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Love's Misconstruities	By : Idleflame Category: Naruto > Het - Male/Female Views: 1431 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Love�s Misconstruities

Chapter 23

�� It was late in the
afternoon when Hinata heard a knock at her door.� Since she�d moved in she�d become quite
popular, so it would seem.� Sakura and
Hanabi had both dropped by separately on the first day, and Kiba & Akamaru,
Shino, and Kurenai had come by yesterday as a group.� All had offered house-warming gifts and both
congratulations and condolences after hearing the news. �Though she wasn�t quite sure
just how the information had gotten leaked or exactly how many people knew, it
couldn�t be helped.� Besides, right
now she welcomed the company.�

�� Though Naruto was now
a neighbor and she knew it was only a matter of time before he came by to claim
his bowl of Ichiraku ramen, she�d heard that he�d left for additional training
and wouldn�t be back for days�so it couldn�t be him knocking now.� Curiosity getting the best of her, and just
out of politeness in general, she made her way to the door and opened it.

�� Hinata-sama,� her
guest blurted out before she could even open the door fully.

�� Neji-nii-san?�

�� I heard about what
happened while I was away.� �May I come
in?�

�� Stunned, Hinata could
only nod, stepping aside.�
�You�heard?� From who?� she asked once they were both inside and the door
closed securely behind them.

�� Tenten.� She informed me as soon as I returned,� he
explained, taking off his shoes and stepping into her modest apartment.

�� Tenten told you?� the
girl echoed, still confused about how quickly gossip seemed to sweep through
the village.� �What�� What did she tell you exactly?�

�� That question made Neji
stare at his cousin for a brief moment before answering.� �That Hiashi-sama, your father, has disowned
you.� That you were forced to move from
the estate and request living quarters, which I see is accurate based on my
observations thus far.� But there�s more
to the story, isn�t there,� he added, alluding to Hinata�s earlier
question.� �I assume this has something
to do with your trip to Sunagakure.�

�� Hai�� She paused before answering his questions
further.� �Have you spoken with my father
yet?�

�� No.� I came directly here after my
debriefing.� Hinata-sama, what happened
to cause all of this?�

�� I�� she began, though
she wasn�t quite sure where to start.�
�Gaara�� He asked me to�to marry
him.�

�� What?!� came Neji�s
initial reaction, though seeing his cousin shrink back from him made him lower
his tone.� �And you accepted the proposal,
I take it.�� To this she meekly
nodded.� Neji sighed.� �And Hiashi-sama did not approve.�� She again replied without saying a word,
merely nodding her head.� A long silence
ensued as Neji let the news soak in.

�� Neji-nii-san�� Do you��
Do you disapprove as well?� Hinata eventually asked in a small
voice.� The taller boy turned and looked
her straight in the eye, then did something unexpected.� He smiled.�
Though just a small one, it eased the girl�s discomfort.

�� No. �I support your relationship; you should know
that already.� I see how happy he�s made
you.� And...it appears
that he is trustworthy enough.� I
just�didn�t expect you two to move so quickly.�

�� Tears of both relief
and gratitude filled Hinata�s eyes but she fought to keep them in check.� She�d gotten quite good at it these past few
days.� �Neji-nii-san�arigatou gozaimasu,�
she declared, bowing.� Neji moved and put
a hand on each of her shoulders, as much of an embrace as he�d ever give
anyone, save maybe a future wife.� Hinata
smiled up at him, grateful to have such a wonderful cousin.� But that thought made her heart drop when she
realized that he still did not know the whole truth of the matter.� Her happy expression reverted to its previous
state and she averted her gaze.

�There�s something you should know,� Hinata began once again.� �It wasn�t so much the fact that I was
marrying Gaara that disturbed my father so��
No, I didn�t even get the chance to inform him of whom it was that I was
engaged to.� What upset him was that I
refused to marry�the man he�d chosen to betroth me to.�

�� Betroth?� Neji
repeated.� He and Hinata�s father were
fairly close.� In fact, Hiashi often
consulted Neji on matters that affected the clan.� Whether he took Neji�s advice or not was a
different matter, but he did include him in the discussions nonetheless.� He�d heard nothing about this, however.� It both shocked and wounded him at the same
time. �

Hinata nodded, lowering her head.�
She knew what his next question would be and wasn�t sure she wanted to
see the look on his face when he found out.�
�Who is this man that he would have you marry?�

�� Neji-nii-san�� she
whispered.

�� Yes?�

�� Hinata did not answer
his reply, and after a moment he realized why.�
She wasn�t just saying his name for the heck of it.� �No.�
Hinata-sama, are you saying that he chose me?�� Again, she only
nodded.� �Is he mad?� We�re first cousins!� Such marriages are taboo in our clan!� He of all people knows that!� What is he thinking?� he raved, clearly
exasperated.

�� He�s been so desperate
to find a way to make you his heir�� I
suppose he decided that it was easier to bend this small rule than break a much
bigger one.�

�� Allowing a branch
family member to succeed as heir of the clan instead of the direct descendent
from the head family,� he explained.�
Neji could only shake his head at his uncle�s audacity and began to pace
angrily around the small room.� �How dare
he make such a decision without consulting me�without consulting either of us.�

�� It�s an arranged
marriage.� He doesn�t have to-�

�� You don�t need to
defend him anymore, Hinata-sama!� �What
next then, I wonder?� With you gone, will
he want me to marry Hanabi-sama instead?�

�� Hinata definitely
couldn�t meet his angry eyes now.� Having
met with her sister the other day had been nice, but the news she had brought
had not.� �There�s�more you should know,�
she continued, causing Neji�s expression to shift from angry to concerned.� He listened intently for Hinata�s next
words.� �Hanabi-nee-san�she visited me
the other day.� My father�� He has formerly named her as his new
successor�and, as such�would mean that I would become a member of the branch
family.�� Neji�s eyes widened with the
realization of what came with that demotion.�
�And, yes�it does seem that Father still wishes to marry you into the
head family�� Hanabi-nee-san came here in
part to find out more about her future husband and-�

�� I�ve heard
enough!� I refuse to bend to that man�s
will on this matter!� Hinata-sama, I
swear to you that I will not allow him to carve this accursed seal into you,�
he declared, gesturing to his forehead protector, or rather what lay beneath it.� �Nor will I marry any other than the woman of
my choosing,� he finished, heading for the door.

�� Neji-nii-san, where
are you going?�

�� To
the main house.�

�� Neji-�

�� Hinata-sama, this
concerns both of us now; I can�t simply ignore it.� Besides, I swore long ago to protect you, so
don�t argue with me on this,� he stated with a soft smile as he departed,
leaving his cousin alone once again.�

�� Neji-nii-san�� Someday you will make a wonderful husband�though thankfully not mine.� Truly,
thank you for everything.�

* * *

�� The next morning,
Hinata was awakened early by Shino.� They
were to report to the Hokage in half an hour.�
Hinata hastily prepared.

�� After being briefed
they quickly headed to the main gates to depart on their new mission: find
Akatsuki member Uchiha Itachi.� Teams 7
and 8 would be dispatched together to accomplish this task, and though it would
be dangerous, Hinata found herself somewhat excited.�

�� A
new mission�something to take my mind off everything for a while.� And�I know it�s going to be dangerous, but
Hokage-sama has faith in us�in me to carry it out.� Plus, finding Uchiha Itachi is ultimately
just a step in the direction of finding Sasuke-san�and if I can help Naruto-kun
in his quest then I have to do my best!�
I have to believe in myself so I won�t let anyone else down.�

�� And so they departed
on their long journey, not knowing when they would be back or in what condition
they would return in.

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Love's Misconstruities