Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to someone else, definitely not me.

Chapter 2 – New old friends

(…)

(Morning, unspecified place and time, Konoha)

Hinata stirred, her white eyes fluttering as she slowly opened them, looking dizzily around. Her nose was filled with strange smell she couldn't recognize right now, though she was sure it was something familiar… like from a dream she had before, but couldn't remember it. Her whole body felt weak and exhausted, and she tried to turn from her hip on her back, mewling in the process… until she spotted the ceiling.

It was made from brown, polished wood.

'What's that doing here?' she thought, her mind still a bit blurry. 'Konoha's houses don't have roofs anymore, they were all destroyed and we were taking shelters in underground basements, where everything's made from stone. What can possibly be th… ?'

It was just then that her mind got flooded with images, too quick for her to grasp onto any particular, but even that myriad of flashes was enough. Her and Naruto's battle… Madara's counterattack… her ceremony… Kyūbi's attack... and then...

"I… I… I did it?" she said in a scared voice, forcing her sore body to obey as she raised from bed into sit, looking curiously around herself. The room looked strangely familiar – everything here was set in very old style, from furniture towards decorations, including her sleeping futon, night table with a small lamp and diary on it, and also the crest of Hyūga family on the wall…

Hyūga family crest!

"I… I am home," she whispered, tears slowly filling her eyes as she recognized her old room. Almost everything was here – the way she moved her furniture to leave the center of her room free, how she always neatly put a canteen of water next to her bed to not bother anyone should she awake in the middle of the night thirsty, or even her old set of clothes for another day. She graced those soft lines of fabric with great nostalgia, smiling on her long dark-blue pants, her mesh shirt and, her most favorite part, a bit oversized baggy jacket with hood on the back, in her favorite, concealing bright orange color…

'Wait a moment! Orange color?'

Hinata blinked in surprise, hoping her eyes were deceiving her. She rubbed her eyes with palms, hoping this would work. After that, she even took her canteen and splashed its entire content on her face. Then, she took a careful look on the jacket again.

The orange color remained there, shining in the soft light of dawning sun.

'Since when did I wear orange jacket?' thought Hinata in a bit of panic, never remembering to do that. Sure, she sometimes borrowed Naruto's jacket when they were together on missions and Naruto wanted to make sure she would stay warm and healthy, but she was sure Naruto's jacket never had a hood on it. And it didn't have a fur coating on its hems as well. This was surely her own jacket, just… just not in the right color.

Right then, a new idea struck Hinata's mind.

'In what time am I, actually?'

Quick look on her body told her much, but unfortunately not enough. She was much smaller than she remembered, surely smaller than her nineteen years old self when she used that technique, remembering that at that time, her height was comparable to Naruto. She didn't even seem to be as tall as her fifteen year old self, though it was kind of hard for her to tell, not having anything around to measure herself. Absentmindedly, she started to look around, until her look stopped at a diary, laying peacefully on the night table.

As she grabbed it and started to list through it, her mind was slowly starting to calm down, her headache backing away to just simple slight dizziness, and her muscles finally stopped screaming, making her feel much better than when she awakened. That allowed her to concentrate better, so when, after not finding anything on the first page, she turned list onto the second one, she instantly knew what meant the small, hasty scribble on it.

It said 'Academy graduation exam.'

"This… must mean… I am…" 'twelve,' finished a silent voice in her head, as if on response on Hinata's thoughts. Her pearl eyes widened as she touched her bare hips and stomach, clad only in her underwear, and realized why she felt so small. When she was twelve, she was one of the shortest kids in their Academy group, when she wasn't counting Naruto.

'Naruto-kun…' thoughts about him made her instantly feel different, anticipation and excitement mixed with fear and worry… and determination. So, Inyoushou's technique worked after all, the time-travelling jutsu sent her back. She was now at her twelve years old body, and got a second chance to shape her life. And this time, she wasn't going to let her shyness get in her way. She was going to go straight for what she wanted, gain what she hoped for, and protect all her friends, especially Naruto-kun. This time, she would be the protector, not the protected one who was just waiting patiently on the border of the battlefield, only able to watch and clutch her hands helplessly. This time, she was going to make a difference.

With that in mind, Hinata slowly raised from her position, sending one last curious look to the orange hoodie, then going for her wardrobe and opening it to find the usual clothes… and found out four more orange hoodies, exactly like the one she had folded next to her bed, hanging down and smelling of lavender and violets. That wasn't so bad… it was the color that was startling Hinata.

She never wore, or even bought, an orange hoodie. Ever.

A gentle knock on her door startled her from her research, and she quickly turned towards the entry to her room, but no one entered. Instead, a soft voice was heard from the outside.

"Hinata-sama. Your father requests your presence at the breakfast, immediately," was a voice, definitely one of a female, and very probably a member of the branch family.

"Yes! I'll be right there!" shouted Hinata in response, until she stopped and blinked, surprised what happened with her stutter. It seemed that her older traits no longer applied to her current self, even when she returned in time. That was good to know.

As she was about to reach for her clothes, silently resigning on having to wear that strange hoodie, a burst of pain flooded her body and she dropped on both knees in surprise, gritting her teeth while small whimper of discomfort escaped her lips.

She hoped that the girl in front of her door didn't hear that, realizing she already had to worry about what was just happening to her and what she could do about it, and she really didn't need to add to it anyone knowing about it until she discovered it herself, but it seemed luck wasn't on her side that day.

"Hinata-sama?" the voice sounded again, as small hand appeared in the crack between her doors and the wall and gently pushed them aside, revealing a girl in about her twenties. "Is everything alright…?"

Hinata, knowing she had to look as normal as possible, managed to get back on her feet, using one hand to stabilize herself against the drawer, while putting on her best smile. "Yes, I'm fine. Why?"

The woman didn't say anything for a moment, just staring at her with wide white eyes, until stuttering out: "B-But… y-you are g-glowing…"

'Glowing?' Hinata looked confusedly on her body, and almost gasped. All around her frame was a weak blue light, dimming softly in the morning sun beams that were passing through her window… and in the next moment, she realized what it was.

It was her chakra.

Forcing all her mind and will, she suppressed her chakra the best she could, and felt overwhelmed by how much she felt of it inside her. That amount was crazy! She never possessed so much chakra as a child before! She didn't have so much as an adult either, until Inyoushou came forward and showed her how to awaken and control her inner powers. Only after that, she started to learn how to deal with larger amounts of chakra, but until then, she always operated with moderate to lesser amounts. Where did it all come from?

She was immensely glad she still seemed to possess her chakra control, allowing her to tame that wild outburst of power from her body, and forcing her powers to calm down, making the aura around her disappear. After that, she just looked on the maid, and forced herself to smile despite the pain she felt. "It's nothing, really, just a small training before breakfast. Please, tell my father I'll be right there."

Not sure what was going on, but not wanting to anger Hyūga's clan heiress, the girl slowly backed away until she was out of Hinata's room, then closed the door behind her. After that, Hinata could clearly hear soft footsteps, fading as was the maid going away from her room, probably to inform her father.

'That was too close,' she thought, before another burst of pain clutched her chest and she hissed, putting both of her hands on her chest to try and calm down that strange maelstrom in her body. What was happening to her chakra system? It was as if she were fighting with some unskilled Jyūken user who, instead of closing her chakra, made it go all wild.

Hinata was immensely relieved when she managed to calm down, pain in her body slowly subsiding to the point where she could pretty much ignore it without it being any hindrance at all. As she did so, she quickly stripped of her night clothes and started to put on normal one, relieved that it at least fitted her, despite the strange color of that peculiar jacket. 'I probably should get used to it. It doesn't look like I have any other clothes anyway,' she thought as she opened the door to her room, took a quick look around the corridor, and then hurried to the dining room, hoping that father wouldn't be too angry with her. He could be pretty strict whenever Hinata angered or disappointed him… which was, usually, about every minute every hour every day.

Opening the door to the dining room, Hinata quickly bowed, muttering an apology. "I am sorry for being late, I had some… umm… things to take care of…" she looked up – and stopped in a middle of her speech, confused by what she saw.

All of them, her father Hiashi, cousin Neji and younger sister Hanabi were already there, each of them serving themselves from the small feast (breakfast for Hyūga) the cooks prepared for them. But that was expectable. What wasn't expectable were their expressions. Hiashi was trying to keep his usual, stern look, even though Hinata instantly recognized he was having quite a hard time with that, and Neji was imitating him pretty well, Hanabi was looking on her sister like she had just grown a second head.

Hinata blinked, her old uncertainty returning. "… i-is there something wrong?" she asked, cursing silently. Damn, was her stuttering returning already? Just not now, not when she had to clear some mess she didn't even know about yet…

Hiashi opened his mouth to react, but was beaten by Hanabi, who suddenly started to laugh loudly. "N-Neechan, I swear this is great! You almost got me here! I'd maybe even believe you that stutter!" she managed to say between laughing, and Hinata's stupefied face only sent her into another crazy laughing fit.

Hiashi cleared his throat, both to silence his younger daughter and gain the attention of his older one. "Hinata, whatever prank you are trying to play now, please cease from it. You should understand that as an heir of the Hyūga clan, your behavior should be more fitting of a young lady you are, and less of a hyper-active problematic child you are making yourself look as."

"What?" Hinata was only able to stare, her baffled expression now almost making Hanabi to choke with laughter, while Neji started to look on her with raising suspicion. Between trying to understand what was going on and what was her father talking about, she completely missed no one even questioned the color of her jacket.

"Hinata, please, just eat your breakfast and hurry to your classes," Hiashi sighed, sounding more resigned than angry. "I would really appreciate to have at least one morning spent in calm and peace, without shortening my already short lifespan by experiencing another of your tricks."

"But… but…"

"Nah, no time for breakfast here, neechan! I already asked your maid to pack it for you, so let's get you packed as well," Hanabi stood up, grabbing Hinata by her wrist and pulling her sister behind her, out of the room and toward the main entrance to the compound, all the while giggling like crazy. "I swear, this was really refreshing from you, neechan! You usually try to enter in some crazy new pose or attack us like we're intruders here, but this caught us all by surprise! I mean, you are the funniest sibling I could ask for!" she kept giggling as she was running through the corridors with Hinata behind her, earning scoffs and stern looks from older main family members of the clan, and smiles and amused whispers from the branch family members.

"But… Hanabi-chan… I don't know what you're talking about…"

Hinata's tone actually forced Hanabi to stop so suddenly Hinata bumped into her and sent them both against the wall, though Hanabi was back on her feet in an instant. She frowned and slowly started to circle her sister, looking on her from all angles, before smirking again.

"Yeah, sure. For a second, nee-chan, I almost started to think somebody stole you and replaced you with an imposter." She took Hinata's hand and kept pulling her behind herself again. "One small problem, though – no imposter would be able to take on herself that terrible jacket you're wearing." She giggled again. "Really, I swear I never saw anything funnier than when you showed up in front of the whole council, dressed in this 'excuse for clothes' as they put it. You made them almost pop their eyes off their sockets!"

She smiled warmly on Hinata. "I really like you for this, nee-chan. I'm sure that shouldn't it be for your constant rule-breaking and tradition-mocking, this place would be much creepier than it is. But thanks to you, our elders already started to look out for rats in their drawers and wires with smoke bombs in their doors, and that's already something!" She started to giggle again as they both arrived to the entrance, where was already Hinata's pack and neatly packed small box with her food. "I'm sure that given a time, you might even force them to be careful with their laundry!"

She quickly shoved the food box in Hinata's bag, which then went straight into Hinata's hands, before her sister gently pushed her out. "Have a nice day, nee-chan! And make sure to remember at least half of your pranks today! I love hearing from you how you're making your classes in the Academy so much less dull!" Then, before Hinata could respond, she was gone, her soft giggling hearable for a long time.

(…)

'I, I think it's official now. Either I went crazy, or everybody else did… or both,' thought Hinata as she was slowly going toward the Academy, trying to sort out her confused thoughts. Her cousin looked the most normal right now – even though he didn't comment on her jacket, it was his silence that made him look the most normal from her family right now. Hanabi… well… she could probably go a bit crazy, like it sometimes happened with younger siblings, or she was just trying to mess with her poor head. But father? When did he ever have some normal words for her, meaning words without calling her useless or failure? And why was he – and Hanabi, for that matter – talking about her as if she were some kind of villainous prankster? She never even insulted a teacher – ever! So what was this all about?

"Hey! Hinata-chan!"

Confused, Hinata quickly turned her head around – and smiled as she recognized a familiar face. It was Kiba, a wild boy from a famous Inuzuka clan, in his characteristic gray jacket with a fur-mane on its hood, brown pants and with his small, white puppy Akamaru on his head. Happy that at least something looked normal, she stopped to wait for him and waved at him. "Hello, Kiba-kun, Akamaru-kun."

Kiba instantly stopped, his red clan-marking adorned face in pure shock… before his eyes started to water.

"Kiba-kun? Hinata-chan, does that mean you're finally returning my feelings? Really?!" he was instantly in front of her, his face picture of pure happiness and joy – so much unlike his normal tough, wild self that it made Hinata cringe.

Her first reaction was to apologize and to try to explain that it wasn't like that and she was just trying to be polite to him, but when she opened her mouth to speak, instead of her intended answer, something different flew out of her. "Fat chance, flea bag! I wouldn't date you even should you be the last guy in Konoha – I would rather go out with Akamaru!"

In the moment the words left her mouth, she instantly snapped her hands over it to prevent herself from speaking any more, her eyes image of sheer terror. What did she just say? How could she insult so gravely her friend? She was always polite to everyone, always, even to people she didn't like – and she liked Kiba! Not like that, but surely as a friend at least. And just now, she completely humiliated him…

Kiba just stared at her for a second, before he chuckled lightly and slowed in his pace so that he could walk with her. "Well, hope dies last. I still think you'll realize sooner or later we're meant for each other, Hinata-chan." He gave her a flashy grin, but frowned when his puppy Akamaru barked loudly. "Hey, watch your tongue Akamaru! Just because she's nice to you doesn't mean you can say anything and think you'll get away with it!"

Akamaru just yipped and jumped from his spot on Kiba's head into Hinata's arms, who caught him from pure reflex and started to pet him gently, making the white puppy woof happily.

Kiba smirked. "Yeah, good try Akamaru. But I still won't give up!"

Petting Akamaru actually gave Hinata a bit of time to sort her now even more confused feelings, before she slowly turned to Kiba, ignoring people around her. "Kiba-kun… you... aren't angry that I turned you down?" she asked carefully, watching her every word to make sure her last outburst won't happen again. Whatever it was, she didn't want it to return until she could find out what it was.

"Who, me?" Kiba grinned at her, showing many of his sharp teeth. "Not at slightest. You turn down my every confession, so I'm already kind of used to it. Though it's nice to know you aren't as insulting to me as you were before. Maybe you're starting to soften up?"

Akamaru's amused yip made him scowl at his dog, while Hinata was even more confused than before. Kiba was asking her out, and she was declining it and insulting him at the same time? And he was still her friend? How could this be happening? In what world did that jutsu take her?

It was just at that time she slowly started to notice the looks villagers around them were giving her.

Half of them looked more or less amused, smiling warmly on her or whispering something to their closest neighbor, onto which everyone close enough reacted by a burst of laugh. The second half looked very wary of her, keeping safe distance while watching carefully her every step, like if she were about to explode in any second.

Needless to say, it didn't help Hinata much with her confusion.

"Kiba-kun?" when he turned his attention on her again, she tried to ask as nonchalantly as possible. "Why are the people staring at me like that?"

"Who, they?" Kiba laughed, obviously amused by her question. "Well, they're trying to discover what Konoha's White Whirlwind is up to, in my opinion."

"Konoha's what?" Hinata was now sure that jutsu had to malfunction… or that it messed somehow with her brain.

"I mean you, Hinata-chan," now Kiba was really laughing, with Akamaru yipping in amusement as well. "Come on – don't tell me you actually thought no one would notice your after-Academy activities? My mom isn't talking about anything else these days." His grin was now visible from a very long distance. "Really, I thought you were doing all those things to gain attention, not to evade it. And it's really something – heiress of one of the most prominent and prestige clans in Konoha is spending all of her free time stealing fruits from public markets, throwing smoke bombs into people's flats and putting capsules with bright orange paint into public laundromats! You thought nobody would notice? Well, I have some news for you, Hinata-chan – people aren't that dumb here!"

Hinata was sure that she had to overhear him, that she somehow misinterpreted what he told her… but suddenly, so many things were actually starting to make some sense! Her father and sister reacted as they did, thinking her 'normal' behavior was her new kind of prank. Kiba was probably used to her being much more lively and talkative than her old self ever was, and those people around probably just didn't want to be her next target. Everything made sense that way.

Except her extremely strange orange jacket and the fact why was she even doing this?

Unfortunately, before she could ask him, they already arrived to the Academy.

That served for Hinata as a way to try and regain her composure. Finally something familiar. She'll meet all of her old friends here, all of those who died back there, either in battle or as targets of assassins… she could meet Shino again, as well as Shikamaru, Chōji, Ino, and…

Her breathing stopped, as well as her steps, when her thoughts finally moved toward the one for whom she did all this. Naruto-kun! Naruto-kun was supposed to be here! He was surely still alive, and… she could see him again, all right and healthy, giving her his famous foxy smile, his blonde hair shining as would his ocean blue eyes trap and capture her like they did so many years ago…

"Hinata-chan?" she awakened to see Kiba grin on her, along with Akamaru who already left her lap and was back on its owner's head. "Dreaming out really doesn't suit you. You should try something more lively."

For a split second she thought about giving him some biting remark, but her excitement was too strong to hold down. She ran immediately into the building as fast as she could, ignoring Kiba's half-hearted protests behind her as he gave her a chase. She just couldn't wait to see them all! She was so alone from the moment Naruto died in that epic battle with Madara, but she didn't realize how much she missed her friends as well, until the war took them all, one by one. That damn immortal Uchiha was right – even should she win there, she would be all alone, her victory all for nothing.

But not now! Now she was back, everyone was still here, and Naruto was still alive… her heart pounding wildly in her chest, she broke into the class with a loud CRASH, not caring a bit about the door she left out of their hinges, looking frantically around as she forced air in her chest heavily.

Truly, they were all here! All of her friends! She could see Shikamaru, yawning and looking on her with annoyed look that she just distracted him from his sleep, Chōji munching down another of his snacks, Shino waiting patiently for the class to start. She was even glad to see Sakura and Ino, who were just arguing over something.

She had to suppress tears in her eyes as enormous weight fell down from her chest. It was good to be back!

"Huh… Hinata-chan… next time warn me when you are about to start a pace…" Kiba appeared behind her, panting loudly. Akamaru on his head just yipped playfully, earning him a scoff from his master.

"Maybe you should train a bit more then, Kiba-kun," said Hinata, though her voice now contained so much relief and love for her friends that Kiba actually looked shocked, raising his head to meet her eyes.

He calmed down again when she smirked and stuck out her tongue at him. "Just kidding."

While Kiba was busy welcoming with all of his classmates, Hinata couldn't help herself but start to search for a certain someone. She wanted to see him so much, but she couldn't find him in an entire class at all!

Maybe he was just going to be late. Maybe he didn't feel well and decided to stay at home. Maybe… thousand other things, but she still needed to know if he was alright.

She quickly tugged on Kiba's jacket to get his attention.

"Kiba-kun? Where… where is Naruto-kun?" she tried to sound as non-caring and bored as possible, and even though her own voice sounded to her as anything but that, Kiba seemed to buy it.

"Who?... Oh, you mean that guy! Well, he's over there," he pointed with one of his extra-sharp nails to the farthermost desk in the class.

Full of deep, swirling emotions and unable to control them, Hinata turned toward there, opening her mouth to greet him loudly, toss her, now non-existing shyness, aside and maybe even hug her love… but the sight she saw muted every sound that could escape her throat, while it also created feeling of incredibly cold ice in her stomach.

It was said that the clothes make people who they are; that you could dress a wild beast in a suit, and voilá, there goes a perfect gentleman. Hinata actually believed that it was more about the people affecting the clothes they were wearing. When you were strong, self-confident and proud, it didn't matter if you were wearing only rags, they still made you look like a king. But never, ever before did she experience this to its extreme – like right now.

Her own orange jacket was very probably designed to gain attention and make her center of the crowd during her pranks. But right now, she could see orange clothes that were doing so well in hiding their owner she thought for a moment they could freely change their color.

Naruto was, indeed, sitting behind the desk where Kiba told her he would be sitting. But to Hinata, it looked much more like "crouching". He was much, much shorter than Hinata remembered him to be, though she believed this to be the result of him actually trying to look as small as possible. His trademark bright blue/orange clothes, consisting from a tight jacket and pants, looked somewhat loose on him, and, exactly as Hinata thought, it actually made him almost invisible – and she didn't have the slightest idea how he was doing this! Her orange jacket was attracting looks from everyone around her – how could Naruto make his own orange clothes make him so easily overlooked?

The worst part, though, was when she managed to look into his eyes. Those beautiful blue orbs she learned to love from the first moment she saw them as a small girl, those pools of self-confidence, determination and iron will, now contained none of this. Instead, all what Hinata could see in them was timidness, fear, and great, great plea to be left alone and not bother anyone with his existence.

It was such a contrast to what Hinata was used to that she gasped loudly for air, not able to believe what she was just seeing. And, unfortunately for her and Naruto, it wasn't going to be any better.

"Huh? Hinata-chan, is something wrong? You look like someone just did the prank you were preparing to do," teased her Kiba, though his look also wandered to the boy she was looking at. "Something about him?"

"Kiba-kun…" Hinata breathed out, unable to force her brain to work right now. "What… what happened to him?"

"To whom? Uzumaki?" Kiba sounded genuinely confused. "Nothing. He was like this from when I can remember, being about four years by now or how long we're attending to this boring hell." Akamaru supported his master by loud barking. "No talking to anyone else, no sitting with others at lunch, no anything. Really, you would sometime even forget he's actually here," Kiba shrugged, "shouldn't it be for him."

"For whom?" Hinata asked, with very slight hope in her voice. Maybe someone who was looking out for him, like some sibling or relative? Surely this world couldn't mess so much with Naruto and give him nothing in exchange.

"Well, you can see right now," mumbled Kiba, his voice suddenly dark and unfriendly, and Hinata very soon saw why. Because to Naruto's table was right now going the last person she ever wished to be near her friend.

Sasuke Uchiha, last survivor of the famous massacre of Uchiha clan about five years ago, was standing in front of him, staring at him with cold, ruthless look of his onyx black eyes. His bright blue shirt, adorned by well-known Uchiha crest looking like a white fan pursuing the wild fire in front of it, was completed by white shorts and blue ninja sandals, and was alone one of the reasons for many girls in the class to stop doing whatever they were doing and just coo at how handsome he was. But none of that was even reaching the Uchiha prodigy, as he was looking straight at his victim, his stern face giving away the slightest bit of cruel amusement from actions he was about to make.

"You're sitting at my place, Uzumaki."

Naruto, very slowly, brought his head up, his look travelling from the ground where he was looking at up to the Uchiha, and Hinata almost flinched when she saw how much fear and terror instantly appeared in his eyes. Could this possibly be not the first time Naruto was experiencing something like this?

"Y-Yes…. u-umm… s-sorry, S-Sasuke…" his small, quiet voice practically didn't even reach Hinata's ears, who was forced to read his lips to even guess what he was saying, as Naruto quickly moved from the seat he was sitting at to the one right next to it.

"Are you trying to make me angry, dobe? That's my seat too!" continued Uchiha, his eyes now clearly enjoying the cruelty he was doing to the small boy in front of him, drinking in all his fears and doubts, and Naruto's inability to fight back only fed it more.

"U-Umm… I-I…" Naruto didn't know what to say, and only lowered his look, hoping Sasuke would be satisfied with him apologizing to him and would leave him alone. "I… I-I am s-sorry, S-Sasuke…"

"Look at me when I am talking to you, Uzumaki!" Strong fingers clasped hardly around Naruto's face, forcing him to look upward, his scared look meeting the angry, hard one. "And how dare you to address me just by my first name? Are you trying to mock me or what?!"

"N-N-No!" Naruto tried to shake his head, but Sasuke's firm grip on it prevented him from doing that. "I d-don't, I… I-I…"

"Hey, Sasuke! Leave him alone! He apologized to you, didn't he?" surprisingly, it was Kiba who started shouting first at Sasuke, while Hinata was just staring at it with her eyes so wide she resembled a deer. What… was… happening… here?

Sasuke just gave him a hard look. "Get lost, bone licker. I'm the one offended here, and I don't think he apologized enough." His look turned back on Naruto, who seemed to crouch even more under his hostile stare, but was unable to look away as he was still held by Sasuke's hand. "In fact, I think you really need another lesson in proper behavior to people better than you, Uzumaki!"

Hinata's brain awakened when she felt the aura in the class change, and what she saw when she looked around made her feel disgusted. True, some boys, including Kiba, were giving him not-so-friendly looks, but they were at great minority as most of the girls, including Sakura and Ino, looked absolutely content with what was happening, some of them even cheering Sasuke to make Naruto more humble! How could they just stand idly aside and do nothing? Or worse, how could they enjoy such a show, as if they were just visiting a good night movie?!

Her blood boiled more with every smirking face she saw, and when Sasuke spoke again, it reached its peak.

Pulling back his free hand to give him hard, painful punch, Sasuke's eyes looked like they were hypnotizing Naruto, like a snake paralyzing its victim with fear before he would devour it. "Remember this, dobe – people like you will always be trash, and trash's only purpose is to crawl under the feet of other, higher-placed people…"

BAM!

Before anyone could react, Hinata was right next to Naruto, her right hand extended forward as her opened palm hit Sasuke on chest, striking him with enough force to send him across two desks before he landed on the third, coughing violently. His look was one of shock and betrayal, not understanding how anyone could dare to attack him.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing to Sasuke-kun?" shouted Sakura at the Hyūga heiress, who just gave her very hard look, making the pink-haired Sasuke's fangirl shiver.

"Exactly what he deserved, for bullying people who aren't even fighting back!" was her angry response as she straightened her pose, fluidly moving into her battle stance. She heard several loud gasps from people who recognized this, and allowed herself a smug smirk. Jyūken, commonly known as Gentle Fist style, was her family's specialized taijutsu style of hand-to-hand fighting, and all Hyūgas were infamous for it. Infamous for the reason that very few people survived their encounter with its user.

Sasuke slowly got up, his demeanor changing from surprise to anger in just a second. "So, Hyūga thinks she can stick her nose in other's businesses?" he asked, his black eyes fixated into Hinata's white. Sparks of anger were almost visible between them.

"Not only thinks, Uchiha, but this Hyūga will also kick your sorry butt anytime you'll try this again!" shouted Hinata, her whole form shaking from pure rage she felt toward Naruto's tormentor. She never liked Sasuke in particular (trait that she alone possessed when she was at the Academy as all other girls seemed to be in love with him), but she never thought he could be this cruel to Naruto.

And she would be damned to let him continue in it!

Sasuke opened his mouth for another response, but before he could say anything, Iruka Umino, their class teacher for whole four years, just entered the class, sending surprised look to both fighters. "What's happening here? Hinata, I believe you weren't just fighting with Sasuke, were you?"

"Of course not, sensei," she smirked. "You can't call it a fight when just one side was kicked their asses. And besides…"

"She started it!" shouted Sakura, always eager to defend her idol. "Sasuke-kun was just minding his business, when that white-eyed crazy girl attacked him for no reason!"

"It's Sasuke's own fault!" was Kiba's loud respond. "If he wouldn't pick on Naruto, he wouldn't get humiliated by a girl!"

"Enough!" Iruka silenced everyone with a sharp order before they could start insulting each other again, and then gave both Sasuke and Hinata stern look. "Sasuke, I told you to leave Naruto alone. Be so nice and try to follow orders of your teachers, will you? And you, Hinata – despite you being heiress of your clan, you can't just attack your fellow classmates, no matter what they provoke you with. Understood?"

"Understood, sensei," Hinata smiled, much to everyone's surprise, before she added: "But I'll still beat him down whenever he tries it again."

"Ahem," Iruka cleared his throat before Sasuke or Sakura could respond onto that, "if you two are done, then just take your seats, so we can start with your last day here before the graduation exams." After hearing that, the class made excellent mix of cheerful and desperate moans. Cheerful, because their studies were about to end, and desperate because of their hate of tests. "I know, you're all looking forward to that, but before you can become full-fledged, respectable shinobi of your village, you have to pass this Academy. So, take out your books and we'll start with revision of techniques you can expect to be in your tests tomorrow…"

Hinata, happy that she gave Sasuke piece of her mind, decided that it was enough of humiliating him for one day, turned towards Naruto and smiled at him, prepared to ask him if he was alright… but stopped instantly when she saw that fear in his eyes, instead of diminished, only increased, with him trying to crouch as far away from her as was possible without blending into the wall.

'H-He… he is afraid of me?' that very thought made Hinata's heart turn into a piece of ice-cold glacier, and she made a step back, as if she were just hit in the face. 'But… he shouldn't be afraid of me! Didn't I just help him out? Why is he staring at me like if I hurt him gravely…?'

Right then, so dreadful thought entered her mind that it required Kiba to drag her back to her desk, all the while sending curious look to the blonde boy who was still crouching in his place, trying his best to not make eye contact with anyone.

During the rest of the class, Hinata barely paid any attention to Iruka, her mind still replaying that thought over and over again – and it really didn't help her that she had no memories of this new old self of hers.

'What if… what if I really hurt Naruto-kun? Somehow... sometime...'

It made her so distracted she never noticed cold, hard stare of black eyes on her.

(…)

(Late afternoon, Hyūga's estate, Konoha)

"See you tomorrow, Hinata-chan!" waved Kiba as he left her in front of her house, with Akamaru barking loudly his goodbye as well. Hinata just absent-mindedly waved him back, entering the Hyūga mansion and going straight for her room where she dropped down on her bed, not able to get that damned thought out of her head.

Could it be possible her local self didn't actually like Naruto the way she did? After all, there were some really disturbing changes in this new past, though her new role as a village troublemaker didn't bother her nearly as much as her poor boyfriend's state.

How could it happen that Naruto was so different from his former self? Was it possible that all those scorns, all those hateful looks he had to endure, his entire past with him being the jailor of one of the most powerful demons in the entire shinobi world has broken him in the end?

'Please… calm down, my soul mate…' a weak, but very nice voice ringed in her mind.

'Inyoushou-sama!' Hinata almost jumped in her bed as she instantly recognized its owner. She quickly sat, looked around to make sure no one was there, and then closed her eyes and concentrated. Almost instantly, she could see her protector, snowy-white phoenix with just his body as big as her nineteen-year old self, and wingspan about thrice his height. 'What happened to you? Are you…'

'I'm fine… my soul mate,' was his tired answer. 'I will just need… some time to rest… techniques like the last one require enormous amount of energy…'

'Inyoushou-sama, what's going on here?' even Hinata's thoughts were filled with plead and confusion. 'I just learned I'm some sort of rabble-rouser here, Sasuke is even broodier than before, and worst of all – Naruto-kun looks like a complete opposite of his old self. How could this happen?'

'I warned you… that travelling in time… takes great risks with it,' came another response, as large bird in her mind unfolded his wings for a moment, stretching them before folding them back with a tired sigh. 'That's why… none of my siblings… would ever use it. Even my father… wouldn't resort to it… should there be other choice…'

'…but there wasn't,' finished Hinata, her look sad and far, far away. Shouldn't she used that technique, shouldn't she return here when she had a chance, everything would be lost. Madara would have win, Konoha would've been destroyed, Naruto would've been dead… and she would've been as well.

'I'm sorry, my soul mate…'

'Don't apologize, Inyoushou-sama, please. This isn't your fault,' Hinata tried to cheer him up a bit, before returning to another urgent matter that bothered her. 'Inyoushou-sama – what happened to me? This morning, I felt enormous pain, and my whole body was glowing with chakra…'

She saw her mind-created phoenix nod in agreement. 'My technique… returns in time almost everything… except your body. Instead… it takes your soul… and puts it back, into your younger self. In time… you will start to remember things… you did here before you returned… but your own memories… your knowledge… and most of your energy, that all you humans call chakra… is bound to you, no matter of the body.'

Hinata gasped for air. 'You mean… all of my energy… I have it now?'

'No,' was Inyoushou's answer. 'You, too, were exhausted by your trip… your spirit is now weak and tired… but in time… you will recuperate.' He looked very seriously at Hinata. 'But promise me… don't overexert yourself, my soul mate… your body is only starting to adapt to your new spirit… should you overdo it, you could hurt yourself greatly, even kill yourself… and that would be shame after all you just went through, wouldn't it?'

'Yes, it would be,' Hinata nodded obediently. 'I promise I'll go easy on myself, Inyoushou-sama.'

'Good,' spirit in her mind slowly started to fade. 'I should return to rest now… take care of yourself, my…'

'Wait!' Hinata hurriedly interrupted him before he could completely disappear. 'What should I do about me and this new life as a … White Whirlwind or how did Kiba called me? And what about Naruto-kun?'

She could swear she heard a very light chuckle from him. 'I think you should get used to your new attitude… your old self surely didn't do it without a reason… and if you suddenly change over night… it will bring more attention than some petty human misbehaving.'

'And as for your friend,' his voice gained on seriousness, 'I… am not sure what could happen. It is possible his life was much harder here… and the support he got was meager… but don't lose hope, my soul mate. After all… he might look weak on the outside… but you, of all people, should know… that under a soft surface, steel can be hidden.' The voice finally disappeared from Hinata's mind, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

'Inyoushou is right,' thought Hinata as she slowly rose up to her feet. 'I can't let any problems stop me, and certainly not right at the start. Naruto-kun would never forgive me for that.'

'And as for that steel – I will get it out. Because I know there is one, that Naruto-kun couldn't be broken as easily as it looks. I will help him out of that shell he surrounded himself with – no matter what!'

Much happier than before, Hinata rolled over on her bed, only to discover something poking her in her hip. Curious, she put her hand in the pocket of her jacket… and found out a smoke bomb, carefully hidden and prepared for use.

Hinata's lips slowly curved into a smirk.

'So then… as a village number one troublemaker, I guess I shouldn't disappoint my audience,' she thought, before she got up, heading in the direction of her father's office… from where she was running not even a minute later, chased by a long, angry wail.

"Hinataaaa!"

(…)

(Evening, Naruto's apartment, Konoha)

Naruto was laying on his bed (which was very, very generous term for the thing he used as a bed) and was hugging his knees to try and save some of his own body heat to keep himself warm. From the first week he ever got this apartment, he gave up on trying to make the heating work, and was too timid to try and even ask the owner of the complex if there could be something wrong with it, so he just tried to dress warmer and move a lot to keep himself from catching a cold, along with using his only spare jacket as a blanket at night.

He knew he should've been happy – after all, this day wasn't as bad as it could be. He was saved from another tormenting from his personal bully, along with the beating he would probably get for angering Sasuke so much. Instead, that strange girl in orange hoodie stepped in and protected him from Uchiha's wrath.

But to be told the truth, Naruto was anything but happy.

Completely unknown, strange girl just saved him from bullying, without any reason? And what more, she started a fight with Sasuke Uchiha, drawing enormous attention to all of them. Including him.

And in Naruto's dictionary, attention meant trouble. Being spotted meant insults, whispered angry words, scorns, hateful looks. It meant being thrown out of the shop for having dirty shoes, as the girl owning the shop told him, or for being too short, as the guy in the groceries informed him with such angry look Naruto almost cringed. Attention meant being targeted at night by people who were trying to hurt him, deeply and painfully, until he learned how to flee quickly or how to avoid problematic places – meaning almost whole village. But, being in his flat wasn't too good either – it was periodically being sprayed, windows shattered and other things reminding him he was not welcomed here. No, he didn't want to be the center of attention, no matter what.

As he turned around on his bunk, making it squeak loudly, he tried to remember the girl. He was sure Iruka-sensei, almost only adult he ever knew who wasn't looking at him with those cold, distanced eyes, called her heiress, meaning she was probably almost royalty in this village. And he also remembered Sasuke calling her Hyūga, which was now, when the Uchiha clan was practically non-existent, the strongest, oldest and wealthiest clan in the entire Konoha.

He hugged himself to try and make his body a little bit less cold, not understanding why would such girl go to such length and notice him, even more so to attack Sasuke. What did he do to attract such attention? Was it his clothes? His unhappy look turned on his bright orange suit, with only other color being light blue on its shoulders and around waist. Even he had to admit it wasn't the best clothes to keep himself out of the sight… but he couldn't afford anything better. Everything else was too expensive for him, and even now he had barely enough money to get himself some food, with the high rent he was paying for this flat.

Finally allowing his body to relax, he brought his spare jacket closer around shoulders, his blue eyes slowly closing as he thought about the white-eyed girl who did the unthinkable – struck down the mighty Uchiha. Very, very small smile adorned his lips as he thought about that moment again. Even though he knew Sasuke wasn't going to stop just because of this, seeing him once with such shocked expression was so surprising it was actually a bit of nice.

It was first moment in a long, long time Naruto made something even remotely resembling a true, honest smile.

(…)

(At the same time, Uchiha district, Konoha)

Sasuke was sitting at what was once his home, looking in the burning hearth. He ignored pretty much everything else, including night sounds outside of his house, and was just staring into those flames.

Normally, he would be very, very angry. His usual fun, bullying that Uzumaki kid, was thwarted by the person from whom he expected it the least – loudmouth Hyūga. And what more, she even managed to surprise him and hit him, embarrassing him in the front of the entire class. Something Sasuke never experienced before, and found quite displeasing.

But he wasn't angry. For now, his lips were curved in a cruel, vicious smile.

Ever since his elder brother Itachi killed his entire clan, except him, he strove to be the best. He promised himself to avenge his clan, to get better than Itachi, and one day, to kill him – without remorse, without hesitation. He would dedicate his whole life to destruction of that man, that beast, and nothing would stop him in that. He was going to be the best from the best.

But since he entered Academy, he found nothing but weaklings there. One lazy Nara guy, interested only in sleeping, clouds and even more sleeping, one Akimichi fat-ass who was eating probably even in his sleep, the creepy Aburame who was just staring everyone down from behind his dark glasses, and that stupid mutt Inuzuka with his little dog. Uzumaki was just the top of that pile of uselessness, unable to perform a single technique in a correct way, despite his mostly average grades on everything else.

And girls? All of them were stupid fangirls, not interested in slightest in becoming strong, powerful kunoichis like they should be. No, all they were thinking about was him, dieting, him, how to make him notice them, clothes and similar things… oh, and him. And all of them were absolutely useless in real world. He was sure one strong ninja, or even a mercenary, would be able to make quick work of them.

But now… he noticed one strong girl there.

She never really caught his attention before. For a short amount of time, she seemed interesting because she didn't show any signs of interest in him, making her different from all those loud, squealing long-haired freaks who were gathering around him most of the time. But when he discovered she was just as loud as they were, only doing pranks and other things to gain herself attention and mock the name of her own clan, he quickly forgot about her. He didn't need someone who wasn't proud of her origins and didn't respect the old, ancient power of her kekkei genkai, bloodline limit.

But today, she forced him to notice her again. Because she sent him to the ground with one strike, without even using her real Gentle Fist style!

'She's perfect,' he thought as he repositioned himself on the pillow he was sitting on, sipping from the tea next to him. 'Perfect opponent for me to practice on. On her, I'll get stronger than I'm right now, and once I'll best her, Itachi is next.'

He smirked, looking into the red flames in the hearth as he already knew how to force her to help him in his goal. Because he was sure he noticed what others didn't – the only thing that forced her to not act goofy or over-cheery, like she always did.

Bullying Naruto.

And in order to get what he wanted… what was the life of one measly blonde orphan? For him, nothing. He lost much more than that boy could possibly know, his entire family was slaughtered and his brother, the person whom he trusted most in this world, was responsible for this – and he himself told Sasuke that he wanted him to find him and strike him down!

'I will, Itachi, I will… after I obtain enough power, I'll destroy you for ruining my life. And I won't allow anything to get in my way,' his line of thoughts has slowly dispersed as the sleep took hold of him. His plan was perfect. First besting Hinata, then any other strong person in this village, and after that… revenge. Long awaited, cold served revenge.

Preview:

Hinata: Here it comes, our graduation exam! Time to show what we've got!

Naruto: ...

Hinata: But if I let it go like last time, me and Naruto-kun will be apart again. He'll end in his old team with, with Sasuke, and any hope of him getting better will be ruined. I can't let that happen!

Naruto: ...

Hinata: So, first I have to make sure we both pass the exams, and then I'll start worrying about the team composition, which comes with... huh?

Naruto: ...

Hinata: Strange – it felt like I'm being watched or something. Nah, I guess it's just my imagination.

Next time, on Tales of Konoha: Chapter 3 – Making a difference

Hinata: Still... I can't help but feel like I've forgotten something... something very important...