Sun on the Garden
Hinata’s hands are caked with dirt, but she wipes the sweat off her brow anyway. Her long hair is held in a knot on the top of her head and tied back with a gray scarf that she’ll have to hand wash after her busy day.
“This is so frustrating! How do you take joy in tearing these up, Hinata-chan?” Naruto cries as his hands dig into the weeds around Hinata’s vegetables. Hinata giggles and hands her friend a small shovel. Ever since Naruto has been non-stop training for his inevitable takeover as Hokage, Hinata has had a hard time getting him to visit. So, she arranged for him to attend a weekly gardening session. Or basically, Hinata swindled Naruto into doing all her weekly weeding.
“You know plants can hear what you’re saying. Maybe if you talk a little nicer, they’ll behave more.” She teases. Naruto’s hands cease their movement and he gives her a glare. She laughs even harder.
Naruto leans down close to Hinata’s row of carrot plants. “I hate you.” He says tenderly. This sends them both into puddles of laughter.
Hinata’s communal garden near the new Uchiha compound has been growing for around a year now. People are free to come grab whatever vegetables they need. Some have even joined Hinata in the caretaking of the garden. Whenever Captain Yamato is home, he’s almost always tending to the peppers with special care. Ino brings flower seeds and spreads them in the patches of grass outside of the sowed land. Hanabi has knitted a mesh fence around the different kinds of vegetables. Even Neji has contributed by writing neat, water-proof signs in his typical calligraphy handwriting that label the different sections and kinds.
“What are you going to do with it once summer is over?” Naruto asks.
“You don’t have to say ‘it’ with such malice.” Hinata jokes. “It’s called a garden. And a lot of people like it!”
“If you can’t grow ramen, then I don’t care.” Naruto says with his arms crossed and his chin tilted up.
“Wel,l to answer your question, winter is a far way off. But when it comes, the garden will be just fine.” Hinata stands and brushes the dirt from her shorts. Her knees and calves are covered with soft soil. “Come on, Naruto-kun. We can be done for the day.”
Naruto immediately springs up from his spot on the ground and stretches his arms. “Yay! We’re done!” He rushes over and grabs Hinata, picking her up in a lung-squeezing hug.
This past year, Naruto and Hinata’s relationship has only grown even more. They’ve gone from depending on each other for survival to being able to casually hang out and enjoy each other's company. Naruto and Ino’s relationship has also been flourishing. Now that they’re both almost twenty, there’s been talks about the two living together. Since Ino is now one of the Yamanaka Clan Heads, her responsibilities have grown. Naruto wants to help her shoulder it. Hinata thinks his dedication is sweet.
Her own clan has already been shouldered by a combination of her and Neji. The Hyuga have never flourished more.
“What are you doing this weekend, Hinata-chan? Ino and I want to do another card party at her place.” Naruto says with an arm around Hinata as he walks her back home.
“This weekend Hanabi and I are going to the Outreach Center.” Hinata answers. Kakashi usually sent a rotation of different shinobi to the center, but this time, Hinata volunteered. She wants her little sister to help people firsthand.
“But once I return home, a card tournament would be lovely.” She says with a smile. It’s been a while since Hinata has seen a majority of her friends. Tenten and Sai practically live at the Outreach Center. Choji is there a lot as well. Hinata thinks he likes to visit Karui, the feisty kunoichi of the Cloud. Everyone else is so busy with their own jobs that they don’t have time to all hang out as much as they’d like.
Even Sakura has picked up more work at the hospital. Hinata misses her best friend, but she at least gets to see her whenever she comes to visit Neji.
“Okay, I’ll tell Ino that you’re in. See you later, Hinata-chan!” Naruto gives her shoulder one last squeeze before running back towards his apartment. Hinata watches him with a smile. Even with all the years she’s known him, Naruto remains the same familiar flash of orange.
Hinata stops outside of her home to rinse her hands in the water basin. She laughs as the dirt sticks in the cracks and scars of her hands. She stares at her palms and her smile disappears as little puddles of water pool in the middle of her upward facing palms. She’s hurt countless people with these hands. Suddenly, in her vision, the water turns red and warm. She gasps in shock and drops her hands. Even with the time that has passed, Hinata’s war trauma still haunts her.
She wipes her wet hands against her shorts and shakes her head, banishing the thoughts that have begun to resurface. She is Hinata Hyuga, Protector of the Hyuga and one of the heroes of the Leaf. Everything she has done has allowed her to live the life she has now.
A chirp deters her from her thoughts and she looks behind her to see a messenger hawk perched atop of the bird bath she placed at the entrance to her house. She bought it after the hawks started to arrive routinely.
“Hello,” she says softly, “I assume you have something for me.” The bird chirps again and Hinata slowly reaches forward and pulls the note from the bird’s side. She reaches deep into her gardening apron and grabs a couple of seeds. Hinata rewards the birds before rushing inside, excited to read her note.
Sasuke writes her letters at least once a month. Sometimes they’re as simple as “im safe” or sometimes they’re as intricate as explaining everything that has happened since he last wrote. Sometimes they’re for her to read and then pass on to Naruto or Kakashi. But most of the time, they’re just for her.
“Don’t track dirt in again!” Neji groans as Hinata rushes to her room. He peeks around the corner with a frown to see that she indeed tracked in dirt.
Hinata closes the shoji, peels off her sweaty, dirty clothes, and quickly bathes. Then, she wraps herself in her silk robe, grabs the letter and holds it greedily. She jumps into her bed, covers herself up, and holds the leader in front of her. The envelope front just reads, “Hinata.”
Hinata delicately peels open the envelope and dumps the contents onto her chest. There’s a pack of seeds, a small wooden bead, and the letter itself. Hinata smiles as she picks up the bead. She rolls it against her forefinger and thumb as she investigates the intricate carving of willow tree leaves that are printed across it. She places the bead on her dresser and squints at the seeds. They're white and oval shaped. Hinata has to stifle a laugh. She keeps the packet on her chest and finally, opens the letter.
Hinata,
I’ve included some of the new things I’ve found in my travels. I’ve noticed that you don’t really wear jewelry, but they were selling these at a festival in the last village I visited. The merchant dragged me over and told me that each of his beads were hand-carved and filled with luck. I don’t believe in luck, but I bought one anyway. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because they were inexpensive. I also included a bag of pumpkin seeds for your garden. I know your annoying cousin hates pumpkins, so I made sure to include plenty. Grow as many as you can and then bake something with them. Make sure you tell him it’s from me. Even if he hates pumpkins, he’ll still be lucky to get to eat something you made.
I’m glad to hear that Hanabi’s lessons are going so well. I always thought you’d make a great teacher. You’re patient and kind. I won’t be back to see her chunin exams, but I’m anxious to hear if they go well. If her lightning release is anything like yours, she’ll be unbeatable. Maybe the next time I return, before I leave again, I can teach her some fire release. Unless you’ve already done that by now. In that case, I’ll give her a worthy sparring partner. If she can catch me off guard, she can catch anyone off guard.
And now the answer I’m sure you’ve been waiting for since you began reading. My favorite color is dark blue, like the color of the sky at night. I like that yours is a pale yellow. It suits you. I expected it to be a light purple, but that must just be the color you look the best in. I think you’d look nice in yellow as well. Now for our next question. This one is a little different. Do you remember the meadow we used to lay in after training? I do. I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. I miss the way the wind would feel, or the way the trees would smell. Maybe that’s why I bought the bead. Because it reminded me of the meadow and of you.
As always, I await your response.
Tell the dobe I say hi.
Sasuke
Hinata sighs happily and rests the letter against her chest. Sasuke gave her pumpkin seeds just to tease Neji. How typical. She knows that the two have a funny respect for each other after Neji was the one who released Sasuke from his cell a year and a half ago. When Sasuke’s letters began to become more frequent, Hinata came up with the idea of ending their letters with questions. That way, they both can expect a response and an answer as soon as possible.
She presses her cheek against her pillow. How could she forget their meadow? Hinata’s face begins to hurt from smiling. Their meadow, where she, Naruto and Sasuke got to just exist. They got to just be friends without the violence, the fighting, the suffering. Hinata is a sentimental person, she always has been. She keeps everything from handwritten receipts to wrapping paper from a present. But even with the material things, her memories are what she cherishes most. It’s reassuring to know that Sasuke cherishes those moments too.
Hinata lifts her head up and rereads the letter again, trying to memorize every detail. His favorite color is midnight blue. He offered to train Hanabi in fire release. He sent her the bead because it reminded him of their meadow.
Eventually, Hinata gets out of her bed and pads over to her desk. She pulls the chair out, sits down, and grabs her stationary. With one last look at the letter Sasuke sent, she begins to write.
Sakura
The journey to the Outreach Center is about two days, so by the time she, Hanabi, Neji and Hinata get there, Sakura wants nothing more than to sleep. But they came for a reason. There’s work to be done.
“Hanabi, stick close to Neji, okay? Watch how he does things.” Hinata tells her younger sister as they’re escorted into the large, glass walls.
The building itself is incredibly sleek with a concrete base, large windows, and a new design. After defeating the rogue shinobi, Kakashi Sensei proposed the idea to the other Kages. Gaara immediately agreed. The others took some convincing, but they made it work. Now, it’s completely run by volunteers and funded by donations. There’s a medical and research center, a shelter, and even a school. It’s way smaller than an actual village, but still, it’s a center for people who may need it.
They enter the main room which holds a flag for every known village, tables lined with ninja and people from all over the world, and vendors that sell things from everywhere.
“This place is crazy!” Hanabi squeaks in awe as she looks around.
“Yeah, it’s crazy busy.” Neji grumbles as he pulls Sakura closer to him. She smiles and grazes her lips against his jaw. They’re all dressed in mission gear and equipped with their headbands. Both Hinata and Hanabi wear theirs around their neck. Neji wears his red headband that matches Sakura’s around his forehead.
“Hinata and I will be fine. You should focus on diplomacy. Teach Hanabi-chan a thing or two, okay?” Sakura reassures with a wink. Neji just sighs and nods.
“Come, Hanabi-san. We have some people to meet.” Neji offers his younger cousin his arm and she excitedly takes it. She’s just happy to finally be here!
Hinata watches them go with a smile. They resemble each other so much with the same dark hair and looks of annoyance. After Hiashi’s death, Neji didn’t hesitate to step up and lead the Hyuga. He didn’t hesitate to step up and take care of Hanabi either. Hinata has always considered Neji her brother. But now, the rest of the clan does too.
“He’s such a worrier.” Sakura says lovingly as she fiddles with the gold chain around her neck. She threads her arm through Hinata’s and they make their way towards the medical center.
“So we’re here to teach people how to use Mystical Palm? It seems like a strange thing to be summoned for.” Hinata says to her friend as she avoids the leering eyes of every shinobi they cross. She’s used to the stares. She’s the teammate of the Child of Prophecy and the last Uchiha.
“I think I’m teaching some sealing related healing. And I wanted you as my moral support.” Sakura says with a wink. The two enter the medical center and are immediately greeted by Kiku.
“Kiku!” Sakura exclaims excitedly as she wraps her arms around her friend. “How are you?”
“I’m doing well, Sakura-san. I’m glad you could come. Hinata-san, thank you for accompanying her.”
Hinata returns the bow. “It’s no problem. We’re always happy to help.”
“A lot of the people here might be a little too excited to see you. You’re both legends around here.” Kiku gushes. Sakura scoffs and knits her hand in Hinata’s.
But Kiku was right. As soon as Sakura and Hinata step in to see the group of students eager to learn, they all begin to shout and dive out of their seats. One boy, Sakura guesses he’s about twelve, latches himself onto Hinata’s legs and looks up at her in awe.
“Hinata Hyuga! Where’s Naruto!? Is he as cool as everyone says he is?!” He yells. Hinata’s cheeks grow red as another boy jumps on her back.
“Hey! Knock it off!” Sakura scolds. She grabs the boy off her back with one arm and sets him on the ground in front of her. Then, she grabs the other one by his collar and sends him backwards. “You’re here to learn, so sit down, shut up, and pay attention!”
The boys immediately run back to their seats and Hinata looks at Sakura in surprise. She forgot how commanding her friend can be. It’s inspiring.
Sakura begins to demonstrate basic Mystical Palm. She goes through how to seal small healing items such as antibiotics and bandages. The students furiously take notes. She notices that while some still wear their own village’s respective headbands, others wear the Allied Shinobi Force symbol on their headbands, their arms, even around their necks.
Hinata notices the girls in particular wear them in the style that she did during the war. It makes her blush.
Then, after Sakura is done, Hinata goes through important tenketsu points on the body. None of them have her Byakugan, but they listen intently as she points to different parts and weaknesses on Sakura’s body.
After their lesson, Sakura opens it up for a Q&A. Almost every single hand gets raised.
“Sakura-san! Can you summon your slug?”
“Can you open the fifth gate?!”
“Can you show us your Leaf Hurricane?”
Hinata giggles as Sakura’s shoulders deflate. “I meant questions about the lesson!” She groans as she throws her hands in the air in exasperation.
Eventually, Kiku dismisses the students for their next lesson. Then, the three kunoichi pull up chairs.
“I’m sorry, Sakura-san. They begged me to invite you to teach them. I thought they could actually learn from you.”
“I’m sure they did learn. Even though they were overwhelmingly inspired by Sakura-chan, rightfully so, almost all of them were paying attention.” Hinata reassures.
“Hinata-san, make sure you tell Lord Kakashi that the idea of this Outreach is ingenious. People are learning, they’re cooperating.” Kiku lays her head back against her chair with a sigh. “I don’t think we’ll ever have a war again. We’re finally working away from the mistakes of the past.”
The three continue to talk for a little longer, until Sakura notices a pair of familiar faces in the doorway.
“Sai! Tenten!” Hinata exclaims as she leaps up from her seat. She hugs her teammate first, forcing his lean body tight against hers. He hugs her back with a light laugh. At this point, Sakura gets up too and exchanges an embrace with Tenten.
“We heard you guys came for a visit, so we had to stop and see it with our own eyes. Both of us were a little surprised to hear two of Konoha’s most important people came all the way out here.” Tenten teases.
“We just got done teaching a lesson to a group of rowdy academy students.” Sakura explains. Tenten laughs.
“Oh yeah, we know how that goes, don’t we?” She says as she pokes an elbow at Sai. He just sighs in agreement.
“Will you guys be here for the weekend?” Tenten asks excitedly. “It’ll be nice to have someone from home to hang out with who isn’t Choji. All he does is eat my snack stash and talk about Karui.”
“We’re here for the weekend.” Sakura confirms. “Neji has some clan business and he’s taking Hanabi under his wing. She’s still not sure if she wants to take over the clan, but both him and Hinata figured it’s better to know.”
Hinata nods in agreement. Her younger sister has already expressed her desire to become a powerful kunoichi who protects her village instead of a leader of the clan, but Hinata isn’t so sure. She doesn’t want her sister to put her life on the line. She doesn’t want anyone she knows to put their life on the line again. The world is at peace. Their days of fighting are behind them…aren’t they?
Hinata’s eyes go blurry and she seizes a deep breath. “E-excuse me.” She says shakily as she pushes past Sai and Tenten. Her hands begin to shake and her breath begins to hitch.
Sakura looks between Sai and Tenten with a frown. She knows Hinata still suffers greatly from the war. After giving them an attempt at a reassuring smile, she heads after her friend.
Hinata finds a quiet railing and she rests her head against the cold metal, trying to banish the faces of her dead comrades. Her breathing grows even more rapid and she clenches the cold metal, desperate for the pressure to bring her back from her panic-stricken state.
A hand lands on her shoulder and she instinctively sends her palm backwards, planning to blast whoever dares to touch her far away. But Sakura deflects her hit by grabbing her wrist and sending it towards the high ceiling instead.
“S-Sakura! I’m so sorry.” Hinata cries. Sakura doesn’t respond. Instead, she just pulls Hinata into her arms and strokes her hair.
“Don’t be sorry. I should’ve said something before I snuck up on you.” Sakura says comfortingly. “What’s going on? Did it happen again?” Sakura has known about Hinata’s flare ups for a while.
Hinata nods into her friend's shoulder and squeezes her eyes shut. Eventually, Sai comes over too and he places a hand on Hinata’s shoulder. She pulls away from Sakura and squeezes her teammate’s hand. He’s been there for most of her battles. He knows what she’s seen.
“I-I’m sorry to make such a fuss.” She whispers. They both wave off her concerns and help her stand back up. Hinata wishes that she could just shut all of her worries and fears and anxieties off. But she can’t. And she knows she never will. “Can someone get Neji please?” Hinata fears that he’s not alive. She fears that he’s laying far away on a battlefield with lifeless eyes and a punctured stomach.
Sakura and Sai escort Hinata back over to a chair while Tenten runs to get Neji. Hinata squeezes the arm rests and stares at the chalk board that displays Sakura’s neat handwriting. Why can’t she just be happy and normal? She puts the effort into getting better. She has a garden, she helps people, she helps her clan. Why is she still fighting?
Finally, Neji walks in the room and Hinata practically leaps into his arms. He holds his cousin against him and gives Sakura a quizzical look.
“She couldn’t breathe again.” Sakura mouths to Neji. He nods and squeezes her tighter.
“Do you want to go home, sister?” He asks her quietly. She shakes her head into his shoulder.
“No, I want to stay and help people. I just needed to make sure that you’re real.” She tells him.
“Of course I’m real. And I’m not going anywhere, okay? You’ll have to kick me out to get rid of me.” He teases and he gently pulls away. Hinata nods, finally feeling a little better. “Hanabi’s in the other room. I told her that you needed me for a second. If you want me to stay, I can have someone go get her.”
“No, it’s okay. You should get back to your meeting. I’m sorry for making you come.” She responds quietly. She had convinced herself that he was dead. But he’s not dead. He’s alive and in front of her. If she were to activate her Byakugan, she’d be able to see his heartbeat.
Neji gives her head one last pat before turning around. Before he completely leaves, he and Sakura share a look. She flashes him a comforting smile and his chest warms. If anyone will take care of Hinata, it’ll be her.
Hinata
Besides Hinata’s minor setback, the rest of the weekend went smoothly. Hinata enjoyed seeing the younger students learning. She liked seeing the world move peacefully. It’s reassuring that after everything, there are still people who are trying to run the world correctly.
But now, it’s the last day of their visit. Sakura, Neji, Hinata, and Sai are all lounging on the fancy training ground when a couple of students rush over to them.
“Sakura-san!” One of the young girls says with a bow and a blush. “Please demonstrate your chakra strength!”
Sakura lifts her head from Neji’s lap with a smile. “I don’t think Sai would like me ripping up his nice training grounds.”
“It’ll get some earth release students practicing putting it back. Go ahead.” Sai says with a smirk.
At this point, Neji stands up too. “Let’s make this more interesting, Sakura. You and me.” He says with a wink.
Hinata and Sai immediately step back, making the students come with them. They were not about to be caught in the crossfire.
Neji rushes Sakura first, displaying a powerful force of chakra as he attempts to blow her away with an Air Palm. But Sakura is too fast. She sidesteps his attack, grabs his hand and launches him high into the sky. Neji spins gracefully, using his Rotation to send him back towards her. But before he lands, Sakura wields her powerful fist straight into the ground, disrupting the very earth around them. Neji is as graceful and fluent as water while Sakura is as tough and unmoving as the earth.
The students cling to Hinata and squeal in excitement as the ground underneath them shakes. Neji hits the ground with a thud, but immediately flips back onto his feet, his hair moving in a neat sheen.
“I’m making you sweat already? You’re getting slow!” Sakura teases. She spins through the air, sending a Leaf Hurricane towards Neji’s stomach. He sends chakra into his fingertips, grabs her leg and yanks her to him. Their foreheads touch for a brief second before Neji disables her chakra points in her leg. “You distracted me!” Sakura cries as she launches a fist towards Neji’s head.
“Well it worked!” Neji says with a laugh as he ducks. He hits her with an Air Palm and she begins to fly backwards, but she catches herself in the dirt and raises her arms once more.
“GO SAKURA!” The girl student screams. “Beat up the girly clean freak!” Hinata stifles her laughter as Neji looks over at the girl with a frown. In his split second he’s distracted, Sakura manages to land a punch on him that sends him to the ground. She laughs and dances as she stands above him.
“I win again! What is that like three spars in a row?” Sakura says as she offers him a hand. She lifts Neji up and reveals his new bruise across his cheek. She begins to heal him as the students rush over to congratulate her. Hinata watches them crowd around her cousin and her best friend with a smile. This life is hers and hers alone. She intends to be well enough to spend it with the people she loves.
The journey back to the village is short. And by the time Hinata gets home, she’s worn out from all the talking and the traveling. So after a good night's sleep, she wakes up the next morning, dresses in an old pair of overalls, and returns to her garden.