It's meh special day, guys. I should be sleeping!

And we shall mark this day! 06/09/14

Enjoy!

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Punishment or remedial courses?

He tried to figure out the answer, but he couldn't for the life of him understand what this was all for.

With the end of the war and the rebuilding of the village, Sasuke's hometown welcome was very... Konoha-esque. He helped them in the end, that was true, but he still went rogue. He allied with an S-rank criminal, so he had always expected some brutal consequence if he ever cared to return.

So, maybe this was a punishment.

According to that ever gracious, ever Naruto-influenced Hokage, Sasuke missed out on some major learning turning points when he left the village. He never officially passed the Chunin Exams, so there was no reason to discuss the possibility of becoming a jonin or anything above his documented skills and capabilities.

That's when he was given an ultimatum: Train with the remaining teams of Konoha 11 or go back to basics.

The latter plainly stated what was to be expected, so, without much thought, he agreed to the former.

His decision led to tedious assignments: He would train with the teams—one by one—for an indefinite amount of time and be evaluated on his progress and skills. Collectively, the team would grade his performance and either pass or fail him. If he failed, he had to start over with that team. If he failed a second time, regardless of what team he was on, he had to resign as a ninja.

Apparently, they could treat him with some sense.

Training began with Team 7 merely for the sake of being reunited, and it remained that way for a month. He had to learn what it was like to be on a proper team and rely on others again.

It was too awkward for him in the beginning. His teammates treated him like nothing happened—like he hadn't tried to kill both of them at some point. He'd run off when things started to feel too much like the old days, and he didn't know why he wanted nothing to do with the old him. He had been so incredibly misled and blinded by revenge and reform, now he was given a chance to start over? There was an opportunity for him to do right by someone's standards? It was just...too much.

Unsurprisingly, it would be Naruto who sought him out and made him see reason. He never liked how persuasive an idiot like him could be, but he began to wonder if being clueless was just an act.

For the second month, the eerie, pale doppelgänger known as Sai joined them, and Kakashi was replaced by a man who went by Yamato.

That had been a tough month.

Taking orders from Kakashi and dealing with the nostalgic Naruto and Sakura were enough, but he didn't even know this Yamato freak, and Sai was determined to etch his way under the Uchiha's skin. It took a lot of forced effort, but Sasuke was at least able to tolerate the two new members.

Team 7's final verdict: Pass.

Then came Team 10.

They lacked a sensei, but Shikamaru was given special rights as team leader and Sasuke's main overseer. It wasn't so bad, if he had to be honest. The Ino-Shika-Cho team mastered in strategy and group reliance, but the difficulty came in trying to include Sasuke in their already perfect dynamic. Many missions were almost compromised by the dysfunctional formations they tried to execute, so Shikamaru came up with an idea. Because of Sasuke's enhanced ocular abilities, he would stick close to the Nara and help guide their attacks with his Sharingan. It was rare that anything above the Sharingan was needed, and, once the flow of the team was established, success rates on missions sky rocketed—not to mention the time at which it took to complete a mission was drastically shortened.

He blamed this on the team before him, but he found a bond was made between him and Team 10. Like Sakura, Ino was not as annoying as she was in the past, and he was able to hold conversations with the blonde without feeling like it would lead to an undesirable moment. Choji also turned out to be decent company. He was an overly soft guy when it came to his emotions, but he had proved to be very welcoming of the Uchiha—and he wasn't afraid to ask questions about his time as a rogue. Shikamaru had taken up most of his time when they were not on missions; it was hard to say if a friendship was formed, but Sasuke found himself idly staring at clouds when there was nothing to do and took to declaring people and things as 'bothersome'.

Team 10's final verdict: Pass.

They were also not opposed to the idea of him joining them again in the future.

Team Gai had been...different.

The first thing Sasuke noticed was Rock Lee's significant change. He was still wild and puzzling with his inhuman energy, but there was a dampening to his usual antics. Tenten he hadn't known well before he left, but he found her overall grounded nature to be pleasing. She exploded in an almost comical way whenever Lee became over-zealous about any given thing, but, he supposed, they were controlled compared to Naruto and Sakura. Gai had been welcoming from the get-go and didn't bother taking anything slow when they trained or when they were on missions.

Because they specialized in close combat, Sasuke found it rather...enjoyable to switch to such a group. It was also because this was a slightly watered down version of his original team that Sasuke felt well prepared, but...there were some odd moments that made the Uchiha think too much.

Lee constantly challenged him to sparring matches, and, when Sasuke actually agreed, the taijutsu user held nothing back. Lee was trying to prove himself to the fullest extent and there was always a gleam in his eyes; however, when it was all over, he would stare at him like it was a shock Sasuke was there.

For a long time, Sasuke didn't understand.

With Tenten, he was able to piece together some things.

After a day of training, the team all went out for barbeque. It was lively, and he had secretly grown accustomed to this type of environment. He had happened to look up and caught Tenten staring at him from across the table. Sasuke had frowned, raising an inquisitive brow, but she had frowned herself before forcing a soft smile. He didn't think too much of it, but he caught her stares quite a few times that night. Before they all parted for home, he had asked her about it.

With a small smile, she looked at him for a moment, her eyes pained, and replied, "Sorry. You just remind me a lot of him."

Back then, he didn't know how to respond.

That night, as he tried to fall asleep, he was suddenly reminded of what Lee had told him years ago.

"There is another top ninja—someone on my own team. I came here to defeat him; you were just practice."

Sasuke ended up spending three months with them. A lot of people were surprised, but he never forced himself to care.

Team Gai's final verdict: Pass.

When Sasuke realized he only had one more team to go, he had been a bit skeptical. There had been no major problems; somehow he made a few bonds along the way, and Team 8's specialty was in tracking and locating.

Something had to be going wrong.

He soon realized the hardest was saved for last.

With Kurenai being a new mother, she could only do as much training and evaluating as she could while inside the village. As far as missions were concerned, the team left without her with Shino being the leader more often than not.

Sasuke hated missions with them.

Kiba had decidedly established a condescending, irritable attitude towards him, and Shino never got more involved with their squabbles unless he needed to. However, both boys were oddly aware of his presence as it related to Hinata, but that was the other thing.

Sasuke couldn't...go near her.

No one enforced it, and she never said anything, but Sasuke found being around the heiress put him on edge. He may have been paranoid, but he saw how Lee and Tenten acted around him, and that was all because of Neji. Now, here he was with the late Hyuuga's cousin. He learned a lot about Neji those last three months, and he knew Hinata had been close to him his last few years of life.

Sasuke knew the war wasn't his fault—it was completely out of anyone's hands—but he had some nagging guilt that told him there would be no way he could converse with her.

But Hinata wasn't...what he had expected. Her attitude was calm—almost mysterious—and nothing like the blushing, indecisive girl from his past. It was different. She was different, and it made his views on her different.

Missions never went well.

Tracking and locating had a significantly better success rate if they were all together or if he was paired with Shino. If Sasuke was paired with Kiba, they argued constantly, which always ended with one of them storming off without the other and compromising their positions.

If he was paired with Hinata, he couldn't focus.

He'd go to great lengths to make sure they didn't touch by accident or that he wasn't caught staring at her. It got to the point where his senses failed him terribly, and the two were ambushed quite often.

Sparring was just as bad.

With Shino, he was okay and things could get done, but it turned into an all out brawl when he had to go against Kiba. Even worse, all senses and tactical genius evaded him, and the two were determined to kill each other with nothing but their bare hands.

He never won against Hinata.

Whenever he came close to landing a solid hit or executing a perfect jutsu, he'd pull his attack at the last second and only manage minimal damage. Hinata was plainly aware of his treatment towards her, and it angered her—she thought his actions were out of pity. Her Gentle Fists and Eight Trigrams would put him in the hospital if he wasn't careful.

After six long months, Kurenai was disappointed in Sasuke's lack of focus.

Team 8's final verdict: Fail.

Try again.

They were not eager for his return.

Kurenai was expecting more of him this time around.

Kiba was determined to fail him.

Shino was as passive as before.

Hinata harbored ill-will towards him.

His first day back, Kurenai had ordered them to spar with Sasuke one by one without rest. Like always, the spars with the males were predictable and simple; it was Hinata who garnered up the most abnormalities. After Kiba had collapsed from the Uchiha's last technique, Hinata had nearly pummeled Sasuke into the ground with an aerial attack. He managed to dodge and had instinctively spun a kick into her side. The girl fell to the ground, and Sasuke stared at her like he had killed her. Hinata looked up at him, almost urging him to attack. When he didn't, she unleashed a series of Jyuuken blows his way. Sasuke could only dodge and deflect, but he just couldn't hit her.

He didn't want to.

When Hinata stepped forward in another attempt to hit him, Sasuke wasn't able to step back in time and their proximity became unnervingly close. He would have sworn his heart burst in his chest, but the next thing he remembered was Kiba yelling for Hinata. Even with her abdomen bleeding and his katana firmly gripped in his hand, Sasuke didn't understand what had happened.

After that incident, Kiba and Shino made sure their spars never escalated beyond hand-to-hand combat. It was fine; he didn't want to go through that emotion again.

But Hinata wasn't as cautious.

Whatever she thought she saw during their last sparring session, it amused her; she knew she made him uneasy. She looked at him with curious eyes—she pushed her boundaries with personal space—she expected to see something.

Sasuke and the capable members of Team 8 made their way back to Konoha. They had gone on one last scouting mission to determine Sasuke's fate as a ninja, and it had been a success. Kiba led the group back, peeved that he had no valid reason to fail him. Shino silently trailed behind him and thought of the report he would have to give for the mission. Sasuke took up the rear, feeling a bit awkward that Hinata was in front of him.

Actually, he felt like she was toying with him.

Sometimes she would randomly stop, which would cause him to stop. Sometimes she would turn her head like she was going to look at him, which would set his nerves awry, but she would smile pleasantly at something else.

It was...troublesome.

"We're going to be ambushed," Hinata mentioned casually, her Byakugan activated.

They all looked at her—Sasuke being the only one who doubted her words because of her tone.

"How many?" Shino asked.

"Six. Three from behind and three from the left."

"I see." Shino thought for a moment. "Kiba, follow me. Hinata and Sasuke, cut off the ones following us."

Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino departed immediately, leaving the remaining two alone. Hinata turned to Sasuke, eyeing him.

She smiled vaguely, looking to the trees. "Let's go, Sassssuke."

He stared as she jumped to the trees and began to leave him behind. He really didn't want to do this. The mission was active until they returned to the village, and he could not mess this up. But...he couldn't ignore direct orders either...

He cursed, following the Hyuuga.

The two traveled through the trees before Hinata abruptly stopped. Sasuke watched her curiously, but she simply gestured for him to lie low. He stayed two trees behind her as she watched the enemy with her Byakugan.

It was here he took a moment to truly consider this...thing he was feeling.

Before he even joined this team, he was hesitant about meeting the heiress. He was certain she would blame him for her cousin's death, and, usually, he would be able to brush it off. However, his emotions were no longer covered in steel—he had almost all of Konoha 11 to blame for that. If she had cried and begged that he explain how something like this happened—why it happened to her cousin—what could he say?

The fact that she never asked anything was both relieving and unnerving. She was stronger, wiser, calmer. There had to be more contributors to her current state, but he was certain Neji's death had a hard impact on her; it opened her eyes. It made her...powerful.

It enhanced her image.

Hinata was an attractive girl, no use denying it. With Ino, he always knew she would fill out, so her maturation hadn't tempted him much. She was still loud, so he never seriously entertained the thought of being with her. Sakura, as annoying as she had been as a child, matured greatly in personality, but, as pleasing as it was, he thought her body would mature a bit more. The pink-haired medic still had a temper, and her acquired strength was not something he wanted to take a chance with. Maybe she only showed her destructive side with enemies and Naruto, but he didn't want to put his bones at stake—especially when she could easily gain control over him by breaking then healing him over and over again.

The heiress had changed in every way possible. Her hair was different; her body was different; her attitude was different, and her skill levels were different. She was fit to be perfect for-

"Sasuke!"

The dark-haired was kicked in the chest and was sent colliding to the ground below. He grunted, looking up, and quickly rolled to the side. A ninja landed his fist in the spot Sasuke had been and quickly charged at him. Sasuke got to his feet and deflected attacks until he was able to land a hit of his own, kneeing the assailant in the abdomen. He looked over at Hinata to see her in mid-Palm Rotation, injuring two of the attacking ninjas. Hinata slowed to a stop and quickly assessed the situation.

"Behind you!"

Sasuke turned, seeing the fallen ninja ready to attack. He placed his hand on his katana but knew he wouldn't be able to attack in time.

"Eight Trigrams: Air Palm!"

A gush of air rushed past him and sent the ninja colliding into a tree, momentarily assaulting him with the onslaught of air.

"I need you to focus, Sasuke!" Hinata said, running towards him. "We need to find Kiba and Shino."

Sasuke saw movement behind her; one of the ninjas had gotten up and was charging right for the Hyuuga. Sasuke ran forward, forming hand signs rapidly. Hinata had noticed her pursuer and spun around, chakra gathered into her palm.

"Chidori!"

"Jyuuken!"

The ninja went stiff as volt after volt of electricity entered his body and an agonizing pain wrapped around his organs. When he fell to the ground, Hinata straightened, shaking out her hand.

"I felt that." She looked up at him. "You're really powerful, huh?"

Sasuke's eyes widened, caught off guard by their closeness.

Then he was hit in the back of the head.

When Sasuke opened his eyes, he was immediately aware his arms ached terribly. He was propped against a stone wall, and there was a flickering light source coming somewhere nearby. He groaned, trying to shift his weight, but was consumed by the pain in his arms amplifying to disastrous degrees.

"You're awake."

Sasuke looked in front of him; Hinata was seated before him with a fire separating the two.

"Sorry you couldn't wake up in Konoha. Kiba...wasn't in a charitable mood."

He blinked groggily, looking around. They were in a cave and the opening at the far left showed it was dark out.

"They went to get medical help, if that's what you're thinking," Hinata informed him. She stood, walking towards him. "And I don't mean to alarm you, but," she knelt next to him, whispering, "I think you're attracted to me."

Sasuke jerked back, agitating the pain in his arms.

"Your arms are broken, too," she added.

Sasuke blinked lamely, his breathing ragged, as he tried to make sense of what was going on. They were attacked. He had gotten knocked out. He woke up here with Hinata...and...

"What?" he finally asked.

"Your arms got broken after that ninja knocked you out. He was actually going for your chest, but his aim was terrible." She looked at him, smiling. "But you weren't asking about that, were you?"

He didn't say anything. He wished he hadn't inquired about it at all.

"You're attracted to me."

He didn't look at her.

"Do you like me, too?"

He swallowed hard.

"Do I make you nervous?"

"No," he denied quickly, turning his head, but froze when he found Hinata inches from him. She held his gaze, keenly aware to the color creeping up his neck.

"I'm glad to hear that."

Sasuke's mouth went dry. He was suddenly aware he was highly uncomfortable at the wrong moment. Hinata looked down—much to his horror—and sat back down, blushing slightly and giggling.

"I didn't mean to excite you," she apologized.

He grunted, frowning at the ground as his face and his groin continued to betray him.

Minutes passed as they sat in uncertain silence. Sasuke found he was strongly hoping the other two would arrive soon. He glanced at Hinata; she was staring blankly at the ceiling. She peeked at him, giggling when he quickly looked away.

"You're making a mistake, Sasuke. I'm not the one you should fall for."

He wanted to say something, but he had no idea why. He shouldn't entertain her crazy conclusions.

"You know, Neji..."

Sasuke waited, tense.

She laughed. "Neji once told me he knew my type better than I did. He told me...I needed someone tough—someone who was strong and didn't let his emotions run him. Neji didn't have anything against Naruto, but..." She stopped, looking at the seemingly inattentive Uchiha thoughtfully. "I used to like him, in case you didn't know. I used to...be in love with Naruto, actually." She looked at the ground, thinking. "Used to..." She sighed, assuming her original position.

Sasuke hadn't known that. He wanted to ask about it. What did she see in him? What made her come to her senses? Why was she telling this at all?

"After I had time to take in Neji's death...I thought about what he said. When he first told me, I thought he was being mean." She laughed briefly. "It took me some time to understand he was just blunt, and he had only told me that to protect me. He wanted me to be with someone who could protect me... Strong, powerful, calm..." She hesitated, her mind wrapped in nostalgia. "That's...Neji in three words."

There was a brief silence.

"And I thought the same when I saw you."

Sasuke blinked, not knowing how he wanted to take this information.

"But you see, Sasuke, I can protect myself now. The old me... She needed protection. She wasn't stable, and she wasn't brave. Now..." she smiled pleasantly, "I'm kind of impressed with myself. As far as love goes, I don't need a protector. I want a partner—a lover—an equal. I want to captivate and be captivated." Hinata paused, looking towards the cave's entrance. She stood, walking out.

Sasuke looked at her, wondering where she was going.

"They're here for you," she said, walking on. "And for what it's worth, Sasuke, you would have been perfect for me three years ago."

Sasuke watched in confusion.

"Oh." Hinata turned to him, her expression bright with remembrance. "You pass."

One Month Later

"This village has fallen," Hiashi mentioned to his daughters. The three stood outside on the highest level of the main house and looked toward the Hokage Tower.

Hinata looked at her father, amused. "We are a forgiving village," she said.

He grunted, patting his eldest on the shoulder. "When you take over, do not show traitors special treatment."

"If I take over, I wish to be more united with the village. That means acknowledging and embracing all elite members of the ANBU."

Hiashi sighed, defeated. "Give it some thought." He turned. "Hanabi, let's go. It is time for your training."

The two left, leaving Hinata alone to lean leisurely on the rail.

It was a sunny day, and there was a slight breeze wafting through. After a few minutes of mindless enjoyment, a figure materialized on the rail. She smiled pleasantly, standing straight.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of an ANBU member?" she asked the person in the dog mask.

He produced a folded piece of paper. "From the assistant captain," he said simply.

"Another? I haven't read the others he sent."

"He's aware, so he kept this short."

Hinata thanked him, taking the paper. The man de-materialized, and she waited until all lingering signs of him were gone. She eyed the paper in her hands, leaning over the rail thoughtfully. She shrugged, deciding to open it:

I'm captivated. Where do we start?

For a moment, she looked at it with little interest. She folded it, thinking for a moment. "He's captivated?" She huffed, amused. "Captivated."

Hinata shook her head, laughing, and turned to walk inside.