Trials of Age

Date Posted: 2/18/17

Word Count: 5474

Contains mild post-canon spoilers.

Naruto was having a hard time breathing. His lungs, like any good lungs, demanded to be filled with fresh oxygen, but his mouth refused to open and his nose refused to inhale. Nope, it just wasn't happening. Not until the nightmare went away.

Said-nightmare was currently strutting down the stairs, looking more lovely and adorable than she had any right to be. Was that make-up? No, it couldn't be! Himawari was far too young to be wearing make-up! No matter how nice it looked on her…

Himawari paused before him at the base of the stairs, beaming a smile that lit up the room, and gave an exuberant twirl. Her short crimson skirt flared, and despite her red leggings, he still thought it was too short for somebody her age. Her spin came to a stop and she looked down at herself, smoothing out nonexistent wrinkles in her red sweater.

"Well, Papa?" she asked, still grinning that proud grin. "What do you think?"

What did he think? Obito Hatake had better never get wise to this girl, because if he did, Naruto would see that he regretted it personally, that's what he thought.

But of course, his face didn't say what his brain did, and somehow, it managed to split with a grin to match his daughter's. "I think we might as well pack all the Kansei lights away, because you just outshined them, Hima-hime!"

Her grin broke into the most adorable laugh in Konoha, and she clapped her hands over her whiskered cheeks to hide her blush.

That's right, I'm the only man allowed to make her do that. Take that, Hatake-san.

As her mother came down the stairs behind her, Himawari scampered further down the hall and through the first doorway on the left, disappearing into the living room from where the irresistible scent of fried chicken, sweet potatoes, and hot punch drifted. As she went, Hinata took her place at Naruto's side and draped an arm around his waist. However, Naruto couldn't take his eyes away from where their little girl had gone.

"She looks great," he said to her mother. "Really great."

"She did most of it herself this time," Hinata said, a smile in her voice. "I doubt she'll need my help at all next year…"

No, Hinata, don't say that!

"Unnnggghhh…" Naruto couldn't resist a weary moan. It just couldn't be happening…

"What's wrong?" Hinata leaned into his line of sight, looking concerned. As much as her worry warmed his heart, it wasn't enough to cover his growing anguish.

"She's fourteen," he bemoaned, withering under the statement of the terrible truth. "And she's wearing make up. And those clothes. And worse, I know who she's trying to impress."

A slow smile curved Hinata's lips and she patted his chest. "And for the first time, it isn't you, is that it?"

He could almost cry. That was exactly it, but he didn't want to hear that. No, he wanted to keep blaming other things. Obito and that fiend called Time, mostly. They were both convenient targets.

"No," he hissed. "It's my sensei's son. Do you know how weird that is, Hinata?"

Her hand rubbed soothing circles over his orange sweater. "He's a good kid. She could do far worse."

That was also an unfortunate truth. Another one Naruto didn't want to hear.

"It's not fair…" he grumbled, and placed an arm around his wife to hug her closer. She giggled, and the sound lifted his spirits ever so slightly. "How am I supposed to compete with Tall, Dark, and Masked? What is it about those traits that girls like, huh?"

"They're overrated. I prefer ruddy, whiskered, and bright like the sun." She braced her fingers on his jaw and pressed a kiss to his cheek, making a little warmth flower across his nose. Twenty-one years of marriage and she could still do that to him.

Oh g**, has it really been that long?

"That's even more unfair, Hinata…"

She laughed, patted his cheek, and then let him go, turning cross the hardwood after Himawari. "They should be here any minute, right?"

"Ehhh…" Naruto rubbed the cheek she'd patted so patronizingly. "They should. But you know Kakashi-sensei. He's never on time for anything."

"Maybe they'll surprise us."

"I doubt it…"

Just down the hall, the front door pushed in, letting loose a gust of frigid air through the foyer. It blew in several pairs of snow-laden boots, the wearers of which all bustled into the house. Four heads of silver, two of ebony, and one of fiery red that stood out like a sore thumb. They all seemed in the midst of a heated discussion with one another. One voice—one Naruto had dreaded hearing all weekend—sounded loud above them all.

"-the rudest people in Konoha!" Obito Hatake removed his shoes with an air of dignity Naruto had never associated with the surname. The boy's bitter scowl was obvious, despite his mask that matched his father's. "We're late to everything! We're infamous for being late! And the worst part is, it doesn't bother you!"

"Can't say that it does," hummed Kakashi-sensei, removing his own shoes before unraveling the scarf from his neck.

"Well, I'm sick of it!" Obito said with great vehemence.

"Chill out, Obi-chan," said the silver-haired eldest, Koinu, from the back of the pack, where he waited for some space to remove his winter-wear. The young man's lone red eye observed his siblings with an apathy that rivaled his father's.

Naruto pouted. Why were all the Hatake children so d*** pretty? It must've been their mother… It had to be her fault they were all so dangerous.

Because Kakashi-sensei is… well, Kakashi-sensei.

"Of course you take his side." Obito scowled at his eldest sibling as he removed the beanie from his head. His thick black curls spilled over his hitai-ate, which he promptly reached up to straighten. He flipped the ebony fringe off his forehead, and Naruto groaned inwardly.

I swear, kid, I'll shave your head one of these days.

"You're just as bad!" Obito jabbed a finger in his brother's face, and Koinu calmly deflected it. The younger of the two huffed and stepped out of the family bunch, further into the house.

"Oi!" Naruto finally blurted, garnering the family's attention. All of them paused in their various conversation to look at him with various expressions of unenthusiasm. "Don't you think it's rude to just waltz into other people's houses, huh? You can't just do that!"

Obito snorted. "We just did. Keep up, Nanadaime."

Oh sure, I'll keep up. And your death will look like an accident, you snobby little punk.

"Kakashi-sensei!" The sound of Hinata's pleasant greeting diffused half of Naruto's rage, and no matter how he clung to it, he watched helplessly as it fluttered out of his reach. But he wanted to stay angry at the little jerk! "Tsuki-san! Please, come in, come in!"

"Hello, Hinata," Kakashi greeted, and beside him, his wife gave a short, absent wave of her hand as she removed her coat. "Happy Kansei!"

"Happy Kansei," Hinata returned, just as a crimson blur bolted from amidst the Hatakes to envelope her in a hug.

"Hinata-sama!" Tatsu Hatake—the small redhead boy, whose green eyes could snare anyone with more than half a heart—nuzzled Hinata's sweater. Naruto fell further into his pout.

Even the adopted one's adorable…

"I've been practicing katas, just like you said," the boy said.

"Eh?" Naruto inquired as the words hit his ears. "What's he mean?"

Hinata patted Tatsu on the head, murmured 'go see the tree,' and directed him toward the living room. In the meantime, Tsuki Hatake approached to give Naruto his answer.

"Hinata gave a talk to the senior class at the Academy before they graduated," the older woman said, face impassive as always. With a languid brush of her fingers, she swept her jaw-length black curls out of her face. "Tatsu's been practicing katas since."

"Oh right, I remember that…" Naruto nodded with what he hoped passed as recollection. In truth, thanks to his time at the office, he barely remembered what month it was sometimes. If Hinata gave a speech at the Academy, there was a high chance he didn't even know about it.

Hinata knew that, judging by the wry smile she sent him as Tsuki passed them by. Naruto had the decency to act properly abashed, offering an anxious grin and scratching the back of his head.

Kakashi clapped a hand on Naruto's shoulder, pausing at his side while the twins, Koinu and Saka, passed into the living room after their mother. As they did, Naruto noticed something about them.

"They're taller than you, sensei," Naruto commented, watching the identical twosome as they went by. "When did that happen?"

Kakashi sniffed with more than a little dry amusement. "You're taller than me, Naruto."

Naruto glanced down at the man sidelong. "Oh yeah…" He offered a wicked grin at the reminder, for which he received a flick to his forehead. "Ow! Hey!"

"Don't be an a**." Kakashi sighed, and stared after his two oldest children with an expression that bespoke of the same sentiments Naruto himself had recently been wrestling with. "They grow up fast…"

"Is Saka still training with Yori-shishou?" Hinata asked, looping her arm in Naruto's.

Kakashi nodded and folded his arms over his chest with a lazy shift of his weight. "Yeah, but they stay close by. Especially now that it's wintertime. Saka likes being close to home for the holidays."

"That's good," Hinata said.

Naruto grunted, his mind going to another 18-year-old who was off training with a master. "I wish Boruto would do the same sometimes…"

"He's following Sasuke," Kakashi shrugged. "What can you expect?"

Naruto withered under that statement and everything it entailed. As good a friend as Sasuke was, Naruto couldn't help but blame him for being so distant. Half the time, their messages to him were sent back as 'undeliverable.' Who knew where he was during those days—and by extension, the same applied to Boruto.

"They did say they might be back for Kansei," Hinata reminded him with a pat of his arm.

"Hey Dad." The feminine voice came from the foyer. With a glance, Naruto's brain briefly noted that the last Hatake had yet to follow after the rest of her clan.

Then the rest happened too fast for him.

All he glimpsed was Kakashi-sensei ducking on his left, and then something clunked him in the side of the head. A stinging sensation erupted on the ridge of his eyebrow. He yelped quite loudly and clutched the offended eye.

"OW! What the freakin'-!"

Kori Hatake, trailing her long silver mane behind her, sauntered forward with a derisive snort. She walked like she wasn't off duty—with fluid steps betraying a lethal elegance. It was an ANBU thing, it seemed. As was being a heartless word-Naruto-wasn't-allowed-to-say-in-front-of-children.

Still, he was so going to deny this later, should anyone ever ask. The whole city was doomed if their Hokage could be caught off guard by a sixteen-year-old girl, ANBU or no.

"You're supposed to catch it," she said, eyeing her sire with cold blue eyes that matched her mother's.

Kakashi straightened, nonplussed. "Not if I don't feel like being at your beck and call. Who knows what kind of torture you'd come up with for me to do." He brushed himself off like the endeavor had somehow soiled his black turtleneck.

Turtleneck… isn't that technically what he always wears? Sort of…

"Naruto-kun, are you all right?" Hinata gingerly attempted to pry his hand off his face. Naruto let her, squinting his eye against the throbbing in his temple.

"Is it bleeding?" he asked.

"Oh, be a man." Kori, shaking her head, strode into the living room and disappeared around the corner.

Naruto gave his sensei a scathing glare. "Your spawn are evil."

For a moment, Kakashi looked like he might reply—object to the statement of the obvious. But, with a crinkle of his brow, Naruto watched the thought retreat, and the older man withered.

"Eh… I can't disagree."

"This is normal?" Naruto asked incredulously, as he dabbed his fingers against his forehead to be sure there was no blood despite the stinging. "I just thought they had something against me."

While Hinata lightly rubbed Naruto's back to soothe him, Kakashi shook his head. "Nah. Kori and Obito are just… nngh. I don't even know."

"Whatever it is, they get it from you." Pouting once more, Naruto stepped toward the living room himself. "Sadist."

Kakashi smirked at that.

The kitchen oven timer let off a ding that resounded throughout the house, and Hinata brightened. "Oh! The cake is done. Call Naomaru for me? He's supposed to help me ice it."

Naruto nodded and as she and Kakashi-sensei disappeared into the next room, he backtracked to the stairs and leaned back over railing. "Hey Nao! Cake's done! Come help your mother."

"Kay!" came the small voice in reply. Shortly after, hurried footsteps followed, and a small figure appeared at the top of the stairs. "Is Aniki late again?"

Naruto offered the seven-year-old a smile while the latter descended to the main floor. "'Fraid so."

Nao's white eyes wrinkled at the corners with the intensity of his scowl. He tucked in his chin as he hopped off the last step. "He's rude."

"He said he might come," Naruto repeated Hinata's encouragement, and ruffled the boy's dark hair. "Give him a chance."

"We give him chances!" Nao fought off his father's invasive hand, despite the small quirk of his little mouth. "Again and again. And he still doesn't come."

"Yeah well, I bet he'll surprise us." Naruto wished he was as confident as he sounded. These days, it seemed his two elder children were determined to make him question just about everything. He hated it.

But at least Nao still looked up at his dad like he knew what he was talking about. Most of the time.

"I guess…" the child conceded, before Naruto gave him a push toward the kitchen.

"Your mom's waiting."

Just as Nao scampered off, a knock came from the door. Naruto glanced that way and sagged against the wall. Noooo, I'm not ready…

He'd been the one who invited everyone to his home this Kansei, and yet, he wondered if that had been the greatest idea. He could already feel himself losing to exhaustion. Oh how he missed the days when it seemed like his energy was boundless. When everybody complained and bowed out, leaving him to go on alone since he was the only person in all of Konoha who could handle such grueling paces.

Sayounara, good ol' days…

He trudged back to the foyer and put a hand to the brass doorknob. At least these guests had had the decency to knock first. He swung the door open.

The first thing that greeted him on the outside was his other sensei's warm smile.

"Happy Kansei, Naruto," Iruka said. Then his hand moved and something flew up in front of Naruto's face.

On instinct, Naruto squeaked and hurried to catch it—this time, he wasn't letting anything hit his face. The smooth metal surface of the hitai-ate felt cold under his fingers. He stared down at it, smiling a little at his reflection that stared back at him. Then, in the mirror image, his eyes widened.

"Oh shoot…"

"You caught it." Iruka's grin had only widened, and the man chuckled. "Hmm, what to ask of you…"

"Don't torture him." The pretty blonde woman at Iruka's side, arms full of gifts, offered Naruto a sympathetic smile. Then she nudged Iruka in the ribs. "Don't worry, Naruto-kun. You know my husband's too nice to ask anything horrible of anyone."

"Hi, Natsu-san…" Naruto stepped aside to allow them both passage, glancing once more to the dreaded hitai-ate in his hand. He only just managed to believe her encouragement, and forced himself to stand a bit straighter. "Wait… where's Midori?"

"Oh, she came down with a fever," said Natsukashi, handing off the stack of presents to Iruka so she could free herself of her heavy coat.

"We were going to stay, but she insisted we come," Iruka elaborated, with a hint of sadness. "At least to bring the gifts."

"Aw," Naruto offered his sympathy, "we'll have to send our gifts back with you."

"Hey! Naruto!" The shout came from the street, through the whisper of falling snowflakes. In the light of the nearby street lamps, over Iruka and Natsukashi's shoulders, Naruto glimpsed vibrant pink hair.

Sakura, Sarada, and Sachihiro were here. That was everybody, then.

Good, it's almost over…

Wait, no it wasn't. And since when had he started looking forward to when parties ended? Something was seriously wrong with him…

Naruto kept the door open until the three Uchihas clambered up the steps, their sprint leaving them huffing puffs of white mist. Still, Sakura grinned and gave his arm a good-natured bump of her fist.

"Happy Kansei!" she declared.

"Thanks for not throwing something at my face…" Naruto returned.

"Your face?" She eyed him with a quizzical arch of her brow.

"It's a long story… Hello, Sarada-kun. Hiro-chan." He offered the young woman and her younger brother a smile, to which both children flushed ever so slightly.

"Good evening, Nanadaime-sama," they greeted in return, each with a slight bow.

"Come on in."

Once the three were safely inside and ridding themselves of their cumbersome gear, Naruto finally moved to shut the front door. But not after he cast one last look over the block—perhaps hoping he might see two more last-minute additions come running up…

But hurrying for somebody else's sake was never really Sasuke's style, was it? With a sigh, Naruto latched the door.

Then he paused, listening to the sounds that now pervaded his home. The Uchihas had joined the others in the living room, and thanks to Sakura's exuberance, the noise had nearly doubled. Everybody was greeting everybody. He could hear Sarada's petulance as she addressed the Hatake twins, Sakura's enthusiasm as she spoke with Kakashi-sensei and Tsuki-san, and Sachihiro's instant conversation with Obito. The voices all drifted in and out of audibility, with only occasional words and phrases coming through clear enough for Naruto to understand.

Here, in the warmth the house provided, it sounded so… alive. And for just a moment, despite his weariness, Naruto let himself appreciate it.

His friends… his comrades… his family. This was what the Winter Kansei was about.

"Mama, why do we have Kansei trees?" Nao asked, rather loudly, in the next room. The boy, reserved though he usually was, had certainly inherited Naruto's volume. Naruto chuckled at the idea.

"Well, they're like little Kandai trees," Hinata explained, and Naruto could envision her smile. "The First Hokage started the tradition of hanging presents on the largest tree in the Leaf Village, for all the families who couldn't afford to buy them. Then people started doing it for anybody."

"I know this, Mama," said Nao matter-of-factly. "I asked about the Kansei trees, not the Kandai tree."

Hinata laughed. "I'm getting there. One year, Shodai-sama's son got sick on the Winter Kansei. So Shodai-sama found a little tree to bring home, and put his son's presents on that tree—so the boy didn't miss out on the festival. And that's why we have Kansei trees."

"Oh…"

"Naruto!" Hinata called from the kitchen. Naruto straightened up, pushing himself off the wall. "Could you bring some firewood in, please? We forgot to grab some earlier."

"Sure." Naruto glanced at the mess that was the coat rack, briefly wondering if he should put on his jacket and scarf. But that would require mining through everybody else's belongings just to find his.

No, I can handle a little cold just for a minute.

It wouldn't take long to go out to the side of the house and back. He wondered if he'd even need shoes…

He thought of the chill that had swept into the house whenever the door was opened. With a curt nod, he went over to his boots, which nestled in a corner out of the way of the rest of the many pairs. With the ease of motion repeated over years, he slipped them on and then moved for the door, putting a purposeful skip in his step to prepare his veins for the cold.

With a quick breath, he once again jerked the door open and slipped outside, nearly running face-first into a silhouette standing right outside the door. His heart jumped and so did he, shrieking a little and backpedaling across the threshold. He caught himself on the doorframe, and zeroed in on the intruder's face.

A coal-black eye—the eye that wasn't hidden by an ebony fringe—blinked at him in surprise. The man's pale hand was raised, as if to knock on the door that was no longer before his fingers. Beside him stood a painfully familiar young man with sunny blond hair and Byakugan eyes that looked just as startled as his master's.

Naruto sagged against the doorframe, done with it all.

"Naruto, are you all right?" Hinata's footsteps along with a second pair moved from the living room to the hallway, and paused behind him. He practically heard her light up. "Boruto! Sasuke-kun!"

With a backdrop of sudden commotion in the next room, Hinata slipped around Naruto to hold the door wider. Naruto sidled just far enough along the wall to make a bit more room, and then clunked his head back against the wall. He needed a second.

Sasuke Uchiha and his student both stood there for a moment, and Naruto hoped they were taking time to adapt to what had just happened. That would certainly make him feel better about himself…

Boruto was the first to recover, and he hefted up his arms, full of wood.

"You always forget the wood 'til the last minute," the young man said with a grin that wrinkled the scar over his left eye. He pushed past his master to step into the foyer. "Thought we'd bring some fresh pine on our way in."

"Oh, that's wonderful! Welcome home!" Hinata threw her arms around her eldest boy as much as she could, between his armload and the fact that he stood several inches taller than her now. "Come in, come in where it's warm."

"Well, well, long time no see," Kakashi-sensei said somewhere to Naruto's left, while the two new arrivals entered the Uzumaki house. As more people came to see what all the ruckus was about, the entryway began to fill with chaos.

"Papa!" Sarada shouted. Sasuke raised his chin to see over the heads of those in front of him. Naruto flinched when something whipped through the air, glinting in the light.

Sasuke raised his hand and caught the forehead protector with ease.

"You owe Mama a kiss," Sarada said with a chuckle.

Oh gosh, no. Naruto didn't need to see that. Sometimes, he still only saw Sasuke and Sakura as his old teammates. They'd played together. Seen each other in horribly embarrassing situations. Now, Sasuke and Sakura together… it was nice and all, but it still weirded him out some. He distracted himself by shutting the door.

"I'll be in in a minute," said Sasuke, tucking the hitai-ate into his pocket.

"Good, because dinner's ready," said Hinata, bustling back into the next room. "Sakura was just helping set the table. Come on, everyone, let's find our seats."

Once again, the herd of people shuffled back toward the main room. Boruto kicked off his shoes, leaving them haphazardly against the wall, and followed with his armload of wood. As the chaos receded, it left only Naruto and Sasuke in the foyer.

Naruto sighed once it quieted down.

"You look like crap," Sasuke declared without a change in expression, as he always did.

Naruto chuckled. "Gee, thanks."

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah… just feeling the strain of the holidays, I guess."

For the longest moment, Sasuke just stared at him. Naruto stared right back, wishing he could do what his best friend seemed to be able to with ease—watch someone long enough that he somehow deduced exactly what they were thinking. For all the strength he had gained and trials he had faced, Naruto knew he lacked whatever it was that allowed him to instinctively reach people on that kind of level.

"There's something else," Sasuke said, as Naruto expected he would.

"Nosy b*******…" Naruto gave his friend a wry smile before his gaze drifted to the door from which those cozy sounds of Kansei were drifting. "…Do you remember celebrating Kansei before the war?"

"I do."

"Does it feel… like forever ago to you?" Naruto remembered lonely winter nights, a vacant Kansei tree—some years, the only present he had to wake up to was one he bought himself. He remembered instant ramen for breakfast and lunch, and maybe a wild rabbit for dinner if he got lucky.

"Sometimes." Sasuke followed his gaze. "Sometimes it feels like a dream… other times, it's just like yesterday."

"It's so surreal…" Naruto wilted. "And it makes me feel like an old man."

"You're not old, Naruto."

"I know, I know, but I feel it… My bones are tired."

Sasuke snorted. "You're bound to feel like an old man if you keep talking like one."

"Oh, shut up, you know?"

The faintest of smirks crossed Sasuke's face. "You're sure this isn't about Himawari?"

"EH?" Naruto mentally panicked. How the h*** could he know that!? "W-What makes you say that!?"

"I saw her. She looks very nice."

"So wh—"

"Very grown up."

Naruto snapped his mouth shut.

Sasuke smiled. "I thought so."

D***, it's so creepy when he does that!

Naruto pointed a finger in his friend's face. "Don't look at me like that! You know how it is! What about Sarada, huh? Don't tell me you didn't do the same thing!"

"How do you think I know I'm right?" Sasuke slapped Naruto's hand out of his face.

Naruto shut up again and simply stared.

Empathy was a strange look on Sasuke Uchiha. Even now, after years of knowing him as an ally, sometimes, it hit Naruto just so, and struck him dumb. It was incredible… the person his best friend had become.

And that thought just reminded Naruto of how long it had been since they were rivals in the schoolyard.

Crap, I'm turning into Kakashi-sensei! With the random reminiscing, bitter nostalgia, and how tired I feel all the time… This can't be happening!

"I'm surprised you haven't wandered in toward the food by now." Sasuke glanced from the door to the living room to Naruto. "You must really be tired if you're avoiding both dinner and company."

Naruto let his mouth move without thinking. "Hey, shut up! I just needed a minute is all, you know! If you can handle this, Mr. Antisocial, I sure as h*** can!"

"Let's go, then. Your family is waiting."

"Yeah, sure. Don't you owe Sakura-chan a kiss or something?"

The briefest flash of red over Sasuke's pale face was reward enough for that jab. "Oh shut up…"

Naruto laughed, and as the two men stepped from the hallway into the next room, the bustle of the people beyond washed over him. This time, it didn't wrap about his ankles like shackles. Instead, it swept into his lungs and filled him with sweet warmth—it smelled an awful lot like fried chicken.

A warm fire burned in the hearth, casting orange highlights on the small evergreen tree set up beside it, under which nestled a number of packages. The guests crowded around the dining table, which had been extended to twice its original length. Every extra chair in the house had been brought out, and now every one was filled. Kakashi-sensei had his arm draped casually over Tsuki's shoulders, and Iruka-sensei subtly held Natsu's hand while Sakura regaled all of them with some tale or another. Kori listened in contented silence while Tatsu and Nao giggled at something one of the boys said. Obito and Sachihiro conversed with animated gestures, the twins murmured quietly to themselves, and Boruto and Sarada seemed to be catching up, the slightest hint of red blossoming under the girl's glasses. The smiles across the room shone brighter than any Kansei lights could.

And finally, there was Naruto's wife, standing at the head of the table, pulling out the chair. She smiled, and there corners of Naruto's mouth twitched up.

"There you boys are," Hinata chided playfully. "Naruto-kun, we're ready to say thanks."

"Sounds good," Naruto said with a broad grin. "Smells even better! Right, Sasuke?"

"Indeed."

"Come sit by us, Papa!" Sarada beckoned.

Naruto moved toward the head of the table, and took a moment to steal a quick kiss from his wife before he sat down. He relished in her small smile, and returned it as he watched her hurry to her seat beside his.

Taking his time, Naruto swept his gaze over those gathered around him. They all smiled back at him. Every pair of eyes was alight, and it nearly drew tears to his own eyes.

I'm not gonna cry. It's just… an age thing. Yeah…

"Ready, everybody?"

With that, a chorus of voices sounded around the table, in a beautiful unison.

"Thank you for the food!"

"Everybody, start passing the food around!" Hinata picked up the dish closest to her.

As Naruto did the same with the plate of dinner rolls, Himawari's sweet voice rose above the rest.

"Hey, Obito-kun!"

Oh no… Naruto snapped his head up just as something flew through the air over the table, and the masked Hatake boy's hand came up.

Obito caught the projectile with a look of absolute boredom, took one look at the object in his hand, and dropped it like it burned him. The boredom shifted to utter horror.

"Ohhhh no! You caught it!" Boruto guffawed.

"Augh, what have I done!?" Obito covered his face with his hands.

Naruto glared at the young Hatake with all the animosity he could muster from Kurama, who was actually busy laughing. But this was no laughing matter.

As the boy bemoaned his poor fortune, Himawari broke into the most adorable laugh in Konoha, and she clasped her hands over her whiskered cheeks to hide her blush. Naruto sucked in a breath.

No, I'm the only one allowed to make her do that!

"Hmm, what to ask Obito-kun…" Himawari pretended to ponder, and suddenly, Naruto got a very bad feeling. "I kinda like Sarada-nee's idea."

Something in Naruto snapped, and he slumped. He couldn't decide whether he should be horrified at his daughter's choice, or unleash all the killing intent he had on the paling Hatake son. Hinata's reassuring grip on his hand drew his gaze up to her face.

She met his eyes, and thanks to years of experience, Naruto could hear what she was saying, even without her speaking a word.

It's okay.

That sentiment, conveyed through her beautiful eyes, snatched the wind from Naruto's rage sails. With a weary sigh, he deflated, and sunk lower in his seat. Her thumb brushed over his knuckles, crumbling the rest of his resolve. So, he simply watched his blushing daughter with begrudging resignation.

This getting older thing sucked.