Put Up With It (Neji x OC)

Epilogue

When the light of the morning sun seeped through the traditional walls of her home, Hane pulled the wooden frames open and stepped onto the wooden porch surrounding her home.  She gazed at the elaborate garden, watching cherry blossoms flutter from the beautiful tree in the center, and onto the platform that she stood on.

She sat down and crossed her legs, placing her hands between them in a peaceful, meditating position.  Hane allowed her onyx eyes to focus on the branches of her tree sway in the wind, eventually drifting into thought.

From a distance, she could hear the thundering of clumsy feet.  It was coming closer, closer, and closer.

The woman felt a hard thump in her side, tipping her over from her peaceful position.  Her eyes flew open, searching for the person who disrupted her peace.

"Hiro!" She yelled, shooting a disapproving look towards the eight-year-old.  He bowed his head apologetically, letting long strands of deep brown hair fall in front of his face, hiding his dark eyes.

"I'm sorry, mom!" He yelped in defense.

"Why are you running around so early in the morning?" Hane rubbed the back of her head, trying to make sense of the child's actions.

"I have to get to the Academy!" Hiro proclaimed.  His mother raised a peculiar eyebrow towards him.

"You're too young for the Academy, Hiro." 

"But I'm not too young to learn!" He continued to protest.  A playful smirk played on Hane's lips as she reached out for the child's bony foot.  In one, swift movement, she brought him to the ground.  She then pulled him into a tight embrace, smothering him with motherly kisses.

"Then you're not too old for your mother's kisses!" She teased, not allowing him to pry her arms from his small body, yet he continued to protest.

"Mom! Get off of me! It's gross!" He whined, thrashing about until the white tie around his long, silky hair came loose, letting it fall around his shoulders.  Hane finally released him, and he stood, panting and wiping his cheeks as though he had been drawn on with charcoal.

The woman laughed slightly at the pestered boy.  "You look like your father." She displayed a kind smile.

"I am nothing like him!" Hiro pouted, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"You are, and it's a good thing.  Your father is the best man I know."

"But fath -" The boys words were cut short when another paper door slid open, revealing a small girl, no older than two years.  She stumbled over to Hane, wiping her tired eyes before falling into the woman's arms.

"Why is Hi-nee so loud, Mama?" The little girl looked up at Hane with pure, white eyes.  This child was the reason that the Azayaka and Hyuga had agreed to wed Neji and Hane, to continue the bloodlines.  The petite girl had shimmering white hair and pure white eyes, already showing signs of having the power of both the Hyuga's Byakugan and Azayaka's Illusion Jutsu.

"Because he's a silly boy, Nori." Hane pulled the child higher, letting her wrap her tiny arms around her mother's neck.  She gracefully rose to her feet, and used a free hand to ruffle Hiro's long hair.

"Go off to the Academy, Hiro." A smile lit his face as he raced off, yet the white-haired woman called after him, "But don't cause trouble!"

In the midst of his glide across the wooden pathway, Hiro turned to yell something in return, but ended up slipping and landing on his backside.  A small scowl crossed his face, but was soon replaced by a smile stretching from ear to ear of his young face.  Hane shook her head and chuckled as he ran off yet again.

Hane walked into her homey kitchen with young Nori propped in her arms.

"Mama." The little girl said.  Hane hummed in response, letting the child know that she was listening.  "When is Papa gonna come home?"

A sweet, yet sorrowful smile shaped on the woman's lips.  "When the time comes, we will go and visit him." She said, using her free arm to rub her balloon-shaped stomach, thinking of how her beloved would not be there to experience the birth of their third child.

"When, Mama?" Nori asked innocently.

"In a very long time from now, Nori."

Out of the corner of her onyx eye, Hane looked at the black cabinet in the corner of her living room, with candles set up around a wooden frame propped in the center.  A vine of sage burned in an elaborate china bowl, a small stream of smoke swirling around the picture within the wooden frame.

Within this memorial, Neji Hyuga's smiling face brought loneliness to Hane's heart.

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Author's Note:

Bet you guys weren't expecting that! Yeah, it's quite a side ending, but I wanted to stick slightly to the real Naruto plot-line.  Just enough to lose those we love.

Anyway, this is what you guys asked for! Hope you liked it ;)