Well, my first reviewer (Who wins the net) asked for NaruHina, and thus shall he receive!
No kissin'. You want kissin' or mackin', you gotta gimme more reviews. I'll dedicate a lemon (And change the rating) To the writer of my 30th review!
Naruto had a life that was defined by hardship, of pain and avarice, regret and frustration, rage and dejection. All hard edges and rough surfaces and jumps and kicks and spiraling balls of death. Demon Kitsune and a pair of fists attached to a pink mop of hair, an orange book and a scowling frown with a ducks-butt hairstyle.
Filled with snakes and toads and bees and bugs and slugs and turtles, completely topped with bulging veins, spinning wheels and sharp teeth, blood and bone and brain, sprayed over the lands he fought in…
Pineapples and Boars and Butterflies, Dogs and Caged birds and Green Beasts, Pandas and cherry blossom and vows of vengeance. Bugs, too, with Fans and puppets to follow. And sand, lots of sand. Ice, bone, beautiful things of nature turned into weapons dealing death. Peaceful things made evil, waters of life hefting blades bigger than he was.
Shark men, Dead men, bespectacled men of shadow. Old men, perverted men, dying men, grumpy women, smoking men, calm, quiet women who made him wonder if a mother was anything like her.
Like the way she made him eat his vegetables…Or the fact that she was carrying child now…
Naruto smiled and stretched as he walked down the street. It was true, he had found his life almost unbearable, not knowing peace in his soul, not believing he ever would. It wasn't something you expected for a demon vessel.
Just like the tale Jiraiya had sneered at in the bookstore, Beauty and the Beast.
Who could ever learn to love a beast? This wasn't a fairytale. This was reality, where everything was harsh and unforgiving.
At least, until a month ago.
--
It was a day like any other. The sun had been hiding behind a thick front of clouds for the past three days, and finally the rains had struck the town. It was on days like these that one Naruto Uzumaki wandered the town, when everyone shut themselves indoors and left the streets bare.
Nobody would stare at the boy out in the rain. Naruto would simply sit on the bench in the crossroad circle-patch, watching the pattern of ripples as the rain struck the cobbles, trying to make up names for each.
"Nomura, Kishimoto, Akamatsu, Kurampu, Tsurumaki, Nabeshin, Hirano…'
It was a fun game, from the days when he'd invent a family filled with brothers, sisters, cousins… It kept his mind off reality.
He'd had enough of reality. He could remember only the hardness, the cruelty. He wanted out, to hell with dreams, to hell with hope, to hell with being noticed!!
Naruto stood in the rain, head bowed as the drops slid off his head, mingling with the ghosts of tears he had yet to shed. There was nothing left, the world had finally broken the loudmouthed ninja, tarnished the luster he once exuded.
But he had company. Years spent with Jiraiya, learning to identify angry footsteps outside their inn door, keeping watch at night, dodging his relentless attacks had honed his senses.
He could smell… Perfume. Violets. The faintest touch of scent carrying through the moist air and tickling his nose, tantalizing, full of a heady aroma that called to him, beckoned…
"KAI!!"
No, it wasn't a Genjutsu. This wasn't an assassination attempt, at least, not by smell. He'd known that fragrance from before, but where? Where was it coming from?
And then, he saw her; long, dark locks framing a gentle face that glistened from the raindrops sliding down her forehead. She was watching him again, and it never seemed to bother him before now. Was she really like the others? Waiting for him to slip up and make a fool of himself for some depraved joke?
Or was she keeping an eye on him for the ANBU? Currying favour to the higher forces by trailing the demon fox? Naruto truly hoped that wasn't the case, he really liked people like her, he'd told her that himself! What a betrayal, to know it was only an act.
But what if it wasn't? Was it because she wanted to follow him… for something else? What? Hinata-chan wasn't selfish. He could see that every time he saw those pearly-lavender orbs, a softness that he'd wanted in his life…
At least… Maybe, if she hadn't changed, that didn't mean he had to, either, right? She could be his inspiration! Grinning, he made up his mind to gamble away his entire life on another person, just for a change. What was the worst that could happen?
"Hey! Hinata-chan!"
She jumped, and he laughed. Still the same old Hinata. That much hadn't changed, things were looking up!
He made his way towards her, watching with concern as she fidgeted, deciding whether to run or hide.
Okay, THAT wasn't a good sign.
"Hey, Hinata, I wanted to ask you something."
She turned to face him, a shy smile reaching her features as her face bloomed with crimson. HE chalked it down to sickness, and made up his mind to get her out of the cold when he could.
"N-Naruto-kun?"
He could barely hear the whisper; he put it down to the loud rain the hammered the ledge of the building behind them. Hinata wasn't quiet with Kiba or Shino, so it was obviously the same with him, right?
"Okay, I've got two, no, three questions. Reckon you can help me out? The first one's pretty selfish, but don't let that fool you, I'm still the number one Knucklehead, right?" He grinned, making an effort to stay cheerful.
"N-no, Naruto-kun."
"Huh?" Naruto's face fell, she didn't even want to answer a question from him!
"You're not an idiot, Naruto-kun. You're… amaz-… different." Hinata slipped her hand to her mouth and her cheeks burned further.
He really DID need to get her out of the rain. And this didn't look good at all, she almost called him 'A mess', not good! Not good at all!
"Uh… wait, no, that wasn't one of my questions!" Naruto floundered, waving his hands. Hinata said nothing.
"Okay, first question, have I changed any? Be honest, now."
He let Hinata look him over, let her look into his eyes. She didn't look like she was appraising him, simply comparing him against her memory.
Of course, if he wasn't so inexperienced with women, he would've noticed how her gaze lingered on the set of his shoulders, the length of his stomach or the lines of his face. But then again, even with that experience, Naruto would have admittedly missed a lot about how Hinata looked at him.
"I-I… You've grown, Naruto-kun. Your eyes… they're still bright, but sadder. Pained. Hurtful." Hinata struggled to find the right words, trying to find some way to lighten the blow on her idol. The rest of her brain was taking in everything she could at this new closeness, the rippling of muscle under revealingly soaked shirts and trousers, the whiskers she so dearly wished to caress…
"So, I'm just like Sasuke, is that it?" He replied, an unreadable expression on his face.
"N-not at all, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata answered quickly, mortified that she had given offense.
"Okaaay. Second question: How you changed? Did you beat that stupid 'RAWR-MAIN-BRANCH' cousin of yours yet?
Hinata couldn't resist a giggle at the absurdity of it all. "I h-hope I've changed, Naruto-kun. And no, I don't need to prove myself by the pain of others." Her eyes set in a determined line, opening them to the open street behind them. "I didn't want to become like the ones who harmed you when we were young, I didn't want to add to your sorrows."
They stood in silence; Naruto turned his head to the heavens, hoping to find comfort there.
She was watching him, even then? How long? Why?
"I… thank you, Hinata."
It was then his voice failed him, his past caught up with him and struck him without remorse. She could hear the silent sobs, tears Naruto had thought once-shed pouring again in a lonely, lifelong agony that quietly consumed him as his life progressed.
What happened next shocked them both.
Hinata opened her eyes, found herself holding her precious Naruto in the rain, feeling the heaving of his chest through the thin fabric of his orange shirt.
Naruto felt something at his back, soft and warm and so many other things. A simple touch, a feeling of arms wrapping around his front. The smell of violets penetrated the mucus that threatened to leave his nose if he didn't snort it up.
He did, disguising the unsanitary action with the next bout of sobs that attacked his body. Now he could breathe, breathe that smell… That soft, subtle scent… Hinata's scent…
After the tears had stopped, they simply relaxed, still standing, on the corner of the crossroads.
"H-Hinata?"
"Mmmm?" She sighed, trying to ignore the frantic pounding of her heart, trying to focus on his words.
"It okay if I ask you the last question?"
"Mmm." She mumbled, smiling slightly despite herself.
"Why are you always watching me?"
"Ah.. W-we might need to sit down..." Hinata gestured to the bench, but the man who had slowly unwrapped himself from her arms and pulled her along to his apartment.
"There's no way you're catching the flu on my watch."
Hinata only squeaked at the sudden contact of their hands, but she still felt dazed from the sudden turn of events and couldn't do anything but run with him.
As they entered the apartment (Naruto made a mental not to thank Ayame for cleaning it up while he was away.) Naruto sat down on the couch, not caring about how the water on his shirt and trousers were soaking into the fabric.
Hinata sat down beside him, not as close as he would have liked, but…
Wait, what did THAT mean?
Shaking his head Naruto turned towards the girl. The pretty girl. The one who smelled nice. And had cute eyes…
OH HELL. Was Hinata going to start punching him too? It was bad enough when Sakura did it. Just. Ignore. How. Cute. She's. Looking.
Do. Not. Stare.
No matter how big she's suddenly gotten in the… uh… 'Ichaicha-zones'.
Or the fact that she's blushing, in your apartment, alone with you…
Not at all. Nope.
"So, Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered, and the boy began breaking into a cold sweat. Was it fair to her to act so familiar?
"… I… watched you because… You were… I'd always admired the way… You never stopped getting up… Or the way you didn't care about the way others felt when…"
Naruto listened openly, for the first time in his life, somebody was actually telling him that… That he was worthy of admiration. Even Iruka-sensei actually hadn't gone so far as to praise him for his efforts… Or had he? Naruto couldn't remember.
"… And I guess you, uh, inspired me. You became my inspiration. And you were very… very cute… with the whiskers, I always thought… No! No! I'm sorry!" Hinata had let her mind wander too far with her ramblings, Naruto-kun wouldn't care about whether she thought he was cute, why would he?
As she stood up to leave with a hasty goodbye, Naruto held her down with a hand on her waist.
"Don't go. I didn't catch the last bit."
"I-it was noth-"
"I want to hear it again."
"I don't want to…"
"You think I'm cute?" Naruto grinned, hardly believing his ears. This was a first! This made a lot more sense!
"N-no."
"Huh?"
"I think you're v-very… Handsome, Naruto-kun."
"Switch your Byakugan on and try again." The fox-boy joked, while inwardly cheering and waving flags.
'I KNEW IT!! I knew I was sexy! I Believe it!'
"Don't be silly." Hinata scolded him, tapping him on the arm. Her face was radiating heat from the confession, but it didn't seem to be working like she'd imagined. No sudden confession of love, no romantic interlude in a forest glen… Just her, her crush and a comfortable couch.
Needless to say, Hinata nearly fainted from the images.
"Um… hey, I gotta ask you something else."
"O-of course, go ahead."
"It's all Hypodermic, of course…"
"Hypothetical, Naruto-kun." She giggled. So child-like…
"Yeah, that. But, say, um… You don't know if you've changed, right? And the only thing that's changed about me is my looks, right?" Naruto looked a little down at this.
"W-well, that's because I don't really know you all that well, Naruto-kun." Hinata breathed out.
"Well, yeah, okay, but… um… Say, if I wanted to get us to know each other better, like, over a bowl of… shall we say, Ramen…Hypothetically…"
Hinata suppressed a laugh and took the initiative, trying to become bold enough to grab a future waving in front of her.
"I don't have anything on at 7pm tomorrow, Naruto-kun…"
"I… what? Really? Well, uh, me either, so… um… Ichiraku?"
"Sounds like a dat-… plan, Naruto-kun."
"You mean, it's not going to be a date?" Naruto looked absolutely crestfallen.
"Of course it won't be a date, Hypothetically, a-anyway…" Hinata trailed off, smiling when Naruto figured out the joke.
So then, for the rest of the night, they talked. The rain didn't stop. They didn't notice.
--
Naruto kept walking, exchanging a wave with Neji as he brazenly walked into the main branch's audience chamber, waiting for his date to finish whatever it took her so long to do.
And so he waited, keeping his seat while the elders that passed shot him disgusted looks.
He didn't really care. He'd received death threats from Hiashi (Who then received certain threats from the Godaime regarding his teenage years, the Byakugan, the local gymkhana and a pair of socks.) and from others, but nobody ever backed those up anymore.
They were the sharp edges of life, grown dull from overuse. He didn't mind them.
And he didn't mind the warm hands slipping in front of his eyes from behind his head, or the sweet scent of Violets that accompanied them. Nor the whisper of 'guess who?', it didn't matter. He laughed and covered those petite hands with his own, the hands the filled the hole in his heart.
He'd found the softness, the comfort he craved. Uzumaki Naruto couldn't be happier.
D'awwwww. Ain't it cute? Anyway, you should know the drill be now! Review, Fiction-slaves! REVIEW!!