"Monster!"
"Demon!"
"Go away! You're not wanted here."
"Stay away!"
Naruto woke in a cold sweat gasping for breath.
Once he regained control of his breathing, he realized that it was late at night. Not wanting to go back to sleep, he change into his usual outfit and went out.
It wasn't long into his walk that his stomach started to growl and headed towards the Ichiraku Ramen shop.
'They were all terrified of me. Calling me a monster or a demon. They would run away from me.'
Naruto was so immersed in his thoughts that he hadn't notice that he stopped walking.
"Naruto-kun?"
Naruto snapped back to reality and saw Hinata standing in front of him.
"Hinata? What are you doing here so late at night?"
"Um...well...I couldn't sleep s-so I d-decided to go out for a w-walk and I n-noticed that you were just standing in the m-middle of the road."
"What are you doing here so late at night, Naruto-kun?"
"Actually, I couldn't sleep either and I wanted to get some fresh air and my mind must've wondered off."
He hesitated a while before he asked, "Do you want to go to Ichiraku with me?"
Hinata nearly jumped with joy! She refrained and timidly nodded.
"Hinata?"
"Yes?" She looked up from the ground and looked at Naruto.
"Do you think I'm a monster?"
'What?! Him a monster? Never!'
"Of course not!" Naruto was taken back by Hinata's outburst.
"You're not a monster. You're a great ninja. You never give up, no matter how bad things are you get back up on your feet."
"Really, Hinata?"
She smiled and nodded.
"Thanks, Hinata. I was feeling pretty depressed, but I'm feeling great now. You know what?"
Hinata looked at Naruto anxiously.
"Next time I'm feeling bad or depressed, I'll come and talk to you." He gave him his famous cashmere grin and Hinata couldn't help but to break into a big smile and turn a deep shade of red.
