Chapter Text
"It’s time."
She stood up with excitement, taking care not to make a sound as she slipped out of her room and headed toward her parents'.
Opening the door, she saw the silhouette of her father still tucked under the futon.
She rushed to his side to wake him.
"Dad, Dad, wake up!" She shook him back and forth, but a familiar scent quickly filled her senses.
He smelled of alcohol.
"Sora, don't wake your father, honey. He must be tired," her mother said, entering the room while drying her hair with a towel.
"But today is the first day of the Academy," she grumbled softly. It wasn't unusual for her father to drink after missions, her mother had explained more than once that he had spent a long time at war and that this was his way of relaxing.
Still, she had hoped that today he would be on his feet, sharing her excitement.
"It’s still very early. You still need to bathe and meditate, right? I’ll make breakfast afterward, and then we’ll wake your father. I’ll make sure his coffee is extra strong so we can get to the Academy without any trouble."
"Hiashi-sama will be angry if he finds out Dad is skipping meditation," Sora said, crossing her arms with a small pout. The Hyuga clan was full of complicated rules, sometimes it bothered her that, even as a child, she was scolded for small things while her father could bypass so many regulations.
"Hiashi-sama is quite busy right now with the upcoming birth of his heir, he doesn't have time to scold your father," her mother remarked with a small, amused smile.
Sora let out a sigh, conceding the point, and headed to her meditation room.
Ever since the clan matriarch had become pregnant, everything was being meticulously prepared to receive the future heir. Sora herself had helped embroider some of the crib cushions, after all, she was part of the Bouke, and her mother had been designated as the nanny for the Main House's future children.
“”
"Today, you begin a new path," Hiashi spoke calmly to the three children seated before him. They sat on their knees, backs perfectly straight, a testament to the strict upbringing they had received since infancy. "You must uphold the clan’s name once you are out there. Behave with prudence and do not cause trouble."
"Yes, Hiashi-sama," the three responded in unison, their voices clear and strong. The man nodded, pleased.
"Sora."
The young girl inhaled sharply at being singled out, but she remained steady without losing a beat. "Yes, sir?"
"Do not let anyone bother you. You are a Hyuga, and therefore, you cannot allow yourself to bow your head to anyone."
Sora blinked rapidly several times, a habit she had whenever she was surprised or confused.
Bother her? Her?
The two children beside her exchanged a brief, puzzled look, not understanding why the warning was directed only at her. After all, all three were members of the secondary branch, and none had managed to activate the Byakugan yet.
They possessed the exact same skill level.
So, why would she be targeted?
"Understood, sir," she replied. Though the warning eluded her, she didn't waver, earning another nod of approval.
“”
"Congratulations on entering the Academy, children," the Third Hokage began solemnly. "Work hard to advance on the shinobi path that opens before you from this moment on."
They stood in rows during the initiation ceremony. Everyone was glancing around curiously, discovering who their new classmates would be. In Sora’s case, she didn't recognize many faces, it was rare for her to be outside the Hyuga clan grounds.
Her cousins seemed to feel the same way, as they hadn't left her side for a second, despite the fact that she didn't remember talking to them much before.
"Sora-san," her cousin Himeko whispered once the Hokage finished speaking. It wasn't that children needed to speak so formally, but the Hyuga clan raised them to be respectful to everyone. Additionally, Sora was the eldest of the three, only by a few months, but the eldest nonetheless, and she felt the weight of that responsibility.
"What is it?" Sora replied in the same low tone.
"The person next to you is Itachi Uchiha."
Their other cousin, Hoheto, turned to look at them with curiosity. Sora blinked and glanced out of the corner of her eye, finding a boy her age with dark eyes and slightly long hair.
She nodded, feeling a bit nervous at the Uchiha’s presence. It was no secret in the village that the Uchiha and the Hyuga maintained a rivalry and constant friction.
They had orders to work harmoniously with everyone, especially the Uchiha. It seemed simple enough, but Itachi Uchiha was the clan heir, they had to be careful not to offend him while simultaneously showing no submission. It was quite a challenge for the mind of a six-year-old.
"Should we introduce ourselves?" Himeko asked shyly, a faint blush appearing that neither Sora nor Hoheto understood.
"We are members of the secondary branch, so it isn't necessary," Hoheto answered, frowning at the strange expression on Himeko’s face.
"Let’s just focus on being respectful if we have to speak to him," Sora added with a nod.
"But we can be his friends, right?"
"Well..." Sora hesitated. Could they?
Hiashi had told them to be kind to the children of important clans, but he never explicitly said if they could be friends. To her, it didn't seem like a big deal. If one of them were from the Main House, perhaps it would be more complicated, but surely no one would care about the friendships of Bouke children. "You can talk to whoever you want. Just watch your grades, and we have to return to the clan as soon as school is over."
"Right!" Himeko nodded excitedly. Sora smiled, not quite understanding what there was to be so excited about.
“”
"Your eyes are creepy," a boy complained, pointing at both of them.
Himeko looked saddened, but Sora didn't lower her gaze. She stepped in front of her cousin, Hoheto had been placed in a different classroom.
"Our eyes look like this because we are part of the Hyuga clan, and eventually, we will wield the Byakugan." There was no reason to be ashamed of her eyes, they were proof that they belonged to one of the most important clans in Konoha.
"And is your skin a sign of something, or is it just ugly because you don't bathe?" they continued their taunts.
Sora narrowed her eyes. What was wrong with her skin? She had inherited the brown skin from her father, and no one had ever treated her differently because of it. On the contrary, her father was an ANBU in service to the village.
"Is your stupidity a sign of a nutrient deficiency, or were you just born that way?"
She grabbed Himeko’s hand and walked away, ignoring the senseless shouting behind them. The teacher would arrive any moment, and she didn't want to make the situation any bigger than it already was.
"Can we sit there?" Himeko asked, pointing to one of the benches in the upper rows.
Sora nodded and let Himeko take the aisle seat while Sora sat in the middle. The other end remained empty, but neither of them cared much who the third person on the bench would be.
"Don't stay quiet when they make comments like those," Sora scolded gently. Himeko just rubbed the back of her neck with a sheepish smile. "Remember, we must uphold the pride of the Hyuga clan even when we are away."
"I just couldn't think of anything to say back."
"Well, it doesn't matter now."
A few seconds passed until the third person appeared, sitting on the bench without a word. Himeko stifled a gasp when she realized it was Itachi Uchiha and quickly poked Sora’s ribs to get her attention.
"Will you trade places with me?"
Sora nodded without thinking, but before they could stand up, the teacher entered, and the rest of the children fell silent. Sora gave her cousin a small smile and signaled for her to wait, she could switch places during lunch break.
The teacher began welcoming them and asked everyone to introduce themselves, names, reasons for becoming a ninja, and so on. Time passed quickly, and before they knew it, the bell rang.
"When you return, you must sit in the same seats as we will have an activity," the teacher announced before leaving.
Himeko let out a mournful sigh.
"I think he just means don't change benches," Sora encouraged. She didn't understand why Himeko wanted to sit next to the Uchiha so badly, but it seemed to make her happy, so she didn't question it.
"Excuse me."
Both girls turned at the Uchiha’s voice.
Himeko smiled and was the first to answer.
"Yes?"
"Are you part of the Hyuga clan?"
In truth, Itachi didn't have much intention of socializing, he had always been a somewhat isolated child. But curiosity had gotten the better of him when he saw these two girls. They stood out with their style of clothing and their pale eyes. His father had mentioned the Hyuga clan to him before, but this was the first time he had been close to any of them.
"Yes, I’m Himeko, and this is my cousin Sora."
"Can you use the Byakugan yet?" he asked with interest.
Sora stayed quiet but shook her head, letting Himeko do the talking.
"We’re training to use it. Hiashi-sama said we have to train hard to master it before we're twelve."
"It awakens through training?"
"Yes!"
Sora wondered if it was a good idea to talk so openly about the Byakugan. They weren't giving away important details because they didn't even have them yet, but she wasn't sure if Himeko should be so willing to answer everything from the start.
"Do the marks under your eyes mean something special?" he asked, referring to Sora.
At first, she didn't understand what he meant until she remembered the three moles under each of her eyes. They were aligned, appearing almost painted on by the way they decreased in size. Her father used to tell her they were just normal moles, but that it was rare to see them so perfectly placed.
"They're just moles." Out of reflex, she brought her hands to her face to touch them gently.
The statement seemed to slightly embarrass the Uchiha. It was almost imperceptible, but they were trained to notice any change in expression, so it was easy to see the boy felt foolish for saying something that might have been intrusive.
To her, it was no big deal, many people in the clan talked about that peculiarity of her face.
"They are nice," he tried to remedy with a small smile. "They make your face look pretty."
Sora felt slightly uncomfortable at the compliment. Her father told her she was pretty all the time, and some clan members had said it when she was little, but it never felt special because they said it to all the girls. She was more used to receiving praise for her skills than her appearance, so she simply nodded with propriety.
It seemed the Uchiha wasn't used to giving compliments either, as he looked away, letting his hair cover his face slightly.
Himeko shrank into herself a little, wishing she had received a compliment too.