Hinata Hyuuga shielded her eyes from the sun as she observed a few clouds floating aimlessly in the sky. Sighing she lowered her hand, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as she turned down a side-street.

Konoha was more of a series of winding side-streets surrounding a few main roads than it was an actual city. The old paths were made of cobblestone instead of the concrete decorating the new sectors. By morning the alleys were lined with booths of food and supplies while a few customers could be seen drifting between the stands. When the sun began to set it was a completely different story. The market place came alive and the crowds thickened into surging masses of eager customers, examining the various goods to be sold and bought.

It was one of these streets that she turned down in the fading hours of the day. She would have to make it to the shop soon if she was going to meet the evening rush of customers. Yugao-san would be mad if she was late again. She smiled ruefully as she remembered the reason why she had been late.

"Absolutely not! I forbid it!" Hiashi Hyuuga yelled in frustration, slamming down the newspaper on his lap.

"Why?" Hinata questioned her voice uncharacteristically hard as she stilled herself against her father's wrath.

"Imagine how that would look to others! The daughter, the heir no less, from one of the most prestigious families in Konoha today working like some common citizen! I will not have it!" he protested, standing so he towered over her.

"No! I'm going! I promised Yugao-san that I would help out more around the store and I have every intention of keeping my word," she refused to press the subject any further as she turned around to open the door.

"If you walk out that door don't bother coming back," he lowered his voice dangerously as he watched her face, "there is no room for disobedience and weakness in this family."

"F-fine!" was all she squeezed out, fighting to keep her composure before she slammed the door, leaving a stunned Hiashi behind her.

Hinata smiled regretfully, maybe she shouldn't have lost her temper like that, but now that he was gone she felt she could breathe easier. Yugao had been furious when she heard about what Hinata's father had done, calling up Hiashi and giving him a good chewing out before she was satisfied. Since then Hinata had been living with her mother's niece and her husband Gekko Hayate in a small one bedroom apartment. But… she was free. Freedom. The word echoed in her mind whenever she thought of that moment, and whenever she thought of him…the boy on the bike riding down the hill…

"Hinata-san can you sweep off the front step for me quickly, we're going to close up soon," A black haired woman, Hinata's cousin, Yugao Hayate called to the teenager.

"Hai Yugao-san!" she yelled to the woman in the back, dashing behind the counter to retrieve and old straw broom.

"Oh, ano, Hinata-san, I…never mind, I'll talk to you later," she smiled at her affectionately, shifting the boxes in her arms uncomfortably.

"Hai, Yugao-san," she repeated, shrugging of the underlying tone of melancholy in her aunt's voice.

Clutching the broom to her chest she walked out the door, jumping slightly as the bell on the door jingled. The bamboo handle rubbed against her palms roughly as she adjusted it in her hands. A chilly wind blew through the street, vendors and buyers alike taking shelter in the stores and pubs lining the walkways, seemingly carved into the sides of the ominous buildings. Gray clouds deterred the usual gathering of shoppers as they rumbled threateningly overhead. Sighing she moved her arms in the familiar motion. Back and forth, back and forth. Swish…swoosh…swish…swoosh. The straw beat the cobblestone in a steady movement. The young girl could feel her eyes narrowing slightly as she was soothed by the steady rhythm of scraping and patting.

She raised her eyes slightly as a new sound entered her field of hearing. The sound of bike pedals and chains rattling, steadily coming closer. Now all her attention was riveted to a single figure, rapidly approaching in the distance. Soon a battered orange bike came into view. Seated on it was boy, a black and orange jacket flapped behind him as his transport gained speed. She stood frozen on the sidewalk of the hill as his features became more visible to her wide observing eyes.

Hinata gasped as his face came into view, but the only thing she noticed were his eyes…those bright blue eyes…burning with determination, power, and will unlike anything she'd ever seen before. They seemed to strike something in her. Immediately her heart sped up and she could feel a rosy blush dusting itself across her cheeks. Her soul seemed to drink in is energy hungrily, as though catching some spark of that fire would make her invincible…able to fly…and in that moment when she felt his gaze settle on hers…she felt like she could…

A smile had unknowingly crept onto Hinata's face, as she stood outside the door of her cousin's store, a hand clenched in front of her heart as a flood of emotions caused it to speed up; beating rapidly as she attempted to calm herself. His eyes, she sighed wistfully as she recounted the experience. Even now it still made her flood with emotions she'd never known she possessed before.

"Hinata-san," Yugao's voice made her jump, "are you going to come and get to work or are you going to stand there all day and stare off into space?"

The older woman's voice was not unkind; instead amusement glimmered in her eyes. Yugao's eyes were a remarkable thing, for they were a lavender in color, almost identical to Hinata's, except the heiress had no pupils; the mark of all Hyuuga.

"Ano, gomen, Yugao-san. I did not know…I was just…ano, gomen."

"It's alright. I need to talk to you about something."

"Hai. What's wrong?" Hinata asked, pushing open the door to enter the store.

"Can we go to the back?" Yugao looked around nervously, bringing up her hand to nibble anxiously on her thumbnail.

"H-hai."

This must be serious…what's going on…? The foreboding though rand through her mind as she followed Yugao towards a door situated in the wall nearest to the door, hanging up her jacket behind the counter as they passed and folding her scarf on a nearby stool.

"You see, Hinata-san," Yugao started once they were both sitting comfortably in the back storage room, glancing around to avoid her younger cousin's eyes, "I'm going to need you to take over the shop for a while," she explained.

"M-me. Ano, gomen, but I don't think…I don't understand…" she trailed off struggling to find the right words…

"You see, you're going to have another cousin soon," she smiled, the happiness penetrating the earlier tension, patting her belly affectionately as she closed her eyes, "and I won't be able to work here for a while, so I was wondering if you could take over until then."

"Hai. I would be honored Yugao-san…but, why me? Surely Toshiko—"

"No. I trust you. Besides, Hayate and I have been talking lately and we both feel that when the time comes, if you agree, we would turn over ownership of the shop to you."

"Y-you would r-really g-giv-ve the store to m-me?" she stuttered in disbelief, stopping as she was about to tie the back of her green apron.

"Hai," was all she answered, "now we have a busy day ahead of us, will you open up the shop for me, and we can get the day started…"

0

"I'm going to head out now Hinata-san. Are you sure you'll be able to handle the evening rush on your own?" Yugao questioned, folding a long gray coat over her arm as she fished in her purse for her keys.

"It's fine Yugao-san. If I can't do this how can I expect to run the store for nine months," she waved her hand at her aunt, before returning it to the page she was reading.

"Alright, alright already. Don't be afraid to call if you need anything…oh, and don't forget to lock up…always call Toshiko if the crowd gets too much for you…"

"Everything is fine Yugao-san. I'll do everything you've asked me too. It's all on the list," she reminded the flustered woman gently, holding up a piece of paper beside the magazine on the counter.

Both sides were covered by messy frantic writing, numbers before each line. Patiently she placed in its former spot, flipping over another page as she rested her cheek in her palm, elbow leaning nonchalantly on the counter.

"Okay Hinata-san…"

Hinata glanced up at her aunt, eyes sparkling patiently as she sighed in earnest. Yugao-san grinned at her warmly before draping the coat over her shoulders and pushing open the door. The slight ring of the bell signaled her exit. Yugao-san…you worry too much… she giggled halfheartedly to herself, blowing a piece of hair out of her eyes. A sudden sound reached her ears, causing her to perk up for a moment. It was the sound of bike tires, screeching to a hurried halt… sound of a bell on a door…and the gasp of disbelief as her eyes locked again, with a pair of startling blue orbs.

It was him! The boy on the bike! She glanced to the side to see the battered orange bike leaning haphazardly against the store wall. He grinned at her in a fox-like manner, spreading across his face and making the whisker-like marks on each of his cheeks stretch comically.

"Oh…umm…" she stumbled over words, glancing down at her fingers twiddling nervously in front of her.

What do I say? WHAT DO I SAY! She panicked, her eyes darting anywhere…anywhere but to the face of the person in front of her.
"O-ohayo…" she stumbled out, "w-welc-come to the—" she swallowed nervously, what am I doing? I'm making such a fool of myself… "welcome to the Hayate convenience store."

"Arigato, I just need some instant ramen; if you have any."

"Oh, Hai. Let get some from the back," she smiled nervously, trying to ignore the fluttering feeling in her stomach.

Turning away from him, she retreated to the safety of the storage room. She stopped to gather her breath as she glanced around for the ramen.

Instant ramen…that's all. Just get the ramen and get through this. she attempted to sooth herself as her breathing eventually evened out.

"There it is," she whispered as she reached up on one of the shelves to grab the box.

Wait! I forgot to ask how much he wanted!

"Ano," she attempted to call to him through the open door.

He glanced at her over the counter, signaling he was listening. She could feel herself blushing again as his eyes locked with hers…those eyes that seemed to see right through her. Suddenly Hinata let out a squeak as she lost her balance with the heavy crate, starting to fall back off the stool where she was precariously balanced. In desperation she dropped the crate, but kept careening towards the hard cement floor. She closed her eyes and waited for the impact, but surprisingly none came. She peeked open one eyes a bit to see a pair of concerned blue ones looking down at her. A light headed feeling seemed to wash over her as her vision began to blur slightly.

"Oi, miss, are you okay?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.

"H-hai. A-arigato Gozaimasu," she stuttered, sitting up so she was no longer in his arms.

"Mondai dewa nai," he chuckled, his arm going to the back of his unruly blonde hair, as he once again gave her his fox-like grin.

"A-ano, how much ramen did you want?" she asked, desperate to change the subject from their awkward apologies.

"Hmm, here," he said scooping up the a few packs.

"Here, I'll ring you up at the counter," she smiled wearily at him; internally she was berating herself a thousand times over.

"I'll help you first. After all, this mess is kinda my fault," he blushed sheepishly.

"A-arigato G-gozaimasu…" she trailed off, not knowing what to call him.

"Naruto Uzumaki," he grinned, shifting the ramen in his arms as he held out his hand for her to shake.

"Hinata Hy--…just Hinata," she told him sadly.

She did not dare use the family name that she had long since been stripped of. He seemed to sense the melancholy in her voice as he did not bother her on the subject anymore than she was willing to tell.

0

"We're done!" the bright boy, who name was recently discovered to be Naruto cheered, wiping the sweat off his forehead.

It was only intended originally for him to help her clean up the littered packets of ramen, but had turned into him unofficially helping her close up the store.

"Hai," she agreed, allowing a shy smile to grace her face, as she wiped her hands on the rag before placing it back in her apron pocket, "arigato for helping me, Naruto-kun."

"No problem Hinata!" he smiled brightly, once again scratching the back of his head bashfully, "that's a lot of work for you to do on your own anyways."

"Well, usually I have Yugao-san to help me," she informed him, reaching back to untie her apron, "but she's pregnant now, so it wouldn't be very wise to have her working too hard."

"Oh, but that's still nice of you to do that for her. My boss isn't much fun, but yours must be pretty cool by the sound of it."

"Ano, she's my cousin; my mom's niece actually."

"What's your mom's name?" he asked, seeing as the mention of the mysterious woman seemed to cheer his new friend; besides it was nice to see her smile.

"Ano, her name was Hikari, Yuuhi, before she was married to my father," she told him, her memories replaying blissfully as she remembered days in the garden with her late mother…her kind, gentle mother, "but she's gone now."

She didn't know why she was opening up to him, or why she was even talking to him at all! After all he was a complete stranger whose name she'd only learned a few moments ago. So why did she feel so comfortable with…so safe? He was already telling her things that she had yet to tell some of her closest friends! She smiled bashfully at the thought of him being her friend, truly being her best friend…

But why would someone so wonderful and nice want me as a friend?

"I'm sorry to hear that, Hinata. I probably shouldn't have asked, right?" he looked at her sympathetically, as he reached for her apron to hang it up on the wall-peg near him.

"It's okay. I like remembering her, and nobody really asks much; it was very kind of you," she blushed at the last part, looking out the window to avoid eye contact.

Over practically the whole time he had helped her she had tried her hardest to avoid his eyes, fearing she would get lost in them if she stared too long. They were the most hypnotizing shade of blue and never ceased to make her heart pound and her face to light up like a Christmas tree. She would giggle as he would obliviously ask what was so funny before proceeding to glance around him in search of the source of her amusement. He was just so cute! She blushed at her inward thought before his voice interrupted her reverie.

"Ne, Hinata, should I pay for my ramen now? Since you're about to close?" he asked her with wide eyes.

"Of course Naruto-kun," she gasped, mentally hitting herself on the head for forgetting the entire reason he was there with her in the first place.

Almost frantically with the flustered look still plastered to her face. "A-ano that will be 1017¥, Naruto-kun."

"Alright," he rummaged in his pocket for a second before pulling out a fat frog shaped wallet, "Gama-chan," was all he mumbled for an explanation with a slight blush of embarrassment on his face.

"So kawaii!" she whispered half to herself as she held it for a moment while he counted out the extracted money.

"Here we are 1017¥," he told her happily, pushing the money over the counter.

She smiled sheepishly as she placed it in the register, before shutting it.

"We're all done now," she sighed blissfully, Naruto chuckled in agreement with her joke.

0

"Arigato for helping me out today, Naruto-kun," she thanked him again as the two teens walked down the darkening street in the chilly late September air.

"It was no problem Hinata," he grinned at her, "I had fun; first time in a while actually."

"Ne, Naruto-kun," she ventured, her eyes tracing the path of a falling leaf.

"Hai?" he asked questioningly as he too observed the red object on its spiraling course.

"You mentioned your boss earlier, but I still don't know where you work," she stated more than asked.

"Ne? Well I work at restaurant. Delivery boy actually," he explained, patting the seat of the battered orange bike he wheeled along beside him for emphasis.

"That must be pretty fun though," she pointed out.

"Nah, confusing really; remembering all those numbers and orders and what streets and building to go to. I'd much rather have your job."

"It's so boring though," she blurted out, earning a raised eyebrow in question from Naruto, "You sit there all day and tell people where stuff is and even when there's not a crowd you don't get to do much."

"You're right, I guess my job is more fun," he bragged with a teasing wink at her flustered expression, " I get to ride this piece of junk all day long."

"It's not too bad," she defended, "I'd love to be able to ride one all day," she whispered the last part to herself with a blush at her own boldness.

"Do you want to?" he whispered, causing her jump slightly in surprise, "I won't tell anyone, promise," he joked.

"Naruto-kun," she pouted, "don't tease me; it's not nice to tease a girl."

He laughed at her mock display of offense as she eventually succumbed to peals of giggles. His laugh was simply infectious as was his playful energy and nature, she was exactly the sort of person Hinata needed around after a long monotonous day and inconsiderate people.

"Ne, Hinata, I have an idea!" his eyes gleamed with excitement.

"Nani?"

"What's your address?" he asked practically bouncing where he stood.

"Ano, 189. It's down this street in one of the apartment buildings," she admitted in embarrassment.
"Nani? Masaka! That's that same building I live in!"

Hinata stood in a stunned silence at the discovery. I was true that Hinata had long since wondered who occupied the mysterious apartment 190 above the one where she lived with Hayate and Yugao, but never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined it to be him. She was too surprised as he bounced around happily only catching a few audible words of 'wow' or 'I never would've thought'.

"Hinata! You have to come over for dinner some time whenever I can get Ayame to let me take some ramen from the stand!"

"S-sure Naruto-kun," suddenly at thought struck, "What was that idea you were going to tell me about earlier?"

"Ano, oh yeah! Well, since you want to ride so badly, if you sit between the handlebars I can give you a ride home!"

"H-hai, sure."

0

A few moments later Hinata was regretting those words…but at the same time thanking Kami over and over again that she'd had the courage to say yes. Riding with Naruto was a matter of its own. He was wild and yes a little reckless, but she'd never had so much fun or felt so exhilarated! A few times he'd encourage her to let go of the handlebars behind her, and to her surprise she did! It was the most freeing feeling she'd felt as she opened her arms for a split second to embrace the wind before catching the bars in death grip as she thought she felt her balance waver much to Naruto's amusement. Naruto himself had often scared Hinata in this fashion by letting his go and doing his own no-hands moment before he steadied a wobbling course. It was terrifying. It was exhilarating. It was freeing. It was everything she wished she'd ever known condensed into one moment in time. And it ended too soon. Hinata had been none too happy when she felt the bike come to unsteady halt.

"We're here Hinata," announced though she could sense the underlying tone of sadness in his voice as he eyed the stoop.

"Hai," she whispered.

"I guess I'll see when I can. I'll pick you up at the store around closing time. I can even help if you want," though his tone seemed casual his eyes screamed out the hopefulness and pleading he felt inside.

"Hai. That would be wonderful Naruto-kun," she blushed, attempting to hide deeper in to the fluffy red scarf that enveloped her neck, and unconsciously inhaled deeply. It wasn't her scarf, but Naruto's. He'd given it to her when he'd seen her shivering slightly on the walk. It smelled strongly of him and she was surprised to find the comfort she sought from it. She felt like she could burst with happiness as she watched him chuckle nervously and scratch the back of his head. Hinata waited patiently as he locked his bike to the bike-rack between their building and the next before walking back to her. Silently, almost sadly, they made their way to the painted green doors, one right next to the other, though while hers would reveal her house his would only show a dank set of stairs to the house above.

"Arigato, for everything Naruto-kun," she never felt like she could stop thanking him enough.

"It's alright," he assured her, smiling shyly as he thanked her for the nth time that night, "I had fun too, remember. Oh, here I almost forgot."

She watched curiously as he fished two items from his pocket. One was a battered piece of paper that he unfolded and handed to her. Hinata held it up curiously, a few messy numbers were scrawled on it.

"My cell and my home number, in case you ever need to call or just want to talk; or you want to come over for ramen some time."

"A-arigato," she whispered, fighting to keep tears of happiness from her eyes.

Okay, now she felt like exploding with happiness.

"And," he presented her with what looked like a business card, "the number of the restaurant where I work; in case I forget my cell."

"Ano, do you have a pen?" she barely squeaked out.

"Hai," he dove back into his pocket as he pulled it out.

"Arigato. Here. My cell…my home…and the store…" she paused in between the three separate numbers."

"I'll be sure to call, see ya, Hinata-chan," he smiled before unlocking his door.

"Wait! Naruto-kun! Your scarf!" she frantically tried to unwrap the fabric from around her neck.

"Keep it. I don't want you getting a cold," he said simply before entering his house, "Oyasumi, Hinata-chan."

"O-oyasumi," she stood there dumbfounded.

0

That night Hayate and Yugao were at their wits end as they watched their cousin, or adopted daughter as Yugao looked at it, practically float around the house in a dreamy state, occasionally staring at the ceiling longingly or otherwise showing no sign of emotion. When asked about she'd say she had a good day and ask if they had any ramen to a confused no followed by a why. This time they received a no reason. Yugao almost burst with curiosity when she got up from the table and after silently cleaning off her plate drifting out of the room and saying she was going to bed early. That night while Yugao went to bed with one major migraine Hinata was wrapped in contentment and a fluffy red scarf. Two piece of paper where cuddled to her chest as she curled in a ball, one inaudible phrase passing her lips as sleep claimed her…

"I need to get a bike…"

so heres the first installment. remember to review and submit those words for more chapters. be as creative and challenging as possible or just suggest something you'd like to see. if you like any chapters and want a sequel let me know, or if you would like to expand on any of these oneshots let me know just be sure to credit me on the original idea in the author comments or before the story or in the summary. thanks for your support!

-moonlight's goddess21