Disclaimer: I don't own not will ever own any part of Naruto. I'm just one out of the hundreds of avid fans out there who like writing about it.

I would love to get reviews from everyone who's reading this since that's the only way I'll get encouraged to write more. This is my second attempt to write a Naruto+Hinata fanfic since I didn't like my first one. Sorry for those who were waiting for any updates. Hopefully this is a better start.

I'm writing to keep my mind off those horrible Naruto arc episodes that they're airing right now.

Chapter 1: Salvation

The cold wind slapped through her face, the moonlight illuminating her figure as she ran through the forest. She ran as fast as her legs
could carry her. She ran away not from anyone in particular but from her life that came crumbling down on top of her. She felt
suffocated and she couldn't take it anymore. As she passed through the woods, a few sobs came out of her lips and finally her tears had made her vision blur, making the night look like shadows of black and blue. Finally she came upon a clearing and the trees disappeared, replaced by a small patch of grassland. Here Hinata stopped and stared into the night sky. The only sound she heard was of the leaves being gently moved by the wind. She closed her eyes and she could hear the sound of water and realized that she was on top of a cliff. Down below was the river she had used to practice some of her jutsus in a few months ago. She stared down at the river where it reflected the light of the stars above. In that one moment she calm and content, with nothing and no one to worry about. She took one step and then another, until her feet had reached the edge of the cliff. Leaning closer and closer she fell and waited for the river to consume her. She let the river carry her and closed her eyes as darkness descended.

Let me disappear. I don't want this life anymore.

It was particularly cold that night and Naruto decided to gather some firewood in hopes to keep the chill out of his apartment that night. The winter season had been worse that year compared to the last and everyone in Konoha had stayed indoors to keep warm. Unfortunately for him he did not have the luxury of having a heater in his home so he had to rely on his fireplace every night for the past month. However that meant going out into the woods every couple of days. He had meant to do this earlier in the day when the sun was still out but his training with Kakashi and Jiraiya had kept him from doing anything else.

"Those bastards! It's their fault I'm out here in the fucking cold this late!" Naruto grumbled under his breath, his frown deepening as he crouched down to pick up another branch.

The snap of a branch caught his attention and he eyed his surroundings carefully, ready to defend himself in case of an attack. Just then he caught sight of pale skin passing through the trees. Following the figure, he realized that it was a woman's figure. As she came into a clearing Naruto finally recognized the her.

"Hinata?" he whispered, more to himself than to her.

What is she doing out here in the middle of the night?

Confusion and concern filled his eyes as he saw her tears. Deciding to approach her he was about to call out to her when his eyed widened in disbelief. Shock filled his whole body as he witnessed her falling into the river below.

"Hinata!" he shouted, his arms extending to her descending figure.

In a split second he jumped in after her. He hadn't realized how cold the water would be. His breath caught and he shook it off, trying to locate where Hinata was. He caught the sight of her head bobbing up only to disappear into the river a second later.

"Hinata! Hang on, I'm coming!" he screamed to her, trying desperately to catch her attention.

He swam as fast as he could to her. When he lost sight of her, he dived trying to feel his way around.

Damn it! I can't see a damn thing!

Suddenly his arm felt flesh and grabbed onto it. He surfaced and his left arm to hold onto her while using the other to swim against the current. Using the last of his strength he reached out onto the shore and dragged both himself and her on the safe ground. Catching his breath he looked at Hinata and realized she was unconscious.

Kami! Please be alive! He thought as he searched for a pulse. He found one and leaned his face close to her and felt her breathing weakly. Picking her up into his arms he ran as fast as he could back to the village. His first thought was to bring her into the clinic where a medical nin could look at her properly but realized that Hinata might get even worse since the clinic might be too far a distance for her to go on. He decided the next best thing is to take her into his apartment because it was closer. That way she could get warm sooner and get out of her wet clothes. The thought of Hinata without clothes on caused Naruto to blush slightly.

Ahh! I can't think about that at a time like this!

Reaching his place he gently placed her on the ground and proceeded to light up the fireplace using the firewood he had collected just before the incident had happened. As the fire began to warm the room up he walked over to his closet and took out one of his pajamas. He kneeled down to where Hinata lay still unconscious. Taking a deep breath he started to change her into his pajamas, trying to keep his mind on the task of keeping her warm and away from the other details that was clearly there to see. He started to quietly talk to himself to keep his mind from having any thoughts he shouldn't be having.

(gulp) "Okay Naruto, this isn't so hard," he said to himself.

As he finished, he carefully carried her onto his bed and looked at her face. Earlier, he had been too busy trying to get her to safety that he hadn't thought much about other things. Now, in the quiet night he looked down at the sleeping form of his friend and wondered what exactly had happened for her to resort to this. He would have never thought that she would willingly harm herself until he saw it with his very own eyes. Looking at her now her face looked tired and sad and Naruto wondered if she had always felt that way. He had seen her smile and laugh with her friends in the past and presumed that nothing was wrong, but now that he thought about it he knew very little about Hinata other than that she's the heir to the Hyuuga clan and that she was a kind and giving person. Beyond that she was a mystery to him. Taking one of the pillows from the bed he placed it on the floor and laid down.

"Who are you Hinata?" he whispered into the dark room before sleep claimed his worn out body.

How was that? Please review! I can't emphasize enough what it means to me to have people review what I've written. You don't have to like it, but please be nice or I'll kick your ass :p