A/N: I think I really need to lighten up my writing, seriously. Humor is so much fun to write!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
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It felt like summertime in Konoha. The warm breeze floated dreamily, and there was an odd relaxed air amongst the village. Nighttime in Konoha was not usually this calm.
She practiced near the waterfalls. Ever since she had started training there to perfect her Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms she had felt an odd bond to the place. It was refreshing to hear the soft rush of water.
She was sweating. She was not glamorous, not like Sakura or Ino. They almost seemed to glow when they trained. Like this she looked like she never had a shower. She was not pretty even outside training. That's why she had to work hard on being strong—boys would only respect her if she was strong.
Hinata paused. Her internal clock told her it was late, much too late to continue practice. She ignored her exhaustion. She had to become strong, had to be. She was not a natural, but she had to work hard to at least look like one. She concentrated her chakra to her hand. It glowed as she guided it near the water. She held her breath.
The water flickered but did nothing else. She couldn't control it right.
She tried not to get that o her. She tried again. And again.
What was wrong with her?
She turned away, disgusted with herself She couldn't bear watch her pitiful reflection. The air pulsed beneath her fingertips. She stared at the night, the dark sky.
"What's wrong with me?" her voice was harsh in the silence. She flinched at the sound. "When will I be able to prove myself to everyone…to him?"
She waited for an answer. A bush rustled in the breeze. She stared t the sky harder, willing for it to reply.
"Will he ever notice me?" she asked.
Silence.
"When will he acknowledge me?"
Silence.
"Will he ever think of me as more than a friend?"
Silence.
She hugged her knees. She was being a fool. He didn't even think of her as a friend, much less more than a friend. Who did she think she was?
"You won't answer me, will you?" she asked the sky.
Silence.
She was suddenly feeling very foolish. Was she talking to the sky? What was she, a freak? Well, maybe she was a freak…
"Even if you could, you wouldn't answer," she muttered. She stared at her hands morosely. "He's the Sun. You're jealous." She gave a dry laugh. "Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, who is already sick and pale with grief," she quoted. She smiled wanly. "He's so…there, you know? Just so warm. Just his presence, and he makes himself known. He makes me smile. And he's so brave and he's gone though so much. So what if he's a Jinchurriki? His eyes are the color of oceans, filled with warmth."
She closed her eyes, spending silence with the moon. "Will you ever listen to me? Will I ever be happy?"
It was so late, and she was so tired. So she gave into temptation and closed her eyes and succumbed to sleep.
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"Hinata?" He hesitated. He sounded so serious. He wasn't even smiling. "I would like to speak to you," he said rather formally.
"N-naruto-kun?"
She had had a chaotic day. It was a mistake falling asleep near the waterfalls. She had waken up three hours later, he body aching. When she returned to the Hyuuga residence she saw her father frostily reprimand her for being careless with herself. After all, it would be too much of a hassle if the Cloud village kidnapped her again. Something in his voice suggested that he wouldn't have bothered otherwise. So she left to meet her old gennin team for some training chastised. With her body aching painfully, she had not done so well sparring with Kiba. She got hit by a move she would have normally dodged. It was not the greatest day in the world.
So she really wasn't sure if she was dreaming. Why would Naruto-kun want to talk to her? She probably was dreaming. Or maybe just running a fever.
She blushed up to he roots of her hair. She hadn't been this close to him since…forever. The ground rocked beneath her. Was she going to faint?
"What? Hinata? Don't faint again!"
She tried to steady herself. She bushed again. Why did she always do that? "S-sorry, Naruto-kun." She could help it, she loved saying his name.
He looked relieved. "That's good. You're not sick, are you?"
"N-not really." She looked down, resisting the urge to poke her fingers. But, oh God, she was holding her own! She was having a conversation with Naruto-kun!
"Okay, that's good!" He tossed her a smile and her heart stopped. "Well then." He looked around discreetly (or as discreet as Naruto-kun could be). "It's too…crowded here."
Her heart was pumping twice as fast. What was he going to say?
He led her to an empty clearing. It felt like the longest walk in her life.
He stopped abruptly and looked her in the eye. "I heard what you said. Near that waterfall. About, you know," he lowered his voice. "Him."
The ground spun underneath her. She grabbed onto a tree to regain balance. Her palms started sweating and she turned a shade of deepest purple.
"Look, I didn't mean to dattebayo!" He seemed almost as agitated as she was. "Really! Konohamaru told me that there were some ramen coupons buried near the waterfall and you could only dig underground for it at night!" He gesticulated wildly while she wondered what she had done to Konohamaru to deserve this. "I didn't mean to!"
She counted to ten. She tried to slow her breathing. This was not happening.
"But I heard what you said." Suddenly he was serious again. "It shocked me dattebayo. I never thought you would think like that. I never realized…"
She stared at him, very, very afraid. Would he reject her now? Would he said, I'm sorry, but I belong to perfect, beautiful, strong, smart Sakura now? Or would he retch?
"I have one thing to ask you though," he said again.
No! She couldn't do this! She'd do anything (and anything involved giving Shino a pedicure)! Just no this.
He gave her a huge Naruto grin. It threw her off and she froze.
"Can I bet the best man at you and Gaara's wedding?"