covered in bandages, and crutches were propped against the couch.

Karin was also in the room. After almost a month of forced proximity with the redhead, it was easy to pick on her habits. She kept sneaking glances— when she thought no one was looking — at Rock Lee's stomach, no, not stomach, his navel. She was totally checking out his chakra, wasn't she?

I could see it. I could even make a good guess about what was happening. Karin wasn't someone to be attracted by appearance but by chakra. How would Rock Lee's chakra feel to her?

A smile crept into my face. I was totally in favor. Karin and Rock Lee's ship? Heck yeah! The Beautiful Green Beast Got game!

Then I caught a second glance—this time toward Sakura.

Oh my. Karin was on fire!

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.

Proofreader: Cakeeight.

 

[okashihime]

From the kitchen counter, where I worked preparing the baking dough, I heard Karin recounting the events from when we met to the two visitors.

To hear Karin tell it, I fought and overpowered an army of ninjas. I mean, her tale wasn't wrong. I did fight a fair number of enemies, but most of the fight was done by Assassination-chan to distract the opposition and let us flee. Even so, my clone mostly did hit-and-run tactics, which resulted in much chasing around and much less killing. Assassination-chan, despite her dramatic name, hadn't killed more than four, and those were mostly the weaker ones.

Once jonins joined the fray, she was relegated to more fleeing than fighting.

Still, the audience seemed captivated. Rock Lee's eyes shone with enthusiasm at the recounting, while Sakura looked parts scared, parts relieved, parts interested.

But while I kneaded the dough, there was one question that kept nagging me.

Why was Rock Lee here?

Not that I was against him being here. No, I was giddy in a way I hadn't been since academy graduation and my assignment with Kakashi-sensei. Rock Lee, in my living room. The barely suppressed snicker from Sakura was enough to tell me I wasn't able to suppress all the excitement, or dancing.

I mean. I might have fangirled– just a little – once the surprise had its time to settle in. It was Rock Lee, gawdamnit. He was cool. Can you blame me?

That even led to a whole conversation in which Sakura-chan gleefully spilled some of my less-than-savvy early-years incidents. Ugh, it was embarrassing yet nice.

Sakura, I could guess why she was here. Naruto, or maybe someone else, might have told her the news that I was back. I was pretty good friends with the tsuntsun, and it was normal she'd want to visit after I went missing. That still didn't explain Rock Lee. And from the way the two talked to each other, this didn't look like a new development.

Hadn't Ino, not so long ago, told me Sakura had left flowers for Rock Lee and visited him a few times? Was there more to this? Had Sakura finally let go of her Emosuke obsession? Again, at the risk of allowing Fangirl-sama to take over too much, Rock Lee was cool. I'd even go for him if I had any interest in boys.

Yeah, he might look silly and maybe could do with a better haircut and maybe trimming his eyebrows, but those were just details that— Gah, stop. Deep breaths, control the Fangirl, don't let her control you.

I divided the dough in small bits and placed them on the cupcake molds. Once I had distributed all the dough, I put the molds in the oven. It was a waiting game now. In the living room, Karin was now going over how I 'saved' her from the badgers. She conveniently left out I was the reason she was in danger with the badgers in the first place. I cleaned my hands in the apron, took a jar of juice, some cups, returned to the living room. I had visitors, and I was going to do my best to be a good host.

---

"These are so good." Karin moaned after taking yet another bite of her cupcake.

Pressed for time and opportunity, I went with simple flavors. I did have to hide a batch of the cupcakes, however. By the rate they just disappeared between the three teens, if I hadn't, Ino's sweets would have been devoured before I could leave the house.

At some point, I had taken an older version of my comms board from my room and strapped it to my arm. That got me an interested glance from Karin when the board popped out of the seal. It reminded me that even though we shared a lot of time together, fuinjutsu was never discussed.

The weeks walk underground had given me plenty of time to think and design changes to my seals. Something I'd have to start working on soonish.

I gave her a nod and a smile, she gave me another in return.

I wrote my question.

"How are you faring, Rock Lee?" I cast a glance at the crutches.

The mood soured a little. Sakura's smile dropped. Rock Lee's smile was slightly brittle, but he still sounded cheerful when answering.

"This is nothing!" He boasted. "This small injury won't get in my way of becoming a splendid ninja!"

Two things I noticed, or maybe three. Rock Lee didn't seem to be even a little bit doubtful about that declaration despite what should have been horrible news from the doctors. Sakura looked at Rock Lee with a gaze full of something I couldn't place. Karin did blush a bit, looking at both Sakura and Rock Lee.

I wished the redhead all the best of luck. She was in for a rough journey.

"But Hinata-san," Rock Lee said after a brief silence. "There's one thing I never understood. Why did you almost kill Neji? Isn't he also a Hyuga?"

Karin looked at Rock Lee and then at me, trying to understand what the boy had said. Then her eyes widened, and a hand covered her mouth. I gave her a slight shake of the head. Wrote words with my threads in a way I knew only Karin would be able to read. "I'll explain later, promise."

To Rock Lee, I did have to consider things before writing my answer.

Why did my clone almost kill Neji? Maybe I could blame it on my clones being a bit wild and somewhat out of control, but that wasn't the real reason. The question here was, do I want to tell them the truth? Whatever I said here might go back to the Hyuga.

I asked a question before answering.

"Ino-chan told me Hyuga Neji sought me out in the forest. Why?"

Lee read my words, tilted his head. Scrunched his bushy brows. "He never told us."

I erased my words, wrote others. Decided I wasn't going to lie. "He looked at me like he wanted to kill me. I had to disabuse him of that notion."

"He wouldn't!" Rock Lee said, agitated. "You're the daughter of the clan leader."

"Am I?" I wrote back. Rock Lee opened his mouth, maybe to argue, but I cut him off. "My name is Hinata, I don't have a surname." I rasped out. Left the implications of that for them to decide.

The room sunk into silence. Karin looked at me like she was seeing me for the first time. Sakura had tears in her eyes for some reason. Lee looked troubled. I got up from the couch, went back to the kitchen to check the second batch of pastries. Maybe to flee from the awkward mood as well.

Not that I managed to flee for long. A knock at my apartment's door forced me out of the kitchen into the awkwardness of the living room. On the other side was a bundle of chakra that had changed in the almost two months I was away, but it was still inherently recognizable.

I opened the door.

There on the other side was Sasuke, wearing the traditional Uchiha attire, looking at me.

There was this moment of silence, like he didn't know what to say or why he was even here. I blame the awkward mood from the talk earlier making me overly emotional. Or maybe it was just teenage hormones messing with my head.

I crossed the distance and hugged Sasuke, something I never thought I would do again. I was glad he hadn't fled or something silly like that.

Man, I was a horrible mess if seeing Emosuke made me this happy.

 

[okashihime]

I pulled away from the hug with Sakuke, looking at him like it was the first time I was seeing him: still dark and brooding, but I couldn't deny his boyish charm. Those good looks that belonged on a boy's band. I could even imagine it. Sasuke playing the guitar, giving that cold look to the horde of fan girls.


I felt a blush creep on my cheeks. Oh, that was bad.


Was this the new normal now? No more Best Girl Ino? It was time for Best Boy Sakuke?

---

Ok, ok, that's lame. I apologize. Didn't have time to write a proper april's fool chapter. Life has been hectic. But hey! The chibis I commissioned are done! Created by Kimi.


I hope you enjoy it!

Hinata

Ino

 

[okashihime]

"Is he your boyfriend?"

I scowled, looked at Karin like she'd grown a second head. How did all the awkwardness in the living room give her the impression I had anything going on with Sasuke? Was it the hug? It was the hug, wasn't it?

We were in the kitchen preparing more refreshments and pastries. No, I was here fleeing from the embarrassing. Karin had followed me to ask horror inducing questions.

The redhead walked to my side, bumped shoulders with me. "That Hyuga girl?" She whispered.

I looked at her, confused. What was she talking about? Then, memory hit me. That day in the forest, soon after we escaped. Hadn't she asked something similar? I nodded, then shrugged. Threads wrote my message. "It was a long time ago."

"What happened?"

My hands stopped, shoulders slumped. I didn't want to talk about it, at least not now. "Later?"

Karin looked at the words I wrote, nodded. She gave me a sort of one-arm hug that I leaned into. Couldn't this day just end? I needed time to breathe, to recharge, to untangle my thoughts before I drowned in all these interactions. I wasn't myself right now, and people kept pushing me into social situations I had no defense against.

I took a deep breath. I was a badass strong kunoichi. I could survive some emotional torture. I just needed to endure a while longer before I could flee, go meet Best Girl Ino. Maybe I'd have some peace and quiet there. Maybe snuggling a cute blondie.

Ugh, I hated feeling this vulnerable and needy. I felt like a stranger inside my own mind.

"Are you alright?" Karin whispered.

I nodded, wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. It was time to face the worst kind of battle.

The living room was a mix of moody silence and cringe tension.

On one side sat Dark and Brooding, casting signature brooding looks at Konoha's Green Beautiful Beast. On another, the Handsome Devil alternated between looking at Sasuke, Sakura, and the kitchen where I had fled.

Maybe worse was Sakura, who sat between the two. She didn't know what to do with herself and her hands, like she'd been caught snogging her best friend's boyfriend behind the shed. It made no sense at all.

With one glance, I knew that if I didn't do anything, everyone would suffer the cringe until a bomb exploded and put us all out of our misery. I placed the new round of pastries and juice on the table, then pulled chairs for me and Karin.

I popped my board, wrote words. "How have you been Sasuke-kun?" That was a safe enough question to start things.

Emosuke looked at my board and the room as if the other's presence was an issue. Ugh, what was his deal now? Why was he always so hard to deal with? Maybe something showed on my face, or maybe he finally noticed the unusually long silence since I asked my question.

"Training with Itachi," Sasuke said, then added. "Doing boring D-rank missions inside the village since Kakashi, you, and Naruto were busy."

Huh, well, that was a normal answer?

"What happened?" Sasuke asked before I could do anything else. "The only thing I've been told is that you went missing in action."

I was guessing this wouldn't be the first or last time I would repeat this story, so I wrote words.

"Well, it all started when I was promoted to chunin." I showed the board.

"You're a chunin?" "You were promoted?" "You never told me that!"

Sakura, Lee, and Karin all spoke at the same time. Yeah, this was going to take a while.

---

After the recounting started, things went much smoother than expected. Even Karin, who had participated in most of the journey, seemed interested in reading my side of events. I did skip a few things.

I told them about the chimera we fought but skipped the clones. I also told them about the research data being stolen, but I didn't elaborate on my plan to steal it myself before it was stolen.

"Flying Thunder God? The Yondaime jutsu?" Rock Lee gasped.

After much peer pressure and against my best judgment, I created the wood beacon. "Black Thunder!" I protested, but no one paid attention.

The kunai passed from hand to hand like it was a shiny new toy or something.

"Can you do it?" He asked, eyes shining in anticipation.

I hated that I couldn't do what he asked. I shook my head. A bit of red touching my ears.

"Why?" It was Sasuke this time.

"It's not complete," I wrote, then wrote more. "When I use it, it just takes me, not my earthly possessions."

There was a moment of silence before Karin gasped.

"That's why you were naked?"

I scowled. Really, Karin? She was doing this on purpose, wasn't she?

"What?" "What are you talking about?"

The redhead did look a bit sheepish, bombarded by questions.

"Well, when Hinata-chan escaped from her cell, she wasn't wearing anything at all. She killed a bunch of shinobi and then just walked back inside the cells like it was the most normal thing in the world. I just thought she liked to fight naked or something."

I facepalmed. Sakura looked horrified. Rock Lee's eyes shone. He looked inspired for some reason. Worst of all was Sasuke's barely there blush. Oh, please, spare me.

Things went on like that for a while longer, with Karin always trying to inject some levity into the situation, even though most of the time, it was at the cost of saying something I had done that, in hindsight, was embarrassing as hell.

I did notice that yes, it was on purpose. Was she trying to distract me? I mean, it was working. Being embarrassed was way better than emotionally traumatized. I guess I could let her off the hook just this once.

---

My pastries were almost depleted, and the living room was a mess. Sakura and Rock Lee had already left, and Karin somehow had made herself scarce inside my three-room apartment. How she managed that was a mystery. That left me with Emosuke, who had wanted to say something for a while but couldn't seem to find the words.

"What is it, Sasuke-kun?" I asked gently.

It was selfish of me, but I wanted him gone. I enjoyed seeing him, and the afternoon of talking was nice, good even, but I still had an Ino to appease and sweets to deliver. Between Sasuke and Ino, there was no need to even guess.

"Mom wanted me to invite you for dinner," he said, finally.

I tilted my head. As far as I know, this was the first time Sasuke invited someone to visit his house.

Was this why he'd been acting so strange? I could even guess why the Uchiha were inviting me for dinner.

Shisui had said Itachi wanted to talk regarding all that political fallout. I wasn't sure why a noble shinobi family like the Uchiha would wish to support an outcast like me. And I was curious about how things were going for the Uchiha with all the changes from how canon things were supposed to go.

I nodded, wrote words. "Should we invite Naruto and Kakashi-sensei as well? Make it a team seven thing?"

Sasuke looked at the words, then shrugged. "That's fine. I think Mom wants to talk with you after dinner."

Not Itachi? He was, what, fifteen? He might be acting as clan head, but maybe Mikoto was pulling the strings. That was a real possibility. I didn't know Mikoto's character. My sole interaction with her was that one meeting at the hospital.

"Three days from now?"

Sasuke nodded. There was this brief moment of silence when I thought he might say or do something else, but he got up.

"Meet here at sunset?" He asked.

I nodded, wrote more. "I'll invite Naruto-kun and Kakashi-sensei."

Sasuke nodded again. I walked him to the door, waved him goodbye. Somehow, Karin reappeared between me walking him to the door and waving him off. From where, I had no idea. I took one look at her, the gleam in her eyes, the barely contained smirk.

"Nope!" I said. Ran out of the apartment, closed the door behind me. I had sweets to deliver. Karin could hold in whatever that was for a little while longer.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Friday.

Proofreader: CakeEight

 

[okashihime]

I landed in front of the flower shop. Before going in, I made sure I was presentable. Rebellious strands of hair went behind the ear, shirt smoothed over, cupcake crumbles dusted off. Ready, I pushed the door open and walked in.

The Receptionist-san blinked, like he was surprised to see me here. I gave him a nod, then hurried inside before he could say anything.

Walking into someone's home uninvited wasn't exactly polite, but I was already here — kind of. Circumstances made fuzzy with clones and all.

The place was quiet.

I crossed the living room, looked at the picture frames on the wall and photos of a young Ino and her family. I walked up the stairs and, without knocking, pulled the door open.

Hug-chan was in bed, hugging a sleeping Ino. There was this tiny spark of jealousy that I quickly squashed. It was dumb and not the time. My clone tried to disentangle herself, but sleeping Ino wasn't keen on letting go. My clone signed a message.

I followed her suggestion, lay on the other side of Ino, and hugged her. It didn't take long until Ino turned around, releasing my clone and holding me instead. Hug-chan took the chance to make her escape, not before hugging Ino one last time.

Once she was up and about, she signed a few more messages and unpopped herself without fanfare.

I was inundated with a whole afternoon of thoughts, ruminations, memories, and sensations. It was… a lot.

I scowled at the ideas from her. Telling people secrets was how things stopped being secrets. But she wasn't wrong. Obsession or not, I liked Ino, and I did want to get closer to her. It wasn't fair to involve her further and keep her in the dark.

The real question now was: did I want to involve Ino?

Honestly, no. Not because I didn't trust her, but because I didn't want to endanger her. That was such a patronizing sentiment that I even wanted to slap myself. It was how I felt, however.

Could I push all this on Ino? Was it even fair? I've been doing my best to enjoy my life, but my time was running out. This most recent brush with death only highlighted that this wasn't a world where things always worked out in the end.

A chakra bundle entered the house. It made a beeline to Ino's room. I watched the door open.

The Yamanaka matriarch — whose name I still didn't know — stood in the doorway, watching us. She looked regal and collected.

Now, I know. How could I not know Ino's mom's name? Well, Ino never introduced her mother and never called her anything other than mom. I wasn't around for any family reunion, so there's no way I might have overheard Inoichi. I wasn't going to ask the mind ninja his wife's name or even Ino her mom's name. That was just weird. A label slotted into my mind. Yamanaka Mother. That was good enough until I learned the woman's moniker.

Our eyes met. She gave me a nod. Pulled the door close.

Was that approval? Or maybe she just didn't want to wake up Ino? At times like this, I did envy Karin's ability to know how others were feeling based on their chakra. That was such a nice thing to have, privacy be damned. It would make social encounters manageable for me, especially with all the social hardships to come.

Shisui said I should gather allies. Maybe the Yamanaka clan? I didn't have that much contact with Ino's parents, but I think they didn't dislike me. At least, I hoped they didn't.

Who else could I call upon?

"…"

Kakashi-sensei? He was famous, and I also think he might be somewhat fond of me. Or maybe I was projecting. Yamato, maybe?

I had the inkling that I should have done more to build connections instead of training to be a good shinobi because, unless I reached Madara levels of absurdness, I might lose the battle to politics.

Or I could flee. There was always that possibility. Just harder now that they also knew about my new jutsu.

Ino stirred, rubbed her face against mine. It was almost like a cat. I even imagined the purring.

"Hinata-chan?" she mumbled.

I threaded my fingers through her hair. It felt nice. "Hello, beautiful," I husked out. I blamed the clone for putting all those ideas in my head.

Ino stared at me from ten centimeters away. Her crystalline blue orbs were intense. "What happened?"

For the third time that day, I told the story. But this time, I didn't censor the details. I spoke in low, hoarse whispers, trying to lower the hurt in my throat, but also unwilling to get up from the bed to write down my explanation. It might have been a spur of the moment, but I didn't keep anything from Ino.

I told her about the labs, about the clones, about my breakdown.

Ino's face changed when I recounted the betrayal. She cried, then I cried when I told her about the prison and escaping. Like me, she didn't have a good impression of the badgers, even if Kumoko was still cute, in an 'I'll kill you' kinda way.

When the recounting was done, maybe an hour later, we were still in bed, still hugging.

"I'm sorry," she said after a moment of silence.

I shook my head. There wasn't anything she needed to apologize for. "None of that," I whispered back. Swallowed the blood. "It wasn't your fault."

"I know, but," she said.

I stopped her again. "I'm back, but I'm still in trouble," I admitted.

"What do you mean?"

More words spilled forth. I told Ino about all the discrimination over the years, and the council wanting me gone or worse. I told her about the Hyuga and the issues with the clan head and the matter of the eye. I told her about Shisui's suggestion, to gather allies, but I had none.

Aside from my past life secrets, I told her everything.

My worries about how Sasuke was behaving. About me not being myself, about other me's trapped in some dungeon being experimented on. I might have become a bit incoherent midway. I wasn't sure.

It all spilled out even when I wanted to keep it all in.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.


Proofreader: Bestests of cakes, CakeEight.

 

[okashihime]

"How long do you young ladies plan to sleep for?"

I stirred in my bed and pulled the blankets over my face. The room light was on, and I didn't want to wake up. The bed was nice, and the pillow I was holding felt good, warm, and soft.

"Five more minutes, Mom," I muttered.

The pillow moved, groaned, complained. "Moooom, it's too early."

"Don't give me that. It's halfway to lunch already." The stern voice said. "I understand why you want to practice, but that's no excuse to sleep without at least showering or removing your training clothes."

I opened one eye. I wasn't in my room. By the side of the bed, Yamanaka Mother glared at Ino. Her gaze flickered toward me, softened for a moment, before turning stern again.

"And you," she said, then paused. "Welcome back, and thank you for looking after Ino."

Heat crawled up my neck. I nodded, then disentangled my limbs from Ino's. I didn't remember when I fell asleep. At some point, the hug party turned into a cry party and then a sleep party. I felt better, a lot better. I still wasn't fine, I don't think I'd be fine for a long while, but I felt more like myself.

I slipped out of bed while the matriarch still berated Ino, who didn't want to get out of bed. The scene brought a smile to my face. It was also an excellent opportunity to slip out. I needed to come back and talk with Ino again, but right now, I just wanted some time alone to think. I made some impulsive decisions the night before. I now had to live with it.

Silent steps took me toward the door. It didn't work.

"And where do you think you're going?"

I froze. Even without using my name, I knew deep in my gut that the stern woman was talking to me. Woodenly, I turned around, opened my mouth, and closed it. I looked around for my board; I couldn't see it anywhere.

"Well?"

"…Home?" I offered.

The matriarch rolled her eyes. It was slow and deliberate, like she was dealing with a toddler whining that his candy fell down.

"Bathroom with you, and clean this—" her hand moved over her face, the movement like she was afraid of touching something terrible. "Then to the kitchen and set the dishes. Breakfast is already getting cold with you two empresses not wanting to leave bed."

I opened my mouth, closed it, opened it again.

The regal woman approached, stopped in front of me. Her eyes bore down on me. Then she kneeled, hugged me. Kissed my forehead.

She got up, returned to Ino's bedside, and resumed her scolding.

I was still stuck frozen, not knowing what to do. What the hell was happening?

Yamanaka Mother turned to me again. "What are you waiting for? Breakfast won't serve itself."

"Yes!" I squeaked. Fled toward the bathroom.

I got to the lavatories and looked at the wall mirror. Eye crust, old dirt, and flecks of blood. Yikes, now I know why. I was surprised the woman braved the mess to kiss my forehead. She was a lot braver than me.

---

Breakfast was strange.

Steamed rice, miso soup, grilled fish, pickled veggies with tea. Even after living here for years, this type of traditional spread still took me by surprise. When I was cooking for myself, it often resembled my old world: bread, juice or tea, maybe cake or pancakes.

Inoichi ate and drank his tea in silence. He wished me good morning and gave me a nod as if me being here was an everyday thing. Yamanaka Mother sat regal and imperiously on her chair, surveying her domain. Ino poked the food here and there, but didn't seem keen on eating.

"I wanted cupcakes," I heard her complain.

I rummaged through the things I'd brought yesterday but forgot to hand them over. Under a pair of eyes, I placed the miniature seal on the table. Ino's face lit up. The matriarch looked at me disapprovingly, but said nothing. Inoichi kept drinking his tea.

Out popped the cupcakes I'd baked the day before; the ones I hadn't told anyone about. Cardamom cupcakes with brown butter buttercream, chocolate cupcakes, dried fruits cupcakes.

"Yes!" Ino cheered and almost climbed on top of the table to pick some of the pastries. The matriarch tsked in displeasure but accepted one of each when I presented her with the peace offering.

Inoichi picked one of the dried fruit cupcakes, took a bite.

"A bit too sugary," he said, then took another bite, drank from his bitter green tea after.

---

"What are we going to do about things, Hinata-chan?"

Breakfast had ended a while ago, and I was in the kitchen doing dishes. No one had asked me to do it, and I don't even think they expected me to, but after intruding on their family moment, it was the least I could do to appease my guilty mind.

I popped out my comms board, propped it against the wall. I don't think I even need to hide my threads anymore. I wrote. "We?"

Ino looked startled at the pencil that, for her, was moving on its own. Then she rolled her eyes. "You're not dumb, so don't pretend."

A warm fuzzy feeling started from the pit of my stomach and crept to the tip of my ears. It was a nice feeling. It also felt nice knowing Ino wanted to help, even after all the pile of crap I dumped on her the previous night.

"I dunno," I admitted.

"Right," Ino said after a while. Then she walked to my side, shoulder bumped me and started helping with the dishes.

"We train in the mornings when there's no mission. That's non-negotiable," she said, picking up a dirty ceramic bowl.

I stopped and looked at the blonde.

She didn't look my way, she kept talking. "Tell me everyone you know and have even a passing relationship with. Don't leave anyone out."

I nodded. Wrote slowly while still washing dishes. I wrote about all the ninjas I knew. Ino was also acquainted with most of the people I knew. Then, there were the civilians. I listed the shopkeepers, the ingredients suppliers, the people I met and talked to during my missions, Haku and Zabuza, Lady Shijimi and my trade deal. The old grannies from the GGC, the ramen store owner. Even about Linlin I wrote. Finally, I wrote about the two dinner invitations from the Uchiha and Aburame clans.

Ino listened in silence.

"You'll prepare for the Uchiha and Aburame dinner," Ino said after a moment. She nodded, then continued. "Be on your best behavior and see if they'd be willing to support you against the council."

I nodded.

"Dad owes me a big one," she offered as a side thought. "I'll bug him to convince his Nara and Akimichi clan friends."

"Ino," I whispered.

The blonde stopped, looked my way.

"I haven't told you everything." I mulled on things. "I don't know if I can."

She nodded, wiped her hands on her clothes, and hugged me. "Tell me when you're ready."

I nodded against her shoulder. But deep down, another thought gnawed at me.

This was too good. Everyone was being too nice, treating me like a person. The other shoe was going to drop—I could feel it in my bones. And I wasn't going to like it.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Wed.

Proofreader: Awesomest of cakes, CakeEight

 

[okashihime]

I visited the tower before I went home. After a quick hug to Secretary-chan and a dash toward the Hokage's office, I sat before Shisui.

"Thank you for coming, Hinata-san," he said.

I dipped my head.

"Like we assumed, Hiashi wants to talk with you. He's requested a meeting in the Hyuga compound." I gave him a nod. "He wanted to meet today, and I hope you'll forgive me for taking the liberty, but I pushed it to the day after dinner to give you time to rest, at least for a bit."

That was more than fine to me. Now calmer and rested, I did a complete report to the Hokage. I told him most of the details I remembered from the mission. I even admitted why I had burned the clone's corpses. Once I was done with my report, I left. It still felt like Shisui wanted to tell me something else, but he didn't. I bowed to him, hugged and pecked Secretary-chan at the exit, dashed toward home.

I landed in front of my apartment, my head still full of dreadful thoughts and warm feelings bubbling in my chest. It was a bit paradoxical, but that was my current state of being. I wanted to dance, maybe cheer, and I certainly wasn't able to contain the smile.

Nothing had happened between Ino and me except talking, hugging, and hanging out, but man, I felt like the luckiest girl in the whole Narutoverse. Was there something more on Ino's side of things? No idea. I hoped so, though probably not. Despite her outgoing personality, Ino put a lot of importance on her friends. That she also classified me as one of those friends was enough for now.

I didn't mind a spot of friendzone for the moment.

Before I could enter, the door swung open. Karin stood on the other side, wearing some of my day-to-day clothes. At some point, while I was gone, the redhead had even found glasses.

I took one look at her face, the impish smile, the gleam in her eyes.

"Nope!" I declared, spun around, fled.

"Hinata-chan, wait!" Karin called out. But yeah, nope.

I had important things to do—totally justified, completely reasonable things—that just so happened to involve avoiding Karin. Nope, I wasn't fleeing her. I just… remembered I had other stuff to do.

Karin called a few more times but, thankfully, didn't follow.

My destination was a small store that sold a few bobs and ends, and I needed them for this next part of the plan. What plan? Well, training with Best Girl Ino, of course.

I was more than willing to help the blonde get stronger. And I'd do my best to make her stronger. That meant sharing some of my training aids. That also meant a copy of the The Ultimate Variable Weight Distribution System For The Discerning Shinobi. With an extra the, because that was part of the name.

My weight seals were never found, and it had been over a month since I had dedicated effort to my personal training. I needed to get back into weighted exercises and chakra control. And since I was about to make a set of the weight seals for myself, might as well make one for Ino, right?

But I couldn't just slap a collar and goth bracelets on Ino, even if the idea did appeal to me. Ino wouldn't wear something that clashed that much with her sense of aesthetics. And unfortunately, goth phase was over. I liked black; I still wanted some black in my life, but maybe not all black anymore? A few spots of color here and there, maybe pink? I liked pink.

This was the same shop where I got the leather for my old bulky-weight seals, and the owner had a few other materials I could use. My goal? Small wrist and ankle bracelets, a pretty necklace that could be tucked under clothing so it wouldn't get yanked mid-fight.

---

I landed in front of my apartment, my head full of plans for the weight seals and pretty things to gift Ino with. Warm feelings bubbled in my chest. I wanted to dance, maybe cheer, and I couldn't contain the smile. It was going to be great!

Before I could enter, the door swung open. Karin stood on the other side, wearing some of my day-to-day clothes. Her face was placid, emotionless, like she was trying her hardest not to emote anything.

I nodded at the redhead, walked past her, stepped inside. While I was at the store, I also got materials to craft a set of training aids for Karin. I didn't know if she wanted help with training, but if she did, I wouldn't need to go out and buy another set.

Karin followed me deeper into the house.

I went straight to my room, put the materials on the desk, opened the drawer, and pulled out a set of leather working tools, needles, and the other things I had used in my previous work. From the pack I got from the store, I pulled the parts I needed and got to work.

A chair scraped nearby. I looked to the side, saw Karin had sat there, looking at my mess of tools.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

I turned back to the desk; my threads wrote the answer. "Re-creating some of my training aids. Do you want a set as well?"

I heard movement; Karin got closer, looking over my shoulder. "What is it?"

"The Ultimate Variable Weight Distribution System For The Discerning Shinobi." I wrote.

"The what?" She asked.

"…Weight seals to help with training."

"Is that why you're so strong?"

I waved my hands in the usual so-so gesture. "Part of the reason."

"Does it hurt?"

"Only if you abuse it."

Karin sat back, pulled the chair closer. "You didn't tell me you were a fuinjutsu master."

I stopped. Turned and looked at the redhead. "I'm not."

Karin gave me a skeptical look, but just nodded. I turned back to my desk and started working again.

---

Motivated as I was, it didn't take long to remake the seal to be more compact and efficient. I looked at the finished products: three sets of bracelets, three sets of ankle bracelets, and three necklaces. Mine was decorated with black-and-white details, Ino's had purple hints, and Karin's had shades of red. They looked nice, pretty even.

I adjusted the seals so that they could be calibrated by infusing chakra with a touch instead of threads since, as far as I knew, Ino and Karin couldn't manifest threads.

Karin had not left my side for the hours I worked on. I had even forgotten she was there. I picked her set, turned toward her.

"Come closer and stand still," wrote and waved for her to approach.

She did, looking at the stuff in my hand.

I knelt in front of her, and tied the ankle bracelets. Tested the clasping mechanism. Worked like the guy said it would. I got up, clasped the bracelets on her arms. Karin observed without comment. Finally, I walked behind the redhead and tied the necklace around her neck. I popped my threads out. I wasn't sure how strong Karin was. I set the weights on a very low setting. Just fifty kilograms on each.

Karin groaned, bucked over, and I had to catch her to prevent her from falling face first. Err. Well.

I adjusted the seals to twenty kilograms each. That was low enough, right?

"Ow, so heavy." Karin complained, straightening her back. She lifted one leg, then the other. She raised and lowered both arms a few times.

"Am I heavier now?"

I shook my head, wrote words. "The seals just make your muscles think you're carrying that much weight."

"Have you created other things like this?" She asked, looking at the weight seals.

I shrugged. "Better explosions, better storage, still working on the teleport jutsu. A few different types of barriers."

"And you aren't a fuinjutsu master?" She asked.

I shook my head.

"What is this then?" She waved her arms, showing the bracelets.

I tilted my head. Shrugged. "Any one fuinjutsu user could have done the same." I wrote.

Karin opened her mouth, like she wanted to argue, then closed it. "Can you teach me?" She asked instead.

Wasn't the Uzumaki famous for their seals? I wasn't sure I could actually teach her, but I could try. It cost me nothing, really.

"Okay." I wrote, head already full of teaching ideas and training methods. That also reminded me I had to come up with a training schedule for Ino. I don't think she would accept something like hell month, but some of the steps there were good. The meditation helped more than I liked to admit.

Arms sneaked around me from behind, grabbing and keeping me from moving.

"Where did you sleep last night?"

Karin's face was a mix of angry and amused.

"You abandoned me on the second night of living together? I even had to fend off a lot of people looking for you."

Err, really? That's how she wanted to deal with this?

"Right," I wrote, rolled my eyes. "You think I didn't see you checking out Rock Lee and Sakura-chan's chakra?"

Karin squeaked, let go of me. Her face built a pretty shade of burgundy.

Yeah, take that. Two can play this game.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Friday.

Proofreader: CakeEight

 

[okashihime]

"And then Hinata-chan, the bone freak said: 'You're too important and amazing Naruto-kun; I'm taking you somewhere nefarious to do horrible, horrible things to you.'"

I had already met with Kakashi-sensei and invited him for dinner at Sasuke's. I wasn't sure if he would attend. His response left me more confused than anything else. He just nodded, patted my head, gave me a sad eye-smile, spouted one lame excuse or another, then fled. Yes, fled.

What did I do to scare off Kakashi-sensei?

Now, Naruto, Karin, and I were at the brat's favorite ramen stall, slurping down tasty noodles while the sunshine brat told the details of his mission. This was the same day after I crafted the new weight seals. Karin had hers, and I often caught her fiddling with her bracelets between giggles. Was it still too heavy? Should I craft a set for Naruto as well?

I was somewhat skeptical about the whole story. It might be just a hunch, but I think Naruto was exaggerating things—just a little bit.

Before the retelling started, I had told Naruto about dinner at Sasuke's. To no one's surprise, Naruto was more than happy to attend. Given how he was obsessed with Sasuke in the original story, it was a miracle that nothing more than friendship developed there.

Was this obsession because of that whole fate thing? The Curse of Hatred and Will of Fire? Naruto was the latest iteration of Asura, while Sasuke was Indra's.

That reminded me that I still had to talk with Sasuke about many things: the person he wanted to kill, making sure he's not suffering too much because of the seal, and maybe just trying to see him as a person instead of the character I didn't like in the show.

Naruto's story took me back to the present.

"My clones and I plummeted the bone freak like we did with Gaara. You should've seen Hinata-chan. My super powerful combo attacks – the Uzumaki Naruto Nisen Rendan! I was about to send him packing when the young-obaa-chan and the black-haired one arrived."

It was hard to take Naruto's story seriously. By my side, Karin was in a constant state of giggles. Given how much the stall owner rolled his eyes at every new development, it was fair to assume he also didn't believe it that much.

Young-obaa-chan was Tsunade, right? So, Naruto fought Kimimaro, and the slug princess and Shizune arrived to help? Where was Jiraiya?

"Where was Jiraiya?" I wrote my question with threads. Karin stopped giggling just enough to read it.

"Ehh, ah, right! The Ero-sennin was getting his butt kicked by that other freak, the shark dude." Naruto slurped more of his noodles. "You see, Karin-chan, the Ero-sennin might like frogs, but he can't swim! Shark dude somehow transformed the whole area into a huuuge lake, and If I wasn't there to pull the Ero-sennin out, he might have drowned."

Jiraiya getting beat up by Kisame? The stall owner shook his head.

"Wasn't you busy with the bone guy, Naruto-kun?" Karin read my other question out loud. I had to keep Naruto's focus. Learn what happened with Kimimaro.

"Right, so, yes, obaa-chan arrived and was like: Imma gonna kick your ass, but then got her ass kicked instead. I had to save her and the Shizune lady. That was when I mastered my new awesome jutsu, the Rasengan."

Naruto's hands flashed with seals, and a clone appeared by his side. He went through the whole song and dance of creating the ball of chakra.

"Cool, right? It's super powerful!"

Ayame, the stall owner's daughter, covered her ears. I had a brief moment to wonder why before I learned of the reason.

Naruto lost control of the jutsu. At least he had the sense to hurl it away before it exploded on us.

The impact shook the whole street. It was almost as good as an explosion.

"NARUTO!"

The bellow was deafening. A bit late, I also covered my ears—not that it helped. Ayame gave me a sympathetic look. While the locals crowded around Naruto with angry glares and gestures, I stopped to think about the whole situation.

Kimimaro and Kisame teamed up. Was Orochimaru still part of Akatsuki? In the original story, he left after losing to Itachi, but Itachi never joined Akatsuki due to my meddling. What about Kimimaro's disease? Wasn't he supposed to be on death's door? Why was he going about and picking fights with legendary ninjas?

And now that I think about it, what about Itachi? Wasn't he sick as well? Is he still sick? Should I try to find out?

The commotion died down, and Naruto returned, somewhat ruffled and slightly banged up. His face was still full on with a smile.

"What happened next? And no demonstrations!"

"Ah, right. The bone freak went even more freakish, with black lines crawling his face and chest. He created a huuugee and deadly forest of bones. I managed to fend them off near me, so I was safe, but the obaa-chan and the other couldn't."

Ok, so at some point, Kimimaro used part of his cursed seal. Not the second stage, I don't think; otherwise, Naruto would have talked about Kimimaro shifting into a monster-like thing.

Naruto sat down again and looked at the food, part of his enthusiasm gone.

"Then the other dude arrived. And was like: You can't defeat this magnificent Naruto? We need to flee for our lives."

"A lot of people died, Hinata-chan," He said, now without the early fervor.

That… took a turn?

"The young-obaa-chan turned into an old-obaa-chan trying to save Shizune, but Tonton still died."

What? The piglet died? Shit. She was so cute.

"Tsunade left after telling us to bring Shizune back. I don't know where she went."

Tsunade's alone now? Shit, that was a bad outcome. Somehow, I think Shizune was a bigger part of why Tsunade hadn't fallen even lower, but now, the slug princess had isolated herself even more.

Naruto looked forlorn, sad. I could deal with those details later. I didn't like seeing Naruto like this. I got up, walked to the brat. Hugged him. He looked a bit startled. I pinched his cheeks.

"You did your best, right?" I asked.

He nodded. His eyes were a bit misty.

"Then all you can do is train harder and do better next time."

He nodded again. I pinched his cheeks harder. Let go of him and returned to my stool.

Wrote on my board. "How did the bone guy fight?"

Naruto perked up, the heavy mood from earlier gone.

"It was like fighting two of you and Sasuke at the same time. He was fast and good at taijutsu."

Naruto pushed the empty bowl of ramen aside.

"I tried doing like you always tell me to do, send in the clones and attack from behind, but it didn't work at the start. It was like the guy had eyes in the back of his head."

"How so?" It was Karin who asked now.

"Eh, no idea. Like I said, he was creepy."

I mulled over things. Naruto hadn't said anything about clothing, but if Kimimaro had joined Akatsuki, he would be wearing the black robes, right?

"What did he look like, Naruto-kun?"

"Older than us, younger than Iruka-sensei. Dressed in black robes." The brat paused, one hand at his chin. "White hair, red marks on the forehead. One eye green, another white."

I blinked. No, it wouldn't be, would it? White eye and seeing things behind his back. I knew about a dojutsu that matched those descriptions. I even knew there was one eye yet to be found.

"White eye?" I wrote.

"Yeah, creepy," Naruto said.

"Did it look like Neji's white eye?" I wrote again.

Naruto stopped, scratched his head. Then he nodded like he had just understood something that had been bothering him for a while.

"Yes! I knew I had seen white eyes like that somewhere; I just didn't remember where."

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Wed.

Yes, sorry, I'm skipping next Monday. Two reasons: My wrists hurts a little bit, I want a break from computer this weekend and prob won't write anything. Second, work is been very hectic, which is also why today's chapter is a bit late.

On a separate note: started writing Chapter 9. Currently named: Search for..., Redux. The name will prob change.

On another separate note: Dearest CakeEight, beloved and bestests of all cakes is going through a rough patch and won't have time, at least for a while, to proofread things. Thank you CakeEight, for all the help. <3

On yet another separate note: Anyone good with grammar who wants to read a few chapters ahead? Send me a PM if you do.

On the last, really, separate note: I've talked with a few artists regarding illustrations. There's one by the same artists that created the chibis. It's going to be Ino and Hinata on that picnic scene on the Kunoichi 201. I've also agreed with another artists, Fulminaire for a new illustration/cover for the story.


Thank you all for reading. <3

 

[okashihime]

It wasn't even the morning of the next day when I disentangled myself from Karin. I needed to get a new bed for her. My sleep and sanity depended on it. Maybe it was because Karin was somewhere new, but she'd been even more grabby and kicky than usual. It was impossible to sleep.

Not that I was feeling sleepy, anyway.

I walked to the window and looked at the still-dark sky. The sun was late today. Rood.

Since no amount of wishing would make the sun rise faster, I went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast and bake pastries.

For this first training session, I was going with the standard finger sandwiches and tea. I'd use the pastries as a reward for the training. That was positive reinforcement 101, right? Also known as manipulation, the good kind. It didn't matter in this instance, though. Ino wanted to get stronger; I would make her stronger even if I had to drag her kicking and screaming into the stronger.

I didn't make stuff just for me and Ino. I made extra portions for Karin and Naruto. Since I was already cooking for two, why not do it for more people? The effort increase was negligible.

After the sandwiches were the cupcakes and muffins. I know, the order was strange, but it didn't matter. I still had hours until the damn sun decided to grace us with its presence. Why was it taking so long today?

Hours idled away while I baked, made tea, and thought about training ideas.

The talk with Karin regarding the seals gave me a few ideas I wanted to try. I might have been… a bit too enthusiastic about explosions and dealing in lethal force. I didn't regret the enemies I killed, even if I still thought somehow my reaction to that whole affair was strange. But again, I was a soldier and had been training to kill since I got here in this world, even if most of the lessons were coated with a layer of pink.

Was it that surprising that killing didn't affect me that much?

No, what I regretted was not trying to help the chimera from Orochimaru's lab. I had theorized and even created barrier seals that increased the weight of those inside. A non-lethal version to capture instead of the deadlier exploding barrier.

I didn't even consider that one then, so enamored was I with the booms. It probably would not have been enough or feasible to help them, but I could have at least tried.

Outside, the sky started to brighten, and the lazy sun was finally on its way.

I organized the packs, sealed what needed to be sealed, left others on the table for Karin. I labeled everything and even left a written note to make things easier.

Back inside my room, I glanced at the redhead that was now torturing—grabbing my pillow. I wished the poor pillow luck in its next life. I looked over my outfits. The dress shirt, the skirt and tie. All in black.

I picked a blue shirt and shorts. It was civilian clothing, but that was fine. I had ideas about a new outfit. I'd start working on it after the training.

I left the apartment, made a quick detour to Naruto's house. Left breakfast hanging on his door. The brat would see the stuff there, right?

Konoha's shinobi highway was deserted at this time of the morning. Sun had just risen when I landed in front of the Yamanaka shop. I had agreed to meet Ino here at sunrise to start training. The street was deserted, apart from sleepy-eyed civilians walking to and fro.

I looked around, just to make sure I wasn't missing a hidden Ino anywhere, but nope. Had she forgotten?

Should I knock? Had I mistaken the time?

A chakra bundle crossed the store and arrived at the entrance. I looked at the door in time to see it open and Yamanaka Mother looking at me from inside.

"Good morning, Hinata-chan," she said.

I waved.

"Come in, Ino's still sleeping."

I scratched my cheeks. Man, this was embarrassing. I walked closer, and before I entered the store, I presented my offering.

"What's this?" Yamanaka Mother asked.

I popped my board, wrote words. "Finger sandwiches and muffins."

Yamanaka Mother moved away from the door and waved me in. I got past her, closed the door behind me, and followed her inside.

"Sandwiches? What's that?"

I erased the words, wrote more. "Thin slices of white bread with chicken, cheese, mayo, and lettuce."

"Hm," the woman hummed, looking at the miniature seal.

We crossed the store and entered the residence. Inoichi was already up, drinking tea. He gave me a nod.

"Are you going to open a confectionery?" Yamanaka Mother asked.

I considered that question. I did want to open a bakery. I just never had the time to think about it in detail. But that was a good idea, wasn't it? It could serve as a front for my ninja activities as the flower shop did for Ino's family.

"Come speak with me when you're ready." The matriarch said. "I can give you tips on managing a business."

I bowed in thanks.

"Now go wake up the princess, or you won't train today." She said, waved me off.

With one last bow to Inoichi, I changed paths and ran toward Ino's bedroom. I knocked, but when no one answered, I slid the door open and stepped inside.

The blonde was fast asleep.

I approached, gently shook her shoulder. "Wake up, Ino-chan."

Ino mumbled, blinked. "Hinata-chan?" Questing hands appeared from beneath the blanket, holding out to me. I held her hands, ready to help Ino out of the bed. It didn't happen. Ino pulled me onto it instead. She turned around, pulling the sheets over us, then promptly fell asleep again.

I luxuriated in the warmth. This wasn't bad. Perhaps I could indulge for five minutes? I wiggled in Ino's embrace until I was comfortable. She smelled nice. But I couldn't indulge for long. Five minutes, then training.

---

"Weren't you going to train today?"

Inoichi's voice woke me up from a pleasant dream. I opened a bleary eye. He was at the door, resting against the frame.

"It's halfway into the morning already." He said.

Oh… oh! Damn, the training!

I disentangled from Ino and got out of bed. The blonde turned around, pulled the covers over her head. Inoichi shook his head, smiled, left the room. I turned back to Ino. The nap was nice, but it was time to train!

"Wake up, Ino-chan." I shook the blondie and whispered.

"Don't wanna," she whined.

It was time for my secret weapon. "If you don't, I'll give the cupcakes to Naruto-kun."

---

Twenty minutes later, we were at the training field. Ino still looked sleepy, and her hair was a bit of a mess, but that was fine. She was pretty anyhow, anywhere, anytime.

God, so sappy. I had to control this. What was I? A teen in love?

"…"

I ignored that thought, popped my comms board.

"I have something for you," I wrote.

Ino yawned. Read the message.

"What is it?" she asked.

I pulled the small bag I had prepared and presented it to Ino. She took it, opened and found the bracelets and necklace.

"What is this? It's pretty." She said, running a finger over the purple stone in the necklace.

"The Ultimate Variable Weight Distribution System For The Discerning Shinobi." I wrote.

Ino looked at the board. Blinked. "The what?"

My shoulders slumped. I erased the cool name and wrote the boring description: "Weight seals to help with training."

Once she had read, I showed her mine.

Ino walked closer, looked at the bracelets, then the necklace.

"Are they the same?"

I nodded.

"Let me see it." She said, pointing to my seals.

I tilted my head, shrugged. Removed the bracelets — ankle and arm — removed the necklace. Placed them in Ino's hand.

She picked it up, looked at them. Nodded.

"How do they work?" She asked, then clasped mine on her arms.

I blinked. I was still surprised when Ino also clasped the ankle ones, then handed me over the black necklace.

"Help me put it?"

I nodded, took it, walked behind Ino. She pulled up her hair, exposing the back of her neck. My fingers brushed against her skin while I was tying the necklace.

Ino giggled. "It tickles."

Damn, it was a lost cause. I sighed.

"How do they work?" Ino asked again.

She didn't let me answer. She took the purple bracelets and clasped them around my arm. Same with the ankle ones. She faced me, ordered. "Turn around."

I did.

My hair wasn't long enough to cause trouble for her, but I did the same as she did, exposing my neck. After she'd tied the necklace, I took the board. "Send chakra in on each. Adjust how much you want them to weigh."

I stopped. Thought back on what Karin had asked. Wrote more words.

"They don't make you heavier, just make your muscles think you're heavier."

I saw the moment Ino activated it. She groaned, but unlike Karin, she didn't fall.

"Ow, ow. Forty is good, right?" She asked with eyes full of expectation.

I opened my mouth. Closed it. Looked away. Then nodded.

"Hinata-chan," Ino said, voice almost like a growl. "How much is yours?"

I turned around, power walked deeper into the training field toward the wooden dummies.

"Let's train Ino-chan!" I said instead of writing. I didn't look back. "Taijutsu?" I asked, hoping to distract Ino.

"Hinata-chan! How much!"

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Friday.

 

[okashihime]

"How…" Ino wheezed, taking deep breaths. Sweat poured out of her every pore. "Is this…" She lifted her arms, tried to punch the dummy. "Even possible?"

I understood Ino very well. Training with seals was a different beast, but I still think she was overdoing it.

"Lower the weights a bit?" I wrote, showed Ino my board.

She wanted to get stronger, but it was her first time doing this. Abusing it like she was now might backfire.

Ino's scathing glare was my response. She still hadn't let it go, huh?

I wrote more words. "Ino-chan, It took me almost two years to reach the same amount in each seal." I tried again.

"And… how… old— " Ino shuddered, wheezed again. "Were you?"

I looked away. I was seven, maybe eight? I didn't remember the details that well. I looked back at Ino, still trying to hit the dummy. I wrote more words.

"Fill your arms and legs with chakra. It helps." Once the blonde had read, I erased the words and wrote others. "In the evening, soak in hot water. It'll hurt tomorrow, but don't give up, okay?"

If she wasn't backing down, the least I could do was help.

---

It was the third day since my return, which left me two days to what would be the most embarrassing dinner of all time and three days to what could be a deadly confrontation with the Hyuga.

I wasn't keen on entering the Hyuga compound. I had only agreed because Shisui promised to come with to mediate things. Whatever that meant.

But right now, I sat on the grass of training field three. Ino had her head on my lap, and I pretended I didn't see the tears in her eyes.

Silly girl. Abusing weight seals on her first day wasn't smart.

When I went to her house this morning and found her worse than a shambling zombie, I tried to convince her to stay in bed and rest for the day, but Ino refused. She put on a brave face while we were still in front of her parents, only to break down once we were alone.

Could I do something to help?

"Ino-chan, I'll try something that might help, okay?" I whispered. At this point, I didn't even know why I didn't speak all the time. The pain from speaking was nothing when compared to the bone seals. Habit, maybe?

Ino, the poor thing, groaned. I took that as a yes.

I wasn't a masseuse, but I was utterly familiar with my muscles and body, given the amount of meditation time I spent trying to learn all the details about the seals and after resting from my training sessions.

The tip of my index finger touched the shoulder I'd seen Ino try to relieve the pain more than once. I pushed my chakra inside the muscles, circled it, and stimulated it like I did to mine after a training session.

The breathy moan-sigh Ino let out told me it worked.

I stopped the chakra flow and removed my finger. Ino whined, like I had just taken her favorite candy away. I created many, many chakra threads. Who needed fingers, right? Why not go all in?

---

My ears were still burning hours later. It had been a success on all accounts. What I had forgotten was how massages can cause pleasure, even more so after intense training sessions. Ino's moans would haunt me until the end of my days.

But it had worked! Within fifteen minutes, Ino recovered enough to move. The improv massage session lasted for about an hour.

"…"

Now, we were discussing training strategies, and I was trying to convince Ino Kage Bushin was the training cheat.

"Shadow clones?" Ino asked.

I nodded, and my threads wrote the message. "You need to be careful because the jutsu splits your chakra between the clones, but it helps with training."

"How so?"

Well, this might be a secret, but maybe not? Kakashi-sensei already knew it, Naruto also knew it.

"The clones are independent copies," I wrote. "Once they disperse, you receive their memories and experiences. Even if you create just one clone, it's like double the training time."

Ino scowled. "So, is it just more training? I'll have to suffer double?"

I opened my mouth. Closed it. Ino wasn't wrong. I nodded.

Ino's scowl turned worse.

After Kage Bushin, I taught Ino Shunshin no Jutsu, and Doton: Moguragakure no Jutsu.

Ino, for her part, taught me a trapping technique for which she had no name. I recognized it for what it was: the one she used when fighting Sakura in the original show to trap her with hair. Ino's family used this technique to immobilize the enemy and hit them with mind transfer. She also taught me another one, which Azuma insisted her team learn, a defensive earth release that created a wall on demand: Doton: Renga no Jutsu.

Right now, Ino was showing me her family jutsu.

"Let me show you," Ino said. Her hands flashed with seals. She pointed towards me, and immediately, I felt the chakra trying to invade my head. My own rose in response, but this time, I held it back. This was a demonstration of her family's techniques; there was no need to interrupt Ino's jutsu.

There was this moment of weightlessness like I wasn't in my body anymore.

"Huh? It worked?" I heard my voice say. I felt the sting of pain in my throat, but it was distant, muted.

"Ow, ow, ow," I heard it again. "Why does it hurt so much?" My voice whined. The chakra inside my head vanished, and I regained control of my body.

Ino covered her mouth with one hand before she turned to the side and spilled her guts out. Her face crumpled on a mess of tears and snot.

What happened?

I got up, walked to Ino, knelt beside her. I rubbed slow circles on her back. Once we cleaned the mess, Ino hugged me like I was a lost puppy who needed help or something. I didn't mind being hugged, but I wasn't sure why she was hugging me.

It took her minutes to speak again.

"Why are you always in pain, Hinata-chan?" Her voice trembled.

I tilted my head. Thought about Ino's jutsu. Ah, right, damn. I hadn't considered that.

"Orochimaru left seals inside my body," I whispered.

Ino shuddered.

"One of them is trying to kill me, and I'm failing to contain it."

Ino gawked at me, her expression caught between disbelief and anger. Then she shot to her feet and yanked on my arm, trying to haul me up. "We're asking Dad to help."

I didn't budge. Ino kept pulling my arm, but she wasn't strong enough to move me if I didn't want to be moved. She yanked again, and again. When I didn't follow, she whirled on me.

"What?"

How could I tell Ino I didn't trust people in the village to poke around my insides? I was willing to trust Inoichi, but he wasn't a seal master or a medic-nin, to my knowledge. Could I really let some stranger tamper with the seals inside me? What if that person screwed up? What if they didn't have my best interest in mind?

"Remember I told you about Danzo?" I wrote out.

Ino read the message, nodded.

"How can I be sure whoever your dad finds won't be a spy?"

Ino's face turned dark, teeth clenched. "Can't we just talk to him, please? Maybe he knows something that might help, even if you don't let anyone check the seals."

Ino's pleading eyes stabbed my heart. Could I refuse it? I couldn't. I sighed, nodded.

Ino's face lit up, and she dragged me toward her house.

---

One thing followed another. Before I knew it, I was being led into Konoha's hospital, except instead of a regular room, we went underground. Ino and Inoichi never left my side, which went a long way in making me feel better. With the mind ninja here, the chances a spy would try to mess with me were all but nil, right?

Unless the mind ninja was the spy.

I shuddered, pushed away that thought. Couldn't live without trusting people.

The underground room stretched wide, looking like it took up the entire floor. Against the walls, I saw computers and other diagnostic tools, a trolley, desks, computer monitors, and several other tools that were a mix of medicine and fuinjutsu.

The door opened, and two people entered. One I recognized immediately—the new Hokage. The other was a young woman dressed in a black kimono with a fishnet shirt under it.

"Hello, Hinata-san," Shisui said when he approached. Now that I was closer, I got a better look at the woman: short dark hair, black eyes, and a sallow and tired face. "This is Shizune," he said, gesturing to the woman. "Tsunade's apprentice."

Oh… oh! Damn, Shizune was here? Fangirl-sama, who had been sleeping for the past days, stirred.

"I see you recognize the name," Inoichi said. There was this strange gleam in his eyes I couldn't place. I nodded.

The door swung open again, cutting the conversation short. Another figure stepped inside.

Tall and broad-shouldered. Spiky white hair pulled into a long ponytail. Red lines slashed down his face. A forehead protector stamped with the Kanji for 'Oil.' The big rolled scroll strapped to his back.

Jiraiya walked until he was in front of us.

I shook, just a bit. I had seen the Ero-sennin once when Naruto taught me the frog summoning jutsu, but at the time, I was too tired and didn't interact with him; but now? The man, the legend, was here on my behalf. How could I stay calm?

"You're…, you're…" My whisper was hoarser than usual.

Ino gave me a strange glance, then looked back at the newcomer.

Jiraiya heard me. He smiled. Took a pose.

"I'm the most holy hermit of Mount Myoboku: the Frog Sannin. Pleased to meet ya, young lady!"

Shisui looked at me; I caught the brief hints of a smile. "I invited Lord Jiraiya. He might know more about Orochimaru's seals."

My mind focused like never before, inspiration struck. I knew what I had to do. Something that was missing, and only now I realized. A fundamental part of me that couldn't be denied. Something I couldn't not do it, if I was ever to be myself again.

With trembling hands, I rummaged through my stuff, happy I had already started resupplying my essential supplies. Out popped my comms board, and my threads wrote my message. That got me a few raised eyebrows from everyone around, aside from Ino.

I took samples of my good impression kit v:2.2. Out popped the cupcakes and tea. I turned the board around so that people could read my message.

My words spelled: "Please, take care of me, Ero-sennin!"

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.

 

[okashihime]

Jiraiya's smile turned brittle before he burst out laughing.

"Hayahahya. You're that brat's little heartache, huh?"

I scowled. Crossed both arms, made the perfect denial X across my chest. My threads even propped my comms board and wrote the message.

"Denied!"

Jiraiya laughed even harder. Beside me, Ino snorted, glared at the old man. The other adults just smiled, like they'd seen something nice, not Ero-sennin blasphemies.

It took a moment longer until Jiraiya calmed down. Once he did, the man summoned a frog and sat on top of it. No one batted an eye or complained. I wouldn't have dared to, either. For all his bluster, Jiraiya was op as hell. The man could very well do whatever he wanted.

I took notes, however. I remembered the horse-sized badger guards. Would they let me use them for improv seating?

…

Next time, I would seal some chairs or stools. That way, I could sit down.

Conversations between the adults happened while I was distracted thinking about seating arrangements. The sannin greeted Shizune, exchanged a few quiet words with her. He greeted Ino, Inoichi, and Shisui.

"Out with it," Jiraiya said, looking at the Hokage. "What was so important that I had to stop my research?"

I noticed Shizune also looked curious. They hadn't been told?

Shisui looked at me, I saw the unspoken question. I nodded.

"Young Hinata is another survivor of Orochimaru's experiments," the Hokage said.

Shizune's face turned into a blank mask. Jiraiya nodded. Well, I guess the Sannin already knew most of the details.

"Inoichi informed me of new developments." Shisui turned to me. "Could you explain?"

I looked around. The area was big enough. I walked further from them, placed my hand on the ground. Black chakra lines spread from my hand, replicating the diagram Orochimaru had branded into my mind that day in the Forest of Death.

Once it was done, I took a few steps to the side, imprinted the key, a few more steps, and the lock I cobbled together.

"This is the seal," my threads wrote. "Until a month ago, it was under control, but I ran out of chakra escaping, and now I can't stop it anymore."

Shizune was the first to approach, looking the seal over. Jiraiya was next. The frog went puff and the sannin walked around the black lines, scratching his chin.

"Shikoku Fuin," he said, glancing at me before turning back to the seal. "Kakashi taught you that?"

I nodded, but the sannin wasn't paying attention to me. Inoichi, Ino, and Shisui also approached. They looked interested, but not the same as Shizune and Jiraiya.

"This…" Shizune started, then stopped. She looked at Shisui, then at me.

"Yes." Jiraiya confirmed.

What were they seeing? I knew all the details of the diagram, even if parts of it still made no sense to me. I knew what it did and what it was doing. But was there something more?

"It's incomplete," Jiraiya said, still walking around the first diagram.

"See here?" Shizune had approached the frog sannin. "You think?"

"Yes," he nodded.

What were they seeing? I approached, looked over the same area they were looking at. That one part dealt with the reinforcement of my body, the reason that I got stronger the older I got.

"And this part here," Jiraiya said, pointing to another node. That node wasn't referenced anywhere in Orochimaru's data dump. I could only guess what it did.

He turned to me.

"Is there more?"

I nodded, then shook my head. I took my board, erased the words, but before I could write, Jiraiya stopped me.

"Let's fix this first," he said, approaching me.

I looked up, then up some more. The man was huge.

"I've seen examples of his work to keep his victims from speaking." His finger burned with visible chakra.

Under my disbelieving eyes, he poked me in the throat. It stung and burned, like whatever the seal on my throat was didn't want to be modified. Then it stopped.

"Can't remove it without more preparation, but with this, you should be able to speak for a short while and not hurt yourself."

I felt things around my throat. Like Jiraiya said, the seal now had an on/off switch. That was the best way I could explain it. It wasn't free. I had to burn chakra to deactivate it, which seemed paradoxical.

A horrid feeling brewed inside of me. I schooled my face. Took a deep breath. I wanted to scream. To claw his eyes out. To punch his face. To bust his damn balls.

If it was this easy, why the fuck hadn't he done so before?

Seven years. Why the fuck had it taken seven years?

Tears fell from my eyes unbidden. I looked away, wiped my eyes.

Jiraiya mistook the sentiment, smiled, patted my head.

I did my best not to slap the offending appendage away. Thankfully, Ino was soon by my side, smiling and crying, giving me a reason to get away from the sannin.

"Hinata-chan," she whispered.

"Ino," I said back, buried my head on her shoulder, wrapped my hands around her to avoid doing something stupid.

There was a bit of conversation behind us, but it entered one ear, left through the other, no words were captured.

I knew I was being irrational. I knew I was overreacting. I just couldn't stop. It felt so cheap. In my mind, I'd master fuinjutsu, break the seals on my own, surpass Orochimaru. I never complained, even from the beginning. It was just another reason to learn more, study harder, another minor inconvenience I could deal with.

I pulled deep, wheezing breaths, my face still hidden on Ino's shoulder. I was making a mess there. I hope she'd forgive me.

Minutes dragged on, and the more rational side of my mind got to work. For one, I knew Jiraiya had often been away from Konoha. Years, if I wasn't mistaken. He might not even have been here when stuff happened in the years that followed. Two, Jiraiya didn't have the motive to seek me out and help. Why would he? I was just another poor sod suffering in this world, out of sight, out of mind. I think he only did something here because he was just there, and it cost him nothing.

I don't think Jiraiya was the type to go out and seek the poor and desperate.

The situation was different if that poor and desperate just happened to be in front of him. Take the original Akatsuki orphans, for example. The man abandoned the war front for three years to train the kids.

Calmer now, I released Ino. She looked worried. I wiped my face, forced a brittle smile. It was fine, this changed nothing. If they wanted to help now, that was only in my favor. It didn't matter that the more they acted like they cared, the worse it felt.

I couldn't shake the feeling they were building to something horrid.

My recovery was noticed. People gave me kind looks, not knowing what went inside my mind. I nodded, smiled again.

"Thank you, Ero-sennin."

My voice was still a bit scratchy. Damn, all that work for the sexy husky down the drain.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "Don't learn Naruto's bad habits. It's Frog-Sannin."

I cast a brief look around. Shizune and Shisui were discussing something near the imprint I had created. Inoichi wasn't here anymore. I hadn't seen him leave.

"From what I know," I said to Jiraiya. "There's still two more seals that I don't know what they do. In my heart, in my eyes."

The conversation between Shizune and Shisui stopped, they approached.

Jiraiya scratched his chin, looked at Shizune, who shook her head.

"The good news is," he said, looking at me. "No one tried to remove the seals when you were younger. You'd not have survived the attempt."

I glared at the man. That was his good news?

There was another unspoken conversation between Shizune and Jiraiya.

"If nothing is done, you'll die in a few months," Ero-sennin said, still scratching his chin.

The growl escaped me before I could stop it. "So, I should wait until I croak, then?"

Ino gasped, grabbed my arm. "What?" she demanded.

I really, really wanted to kick his nuts.

"I can help you contain the seal; it won't last forever but it should give you time to find another solution."

"Can't you do anything?" Ino demanded.

"If Tsunade was here, perhaps."

"What if you had Orochimaru's research notes? There was another diagram there, similar but different." I said, teeth still gritted.

"That might help," The Ero-sennin said. "But the problem is that you won't survive without Tsunade, maybe not even with her." Jiraiya pointed to the node that I didn't know what it was or did.

"This part here will fight back if we try to remove the seal," he looked back at me. "You already saw part of that when you ran out of chakra, it triggered some of the fail-safes to prevent removal." He looked at the other diagrams I had inscribed, then back at me. "Not to mention we'd need to cut you open to reach the seals."

Great, fantastic.

Now I had to find the lab data. Track down Tsunade. Deal with the council. The dinners. The Hyuga.

Peachy.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Wednesday.

 

[okashihime]

I lay on the cold floor with nothing but a flimsy towel to protect my modesty. Shizune and Jiraiya paced around me, tracing symbols in black ink. An hour had passed, and they didn't seem close to finishing.

Did I really have to be here for the creation of the seal outer framework?

Shisui had left some time ago. The Ero-sennin had insisted Ino leave too, but thanks to all gods, Best Girl Ino refused to abandon me alone with them.

"Who taught you fuinjutsu?" Jiraiya asked while drawing symbols closer to my head.

"The Old Man gave me primers," I said, still feeling conflicted about the lack of pain when speaking. "But it wasn't until Orochimaru's that I understood."

"And the storage?"

From my place on the ground, I shrugged.

"Seemed the logical thing to do, just connecting wires."

"The training seals," he said. "What gave you the idea?"

I grinned despite myself. Opened my mouth, then snapped it shut. I was about to say Rock Lee, but I hadn't 'known' the Beautiful Green Beast then. Or maybe that wasn't his question. I mulled it over, decided on another approach.

"I was tired of remaking the seals each time I wanted to increase the weights."

That was safe enough, wasn't it?

"Done," Shizune announced somewhere to my right. I saw her wipe sweat from her brow, smearing a streak of black ink across her forehead. If she noticed, she didn't care.

"I'll be done in a moment," Jiraiya answered to my left.

The moment of quiet was only disturbed by the rustling noises of the ink brush.

Jiraiya walked closer, used the brush to retouch a few of the lines crossing my body. He gave one last look, nodded.

"Done," he said.

Shizune approached, gave one last glance at the seal, nodded. She walked opposite Jiraiya, crouched and placed both hands on the ground. On the other side, Jiraiya did the same.

"I'm sorry, Hinata-chan," I heard him say. "This is going to hurt, just a bit."

I didn't have time to say anything. I felt the chakra building. There was blinding pain. I heard screaming. Mine or Ino's, I couldn't say.

---

I opened my eyes. Light green walls, sterile smell, white curtains over the windows, a small cupboard by the side of the bed. This time, there was no jar with flowers or basket full of fruits on the cupboard.

There was a chair by the bed, and Ino sat there. A worried Ino on the chair.

"Oh," I said, a bit dumbly. Sat up. "Hi?"

"How are you feeling?" Her hand took mine, squeezed.

I stopped to think about her question, inspected my body. For one, most of the pain was gone. There was still a smidgen left, but nothing like it was before.

"Most of the pain is gone," I said.

Ino nodded, wiped away a stray tear. I pulled her in a hug.

"How long was I out?" I asked, looking at the window.

"Just a couple of hours."

The hug lasted a moment longer before I released Ino. My clothes and bracelets were folded and piled by the side of the bed. I pulled the sheets away, got up, got dressed.

This time, I noticed that Ino didn't leave the room while I put on my clothes. She did look away. There was a bit of pink on her neck. Cute.

Ino's voice wavered. "What are we going to do, Hinata-chan?"

Now that I was calmer, more collected, and not in pain, plans formed in my mind. I knew what I had to do.

"We'll talk outside," I said to Ino. The look on her face told me she understood my reason. She gave me a nod.

After dressing, I dragged Ino with me and we left the hospital. There was a bit of a commotion before I left, some of the nurses wanted me to stay at least for the rest of the day, but my time was too limited to waste an entire day woolgathering and doing nothing.

I led Ino back to training field three. Once there, I cast my chakra senses around; only when I sensed no one nearby did I sit down.

Ino sat by my side but didn't say anything.

"First is the Hyuga," I said in a low voice. "I don't know what they want with me, but I don't think it's pleasant."

Ino schooled her face. Gave me a severe nod.

"After that, the council."

"Do you have a plan already?"

I shook my head. "Not yet. I'll know once I talk with Sasuke's mom tomorrow."

"Do you think they'll help?"

"Shisui hinted so," I said.

"I talked to Dad," Ino said, looking toward her home. "He'll help you. Nara Shikaku will too, but he isn't sure about the Akimichi clan."

"After the council, I'll ask Shisui to send me on a mission to find Tsunade."

"The legendary healer?"

"The slug princess, yes."

"What if he doesn't send you on that mission?"

I shrugged. Cast my senses about again. Lowered my voice. "If it's between obeying orders or trying to save my life…" I left the rest unsaid. But Ino was smart.

Her face turned serious. She nodded. "I'll come with you." There was no doubt or hesitation in her voice.

---

Time waited for no one. Hours blurred while I hung—trained with Ino, baked more of my essential supplies, prepped for the Uchiha dinner, picked new clothes, and ordered a new shinobi outfit. I still had plenty to do, but dinner time had arrived.

Between all that, I found time to craft another set of weight seals. It was a gift for Hanabi. It was naive of me to hope things would work with the clan, but I guess that was what dreams were for.

I encrypted these using the same method I used with the storage seals from the lab. I wasn't about to let the Hyuga profit from my efforts when things went to shit.

But again, time waited for no one.

Somehow, Karin had talked me into dressing in a white kimono. She tried to adorn my head in some strange hairdo, but short hair and a vigorous denial ended that disaster. But no amount of scowling saved me from her treating me like a dress-up doll. She even applied makeup!

The giggles she let out when she thought I wasn't looking told me she was up to something. I just didn't know what yet.

By my side was Naruto. To no one surprise, he wore another one of his orange jumpers. The brat kept sneaking glances my way.

I wanted to slap the silly out of him.

It took a few minutes more until Sasuke arrived. Kakashi-sensei was nowhere to be found. Maybe he wasn't coming? Thankfully, I wasn't the only one dressed up for the event. Sasuke had also opted out of his usual blue shirt and white shorts to wear what looked like a traditional kimono.

A vein throbbed on my face. Karin's motives now plain to see. I heard giggles from inside the apartment. There would be retribution. Terrible, terrible retribution.

"Yo, Sasuke!" Naruto greeted the newcomer. "What's up with that fancy robe?"

Sasuke looked somewhat uncomfortable, but he smirked nonetheless. "Don't you have anything else to wear? What, you're afraid people won't see you if it's not orange?"

Light bickering ensued, but it brought a smile to my face. It was nice to see Naruto have a friend who wasn't obsessed with another man.

"Hello, Hinata-chan," Sasuke said, giving me a slight bow. Was that a bit of pink on his cheeks? "You look good."

"Hello Sasuke-kun." I nodded back. "You look good too." I answered in kind, and immediately regretted it.

There was this moment of silence where no one said anything. Naruto looked between me and Sasuke, scratched his head.

God, please kill me now and end the awkwardness.

"Kakashi-sensei isn't coming?" Naruto asked.

I shrugged, happy for a distraction. "I invited him; no idea if he'll come," I said.

Naruto turned to me. "No more writing board?"

My smile soured somewhat before I grinned wider.

"Ero-sennin helped me with that."

"Ehh? How?"

Sasuke didn't seem keen on wasting time, however. "Should we wait?"

Naruto shrugged. I did, too.

"Better not," I said, thinking about Kakashi-sensei and being on time. "He'll probably show up—" I felt the bundle of chakra appear behind me. "—three hours later or something."

"Mah, I wouldn't leave my favorite genin and chunin waiting."

"Sensei!" Naruto hollered.

I turned around, waved at sensei. He looked even more haggard than usual, dressed in his official ninja attire. I guess that, like Naruto, he didn't care about appearances.

I turned back to Sasuke. "Lead the way, Sasuke-kun."

It was time to see what this dinner was about.

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Friday.

 

[okashihime]

It was strange to walk into a walled village and see many people who shared similar looks. Black hair, tear troughs, and black eyes. Almost everyone was dressed in the familiar Uchiha blue.

They weren't rare to spot in daily village life, them being the police and all. I had my fair share of run-ins with the police when I started using explosions in my training until they learned to ignore the mute girl in training field three.

If it wasn't for the others, I might have wandered off exploring the Uchiha village. It was my first time here, after all. My inherent dislike for Sasuke pushed me to keep him at arm's length most of the time. I wasn't as familiar with him as with Naruto, but the clan intrigued me, a lot. I wanted to know why Shisui and Itachi managed to break free from the Curse of Hatred.

Most of the people we passed by cast wary glances our way. Undisguised stares followed us until we crossed exterior walls stamped with the Uchiha's symbol into a house yard. It didn't diminish my want to explore the place, sharp glares thrown my way or not.

A small path led to a house of traditional architecture and sliding paper doors. Warm light spilled from inside, and a woman I recognized as Mikoto waited for us at the entrance.

She bowed when we got closer.

"Thank you for coming," she said, then gestured for us to enter.

The house was spacious and mostly wooden. The floor was covered with tatami mats, with just a few elegant furnishings. She led us inside, and through a set of doors. Inside was an altar of some sort, with flowers and incense burning.

Our destination was past the reception room, to a living room with an ample low table and several comfy-looking cushions for us to sit on.

Itachi was already here. He wore a dark blue kimono that looked elegant on him. When we entered, he got up and bowed to us. I was torn between being happy and afraid. Vague memories from before coming here told me that Itachi was an absolute madman, capable of atrocities. And that was because he was a kind person at heart.

The other part was just straight-up fangirl-sama. She wanted to cheer, maybe ask for his autograph. That would be weird, wouldn't it?

"Welcome, and thank you for coming," he said.

I held in a shudder or trembling. Wasn't sure which.

"Thanks!" Naruto hollered, then walked to the low table and plopped his butt on one of the cushions. Sasuke sat near Naruto, and they started chatting.

I took out my offerings: an expensive sake bottle and baked pastries. Unsure about the protocols, I offered them to Itachi, who took them with a smile.

"Are these the famous cupcakes Sasuke keeps telling us about?"

Behind me, Kakashi and Mikoto had started a conversation. To my side, Naruto and Sasuke's talk was getting animated.

"I don't know about famous," I deflected.

There was this moment of awkward silence when I wasn't sure what to say. It didn't last. Hollering soon interrupted all other conversations.

"…better than that Chidori of yours!" Naruto bragged. He got up, and by his side, a clone appeared. Chakra started to build in his hand.

Oh, no. I covered my ears.

In a puff of smoke, Kakashi-sensei was behind Naruto. He held the brat's hand. "Not inside the house, Naruto-kun."

Naruto was unperturbed by this turn of events.

"Outside, Sasuke, I'll show you!"

It was Mikoto who walked closer now. "How about you show it after dinner, Naruto-kun?"

We sat around the table. Naruto was by my side. On the opposite side sat sensei and Mikoto. Itachi was at the head of the table, while Sasuke was on the other end.

I don't know what I had expected. Maybe a parade of servants bringing food. Nothing of the sort happened. After we sat down, Mikoto served us tea, and while we drank, Itachi and Sasuke served dinner.

Seeing both in such… homely scenes brought a smile to my face. I always thought Itachi's role in the story was one of the most tragic, even if I never understood why he did what he did. Were things so dire that he saw no other way than to kill his whole family?

Anger flared at the thought, anger directed at Danzo and all these old codgers that for all their wisdom, were incapable of looking past their own boots and self interest.

Dinner was a mix of veggies — boiled, sauteed, fresh — rice, and grilled fish.

"No broth…?" I heard Naruto's disbelieving whisper.

He looked at the dinner like he couldn't understand why it wasn't ramen. Or why would someone go into trouble cooking something like this when buying ramen was much easier and faster?

The conversation had turned into sharing stories, somehow. Naruto had shared about his favorite ramen and cupcakes, to no one's surprise, and about beating the crap out of Mizuki and graduating. It was interesting to listen things from his perspective.

From the head of the low table, Itachi pointed his chopsticks in my direction.

"Five years ago, we had a surge of reports about someone trying to attack the village."

Why was he pointing at me?

"When we investigated, it turned out that Hinata-chan had just learned how to create explosive tags and was… practicing." He coughed, looked away. "With a little too much zeal. We had to post an extra notice at the department to ignore the explosions from training field three."

I scowled. It wasn't that bad. Maybe a few dozen explosions a day. What did they expect me to do? Not train?

"It was just training," I muttered.

"Hinata-chan has some really good training ideas," Naruto bragged. "Like using the shadow clones, and tree walking and the coin trick."

"Coin trick?" Mikoto asked.

"Yeah! She keeps these coins stuck to her stomach all day, even while training other stuff."

Naruto babbled out things he shouldn't. I cringed. Not that I minded the knowledge spreading, but the image of me with coins stuck to my skin wasn't how I wanted to be remembered.

"Naruto-kun," Kakashi-sensei said from the other side of the table. "You shouldn't tell others secret training from your friends."

Naruto tilted his head. Scratched his blond hair. "But Hinata-chan also told Sasuke."

Mikoto smiled, and Itachi shook his head. Sasuke got up from his cushion, grabbed Naruto by a headlock, and noogied the shit out of the Sunshine Brat.

"Don't spill secrets," Sasuke said.

After that, it didn't take long to finish the meal. After dinner, dessert was the pastries I had prepared, which Mikoto served with bitter tea. While we nibbled the sweets, conversation somehow turned to training, from there to the academy curriculum, Itachi's early graduation, and Kakashi-sensei's time as a student.

"Eh, Kakashi-sensei on a team?" Naruto asked, like the idea that Kakashi was a genin once never crossed his mind.

Silent and brooding, Kakashi nodded.

Oh, damn. I got it now. Kakashi's mood was because being here reminded him of Obito and Rin, right? I hadn't even considered that when I suggested to Sasuke that we should invite him.

"He was a student of the Fourth Hokage," Mikoto said.

Naruto's eyes shone like stars. He looked between Mikoto and Kakashi. I don't know why he was surprised. That was common knowledge, wasn't it? Maybe Naruto had forgotten? Or maybe my memories were playing tricks on me.

"Sensei!" Naruto hollered. "Tell us about the Fourth Hokage!"

I held my breath. I wasn't sure what was going to happen. I had no idea how Kakashi would react.

"Oh, my," Kakashi-sensei said in the most tired voice I had ever heard from him. "Look at the time; I have a report to submit." He got up, bowed to our hosts. "Thank you for the dinner."

Then he flickered away, disappeared.

"Eeh? Working at this hour?" Naruto complained, oblivious to the whole situation.

That also signified the end of small talk. I caught a quick exchange of glances between Itachi and Mikoto before Itachi spoke.

"Naruto-kun, weren't you going to show us your new jutsu? Let's go outside," he said, getting up from his place at the head of the table.

"You betcha! Come Sasuke, Hinata-chan, let me show you my amazing new jutsu!"

"You boys go ahead," Mikoto said without getting up. "I need to talk with Hinata-chan."

"What about?" Naruto asked.

Mikoto gave Naruto a gentle smile, then a wink. "Girl's talk."

My face twitched. I wanted to go outside and see the inevitable mess Naruto would cause, and see how Itachi would react to it all. But that wasn't the reason I was here. I was here to gather allies. See if the Uchiha clan would support me.

"Come, Naruto."

Sasuke pulled Naruto to the courtyard, and once Itachi had also left, pulled the paper door close, leaving me alone with Mikoto.

I was nervous about this whole thing. To stave off embarrassment, I popped out more pastries and tea.

"Thank you," Mikoto said after nibbling one of the cupcakes.

"You're welcome," I said back. I fidgeted, looked toward the door, the plates and stuff that were still on the table. I got up and started picking things up to take them to the kitchen. We could work and talk, right?

"Let me help, Hinata-chan," Mikoto said, doing the same.

We worked in silence for a few moments before the woman broached the reason for the dinner.

"Shisui told us about what you did, and I can't thank you enough."

I glanced at her from my place in the sink, washing dishes. She still had that same gentle smile on her face.

I shrugged. I wouldn't break the first mission I ever received and confirm or deny anything. I hope that didn't come off as rude or something.

"We'll help you as much as we can," she said, picking a plate and letting water fall over it.

"Thank you," I said, feeling like my weight seals had been disabled, and I was back at my base self again.

"What do you think of Sasuke?" Mikoto asked.

I tilted my head. That question had come out of nowhere. I guess the vital talk was done, and it was time to learn Sasuke's embarrassing children's stories. I grinned. I didn't mind acquiring blackmail material.

"He's… somewhat too intense," I said. I hoped that didn't sound bad. I think I was Sasuke's friend, but I still couldn't put away the preconceived ideas from the show.

Mikoto chuckled. "That he is."

I picked up another plate, dunked it into soapy water.

"What do you think about marrying him?"

The world came to a screeching halt. My grip tightened, and the plate shattered, just like my brain at that moment. Pieces of porcelain cut into my palm. It stung.

I looked wide-eyed at Mikoto, who was still smiling at me. What the hell was that?

---

Spoiler: AN

Thank you for reading. Next chapter Monday.

Also, nope, I haven't changed my mind regarding relationships in the story.

I did try to create a few images for Hinata with a white kimono. They aren't good tho.