Hinata stared out her window at the setting sun. Her marriage, she realized, was more than she ever dreamed of. Her husband found as much time for her as she could and she adored him for it. He doted on her and she never wanted for anything. When the door to her apartment swung open, she turned to call out to the man she loved. Instead she was greeted by cold dark eyes with only the slightest hint of a smile.

"Hello, wife," Sasuke said as she dropped the bags of groceries onto the floor.

Hinata woke with a start. She grabbed her chest for fear her heart would beat right out of it. She knew Sasuke was pressured into his proposal by the Hokage. In his repentance he'd agreed, willing do anything to make up for his misdeeds leading up to the war. Even marry someone he didn't love.

She knew that Sasuke would treat her well but she couldn't stop her heart from yearning for another, a man who didn't even know she existed. She sighed as the about what life would be like with the man who caused the man she actually loved so much pain. She had no idea why the village was conspiring to have her wed the man she still couldn't help but think a traitor but she knew it to be so.

She eased herself out of bed and changed quickly into her taining clothes. She still hadn't responded to his proposal and used the training as a way to ease her troubled mind. The shorts and tank top didn't fit her personality but easily suited her needs for ease of movement. She grabbed a bottle of water and was halfway to the training grounds when she saw him.

His blonde locks glistened in the morning sun. His skin was aglow with the sheen of sweat from an early morning workout. He had perfect control of his prosthetic as he took a long drink from a water bottle. She couldn't help but watch his throat move as he swallowed the, apparenly, much needed thirst quencher. The way his muscle shirt fit tightly to his body made her ache for the knowledge that she could never have him.

"Hey, Hinata." His grin was firmly in place as he waved to her, causing the stirring deep inside of her that only he could.

"Hello, Naruto." She refused to stutter even in the presence of this godly man.

"How have you been?" He leaned back against a wall and stared at her, his eyes bright and happy as they always were in the presence of a friend.

She wondered if he'd been told that his best friend was probably getting married. She wondered, idly, if it would bother him even a little when he found out who he was marrying. She assured Sasuke that she wouldn't tell anyone of his proposal unless she accepted. She didn't want to shame the poor man. She looked into the trusting eyes of the man before and felt a pang of regret. She already knew what her answer was going to be to Sasuke. She just wanted to put it off as long as she could.

"I've been fine. Just training and things of that sort." She tried to sound normal but she saw the ever so slight rise of his eyebrow at her words.

"Oh, want to go train with me?" She could tell he'd already had a rough training session but she would do just about anything he asked of her.

She nodded her response and the both of them walked in silence. She snuck glances at him out of the corner of her eye and often found him looking at her specutively. She didn't question his motives and kept walking. When they reached the training field he immediately dropped to the ground and began stretcing. She followed suit because she didn't want to risk pulling a muscle.

"Want to spar a little bit?" His gaze stayed so fixed on her eyes she was sure he had to force them to stay there. She nodded her agreement and crouched into a readied stance.

"No Chakra. That would give you an unfair advantage." She watched as he grinned and followed her lead.

He came at her first with incredible speed. She narrowly dodged and sent a roundhouse kick toward his back. He ducked low and kicked her foot still on the ground out from under her. She caught herself on her hand and pushed herself up and back, landing on her feet several meters away. She quickly gained her footing and charged at the temporaily distracted ninja.

With carefully trained precision she launched a palm into his solar plexus. With the wind knocked out of him, Naruto stumbled. She swept his feet out from under him and jumped on top of him, her fingertips posed over his throat. He looked up at her with a gaze of sheer admiration.

"You've improved." His eyes sparkled the brightest blue she'd ever seen in the brisk light of the morning.

"Years of training put to use." She stood with the sheen of sweat covering her skin. She stared down at him, trying to keep the undying love from her eyes.

"Want to go again?" She nodded her response and dropped back into her ready position knewing he wouldn't underestimate her again.

This time she charged first, keeping her eyes on him. He easily sidestepped her and swung a kick at her back. Rather than ducking she jumped above his leg and swung a kick to his abdomen. She didn't realize he'd jumped with his other foot until her foot connected with his manhood. As he covered it with his hands and sunk to his knees, HInata brought her hand to cover her mouth.

"Oh, Naruto, I'm so sorry." She knelt beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. He gave her an unencouraging thumbs up and squeezed his eyes shut.

She watched him and noted the strained muscles. The veins in his neck and forehead were sticking out as if they wanted to escape his skin. His muscles were tensed beautifully beneath the tight fabric of his shirt. His hands still tightly covered his manhood as if protecting it from another blow. Catching her off guard, her mind wandered to that secret part of him. Heat swept over her as she imagined it; what it looked like, felt like, tasted like.

She jumped quickly to her feet as the foreign heat spread through her body. Not wanting him to guess her terrible thoughts or wanting to see him in any more pain, she ran. She heard him call to her but she didn't stop. She knew all too well there was only one man she would know in that way and it wasn't the kind and beatiful man behind her. She almost cried as she thought about the marriage she probably had no hope of avoiding.

She ran all the way to her bedroom and leaned her full weight on the door. Her breath was coming in quick gasps and her throat was dry. She wanted nothing more than to run back to that field and tell him everything, including the fact that he was the one she wanted to marry. She wanted to admit to him that she'd been in love with him for as long as she could remember. She knew she couldn't. He would always remain oblivious to her feelings. He would one day marry. Every woman in the ninja world knew his name and craved his affections. She walked to her bedroom window that looked into a garden and sighed. Her one dream would remain forever out of reach. She would give her father her answer tomorrow and the entire village would celebrate the union. The entire village except her.