Shogi

Kurenai really hated the Hokage’s office

She was left flabbergasted as she made her way out of the office. Like any morally sound adult she wanted to alert Lord Third about the behaviors exhibited by Hinata Hyuuga and what she saw taking place first hand at the Hyuuga compound. She naively expected him to listen to her concerns and call a meeting with Hiashi Hyuuga, she had even mentally prepared herself to face the stoic man and his entourage with their ‘better than everyone else’ attitude,  stuck up faces and soulless eyes (ok so maybe she had some mix of personal hatred towards the man but who could blame her?)

She did not, however, expect to see a flash of guilt cross over the Hokage’s face as she spoke or his blatant dismissal of the issue stating that it was simply an internal clan matter and he could not easily get involved

Hinata is just a shy timid girl, she needs to get stronger in order to survive the harsh shinobi world he said

We can’t baby her

Hiruzen didn’t have the heart to tell her that years ago a little Hinata came up to him personally and told him about the same issues Kurenai was telling him about. Of course he just looked in the other direction, his hands were tied and there is not much he could do he told himself 

Hinata was shy, but she was also kind, even to those that didn’t deserve it. She was also the most determined person Kurenai had ever met. Hinata was the most hard working person she knew, no matter how many times she failed she always dusted herself off and tried again

And she was only 11 years old, still just a child

The Hokage was supposed to protect the children of the village, not leave them for the dogs

So that explains why the Jinjuriki of the village is treated like that, Hiruzen just turns a blind eye

Now she began to understand why Asuma and his father never got along 

She even considered playing the “future daughter-in-law card” but at this point she didn’t think it would make much of a difference

At a very early age Hinata came to the conclusion that Lord Danzo was not a nice man. He was acquaintances with her grandfather, and often made himself at home within the walls of the Hyuuga compound.

He gave her the creeps, though she was too polite to voice her opinion to anyone, not even to Ko or her sensei who she seemed to have gotten quite close to in a short space of time

Danzo would often watch spars between her and her sister while her grandfather alone supervised. He used to watch Neji’s spars long ago but for some reason his interest shifted to Hinata and her sister. He made her feel like a delicate porcelain doll on a pedestal being put up for auction in front of a large audience, scrutinizing every stance she took, every kick, every closed tenketsu point. One wrong move and she would shatter and be deemed worthless.

He always watched the two sisters fight intensely, she suspected it was to see the level of skill they both attained or how much progress they both made with training but sometimes he did more than simply watch.

Sometimes it was the sly touches or accidental bumps that made her uncomfortable, it was the way he smirked as he analyzed her from head to toe that actually made her wish her father was around, because Lord Danzo never stayed for long when he was present.

But at least he only did it to her, Hanabi got a different treatment. Hanabi got approving headshakes or mere verbal corrections when her form was slightly askew. Hinata was fine with that, all she really wanted was to protect her little sister, even if they weren’t on the best terms right now

Today was another one of those days, she was sparring with Neji because Hanabi had heiress duties to attend to. It was the day before the chunin exams and she silently wished they’d allowed her and her cousin to rest before the big tournament but that wasn’t the case. 

She was currently on the floor, thrown across the room by her cousin who still hated her. She struggled to get back on her feet before she took her fighting stance once more. She was certain she was a pitiful sight to behold, but she didn’t have a choice, she couldn’t wallow in self pity and cry herself to sleep, because as her father told her when her mother passed away “Crying is a sign of weakness” and she refused to be seen as weak. 

“Do I really have to fight against her? Just look at her performance, its pathetic!” Neji whined to their grandfather.

She felt a sharp pain in her chest, whether it was from his words of annoyance or the attack that sent her flying across the room she wasn’t sure

Despite Neji’s hatred towards her she was always determined to one day prove herself to be a worthy opponent for him, no matter how hard she had to train

“Do as I say boy!” her grandfather demanded

Neji opened his mouth to complain again, but before the words left his tongue he felt a sharp pain in his eyes

The complaints he initially had resting on his tongue were now replaced by his pain filled screams

“Disobedience would not be tolerated in this household! You may be my grandson but you are still a mere branch member, it would do you well to remember your place” 

His seal was being activated, he was now on the floor screaming and clawing at his temples

“S-stop” he begged as he laid his head on the blood stained floorboards, gripping on to his hair trying to find some sort of relief “Please, s-stop!” he groaned 

Hinata watched in horror and disgust as her grandfather did not seem keen on stopping anytime soon

If he didn’t stop Neji could be seriously injured, and that wasn’t something she could let happen, especially the day before the chunin exams 

Anger filled her body and without thinking she ran towards her grandfather. She felt as though she blacked out for a moment but the next minute her grandfather was on the floor gripping his stomach and she was standing over Neji. She had no clue what came over her or what happened, she was doubtful she was the reason her grandfather was lying on the floor, it was impossible!  

Her grandfather stood up quickly, she expected a scolding accompanied by a beating but neither happened

“Go to your rooms immediately, Lord Danzo and I have some things to discuss”

Both men shared a knowing look at each other before they stared her down, Danzo now sporting a slight smirk on his face

She moved quickly to help Neji off the floor but he hastily slapped away her hand and stumbled out of the room on his own. 

“Looks like you finally found what you were looking for all these years Hikoda” Danzo whispered to him as the duo left the room

“Indeed, I wonder if Hiashi knew she possessed it all along” Hikoda pondered “If so then that means he’s been lying to me all these years”

“Don’t confront him Hikoda, it would be easier for us to get rid of the girl without raising suspicions, we don’t want to make the same mistakes we made with Hitomi”

“Hmm you’re right, we have to be patient this time but we can’t afford to wait so long that she discovers how to control the power she possesses” 

“I might have the perfect solution, one that would keep her busy enough so she won’t have time to ponder on what happened her today but at the same time won’t raise suspicions when the time comes to get rid of her” Danzo said as he shook hands with his old friend

---

The second round of the chunin exams were currently taking place, the students were currently in the Forest of Death while their teachers and foreign dignitaries watched it all unfold from the Hokage’s tower.

Kurenai held her breath as she wanted Team eight, they moved with such silence and precision they grabbed the attention of a good bit of people in the room. That’s what she was training them to do all along, she even got the ever so loud and rambunctious Kiba and Akamaru to move with stealth for the first time in their lives.  

Her team were the second to complete the mission, right after the blood thirsty trio from Suna which raised suspicion to everyone present but none dared utter a word given that the villages were trying to enter into an era of peace with each other

She dearly hoped none of her students would have to face off against the red headed boy in the next round, if that were the case she might encourage them to quit while they’re ahead

Still, she was damn proud of her students, she decided that she deserved a drink tonight and maybe a fancy dinner courtesy of Asuma. 

As she was walking out of the room to go congratulate her students she was pulled aside by the Hokage

“Your team did well Yuuhi, you did an excellent job training them” he said while smoking his pipe

Seemed like smoking was ingrained in the Sarutobi genes.

 “Thank you Lord Hokage, they all trained very hard for the exams”

Usually she would have politely excused herself by now, but judging from the look on Hiruzen’s face there was something else he needed to discuss

“Listen Kurenai…I’m going to recommend your team for the anbu black ops unit, they showed that they have the potential and would make a fine addition to the division, we need shinobi that specialize in tracking and retrieval”

She took a second to process his words, she wasn’t informed of any of this when the teams were initially formed, the parents of her teamed never mentioned anything about the possibility of anbu as a career path for their children

“But they’re still so young, plus the exams haven’t even finished yet, we don’t know if all three would be successful” it was odd that he was bringing it up at this time when the village protocol states only those who make jounin can then move on to become anbu and her students weren’t even guaranteed the title of chunin just yet

He waved his hand in the hand while taking another puff from his pipe “A mere formality, we’re still interested in them whether or not they make it to the very end” 

We? Suspicion arose from her being as she listened to him, who else has been eyeing her team

“Besides, Kakashi made anbu when he was what? Ten years old? And he turned out just fine, so don’t worry too much Kurenai”

She raised an eyebrow at his statement, it took all her years of training not to roll her eyes at that moment “Define ‘just fine’? This is Kakashi Hatake we’re talking about, he’s eons away from being ‘just fine’… besides I still think my students are too young for the division, we should at least have a discussion with the-”

“I wasn’t asking for your input Yuhi, I was just informing you, the decision has already been made, now if you’ll excuse me”

As the Hokage walked back inside to join the rest of spectators she caught a quick glimpse of a figure in the background who appeared to be eavesdropping 

Even though it was brief, she recognised those nasty wrinkly bandaged up arms anywhere 

Danzo

She really hated the Hokage’s office