I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.
This is a fluffy fic i suddenly had the urge to write. The characters are around 18 years old.
Her Butterfly, His Flower
Whenever she saw him, her heart started to beat very fast.
In the beginning, it had taken the reddening and heating of her face and a sharp increase of embarrassment when he turned his sparkling eyes on her to trigger the racing thumping in her chest. When he turned away, it was as if he had released her from a spell, and she would crumble limply to the ground, clutching her heart.
If it weren't for the faint smile on her face, passerbys would have rushed her to Konoha Hospital on sight.
He didn't notice, though, so it didn't matter. She let her heart sprint.
Then, weeks directly after he had finally been promoted to Chunin, they were both sent on a paired B-rank mission. And things changed.
As per usual, his mere presence attracted various attentions, and it wasn't long before their task was immediately booted to a higher rank at the arrival of powerful figures.
She found herself back to back with him, surrounded and outnumbered. The velocity at which her heart beat would have put a cheetah to shame. Then his hand gently brushed against his, and although her Byakugan had been active, she still jumped like the first time Kurenai-sensei had praised her.
"We'll be fine," he'd said, and his voice was like nothing she had heard before. It was hard as steel, a low rumbling growl that tore away at her jittering nerves of fear. "I'll keep you safe, Hinata. And then I'll take you out for ramen. That's a promise."
And her heart stopped. She was calm as they leapt away from each other and launched themselves at their assailants. When she claimed first blood and the crimson liquid painted a streak on the side of her cheek, she had turned away from the body without batting an eyelid and swiftly moved onto her next opponent. On several occasions, when the numbers threatened to overwhelm her, he would rush to her aid, tearing ruthlessly through their ranks.
It was almost terrifying when he discovered that a kunai had been plunged into her thigh. His beautiful cerulean eyes had flared and darkened, and he had shredded the man that had injured her. Terrifying but beautiful. And she liked that he was so protective of her.
She was calm as they once again found themselves back to back, surrounded and outnumbered. By the dead. He chuckled and she smiled. Her inner-self was tranquil, because this was where she belonged.
But her heart kick-started once again when he took her out to ramen after they had returned to the village and had their wounds treated, just like he had promised. The fear of him discovering her abnormal heart rate heavily outmatched that of the essence of death.
Usually, the pounding heart was accompanied by the 'crush symptoms' that eventually resulted in Kiba nicknaming her 'Invisible Tomato'. After all, that was all she was.
Not that time. Her heart raced, but for some reason, she was calm. It was like being back at the mission.
However, what really struck her was the lack of embarrassment when he, after paying for their meal, scratched the back of his head, grinned roguishly, and inquired about her lack of stuttering throughout the whole day.
"Near-death experiences do that to you," she answered, surprising herself with the grin that spread naturally on her face.
"Well, we gotta go on more of those then, eh?" he said jokingly. "We make a damn good team." Then he quickly lowered his gaze to the ground, as he did all the other times when he thought he had said something inappropriate. "Wh-what I meant was-"
"Naruto," she interrupted firmly, laughing softly. "Stuttering is my duty, not yours."
His grin returned, and it was wider and brighter than ever. "Not anymore," he pointed out.
"My heart is fluttering like a butterfly's," she admitted. It slipped out before she fully realised what she was saying. She gasped and her hands flew to her mouth. "I-I… what-"
His hands were warm as they gently prised hers from her face. "Butterfly, huh?" he said, chuckling when she swallowed and nodded. He smiled. "Tell you something?"
And she found herself so close to him. Like the mission. Except they weren't back to back.
"You know that last mission?"
Her throat had closed. She could only nod, which she did.
"It helped me realise something." He paused, and then smiled. "My heart sort of… jumps really, really fast, you know." He gazed at her. "Do you get what I mean?" Before she could respond, he grasped her hand and pressed it against his chest. "Like this," he said softly.
His heartbeat was irregularly quick and jumpy under her touch. She could feel it. She found herself tugging his hand up to her own heart. Her eyes closed, and in her subconsciousness, their heartbeats were one.
"See how fast it beats?" he murmured. "Sakura's getting worried."
Her eyes fluttered open. She stared at his closed ones until he opened them. He grinned at the expression on her face. "She is my team's medic," he grinned. Then his gaze softened. "But this isn't normal, is it Hinata? My heart? It's faster than a rabbit's."
"Like a butterfly's," she whispered.
"No," he said. She blinked at him. "You're the butterfly."
"Then what are you?"
"Me?" His grin widened. "I'm the moth."
"Oh."
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"You can chase a butterfly all over the field and never catch it. But if you sit quietly in the grass it will come and sit on your shoulder."
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"Hey, Hinata?"
"Yes?"
"Are butterflies and moths the same?"
"Um… not quite."
"Are they uglier?"
"Well, in… in a way. But they're more resourceful."
"But they are uglier, right?"
"Yes…"
"That's good."
"Why?"
"Butterflies are even more beautiful against something ugly."
"Naruto…"
"Hm?"
"You are a butterfly… to me."
"But Hinata, to me you're a garden of flowers."
In reference to the last scene, butterflies do, in some way, depend on flowers for survival. So if you substitute the characters in the place of the butterfly and the flower, you get... something really corny.
Also, Hinata is OOC, as you may have noticed. Mainly, it's because she has gotten older and her feelings have matured, and also because of some of the things i've explained in the fic. And i suppose Naruto has to grow up someday.