Woot! Finally I finished. You all are probably wondering. Oh my goodness. You updated so fast. (Faster than usual.)Well, I had a lot of free time on my hand (stranded in the middle of nowhere with only my phone) and decided (resorted to for my only entertainment) to get this finished. Took longer than I expected, but I got it done. Enjoy.

-

He couldn't believe out off all the things that he could do, he forgot to sign his name at the end of the report. After he signed those annoying paper and that small dilemma was resolved, he had his mind set on returning strait back to the library. If he hadn't been dragged off by Iruka. Boy, did he like to talk a lot. He finished the conversation as fast as he could¸ ready to sprint back if he had to. Luck had to be on his side because he was out of there in no time.

"Are you sure nothing happened when I was gone?" Naruto asked again for the millionth time that afternoon. He watched as the sun dropping near the distant waters.

"I am absolutely positive that nothing bad happened," Hinata replied giving him the sincerest of smile before turning back again to the sea.

"They didn't suspect anything, did they?" Naruto asked, turning back to look at her. She slowly inhaled and releasing the air slowly, her smile fading away.

"No, I don't think they did," Hinata said, her eyes averting even farther away from him. A little nudge in his mind told him there was something more, but choose to ignore it.

"That's good then," Naruto said gladly. The sound of the washing waters then filled the air before Naruto spoke again. "Hinata." She turned to look at him. Their eyes locked on to one another. "I promise, I will never ditch you like that ever again." A small smile crept on to Hinata's face. He felt a poke against his shoulder. "As a matter of fact, I'll make sure you aren't in any danger of anyone finding out your secret." The poke on his shoulder turned into a nudge. Hinata giggled softly, the smile on her face turning larger.

"Thank you," Hinata said, the words almost coming out silent. He couldn't help but smile. The annoying nudge quickly turned into a full-force attack. The image of Hinata quickly faded away to a loud, crowded restaurant. Naruto looked around devastated. The sandy shores he was on was nowhere to be found.

"What the hell are you smiling at?" The realization hit him like a ton of bricks as Naruto turned back to his group of friends at one of the long tables in the back of the restaurant. Sasuke sat in front of him; Kiba and Shino occupied the seats next to him; Shikamaru and Chouji sat diagonally from him. All of them stopped their conversations, and stared at the day-dreaming blond.

"Uh, What?" Naruto replied, his smile vanished turning into a sheepish grin.

"I said," Sasuke began, sounding very annoyed. "What are you smiling?" He looked over to where Naruto's eyes were previously glued, which happened to be the wooden wall of the restaurant. "Does wood make you happy?"

"No, it's nothing," Naruto replied shaking his head. "I was just thinking about something, that's all." He looked down at the table, remembering why he was here in the first place. To eat. "Uh, right." Naruto looked at the table filled with food. It reminded him distinctly of his room before Hinata came along.

"He's not paying attention," Shikamaru stated, shaking his head slowly returning to his lunch. "Doesn't surprise me." Kiba suddenly snapped his fingers grabbing the guys' attention.

"That reminds me," Kiba began picking up a piece of steak and shoving it in his mouth. "What's up with that guy you were hanging with yesterday." Naruto yelp in pain, quickly covering his mouth with his hand.

"Who me?" Naruto asked his tongue hanging out of his mouth. The bite marks fresh at the tip. He didn't expect the person he was thinking about was going to be today's lunch conversation.

"Yeah, you," Kiba replied angrily, his mouth full of steak. "That poor guy." He shook his head. "What was his name again?"

"I believe his name was Hinata," Shino replied monotony.

"Wait, hold up a second," Shikamaru interrupted¸ holding up a hand. "Who are you talking about?" Kiba cleared his throat.

"Long story short. Naruto brought some lost traveler to the library to look at the maps, who didn't have a clue what to look for," Kiba blabbered, shaking his head sadly. "Naruto confused the poor fellow about the landscape around here."

"What are you talking about? I did no such thing."Naruto quickly spat out, slamming down his cup on the table.

"I'm talking about that 'sea' by the forest near your house," Kiba spat back, including the air quotes with his words. "The guy thought that there was water."

"Because there is water over there." Kiba brush his comment away like dirt on his cloths.

"Everyone knows there's nothing but a waste land over there. If you're going to say something, you better have some proof to back it up." Kiba crossed his arms, looking at Naruto smugly. Naruto glared at him. He couldn't believe what he was arguing over.

"If I brought you there, will that be enough proof." Kiba grinned.

"Is that an invitation?" Naruto paused.

"Oh no you don't," He began. "I'm not going to fall for that. You're not coming over to my place..."

"I'll bring over some of the good stuff," Kiba whispered, almost inaudible. Naruto froze. Low mumbles of approval broke out in the group. It had been a while since they had done something like that in a while. No, he thought to himself. Then that would jeopardized Hinata's state. He couldn't do something like that. He mustn't. He repeated this in his head nearly a million times, before opening his mouth to reply.

-

Hinata was sitting Indian style at the living room table, a large book laid in her lap. It first caught her eye when she was fixing up Naruto's room. It was a child's manual guide. Specifically, they were instructions on simple everyday tasks, such as how to eat properly, how to clean clothes, how to keep your room clean, which she found quite humorous. Simple tasks that she'd been taught when she was younger.

She could tell that it was custom made by the little marks that said "Ramen twenty-four seven isn't healthy for you" and "Leaving your clothes on the floor does not count as decoration." She was a little bit sadden at the thought of the fact it was made for a child who lived by himself. The sound of an opening and closing door startled her out her little world. She scrambled the book closed and quickly shoved it under the small table out of sight. The room door slide opened revealing a blond ninja in the entrance.

"Welcome home," Hinata happily said, watching him slowly close the door behind him.

"Oh, uh, thanks," Naruto answered surprisingly, a hint of tiresomely present in his voice. He noticed the emptiness surrounding Hinata. "You weren't bored all day were you?" She shook her head.

"I wasn't bored. I found a few books to pass the time," Hinata replied hoping he wouldn't find the book under the table. She didn't know if she was allowed to look at it. Naruto sighed in relief.

"That's good. I would feel bad if you were bored all day," Naruto replied taking a seat down next to her. He suddenly felt very jitter under Hinata's gaze.

"What's the matter?" Hinata asked curiously. Naruto looked at her an apologetic smile spread across his face.

"Might as well tell you straight." Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head. "The guys want to come over and see the sea by house. They don't believe it's there. But the good thing is, I don't think they know that you're still here living with me. So, I was thinking that you can actually get out of the house so you won't have to meet them." Hinata cracked a smile. Was that it?

"I wouldn't mind doing that. Actually, I think it'll be nice if I spend a little time outside." Now that she thought about it, it would be a great time to sharpen her fighting skills. She wouldn't want to get dull on her technique.

"Seriously?" Naruto was amazed. "Because I'm not trying to kick you out if that's what you think that's what I'm inferring." Hinata shook her head.

"I know your too nice for me to think of such a thing." Hinata laughed. She remembered saying that to Naruto half an hour ago when they had that conversation. And it was true. Her eyes spotted a open space inside the forest. It wasn't as large as she hoped, but it would do. She quickly jumped from tree branch to the ground in a second.

Large pieces of dead bark laid in the way, fallen down trees perimeter the surrounding space, and orange leaves decorated the ground. She soaked up every detail of the place. She figured with a little elbow grease, it would be the perfect place to train.

Naruto soon heard a loud bang from the front door. Sure enough when he opened it, the whole crowd was there.

" 'bout time you came out of your house," Kiba commented right away, just as Naruto opened the door. He leaned against the door frame, a small bag grasped in his hand. Unsurprisingly, in the shape of a rather large bottle.

"Wow, how'd you manage to get pass with that much," Naruto said as Kiba slid pass him, heading straight for the kitchen.

"It wasn't easy I'll tell you that," Kiba yelled through the house. Naruto ignored him, joining the rest of the gang by the side of the road. That's when Naruto noticed the small piece of fabric scrunched down on each of his friends necks.

"What the hell are you guys wearing?" Naruto asked puzzled, just as Kiba came out of the house.

"What do you think we're wearing?" Sasuke said stretching the small piece of fabric around his neck.

"Face masks," Shikamaru explained. "For the sand and strong winds." Naruto slapped his face into his palm.

"You guys," Naruto sighed annoyingly. "I'm telling you there's no..." He sighed again, even more agitatedly. "Never mind, you'll see for yourself." Naruto glance at Shino, a small grin growing on his face. "At least Shino doesn't have to waste money on a mask." Shino simply replied with a shake of his head. "Anyway, we'd better get going. It gets really annoying get back in the dark." Except that one time when Hinata was leading the way.

"Then we shouldn't we get going," Chouji commented tiredly.

"Race you," Kiba yelled sprinting away from the group and towards the forest. Naruto was taken aback from the sudden gust of wind. The rest of his friends, without hesitation followed after, leaving Naruto to stand in the dust. Now that Naruto thought about it, he had no idea which part of the forest Hinata went to.

"Ah! Guys, wait," Naruto yelled in a panic, sprinting after them. "There's a certain way we have to go." He prayed that Hinata wasn't anywhere near the trial his friends were talking. He quickly jumped into the trees, leaping faster from every tree branch he encountered. It wasn't long till he caught up with Shikamaru and Chouji, taking their time planning their route through the twist and turns of the trees branches.

" The things you make us do," Chouji yelled, struggling to make his way through the maze. Naruto whizzed passed both of them with ease, ignoring their irritated calls. He couldn't be any more thankful to been through these trees before. The advantage was extremely helpful. He speed up faster, raking all the short cuts he knew, pushing himself to catch up to the rest. Thankfully, it wasn't long. Sasuke and Shino were the next pair he caught up to, meaning Kiba was the one in the lead. Naruto didn't even give them a chance for small chit-chat as he speed past both of them with only little acknowledgment.

So far so good, Naruto thought. Hinata wasn't anywhere nearby that he could tell. In a matter of seconds, he spotted Kiba not too far ahead, but a great distance. For a first timer in the maze of this forest, Naruto thought he was doing a good job of making it through. A too good of a job for Naruto's favor.

"What took you so long, ya slow poke?" Kiba yelled, pick up his speed. Naruto smirked, mimicking his actions, but no matter how fast he went, Kiba always was at least one step in front of him.

He kept right on his footsteps.

"Kiba stop," Naruto yelled at him. As soon as those words left his mouth, the next step he took pushed him straight into Kiba. Gravity did the rest as they both fell down, with surprisingly, a rough, soft landing. Naruto groggily pushed himself up till he was sitting on the cool sand. "Now you finally listen to me." He looked over, ready for a smart response. Instead, Kiba had his eyes attention somewhere else, his mouth slightly agape. Naruto turned to where Kiba's eyes were glued and smiled. Right in front of them, the dark blue sea laid, the waves washing up along the sandy shores.

"What do you know?" Naruto looked up just in time to see Sasuke and Shino jump down to their level.

"So you weren't lying," Sasuke said mildly impressed. A low, long whistle announced the arrival of the final two of the group. Shikamaru and Chouji quickly dropped down to their level just as Naruto and Kiba stood up and dusted the sand off of their cloths.

"Did I tell you or did I tell you?" Naruto mocked pointing to his proof. "What do you say to that?" A stunned silence filled the air. Naruto looked over to each of his friends. Their faces kept in the astonished state. "Uh, guys?"

"You know what I have to say?" Shikamaru began, in somewhat of an irritated tone. "I say why haven't you shown us this before." Naruto was caught speechless. "Do you know how many people believe that this is a desert?"

"I'm guessing a lot," Naruto answered innocently. "I thought it wasn't a big deal." They all simultaneously turned towards him in disbelief. "Besides, It would suck if people knew about this place."

"You do realize this place could open up many water transportation," Shino informed. Naruto gave him a sheepish grin.

"Why don't you want anyone to know of this place, anyway," Chouji asked walking near the waters.

"Mainly because every once in a while, something washes to shore...or someone," Naruto said whispering the last part, but no one caught it. "Usually it's something I can sell for a high price." He watched Chouji pick up something glistening in the water. As he lifted it up, it became clear to everyone what he was holding. "Like that golden bracelet." Chouji gave a short laugh.

"Looks like I hit jackpot," Chouji replied giddily, examining the small object. "Looks tiny. Who could wear something like this?" He tried to pry the small bracelet around his wrist with no luck.

"Hinata probably could," Naruto though quietly, with a small nod of his head. A random though entered his mind. Something was missing.

"Hey Kiba," Naruto called. Kiba looked at him with acknowledgment. "Where's Akamaru? Isn't he always with you?" At that moment, a loud howl ripped through the sound of the washing waves, alerting all that were there.

"That depends," Kiba began a small smile crawling on to his face. "Where's your new friend, Hinata?" Naruto stared at Kiba in disbelief, total shock, mouth agape. He didn't.

-

Hoped you liked it. I'll write the next one as soon as possible.