A Little Burst of Courage

"I have got to stop being such a pushover." muttered Hinata as she sifted through her closet, looking for the perfect kimono to wear to the Sakura Festival. Somehow, Tenten had managed to talk her into hanging out with the girls there. She had almost said no, until Tenten had mentioned there would be live entertainment and that Naruto was part of it.

"The things I do for love…" she said, finally deciding on a kimono. It was dark blue with flames climbing up the side. "This one is good, I guess. Not that Naruto-kun will notice me." she said. She stripped herself of her clothing and slipped into the kimono. She tied the flame-red obi around her waist and went over to her vanity dresser and sat down, looking in the mirror. She grabbed her hairbrush and began brushing her long, silky raven-colored hair. She pulled it into an elaborate bun behind her head and placed decorative chopsticks in her hair. She pulled some strands down and looked in the mirror. Not bad, not bad at all.

"Hinata-sama! Come on!" yelled Neji from the hallway, rapping her door with his knuckles. "C-Coming, nii-san!" she said. She got up, took one last look in the mirror, and opened the door. She joined Neji in the hallway. He was wearing a traditional green robe tied at the waist by a black obi. He, for once, had untied the bandages around his forehead to reveal the Caged Bird seal.

The two Hyuga continued down the hallway until the reached the living room. "We're going to the Sakura Festival, Father." said Hinata, looking shyly at the floor to avoid her father's gaze. "Have fun. And Hinata." he said. Hinata's head snapped up, looking directly at her father. "H-hai?" she asked. "Have some more confidence. You are a Hyuga, you should be proud." he said. "Right. I'll do my best." she said. "That's better. Have a good time." he said. The corners of his mouth tugged slightly upward, almost a smile. The two Hyuga children bowed and exited into the entrance hall, donning their shoes, and took off for the festival.

Upon arriving at the festival Hinata was amazed. The colorful paper lanterns lit a path to the stage wear live music was being performed and the wonderful smell of dumplings, ramen, and other foods filled the air.

"Hinata! Over here!" said Tenten, waving to the astonished heiress. "I'll see you later, nii-san." she said. Neji nodded and Hinata darted over to Tenten and the other kunoichi.

"Konbonwa, meina." she said. "Hey, Hinata. Tenten was just telling us that the only reason you came here was that Naruto was part of the live entertainment." said Sakura, giving her a sly smirk. Hinata's face turned bright red as the girls giggled. "T-that's…pretty much, yeah." she admitted. "Hey, relax. We've all been crushed into a fine powder on boys before. There's no reason to be ashamed." said Ino.

"Speaking of being crushed, certain blonde baka coming this way. Later, Hinata." said Temari leading the girls anywhere but where Hinata was standing. Just as the girls had said, Naruto came up behind Hinata. "Hey Hinata-chan." he said. "O-Ohayo, Naruto-kun." she said. "What's up?" he asked. "Nothing much. I heard that you're part of the live entertainment tonight." she said, trying to make conversation. "Yeah. I'm playing a song I wrote a while ago for someone." he said. "Oh? Who did you right it for?" she asked. "I'm not spoiling the surprise. I'll dedicate it when I get on." he said. "Oh." she said.

It's probably for Sakura-san, he's always shown interest for, never for me.

"Uzumaki! Their calling for you backstage!" said Shikamaru. "Alright. See you later, Hina-chan." he said, following Shikamaru. Hinata stood their, dazed. He had given her a nickname. Hina-chan…she loved it.

Shaking herself from her shocked state, she followed the crowd to the stage area and somehow managed to get really close to the stage along with Sakura, Tenten, Temari and Ino. "What did you and Naruto talk about, Hinata?" asked Sakura nudging her. She blushed. "Nothing. He said he wrote the song he was playing tonight for someone, but wouldn't tell me who." she said. The others exchanged looks and held back giggle. "W-What?" she asked. "Oh, nothing." said Sakura, smirking. Hinata decided to drop the matter.

"And now, the last participant in the live entertainment is…Uzumaki Naruto." said the announcer. Everyone clapped loudly, especially the girls.

"Ohayo, meina! Before I play I just wanna say that I wrote this song for the girl I've had a crush on for a while now." he said, looking right at the girls. Hinata felt her heart drop. He was talking about Sakura, no doubt.

Naruto began to strum his guitar. The music filled the air. He began to sing:

Shy shy girlShy girlYeah, yeahStanding with the wallflowersWishing you would've stayed at homeYou kick yourself for comingWhen you're standing there all aloneThe centers of attention are busy making all their movesOh girl...While all the guys are lookingThen I got my eye on youOnly youYou might think you're nothing specialYou might be losing hopeBut baby don't you realizeHow beautiful you really areShy girlIt's written on your faceA mermaid out of waterFeeling out of placeShy girlTryin to hide her blushCaught you looking for a secondFelt my heart rushDon't run awayDon't be afraidDon't be shy girlSo beautifulShy shy girlI'm moving in closerSlowing trying to break the iceShy shy girlBut it's hard to get a lot on your downward glancing eyesOh yeahYou might think you're nothing specialBut I'm about to lose my heartBaby don't you realizeHow beautiful you really areShy girlIt's written on your faceA mermaid out of waterFeeling out of placeShy girlTryin to hide her blushCaught you looking for a secondFelt my heart rushDon't run awayDon't be afraidDon't be shy girlSo beautifulShy shy girlNow I'm standing right in front of youI confess I'm nervous tooGirl you know there's something going onAnd not to give it a chanceWould be so wrongOh babyShy girlIt's written on your faceA mermaid out of waterFeeling out of placeShy girlTryin to hide a blushPretending that there's nothing between the two of usDon't run awayDon't be afraidDon't be shy girlShy girlIt's written on your faceA mermaid out of waterFeeling out of placeShy girlTryin to hide her blushCaught you looking for a secondFelt my heart rushDon't run awayDon't be afraidDon't be shy girlSo beautifulShy shy girlHey girlDon't be shy girlDon't run awayShy shy girlOh babyI'm looking at youCome a little closerShy, shyShy girl

He's definitely not talking about Sakura…he's talking about me! Yes yes yes!

Before anyone could do anything, Hinata ran up on stage and kissed Naruto on the cheek. She could feel her face get hot but she didn't care. What surprised her was that she felt Naruto's cheeks get hot underneath her lips. She broke off and ran back down to the audience.

"Why the hell did you do that?" asked Sakura.

"I guess I just had a burst of courage."