EDIT: Sorry for spamming your inbox if you have this fic on alert, but for some reason this didn't want to publish. Chapter remains unchanged, sorry for any inconvenience caused.

Again, a slower update that I would have liked but this time I actually have a legitimate reason. I've had flu and pneumonia for a month, but now I'm recovering and able to get down to writing again. This chapter's a bit on the short side, but hopefully it won't disappoint. Enjoy!


Hanabi was still by the wall when Naruto vaulted over, close enough that he nearly bowled right into her. She dodged, of course, and glared at him. "What did you forget?" She snapped.

"Uh..." He wasn't sure what would get him punched, and took a quick step back just in case. "I just wanted to check I hadn't, er, scared you then or anything." His face insisted on smiling, though that was probably a bad idea right now. Sure enough, her expression flicked to rage, then into blankness. Kinda like when he really pissed Sasuke off.

"That is. Not. An issue. Is that all? I thought you had a message-" She sneered briefly, "-for my sister, and maybe forgot part of it in your rush to leave."

A message? Oh yeah, shit, that's how he'd convinced her to come out here in the first place. "Um, no...I didn't have anything to add." She glared harder, and he tried again to appease her. "I'm sorry I did that so suddenly, I didn't mean to. Well, I didn't mean to upset you, anyway."

"Idiot." Seriously, she sounded like a cross between Neji and Sasuke, and he would have found it funny if she didn't look scarier than both. "I'm a kunoichi, do you really think a fool like you kissing me would upset me?"

And now she was breaking out the word-stressing thing Sakura sometimes did. Crap. He began to panic "I just- I didn't mea-"

"Shut up." She spat, and grabbed him by the collar, yanking him forward unceremoniously and locking her lips to his. This wasn't so much a brushing of lips as a mash. There were teeth and tongue involved too, and that was kind of disgusting on some level because she was Hinata's kid sister. Her mouth was amazingly warm and demanding, considering she looked so blank on the outside.

He tried not to pant as Hanabi let go of her grip on his collar and pulled away. Her lips looked too red for her face. It didn't stop her sneering again, but some of the contempt in it was lost in the puffy colour. "If that's all you were here for, I'll be sure to pass your regard to my sister." He stared, not sure of his own ears. Had she just said she was going to kiss her- "You can go now." She bit out.

He decided to think about it all later, when he was a long long way from the Hyuuga estate and all its crazy residents.

#

Sakura awoke to the footsteps of the postman – the same one her apartment had been served by ever since she'd moved in, which was good because she knew his footsteps really well by now and her senses didn't go haywire when he stopped by her door. Her eyes felt thick and crusty, so she slung herself up from the warmth of her bed and wandered to the bathroom mirror.

Last night's eyeliner had been a bitch to remove, and she'd given up because, after all, she didn't need to look good today. Her grin was lopsided in the mirror, and she didn't give a damn. She'd done it! She'd got Akio to kiss her at the bottom of the block, suddenly realising that she didn't want him knowing her exact address. He'd been oddly quiet on the walk, but when she reached the code-locked first entrance door – her block had three different sets, to cater to the more paranoid tenants – and she'd turned to him expectantly, he'd finally got the hint.

As first kisses went, she was sure it was mediocre. He had been too gentle, too civilian – all cupping her cheek and softly pressing his lip to hers – nothing properly passionate. But of course, she reminded herself as she showered and rubbed the grey stains around her eyes mercilessly with soap, it didn't matter. She never had to see him again, and she could do what she liked for the next two days. Her mission was complete, at least once she'd got her report written up.

Humming in contentment and wondering how to spend all her newly freed up time, Sakura dressed in beautifully un-dressy clothes, and scrummed down an un-lady-like breakfast. She left the plates in a wobbly pile to wash later, and by the time she reached the front door, felt gratifyingly herself again. Playing mind games and manipulation just wasn't comfortable, she'd spent enough years pretending to be what she wasn't as a kid.

There was post for her. Not just the normal array of bills and acknowledgements of mission reports submitted or overtime work at the hospital paid. No. Today, there were flowers in her mail.

She picked up the bound bunch and examined them, just barely keeping from frowning. Nobody but Ino had ever given her flowers, and those Ino had given her were always the week's leftovers from the shop, so they didn't really count. Her teammates and co-workers at the hospital didn't really give gifts – her last birthday Tsunade had offered to take her out gambling and Naruto had tried for a date, but only Ino had given her a card and nobody else had given her any presents. And that was fine by her, if that was the trade-in for being respected and useful in her village.

But someone had sent her flowers today. They were tulips, pink ones and white ones in a tight bundle wrapped around in pink ribbon, and while they didn't quite match her hair, it was close enough to make her suspicious. There was no message attached, but she had an uneasy feeling they were from a certain civilian idiot.

Good mood wavering – after all it was nice to be given something beautiful, even if she didn't really want it – Sakura headed back inside to find something to use as a vase. Fumbling in the depths of her crowded crockery cupboard, she made the mistake of looking out the window. A sandy haired form with bad posture looked back, smile visible from three stories up.

She threw open the window, still holding her flowers, and leaned out. Enough was enough. First flowers, and now he was watching her? "What the hell are you doing here?"

He waved and she scowled – waving wasn't an explanation, nor a retreat. She didn't have time for lovestruck idiots. Brandishing her bouquet-filled fist for effect, she tried again. "I said, what the hell are you doing here, Akio!"

"Do you like the flowers, kunoichi?" He called back, seemingly undeterred.

Sakura's brain suddenly clicked into gear. "And how the hell did you find out where I lived to send me flowers?"

"I waited outside the block for the postman, I assumed he'd know which apartment the 'girl with pink hair' lived in. There can't be that many like you around!" She ground her teeth and ignored that. And he'd seemed so safely dim at first, how could she have misjudged him so?

Her brain clicked again, this time more of a spasm, and she nearly dropped her flowers. He'd called her 'kunoichi'. Of course, he must've known from the moment she'd walked him to this side of town. Stupid, stupid planning – he'd been so benignly dull that she'd just assumed he knew nothing about the town layout, that he would just swallow her story of being a traveller if she let him talk about the village and didn't correct his mistakes.

She gritted her teeth around the knowledge that she'd underestimated her opponent. Now, she would have to drive him away somehow...

Speculatively, she eyed the bundle in her hand. It wasn't too heavy – wouldn't cause him any damage she could get disciplined over – but it sent the right message. And she couldn't get the damn vase out to put the flowers in anyway, so they might as well be put to good use.

Decision made, she hurled the bright bouquet, flowers first, at the smiling man below. His reflexes were civilian, so she had time to twist herself out of the window and run round the side of the building and out of sight behind the guttering before he realised quite what had hit him. Crouching behind an air-con unit, Sakura considered her options for the rest of the day. Hopefully the flowers had got the message aross and Akio would stop bothering her, but she didn't feel confident about that. It would be better to play it safe and take refuge away from home to write her report.

Now, where would be the last place a civilian would set foot?

#

Naruto woke to the metallic clanging of his new clock, and an inexplicable feeling of dread. His dreams had been full of Neji, alternately trying to kiss him and then attack him. That, and Kakashi, who had lurked in the background, sniggering into his book. He hit the clock and sat up, mind still running over that second kiss and wondering why all the Hyuuga clan were so weird.

Still, it was a new day today, and he was done with all that. Today he could train, and when Sasuke was recovered he'd be so for behind it would be funny. That was a much better way to start the day, thinking about beating the Bastard always made him feel good.

He put a double portion of ramen on to boil and went in search of clean clothes. At least, he was pretty sure they were clean. The important thing was that they smelled decent, and that he got them on before the ramen overcooked and went soggy.

His eating time didn't quite make any new records, but he was out of the apartment soon enough, into the spring air and the sounds of the town waking up. He headed to training field nine on top of the hokage monument, because it was on the other side of town from the Hyuugas, and he'd never met Neji's or Hinata's teams there. It was the least used of all the training grounds, and he didn't feel like being interrupted today, especially by vengeful family members.

When he arrived the place was chilly and empty, except for some wildlife that escaped into the scrubby undergrowth when he got close. He filled the sloping field with clones and had them spread out in pairs for some hand-to-hand as a warmup, but they'd only just got started when he felt a whole bunch of them cancel themselves.

He tried to interpret all the memories flooding him, and got a kick in the side from his sparring partner as he lost focus. Wincing, Naruto dispelled the jutsu and peered around the suddenly smoky landscape. Somehow, he was feeling uneasy again, and it didn't improve as the hilltop wind cleared the air.

Someone was walking over, straight at him. Someone with dark hair and no colour to their eyes, from what he could tell at this distance. It had to be a Hyuuga, nobody else had any reason to follow him up here. But at least the guy – he thought it was a guy, anyway – wasn't outright attacking. There wouldn't be any use in trying to run away and hide, what with the Hyuuga bloodline, and he wasn't a coward anyway. It would probably make a better impression if he met the man halfway.

Weirdly, when he got close, the man knelt down on one knee. "You are Uzumaki Naruto?" Asked the guy softly, almost respectfully, and Naruto responded without thinking.

"That's me!"

"I am here to inform you that Hyuuga Hiashi-sama requests a meeting with you at your earliest convenience."