Chapter 4: Sasuke Uchiha

It was late at night, and as I made my way to talk to my dad, I overheard him conversing with an elder.

"Hiashi, the Uchiha clan has been massacred."

"What! By who?"

"Itachi Uchiha."

"Any survivors?"

"Just one. Sasuke Uchiha."

It had been a while since I hung out with Sasuke, mainly because I'd been spending more time with Naruto. Memories of how I first met Sasuke came flooding back to me.

I was only four and had skipped training, wandering down the street when I bumped into two people, one being a kid and the other a teenager.

"Sorry, I should've been paying closer attention," I said, looking up at them.

"It's fine. Looks like you're the same age as my little brother."

I turned to the boy next to him and introduced myself, "I'm Hinoka Hyuga. What's your name?"

The boy replied, "I'm Sasuke Uchiha."

My stomach suddenly growled, making me blush out of embarrassment. Sasuke stifled his laughter, and the teenager chuckled before suggesting, "Why don't we get something to eat?"

"Really!" I beamed with a big smile.

I got to know Sasuke better but had to leave. Soon, I found myself frequently going to their house to hang out with Sasuke, or more accurately, to compete with him. We weren't exactly friends; we were more like rivals, competing in everything—eating, smarts, speed... We'd also watch Itachi train, and his sessions were intense and cool. Both Sasuke and I aimed to be stronger than Itachi.

I couldn't believe Itachi would massacre the Uchiha clan. He was always kind to me and loved Sasuke. I needed to find Sasuke to know the truth.

I sprinted towards where Sasuke and I usually sparred, bypassing the Uchiha compound, knowing he'd be training for revenge. Spotting him in action, I rushed over and hugged him. Instead of pushing me away, tears welled up in Sasuke's eyes.

We sat down, and I turned to Sasuke, questioning the Uchiha massacre.

"I found Uchiha members dead on returning from training. At home, my parents lay dead, and Itachi, with blood on his sword, stood behind them. He vanished, and when I confronted him outside, he admitted killing his best friend for the Mangekyo Sharingan and to have killed the whole clan. 'When you have the same eyes, come stand before me.' Those were his last words before leaving. I'm going to kill Itachi, Hinoka," Sasuke recounted, his eyes shifting to reveal the Sharingan.

Surprised, I jumped on him, and as we fell, I exclaimed, "You awakened your Sharingan! That's so cool!"

Sasuke smiled before saying, "You're still the same as always."

As I got off Sasuke and stood up, I said, "I still don't believe Itachi would massacre the whole clan just like that, and I won't believe it until Itachi himself tells me. But if you want to kill Itachi, then I'll help you because no matter what, I'll always be on your side." I patted him on the head and extended my hand.

Sasuke gave a small smile and took my hand, saying, "Thanks, Hinoka." I helped Sasuke practice by sparring with him. After two hours, exhausted, we sat by a tree for a break. Sasuke fell asleep on my shoulder, and I let him rest, eventually dozing off myself.

I woke up a few minutes before my training session with Neji. Sasuke was still sleeping, so I didn't disturb him and quietly made my way back home. I had a bath and was leaving my room when Dad appeared, saying, "Hinoka, good to see you're already up. It's time for your training. You'll enter the academy, tomorrow. That's all."

 I practiced with Neji till night time and as soon as we where done I rushed to my room then out of the compound and headed to Naruto's house. Entering, I found Naruto laying on his bed.

I paused before asking, "You hungry?"

Naruto looked up at me smiling as he exclaimed, "Hinoka! Yeah I'm hungry!" 

As I made some food Naruto helped. I had already stocked the house with more than just ramen and made a white rice with meat and cooked veggies. After I was done I told Naruto I couldn't with him today but promised we would hang out soon. I put the food into two bento and gave Naruto a mountain of food making him promise to eat all the veggies before leaving.

I passed the Uchiha compound heading to where Sasuke and I would train. As expected, Sasuke was up and training. I arrived in front of him, saying, "You know you still got to eat, right?"

Sasuke seemed surprised to see me as he asked, "Hinoka? What are you doing out so late?"

"I guess if you don't want I'll take my food back." I replied grinning as I slightly opened the bento.

Sasuke's stomach growled as he said, "Fine. I guess It's about time I take a break."

As Sasuke and I ate, I asked, "So, are you going to the academy tomorrow?"

Sasuke replied, "Yeah, I need to get stronger. Why?"

I grinned saying, "Cause I'm joining the academy tomorrow! My dad agreed to let me join. Can't let my rival get ahead of me, can I?" with a grin on my face.

Sasuke smiled as he said, "I already am."

After breakfast, we practiced for more than 4 hours, with me making sure Sasuke took breaks. We had a Taijutsu match, which I easily beat Sasuke in before making him take a break. As we sat down, my eyes grew heavy, so I closed them and fell asleep.

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**Sasuke's POV:**

I noticed Hinoka was out cold and thought about continuing training alone. But, when I tried to stand up, she held my hand tightly, refusing to let go. I decided to rest since it was late and sat back down next to her.

I looked at her as I thought "Thank you, Hinoka. I promise I won't let anyone hurt you no matter what." I brushed a few strands of her hair behind her ear when my face turned red as thought of how cute she looked when she was asleep.

Before eventually falling asleep.