I was once more dressed up in fine silk, my hair done a bit more carefully than normally, and my mother a bit more nervous as she waved me goodbye as I left our home.
Once again, I was summoned formally before the clan head. I wasn't entirely sure about the cause for it, Hiashi knew, but he had been tight-lipped so far.
And so, I walked the short path between my home and the main family compound towards a surprise.
Along the way, people smiled and nodded to me, the Brach family all seemed to hold me in great respect, even more so than the main family, because to them I represented hope itself. Hope that there was a path upwards, towards a better future.
I had very much and very deliberately been turned into a symbol, a rallying point for the branch family, a living piece of evidence that the main family wasn't some distant behemoth; it was within reach for those talented enough.
It made the clan seem closer, more united than ever, or at least in a long time.
War was always something that could unite the clan, as well as the village. The nations themselves grew more united as they turned their desires, their hate, and emotions towards outsiders.
Yet, even that alone wasn't enough to explain the unity of the Hyūga clan, no, the invisible divide between main family and branch house seemed thinner than ever.
And as the reason for that, the entire clan held me in high esteem.
"Lady Yuki, the Lord and young Lord are inside," the guards greeted me as they respectfully opened the doors for me. I smiled and nodded in return, and entered the grand hall.
"Lord Tatsuo, Lord Hiashi." I greeted the two with a bow.
"Yuki, no need for that, you are to be family. Come, sit with us." Lord Tatsuo waved his hand, as if to dispel the formality, as he urged me to join him and his son.
I admit, I was half tempted to sit in Hiashi's lap, just to enjoy the reaction I would no doubt get from the father and son duo, but I held the impulse back and respectfully took my seat.
"From your performance against my son, I can see you have recovered well from your last mission." Lord Tatsuo began.
Hiashi looked down, his face still as stiff as ever, but his neck seemed slightly red, so I knew he was embarrassed by his father's words.
"I admit that I am still struggling to get used to life back in the clan, after so long of sleeping with one eye open, it's jarring to sleep in a soft bed again." I said with my own head bowed to match Hiashi.
"Ahh, yes, that is very common in shinobi who stay in the field for too long. It is rare in our clan, but then again, so are these circumstances we find ourselves in." He sighed; the weight of the war was clearly weighing heavily on him.
"The clan has asked much from you, young Yuki, and I am grateful. Rarely do the branch produce someone as strong, talented, and loyal as you, and I want nothing more than to reward you for it." He continued.
Once more, he sighed.
"The only reward that would be fitting would be retirement from active duty, and to allow you to marry my son, something I wish to see happen as soon as possible, as does the rest of the clan, your happiness would be the clan's blessing."
His words caused Hiashi to jerk slightly, the redness creeping further up his neck and his face.
Because, while his father might have called it happiness and blessing, what he really meant was that he wanted us to have kids, and soon.
"However, with the war still going on, and so much of the clan away… in truth, the war isn't going well, and we are stretched thin. The clan and the village just can't afford to pull you out just yet, so the clan has agreed to hold off on your marriage until the war is won, and until then…" He paused.
"Until then, you will likely be given more missions, though I will personally ensure they aren't some like the last, we can't have you away from the clan and village for so long. While I can see." He paused once more, his own cheeks flushing slightly.
"While I can see you are getting along well with my son, I still wish that you can spend more time in the clan and village, deepening those bonds, getting ready to set out roots for when the war is over." He finally concluded.
I bowed my head slightly, more out of politeness than agreement. "I understand, Lord Tatsuo. I will carry out my duty—both for the village, and the clan."
He nodded slowly, smiling gently at me. "Good. I will speak with the Hokage regarding your next assignment. In the meantime, remain in the village, rest, recover… and if time allows, consider spending more time with Hiashi. It would benefit the both of you."
"Hiashi, while I know you are working hard to help me with running the clan, do try to find time to spend with Yuki, and not just for training… I would like it if you could start deepening your bond with her soon." He addressed his son and put extra emphasis on the word "deepening".
Which caused poor Hiashi to get even more embarrassed as he was pretty much told to have sex with me by his own father, right in front of me.
I even felt some embarrassment by proximity.
Hiashi looked up at me, as if asking for permission, which was cute, he really was a sweet man at heart.
Seeing my small nod, he sat up straighter. "Yes Father, I will do my best to find time to spend with Yuki."
Having seen everything, Tatsuo sighed and shook his head as she slowly stood up. "Ahh, Hiashi, my son, you will end up wrapped around her finger if you aren't careful." His words just caused Hiashi to once more look down, while I could barely hold back a giggle.
"I will try my best, father-in-law." I finally said, unable to help myself from messing with Hiashi.
"I have instructed everyone that needed to be told that you are to be treated like my son's wife, that is to say, a member of the branch family, and Hiashi. Good luck." He finally turned to leave after throwing those words at us.
As the doors slid shut behind Lord Tatsuo, silence once more blanketed the room. I glanced toward Hiashi.
He was still staring at the table, posture rigid, the tips of his ears a traitorous red.
"You know," I said softly, "for a clan leader in training, you're pretty easy to fluster."
"I'm not flustered," he muttered.
"Oh, good." I stretched slowly, my silks shifting with the motion. "Because we've apparently been given official permission to deepen our bond. Wouldn't want to waste that."
"You're impossible," he said, finally looking at me.
"And yet," I smiled, brushing past him toward the exit, "you're not telling me to stop."
He didn't.
…
It wasn't until half an hour later that I stepped out of the room, a satisfied smile on my face. The two guards looked at me with embarrassment etched on their faces.
They stood close enough to the doors to know what was happening inside, this room wasn't one for secret conversations, everything said in there was meant to be heard, so things could spread in the clan.
Which was why Tatsuo had lowered his voice a few times, and made it extra clear when telling good news, it was a way for the main family to feed the branch family 'rumors' it wanted them to hear.
That just so also meant that what happened after Tatsuo left was heard by them, at least everything I didn't whisper into Hiashi's ear.
"Please, I doubt that was the most that room has seen." I scuffed and rolled my eyes at how stiff they were; the entire Hyūga Clan was like that, but then again, that was why it was so fun to mess with them.
Shaking my head, I quickly walked through the compound. I had nothing much to do today. Hiashi was going to be busy, so he was of no help to relieve my ever-growing boredom, which meant I would instead go for a walk through the village.
While most branch family members couldn't just walk around the village whenever they wanted, I was no longer bound by the same rules. I didn't need to ask for permission, even if they always gave it, no, I could act as I wanted.
As long as I didn't do anything that would damage the clan's reputation.
Well, what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them, would it?
So with a smirk and fine silk I started to wander through the village, once more taking note of the atmosphere in it.
The village had changed.
There was still laughter in the market stalls, still children running through the streets, still old women gossiping under shaded awnings—but the laughter didn't last as long, and the children were quieter. Fewer men stood at the corners, fewer shinobi in uniform. Every face looked just a little more tired.
Even here, far from the front lines, the war was beginning to press in.
Despite everything the Hokage did, the village was touched by the war, maybe not with flames, but the economy had taken a big hit, fewer people around to spend money, to earn it, fewer merchants to sell things, some vendors had little left to sell.
Suddenly, I felt the air next to me shift, the telltale sign that someone was body flickering near me, I narrowed my eyes, alert and ready.
"Hey Hyūga chick, you are Koji's bitch aren't ya?" Came the greeting as a Kunoichi from the Inuzuka clan, along with her ninken, came to a stop beside me.
At least they were easy to recognize, with the clan tattoos, and the smell of dog, giving it away even when apart from their canine companions.
"Pretty sure only Koji calls me bitch, you can just call me Yuki." I greeted her as I slightly lowered my guard.
"Hah! That's great, you girl, is just great." She laughed and smacked me on the shoulder in an overly friendly manner.
She had the kind of energy I usually associated with falling trees and bar fights—loud, physical, and absolutely without shame. Her ninken sniffed me once and then sat down with a grunt, apparently deciding I wasn't a threat worth growling at. Charming.
"So, what do you want?" I asked, brushing her hand off my shoulder before she could mistake me for a chew toy.
"Was just moving by when I caught the scent of Koji's personal piss spot, and damn, with all that hair of yours… no wonder you got so angry, washing that hair must be difficult." She said without shame as she reached out and ran her fingers through my hair.
She really didn't care for personal boundaries, or minding her tongue. I was half a mind to send this woman to the hospital, I'm sure they could fit her bed next to Koji's.
"I still smell?" I decided to focus on the important bits, like the fact that she had apparently smelled me from a distance, despite all the effort I had taken to wash myself, and that the accident had been weeks ago.
She nodded with an exaggerated sniff. "Oh yeah, I can smell it easily, as can any Inuzuka worth a damn, don't forget we use our piss to track at times, we can smell even trace amounts for weeks and months, not to mention when a pretty head like yours gets soaked."
I ignored the crude words and grabbed a handful of my own hair, giving it a sniff. Yet all I could smell was the soaps and oils I used to wash it.
"I don't smell anything," I said, dropping my hair.
She barked out a laugh. "Oh no, girl. I said any Inuzuka could smell it, and you might be an Inuzuka's bitch, but you aren't one of us just yet. But you're his territory now. Piss and everything. Hell, that scent's so baked in, even if you dumped a perfume bottle over your head, we'd still catch it."
"Lovely," I deadpanned. "I'll make sure to thank him later."
"You should, poor guy misses you a ton, and stuck in the hospital like that? Why don't you go pay that mutt a visit? Will make his day."'
I tilted my head. "Maybe I will."
Tsume grinned. "Good girl. And hey—bring snacks. He's been whining about the food."
She and her ninken flickered away in a blur of chakra and movement, leaving behind the faint scent of fur and mischief.
I stood there a moment longer, watching the street bustle on, then smoothed down my robes.
Fine silk and all, I figured it wouldn't hurt to swing by the hospital—just for a short visit, of course.
Purely out of duty.
Because while I didn't mind taking on the role of being his bitch in bed, he better not go around saying it so loudly in public, it was enough that one clan already knew such things about me, I damn well didn't need more.
Stupid Koji… stupid Alpha…
(end of chapter)
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