The indigo haired kunoichi gasped in shock. "Ano... I... um... I can't!" she squeaked.
"But Hinata-chan, this is your chance!" barked her animalistic friend, Kiba Inuzuka.
"B... but I-"
"It's probably just as well... he can make plans with Sakura or something..." came an unexpected comment from the bug wielder, Shino Aburame.
Hinata's pale lavender eyes widened. "Shino-kun!" she gasped.
Kiba glanced over at Shino, who nodded and pushed his sunglasses up. "Yup! I'll bet Sakura's free tonight," Kiba mused.
"Kiba-kun!" she exclaimed.
"Well?" Kiba prodded.
"I..."
"OI! Hinata, Kiba, Shino!" came an obnoxious, exuberant bellow that made her heart stop.
"N... N... Naruto-kun!" she managed, whirling around.
As if on cue, the orange jumpsuit-clad boy appeared in front of her, causing her to turn red and stumble backwards. "Speak of the shinobi..." Shino muttered.
"And he will appear! Hey Hinata, wasn't there something you wanted to ask Naruto?" Kiba said, furrowing his brow and scratching his chin, as if trying to recall.
Hinata instantly flushed red and she began pressing her fingers together. Naruto turned to Hinata expectantly. "Huh? What did you want to ask me Hinata-chan?" he asked.
"Well... I... I... that i... is...I was... w... wondering-" she was cut off.
"I could have sworn I had seen Sakura walking down the street..." Shino mumbled, just loud enough to be audible to Hinata.
"I was w... wondering if I c... could buy you a b... bowl of r... ramen b... because y... you're leaving to... d... today!" she said, her voice nervous and wavering.
Naruto grinned instantly. "If you want Hinata-chan," he gave her thumbs up.
Kiba and Shino exchanged satisfied glances before turning to leave. "Well! Later you two!" Kiba called out.
"Well come on Hinata-chan! Let's get going!" he smiled as he grabbed her delicate pale hand and led the way.
She blushed harder; she was feeling faint. 'I... I can't faint now...' she thought in determination.
Luckily, they arrived at Ichikaru's and he released her hand. He plopped down on his favorite stool and flashed her a heart-stopping grin, patting the stool next to him. She stumbled over and sat down, trying to ease her shaking hands. "W... w... would you li... like beef r... ramen?" she asked politely.
He ruffled her hair and grinned. "How'd you know that was my favorite Hinata-chan?" he laughed.
She flushed a deeper red and started to feel dizzy. "What would you like today Naruto?" said Ayame, the teenage girl's eyes rested on Hinata. "Oooh! It's about time! This one's way prettier than the loud pink-haired girl! Good for you Naruto!" she gushed.
Hinata turned red once more and uttered a small, "Nani?!?"
Naruto just realized what Ayame had meant and he looked Hinata over out of the corner of his eye, he blushed ever so slightly. 'Huh... I never noticed... but...' he thought.
"Uh... we're not together Ayame," he said, scratching the back of his head.
Hinata took a deep breath and regained some of her composure. "I'll have a beef ramen, what about you Hinata?" Naruto turned his sky blue eyes on her.
"Nani? I... I'll p... pay N... Naruto-kun!" she insisted.
"Well, the guy isn't supposed to let his girlfriend pay so---" he just realized what he said and chuckled.
Hinata turned red and began pressing her fingers together. "What do you want?" he asked again.
"I... I guess I'll have the s... same as y... you t... then," she managed.
"Excellent choice!" he joked.
He ordered the food and they sat in silence. "Oi, Hinata?" Naruto said.
Hinata looked up, "Y... yes?"
"Since I'm going away for training, I'll expect you to be able to whoop Neji when I come back, alright?" he grinned.
She blushed. "H... hai!"
He kept stealing glances at her during the period of silence. "Here ya go!" Ayayme's voice rang out as she set a bowl in front of each of them.
Naruto nudged his bowl accidentally while reaching for his chopsticks; a splash of hot broth found it's way to the Hyuuga's index finger. "Ouch," she winced slightly.
Naruto turned to her and took her hand in his, examining her finger. "Gomen nasai! It's my fault," he said.
She felt like she would pass out, a loud ripping sound brought her back. He had a strip of black cloth from his undershirt and he was wrapping it around her finger. "N... Naruto-kun!" she squeaked.
He finished "bandaging the wound" and grabbed his chopsticks.
She turned to her own bowl and took her chopsticks, politely eating her ramen; he was inhaling his.
He finished first, already downing the last of his broth. She smiled to herself.
Uzamaki Naruto, her inspiration, her love, her oblivious guardian angel. Without him she would be just as weak-willed and hopelessly pathetic as before. She wouldn't have found the courage to crawl out from beneath the label Neji had taken the liberty of giving her. But now, even her oto-san and Neji saw her differently, perhaps with a bit more respect.
She was brought back from her thoughts when she heard the soft rustling of change; Naruto was digging some money out of Gama-chan. It was now or never!
She grabbed a pen from the counter; her pupiless eyes caught sight of a simple white napkin. She took it and began to write, her palms were sweaty and her hands were shaking, she bit down on her lower lip nervously. After she was finished, she took a deep breath and read it over. 'I... it's now o... or... n... never!' she thought.
She closed her eyes and set the napkin down on the table. "N... Naruto-kun," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Nani? What is it Hinata-chan?" he asked.
She slid the napkin over to him. "Huh? Is there something on my face?" he asked.
He grabbed it and was about to wipe his mouth with it. "N... no! R... r... read i... it p... please Naruto-kun!" she blurted, stuttering more than usual due to the situation.
He unfolded it and read it silently. She bowed her head, her eyes clouded with tears, this was too much for her, he wasn't responding. She slid off the stool and bolted off.
He turned just in time to see her run, vanishing into the sunset. "I love you Naruto Uzamaki," he read it aloud.
What had she thought when he mooned over Sakura? Sakura had loved Sasuke and ignored Naruto's feelings for her, he had been crushing on Sakura and failed to acknowledge sweet, little, Hinata Hyuuga, he was no better.
Another question came to his mind, how had he not noticed? The fainting, the feverish shades of red, the stuttering, she wasn't being weird; she loved him. Offering to let him cheat of her in the exams, how had he not seen this?
"I am... an absolute idiot..."
He got off his stool and was going to go find her when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to look over his shoulder. "Ah! Not now ero-sennin!" he moaned.
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow. "I thought you wanted to go? You wouldn't leave me the hell alone about leaving this morning!" he retorted.
"But I have to go... fine... let's go!" he decided.
'Don't forget me...' he thought.
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The kunoichi with pale lavender eyes sighed, today was Valentines Day. Sakura and Ino had invited her to a party they were throwing for the occasion, but she had politely declined. She just wanted to go to Ichikaru's and think, sit beside his favorite stool and recollect when he had been inhaling ramen and grinning at her. She smiled.
"I'M BACK!" came a loud voice from the gates of Konoha.
There stood a blonde boy in an orange and black jumpsuit with a grin on his face. Clutched in his hand was a white napkin. "Ero-sennin, I've got something to take care of," he turned to the older man with long, spiky white hair.
"As do I Naruto," replied the man, heading off in the direction of the hot springs.
Naruto raced off into the village. "Naruto..." he heard, stopping in his tracks.
He turned to see Neji Hyuuga. "Hi Neji," he said.
The handsome Hyuuga's eyes narrowed, as if inspecting the blonde boy, before he gave a slight nod of approval. "She's headed to Ichikaru's..." he said simply.
Naruto grinned before giving him thumbs up and heading for the ramen shop. "I hope you know what you're doing Hinata-sama..." he said to himself, smiling slightly.
Naruto stopped dead. Walking across the street was a teenage girl with long indigo hair and pale lavender eyes. Her skin was delicate and pale but her hands were freshly bruised from rigorous training. "H... Hinata-chan..." he muttered.
He glanced at the napkin and hoped for the best. He ran over to her with a smile.
"HINATA-CHAN!" she heard.
Before she could turn around she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist. She gasped and activated her Byakugan. She spun around to face the person and was met by shining blue eyes. She gasped and her Byakugan deactivated. "N... Naruto-kun!?" she squeaked.
"Happy Valentines day!" he grinned.
He embraced her again. "Hinata-chan, I love you too!" he exclaimed.
Her pupiless eyes widened and her face burned red. "Don't faint yet Hinata-chan, or I can't do this..."
He kissed her tenderly on the lips. 'I'm in heaven...' she concluded.
Okay, this is a one-shot I did for Valentines Day! Any favorite quotes or lines? Review please! Love to you all!