A Night with Hinata-Chan
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, it'd be all about the gals
"Hey there Hinata-chan!" The petite, purple haired Hyuuga turned around from her shopping, startled.
The puzzled expression melted away into a smile as the white eyes scanned over the small, petal-haired kunoichi walking swiftly towards her, her hand bent in welcome.
"Hello Sakura-san. How are you today?" Hinata asked, ever polite and formal.
Sakura smiled at her long-time friend, scooting past a group of giggling civilian girls and stepped next to her fellow kunoichi's side, placing a warm hand on Hinata's small shoulder. "I'm doing great. I just got back from a mission with Shino and Tenten, clearing up some bad blood that's been mucking around in Mist."
"Oh, really? How did it go?" Hinata folded and placed down the dark blue dress she had been fingering, and turned to face Sakura fully as Sakura's hand fell from her shoulder. A small shiver raced up Hinata's spine, but she shook it off with a mental shimmy.
"It went well. We completed it, of course. No one got hurt." Sakura said confidently and Hinata laughed. Relief flooded her at the sound of confidence is Sakura's voice. She felt foolish, needing and wanting Sakura's verbal assurance that she was okay, even though she was visibly fine. But if feeling foolish silenced that little nagging voice in the back of her head, Hinata was happy enough to feel silly.
"I wouldn't have expected anything less," Hinata watched as Sakura picked up the blue dress she had been fingering earlier, and held it up to her frame, her eyes darting towards Hinata and then back. She shook her head, her coral lips pursed. Blushing at the small action, Hinata hastily moved away from the stack of dresses and fiddled with her fingers.
"That defiantly isn't the right colour on you," Sakura admonished finally, after holding the dress up to herself and Hinata again, and shook her head, again. "I think you're more of a purple." Hinata felt her face heat up even more, and tried to stop her fiddling. Purple was her favourite colour.
'Way to go, Hinata,' Hinata chided to herself, 'Now she's going to think I have no fashion sense at all.' Hinata didn't know why, but for some reason it bothered her if Sakura found fault in her, though no doubt with their history, Sakura had already found plenty. She didn't know why it mattered now. 'I'm just being silly,' She concluded, and let out a small breath of frustrated air. Her feelings were beginning to feel so out of whack. If Hinata had chose to think about the situation and her feelings on a deeper level, she would have realized what she was feeling with Sakura was beginning to feel a lot like her old feelings for Naruto. 'Just silly nonsense,' Hinata said again to herself, as if assurance. But the strangeness and her overacting feelings didn't go away with her self-assurances.
"Y-yes, I didn't think so either…" Hinata said lamely, turning her red face away from Sakura, studying the ceiling. 'Ugh,' she groaned inwardly, and followed Sakura to another rack.
Sakura's POV
Sakura grinned at her, and two small pinpricks of pink coloured her cheeks.
'She's sooooo adorable!' Sakura squealed to herself, Inner Sakura grinning in a similar way Sakura would have been doing, would it not have creeped Hinata out.
"So how did your mission with Kiba and Neiji go, Hinata?" Sakura inquired, placing the light green dress down in obvious dislike and moving on to a bight yellow one, trying to bring back the conversation and the obviously embarrassed Hinata.
'Maybe I shouldn't have said anything about that dress…I hope Hinata doesn't think me rude to have said that. Maybe Hinata thought that colour looked good on her? Or maybe she just liked the style and I shouldn't have voiced my opinion? Oh, well…' Sakura's thoughts were a whirlwind, mussing up her head. 'Tsunade was been right. I must be falling hard for Hinata.' A small smiled brightened Sakura's face.
"It went as well as it was expected to. Neiji has begun to soften up to me, and that makes me happy. I really do believe we could become family…sometime." Sakura looked up from the glaring dress to see the fire and determination in the usually shy and meek white eyes, and was also glad to see that Hinata was coming out of her own shell with her brother, and with the other ninja around her. An even wider smile spread across her face then, and the corners of Hinata's own cherry lips pulled upwards, unable to stop that contagious smile of Sakura's from spreading to her own face.
"Neiji really does seem to be less hostile towards you. I'm so happy for the both of you; I know you've been trying to work things out between you and your Clan. Neiji's going to take the role of the Head of the Clan, isn't he?"
"Yes," Hinata nodded, no trace of jealously or anger evident in her face. "He is stronger then I am, and would make a better head for the household then I. My life in ANBU now is stressful enough." Her voice was steady and determined. "And no doubt the Clan is grateful for this relationship. It has always been strained relations between the Head House and the lower, and therefore strained relations between Neiji and me. Now everyone can learn to get along."
"I know exactly how you feel. Training with Tsunade, AND taking on the responsibilities as an ANBU is enough for me. I'd have a mental breakdown if I'd have to deal with ALL of my family as well!" Both Sakura and Hinata broke into mirthful laughter. Sakura felt genuinely happy that Hinata was finally feeling confident, and the splintered relationship between her Clan and Neiji had finally began to get pieced together. Lacing her arm through her friend's, they wandered over into another section of the store, chatting about the nonsense things of everyday life.
Hinata's POV
Hinata was acutely aware that Sakura's arm was still laced through hers, but she didn't dare voice a complaint. In fact, Hinata realized, she didn't have a complaint to voice. Quite the opposite. She found that she was enjoying it! Hinata could never remember being so acutely aware of someone touching her. And it wasn't even in a romantic way! She began to feel as if she was blowing this simple gesture way out of proportion.
'Her arm is so smooth and muscled, but in that subtle, soft way,' Hinata marveled, a deep crimson staining her cheeks at her thoughts. 'I wonder what her hands feels like…probably soft…' Immediately, Hinata jerked her arm away from Sakura's, earning small stab of pain in her bad shoulder, and a wondering glance from Sakura.
"What's wrong, Hinata?" Sakura asked, concern shining in her eyes. Had she somehow offended her soft-spoken friend? Sakura found worry sloshing in the pit of her stomach.
"Oh, no," Hinata stammered, her eyes widening in alarm. "There was just a bug on my arm…" She trailed off lamely and mentally hit herself. 'Dummy!' Lowering her eyes, she apologized hastily. "Sorry if I startled you…"
Sakura smirked, patting Hinata's head cutely. "It's okay, Hinata-chan," She giggled when she heard Hinata's soft sigh of relief.
"I find myself still startled, and to tell the truth, grossed out when one of Shino's bugs land on me." Sakura grinned, looping her arm once again through Hinata's as both of them laughed at the unfortunate bug boy.
"But he's so nice, I just can't bring myself to tell him about that. Suzu-chan is so wonderful for putting up with those nasty bugs," Hinata protested.
"You're so kind, Hinata," Sakura said, and placed a small peck on Hinata's smooth, pale cheek.
Hinata's cheeks burned at the small action, but despite her inner shy self protesting against it, she boldly returned the peck, before turning and grabbing a dress off of the rack before Sakura could comment on her unusually bold, and totally uncharacteristic action. But it had felt good, and Hinata couldn't stop the flip-flop her heart did inside of her chest.
"H-how about t-this dress," Hinata stammered, her physique not quite totally under-control as her long since disappeared stutter returned. A hot, berry blush still lingered around her cheekbones, her eyes were lowered so demurely and her lashes gracefully touched her burning cheeks so cutely that Sakura almost couldn't fight the giggles bubbling up in her throat. But at the risk of agitating Hinata even more, she held back.
Before Sakura could offer up her critique, her own coral pink blush lingering a little longer than it should have on the fiery petal-haired kunoichi, a loud chorus of giggles drifted from the group of civilian girls hidden behind the rack towards the two kunoichi's ears.
"Are ninjas born with, like, the fashion sense of a tree, or is that just because of all the time they spend jumping through the them?" Another round of giggles came, louder, now that the rude and offending girls had glided from behind a rack of jeans. They were led by a rather well endowed black-haired beauty, and it was obvious she was the apple of the groups' eye.
Hinata gasped, wringing her hands in front of her chest. Her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, and the corners of her cherry lips pulled down slowly in irritation.
'H-how r-rude of them!' Hinata thought, casting a worried glance to the pink-haired ninja next to her, which, judging from her stance was tense and most defiantly annoyed.
Sakura opened her mouth, a mean look on her face, but Hinata hurriedly attached her hands onto the angry kunoichi's arm. "Please, Sakura, let's…let's not s-start something, o-okay?" She whispered frantically. She knew Sakura, all of Sakura, and she also knew that an angry Sakura was never a good thing.
"Hinata…" She murmured, turning her head so their noses bumped, causing another crimson blush across Hinata's pale cheeks. "You just can't let people say that kind of stuff to you." Her anger was also due to the fact that the earlier confidence Hinata had held was replaced by her old, self-conscious stutter. These nasty girls shouldn't be allowed to lower Hinata's self-esteem.
Even though Hinata knew she was blushing, and that Sakura had defiantly noticed it, she didn't turn away or tear her eyes away from Sakura's. In the emerald eyes, now darkened to an angry shade of jade, she saw annoyance, anger and- Hinata almost didn't dare to think it.
'Posessivness?' A shocked Hinata blinked wide eyes. 'But w-why?'
But while the adorably blushing Hinata was too busy mulling over this interesting, new, and ultimately exciting predicament in the confines of her mind, Sakura had softly dislodged the purple-haired kunoichi's hands from her arm, and turned to face the offending civilians.
Sakura's POV
"I don't suppose you protect this village from every impending doom concerning man, huh?" Sakura snapped back, the fire right blazing in her eyes. Drawing her arms together to cross tightly to her chest, she tilted her head to the side a little and tapped her foot impatiently.
"B-but I thought the war between the Sound and the Leaf had ended months ago…" A mousy, quiet looking girl voiced from the back snobbily, and a couple of other girls murmured between themselves.
Sakura shifted to the side, raising an eyebrow. It was true, the disastrous war between Orochimaru and the Sound against Tsunade and Leaf had ended, Orochimaru finally being beaten in the end by a combination of Tsunade's monstrous strength, Naruto's foolish courage, not to mention every other Leaf ninja. All those who had doubted or insulted him before the final battle bowed their heads demurely to him; partly because he had saved all their lives, and partly because he was now the Leaf's next Hokage-in-training, finally recognized for his greatness by all.
Sakura and the entire Leaf village had counted themselves very lucky; many ninja had been lost, of course- but all of the nine rookies, including Team Gai, their senseis, Sasuke, and the Sand siblings had survived the onslaught. They were counted among the most valuable ninja around, and even though many of them were out of commission, the village had heaved a sigh of relief when they had all lived. And it also saved a lot of complications for Naruto in his future role as the overseer protector of the village, since he didn't have to replace all the ninjas.
And she had been especially happy to hear that a certain purple-haired kunoichi had made it; albeit with quite a stomach injury which had scared terribly, and a permanent bad left shoulder.
And as one of Konoha's top ninja, as well as their top medical nin, she had been indispensable to each and every ninja and civilian that had been injured after her own injuries had healed. But she had always made sure that Hinata had been one of her patients. And on top of that, Sasuke, the man she had thought she loved for so many years, had finally recognized her as his equal. Though at that point, when he had been captured and restrained and was now living under the watchful eye of all the ANBU and released as a technically free citizen of Konoha, she hadn't cared so much as she knew her twelve year old self would've.
"Yes, of course it is." Sakura rolled her eyes, the leader grinding her teeth at the one girl's stupid comment and Sakura's smug roll-of-the-eyes. "But who, exactly, do you think ended that war?"
None of the girls had an answer for that, and they began to shift uncomfortably under Sakura's obvious confidence in the situation.
"Besides," Sakura continued, "We're fashionable enough for our line of work. We don't sit around all day, giggling over magazines. Well," She grinned impishly, and tilted her head towards Hinata, who was still off in her own dreamland- her eyes hazy and her cherry lips parted slightly. "Not most of the time."
"Hmph." The leader breathed cautiously, before flipping back her hair. "Whatever. That dress is still really ugly," A sneer graced her pretty features, turning her face ugly. The others girl behind her tittered in disagreement; the dress would actually look quite lovely on the petite kunoichi. But the black-haired beauty sent a death glare their way, and they stopped almost immediately.
Sakura smirked triumphantly. That one comeback was lame, and they all knew it. Sakura had won. It may not have been with her fists, but it still felt good to win a fight.
Hinata's POV
Hinata, back from her own little dreamland involving her and Sakura, blinked her wide white eyes a few times before sighing. Her first thought back in reality was that she must've looked like a total moron, standing and staring into space like that.
She shivered slightly, hoping Sakura nor any of the other girls had noticed her lack of attention. Her second thought was exasperation towards her petal haired friend.
'She just had to go and start something, didn't she?' Hinata sighed again, but a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips against her will. 'But…I suppose that's just Sakura…' Hinata resisted the urge to giggle like a foolish schoolgirl. 'Oh, listen to me...I sound like some foolish old wife!'
"Sakura…" She finally voiced, pressing her hands gently against Sakura's forearm. "Didn't I tell you not to start anything?"
A mischievous grin spread across Sakura's face.
"Well, if you had been there to stop me…" Hinata blushed, pressing her hands against her cheeks.
"Just…l-let's go, o-okay?"
Sakura nodded, smiling down at her friend. 'I'm following her around like some stupid puppy...but...I like it. Hinata's cute when she tries to be in control.' The friends lasped into silence.
"Hinata…" Sakura finally said, letting her eyes slide from the street to rest upon her friend.
"I know, Sakura. Sorry I've been so quiet. It's just...," Hinata sighed, and twittered her fingers together. "I've been thinking a little, you know?"
"Oh, really?" Sakura grinned mischievously, poking her friend in her good shoulder like a little girl looking for a piece of candy. "About what?"
"Well," Now it was Hinata's time to sound mischievous, and she smiled shyly, her previous confidence coming back full-force. It was an odd up and down dance with Hinata and her self-esteem. "I was thinking about the Ninja's Ball."
"Yeah?" Sakura said, almost breathlessly. In a matter of seconds and words, Hinata had winded her and robbed her of her senses. She stopped and slowly turned to look at the purple-haired kunoichi.
"Do you- would you- how about-, ahhh…" Hinata groaned, rubbing her bad shoulder nervously. "DoyouwannagototheballwithmeSakura-san?" She finally spat out, chewing on the inside of her lip nervously.
'Oh man, what have I done!' Hinata groaned inwardly, chewing her lip bloody. 'Of course Sakura-san will say no! I haven't even given any incentive to Sakura-san about it…oh, I'm such a silly fool…'
"YEEEEEEESSSSSSSS!"
Want me to make this a two-shot or something? I can do the Ninja's ball if you want... Tell me if this is a go or a no way! I did this a year ago, found it, and just retouched it so... Yeah. Who knows? Love, Nao.