Deeper than Indigo

Chapter 4: Blind

Her vision had been sealed now for a little over a month in an attempt to 'repair' the damage that had been done to her from the chuunin exams. Hinata sat on the porch, face tilted upwards to the sun to take in the warmth of the day. It was a sharp contrast to the dark thoughts that were running amok in her head.

She had been officially cast out of her role as the Hyuuga Heiress after it had been decided that her Byakugen was too damaged to be of any use. After all, how could one counter attacks if all they saw were chakra echoes everywhere? It was confusing as hell seeing a plethora of colors that were both bright and faded as she tried to counter jutsus that were used during training sessions. Perhaps her clan had been correct in choosing the course of action that they had taken. After all, she was no more dangerous than a non-nin child, so distracted by all the chakra she saw that she could not properly pay attention to her opponent to defend against his attack.

The shock and remorse that she seen on Kiba's face was more than enough to make her want to cry in frustration. If she was unable to counter the Whirling Fang jutsu –something that she had been able to do before so easily, how could she expect herself to get stronger? Or be able to meet Naruto with pride when he came back from his training with the legendary sannin Jiraiya?

Hinata's hands clenched as she began to feel the build up of tears in her eyes. She shook her head, attempting to dispel both her oncoming tears and negative thoughts. Naruto had told her that he was proud of her for finding her ninja way. He had liked that she did not want to give up training to become stronger despite her failure to obtain the rank of Chuunin.

To be stronger. This was something that she could definitely relate to with Naruto. It was also something that she had vowed to do when he had left the village. She would become stronger so that she could change into someone better when he came back. Someone who could learn her family's secret techniques without problems or be someone that brought further acclaim and honor to her clan. Stronger so that she would never be weak as she was now. It was with that vow in mind when she had come back to the Hokage's office to answer the offer of apprenticeship as a medical-nin. With a heavy heart, she declined –much to the shock of her teammates once she had told them of what had transpired.

She hadn't been prepared for the disappointment that had shown itself so plainly on their faces or the sadness that had lingered in her heart when she thought about her declined opportunity. Taking care of people and helping others was something that she was very much suited for, but it was not something that would help her become stronger. 'Gomen' was what she had whispered before she had turned around and was helped by Kou-san to leave the training area.

She hadn't seen Shino and Kiba since then as it was apparent that they had disapproved of her decision. It had hurt to know that she would receive no support from them, but it had ultimately served to let her know that she had made the right choice for herself. Medical-nins were traditionally kept out of battle, only stepping into play if their comrades in the 3 man cell went down. They weren't meant to be strong, they were meant to support. The only one who had ever broken against the tradition was Tsunade, but even then she was an exception. She was Hokage, whereas Hinata was just a mere girl with kekkei genkai.

Everything about the current Hokage to Hinata was an exception though. Not only was Tsunade-sama an extremely skilled medic-nin and shinobi on her own right, but she was kind as well. She had taken Hinata's refusal in stride, stating that perhaps the time for her train as a medical-nin was not yet right until some time had passed and she had gotten better. The most important thing right now, Tsunade had declared to Hinata, was for her to solve the doubling vision of chakra and people. Sealing her vision had been a temporary solution, but even then it did not work to the degree that Tsunade had expected.

Her vision was now like a blind person's, but unlike them Hinata still saw chakra that was both bright and faded. It seemed that even though her eyesight was shrouded in darkness; her Byakugen was still in full effect. That much was made evident since Hinata could see Tsunade's diadem in the darkness, glowing brightly as it continuously stored up her extra chakra.

The Hokage had been initially surprised at the discovery, but ultimately fascinated by it. Never before in all her travels and experiences had she ever heard or seen anything like Hinata's case. It was due to this new unique discovery of the Byakugen that Tsunade had decided that perhaps it was better leave to Hinata without her vision so that she could at least adjust to what had happened to her. Her decision made, Tsunade told Hinata of what was to be done for her medically and of a new sensei that would be assigned to her that would help her learn to cope with her imposed blindness. She would no longer have Kurenai as a sensei, but rather a tokubetsu jounin.

End of Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thanks for the wait. Please read and review (^_^)v