Author's Note: I used to be somewhat of a Naruhina supporter, but with the way things are going, it doesn't look like they'll end up together. Nowadays, I don't really care who ends up with who. It'll all be up to Masashi Kisimoto, I guess. Still, I do like Hinata as a character, and I'd like to think that if Naruto did reject her, she would take it as graciously as possible. Hanabi (and Hiashi) are probably out of character, since the anime/manga don't really give us much to work on.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. All recognizable characters, settings, etc. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

From the very beginning, Hinata knew Naruto would never love her.

At least, not in the way she loved him.

To her, this was a fact that was as obvious as it was obvious to everyone else that she had a crush on the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. And she supposed that she should've sobbed herself to sleep every night at the thought of her unrequited love. Despite being the (sort-of) Hyuuga heiress and a chuunin kunoichi, she was still just a girl. But she didn't.

Which was a bit surprising. After all, Hinata was not known for stoicism and suppressed emotions. Maybe it was just something that had been such a constant in her life that she had accepted it a long time ago. Certainly she had never believed that she would ever be involved in any sort of romantic relationship with Naruto. Fantasized, yes, but never anything beyond that.

When she first told Hanabi this, her little sister had given her an odd look and asked her, if this were true, why on earth had she even bothered to love him in the first place?

Hinata told her that it wasn't as if she could control who she loved. At this, Hanabi made a face and loudly declared that she would always be single, because boys were icky anyways.

Her father had been a bit more understanding. As soon as he found out about his older daughter's crush (which was quite soon, considering his observational skills are her lack of…emotional control), he had smiled sagely, and then, quickly looking around to make sure no one was in hearing vicinity, offered a comforting hug if she ever needed one after a bad case of heartbreak. But he also warned her to not get too obsessed.

(Although Hinata would like to think that she did not get "too obsessed," she sometimes had to admit that perhaps the fainting and stalking were taking it a step too far)

Both of these conversations had taken place in her younger, pre-genin days. Now, several years later, she was once again involved in a heart-to-heart with her sister. This time, however, the younger was wondering why she had confessed her feelings to the ever-dense Naruto and on a bloody, raging battlefield no less.

"If you were so sure that he was going to reject you, why did you bother confessing?" Hanabi sighed, "Really, nee-san, I don't understand you at all."

Silently, Hinata wondered the same thing too. Really, what had possessed her to jump out like a lunatic and confront an enemy who was obviously far superior to her in terms of strength? And then, before she even realized what she was doing, a sappy love story was springing from her mouth. Ah well, better out than in, she supposed.

"Eh…I guess it was…a load off my shoulders?" she weakly replied.

Hanabi stared at her.

"…but nee-san, don't you look even worse than you did before your confession?"

Hinata laughed awkwardly. Really, this girl, she thought to herself. So blunt. Out-loud, she said, "I-I think that has more to do with the near-fatal injuries inflicted by Pein-san than the, ah, love confession."

Hanabi stared some more.

"Pein-san. You seriously just called him Pein-san, didn't you?"

"Yes?"

Hanabi sighed again and reached over to pat her sister's shoulder. "Nee-san, I know you're polite and all, but there's a limit to these kinds of things, you know?"

"I g-guess so."

The younger Hyuuga sibling cleared her throat. "But, more to the point. He hasn't rejected you yet, has he?"

"Well, no, not quite yet."

"Oh. Okay. Just tell me when he does and I'll beat him up nice and good for you, kay?"

"H-Hanabi!"

"I'm not kidding. I really will."

Hinata knew she wasn't kidding. It was no secret that the younger of Hiashi's daughters had rather violent tendencies. This had become especially clear during an incident three years ago, right after the Chuunin exams. Neji had just been taken in by Hiashi, but Hanabi, unhappy with her cousin's less-than-ideal treatment of her beloved older sister had made it her personal mission to eliminate him. Preferably in a method that involved explosions and sharp objects. Thankfully, Hiashi and Hinata managed to convince her that in some cases, murder wasn't the way to go before permanent damage was done.

"I know," said Hinata, as wryly as Hinata could, "That's why I'm worried."

Hanabi huffed.

"Besides," Hinata continued, "isn't it the job of the older sibling to, uh, beat up unwanted suitors?"

"Usually, yeah, but you're just too nice, Nee-san."

Hinata wondered if this was supposed to be a compliment. Quickly changing the topic, she asked, "S-Still, though. It's already been a m-month. I wonder why Naruto-kun hasn't rejected me yet?"

"Hmph! Idiot probably doesn't have the guts to do so."

"M-maybe." Personally though, Hinata thought it had more to do with the fact that he already had his hands full with chasing ex-best-friends and training on remote islands with other jinchuuriki. Noticing how quiet it had become, she glanced up at Hanabi, whose disposition had suddenly changed.

Her younger sister met her eyes. "Seriously though. What are you going to do if he does reject you?"

Good question, thought Hinata. What would she do? She supposed the normal reaction would be to break out into tears and run away. But that didn't seem right. Maybe she could thank Naruto for inspiring her to work harder. But then he would probably think she was touched in the head for being so full of gratitude when she should've been sobbing her heart out.

"I-I don't know," she said carefully. "I guess I'll just a-accept it. And ask him if we can stay friends or something like that."

"Just like that?"

"Well, I d-don't really know what else I can do."

"You should fight for him."

Hinata choked. "Huh?"

"You know, fight for his affections? Cause the only reason he doesn't love you back is because of Sakura-san, right? Nee-san should fight Sakura-san to see who deserves Naruto more."

"B-but…t-that's…"

Hanabi continued, now on a roll, "Yeah, Nee-san, you're always so complacent. Fight back! Don't just give up without a fight!"

"But I really don't have anything against Sakura-san."

Hanabi stopped mid-rant. "Really? You don't? You're not even the tiniest bit envious?"

"N-no."

Hanabi raised an eyebrow.

"W-well, yes, I suppose, just a bit. But it's not like I'm angry at Sakura-san or anything. Really, she's a very wonderful person! I can see why Naruto-kun likes her so much."

Hanabi heaved a sigh for the third time that day. "Really, nee-san. I give up. You're hopeless." But she smiled to herself. That was her nee-san. Always thinking the best of everyone except for herself. Still, that quality of hers made Hanabi worry a lot. She hoped nee-san wouldn't be too hurt if she was rejected.

"I guess if you're happy with the way things turned out…"

"I am."

"But I still say that Nee-san deserves Naruto a lot more than Sakura-san does."

"Maybe so." Hinata closed her eyes and leaned her head back. She pictured Naruto's smile, the happy-go-lucky grin that he always had on, and then the softer smile that she sometimes caught him wearing when he was looking at Sakura.

"But in the end, it wasn't a matter of who deserves Naruto more."

For a moment, she felt a twinge of pain and jealousy, but it was quickly overshadowed by the smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"It's a matter of who Naruto deserves."