Yes, finally! A Naruto story... Really wanted to do one... So here goes!

Please review! Enjoy!

The Party

Part one: Invitation

Every once in a while, people do unexpected things. Or rather, they actually do it quite often. It's just that, people never really seems to notice it. Those are often people that tend to be misunderstood, and Naruto was of course one of them. Currently lying in the shadow of a rather large tree, he was gazing up at the skies and looking at the clouds while deep in thought. Lying on his jacket with his hands behind his head in a black t-shirt, he was contempt and relaxed. He had come to this spot more and more often just to let his thoughts wander, trying to sort out his often chaotic mind.

Even though no one ever acknowledged it, Naruto actually had become quite a bit smarter. Perhaps it was the fact that he had gotten older, or just all the experience he had gained, or it was the simple fact that he had taken his time to relax under a tree sometimes. Either way, he didn't care whatever the others thought. All that really mattered was that he wanted to become Hokage, and he was getting closer and closer to his goal every day. He would one day be acknowledged by all of them. Then they would see.

A growling sound disturbed the peace, and Naruto scowled. His stomach growled again, and he sat up and smirked when he thought what Shikamaru would say.

"How troublesome…"

Laughing to himself, he rose and dusted of his jacket. Lazily, he threw it over his shoulder and began to walk towards the streets of Konoha. Setting the course towards his favourite place, a small smile graced his lips at the thought of how many bowls of ramen he would consume. His smile disappeared however, as someone bumped into him.

"Hey! Watch it!"

He was awarded with the sour face of an elder man, carrying a large box.

"Have some respect kid, you youths should leave way for elders."

Naruto glared after the old man before he continued. There seemed to be a bit more people out than usual, and many were carrying all sorts of stuff. Had he missed something? Most likely, it was something boring or unimportant.

"Tche…"

Finally, Naruto arrived and took a seat as he ordered his first bowl of ramen. Smiling again, the old man was soon forgotten as the lovely flavour filled his mouth.

"Naruto! Oi! Naruto!"

Blinking, he turned his head around. Kiba, Shino, Sasuke, Sakura and Hinata were seated at the corner. Naruto ordered four bowls more and headed over to the gang as he carried his second bowl. Hinata blushed and hid behind her own bowl as Kiba smirked at him.

"Thickhead, didn't you see us or do you really think with that enormous stomach of yours?"

Naruto gave him a playful glare and just said:

"Believe it!"

Sasuke snorted.

"You dobe…"

Sakura gave him a stern look, inching just a bit closer to Sasuke. She looked very good today, wearing a simple white dress, and if he knew Sakura right it was probably very short.

"Naruto, you really should cut down on the ramen. It goes to your head…"

Naruto smiled knowingly towards them, laughing a little on the inside. They really couldn't se past his former self, but at least they were his friends. He made a gesture towards the street as the old man he had bumped into came by, this time without his box.

"Have I missed something or what is going on?"

Hinata blushed, almost not daring to look at him.

"N-Naruto-kun…"

Naruto starred at Hinata in confusion and Sakura sighed.

"What have you been doing all day? Geez, I can't believe you Naruto. Theres going to be a party tomorrow night. Neji is throwing a party at one of the Hyuuga mansions."

Naruto swallowed hard and broke out laughing. Sasuke felt his lips twitch and Shino shifted slightly.

"Neji? You are kidding right?"

Sakura did her best to hid her smirk but failed miserably.

"No… snort"

Soon they were all laughing, except for Hinata whom only smiled. Sasuke was the first to stop, giving Sakura an odd look.

"You never told me it was Neji…"

Sakura shrugged, which made him frown a little.

"You never asked. Yeah he's having a party… Evidently to find a future wife."

Shino grunted and Sasuke starred down at the table. Narutos eyes widened. Hinata looked down at the table, blushing furiously. Sakura was the only one with a content bliss in her eyes, sighing longingly. They were all soon coming of age, which meant one thing; marriage. Neji was only the first among them, and far from everyone longed for that particular day. If Naruto had taken a closer look at Sasuke, he would have seen the fear behind his dark eyes. If he had taken a closer look at Sakura, she would cast blissful glances at Sasuke (to Narutos dismay). And if he had taken a look at Hinata and Kiba, he would have seen Kiba snuck glances at Hinata while she would have fainted when she meet Narutos gaze.

So caught up in the thoughts of upcoming marriages, Naruto never noticed a third bowl beside him until someone tapped his shoulder. He snapped out of it and muttered.

"I'm not hungry anymore…"

"YO!"

They all jumped as Rock Lee suddenly appeared by Narutos side, a wide smile on his face. Totally caught in surprise, the group just starred at the teen clad in green spandex.

"Naruto! It's bad for a youth not to finish his meal! What's all this about?"

It was, to surprise them all further, Shino who spoke up.

"Neji's having a mating party tomorrow night."

Kiba bursted out laughing, Hinata fidgeted and Naruto bit his tongue. Lee shined up, winking at Sakura.

"Yosh! It is that time in our youth! Sakura, I will conquer your beautiful heart."

Slapping herself in the face, she just gave him a glare. Sasuke shrugged.

"Leave her alone."

Sakura smiled widely at him, beaming with happiness, which was soon crushed by his cold voice.

"You can do better Lee."

She smacked his arm, and Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her. Naruto hid a smirk. Kiba snickered.

"Heh, you know it's bad to insult ladies Sasuke. But it's even more bad to give them hopes."

Sasuke snorted at the joke, while Lee blinked. Naruto was glad that Lee couldn't se the intended joke and that Sakura was listening to something Hinata whispered to her. The black haired girl was actually looking very cute today, wearing a simple grey t-shirt. Naruto shook his head, wondering why that thought even crossed his mind. Lee made a quick gesture.

"Later! Gai-sensei promised that we would train some more today!"

Before they managed to even say a goodbye, he was out of sight. Sakura made a look.

"Riiight…"

Naruto stood up, slowly as his thoughts already began to wander.

"Nice seeing you guys… I'll head home now."

Hinata flinched as he turned his back towards them and walked away.

"N-Naruto-kun… D-didn't he s-seem a bit… d-down?"

Sakura nodded slightly.

"Yeah, I guess… Hey Hinata! Wan't to go shopping? We have to fix something good for tomorrow!"

Hinata suddenly stood up, making Sakura blink in surprise.

"Can we d-do t-that tomorrow? I-I have to g-go home now. Bye!"

Hinata rushed out, catching her breath outside. Her heart was beating like crazy, and she felt herself blushing slightly. She franticly looked around until she spotted her target. He was slowly making his way to his apartment, lazily carrying his jacket over his shoulder. She hurried to catch up with him.

"N-N-Naruto… Kun…"

He stopped and turned around, his blue eyes colliding with hers.

"Hey Hinata. What's up?"

She blushed and averted her gaze.

"I… Is something w-wrong N-Naruto-kun? You s-seemed s-so quiet… I m-mean…"

He sighed and put his jacket on.

"I just thought about that party… The marriage thing…"

Scratching himself behind his head, he forced a smile.

"Uhm… Could we talk at my place instead? There are just so many people around…"

Hinata blushed while she nodded furiously. The walked in silence, but it didn't matter to Hinata. All she could think about was that growing feeling in her stomach, like a thousand butterflies were flying around in there. Smiling a small smile, she felt happy just walking beside him. Naruto on the other hand, was feeling more depressed by the minute. He was going to be the only one that didn't get married, and all that thanks to the stupid kyuubi. The fox was surely laughing his goddamn ass off right now.

Sakura would never notice him, all she had eyes for was Sasuke that much was clear. No one would ever look at him and se him, just him. Clenching his fists, he starred hard at the ground before he felt a tug at his jacket. He looked up and saw Hinata pointing towards his apartment.

"Naruto-kun… We are h-here now."

Was she worried? Of course she was, who wouldn't? He was sure that Hinata would find defenitly find someone… Naruto nodded and led her in, closing the door. He made a face when he looked around his apartment, feeling slightly embarrassed for the mess.

"Erhm, I haven't had any time to clean you know, heh. To much training…"

He half expected her to shout liar, just like Sakura always did. But she just smiled at him. He really liked when she smiled like that…

"I don't mind. L-let's t-talk n-now."

Hinata sat down on his couch, blushing slightly as he sat down beside her. She fidgeted a bit, getting nervous when she realised how close they were. Naruto sighed as he leaned back, starring up at the ceiling.

"I don't know if I want to go to that stupid party… It feels so… Damn that kyuubi…"

Hinata flinched. His voice was filled with pain and anger, she could really feel his distress at that moment. In that instant, she wished that she could have drawn out all that pain and placed it within herself instead. He of all people didn't deserve this, she on the other hand…

"Naruto-kun…"

He closed his eyes.

"I will never get married Hinata. No one will ever notice me for… me."

Hinata began to blush furiously, and thanked the gods that he had closed his eyes.

"I… I… I do."

Naruto opened his eyes and tilted his head slightly to the side, with an unreadable expression in his eyes. Before he could answer, there was a loud knock on the door. Cursing, Naruto rose up from the sofa and found Hyuuga Neji standing in the doorway. Hinata gave off a squeak before she quickly stood up, blushing again. Neji gave her a surprised look.

"Hinata, what are you doing here?"

She began to fidget energetically, not meeting his eyes.

"I… I…"

"She just wanted to know if I was ok. Wanna come in?"

Neji shrugged.

"I have some other things I have to do, like deliver these stupid invitations. Here, this one's for you."

Naruto took the card from Neji, and gave him a look.

"You don't seem too keen to be having this party…"

Neji just scowled as he directed his gaze towards Hinata again.

"You coming with me Hinata? I'm heading home soon, your father wanted to speak with you…"

By the way Neji emphasized her fathers name, Naruto figured that it was probably on his command only Neji had agreed to it. Hinata joined Neji, but before they could go, she looked back with a worried expression.

"I… Y-you will c-come r-right, N-Naruto-kun?"

Neji turned his head slightly. Naruto gave a thumbs up, doing his best to smile.

"Believe it! See ya tomorrow, and Hinata, thanks!"

Neji grabbed her arm and began to walk, leaving Naruto to his own thoughts again. It seemed that all the guys really feared this… But they would at least have someone, he would never… he thought of Hinata again, which surprised him. Shaking it off, Naruto decided that he needed some more time to clear his head. He couldn't go around on the party tomorrow looking miserably, it wouldn't be fair to Neji. Even though he could be a bastard sometimes…

After a thorough training session, Naruto was extremely exhausted. Sweat pouring everywhere from his body, he took a shower and collapsed on his couch. Before he could even relax, his stomach made a loud growl and he cursed for himself as he sat up again. Fixing the towel around his waist, he searched through his apartment for something edible. When he was done, he had found nothing and there was water everywhere. Drying himself, he put on black shorts and a white t-shirt before he headed towards the grocery store.

He really needed to stop doing this to himself; he looked like a moron everytime… Naruto smirked to himself as he went inside. There really was no wonder why the others really thought that he was as stupid as before… He never noticed that he walked by a certain pink haired girl until she shouted his name. He stopped and turned his head slightly.

"Hey Sakura, didn't see you. See ya tomorrow…"

Sakura stared after him in disbelief as he disappeared around the corner to get his groceries. He hadn't even noticed her! Let alone stop and try to get her attention… Believing he was up to something, she sneaked up and took a look around the corner. He was trying to reach a tin can he barley could touch. As he stretched himself to his limit, the t-shirt slid up. Sakura couldn't help but bluish when she noticed his toned stomach, the abs clearly showing. She withdrew herself from the corner and leaned against the shelf on the other side.

Her heart was beating like hell and she took a deep breath. What if he had caught her starring at him that moment? That wouldn't have looked good at all… He could get… Ideas… Or worse, he would drag it up everytime she called him a pervert. She took a peak again, deciding that he wasn't up to something the instant he was in sight again. He was further away, this time holding a bag in his hands. His skin looked tan, he had evidently been out a lot currently. The blond hair made it look rather nice and inviting… She bit herself in the tongue and decided she would go out now and find Sasuke. What was she thinking? She would never like anyone other than Sasuke…

Somehow, the thought wasn't to comforting. Naruto paid for his groceries and headed back to his apartment, almost drooling now at the thought of food. Just as he was about to open the door, a voice startled him and he whirled around. Standing behind him reading as usual, Kakashi gave him a nod.

"Yo."

Narutos stomach answered for him, and he made a face. He could have sworn that Kakashi smirked under his goddamn mask.

"Naruto, I believed that you had learned your lesson by now. Apparently, I was wrong."

Naruto gave him a dark look, scowling.

"I don't have time to go shopping during the week unlike the girls… And if that's the reason you came here, holding me here from my food I will burn that book of yours…"

Kakashis eyes widened and with a snap, the book was closed.

"That was not funny. But your suspicion are correct. I merely came to make sure you would come to the party tomorrow."

Giving the older man a surprised look, Naruto put the other bag down as well.

"…And, give you some advice. Don't ruin the party with some prank…"

"I stopped with that thing years ago…"

"… and try to open your eyes for once."

Naruto blinked, this time completely dumbfounded.

"Huh?"

Sighing, Kakashi made a small gesture.

"You might notice things you have missed before. It eludes me even to this day…"

And in a puff of smoke he was gone, leaving Naruto totally clueless. After a few minutes, he still couldn't figure out what Kakashi meant and went inside to finally prepare his long awaited meal… In the meantime, a few blocks away, Kakashi reappeared outside a apartment. A woman was waiting for him, giving him a stern look once she noticed him carrying the familiar book.

"How did it go?"

Kakashi shrugged.

"Good I suppose. He's going. Don't give me that look Kurenai."

She stepped closer, poking him hard in the chest.

"If I know you, you probably gave him some cryptict advice he didn't even understand. And you really need to get rid of that godforsaken book!"

Kakashi glanced down at his beloved Icha Icha Paradise, sighing longingly.

"Don't worry, he will understand. It would have been to easy if I just told him you now…"

Kurenai gave him one last look, the she headed down the street. When he didn't follow she turned.

"Aren't you coming?"

Kakashi glanced up the street towards Narutos apartment, although he couldn't se it. Then he followed Kurenai, praying to the gods that he would finally notice what everyone else saw...

End Part one

To be continued in Part two: Preparation