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As he approached he heard someone else venting their frustrations. He held back an amused scoff as he recognized Hyuuga Hinata's voice; breathy, erratic, and so very determined. The thud of flesh meeting wood punctuated her vocal thoughts.

"Stronger? thunk No, father dearest... thump never be stronger than huff Neji or Hanabi... slam but I'll get better...pant... the Hyuuga heiress... is creak not crash... weak... oh damn." Sasuke leant on a training platform; the one Naruto had been tied to so many years ago. He watched her looking at the remains of the log in dismay.

"Yes, Sasuke-san? Did you want the training grounds?" Hinata looked over at him, not at all abashed about the possibility that Sasuke had heard her tirade. Sasuke pushed himself off with his shoulder and strolled over.

"I did, but I think I found a better way to pass time. You."

"Me?" Hinata shot him an amused but mocking look. "Watching me destroy Academy property entertains you?"

Sasuke shrugged. "It's not like we have a shortage of logs. And yes, watching you destroy Academy property is entertaining, but the fact that you're doing it in a skirt makes it interesting."

Hinata turned slightly pink at the memory of some of the kicks she'd had to modify to preserve her costume. Her costume was in almost pristine condition still, even if her dignity wasn't. Still, she didn't look away from him when she spoke. "Not all fights happen when one is a ninja. Sometimes you have to fight when you're just another person in the crowd." She grinned a little. "Kicking ass has nothing to do with where you wear the hitai ate. So... did you want to spar?"

"Yeah. Make it worth my time, Hyuuga."

"I'll try, but you're not the one wearing a skirt Uchiha."

He lunged, she blocked. He slashed at her, she danced out of the way. She tried basic Juuken, he knocked her hands away.

"Spar with Neji-niisan often?" Kick.

"Every now and then. You're not as forceful as he is." Block. Swipe.

"I don't need to be." Dodge. Punch.

"Can't use Juuken with a busted wrist, can you?" Block. Kick.

"You're stronger than I am. I'll bend rather than break thanks." Leap. Kick. Punch.

She thought she'd take advantage of the imbalance kicking left? A blur later, the match was over. A log lay on the ground, having taken two hits from the girl. Her opponent was behind her, kunai against her neck, one wrist pinned against her back.
They were both still wearing their masks."You win Sasuke-san." Neither made any attempt to move. "Was it worth your time?"

The kunai was tucked away. "Far too short. Is water really that useless?"

"I try not to fight that seriously with my allies. Healer weakness. I don't want to hurt those on my side. Enemies are meant to be fought, not those who help you."

He looked at her contemplatively. "Come on."

She shrugged and followed. He led her over the walls and into the Forest. She noted the path he took through the trees carefully. He laughed; short, soft, unnoticed by her, but he laughed.

"It's nothing illegal."

Hinata smiled. "Not used to boys asking me to accompany them into the woods. Us weak girls are always warned that nothing good comes after dark. That and I'd rather not follow you blindly, I'm sure you've had enough of that. So where are we... oh."

He'd taken her to a waterfall. It looked... alone, serene, but alone.

"Not sure what happened, or when, but some ninja battle must have taken place. Shook up the earth, and diverted a stream over the cliff. It's not very impressive, but will it do for a demonstration?"

"Maybe." As she slipped out of her shoes, she debated telling him that she wasn't used to practicing for an audience. But he's interested. Maybe he can help point out the flaws... It's not like he'll go and tell everyone he knows that Hyuuga Hinata has modified her inheritance to suit her own weaknesses. She stopped rationalizing. If she was going to do this, she wouldn't give him any reason to complain. She stepped onto the water. And forgot completely about him.
Sasuke may have been an unemotional bastard, but he was still human. In the pale light of the new moon, the water droplets sparkled. Her hair, only a few inches longer than it had been six years ago, flared as she moved. The mask was dark against her face and light against her hair. He had to admit, the sight was something out of a fairy tale. Princess of the Dragon Palace Beneath the Waves, something like that. The soft glow of chakra, the water, the moon, her costume; it was too much. It left him breathless.

"So was that worth your time, Sasuke-san?" Hinata was still slightly breathy, she usually got so caught up in the thrill of it all; that she wasn't fighting made it that much more exhilarating. Sasuke had regained his composure by then.

"Different from the Kaiten, but similar. Very interesting. Shall we go back?"

Hinata blinked at the rapid change in topic. Then she looked at the moon, really looked at it. It's... late. Damn. "Yes, please."
"Taken out of context this could sound weird, but thank you for tonight, Sasuke-san." She'd fallen back into the shy girl pose, both hands at her chest, eyes very interested in the floor.

"It was my pleasure, Hinata...hime." He took one hand and brought it to his lips. Then he gave that mischievous smirk. "Ja." And then he was gone.

Hinata very slowly turned pink. She stared at her hand like she couldn't believe it. Then she fled, back into the compound, into the complex simplicity that only a Hyuuga could understand, that only a Hyuuga could hate and love, that only a Hyuuga could call both a cage and a home. Several lights were still on; thankfully Neji's light was off. Which meant that he'd either decided to turn in really, really early; or he wasn't back yet. Knowing Neji, he probably wasn't back from the festival yet, which meant he wouldn't question her walking in when he knew she'd left the festival ages ago. Questions, questions, how she hated questions. If there was room for questions there was room for doubt. If there was room for doubt, it would erode her. Slowly, but inexorably.

He called her hime... princess. Was he making fun of her? What did it mean? Did it mean anything at all? No, no more questions. He had called her princess. But this was Uchiha Sasuke. One of the strongest ninja she knew, most eligible bachelor, it figured he'd know how to treat a lady. That was all. Really.

Sasuke didn't know that Hyuuga Hinata had lost a few hours sleep over his parting words. If he had, he would have scoffed, because seriously, who put that much importance in words? It was actions that said the most. He sure as hell didn't care that somehow he'd gone and called her Hinata-hime. It wasn't wrong, it wasn't right, it wasn't anything. It's not like he was in love with her, or had any inclination to be. And it was highly doubtful she liked him. Sure, she'd all but given up on Naruto, but that was called growing up. It was called moving on, being sensible, learning from the past. And if there was a lesson that bore repeating, it was that Naruto did not know how to take a hint. Granted, it'd be fairly amusing if he did take the one thing Naruto had had for years, but never noticed. He not only had her acknowledgement, but he had had her devotion, her admiration, her respect.

Uchiha Sasuke, number one rookie, sole survivor of the Uchiha massacre, had been the village heart throb, and still was. Uchiha Sasuke, the isolated child, the suppressed wonder, the boy who knew how to housewife better than most girls because he had to, the one who sought acknowledgement as desperately as the dead-last had, that Uchiha Sasuke had no one, not even the echoes of a family long gone. Uzumaki Naruto however, loudest ninja around, dead-last in almost everything, a strong ninja, a good ninja, the one who claimed to someday become Hokage, had someone who understood him, without actually being close to him.

Clinically speaking Huuga Hinata was quite a girl. Soft spoken, softly pretty, a decent fighter, an excellent medic, a good ninja, with a bloodline to boot. He'd heard the whispers that someone had heard from somewhere that the Hyuuga wished a union with the Uchiha. Wished for maybe, but he knew they would not push the issue. The Hyuuga were not a family to tolerate showing weakness. They would not ask him. That would tell him, and therefore everyone, that they wished for more power. They could not force their daughters to ply him with attentions, because that would be too degrading. They could only hope for the straws to fall favorably.

That was all.

Hyuuga Hinata may have been the heiress, but she was not Clan head. So she knew only what they wished her to. Otherwise...otherwise what would she do? Try to comply with the council's wishes? Ignore them, and continue living her own life? She didn't have her own life. Not really. She lived for her clan. How she did so was her own choice, but in the end, everything she did would not be for her. What kind of way to live was that? But she seemed to be happier now that she could better serve those who held her tethers. Instead of being the unwanted ugly duckling, she was now a swan that they would not give up. And she was happy that they wanted to keep her. Must be because they were family. Sometimes the only thing you can do is for them. Which was why he was an Avenger. Because his family needed something from him.