Enjoy!
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"What?"
"Say what you said again."
Naruto quirked a brow. "I...read the scrolls?"
"And?" Tsunade prompted.
"...Highlighted parts I thought could use some revision."
Tsunade stared at him, face unreadable. Naruto fidgeted in his seat, peeking at Shizune, who looked both shocked by his actions and confused by Tsunade's.
"Was I...not supposed to write on them or something?"
"That's not it," Shizune said. "It's just... That was very productive of you, Naruto."
His confusion heightened. "You're saying you both are surprised I read them?"
"You read them, analyzed them, and have new ideas to offer. Do not take this personally, but that's very unlike you, um, lately."
He supposed that was a compliment. Then again, he was going to be Hokage soon, so they should expect him to put in more effort than usual. Maybe he really was out of it up until now.
"Let me see," Tsunade demanded, suspiciously irritable.
Naruto frowned, handing her the scrolls. "You don't have to look like I'm wasting your time."
"Until proven otherwise, I should assume you are."
Naruto said nothing as Tsunade looked over the scrolls. He could have made a fuss and countered her statement, but he'd let his actions speak on his behalf.
As Tsunade read the scrolls with new eyes, the room was filled with an air of anticipation. Shizune was stiff, awaiting the Yell Fest that would surely follow. Naruto sat back in his chair, staring out the window behind the blonde woman, and calculated ways to make this session fly by the fastest.
When Tsunade looked at him again, she was highly impressed but refused to let it show. Naruto looked at her, and the two were locked in a tense staring contest, with Naruto's overflowing sureness conquering.
"Well," Tsunade began, blinking once, "do you have the written statements to counter these old rules?"
Naruto's eyes widened, one hand coming to rub his chin. "Written statements?"
"Yes, Naruto, written statements. I told you before that you need to be ready to come up with alternatives for-"
"Yeah, I got those." Naruto pulled a packet of papers from his jacket, holding it up with an oh-so naive look on his face. After observing Tsunade's blatant astonishment, he smirked, eyes lowering coyly. "Typed. Double spaced. I even made the font big enough for your granny eyes."
The women went slack-jawed, unable to come up with anything to say.
Since when did he have patience with technology?
o0o0o
"So that's all, right?" Naruto asked, stretching as he stood. "Treaties, customs, events."
"Yeah." Tsunade rubbed her temple, staring at the young man wearily.
"Great. You want me to take that," he gestured to the packet he brought, "to those old guys before I leave?"
"No... No, I want to go over it one more time. Just... You can go."
Naruto stared for a moment before smirking knowingly, turning to leave. Tsunade watched as the door closed behind him. When his footsteps could no longer be heard, she let out a loud huff, throwing herself back in her chair.
"Time."
Shizune blinked, stumped for a second. "Oh, it's...half past eleven."
An hour.
Naruto had reduced their usual twelve hour sessions to one—single—hour.
And he had done most of the talking.
"I really hate arrogance," the Senju muttered, glancing at Shizune. "But I really hate justified arrogance. Since when did he get so...good?"
Shizune shrugged. "It seems to have happened overnight."
"Was he just messing with us?" Tsunade asked, looking as though she just had an epiphany. "Those years where he was moping and groaning, was he really just bidding his time for some...massive comeback? Is this one huge 'Fuck you'-"
"Lady Tsunade!
"-for all those times people put him down?"
"Well... I don't know if it's exactly that, but he has matured greatly. Maybe we can just see it better now that he's gotten over Lady Hyuuga and Uchiha Sasuke's departure."
"You mean Hinata's kidnapping and Sasuke's great escape?" She sighed, unconsciously strumming the handle leading to her saké bottle. "Whatever the case, he's definitely feeling like the same old Naruto, with interest."
With his hands in his pockets, parted lips revealing his tongue pressed against his teeth, and his mind thoroughly delved into his thoughts, people couldn't help but stare. The few who saw him the day before knew something was different about him, but now he was striking chords in all who was present to witness it.
Yet no one quite knew what it was about the Uzumaki that made him so...striking.
His overwhelming aura?
The utterly purposeful steps he took?
His suddenly resurfaced charm with the latent air of mystery?
Naruto vaguely smiled to himself, finding a particular thought amusing, and allowed his feet to lead him to Ichiraku. When he arrived at the ramen shop, Teuchi had to do a double take, his final look fully taking in the blond.
"Something wrong?" Naruto asked, concerned, as he took a seat.
"No..." the man said, a smile soon spreading across his features. "Not at all, my boy! I almost didn't recognize you with this good attitude."
Naruto tilted his head, biting his inner lip. "Was I really so different before?"
"You gotta understand, Naruto. You spent the first sixteen years of your life gracing us with loud antics and bright smiles."
"It was only a little while that it stopped."
Teuchi laughed. "Sorry, but it seems you spoiled us. So, what'll you have?"
"What's the special for the day?"
"Well... I could tell you, but..." The man coughed. "I only said that because I thought you would get the usual."
"I will," Naruto grinned. "I only asked to be polite."
Teuchi smiled genuinely, shaking his head, his heart swelling. "Glad to have you back."
o0o0o
Naruto walked down the street, trying to kill time. Somewhere between leaving the Hokage Tower and his second bowl of ramen, he realized he had accumulated a lot of money over the years, and he now decided to spend some of it. He stopped by an old dango shop and bought some high-priced dango.
They were disgusting.
Next was an ice cream stand where he ordered a cone with three scoops of chocolate. With the combination of ramen and bad dango, the frozen treat wasn't exactly appetizing.
He poured out the ice cream near an ant bed and ate the cone.
A small bakery caught his eye and, for the heck of it, he bought a bag of cookies he didn't intend to eat any time soon. All in all, he managed to waste thirty minutes and decided he didn't have to pretend with himself.
He turned around and made his way toward the Main Gates.
Still oblivious to the stares that had followed him since he left his apartment, Naruto wondered why he felt so good. On the inside, he felt light and slightly jittery. On the outside, it just felt so good to be him.
He ran a hand through his hair—making unsuspecting villagers swoon—and absently sent a particular, unintentionally sultry glance toward a group of passerbys, which resulted in the stumbling of feet and flustered gasps.
"You wanna tone down the sex appeal just a bit?"
Naruto stopped, turning, and noticed Kiba and Akamaru near a tree behind him. "Hey." He grinned. "Whatcha guys doin'?"
Kiba eyed him for a moment, sniffing the air. "Why do you smell so...different?"
"Sme-? Do I smell bad?"
"This scent... I've smelled it before." He walked over to him, sniffing more intently.
Naruto watched him, a bit uneasy at his implication. "Really? Wouldn't know why."
"Eh, it could just be all in my head." Kiba stopped in front of him, seemingly sizing him up. "But, tell me, what have you been up to these last few days?"
"Uh," Naruto took a step back, "what's bothering you?"
Kiba didn't say anything for a long moment. It was then that Naruto noticed just how fatigued the Inuzuka looked and wondered what could have brought it on.
Kiba sighed, shaking his head. "I haven't been sleeping well," he admitted. "Which must explain why my sense of smell has been off."
"Oh—uh—yeah? What do you mean?"
"I think I'm catching Hinata's scent."
Naruto went rigid.
"But it doesn't really smell like her to begin with, so maybe I'm just imagining it." He looked at him pointedly. "But then I'm catching the scent on you. Kinda. It's all throwing me off."
"Oh... Well, why not ask Akamaru? His nose is more accurate, right?" And Naruto cringed as the words left his mouth because why was he putting ideas in his head?
"He's in the same boat as me," Kiba explained, not noticing Naruto's turmoil. "We tried following the scent but it stops on one of the rooftops—if it's really there at all." He shrugged. "We could just be imagining it."
"Yeah... There really wouldn't be a reason for Hinata to be back after all this time."
Kiba raised a brow. "You sound so sure. But maybe you're right. I should just drop it." He turned, waving Akamaru to follow as he walked. "I'll be at Sakura's place."
Naruto watched him, alert when the brunette stopped, not turning back to face him.
"But you would tell me if you saw her, wouldn't you?" Kiba muttered.
"Ah... Sakura?"
Kiba turned his head, fixing the blond with a threatening glare.
"I..." Naruto looked away briefly. "If Hinata returned to the village, yeah, I'd tell you."
"Under those conditions, huh?"
With no more words, the two went their separate ways.
He'd be lying if he said his encounter with Kiba didn't dampen his mood. It never really crossed his mind to tell anyone about Hinata's appearance. It almost made him wonder if he would have told Sakura if Hinata herself had not requested the kunoichi.
But why should he have to tell anyone?
Hinata had made it clear her stay was temporary, so her family and former team should be spared the fluctuation of emotions he had experienced himself. Besides, if they had the chance to meet her, he was almost certain she would leave quicker than she intended, and, well... If she took the risk of coming all the way back here, maybe she deserved to not be bothered by them.
And...maybe him?
He served his purpose. If he thought about it, she wouldn't have visited him at all had Sakura been home. If it wasn't for that minor mishap, he wouldn't have known she was here...
But...
All the possibilities didn't matter because he did know, and things finally felt normal. He wasn't doing anything particularly wrong. He was sure he only kept coming back to keep Sakura company, so any other concern trying to burden him could be pushed to the side.
And it was.
When he made his way over to the cave, he was slightly surprised to see Hinata exiting—as though to meet him.
"Naruto," she greeted, walking over the less than durable foliage. "Nice to see you—again."
"Am I interrupting something?"
"No, you just came on your own this time, so I was wondering if something happened."
"Ah—no. I thought I'd keep Sakura company, but I guess she hasn't come yet."
Hinata frowned slightly, and he was so sure she was skeptical of something he said. "Sakura already came this morning. She should be at the hospital now, but... Well, to be honest, I'm surprised you didn't know that."
He shrugged. "I haven't exactly been keeping up with everyone lately."
"No?" She frowned deeper. "Why's that?"
"Ya know-"
You left me.
"-Hokage business."
Hinata became silent, eyes slightly wide, and took to looking at him in some state of surprise. As the seconds passed, Naruto's face gradually scrunched as his self-consciousness grew.
"Hi-"
"You're Hokage?" she asked.
"Hokage in training," he amended. "Yeah, it won't be official until next year. Maybe... Those old guys in charge of this stuff keep raving on and on about how they let it slide that Grandma Tsunade didn't have a husband 'cause she was, ya know, a little old, but they want me to at least... At least... Uh..."
"Get...married?" she offered, trying to fill in the blanks.
"Yeah... Yeah, married." He scrunched a brow, looking to the side. "I don't see what that has to do with protecting the village, though."
"I'm confused. Why not get married?"
He didn't answer her. His eyes were drawn to the abundance of trees, and something inside him sparked in an almost painful jolt, the lingering effects ebbing along his nerves until he no longer knew what he felt. Slowly, he looked at her, his blue eyes dark and clouded. Her eyes were unaffected and still held confusion and curiosity; she obviously didn't notice a change.
"I'm sorry, what?" he said, cocking his head to the side, mind clearing.
"Why don't you just get married?"
"Who would I marry?"
She leaned back slightly, her confusion mounting. "Are... Aren't you... You're not dating Sakura?"
"What?" Now he was confused. "She has a boyfriend."
Hinata's head tilted downward. "Boyfriend? It's not you?"
"Wha?! No, it's not me! Why would you think it would be me?"
"I... Hm." She looked a way briefly, her lips puckering in thought. "That's...weird, Naruto." She looked back at him, silent for a few seconds, and decided to smile. "Glad to hear about you becoming Hokage, though."
He rolled his eyes, smiling himself. "Yeah, thanks."
"Well, if Sakura comes back today, I'll tell her you stopped by."
He hadn't expected that. Watching her walk back toward the cave, he realized he expected to spend a good portion of his day here because, really, he had nothing else to do. He looked around for a moment, thinking.
"Kiba can smell you."
"Ki-" Hinata spun around. "Kiba? What do you mean?"
"I saw him before I came here. He says he's been smelling a scent that's kinda like yours."
Hinata didn't know what to say. She pressed her fingers to her collarbone, troubled. "Did he really say that?"
"I wouldn't lie to you."
"Oh..." Another moment passed by in silence. "And... What did you... What did he say he would do about it?"
"You know, it'd be better if I start from the beginning."
"What's the beginning?"
"When you left."
"Ah... I don't want-"
"I have cookies," he said, lifting the bag. "How long has it been since you've had something sweet?"
She hesitated, her fingers strumming her shoulder. "What kind are they?"
"Chocolate."
"Chip?"
He frowned, lowering it. "No... Just chocolate."
"...One cookie, Naruto. One."
Amused, he laughed, rolling his eyes, and waved her over. "Yes, ma'am. Whatever you say."
That Evening
"You know you don't live here, right?"
Kiba and Keita looked at Sakura, both sitting on the living room sofa.
"Dude," Kiba looked at the other brunette, "I think you just got dumped."
Keita blinked repeatedly, tears springing to his eyes. "I can't believe you're doing this to me!" he wailed, flinging himself in the arms of the Inuzuka. "Sakura, I love you!"
"Dammit, woman!" Kiba fired dramatically, rubbing the back of the sobbing man. "Can't you see that he is hurting?! Hurting!"
"I gave her the best years of my life!"
"The very best!"
"I cooked and cleaned!"
"He slaved!"
"I made sure to keep myself in shape!"
"He's not even a ninja!"
"I gave her my mind, body, and soul!"
"You! Took! Everything!"
"Oh my god, stop," Sakura groaned, rubbing her temples and forcing away a smile. "It's always something with you guys."
Both men laughed, adjusting themselves on the sofa. Sakura stared at the nearly identical ways their teeth gleamed and the way their laughs were like echoes of each other.
She cringed. "So, Kiba, what are you doing here? I can't afford to feed both you and that one right there."
"Tck." Kiba jabbed a thumb at the man beside him. "You're not the only one who finds him interesting."
She huffed. "You guys are basically twins, so I can't even say I'm surprised."
"Which makes me wonder why you never decided to date him," Keita said.
Kiba and Sakura looked at each other in disgust.
"Don't ever be that stupid again." Kiba groaned, shaking himself. "She's lucky she got a guy like you, so don't make her upset because she couldn't get a true treasure. Not like she could if she tried."
"Eh, I'd say I'm the lucky one," Keita said, giving his girlfriend a seductive wink—or his best attempt.
"Eh, whatever."
"You both are exhausting," Sakura sighed, turning out the door. "I'm gonna take a shower."
"By the way!" Keita called. "I got a job working at the Yamanaka's shop!"
Sakura turned, eyeing him skeptically. "Ino's shop?"
"Yeah. It was the only place to hire me, really."
"Eh... You and Naruto get along, right? Why not just wait until he becomes Hokage so you can get a good job?"
"Because I don't want my first favor to him to be a job request."
Sakura shrugged. If she thought about it, she hadn't seen Naruto today. She wondered if he made it to his meeting with Tsunade at all. Moreover, thinking of Naruto made her think of Hinata, and Hinata always pulled her thoughts to Sasuke—and vis versa.
She debated with herself before ultimately sighing. "I'm going out."
"You just got home."
"Yeah, but I forgot to check up on one of my patients."
"It wasn't Hanabi?" Hinata gasped.
Naruto shook his head, offering her another cookie. "Your clan hasn't mingled much with the village, but I remember the announcement when Neji took over."
"Neji did..." She nibbled on the treat. "And marriage?"
"Is Neji married? No idea."
"Wow... Neji... Do you know what happened to Hanabi then?"
Naruto shook his head. "It's very, very rare to see anyone from your clan these days."
"I see... And you said Kiba and Sakura are close friends now?"
"I said Kiba is close friends with her boyfriend, so the two are kinda friends by default. Heh, but you should see this guy. He's so much like Kiba it's a little... It's just weird." Naruto noticed she was almost done with her cookie and reached in the bag to retrieve another. "Oh... All gone."
Hinata jolted. "I ate them all?"
"Huh. Looks like you did." He shot her a grin. "All twelve? You must have been hungry."
Her cheeks tinted, hands flying to cover her mouth. "I am so sorry. Why didn't you say anything?"
He shrugged. "Too busy talking."
Hinata looked around, the sound of chirping birds alerting her to the giant shift in time. She jumped to her feet, realizing she had gotten distracted.
Naruto stood as well. "What's wrong?"
She looked to the cave. A bright, cackling light was illuminating the dark space. "Sasuke!"
She ran inside, Naruto ready to follow her.
"Naruto." He turned just as Sakura landed behind him. She was about to speak but looked in the cave when she realized the noise she heard was close. "What happened?!"
Naruto had no time to answer before Sakura darted inside. He quickly followed behind and saw Hinata kneeling next to Sasuke, holding his left arm down as a particularly large, extremely heat inducing Chidori was gathered in his palm. The Hyuuga was engulfed in the attack.
"Hinata!" Naruto yelled, but Sakura stopped him from getting closer.
"Hinata!" Sakura yelled. "Just wait until it passes!"
Hinata's Byakugan was activated, and she struggled to gather chakra of her own into her hand. Ignoring the pain, she feverishly blocked the Uchiha's tenketsu points. The Chidori tapered off, stopping completely. Hinata huffed, Byakugan still activated, and looked him over carefully.
Sakura quickly approached, immediately drawn to the burns around the Hyuuga's arms and face.
"I wasn't paying attention," Hinata said, wincing at her injuries. "I got distracted."
"Just be still." Sakura placed her hands over Hinata's arms, healing her. "I won't have much energy to heal him after this."
"Then just-"
"I'm not just going to let you sleep out here with fresh burns. Sasuke can wait."
"What was that?" Naruto asked, looking over the Uchiha who was, in fact, unconscious. "How did...that even happen?"
"He's been forming attacks in his sleep," Sakura muttered. "It wasn't this bad this morning, though."
"He's getting better," Hinata smiled half-heartedly. "He does this a lot when we move to a new place."
"That's not healthy," Sakura snapped. "For either of you. He could seriously hurt someone."
"I'm usually there to stop it before it starts," Hinata said. "But...like I said, I got distracted."
"I noticed," Sakura muttered.
o0o0o
When Sakura was done healing Hinata, she and Naruto left for the night. She was not pleased with today, though most of it had to do with the hospital.
"He's going to be better soon," she mentioned as they walked back to the gates.
"Is he," Naruto said, not much emotion on his part.
"She's really going to need to watch him until he wakes up, so she can't get distracted like she did today."
"It was an accident."
"Naruto..." Sakura had to find her words. "You got your closure, right? You're over her?"
He huffed. "I already told you."
"So if that's the case, it's best if you stop going there."
"We weren't doing anything wrong."
"It's just not...safe. For any of you. Things with you are starting to fall back into place, but if you keep going around her-"
"Nothing is going to happen, Sakura. Things are different-"
"And she's different-"
"Yeah, I've noticed."
Sakura pulled him to a stop, looking him dead on. "Maybe I've lost my right to say this, but I know you, Naruto. You think you're in control of this situation, but you're not. Trust me, you're not."
"Maybe you have lost your right to say that because I'm telling you I'm fine. Talking to her isn't-"
"Why talk to her? Why not talk to the friends that will still be here in two weeks? Talk to the friends who have been waiting for you to get better. Don't try to get close to her, because she's just going to leave you again."
"Maybe it's different this time! If she's different, and I'm different, maybe it won't end that way!"
"Do you hear yourself?! Just what do you think is going to happen between the two of you!"
"We can-!" He forced himself to stop. What did he think would happen? He wasn't trying to make anything happen, so maybe he wasn't trying to start it. Maybe he was hoping things would...
That maybe...
He let out a sound of frustration, storming off and leaving Sakura behind.
It had started off as such a good day.
Hinata sat in the darkness of the cave. She had put out the fire; it was far too warm for it anyway. With a makeshift fan made out of leaves, she fanned the unconscious Uchiha and made sure to catch every movement he made.
It was well into the night when she began to doze off. Sasuke shifted, causing her to jerk awake, activating her Byakugan.
"Hinata..."
Her Byakugan stopped, eyes squinting as though to bring back that sleep riddled voice.
"Where are we?"