Noticing going unnoticed

~o~o~o~

Sweaty. Not exactly hot, but humid. Slick hair. Warm bodies from several hours of movement. Tiring muscles. Soft breaths. Lightly tinged, red cheeks. Flowing hair. Long moments of complete silence. The trees. The leaves. The dark sky. The ground. The grass. The wind. Nature. Him. Her. Sasuke Uchiha and Hinata Hyuga.

The first cool drop fell on his forehead protector, a foreshadowing warning of what was to come. Of course he noticed. As they jumped in long strides from one tree branch to the next, Sasuke Uchiha glanced up at the darkening sky, letting out a short sigh. They still had a day to travel and they didn't need anything prohibiting their return. His own personal reasons, of course. Sasuke just wanted to get some sleep. Preferably in a bed.

Noticing Sasuke's sudden, slight movement, Hinata Hyuga watched his facial expressions, but only for a quick moment. He went from neutral to slight irritation. And then she felt a sudden gust of wind blow right through her followed by a cool drop of rain on her cheek. Ah, so that was the reason. As Sasuke had did before, Hinata briefly glanced up into the building intensity of dark clouds in the ominous looking sky. Rain. She couldn't say she didn't appreciate it. Suna was always so hot and dry! Being there for two weeks when you came from the village of the leaf, it really did things to you.

But they still had approximately twenty-four hours until they arrived home in Konoha. Hinata bit her lip. They would never make it and should probably find shelter before the rain really started to downpour. She really didn't want a cold upon arriving home. All the sneezing, stuffiness, and nose-blowing. Oh, she hated that! On top of that, she had offered to take over Sakura's shift at the hospital. Sneezing on sick patients or patients that were future sick patients wouldn't bode well with anyone. Yes, they definitely needed to find some sort of cover before the rain got any worse!

Turning her heard towards her companion, Hinata opened her mouth to speak, but was quite rudely interrupted by thunder. A few seconds later, it was as if all the rain had decided to fall all at one time, drenching whoever was unlucky enough to allow themselves to be caught in such a downpour.

Sasuke groaned and stopped, settling himself on a thick tree branch. Hinata followed, her hair already sticking to her face. A boom of thunder was heard again, making her jump. Giving her an odd look, Sasuke turned to her with intentions to speak. As he was about to, a flash of lightning struck before them, making Hinata go wide-eyed.

"Sasuke, it's...unsafe to be up this high in this sort of weather." She pointed out, while staring down at the ground. So far away, it was.

Giving her a short nod, Sasuke said, while also staring down at the ground. "Then down we go." Quickly glancing at the nearly soaked Hinata, Sasuke jumped down and proceeded to jump from branch to branch until he reached the soft, muddy ground. As he fluidly touched the ground, he looked up expectantly at Hinata, almost reassuring her that if she were to somehow slip on the wet branches he would catch her.

Letting out a soft breath, Hinata jumped, just as more lightning struck, and proceeded to jump from branch to branch until she reached the closest branch towards the ground. And just as she was about to hit the ground as subtly as Sasuke had, she felt her foot slip and her body fall backward. As she fell, Hinata did not become tense. She wasn't afraid to hit the ground. Sasuke was there. He would catch her. Disappointingly so, he would catch her.

It was as if she had fallen right into his arms at the perfect angle. Nothing like a warm embrace, it was wet and slick. By that time, Sasuke himself was now soaked, his clothes sticking to his body just as much as Hinata's to hers. In apparent disappointment at her small blunder, Hinata raised a hand to her face and covered it. She made no effort to remove herself from Sasuke's arms. And he made no effort to set her down.

"It's always the small things," Hinata murmured softly, a few minutes later, in obvious disappointment.

Sasuke didn't reply. He stood there, Hinata in his arms, while the rain fell down on them. He seemed to be off somewhere else, thinking. Hinata noticed that he did that often. Sometimes Sasuke would just release himself and remain disconnected from the present world. Where he went, she had no clue. But he went there often, so she figured it was a pleasant place to be. Being who he was, Hinata wondered how many pleasantries came his way.

"Hinata," Sasuke started, a few minutes later. "We need to find shelter."

He felt her nod in agreement. As she uncovered her face, Sasuke gently let her down. Moving her wet hair out of her face, Hinata received his meaning. The quickest and easiest way to find shelter without thoroughly searching the area? Her byakugan, of course. As she had done hundreds of times in the past, Hinata activated her bloodline and quickly surveyed the area.

When she breathed a sigh of relief, Sasuke assumed that meant she had found a stable shelter. He turned to her, a questioning look on his face.

"There's a cave about seven kilometers from here in the west. It's covered by a waterfall." More thunder boomed. "We should hurry."

She didn't have to say that twice. Almost at flashing speed, Sasuke started to sprint through the thick forest, clearly very intent on getting to that cave. Hinata was behind him, or more of less on his side, wishing the same exact thing.

Feeling her clothes weigh down on her person, Hinata trudged on, now suddenly feeling the effect of all those hours of traveling. At the speed they were traveling, it should only be a short while longer. Ten minutes, at the most. Could she wait that long? At that particular moment in time, she was feeling very worn out and tired. Had her petite, female body had enough? To answer her question, the rain suddenly started to fall a bit harder.

Pushing herself, Hinata ignored her increased heart rate and ran on. Nothing could describe the feeling she felt when the waterfall came into view. As she stopped in front of the small pool of water, Hinata felt herself gasping for air. Bending over, she steadied herself on her knees, panting. Her slick, wet hair covered her face.

"Too much for you?" The question was a rhetorical one, she already knew, and chose not to answer it.

Finally catching her breath, Hinata stood up. Sasuke stood in front of her, looking at her from behind his shoulder. Well at least he did wait for her. Sasuke Uchiha may not have been the most chattiest person, but he wasn't rude just to be rude. Even strangely considerate, at times. Or at least he was never rude to her. Certain blue-eyed, blond others were a completely different story.

Giving each other a knowing look, Sasuke and Hinata quickly entered the cave behind the curtain of falling water. Before completely leading his guard down, Sasuke quickly did an overview of the contents of the damp cave. His interest was soon drawn to a pile of burnt wood in a far corner of the cave. A pile of burnt wood and a fresh pile, waiting to be burned.

"Somebody has been here recently," He said. "Past twenty-fours, if not shorter." Sasuke walked up towards the burnt pile and bent down, examining the wood. Hinata stayed behind, gently touching the cave walls, feeling the dampness.

"Do you think it was the Akatsuki?" Hinata pondered aloud. There was that extra pile of wood...

Sasuke stood up, dusting his hands off. "If it was, they left. The cave stops a few feet from here and I sense no other chakra signatures." He gave her a look, lightly smirking. "There's no need to worry, Hinata."

Knowing she was being teased, Hinata slightly reddened. "I never said I was worried. It was just a thought. Besides..." She turned and pressed her back up against the damp cave wall. "Do you really think we would be paired up, if the Hokage felt as if I couldn't handle it?" She finished softly.

Sasuke tilted his head. "Just because you don't say something, doesn't mean it's not a fact. And I have no comment on the Hokage's judgment on you being paired up with me. If you're forgetting, we're not exactly the same as the others. It would only make sense on this certain mission, we be paired together."

That hadn't been the first time they had been paired up on team missions. Quite a few times before, they had been required to work together.

The rain continued to pour outside as Hinata considered what Sasuke had said, nodding her head in agreement. It was true that they both had something the others didn't. A unique bloodline unique to their own clan. When it came to that subject, she and Sasuke certainly were similar. Similar and yet, still so different.

And then Hinata started to sneeze. After the fourth sneeze, she sniffed, giving Sasuke the chance to say a small, "Bless you." And then a, "We need to get out of these clothes. I wouldn't appreciate being sick." He paused.

Minutes later, Sasuke had the firewood settled upright in a triangle shaped figure. Making a few hand signs, Sasuke blew fire out of his mouth onto the firewood, lighting it. Hinata could already feel the warmth emanating from the fire. To be on this certain day, with Sasuke of all people, she was glad. Instant warmth.

"I think," Hinata began. "I have something we can hang our clothes on to dry." She began to dig in her hip bag. Pulling out what she was looking for, she proceeded to pull out two kunai. Walking past Sasuke and the burnt wood, she held the rope up to the cave wall and lightly pressed a kunai to the end piece. How would she get the kunai into the hard, rock cave wall?

"I've been meaning to practice my precision for some time now," Sasuke said from behind her, seemingly reading her mind. Coming closer to her, he took one of the kunai from her hands, and walked backward until his back pressed up against the opposite wall.

"I suggest you move to the side." Sasuke ordered as he focused his gaze on the lone piece of rope, attempting to throw it precisely and hard enough to penetrate through the wall. Having no issue complying, Hinata moved away as far as she could, while still holding the rope in the same position. On the inside, she was silently praying he wouldn't mistakenly spear her finger. The feeling would certainly not be a pleasant one!

In one swift motion, Sasuke Uchiha threw the kunai. Hinata closed her eyes shut, waiting, just waiting for the pain. When it never came, she slowly opened one eye. Instantly she heard Sasuke's amused voice, "You can let go now."

Turning her head, she saw that that end of the rope was firmly stuck inside the wall. The kunai should have ricocheted off the wall, not penetrated it! Could she have done that? Instantly doubting herself, a childhood habit, Hinata knew that she couldn't.

"The walls are damp." Sasuke said simply. Bending down, he picked up the opposite side of the rope and held it up to the opposite side of the wall. "Now it's your turn." He said it so seriously, Hinata had to make sure she heard him right.

"Besides, you can handle it."

Looking down at the kunai in her hand and feeling very uncomfortable in her wet clothes, Hinata had no choice but to comply. Giving Sasuke a small nod, Hinata focused on the piece of rope, just as she saw Sasuke doing before. She had been training with her Byakugan for years now! All it was was precision and accuracy. And she was a Hyuga. She lived and breathed precision and accuracy! She could do this. She had overcome harder tasks in the past! Sasuke was right. That was simple.

Imagining a bulls eye on the piece of rope, Hinata threw the kunai as precisely and strongly as she could. When it hit the rope and stayed, all she could do was smile. This, to her, made up for her slipping earlier.

"Like I said, it's simple." Sasuke said, while shedding his white ANBU elbow protectors. After that he removed his white vest. Hinata had taken a seat close to the fire and commenced the removal of her soggy, wet, and muddy knee high black boots, carefully unraveling the black wrap around them. The fire crackled in front of her and she appreciated the warmth.

Before removing anything else, Hinata took her mask off from the side of her head and gently ran a finger across the smooth, painted wood. "I hope the paint doesn't chip..." She murmured, mostly to herself, as she thought of her status as a female ninja.

Bitterly smiling to herself, Hinata thought, even after all this time of years of training, blood, and sweat, she still doubted herself. It was just her nature. It were times like these that she wished she were different. More confident then she already was. Not just anybody entered ANBU, she reminded herself. She had worked hard to get to where she was. And even though Hanabi wasn't that far behind, she was proud of her accomplishments. In a way, she felt stronger then Hanabi, because she had to endure through so much more.

Removing her white elbow protectors, Hinata noticed that Sasuke's clothing was already hanging on the rope. Most of it anyway. On the inside, she was glad that she decided to wear that tank-top and pair of shorts under her pants, even though they had traveled to sweltering Suna. At least she wouldn't have to walk around half naked in her undergarments. That would be quite uncomfortable!

Taking off her white vest, she laid it to the side and then shed her thick, black shirt. Peeling off the wet clothing, she grabbed her vest and shirt and promptly hung them up. Taking a moment before taking off her pants, the most uncomfortable article of clothing she was presently wearing, Hinata briefly wondered if Sasuke was watching. She shook her head, removing such thoughts from her head. Modesty, at such a time, should be the last thing on her mind.

Staring intently into the fire, Hinata peeled off her pants, revealing mid-thigh length black shorts. As she turned to hang the pants up, she saw Sasuke, sitting opposite the fire, his eyes downcast on his own ANBU mask. He was shirtless, but she saw many shirtless men on the public training grounds, so it didn't bother her much. He wore shorts too, of course. He surely wouldn't walk around stark naked.

Softly sighing, Hinata took a seat down by the crackled fire, bringing her knees up and tucking them carefully up under her chin. They would be arriving in Konoha a little later than expected. Honestly, she was tired and wanted to sleep on an actual bed. Not the rock floor of a cave.

They settled themselves into a comfortable silence.

Sitting opposite the fire, Sasuke had crossed his legs Indian style and closed his eyes, taking in the warmth of the fire. He tried to block out the continuing sound of rain and water falling. The sound was quite annoying since it was the reason for the predicament they were now in. Who knew how long it would rain? Perhaps, if he had been by himself, he would have taken the chance on traveling in the rain. Opening his eyes, Sasuke glanced up at Hinata. But he wasn't alone. At times, even though he had seen her in combat many times, Sasuke found himself doubting the Hyuga heiress. Not her potential, but her physical well being. He wasn't quite sure why he did. Perhaps it was because she was a woman, or just her appearance. And she, of course, used that to her advantage. Many underestimated her, and she, in turn, proved them wrong.

"Sasuke..." Hinata suddenly said, in almost a whisper. "How was it for you, being a genin?"

Slightly puzzled by her random question, Sasuke took a moment to think of how to answer. "Easy." He replied, after a few minutes. "There was nothing extremely challenging about it." Bringing his full attention to her, Sasuke waited for her response, but she never did. Hinata just kept staring into the orange flames, a gentle look on her face.

Softly, she said, "That's not what I...what I meant. I know it was easy for you. You did become a Chuunin before most of us. I just wanted to to know what it was like being on a team with Sakura and Naruto."

Lightly frowning at Hinata's sudden inquiry, Sasuke could only ask, "Why?" She had been with Naruto and Sakura before, why ask him? Why even ask at all?

Sasuke watched as Hinata lightly smiled. "I just wanted to know if you noticed anything, that's all."

Deciding to leave the subject alone, Sasuke decided to ask a question of his own. "Did you ever notice anything?" A corner of his mouth lifted. "Besides, Naruto." At his implication of her old, childhood admiration Hinata noticeably reddened. She waited a bit before answering.

When she did, Hinata was staring down into the flames again. In her previous tone, she answered, "I noticed you. Even though, I'm sure you never noticed me. Not many people did, unless I was fighting or using Byakugan."

At this, Hinata was sure she heard Sasuke either scoff or grunt. "If nobody never noticed anybody else, it would be you, Hinata. And to clear up this assumption of yours, yes I did notice you. You just never noticed because your attention was directed on someone else." His tone indicated irritation.

Surprised with what she was hearing, Hinata slowly repeated him. "Y-you noticed...me?" Everything else that held her attention before, the fire and the rain, now were suddenly forgotten as Hinata focused all her attention on Sasuke . She stared at him, wide-eyed. Hinata started to look at Sasuke real hard, digging and searching. Why would he notice her? She hadn't been strong enough back then.

"I noticed you a while ago, Hinata. As I said before, you just never noticed." Sasuke said, void of any emotion, as he steadied his gaze back on the burning fire. The light from the flames cast a warm hue to his face, illuminating his features. Hinata found herself unable to look away. She knew Sasuke was very attractive, you would have to be a fool not to take notice, but the way he was at that moment...She just couldn't look away.

"I don't know why it's so hard for me to believe." Hinata whispered, still staring at Sasuke. "I didn't really stand out. But you...everybody knew you, Sasuke. You had everybody's attention. You always did. And I used to think you were just so amazing. So strong. And then you have someone like Naruto..." She finally trailed off, smiling softly.

Not meeting her soft eyes, Sasuke said, "You were different. Of course I noticed the girl who wasn't insanely obsessed with me. I would be lying if I said I gave you much thought. I didn't. But I did notice you."

"I wasn't different by choice. There was a time, when I was younger, that I wished I was more like Sakura or Ino. Wishful thinking on my part, but I still did. I envied their beauty, not necessarily their skills as ninja." Self-consciously Hinata took a strand of her long, damp hair and started twirling it. "I used to think I was so ugly. But I was always training, so I never really had any time to thoroughly work on my appearance."

Hinata heard Sasuke sigh. "I don't care for appearances. Never have. With the lifestyle we have, it doesn't matter. When you're dead, you're dead. No matter what you look like." He had gone to that place, she could tell. The way he was talking, it was like he wasn't fully with her.

"I understand that now." Hinata threw the strand behind her.

Sasuke didn't respond. He kept his gaze firmly on the fire, his eyes half-lidded, almost as if he were falling asleep. He appeared to be in deep thought. Hinata licked her dry lips and stopped talking. She knew Sasuke liked silence. She knew when it was time to stop talking. He wouldn't speak back, so it would be pointless to keep going.

But, for some reason, she kept talking.

With a reminiscent look on her face, Hinata continued. "The first time I had to work with you, to be honest, I was nervous. When we were kids...I mean, you were just always so, for lack of a better word, aloof. The only one who could ever really get to you was Naruto. So when were paired up on border control, I was anxious. I was unsure of how you would be. I had never really seen you speak much, unless you had to..."

Knowing fully well how their first encounter went, Sasuke said, "You never spoke either. And when you did, I remember a lot of stuttering and pink cheeks. It was annoying. I never had much of an interest to talk to you. But I still noticed you." He repeated. Hinata noted this. Why did he keep saying that?

Trying not to blush, Hinata insisted, "That...that was a long time ago! I was shy. And it wasn't every single time I spoke."

"It might as well have been every single time. And if we're going to talk, let's talk about something else besides me." said Sasuke, as he widely opened his eyes. He was apparently back. Hinata tilted her head to the side, as if she were trying to figure him out. Which she was.

"To be honest, I'm surprised I'm telling you all of this. I don't usually speak...like that. Especially not on missions." Lifting a hand, Hinata brought it closer to the fire. She was smiling again. "I'm also kind of surprised you're speaking too. Most of the time, you only say what needs to be said. You're always in your head. Sometimes...I wonder what you're thinking about."

For the first time in a while, Sasuke looked dead straight into Hinata's eyes, his dark eyes boring into her soft ones. "You speak as if you're with me all the time."

Unable to break away from Sasuke's gaze, Hinata said, "Mere observations from past encounters. After the first three assignments with you, I started to take...notice." As she stared into Sasuke Uchiha's eyes, Hinata found herself searching, for what she knew not, but something. She wondered what he could see by staring into hers.

So she asked.

"Sasuke," Hinata whispered. "What do you see?"

Sasuke blinked, not answering her right away. They sat like that for a while. Just staring. Hinata found herself becoming slightly nervous. Why had Sasuke not answered her question? What was he thinking? What did he see? Did he see that little, weak, fragile twelve year old she used to be? Sometimes she did. When she looked into the mirror after stepping out of the shower, she would see her father speaking harshly to her. She would see herself shamefully bowing her head, repeating, "Yes, Father." Over and over. It saddened her, and on occasion, angered her. But then she would have to remind herself that she had closed that book of her life. It was over. She was different.

And then Sasuke spoke.

"What do you see, Hinata?" His voice was a little louder, more questioning. Sasuke continued to stare at Hinata Hyuga. He had chosen not to answer her question simply because he wanted her to answer first. He wanted to see if she could answer his. What did she see when she looked at him? Did she see that little, weak, twelve year old boy he used to be? The one desperately groping for power. The one willing to do anything for it.

Sasuke slightly narrowed his eyes as Hinata smiled. "You can't answer my question."

"Can you answer mine?"

Hinata was the one to break the staring as she suddenly looked down, away from Sasuke. "I see you."

Before Sasuke could contribute anymore to the strange conversation, his eyes suddenly perked up, alert. Hinata watched him, not alarmed, but curious. Had he felt chakra nearby? Could it have really been two Akatsuki members that had taken refuge in the cave they were in now?

And then she felt it herself. The two chakra signatures were coming close, not at dangerous speeds, but they were definitely headed in their direction. Or somewhere near their location. Before the thought of Akatsuki became favorable, Hinata realized that what she felt was...familiar.

"You mentioned Naruto and Sakura earlier." Sasuke said, his voice in a lighter tone. "You asked if I've ever noticed anything. For whatever reason you asked, here's your chance to find out." Sasuke sounded genuinely amused.

Hinata gave him a look, slightly amused herself. "You already concealed your chakra." She observed as Sasuke nodded and stood up. He proceeded to take out the crackling fire, doing away with the burnt ashes. Realizing what Sasuke was doing, Hinata wanted to laugh. So he was curious about Naruto and Sakura as well. Concealing her own chakra and hoping that either Naruto or Sakura hadn't detected it, Hinata stood up and stretched. She then started to take down the nearly dry clothes.

With Sasuke finished with the fire, she quickly handed him his clothes while she started to put her own on. Sasuke dressing more quickly then she, took down the rope and kunai. Handing them to Hinata, she put them away. Grabbing her elbow protectors and vest, she quickly put them on. Then she searched for her mask. Finding it, she adjusted it toward the side of her face.

Turning to Sasuke, she gave a nod. Feeling the two chakra's stronger then before, the two ninja's dashed deeper into the cave. Still within hearing distance, of course. Sasuke crouched down first, Hinata was by his side, slightly behind him. They both waited in the dark. The only sound visible was their own breathing and small movements.

Eventually Hinata heard two sets of footsteps. The next few sounds she and Sasuke heard made Hinata truly wonder if the rumors were true. There were the footsteps, then the sound of something dropping. No speech being spoken at all. A few more footsteps.

And then a soft laugh, "Naruto, stop." It was obvious to everyone near that the voice didn't adamantly mean stop. If anything it meant, oh please. Go on!

It was quiet after that. After a few minutes, Hinata realized that they were kissing. So it was true! Naruto and Sakura had gotten together. At the thought of something more intimate happening in the cave, Hinata gently laid her fingers over her lips. They must have loved each other extremely so, to do it in a cave. How dirty she was thinking! Part of her wanted to laugh and the other part wanted to leave. Badly. It would be extremely awkward if they did what Hinata thought they would do. Sasuke and she couldn't hide forever.

She supposed Sasuke understood what could happen if they didn't leave soon. She heard him sigh and then heard him softly whisper, "We're going to have to interrupt them." What Hinata didn't know was that on the inside, Sasuke was thinking about how idiotic the two were. They so carelessly let their guard down! For a little kissing?

When Hinata and Sasuke emerged from hiding, Hinata still pressing her fingers to her lips, and Sasuke looking specially annoyed, they could both see that what Sakura and Naruto had done was more then a little "kissing". Naruto had pressed Sakura up against the wall, all of his ANBU gear shed to the ground. He was shirtless. And while Sakura had her tank top rolled down, her undergarment showing, she wasn't shirtless. And yes, they were kissing.

The kissing ceased when Hinata and Sasuke came into view. The expressions on both their faces was enough to make Hinata laugh and Sasuke sigh in high annoyance. But they did neither. Grabbing Hinata's hand, Sasuke started to walk towards the opening of the cave, past Sakura and Naruto.

Her cheeks lightly pink, Hinata made sure to keep her fingers pressed to her lips. As she passed Sakura and Naruto, she made sure to give them a polite departed nod. Sasuke stopped in front of the waterfall, making sure Hinata was directly beside him.

With an annoyed tone, he said. "Next time you might want to notice the hot ashes. You might have company." And with that, Sasuke slipped out the cave, still pulling Hinata with him. He jumped over the pool of water and onto solid ground. Looking up he noticed no rain.

Both Hinata and he could hear loud yelling momentarily afterwards.

Sasuke sighed again. Hinata smiled to herself, getting over the almost very awkward situation.

Slowly letting go of Hinata's hand, Sasuke said, still obviously irritated. "I guess our suspicions have been confirmed."

Turning to look at Sasuke, Hinata smiled knowingly. "I noticed something."

Lifting an eyebrow, Sasuke turned to Hinata. "And what was that?"

"We're the only two left."

Sasuke's expression softened slightly, he lightly smirked at what Hinata was getting at. "And your point?"

Innocently shrugging, Hinata said, "Nothing. Just something I noticed."

Still smiling Hinata Hyuga turned, taking the lead the first time the whole mission, and began to walk toward the forest. Sasuke Uchiha was beside her in an instant. Although she wasn't looking at him, Hinata could swear she could see a small smile on his face.

Well that was long! Glad that you made it! This is the longest that I've written one, whole chapter so I hope it was interesting and didn't become boring. I'm not sure that Hinata and Sasuke would realistically react that way, but I tried to make it sound natural and not totally OOC. x)

Hearing what you thought would be very enjoyable! I would love for you to review and tell me how I did. Good, bad, exceptionally terrible, wonderful. :P I hope you guys got the point of the story. If you didn't, just ask and I can explain it to you. After re reading, I can see how some can get lost.

While writing this, I was listening to various Nujabes songs. I absolutely love his music! Very smooth and relaxing. But sadly he died in February so he won't be making anymore. A lot of his songs are on the Samurai Champloo soundtrack. So take a listen! You might like it! :)

So I suppose this is it, until I update my other stories!

Adios. ;)