A/N: Alright this is the second revised chapter. Just like before minimal changes have been made though there are quite a few grammatical changes that have been fixed. Hopefully I'll be able to get back into writing this story again and make enough time to do just that. It will be a while before that happens though. So my posts will be a bit slow for a while until I think I have enough chapters to post once to twice a month. While I know that sounds so slow, deal with it. I have a degree to work on, a computer to fix up, sleep to attempt to get and plot holes to pound out.
'thinking'
"talking"
"Demon talking"
"JUSTU!" ← or yelling. Depending on the context around it, which you should know which is which.
Disclaimer I do not own Naruto, though I wish I did sometimes or at least that I could myself perform the shadow clone jutsu. That way I could do everything I want and need to do throughout the day with no worries about having chores left over for the following day.
**3 years later: 1 year before the genin graduation exam**
Naruto had played his part as the dobe very well. The one person who knew him; other than the Hokage, would think that he was a natural born actor, Hinata, watched as the blonde haired, orange clad boy once again try to instigate a fight with the somber brunette whose hair was shaped like a ducks ass. Hinata and Naruto had been friends for 3 years; however, since Naruto wasn't supposed to have friends, and was supposed to be the dobe of the class, they kept it hidden. At least until graduation, then things would change.
However, let us return to the scene at hand. Naruto was crouched on the desk in front of Sasuke, both glaring hard into each other's eyes. Obsidian met cerulean, in a non blinking stare, their thoughts bare to both parties. Sasuke's hatred for his brother, the sadness at the loss of his family, his annoyance at the fan girls that constantly vie for his attention, all of it bare to Naruto, for him to break apart and inspect as he so chooses.
The same applied to Naruto, his loneliness of being an orphan, the hatred from the villagers and his corresponding emotions, and his happiness at having that one friend with which he could share everything with. The pain of rejection, the confusion that had clouded him for so long, and the relief of finding the answer along with the disbelief that said answer wrought.
Then the trance was broken as the boy in front of Sasuke's desk leaned back in his chair and bumped into Naruto. The resounding silence that filled the room as their lips met was astounding. Then the room sprung into action, the fan girls screaming bloody murder, Naruto and Sasuke sputtering in disbelief and disgust, and several of the other students laughing at their misfortune.
It was wide known throughout the class that both boys had a heated rivalry, at least one sided. Though it was little known just how similar both lives were. Yes they were different, but there were more similarities then both boys would care to realize. However, they had built a grudging respect for each other because of the fact that they understood the pain, the loneliness that the other had gone through. You could be in a crowd of people and still feel alone, and both boys had felt that.
Not even five minutes later did Iruka walk into the room and see something that he had never thought he'd see Naruto was currently cornered by all of Sasuke's fan-girls while Sasuke was spitting out the window, looking slightly green and the rest of the class was laughing. Making a hand-sign and concentrating, Iruka expanded his head and yelled "SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP!" Letting his head deflate and watching as all the kids scrambled to get to their chairs except for Naruto and Sasuke. One was in the corner mumbling to himself about how girls were scary, and the other still had his head out the window trying to not hurl, while not quite accomplishing that feat.
"Alright, Naruto sit down in your seat, and Sasuke... uh... go to the nurse." Iruka said, watching as Naruto very slowly moved to stand and sit in a chair all the way in the back of the class as far away from as many of the girls as he could. Sasuke soon moved away from the window and also took his seat, looking the worse for wear as he tried to get back to his regularly scheduled brooding.
"Alright class today we will be working on the transformation jutsu, taijutsu, kunai and shuriken throwing and we will do a brief overview of fuinjutsu, so that you may learn how to create your own explosive tags." Iruka said, as he looked around the classroom. "Are there any questions?"
Noticing that none of his students raised their hands, he continued. "Everyone line up, single file in the front of the room, and we will begin!"
As the class went on, Sarutobi smiled at the antics of Naruto. He happened to be watching through a glass sphere, due to boredom, and caught the whole thing. It would now become a piece of blackmail for the old Hokage against the young blonde boy. Seeing as said blonde boy had a lot of blackmail against the third as it was. Though most of it was cataloged information, however, there were some secrets that the leader of Konohagakure would like to keep about himself.
Soon the elderly Hokage put away the glass looking ball and returned to the bane of all leaders' existence, paperwork. As the day progressed he wondered what Naruto was up to, seeing as the academy had let out about an hour ago. However, even though his curiosity wanted to get the better of him the mountain of paperwork on his desk wouldn't allow it to.
Not even thirty minutes later did Naruto walk through the doors to his office? The blond activated the privacy seals that were in the office for just such a conversation that he wanted to have with the Hokage.
"Hokage-jiji, there is something that I need to talk to you about. I think that there is a traitor at the school. I've had the suspicion for a while now, and well I wanted to run something by you." Naruto said. He didn't want to be the class clown forever, I mean it was fun, and it had its perks, but really, he wanted to be himself. To hell with what the rest of the population of Konohagakure thought of him.
"Alright Naruto, I want to know how you came to this conclusion, you're plans to chase out said traitor, and how much is it going to cost ramen wise to get you to keep up the act." The elderly Hokage said while lacing his fingers together and resting his nose above them.
"Don't get mad, but I did a small experiment in class and looked at some of the other paper tests that some of the other students had and noticed that theirs were easier than mine, and though I knew the answers to mine, I purposely failed it to keep up my act. Then added to that the taijutsu that they teach me in the academy is flawed compared to what I've learned and what they are teaching to the other students. However, that's not what makes me think that there is a traitor. It's just a gut feeling, and with my life I've learned to trust my gut feeling."
"So you're telling me that though you have no proof, someone has been sabotaging you're schooling, and you believe that they are going to commit treason? Naruto, those are some serious allegations, and even though I know that you have had a hard life, but this is a bit much. I know that you aren't one to cry wolf and would never point fingers intentionally. So when you have proof, come back. Without proof I can do nothing."
"I understand Hokage-jiji, however, I'm going to run a test for the graduation exam, I am purposely going to fail to see if I can flush out the traitor. I'm still not sure who it is but I have my suspicions, and seeing as you can't do anything without tangible evidence it would behoove me to keep them to myself." Naruto said as he deactivated the seal around the office. "Hokage-jiji, Come on! You promised me ramen today!"
As Naruto fell back into the assigned role that he had been given three years ago by the Hokage he felt a glimmer of disappointment because he had to do this all on his own, and he wasn't exactly sure how to do it. Though he'd figure it out eventually, that was one of the great things about his pranks, planning the attack and the method of escape has definitely made planning strategies easy.
Soon both the Hokage and the orange clad blonde boy were on their way to Ichiraku's Ramen stand to have a small meal, well small in relative terms, seeing as Naruto could probably eat the ramen stand out of business for the day. Though they would be happy about it, because Naruto was their favorite customer, it wouldn't be good to lose that business from other customers.
Making their way there, Naruto regaled the Hokage with stories of the academy, and of his issues with learning Bunshin. He told the older man what he thought his issues were with it, seeing as he attempted a low level genjutsu to test out his theory. He believed it to be because of his chakra reserves. However, he had an idea to work with, and he would test it out after he tanked up on ramen. If his experiment doesn't work then he would ask for some advice on the matter from a couple of people.
You see, when Naruto had found out about the Kyuubi being sealed in him three years ago, the Hokage deemed it necessary for him to be taught by a few of the more experienced shinobi of the village, whether they wanted to do it or not. Then again it was classified as an S-rank mission so they were more than willing to put up with the jinchuriki just for the pay.
Though after a while all of his instructors came around, just because the sheer tenacity of the boy whom they originally deemed the 'demon'. His way of work, while exhausting most of the shinobi who trained him, also earned him their respect, because he never gave up and never complained. Although, he was young, he was one of the smartest students any of them had ever had, and he took everything that they threw at him and then asked for more. They weren't sure if he was a sadist or what, but he enjoyed learning what they taught him, though it wasn't much.
They taught him enough to get by when in a pinch and the basics of everything else, just to see what he would be interested in. After that they let him learn what he wanted; when he wanted, and let him ask them questions. The only thing that they taught him in depth was taijutsu, and the art of the sword. Both of which he was proficient at, though rapidly getting better. Seeing as few shinobi in Konoha used swords they could only teach him what they knew, and maybe once he shed the facade, he could continue his studies.
As they made their way closer to the Ramen shop, Naruto stopped and seemed to zone out on the Hokage, which made more than a few people nervous. Tilting his head just a bit Sarutobi watched with mild interest as Naruto did this, it normally meant that things were about to get very exciting within the village and that there would definitely be a bigger mountain of paperwork on his desk come the next day.
Soon a grin formed on the young man's face and with it came a glint in his eye that many of the villagers had seen before, and they ran for fear of becoming the next person to be pranked by the young blonde. Though nothing really heinous and they couldn't prove it was him because of lack of evidence, it was a pain to clean up! Seriously, one time there was a shop that refused a younger Naruto service for no reason, and blamed him of stealing and the next day, that store was bombed with soap resistant paints. The whole store had to be redone because it became an eye sore by mid day.
Shaking his head, Naruto started to walk and talk again with the elder Hokage. "Naruto, may I ask what you have planned?" Sarutobi asked he was interested in what would happen so that he could get ahead of the paper work and be prepared for anything.
"Sorry Jiji, but this one is best left unsaid until it's executed and even then I might not tell anything. Plus its part of my plan for the graduation exam, so seeing as that you can't do anything; I'm making sure all bases are covered." Naruto said as he walked ahead until he spotted the eaves of cloth hanging over the entrance to the Ramen shop. With a burst of speed Naruto stood there bouncing on his toes and waving for the older man to hurry up.
Soon night fell upon the bustling village of the hidden leaf, and with the sun setting the ninja became more active. Though not necessarily confined to the night, it made it easier for some of them to get around without being spotted so easily. However, with one ninja – in – training it was easy to get around without being spotted no matter the time of day.
As she walked along the alley way closest to the main road, she began to hum a slow and haunting melody that for many passersby would spook them enough to get them to hurry home. She made her way sedately and quietly with barely a susurrus of her clothes. If anyone knew whom walked the alleys at night humming this tune they didn't show it, nor did this girl pay attention to them.
Soon she had reached her destination; a standing pile of rubble that seemed to constantly be under repair. Though the place no longer had a building manager, the one person who lived here tried to keep it in as good repair as much as possible. Staring at the building brought upon a rush of emotions for the young pre-teen, as she located her destination in the top most corner.
She stood there for a few minutes and just gazed at the building, noticing some of the plaster missing, and doors hanging off the hinges on a few of the rooms. Tonight was their weekly meeting and training night, though they could meet more often Naruto felt that it would be beneficial for both of them to meet once a week so that she could train properly within the compound that she is normally confined to, though sneaking out was easy for the young heiress.
Shaking her head, she started away from the shadow filled alley and made her way across the street. As she walked she noticed that the building seemed to loom in front of her, though not scary it was imposing, and she seemed to get the feeling that if anyone else were to live there they would be caste out from normal society. Yet she didn't care, here lived her one true friend, in whom she could confide anything in, and those secrets would be kept safe.
As she walked up the stairs she realized that she would soon be late for their meeting and picked up the pace a bit to a slow jog up the stairs till she reached the fourth floor, and continued to the farthest most corner of the complex. Knocking lightly on the door, she waited patiently for the answer that was forthcoming. "Hinata-chan, is it Friday already?" Naruto asked in his most chastised voice, he was so busy planning for the graduation exam/ treacherous bastard flushing, that he completely forgot that today was their meeting day.
"Yes Naruto, it is. Let me guess you got caught up in planning for some extravagant prank in which will be used for later as possible blackmail on some unsuspecting person?" Hinata replied with a bubbling mirth in which she felt.
"You know me to well, come in, come in! You know to make yourself comfortable, let me clean up some of my plans, because the less you know about some of them the less likely Jiji will call you to find out what I'm doing." He said with a wink as he let her in the door and closed it behind her. She took off her shoes in the entrance and slipped into the slippers awaiting her and watched as Naruto zipped around the apartment barely creating a breeze in his wake.
Within three minutes the place was tidier than when she had first arrived. No longer were papers lining the floor in a circle around where he sat, nor were there any clothes along the floor as well. She giggled as she had watched him clean, embarrassed about the mess that he had left behind. If it weren't for her coming once a week she was sure that he would never clean the apartment at all.
"So what will we be working on today? I know that we said we would be sparing, but seeing as I completely forgot I think we should change the plans. Also isn't tomorrow the beginning of the month? You're family will want to see what you have improved upon." Naruto said, he wanted to make sure Hinata was at the top of her game when it came to the sparring sessions in which her family made her participate.
As the sun broke through the horizon and started to show its light upon the village of the hidden leaf, two young children were sound asleep in their prospective homes, one with blonde hair, and whisker marks adorning his cheeks and the other with blue black hair and fair skin, each off in their own dreams of the future that they would like and both with a small smile upon their faces.
However, one child was about to have a rude awakening seeing as she was about to be late for her morning spar. With a bucket of ice and water one of the more playful servants of the branch family decided to take a page from a blonde haired prankster and dumped the water on our sleeping heiress. With a loud squeal she jumped from the bed and with an automatic reaction of having spent time with Naruto throughout a jyuuken strike to the shoulders.
Realizing what she did, she started to apologize profusely. "Do not worry Hinata-sama, I shouldn't have startled you out of sleep like that, and it was out of line for me to do so. Please forgive me." The servant bowed to the young heiress.
"Hinata, what has happened? I heard you across the house." A pair of cold eyes made themselves visible and with them came a face that was seemingly made of marble for all the warmth it held. He took in the site of the room, Hinata's drenched state and the bucket that was more than likely filled with water earlier. Soon a glare settled upon his face, "You will report to the dojo immediately for training Hinata; since you see fit to sleep in, you shall spar with me." Turning around he walked briskly away.
"I am so sorry Hinata-sama; I did not mean to get you into trouble with your father." The servant was bowing so low that she appeared prostrate before the young heiress.
"Do not worry yourself Mika-san; you woke me up this morning as I had asked. I do not blame you for this, I know I should have woken up earlier and yet I didn't. This is no one's fault but my own." Turning she started shedding her wet night clothes so that she could change quickly and meet her father in the dojo.
"Hinata-sama, you didn't stutter!" The branch member was so shocked that she wasn't sure what to do. The young heiress was known to stutter, and be shy.
"I normally don't, I perfected the stutter a long time ago, as a mask. Remember deception is a ninja's greatest tool. Please whatever you do, do not tell anyone about this. I wish to keep up the mask as long as possible." Standing up straighter than anyone other than Naruto had seen, the young girl seemed like a complete and different person. She was confident, and didn't seem like the shy girl that was normally seen on the premises.
"As you wish, milady," the woman now identified as Mika said bowing once more and waiting to be dismissed.
"Please go to the dojo and tell my father that I will be there in a few moments. Thank you for keeping this secret for me as well. I know that it is a lot to ask." Hinata said, though she was confident in herself, it felt out of place to confide in someone who wasn't Naruto.
Mika turned quickly and exited as quietly as possible to allow Hinata some measure of privacy and quietude while she changed. As she scurried down the halls toward the dojo she still couldn't fathom the thought that the normally quiet and shy seeming girl wasn't quiet and shy. She smiled at the thought that one day, the young lady everyone so mistreated would show them they were wrong.
Hinata turned around and stripped out of her wet clothes quickly. Soon she had her breasts bound tight, and was putting on the traditional yukata that marked the placement of the Hyuuga. Within minutes she was dressed and padding softly through the hallway with her head downcast and her fingertips touching. The mask had been replaced upon her person, and as she fell into her role as a shy, and bumbling girl she felt a bit of her real self slip away. If she kept this up soon she would be this girl that she so despised.
Naruto woke up feeling relaxed and refreshed. His dreams weren't plagued with nightmares from his past as of late and he had two people to thank for that. The kyubi and Hinata-chan, though the outside world, as Naruto calls it, knows nothing of their relationship, they do and that is something that makes him happy.
Stretching he got out of bed and walked into the bathroom to take care of his morning routine. About thirty minutes later Naruto walked out of the bathroom looking and smelling like a human being. As things went; today was looking up to be a good day, Naruto couldn't complain much. As he walked around the apartment he found that he needed to get some groceries and do some actual cleaning. Despite popular belief that he was a monster and he lived in a sty, he preferred order over chaos anytime of the day.
Soon the boy with hair the color of the sun itself was on his way. His first stop was Ichiraku Ramen, to see Teuchi-ji-san, and Ayame-nee-san. His customary seat was open and there was very little traffic in the ramen shop this early in the day. "Teuchi-jii-san, Ayame-nee-san, may I have the regular order?" Naruto asked with his usual enthusiasm.
"Sure thing kid, coming right up!" Teuchi said, ever since the day that Naruto first came into the small shop he had been a part of the Ichiraku family, even if they couldn't adopt him. As soon as those words left the elderly gentleman's mouth a crowd of shinobi walked into the shop. To Naruto who was observing them out of the corner of his eyes they seemed like high Chunin to low jonin in terms of power, however, the way they carried themselves one would think that they were the Hokage.
They sauntered up to Naruto, menace covering their faces, "Hey brat, you are in my seat, why don't you go run along and get lost." The other shinobi behind him were snickering. They wouldn't defend what they essentially considered the demon brat of Konoha.
"Shinobi-san, you are in the wrong here, seeing as I am in what was an empty seat that did not have anyone's name upon it. Just because you don't like me doesn't mean that you may do whatever it is you are thinking in that childishly small mind of yours. Please sit somewhere else with your group." Naruto said as politely as he could. He didn't want to get into it with these guys, not because he didn't think he could win, but because he didn't want to miss out on probably the only meal he'd get today at the ramen shack.
"Would you hear that boys, the brat is trying to sound educated!" Guffaws followed that statement, and the shinobi tried to put the blonde boy in his place. "See just because my name isn't written on the seat doesn't mean that it isn't mine, I sit there whenever I come into this place and seeing as I am a regular here means that, that seat is mine. Now get up and get out!" The still young, but older than Naruto's twelve years, shinobi decided to get rough with the last of his little speech and drag the boy out of the chair.
"Excuse me shinobi-san, but that young boy that you are picking on happens to be a regular here as well, more than you that is. He is here on a daily basis, so therefore that gives him more of a right to sit there than it does for you to pull him out of that chair. I suggest that you release him, and walk away now. Because as of now you are no longer allowed to come into my ramen shop and tell my customers where they can and cannot sit.
"If you have a problem with this please feel free to bring it up to the Hokage, however, seeing as I know the man personally that would be a folly on your part. You see the Hokage, himself, frequents this establishment as well. Though you would know that if you were here more often please leave, and don't return until you have gained some form of manners." Teuchi told the shinobi who still had Naruto's arm in his vice like grip. "I would also appreciate it if you would let go of the boy. He is a patron of my store, and is more than welcome to sit wherever he so chooses."
"Tch, fine we will take our business somewhere else. You'll be sorry old man." The one who had a hold of Naruto said before he pushed the boy off the stool and onto the ground. Laughing the three turned around and walked out of the small stall to find another place to eat.
"Teuchi-jii-san, it would have been alright, I would have moved. Now you've lost a customer because of me." Naruto said. He felt bad because the Ichiraku's had put a lot on the line for a small blonde orphan boy, and because of that they had lost a lot of business that they had gained throughout the years.
"No, Naruto, it would not have been alright, that" with as much disgust as Teuchi could manage filled this one word, "ninja, would not have stopped there. He would have continued to bully you. And seeing as you are my most loyal fan and best patron, it would only be right to stand up for you. Plus, you are one of my best eaters!" Teuchi smiled at the blonde boy.
Soon all thoughts of that rude shinobi vanished as Naruto tucked into his favorite meal. The first of his three bowls was pork and kimchee flavored ramen. Just for that spice in the morning, his next bowl was beef flavored with egg and some beef strips, and last but definitely not least is miso broth with udon noodles, shiitake mushrooms and a piece of tilapia that was blanched in the miso broth.(*)
As he finished his bowls of ramen Naruto sat there after paying and talked to two of his most favorite people in the village. About an hour passed before a lady with violet hair in a spiky styled pony tail sat down. Her clothes were slightly revealing, yet functional for a ninja, and she seemed to be more interested in the conversation than in ordering ramen.
"Ah, Miss Anko, so good to see you again, is there anything I can get for you? Lunch, a snack, or possibly a drink?" Ayame asked always the hostess. Plus it was always good to ask for perspective sales.
"Just some tea and a small bowl of miso soup, thanks" Anko replied, turning back to the conversation that was happening beside her.
"I'm telling you Teuchi-jii-san, it wasn't a big deal I would have moved eventually. Not everything needs to be solved by violence, or rudeness. Sometimes just being the bigger person can solve a lot of problems that most people decide to take violence to." Naruto said, vehement that his point was the correct one.
Shaking his head the older man knew better. "Once you give them an inch, they try to go for a foot then a mile, and then where would it stop. Naruto sometimes, being the bigger person won't solve everything, sometimes just sometimes you need to stand up and defend yourself, either with words or with fists. However, you are right on some points, you won't be right all the time. Plus, I didn't need their patronage anyways; they were rude to everyone and thought themselves better than even the sannin."
"Alright I understand, but I still say that if I had moved then you wouldn't have lost customers." Naruto conceded the point and decided to let the ramen vendor win. After all he would have plenty of time to win an argument against him, and this just didn't seem like the time.
"Hey gaki, you look familiar, but I could have sworn that you were more unrefined than what you sound like right now." Anko said as she stared piercingly at the blonde boy. She knew who the boy was, and what he contained, and didn't hold it against him. I mean how could she, when she still bared the mark of her traitorous sensei.
"Most people would say the same thing, until they got to know me. What one perceives is different than how one might actually be. Also, I act like a moron so that I have a less of a chance to incite a mob for something with which I cannot help. Please excuse me; I'm late for my daily training." Naruto said, as he stood up and sooner than one might think a goofy grin was plastered to his face that made his normally piercing blue eyes seem squinted and dulled. "Later old man, I'll be back tomorrow!" As the words were leaving his mouth, Naruto disappeared almost as fast as he had come this morning.
"Does he come here every day around this time?" Anko asked, she really wanted to know because the boy seemed like a puzzle to her. If there was one thing Anko Mitarashi couldn't pass up, it was a good puzzle.
"Most days yes, however, there are times where he goes a month or so without coming in. I haven't figured out where he goes on those days, but more than not he is here in this seat enjoying three bowls of ramen. Then he goes off and trains somewhere. No one has been able to figure out where he goes. At least no one that I know, maybe one day, he'll find someone to confide in, a mentor of sorts." Teuchi said with a wistful smile on his face.
He was one of the few people who saw the boy for what he was, a boy, and just that. He wasn't the kyubi re-incarnated, nor was he a demon; Naruto was just a kindhearted, overly energized boy who really liked to prank people who treated him wrong. Though that was neither here nor there seeing as most of the pranks couldn't be verified that it was him; they just assumed it was.
Anko finished off her tea and soup then stood up, leaving the cash on the counter, "You know old man; if you and the dango shop merged you'd both make a killing. Think it over, the best of dango and ramen in one shop." She said as she turned to leave, looking back she said "I might have to come by here more often, with or without the dango. Ya'll are good people."
As she walked into the dojo she noticed her father standing to one side of the room with a fierce glare on his face. She took of her geta and pointed them away from the door as is the custom. She closed the shoji and stepped lightly into the room. They stood there for a moment staring at each other, and then simultaneously they both slipped into the proper jyuuken stance.
With a flurry of blows Hiashi had his daughter incapacitated. Curled up on the floor Hinata coughed before attempting to get up. "Stay down. It's where you belong, on the ground like the trash that you are. You are not worthy to be heir to the Hyuuga name, and you disgrace me with your presence in my house. You will be branded within three days time, which gives you ample time to get the bare necessities out of your room and off of our lands." With a regal twirl he stormed out of the room.
Within a few minutes Hinata was crouched on the floor, as a single tear rolled down her face. It didn't take long for her to undo the closing of her tenketsu. Taking a deep breath, she wiped her face with her sleeve, removing the evidence of her tears and stood. She held herself in a slumped posture, with her head down, however a small smile of relief covered her face. Now, now she could work on her style, without the family breathing down her neck. She walked back to her room and quickly packed a small bag. Her first stop was the Hokage to setup receiving a stipend and an order of protection from the Hyuuga clan.
She would stop by and leave her stuff at Naruto's with a note explaining why it was there and that she would be moving into the complex. Seeing as Naruto didn't pay rent due to the fact that no one wanted to live there, so long as he maintained the building he was fine.
She walked out of the compound and no one stopped her, or asked her any questions about where she was taking her stuff. No one cared; it was a cold environment to live in. One in which someone like her would not flourish. As soon as she got onto the road and turned the corner she started at a slow jog towards where her new home would be.
Dropping off her stuff after she obtained the spare key that was hidden in a false part of the wall next to his front door she placed her stuff down in the Living room next to the small worn down couch she pulled out a piece of paper and wrote a short note.
"Naruto,
I've been disowned, and need a place to stay for a couple of days until I can clean out the apartment next door.
-Hinata"
Walking out of the apartment she made sure to lock the door back up and started on the journey to the Hokage's tower. It wasn't a long walk but it was enough for a warm up if she decided on the way back that she wanted to go for a run. It wasn't too long before she was standing at the doors and looked up. She could see the smoke from the Hokage's pipe billowing gently out of the window that was open. Taking a deep breath and gathering her courage she walked into the tower with her head held high, shoulders straight and her posture was impeccable.
She walked up the stairs, and as she passed people they stared at her, not knowing what to do. It wasn't often that they saw the heiress of the most prominent clan in the fire nation. Especially since the Uchiha clan was murdered, and they let everyone know about it. It was common knowledge that the heiress of the clan was a shy girl who kept to herself and was soft spoken. A lot of people had hoped that she would grow into the role and change the clan for the better. However, by the looks of things and seeing her here by herself it was a good guess what was going to happen.
Though they didn't confront her, and by the look of the glare on her face they knew where she was going. They would kill to be a fly on that wall. "Excuse me Miss, but I need to see the Hokage it is very important." Hinata addressed the assistant that had her desk next to the door that she needed to get in.
"I'm sorry but he is currently very busy and cannot be disturbed. His next availability is Tuesday of next week, anything before that is taken. I am sorry." The assistant said, she knew who this girl was, and she was going to get her to leave. She didn't like the Hyuuga in general, seeing as they tried to lord over everyone.
"Well then I will take that appointment, along with going in there now. Good luck trying to stop me." Hinata said as she walked towards the door. She almost made it too if the secretary hadn't grabbed her arm.
"I said you can't go-" And before she could finish that sentence she was curled up in a ball on the floor crying. Hinata punched her in the stomach with all her strength.
"I will and I can; now you can lay there in your own misery or I can at least sit you in your chair so you may maintain your dignity. Choose wisely, because I don't have much time, you have ten seconds." Hinata said, the cold glare that was normally reserved for her by her father was situated squarely on her face, and directed squarely at the downed assistant.
Wheezing the assistant chose to be sat in her chair though she slumped over her desk immediately so any sort of dignity that she would have had was lost. Once again she walked to the door and knocked and waited for the signal to enter the office. "Enter!" came through the door as a muffled yell. Opening the door she was astounded to see the opulent yet sparsely furnished office. Even with the minimal decorations the office felt richly furnished and serious.
"And to what do I owe the honor, Hyuuga-san?" The Hokage asked without looking up once to see who had entered. The pipe was still firmly planted in his mouth, and his hand was busy signing away at papers and stacking them in a neat pile.
"Hokage-sama, I apologize for the disruption and but I need a few minutes of your time. A certain blonde boy has informed me that you have privacy seals, could you activate them? What I need to discuss should not be heard by some over eager ears in the walls or at the door." With that she had his full attention, not even a minute later the seals were activated and Hinata was seated in a chair opposite of the head honcho.
"Alright, you have my undivided attention, how may I help you on this most beautiful day?" The Hokage said as he interlaced his fingers together and rested his chin on them. His pipe lay gently on the desk before him. He watched the nuances of the young heiresses face and body, searching for clues that might elude him to the purpose of this meeting.
"As you will soon found out from my father, I am no longer the heiress to the Hyuuga clan. I have been disowned this afternoon and am in need of a place to stay, which I have located, a monthly stipend so that I may afford groceries, and other provisions needed for someone who is in the shinobi school, and an order of protection from my family, my father disowned me before they put the seal on me. Therefore seeing as I am no longer part of the clan it would seem wrong for me to be kept to the traditions of an out of date practice." Hinata explained trying to avoid the major details.
"May I ask how this happened? It would help me in the long run to avoid further embarrassment, from your father, and the rest of the council." Even with the way he worded it, it wasn't a request though to some it would have sounded like it. It was a demand plain and simple, wrapped in pretty words and topped with a bow of civility.
As she explained her situation to the Hokage he leaned back in his chair, repacked his pipe and lit it up again. The smell of expensive tobacco wafted through the air as the young Hyuuga told her story. This time not leaving anything out, she explained from the night that her uncle Hizashi had died protecting her. Though it took over an hour Hinata could feel the weight of the Hyuuga clan come off from her shoulders.
After she finished her story they just sat there pondering what was said, and what was to be done. Eventually though the silence had to be broken. "Where will you be staying? I need to know the details, and there might be an ANBU protection squad assigned to you, to make sure that nothing happens."
"I will be staying in the same building as Naruto, to help him with the maintenance, and to maybe try to get him to eat something other than ramen. No offense but he really needs to expand his diet." Hinata said. "I hope to stay in the apartment next to his, after I clean it out. Though I'm not sure if a guardian will be required, I know that Naruto has been on his own for most of his life, though the orphanage hardly counts as a caring environment towards him. If it is required then I would like to choose, if not then so be it." Hinata said.
"You bring up very valid points, and I see that you and Naruto are still close, I hope that it will stay that way, he needs more people in his life like you Hinata, and I don't think a guardian per say will be necessary but someone will check in on you two from time to time, and you may choose who that is however, they must be at least tokubetsu jonin or higher, and you will have a protective detail at all times. At least until both of you can protect yourselves adequately from a jonin at the very least.
"I am sure you know that Naruto doesn't pay rent so long as he maintains the building, and when the Chunin exams are held here he rents out at least the bottom floor of rooms. The money that is earned from that time is put into an account that Naruto will be able to access once he makes genin. Though he has quite a bit saved up you will have to pretty much start from scratch, seeing as you both are practically close to graduating, however, you will receive a stipend, though it won't be much it should cover food, and any other essentials that are needed." The Hokage explained as he rummaged through the drawers to his desk looking for the legal paperwork that is needed for this situation
As the day came to a close Hinata felt accomplished, and better about herself and what she had to do. Once Hinata had left the Hokage tower there was enough to keep her busy for a few days at the least. First things first though, Hinata needed to make sure that she would have more than enough cleaning supplies and some food for dinner.
As Hinata walked around the village picking up stuff for cleaning and cooking, and noticed that every time she would turn around there would be a shadow following her. Seeing as ANBU wouldn't be caught by someone below the rank of high jonin to Hokage she activated her byakugan without hand signs and her degree of vision grew larger. With her field of vision now larger Hinata knew who was following her. It was Mika from the branch family, she wasn't skilled at stealth, nor the ninja arts, and Mika was a servant. However, with her byakugan activated Hinata noticed something off, she could see the ANBU following her, but along with Mika there was one other.
"K-kurenai-san, may I a-ask if there is any s-s-specific reas-son that you are f-followi-i-ing me?" Hinata asked slipping back into her mask of a shy, stuttering girl. It was getting easier and easier to put on and harder to take off; she wondered if Naruto experienced the same thing with his alter personality. She made a mental note to ask him later.
"I heard about what happened, and am extending the invitation to stay with me. I know it's been a while since we last saw each other, and well, I was hoping you wouldn't mind living with me." Kurenai said as she walked closer to the former heiress.
"I will c-consider the o-option, however, as of n-n-now I will be s-staying on my own. P-p-p-please don't take offen-nse but as for n-now there are some t-things that I plan to d-d-do, I w-w-will meet with you l-l-later. I must be on my way n-now." With a polite bow from the waist down, making sure not to drop anything Hinata ducked away from the genjutsu specialist and scurried away, almost immediately blending into the crowd.
Kurenai stood there for a few more moments in utter shock, she had expected Hinata to be grateful and say yes right off the bat. Not give a polite yet utter refusal to her proposal. Muttering to herself about not being in the girls life more she walked off to find Asuma and ask him what he thought of the idea, maybe if he was with that lazy Nara they could both shed some light to the plight in which she found herself in.
Mika continued her scouting of the now former Hyuuga heiress. Mika was pretty sure that Hinata knew she was following her, especially seeing as Hinata found the genjutsu jonin. It was only a matter of time before Hinata called her out into the open, but Mika was tasked with this by the main branch elders by pain of the curse seal to find out where Hinata was now staying. They needed to know where Hinata would be so that when the time came to put the seal on her, they wouldn't have to search her out.
Mika followed Hinata for the better part of the day, having lost sight of her for about three hours after Hinata left the compound. Seeing as Hinata wasn't lugging around all of her stuff Mika came to the conclusion that Hinata must have either hid them somewhere, or dropped them off though Mika knew for a fact that because the girl wore that shy mask that Hinata didn't have many, if any, friends.
Now that Mika thought about it, she barely knew the former heiress, and she didn't know anyone who really could say that they did. With the exception that Hinata always treated the branch family with kindness that was hard to come by in the Hyuuga family. However, such thoughts and utterances lead to one being in physical pain by the seal placed upon them in their pre-teen years.
As Mika observed the young girl; who was doing menial shopping as though it was a common custom of a main house family member, she noticed that Hinata kept the mask partially on. Just enough to have a slight stutter, and shy composure without giving herself away that was one of the few things that amazed Mika, this young woman that she was watching was better at deception than most shinobi of her age. It made Mika wonder where Hinata learned all of it, because Mika knew it wasn't taught in the academy, at least not until one has officially made genin.
Mika watched as Hinata flitted from one vender to the next picking up either food or cleaning supplies, sometimes even some ninja gear. Eventually though Hinata stopped shopping and walked into a small park that was empty. "You do realize Mika-san, that I've known you have been following me for the greater part of the day. Please come out into the open and speak to me." Though Hinata sounded cordial enough, Mika knew better.
"I apologize Hyuuga-sama; however, the elders and your father tasked me with following you for the day so that they may know where to find you when the time comes for you to be sealed." Mika sadly informed her.
"Then you may inform them that if they wish to place the seal upon my head, they will have to go through the Hokage. My father disowned me; therefore they can no longer seal me. I am now a citizen of Konohagakure and they can no longer have any say in my life they should have thought about that before discarding me away like trash.
"Along those lines I am also free to learn whatever form of taijutsu that I please. I am sorry that you will be the barer of this news, for they will not be tolerant to hear it. Mika, you have done an excellent job of following me throughout the day, and though I allowed it, I must say goodbye here." With that Hinata quickly dashed away from the park and back to Naruto's apartment.
Mika was left gaping at the spot where the young woman stood. "This will not be good." Mika muttered to herself, and started the walk back to the compound. Mika knew that there was nothing she could say that would save her, and so resigned herself to the painful death that she now faced.
Naruto had arrived at his apartment in the early afternoon, and found a note on his table along with unknown bags in his living room. As he read the note he figured out what was happening and though it saddened him that Hinata's family would do such a thing; he was happy that she was no longer under the tyrannical rule of her father. Yet this brought on a set of issues that he was hoping would be delayed for a bit longer.
Growing up with Hinata as a best friend Naruto learned a lot about her; such as her love of plants, cinnamon buns and good books. So because of that Naruto was making her a personal area where she could go and relax; however, it wasn't even halfway finished and this put a kink in his plans. Naruto decided to get as much done on this project as much as possible. He wanted to surprise her with this, because Hinata had so few surprises in her life, along with places to call her own.
Walking into his room, Naruto grabbed the tool bag that he was using for this project, and the key ring that would open all of the apartments. Naruto opened the apartment next to his and set up for the continued project. Seeing as he couldn't buy most of the stuff needed for this project Naruto asked Teuchi to buy the stuff Naruto thought he needed.
Everything was in full swing within an hour, and Naruto was happy with the progress that he was making. The wall had been knocked down with the exception of the support beam and he was in the process of cleaning up the mess that the wall left. Hinata's new place was going to be nice and large, with a big window so that she could see the village from the second best vantage point.
Naruto was still working on the layout and tearing out the second kitchen from the apartment he busted into that he wasn't aware that Hinata had returned and was watching him work. Hinata had to admit that even for a twelve year old he was doing an excellent job, though she wasn't sure why he did this. Not wanting to startle him while he was wielding a rather large mallet Hinata went to put the stuff that she bought away in his apartment.
Within an hour she had made a nice dinner of rice balls with assorted vegetables in the center of them. Hinata hoped that she made enough to feed the small armies worth of food that Naruto could put down if he tried. Seeing that Naruto hadn't arrived as of yet, Hinata decided to let him know that food was made. Walking next door she stopped in the doorway and watched as Naruto worked, and noticed the progress that he made in tearing down the kitchen.
"Naruto, I made food, come and eat." Hinata said when he took a short pause to see what was left to knock down. She watched as he stiffened up and turned around with a wide eyed look that was out of place in her company.
"Oh, hey Hinata" Naruto said as his hand moved to the back of his head to ruffle the hair there. "I didn't notice you get back, its dinner time already?" Naruto asked as he looked out the window to see the sky turning a reddish pink hue. "Whoa, time sure passed quickly. Want to tell me what happened over dinner?" Naruto watched her nod, and declared he was going to wash up a bit before eating.
As they sat at the small table that he had; both with a plate in front of them, and a mountain of rice balls between them Hinata explained what happened earlier that morning. Before long both of them were enjoying the atmosphere and the food. As dinner was coming to an end Hinata finally asked "What are you doing in the apartment next door? I was planning to clean it and move into there, but it seems as though you are tearing it apart."
"Ah, well you see I was making a place for you that was nice and large, so that you would have room to garden, and have a place for books if you so wanted. Someplace that was uniquely for you. I have been working on it over the past couple of months, that's why it's not even close to being done. Once I'm done with taking out the kitchen you saw me tearing apart I will start to add plaster and it will come together.
"Until it is done though you can have my bed, I normally fall asleep on the couch anyway." Naruto informed her. "I didn't want to let you know about the apartment yet I wanted to surprise you, but seeing as you know if it now, you can think of what colors you want to paint it. I will do all the work, or at least what I can do on my own and ask for help when needed." Naruto explained as he cleared the table from their dinner.
"Alright I can do that, but are you sure about me sleeping in your bed? I'm a guest here and I don't really want to take over your room." Hinata was shocked, even though she has known Naruto since they were little children but this seemed a bit much. She knew that Naruto was self sacrificing but this blew the cake off of a metaphorical table.
"Hinata, I wouldn't have offered my bedroom to you if I didn't mean it. Just let me clean it up a bit while you get settled, and make yourself at home." Naruto said. Still standing Naruto decided to get started on cleaning his room so that it was livable, and made his way there. He turned his head as he walked to tell her to leave the dishes in the sink and he'll get to them once he was done cleaning the room.
Walking into the room Naruto sighed at the state of disarray it was left in. He was in full cleaning swing within a few minutes after he opened the windows to let in fresh air. The sheets on the bed had been removed and the mattress flipped because it was so old and worn down. The clothes were sorted into piles to be washed at a later date, and the floor was swept. Soon the room almost looked new; all he needed to do was get some sheets to put on the bed and a blanket.
He walked back into the living room about thirty minutes later and let her know that the room was ready for her to sleep in. "Have you talked to jiji about everything, if not we will have to go in the morning." When she confirmed that she did talk to him, Naruto continued. "Alright well that's one of a few things you'll want to do. Seeing as you didn't bring a lot of stuff with you, tomorrow you will want to go get some clothes. So I'll give you some money for that, since your stipend won't start till next week. I know this sounds bad, but whatever you do, don't tell people you live here, because then you will either get kicked out of the store or the prices will be raised astronomically.
"You might want to get some groceries as well." Naruto wasn't shy about his love of ramen; however, his lack of cooking skill embarrassed him more. Not for the reason that most people thought but because no one had taken the time to teach him how, or would sell him a cook book so that he could teach himself. Hopefully Naruto thought with Hinata here he would be able to learn.
"Yes I did see the vast selection of ramen, and very little actual food, so I will be doing that tomorrow. Clothes can wait, I have enough to last me a week or two along with a few spare towels, and some other stuff. I also bought some cleaning supplies while I was out today, so I can help with the household chores." Hinata said, and though she had never cleaned a day in her life it would be a good place to start.
"That works, and now we can train together more often! This will be awesome! Tomorrow I'll treat you to Ichiraku ramen, it's the best place in the world, and I know that you'll love it. Teuchi and Ayame are the best people in the world." Naruto said in a very excited voice, it was almost childlike in glee and the bouncing he was doing just added to the picture.
Giggling at what she was seeing Hinata was excited for what was to happen tomorrow. It would be the first full day out from under the thumb of her family. "I would love to Naruto." Hinata said, and though she wasn't into ramen as much as Naruto was, she still enjoyed it.
"Alright!" jumping into the air and pumping his fist, Naruto reminded Hinata of some of the other students at the academy who got their way with their parents. "Seeing as it is getting late, would you like to shower first or last? I'm going to do dishes either way tonight, but if you shower first then you can get settled in the room while I shower and then we can just hang out." Naruto said, and Hinata agreed so she stood up and left the room taking with her a pair of night clothes, a towel and some shower stuff that she wanted.
As Hinata started the water she heard the pipes creak and to make sure that they wouldn't burst on her activated her byakugan. Once positive that she was safe from exploding pipes, she stripped down and got into the shower. She jumped around a bit due to the water being so hot, and figuring out that the pipes were finicky at best when it came to water temperature.
As Hinata showered, she felt so much more relaxed, even though when compared to the Hyuuga compound the apartment was much smaller, it still felt more welcome. Maybe it was because of Naruto, or something else, but this place felt more like home. Once Hinata was done with lathering and rinsing she shut off the water grabbed a towel and started drying her persons. Starting with her hair and working her way down to her toes until she was satisfied that she was dry enough to don her yukata without getting it to wet.
Hinata walked out of the bathroom a peal of steam following her into the somewhat cooler apartment. She watched as Naruto finished up the last of the dishes and put it into the rack. "Naruto, the shower is open now. Though I wish you had warned me that the hot water doesn't like to be used much. I thought the pipes were going to burst." Hinata said with a smile on her face to take away from the chastising tone in her voice.
"Ah, I'm sorry I had forgotten about that. I guess when one gets used to cold showers on a constant basis that person then forgets to warn his best friend about the hot water being jumpy. It's one of the things I'll be working on once I become a genin. I've started saving money to fix this place up and one day if I settle down maybe rent this place out. The only reason I can't really do that now is because people don't really want to live where the 'demon' lives." The sadness and anger in his voice with that one word couldn't be more apparent.
"Its fine Naruto, I can get used to cold showers, it shouldn't be hard. If you can do it, then so can I! Plus it's about to be summer time, and the fire nation is hot so I don't see a problem with it. During the summer I can just draw a bath and boil some water to put into cold bathwater for a lukewarm temperature and it'll be fine." Hinata told him as she gave him a small hug. "Now mister, you march into that bathroom and take a shower and then we'll discuss arrangements for how this will all work."
Nodding his head he went into his room to grab a change of clothes and a towel. Looking around he realized he was going to have to do laundry soon; otherwise it was going to start to stink. Shaking his head Naruto headed into the bathroom. Closing the door Naruto stripped down, turned on the water and got into the shower. The initial shock was always something that would affect him, but at least he didn't scream from it anymore.
Taking care to wash all the vital areas he was out of the shower in about ten minutes. Naruto made sure to dry off as much as possible before donning his clothes. Hanging the towel on the back of the bathroom door Naruto stepped out of the small room and felt refreshed. Donned in clean clothes he went to put the dirty ones in the pile; that was getting obscenely large, hiding in the closet.
He walked into the living room and sat down on the couch next to Hinata, "I'm going to have to do laundry tomorrow. So you probably won't see me for the better half of the day, due to having to do it all manually, though if you do need to find me, I'll be behind the head of the third." He said with a small smile on his face, it was one of the few places he felt safe.
"I might join you after I've gone grocery shopping. Hokage-sama said that he would advance the stipend that I'd receive so that I can purchase food. Plus I want to pick your brain tomorrow about some of the stuff you showed me." Hinata said before she let loose a jaw cracking yawn.
"Alright, you have had a busy day, one that seems to have left you exhausted if that yawn was anything to go by" Naruto laughed as Hinata sent him a glare, " So you head to bed and get a good night's sleep, tomorrow will probably be just as busy trying to dodge your fathers will to seal you." Naruto intoned, "Just let me grab some sheets from the room and then you'll be able to pass out. The room has been gone over by ANBU this month so you should be fine, plus they watch me so you'll be safe."
"Alright" Hinata was pleased to be out of the rule of her father, however, they hadn't had the discussion that she had planned but there was always tomorrow to accomplish that. Hinata didn't want to become like Shikamaru in constantly pushing everything off and saying it was too troublesome, and though she was pushing this talk aside it was because they were both tired.
A/N: Alright you'll notice that most of this is still the same, most of the changes are happening in the next chapter because that is where my tangent went off base with the plot I had in store for this story. It will be slow going, so please bear with me.
Added to that you'll notice that my chapter length has grown rapidly, it is mainly because I have added together all of the old chapters and am revising them as I go. Hopefully, they will roughly stay within this length if not be a bit longer. It would be good for me to learn how to type up long chapters considering I enjoy reading long chapters. So I am sure a lot of you do as well.