A/N: This is my very first fanfic. Flame fave whatever, I honestly don't think I'll ever finish it. But hey you know whatever. I don't own Naruto yadda yadda yadda and if I did Hinata would have told Naruto about her crush and Sakura would have fallen off a large clifff......
The soft splatter of rain hitting a dirt road, was all that rose to his ears. Some would think that after being gone so long a rainstorm on his homecoming day would put a damper on his spirits. If anything it enhanced them. He was more ready than ever to be home. He couldn't wait to eat some real ramen, lay down in his own bed, and most of all see his friends. Over the past three years he had thought about them all numerous times. Applying his homesickness to everyday situations was a new habit of his. 'Shikamaru would have found this a pain in the ass' or 'Kakashi-sensei wouldn't have expected me to get it on the first try!' were more recent ones he had used. He had grown quite a bit over the years. His hair was now long, normally falling over his eyes. He had also grown taller, almost the same height as Kakashi (although neither one knew this yet). More recently he had begun to wonder what his friends might look like now.
In turn he had pictured them in his mind; some of his friends easier to picture than others. 'Chouji will probably still be pretty chunky…and Sakura-chan might be shorter than me now….Shikamaru will still have that damn ponytail…..' But some people had been extremely hard to imagine. For instance he had a hard time picturing Lee wearing anything but his signature green jumpsuit. He also had a hard time imagining a certain Hyuga heiress. Whenever he tried, Hinata remained the same timid blushing shinobi that she'd always been.
On one occasion Ero-sensei had asked about his friends. In response he had shown him a picture of the Rookie 12. "That's Neji, Bushy Brow, TenTen, Sakura, Sasuke…."he pointed to each member adding comments here and there. "And Shino can do this really weird thing where he controls bugs. He can talk to them and stuff. That's Kiba and Akumaru. They're a team. All Kiba's moves are animal based. And that's…" he stopped. His finger now rested on Hinata. He had been thinking a lot about Hinata lately. The conversations they'd had, the missions he'd gone on with her. Every time he called up one of those memories, a squirm formed in the pit of his stomach.
"What kid?" Jiraya asked "Kyubi got your tongue?" he added in an undertone. Naruto grunted a small 'no' before he continued. "That's Hinata-chan. She's heiress to the Hyuga clan. So she has the bloodline thing…Byukugan I think it's called…..and" he broke off, a blank look on his face. Jiraya chuckled. "Well if Kyubi doesn't have your tongue then I'd have to say Cupid does" he said plucking the picture from his pupil's hands. Naruto came swiftly out of his trance. "It's NOT like that!" he said a slight redness coming to his cheeks. Jiraya was now examining the picture, particularly the corner with Hinata in it. "Kid don't worry I won't tell anyone you have" he dropped his tone to a whisper "a girlfriend". Naruto was outraged. After a very loud explanation of how Hinata was most certainly not his girlfriend Naruto stuffed the picture into his pocket. But something had just happened. A thought had been planted in his mind, and it only continued to grow.
He continued behind his sensei, keeping a few feet behind. A small clap of thunder resounded in the distance. He glanced upward for a moment as the sky was split in two by a large fork of lightning. His eyes off the road, the young shinobi's foot sunk into a small mud puddle. Losing his balance he tumbled face forward ending up in a larger more lake like puddle. He heard laughter as he sat up, wiping bits of mud off his jacket.
"Naruto! If you can't even dodge a mud puddle how can I be sure you're ready to get back to the village?" called Ero-sensei his voice full of laughter. Naruto stood muttering about 'I'm not going to be attack by a mud puddle'. Jiraya and a now mud splattered Naruto continued on, with only a mile or so to go before they reached home.
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"Hokage-sama!" came a voice. Tsunade heaved a deep sigh. What could they possibly want now? She'd done most of the day's paperwork already (which was a major achievement for her), assigned the more urgent missions, and even managed to not tap into the sake bottle under her desk. A loud knock was then heard followed by another "Hokage-sama!" Rubbing her temples Tsunade reluctantly called "Enter!" In bounded her pink haired pupil who looked as if she was about to burst with excitement.
"What is it Sakura?" asked Tsunade becoming more and more annoyed. Sakura's grin could have lit the entire village. This only further annoyed Tsunade.
"Sakura either tell me what it is, or get out and do something useful!" Even this outburst didn't dampen Sakura's spirits.
"He's coming back!" she said nearly jumping with joy.
"Who's coming back?"
"Naruto!" said Sakura. Tsunade's mind was slow in processing this. Sakura didn't wait for her to respond.
"We just received word from a messenger hawk! He should be coming through the village gates within the hour!" Finally Tsunade's mind caught up with the conversation. She couldn't help but smile. So the knucklehead was finally coming home?
"'Bout time" she said finishing her thoughts out loud. Sakura nodded happily. This however made Tsunade frown.
"Sakura are you even capable of focusing right now?" she asked. Sakura mumbled an apology but was quickly silenced.
"Because if not I'll just have to give you the rest of the day off" finished Tsunade. Sakura thanked her sensei and grinned once more as she left the office, leaving Tsunade to her thoughts. It'd been nearly three years. How much had he changed? With that Tsunade reached under her desk and uncorked her sake bottle.
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The pink haired kinoichi was running as fast her legs would carry her. She needed to tell as many people as she could about Naruto's homecoming or at the very least Ino and Hinata. Over the past few years the three girls had become very good friends, often training together, taking shopping trips(much to Hinata's dismay), and occasionally getting a mission together. Sakura ducked under a fruit cart and dodged a jewelry vendor, all while trying to avoid the crowd of shoppers. She then came to the street she wanted and slid to a stop. If she took the street on her left she would come out right near Ino's family flower shop. If she hung a right she'd be able to zig-zag her way to the Hyuga compound. Just as she was making her decision a large furry thing landed a few feet away.
"Kiba!" she said turning to the fluffy mountain that was now Akamaru. Kiba hopped off his back and gave a small wave.
"What's up Sakura-chan?" he asked putting his hands deep in his pockets.
"Naruto! He's coming back!" she said clapping her hands together. Kiba's face went from shock to sheer pleasure in three fourths of a second.
"The Knuckle Headed Ninja returns" he said climbing back atop Akamaru.
"Kiba?"
"Hm?" he said readjusting his grip.
"Could you tell Hinata for me? She'll probably want to know" Sakura said with a giggle. Kiba grunted a 'yeah' before Akamaru leapt onto the nearest rooftop. Sakura continued on at more leisurely pace now only having to tell Ino.
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"Your getting better" said Neji taking a seat next to his cousin under the porch. Hinata gave him a shy smile and nodded politely. They had just finished an intense training session, when the clouds started to open and sent a pitter patter of rain on the small village. Hinata was quite winded and although she lost their match as usual, was in a very good mood. In the past three years Hinata had become much stronger, her abilities beginning to rival Neji's. Although Neji had more skill and power Hinata's flexibility and speed made her a difficult opponent. Hinata not only grew ability wise but also physically. Her bluish black hair was now well past her waist. Her figure was perfectly curved and much envied by many Kohona girls. She was basically the picture of beauty with the personality of a church mouse.
"Have you seen TenTen today? I was supposed meet to her for lunch but-"began Neji when both teens heard a loud yelp followed by a mound of fur falling from the rooftop. Next came a loud string of curse words. Hinata stood up having recognized the voice. Both teens rushed out from under the porch only to see Kiba clinging to the tiled roof. Neji gave an amused chuckle while Hinata rushed to his aid. Once she had successfully gotten Kiba down and explained to him that it wasn't 'the damn roof' that made him fall they both took cover under the porch roof. Akamaru curled up next to Hinata patiently waiting for her to scratch his ears. She of course obliged.
"Do we have a new mission Kiba-kun?" asked Hinata. Kiba smacked his forehead, having remembered his reason for coming.
"No it's just Naruto is coming back today-" Kiba stopped to watch Hinata's face go from ivory to brick red. Neji also watched and moodily crossed his arms, having always disapproved of his cousin's little crush.
"Yeah he should be here within the hour or so-"he stopped again as Hinata's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates. Kiba couldn't take it and doubled over with laughter. Neji then cleared his throat, getting the attention of both the embarrassed girl and hysteric boy.
"You should probably head to the village gates. If you wish to see him…" he trailed off and stood up heading back indoors.
"I-I don't know. I don't think I want to be the first person he sees" she said quietly. Kiba regained his composure and sighed.
"Don't worry Sakura-chan is most likely going to meet him at the gates. Ino too." He said giving her a little nudge. Hinata gave a small smile, gave Akamaru one more scratch, and stood to leave. Pushing chakra into the soles of her feet, she leapt onto the flat part of the roof.
"Give that knucklehead a punch from me!" called Kiba. Hinata's expression showed quite clearly that even touching Naruto was more then she could handle. She gave a small wave and headed towards the gates as the rain began to pour down in bucketfuls.
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Naruto had broken into a run as soon as he saw the village gates. What he didn't see was the three girls waiting for him on the other side. Two talking happily completely ignoring the rain, the third lost in her thoughts. Hinata fidgeted with her hoodie, flattening it out, then messing it up, zipping it, and unzipping it. What if Naruto didn't recognize her? Or what if he was upset she had come to see him? The constant stream of 'what if's 'flew through her mind at an alarming pace. She had missed Naruto. For multiply reasons. The first being he was Naruto and who wouldn't miss him? The second was she hadn't admitted her feelings to him (although she really wanted to) before he left. These facts provoked another wave of 'what if's '.
Sakura and Ino were discussing a new medical treatment that Tsunade had performed when they both caught sight of an orange and black jumpsuit.
"Naruto!" screamed Sakura at the top of her voice. Ino began to wave her arms trying to get his attention. Once he caught sight of then he rushed to their side. Sakura stood on her tip-toes and ruffled his hair. Naruto smirked.
"Not much of a squirt anymore, huh?" she said flirty smile on her face. Ino raised an eyebrow recognizing her friend's flirty smile. The rain was finally letting up, as well as a few rays of sun peaking through the clouds. Wanting to make herself known Ino cleared her throat.
"Hey knucklehead" she said casually. Naruto nodded in greeting, and suddenly realized there was a fourth member of their group.
"Who's back there…." He said gently pushing Ino and Sakura apart. Hinata looked up her face glowing a bright pink. Naruto smiled and stepped between Sakura and Ino.
"Hi Hinata!" he said with a smile, that slowly turned into a frown. He cocked his head to the side staring at her red face.
"You feeling ok?" he asked his eyes wide with concern. Hinata blinked rapidly.
"Y-yes Naruto-kun, I-I'm feeling fine" she said adding a small smile.
"You sure?" he asked placing his hand on her forehead. That did it. Sakura and Ino both knew it was coming. Hinata's eyes fluttered shut as she went weak kneed and began to sway. Naruto caught her as she lost consciousness. Naruto looked at Ino and Sakura with a puzzled expression.
"Any ideas as to why she always does this?" he asked scooping her up completely. Sakura and Ino both went into a giggle fit.
"Yeah we've got a few" one of them managed to say after a moment. Naruto shrugged and adjusted his hold on the unconscious girl. Ino then whispered something to Sakura, which was met by a 'yeah we should'. Naruto stared at them as they turned on their heels and darted up the street.
"Hey wait! What am I supposed to do with her?" he called after them.
"That's your problem now!" called Ino over her shoulder. Sakura and Ino erupted in laughter as they turned a corner and were out of sight.
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Crap. That just about summed up his situation. Not only was he stuck holding an unconscious Hinata, but he also hadn't the slightest idea what to do with her. His first thought was to take her back to his place. Let her sleep it off. But taking an unconscious girl into one's apartment doesn't normally sit well with the neighbors. His next thought was to pull a Sasuke and leave her on a park bench. But he immediately rejected that idea. It was not only cruel but very humiliating once Hinata woke up. In the end he decided he would find a way to sneak her back into the Hyuga compound. At first he thought of taking her to her father but that would provoke a lot of awkward (and in when dealing with Hiashi Hyuga) life threatening questions. And so he set off, the limp form of Hinata positioned awkwardly in his arms. As he strode through the streets he got some interesting looks. First people were shocked to see him and then even more shocked to see the Hyuga Heiress in his grasp. He was given very dirty glares as he past a group of middle aged women doing their shopping. After a seemingly endless walk Naruto could see the gate of the Hyuga house. Ducking down an alleyway Naruto gracefully leapt over the outer wall of the compound and into the courtyard. Now past the guards the only person Naruto really didn't want to run into was…..
"Naruto!" came the voice of none other than Neji Hyuga. Naruto groaned inwardly and turned to face him. Flashing that trademark Uzumaki grin Naruto opened his mouth to explain.
"It there any particular reason your carrying my unconscious cousin?" asked Neji his voice deadly.
"She came to meet me at the gate and for no reason she just pasted out. Then Sakura and Ino left me alone. And I had no idea what to do so I was gonna bring her back here but-"said Naruto in a muttled rush. He took a deep breath to continue but stopped as Neji raised a hand to silence him.
"Your intentions are good. And so long as we never speak of this moment again you may continue on eh-hem escorting Hinata home" said Neji as calmly as possible. Naruto breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thanks Neji. Would you happen to know wh-"
"Second window on the left of the outside wall." said Neji as he walked away.
"Thanks" called Naruto.
Naruto followed Neji's directions to Hinata's room. Shifting Hinata into one arm, he managed to open the window. He felted kinda like a burglar or some sick pervert as he laid Hinata down on her bed. Standing back up Naruto began to survey the room. The walls were light lavender and adorned with various pictures, mostly of Team 8. On a desk next to her bed stood a framed picture of the Rookie 12 all of who's faces were shining brightly with youth(A/N This was my goofy Lee quote). Next to it was a picture of small girl who looked a lot like Hinata. Naruto vaguely recalled her being Hinata's sister. He then gently picked up a picture of Hinata wearing a formal silk kimono. He couldn't help notice how beautiful she looked. As he put the picture down his hand brushed across a stack of neatly piled books, which were sent tumbling to the ground.
"Great" he muttered bending down to pick them up.
One by one he put them up on the desk. As he put the last one up a small folded piece of paper fell from its pages. In curvy letters was his name. Raising an eyebrow he was about to open it when a startling noise was heard. It was Hiashi Hyuga almost right outside the door. He seemed to be talking to a servant about the proper use of jutsu. As panic washed over him Naruto hurriedly stuffed the note in his pocket and sprang to the window. Within a few seconds Hiashi opened the door to see nothing but his daughter sleeping peacefully and an open window letting in a comfortable breeze.