A Descendant of the Moon
Sasuke
The team splits up once again to investigate an abandoned town. Naruto was persistent on going with Hinata to keep her safe, but Sakura insisted she needed his sage chakra to do her own investigating. So, Sasuke was left in charge of watching over Hinata once again. Not that he minded.
They’ve been scouring the village for any signs of clues in silence. Sasuke takes no particular notice of the room he currently stands in, but a slight squeak from Hinata pulls him away from his search.
“Hinata!” He calls as he runs into the adjoining room. He sees her on the ground, batting away a harmless bug that moves across her shoulder. He lets out a puff of relief, kneels, and cups the bug in his hands, depositing it on the ground near their fear. Then, he looks up at her face, which is red from what he assumes is embarrassment. Their proximity is obvious, and he shamelessly stares at her. “Be more careful,” he says gruffly as he helps her stand up. “You think with your skill, you wouldn’t be scared of something like a bug.”
“I wasn’t scared, it just surprised me,” she tells him softly. Her eyes now remain trained on the ground, and Sasuke fights the urge to cup her chin and tilt her face back up towards his. He spent years dreaming about those eyes. And he wants to drink in the sight of them for as long as he can. Forever, if she allows him.
“Well…I’ll look at the rest of the rooms with you. To stop you from being surprised,” he tells her.
She smiles softly, but the sight of it is overshadowed by the sound of her shivering. Hinata wears loose pants, long socks, and flowing sleeves with a collar that rises all the way to her chin. But even with her winter mission clothes, she must be freezing.
Sasuke takes notice of the dropping temperatures of the village and he shrugs off his blade. Then, he peels off his cloak and hip-lengthed haori. “Here,” he says as he holds it towards her. Hinata stares at the jacket with tinted cheeks. It’s a black color with dark gray trimming. But it's not the color or the jacket that’s making her hesitate. It’s the small Uchiha fan that’s sewn near the collar. Sasuke must’ve had this jacket hand-stitched on his travels. And now, he’s giving it to her to wear.
“N-no, that’s okay. I don’t want you to get cold,” she says. Sasuke puts his cloak back on with a shrug.
“Wear it, Hinata,” he commands as he holds it in front of her, prepared to help her don it.
She puts her arms in the jacket and gives him a grateful smile. It faintly smells of lavender oil and wood smoke. He moves directly in front of her and adjusts the seams, making sure the jacket sits on her properly. His fingers trail near her collar and his breath hitches.
She mumbles a quiet thanks before taking a small step away from him. Then, she turns and moves towards the next room. “Let’s keep looking,” she says as she leaves.
His fists tighten at his sides. She was so hesitant to wear something of his. Does he still repulse her that much? His hands knit into fists at his sides at the thought, but they soon go lax. No. She wears his bead. She’s just being typical, kind Hinata. Her being more concerned about him rather than herself is nothing new.
In between their search, the two settle on a fallen stone pillar for a quick lunch. Hinata slices apples and places small pieces of cheese in between slices. She also grabs a pack of wheat crackers from her bag and sets them between them.
“I can make something more filling if you’re hungry,” she tells him with a slight frown. Hinata’s too anxious to eat a full meal, but maybe Sasuke’s starving.
“This is okay, thank you.” He responds as he bites into a crisp apple. His eyes lift in surprise at the taste of the combination. “I’m surprised you didn’t bring anything from your garden.”
Despite her mood, she smiles. “I preserved a lot of what was left after the harvest. But most of my vegetables were given away. Don’t worry, I took extra caution to make sure the tomato plants would be ready to go in the spring.”
“I wasn’t worried. They can be unripe or shrunken. I’ll still eat them.” He says as he pulls out his water skin. After taking a long drink, he offers it to Hinata. She accepts it with a nod and takes a sip. This is Sasuke’s water, so she makes herself only drink a little.
“I don’t remember the last time we were on a mission together.” Hinata says honestly. When they were genin, she, Naruto, and Sasuke were always out and about. They would do silly things like helping a client win a race, to more serious stuff like helping escort merchants. Of course, they fought together during the war. But she doesn’t count that.
“It seems we’re always drawn together by unfortunate circumstances,” he says with a scoff. Her attempted retrievals, the war, Hinata’s capture, and now a hunt for Hinata’s missing sister. Why can’t Sasuke just spend time with her without a threat looming over them?
Hinata turns to look at the side of him that stares out over the abandoned village. His long black hair blows in the wind and his jawline is sharp against his collared coat. His eyes appear full of something unfamiliar to her. Then again, Sasuke has always been a mystery that she’s been desperate to solve. But after her genjutsu dream, she believes she was finally handed a map.
Hinata knows that after Toneri’s proposal, she can’t love him. She is meant to spend the rest of her life on the moon, dreaming of a future that could’ve been hers, of the boy in the meadow. But she doesn’t want Sasuke to mourn her. She wants him to cherish every second they had together. She wants him to move on and restore his clan, just as he’s always dreamed of.
She nudges his shoulder and he looks at her. Her cheeks are still pink from the cold and her hair smells like the lilac soap that she soaks it in. His insides begin to do flips and he curses himself for being so nervous around her. Sasuke has sealed away a god, has killed monstrous humans, and has stared tailed beasts in the eyes. But even with his feats, Hinata is still the thing that scares him the most.
“Even though this is unfortunate, let’s make the best out of it, okay?” She requests softly. He responds with a silent nod. Her shoulder continues to brush against his as they finish their lunch.
After they eat, they explore the rest of the village. Sasuke is almost in a trance. He watches her body sway in front of him, the Uchiha fan peeking out tauntingly from underneath the tresses of her long hair. He begins to dream of a world where he is no longer alone. A world where he had a girl as kind as Hinata wearing his family’s symbol at all times. His daydreams cause him to slip and Sasuke practically falls into Hinata’s surprised arms. Her face goes red and he lifts his head from her chest with a weak apology and a clearing of his throat. He’s never been clumsy before! Not once in his life!
“Let’s find the others,” he says monotonically as he walks forward.
Hinata and Sasuke hear Naruto call for them, and they quickly head over to rendezvous with the rest of the group.
“Check this out,” Sai says as he runs a hand down the base of the ancient stone.
But his observation is interrupted by the sound of a zombie-like shuffle. “Byakugan Princess,” an ancient voice croaks from the shadows. The team turns and Sasuke immediately takes a protective step in front of Hinata with one hand on his blade. Hinata freezes at the name as she thinks of Toneri. The man doesn’t even attempt to touch Hinata. Instead, he opens his mouth and a giant white orb falls out of it.
Hinata gasps as she is pushed back into another memory. This one shows her a war-torn ancient world. Her ancestors are at the helm of it all, fighting for peace they believe to be unobtainable. Her world grows bigger as she realizes why she’s valued. Sure, her eyes mark her as a descendant of an ancient and powerful clan, but her blood must hold power as well. Hinata’s legs grow weak and she begins to fall, but Naruto quickly catches her.
“What was that?” Sakura asks as the ancient man’s body fades into nothing.
“I don’t know, but we need to keep moving,” Hinata says weakly. She flashes Naruto a grateful smile and stands on her own. Her team looks at her hesitantly, but they listen.
Hinata
After unsuccessfully searching another village, they’ve all found a sanctuary in a nearby forest. Hinata has grown tired of her charade. She wants to be alone. She doesn't want to hold onto these people any longer. She can’t imagine not hearing Sakura’s laugh every day, or not feeling Neji’s comforting hugs. She’s going to lose Naruto’s jokes and Kakashi’s two-word lectures. And what about Sasuke? Her whole life swirls around her as she traces a hand against the artificial moss, almost as if she's still a genjutsu.
Hinata rests on a log surrounded by fireflies as the world around her fills her ears with the sound of nature. The light of the artificial moon reflects off the lake and provides her with enough vision to see the ground beneath her. She frowns as she hoists her bag to her side, thinking of Toneri’s words.
Hinata doesn’t want to get married to him. She doesn’t want to go anywhere with him. But if she accepts, won’t he lead her to her sister? Then, she can rescue Hanabi, find the source of the moon’s downfall, and save the world. She knows that she can persuade Toneri. Nobody else would have to get hurt. Her friends could go home. Hanabi could go home. Hinata would be stuck in a life of solitude with a man she doesn’t love, but everyone else would be safe. Isn’t that what she wants?
She looks at Sasuke’s bead, his jacket. It’s not what she wants. But she’ll pay the price for his safety. For everyone’s safety. Hinata is tired of fighting. She’s tired of conflict and suffering and her friends putting their lives on the line. With her sacrifice, all of that would be able to go away.
And yet, there’s a quiet nagging in the back of her head that tells her it wouldn’t. Toneri may still try to go through with his disastrous plan. Then, it’d all be for nothing. But what kind of person would she be if she didn’t try? As a kunoichi of Konoha, she must protect her village. And as a Hyuga, she must protect her sister. If leaving both of those things behind is the solution, then so be it. She can’t pay attention to the reasons why she must stay. They shouldn’t matter.
But Sasuke matters. He always has. Hinata wants to cry at the irony of it all. She spent her entire youth searching for a way to get him back, to keep him safe. But now, after everything, after he freed himself, she’s the one who must leave.
She hears his quiet tread before she sees him. Why must he show up when she was trying her best to be rid of him. “My sister’s been captured. And I’m sitting here sighing. How pathetic, right?”
“Not at all,” Sasuke responds as he walks closer. Her eyes reflect off the moonlight and her body is bathed in silver. “We’ll save your sister, Hinata. Like I said earlier, whatever is precious to you is precious to me.”
She looks at him now. His hair is still held back by a simple black band; a few strands fall in his face, but he looks regal under the night sky. How has she never noticed how handsome he is? How has she never seen the way his eyes grow soft when he looks at her? She recalls the things he’d say in his letter. He’d call her beautiful and tell her that he thinks of her constantly. She always thought he was trying to make up for the years of his coldness. She was blind to his words meaning so much more. But she isn’t blind now.
Hinata stands and squeezes her hands together.
Sasuke swallows in fear. He hasn’t been this scared in a long time. But he needs to tell her. He can’t wait any longer. “Your family is my family, Hinata. Your sister, your cousin, and all of the Hyuga. I want to help you bear their burden.” He looks up from the patch of grass between them and into her kind eyes. “Because I….” Sasuke struggles with the words he’s never had to say before.
Hinata freezes in her tracks and her grip on her scarred hands grows tighter. The words are trapped on her lips and she’s desperate to let them spill over. But Hinata has already made her decision. She’ll sacrifice her love for him. She has to.
“I haven’t had a family in a long time. And when I found out the truth about my brother, I thought that all chances I had for comfort were gone. But you showed me that wasn’t true, Hinata. So from here on out, I’ll devote my life to you. Not because I care about the village or because I’m desperate to repent for my mistakes. No, you have my devotion because you’ve led me to believe it’s okay to love again.”
Sasuke knows his love is dangerous. The love of an Uchiha has started wars, has murdered. But his love for her outweighs his hate. It has for a long time.
Hinata steps forward. She needs to stop him from finishing his sentence. In any way she can.
Their eyes are dragged away from each other with the approach of Toneri. He descends from the sky on a silver platform. Sasuke snarls and pulls Hinata behind him from the waist.
“Hinata, my Byakugan Princess. I’ve come for your answer,” Toneri says with one outstretched hand. Sasuke is about to call on his Chidori, but Hinata quickly grabs his hands. She digs into her pouch, grabs the gift she made him lifetimes ago, and pushes them into his grip.
“I made these for you,” she tells him quietly. “They’re to keep your hands warm and blister-free when you wield your blade. Wear them and think of me. Goodbye, Sasuke. Thank you for everything. And never lose what it’s like to love again.”
And then, she turns and walks straight into Toneri’s outstretched arm. Sasuke watches in horror as the white ninja wraps his hand around Hinata, his Hinata, possessively.
“Give her back,” he seethes with his Sharingan spinning. He could burn him here and now. But he might hurt Hinata.
“She came of her own free will. She chose me.” Toneri says pointedly. “Come, Hinata. It’s time to get married.”
Sasuke’s eyes lift in horror. She…chose this? She wants to marry him? No. There must be another reason. He has just given her his heart. For the first time in his life, he had allowed himself to be vulnerable only for her to leave him where he stands. That is not the Hinata he knows.
Sasuke snarls as he grabs his sword and threads lightning into it. Why isn’t Hinata fighting back?
He charges for the platform, but it moves quicker than he realized.
Hinata watches the pain in Sasuke’s eyes as he tries to reach her. Toneri sends explosive attacks towards Sasuke and Hinata hits his arm, deflecting it away. “No more fighting,” she commands. Toneri exhales from his nose in frustration and plunges a genjutsu into Hinata’s chest. This is no time for discussion.
The Uchiha chases after the two, but Toneri quickly drains him of his chakra and leaves him plummeting towards the ground. The last thing Hinata’s trance-like eyes see is Sasuke descending from the air, his blade still clutched desperately within his hand.