Chapter 6
HIKARI HYUGA
The day was finally here, and he had already gathered all his belongings last night in anticipation of the ruling.
Simply put, they had reached an impasse. Hiashi had finally lost any and all leverage against him, and even if he was to stifle his ambitions somehow once more, the man had understood that he would fail sooner or later, that Hikari would become a ninja no matter what.
So, in the end he succumbed to the inevitable and used the opportunity to sway two more votes to his side, and while he did not yet have an exact account that meant that he was now on an almost equal footing with his father, who was the leader for the elders whose entire purpose of existence was to preserve the archaic and cruel traditions of this clan.
"This is unfair," Hinata's voice echoed through the room, as Hikari zipped up the bag, and all his belongings had easily fit inside one simple bag, but that did not bother him at all.
"Not really," he answered as he turned around to glance at his cousin, and she was the only one who had tried to stand up for him in that dojo.
Hinata Hyuga was kind. It was a quality that made her a poor ninja but a wonderful human being.
"In the end, both your father and I got exactly what we wanted," as he regained his freedom while Hiashi Hyuga gained some ground against his father's faction.
And for all her naivety, she understood the politics better than many people thought.
"But he kicked you out of the clan!" she seemed rather aghast by the idea, and for someone whose entire life revolved around being the heiress of a clan, it must be grave thing.
But to him, the Hyuga name was nothing but chains holding him back, and now he was free of them.
"You were going to change the clan!" she declared, betrayal and pain lacing her tone.
"You were going to change all the traditions," and he shall, but not as a Hyuga.
The divide and hatred between the Main Line and Branch Line meant that any effort to bring about change by him would face significant resistance from the Main Line families, and this would only deepen the schism that already divided the clan.
The clan had grown even more cautious ever since the Uchiha massacre, and so even if he were to become the Clan Head, change would remain a pipe dream.
The only person who could change the clan was the girl standing in front of her, for she held both the pedigree and the talents to bandage old wounds, and carry forward the clan as a whole.
"And I will, but not as a clan head," and he would help her in this dream, making sure that any and all external forces did not interfere in the internal matters of their clan.
"That is your role, for only you can bridge the schism between the main and Branch lines," and her breath hitched at those words, as he put a hand on her shoulder.
"There is only so much that I could learn while training in secret. After all, if I am to become Hokage, I will need to become stronger," and her eyes widened as he told her of his plan—one he had never shared with anyone before.
"Much stronger," and it finally dawned on her that he had not given up on his dream.
"Then that means..." and the reality dawned on him, as she connected all the dots on how he would have her teach him all the lessons from the academy, and share her notes. How he would make her spar with him, and practise other chakra control exercises.
"I may be leaving the clan, but I will be joining you at the academy soon enough," and he smiled as he brought down his hand on her head as he walked past her.
"You better watch out," he whispered, giving her his usual smile.
"Or I just might steal your second spot in the class," and she turned around as she rubbed her head.
"You are going to be my classmate?" she ran after him and began to follow him out of the clan compounds.
"That is the plan," and she saw him smile as she realised that he may be leaving the clan, but he would still remain close to her. If not as a cousin, then as a classmate.
And as they reached the main entrance, both of them stopped as they saw the familiar face of Neji standing there, waiting for them. He wore his usual white jacket and black shorts, but now, rather than a simple band, he wore the leaf hitai-ate on his forehead, marking his rank as a genin.
"Go," he whispered to Hinata as he saw his brother's menacing expression.
"But..." she tried to protest, but he smiled at her and shook his head.
"This is my battle. Let me handle it," and despite her misgivings, she obeyed his command and walked back as he stepped out of the clan compound and faced his brother.
And Neji's eyes were filled with rage, frustration, and anger as he glared at him.
"All these years," he gritted out, and while his brother may often be blinded by rage, Hikari was certain that he would have easily made the connection on why Hikari had waited for so many years to reveal his true nature.
"You played with me!" he snarled as he shook his head in his defence.
"I only tried to protect yo..."
"I DID NOT NEED YOUR PROTECTION!" Neji screamed as the veins around his eyes tightened, and his Byakugan was activated.
"YOU THINK THAT I AM A WEAKLING LIKE HER!" he shouted, pointing towards Hinata, as Hikari's eyes narrowed, who saw her shrink as Neji's chakra roared forth, cracking the ground under his feet.
"She is not a weakling, brother..." and he finally snapped.
"I WILL SHOW YOU WEAK..." and with that, his brother's form blurred as Hikari moved as well, and grabbed the hand, aiming for his heart, stopping it before it could reach the tenketsu there.
THUMP!
His brother tried to strike at him once more, but Hikari simply produced a little wind storm and pushed him away as he jumped back himself, as his brother ground his teeth.
"Face me!" he snarled, blinded by rage.
"And what would that change?" he asked, for he had no desire to face him.
"Change! I do not care about change..." and just as he was about to rush at him once more, Hikari did not even sense as a man emerged behind him and grabbed his brother by the shoulder.
"That is quite enough, Neji," and it took him a second to register this stranger's chakra, and when it did, Hikari felt mesmerised by its sheer ferocity, which was only matched by the dark gaze that lingered on his brother.
The man wore a green spandex suit and a green flash jacket. His hair was thick and black, and he knew of but one shinobi who wore such a uniform. Leaf's most powerful taijutsu master, the Green Beast—Might Guy.
"This is not how a ninja behaves..." and he could see Neji trying to pull away with all his might, but the man held him in his place with but one hand as those dark orbs turned towards him.
"Let me go!" Neji screamed.
"I am afraid I cannot do that, young pupil!" and his voice carried a strange energy and excitement as he spoke rather loudly.
"For this is not how comrades settle their conflicts!" and he smiled.
"If you wish to face him, then you must wait until he wears the same hitai-ate as you!" and Neji's eyes narrowed, as he finally settled down, as he realised that attacking him right now would constitute him attacking a civilian, which was a crime.
"And I can assure you, you won't have to wait for long...."
0000
HIRUZEN SARUTOBI—The Sandaime Hokage
The Hyuga clan was one of the most important and integral clans of Konoha. It was rare for clans to expel their members, rare ever to do so for orphans, for doing so was thought of as an insult upon the clan itself, for a clan that failed to care for its orphans was no clan.
In the history of the village, this was only the second time that a clan had expelled one of its members, and so the fate of the said orphan lay in the hands of the Hokage, who had already received a request from the Hyuga clan head to care for the child; he could not.
And Hiruzen sympathized with Hiashi, who was bound by tradition and duty and could do little to help his nephew.
"Give the boy to me, Hiruzen." Danzo's words were callous and unapologetic as always, as he talked about the boy as if he were cattle.
And to Danzo, shinobi were indeed cattle, or better yet, tools to be used and discarded. Hiruzen himself thought differently and believed that there was more to a shinobi than his ability to kill.
That they could be more than simple killers.
"The Hyuga clan will not let you enrol him in the academy, and the boy has talent that would be wasted in a civilian," and indeed, for he had had his men give him a special report on the boy, and the findings were rather unbelievable.
Chakra control in the ninety-eighth percentile, reserves larger than most chunins, and a mind as sharp as some of Konoha's most elite shinobi. And that all was without any formal training, and as Hiruzen tried to imagine just what the boy could achieve with a guiding hand, he could not help but be hopeful.
After Minato's death, Konoha had found itself lacking in S-ranked shinobi, and though they still had a few names to throw out, time had begun to dim his once stellar and fearsome reputation, and people were beginning to call him old.
Apart from him, the only true S-ranked shinobi that the village could rely on was Jiraiya, and even then, this was a stark contrast from the situation a decade ago, when Konoha had in its ranks over half a dozen S-ranked shinobi.
The only silver lining in these dark times was the new generation waiting to step into the light, one that was led by the promise of Minato's blood and Itachi's sacrifice. And though he had great expectations from Naruto and Sasuke, peace and circumstances had made them blunt.
Yet here was a student who had not let the times of peace fool him, who had struggled and strived towards excellence, even without the shadow of war and death looming over him.
"No," and so Hiruzen had little intention of forcing, turning this promising shinobi into another one of Danzo's mindless tools.
His answer was not well-liked by his old teammate, whose gaze narrowed at his words.
"You cannot be thinking of wasting a talent such as this," Danzo asked bluntly, and he had no such intentions.
"I am not," he was thinking quite the opposite, actually.
"First, you refused to let me train the jinchuriki, and now you won't let me even have this Hyuga child," and Hiruzen bristled at the mention of Naruto.
"You have not forgotten about my warning, have you?" he reminded him, as he slowly put down the pipe and looked his friend in the eye.
"I have not," Danzo retorted, and that was good, for there was a limit to his indulgence.
"The same goes for the boy. Stay away from him," and he had enough troubles on his own, though in his case, Danzo would hardly find him.
"What do you intend to do with him?" and he would not relent, so Hiruzen sighed and told him of his plans.
"You are right that the Hyuga clan will not let me admit him into the academy," and he could always force the issue, but Hiruzen had learned to pick and choose his battles, and this one was a fight he would much rather spare himself.
"However, enrolling would be fruitless as well, given that the boy already knows more than most of his teachers," and he was a bit rough around the edges. Still, his mastery over chakra control and two nature transformations put him above most of the instructors there.
"I intend to have him train in the ANBU," and his friend's silence showed that he had not expected this of him.
"ANBU," Danzo whispered, as he looked into his eyes.
"Have you forgotten the lesson from what became of Itachi?" and no, he had not forgotten.
"No, I have not. And that is why I intend for him to remain in the ANBU for but half a year, just until it is time for the graduation at the academy," and Hiruzen would not repeat the same mistake he had made with Itachi.
"I shall then induct him into a suitable team," and already he had a few combinations in mind, but that was a matter for later.
"To sharpen a tool only to blunt him later on," and what he may call blunting, was Him allowing the boy a chance at friendship and companionship.
"I have not announced it yet, but talks are going on between the daimyos to revive the chunin exams," and now it all clicked for Danzo, as his friend nodded.
"Now I see," Danzo whispered, as he understood his plans.
"You plan on using the boy as a ringer," and sometimes it was not strength that won wars, but the projection of strength, and in these times when Konoha lacked the actual might to decimate its enemies, it would do well for them to project their power.
"With Minato gone and Itachi leaving the village, we need to show the world the new face to fear," and he believed that he could be that face.
Hikari Hyuga, or as he was now called, Hikari Hizashi.
"And while there are others in this generation that show great promise, I believe he can carry the burdens of darkness for them all as you do for me," and if Danzo disagreed with him, he did not speak up.
"Even the veterans fear the ANBU. Are you certain that the boy will succeed?" and Hiruzen shrugged.
"The boy has made some powerful enemies," and the Hyuga elders were not ones to forget grudges, so the boy's days were numbered, despite Hiashi's protection.
"He will either succeed—or he will die..."
0000
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