A/N: Hello everyone! I know it's been a while since I've posted a multichapter fic, and well, here is my second on ! I hope you all enjoy this story. I somewhat modeled it after the Warring States era in Japan because I am a history nerd haha. I hope you enjoy this story and this particular AU! Please leave a review, add this to your favorites, and be sure to follow for more weekly updates!

The day was uncharacteristically warm for February. Hinata stood in the central garden of her family's estate, watching snow melt off a branch. She had been sitting there since the early afternoon, when all of her lessons had ended for the time being. The young Hyuuga always enjoyed her lunch in the tranquility offered by the Zen garden designed by her ancestors long ago. Wearing a thickly padded yukata, Hinata stared off longingly into the sky.

"Despite this warring era, the sky still seems so peaceful. Tell me, kami-sama, does the sky not know of all the suffering happening below it? Or does it simply not care?" she thought aloud. With a small chuckle, the indigo-haired woman shook her head and looked down to the ground.

"Hinata-sama! Hinata-sama!" cried a voice that broke the peaceful scene between nature and the quiet observer.

"Yes?" Hinata stood, turning to face the intruder. It was one of the household guard, a young man named Kai. He was in his usual samurai attire, armor and all. One could never be too careful during these times. With one last longing look to the sky, Hinata cast her pearl eyes on the young retainer before her.

"Your lord father requests your presence immediately in his private study. He has urgent news he wants to discuss with you my lady," Kai spoke. He was on one knee and never looked Hinata in the eye, for that would be improper as her status was so high it towered above his own.

"Thank you, Kai. I will be on my way then."

Straightening her back, the young woman walked out of her peaceful garden and made way for her father's private study. She instinctively knew that what he was to discuss with her was of utmost importance because Hyuuga Hiashi never invited anyone into his private study save for his most respected generals and trusted advisors. Not even her cousin—now brother because of her father's adoption of him—Neji had ever been invited into the small sanctuary kept by the ruling Hyuuga daimyo.

As Hinata walked through the quiet compound, she thought of the three years the world had been at war. Three years did not seem to be such a long time but in the midst of war, time changed. She did not feel like a twenty year old young woman; she felt like a child at times, unable to comprehend why the world was in such turmoil and chaos. The people of her domain were suffering; the men in her father's service were dying; and yet nobody was even a fraction closer to obtaining ultimate power and uniting these fractured domains.

The war had started three years prior, when the current hegemon, Otsutsuki Hagaromo, died. His claim to ultimate power was weakened by the time of his untimely death which resulted in his generals' competition for power and for the chance to become the ultimate and final unifier of this broken Land of Fire. The first to act had been Uchiha Fugaku, who had wanted to grasp as much power as he could before his rival Senju Hashirama could. Thus sparked the conflict that would divide this nation.

The Hyuuga had sided with the Uchiha because of distant familial ties that went so far back nobody knew if they upheld any truth or not. It would also be advantageous to the Hyuuga because of the fact that their domains were neighbors. The Hyuuga army was not strong enough to repress an Uchiha assault; it was better to submit to them and reap the benefits than to stand against them and suffer unspeakable atrocities. The Uchiha were vicious; they would destroy anyone who had opposed them. And they had.

The war seemed to be nearing an end. The only thing standing against the Uchiha were the Senju, who rivaled them in power. The Senju were in the southern and eastern parts of the country, with the Uchiha controlling the northern and western parts. Hinata could sense that the final battle was approaching, and she could not wait for its arrival. She no longer wanted to be in a warring world. The young woman wanted peace, to not become afraid whenever a messenger hawk came.

Secretly, part of her hated the Uchiha. Because of their pride and their ambition, they started this war along with the Senju. Everyone around them had been dragged into this madness because a few powerful men had insatiable ambitions.

Nearing the entrance to her father's study, Hinata cast away all thoughts of the war and put on a blank face. Her relationship with her father was respectful but it was not loving. Hiashi was not a warm person; he was as cold as his eyes.

A young retainer bowed his head when he saw his master's eldest daughter approaching the study. He slid back the shoji door and quickly closed it once Hinata had passed the threshold. Her father sat on a tatami mat, looking at several war reports. Though the Hyuuga were not directly involved in the fighting, they provided the Uchiha small military support as well as foodstuffs since their domain had rich fertile soil and was not completely destroyed by the battles.

Bowing her head respectfully, Hinata sat on the tatami mat in front of her father. The black obi around her waist helped her keep her proper position. White eyes met white eyes.

"Hinata," he greeted in a gruff voice. His long brown hair was pushed back but signs of aging were obvious on his brow. The war was affecting him as well.

"Father," she replied in a gentle voice, adverting her gaze out of respect. She focused her eyes on her hands, taking extra care to keep them still. As a child she had had a nervous habit of fidgeting her hands; it had been beaten out of her by many ladies-in-waiting who did not approve of the improper behavior.

"The reason I called for you is because I have something to discuss with you. It is an arrangement involving you, and the decision has already been finalized. The messenger hawk has been sent."

Unable to control her curiosity, Hinata looked up at her father. What would come out of his mouth next? What decision did he make that involved her? Hinata sat there, in a pale grey yukata with a black obi, in perfect posture, feeling as confused as a fish out of water.

Hiashi must have seen the burning curiosity in his daughter's eyes, and feeling a few inklings of affection for his eldest child, he did not scold her for making direct eye contact. She may be a lady, but he was the head of the clan and domain as well as her father.

"The decision I just made is arranging your marriage. You are now of age; past of age, actually. Your mother thought it was not safe enough to marry you during the three years of war. However, this war appears to be coming to an end soon, so I thought it was proper to marry you now."

The news came as a shock. Hinata knew this day was coming, but she did not conceptualize it enough to make it real. She sat there, quiet as a mouse, not saying anything. She wondered who her new fiancé was, if he was a member of the branch family or from another high-ranking samurai family. If it was the former, she would be able to stay in her homeland; if it was the latter, she would be shipped away to a new place, knowing not a single friend. Resentment stated to grow in the pit of her stomach, but Hinata suppressed it from showing on her face or her eyes.

Her emotionless opal eyes looked into her father's again, begging him to go on with the news.

Clearing his throat, the Hyuuga clan head continued. "The wedding will take place within a week's time. Your mother and sister will help you in packing everything you will need, though it won't be much. You are going to a different domain, Hinata, meaning you will have a new home. You must show them the same respect you have shown your mother and I, and you must support and respect your husband in everything he does. It is your duty, Hinata. Do not fail me.

"The man you will be marrying is Uchiha Sasuke. He is Fugaku's youngest son and, behind his older brother, is next in line to become the Uchiha head. Fugaku and I have been discussing this for some time. This marriage will strengthen the alliance between our two domains and will physically as well as symbolically align our families and domains together. This will also help me convince the generals to give full-out military support to the Uchiha. We will join their war cause and help them defeat the Senju and the Uzumaki.

"All of this is now your duty, Hinata. Make sure to please Sasuke-kun in any way you can and do not dishonor him nor his family. You will be their new daughter and you must act accordingly. You are a high-born lady of the Hyuuga. Show the Uchiha that they will not regret this decision."

"Yes Father. I will bring honor to the Hyuuga through this marriage and help the Uchiha in any way I can. Thank you for arranging this and picking out such a splendid candidate." The words came out robotically; Hinata didn't even know she was saying them.

With that she was dismissed. She felt surprisingly numb. Her entire world was changing and in a week she would be in a strange new land surrounded by strangers who had no inkling of loyalty to her. Would she be welcomed? Would she be safe?

Not until she was in the protection of her garden did Hinata finally let out a quiet sob.