Hinata wanted to scream, cry, and maybe throw a fit of anger. But in the end, she just broke down in tears on her knees. Hiashi, who was already furious at the sight of his daughter, rushed to her and activated his Byakugan to see where the bruises were.
However, his Byakugan revealed that Hinata was fine, and the chakra flow was not hindered either. So why was she crying? Had Aoto tormented her mentally?
"Hinata... Are you okay? Did he hurt you? Tell me, I will seek revenge," Hiashi said, though he could hardly believe his own words. Hinata cried for a few more minutes and then finally stopped. Seeing her father made her realize that all this time, her father wasn't her real father, and she had been treated well because her father had already been replaced.
Here, she thought she had finally found herself a good life, but now that she saw her father again, everything made sense. She felt guilty that a small part of her was relieved her father wasn't with her anymore, and she felt even more guilty for having such thoughts.
Then she also felt angry that her father was imprisoned in a place where Naruto lived. Every kind of emotion overwhelmed her, and being just a child, she broke down. Hiashi held her, and deep inside, he too felt guilt.
Being alone with his thoughts and some books that Aoto had provided him to read, Hiashi pondered. The books were mostly about 'fantasy' stories, and the more he read, the more he realized what kind of person he had been. The stories mostly revolved around the Marvel world, given its vast multiverse, and the library had extensive accounts of them.
Reading them was an eye-opener. Being here made him lonely for sure, but it felt good to be away from politics and struggle. Now that he saw her crying, he had a feeling he knew why, but a huge part of him refused to accept the fact due to his previous beliefs.
After calming down, Hinata asked, her tears finally stopped.
"Father... Is that really you?"
"Yes... My daughter... It's really me... Who hurt you? Tell me."
"No... No... Nobody hurt me. I'm sorry you had to see me like this," Hinata said, struggling to find the right words.
"Hizashi... My brother... Has he taken good care of you?" Hiashi asked, dreading the question. He hadn't been very kind to his twin brother, and though it wasn't entirely his fault, as he was brought up that way, once he grew up, he adopted the same attitude. An arrogant and haughty personality was what he always had.
He wondered if his brother had sought revenge.
"No... He has treated me well and even trained me," Hinata said. Those words hurt Hiashi the most. He used to be the one to train his daughter, but later he stopped because he didn't see any future prospect in his daughter.
He understood now that his daughter wasn't some tool. Being alone made him also realize that it was family and love that really mattered. He would just die one day and all his achievements would be nothing but some pages in history. He was all for retaining and protecting the Hyuga clan but that shouldn't mean he would lose himself while doing so.
"My daughter.. Can.. Can you forgive me?" Hiashi bowed down and said. Hinata who was feeling uncomfortable with her own feelings was taken aback and ran to him to pick him. Her uncle had bowed to her before and that already was too much. And now her father too.
"Father what you are doing?" Hinata was scared and asked. Hiashi went on to apologize for all the wrong he had done and said he had failed as a father. This made Hinata more guilty for her own minute thoughts and made her cry more.
She promised that she would try to be a better daughter and reach his expectations. She would work more hard. They talked for an hour where Hinata told what was going on in her. They talked for an hour before the door of the box opened and Aoto walked in while clapping his hands.
"You.. Why are you here again? Do you want to kidnap my daughter too. You can't hide her if you kidnap her." Hiashi shouted. Aoto just sighed and the whole room just evaporated. They were out in the open but Hiashi didn't attack. He had already learnt the lesson.
"I am not as bad as you that I will even think of kidnapping an innocent child. Only the people of Konoha can think of hurting an innocent child like Naruto, not me." Aoto said and this made Hiashi shut up.
"So what do you want?" Hiashi asked.
"Nothing. You can stay here and enjoy your time here. Read the books that this place has to offer and Hinata will be able to come regularly to see you. Of course, Hinata will not be allowed to speak about you to others and that is non negotiable." Aoto said.
"Why are so hell bent in changing the system of our clan?" Hiashi asked as he wanted to know what his motive was.
"I am not hell bent. If the opportunity never showed up, I wouldn't have bothered but since it did, I felt like I should extend a hand towards your clan which is dying at the moment." Aoto replied.
"Our clan is all powerful and we don't need outside interference." Hiashi said.
"Really? Tell me one figure from your clan who is as good as Madara Uchiha in the history. Both of your clans had doujutsu, but somehow your clan never had anyone of that caliber. Forget about Madara, your clan couldn't even produce someone as the same caliber of Fugaku or Shisui or even the young Itachi. In the name of eye powers, you have failed and so did your clan." Aoto said.
"Itachi..!?" Hiashi had heard about what kind of genius Itachi was but ho was he greater than them?
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