Disclaimer: Naruto and all Naruto related stuff is (c) Masashi Kishimoto. All OCs and original storyline/plot/imagination (c) of ME!!!!!

A/N: I'm back from vacation (just barely! Flight just came in a little while ago… so annoying, but hey I had time to finish this up, so… enjoy!)

THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS!!!


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A CRUEL ACT OF KINDNESS
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"Do you like him?" Hitori asked his younger sister as the two Hyuga siblings walked along the beach; looking for anything out of the ordinary.

The six Leaf ninja had agreed to split up into pairs in order to survey the surrounding areas for any possible dangers that might be attributed to Mayuki's dream. Hitori had insisted on being paired up with the kunoichi, over Jiraiya and Minato's protests; both of whom had also wanted to be paired up with the girl. In the end, the younger Hyuga 'Terror-twin' had gotten his way, with Shinemuri and Jiraiya forming one of the pairs, and Minato and Nao being the other.

"Like who?" Mayuki wearily asked.

From the look on her face, Hitori could tell she knew exactly who he was referring to, but nonetheless, Hitori decided to play along. "That Rock boy. Do you like him?" He repeated his question.

"Nao?" Mayuki looked over at her brother in surprise; as if the thought of her and the boy being romantically involved, had never once entered her mind.

"Mayuki." Hitori sternly called the girl by her full name; something he very rarely did. But this was a serious topic and he wanted her to know that.

"Sure I like him." Mayuki uncomfortably smiled; trying to break the tension from the sudden shift in mood between the two siblings. "He's my teammate." She offered. "He's really nice to me and always supportive. Nao's a true friend." She concluded.

"Friend?" Hitori eyed the girl for any sign of reaction that she might have been understating her and the boy's relationship; but he saw none.

From the look of it, it seemed as if perhaps the boy was just another one of Mayuki's many fans. Hitori was certain the look on the younger boy's face when the four of them had walked up to the two teammates had been the look of a man in love. On several other occasions Hitori had also noticed Nao silently observing the kunoichi. He had previously never paid much mind to it, however, since the two were teammates and that's what teammates do; they watch out for one another. Thinking about it rationally now, however, Hitori realized he should have noticed it earlier.

To his recollection, Nao had never had a girlfriend in his life. He wasn't a bad looking kid, and he certainly wasn't shy; having inherited his father's outgoing personality. The only logical reason a boy his age would not ever have had a girlfriend would either be due to the fact that he was an extremely dedicated shinobi who didn't want to distract from his training; or, he already liked someone who he had not built up the courage to ask out. Hitori knew, like all Rock family-members, Nao was a very dedicated shinobi; having achieved the second highest rank at the academy the year he and Mayuki graduated, and with only taijutsu at his disposal. But despite this, Hitori very much doubted the boy was the type of shinobi who was so dedicated to his training that he would forgo a personal life; if that were the case, after all, he wouldn't have offered to help in what could possibly be nothing more than a wild-goose chase.(1)

"So if he's just a friend," Hitori continued questioning the girl. "Why did you kiss him?"

"What?" Mayuki stopped dead in her tracks; looking questioningly over at her older brother. "When?" She asked.

"When we walking up to the two of you sitting on the beach." He reminded her; wondering if the girl was fringing ignorance, or if she truly didn't remember.

"I did?" Mayuki furrowed her brow as she tried to remember.

"Yeah." Hitori insisted; nodding his head. "And then you ran off holding his hand." He reminded her. "If you ask me; that is not the way two people who are 'just friends' behave towards one another."

"Well maybe that's because we're not 'just friends'." Mayuki irritatedly repeated, in air-quotes the 'friends' part.

"You're not?" Hitori arched a brow; eagerly awaiting what the kunoichi would say next.

"No." Mayuki shook her head. "We're more than 'just friends' we're best friends!" She replied. "Nao is one of my most important people. And so what if I give him a peck on the cheek now and then? He's very kind to me and encourages me to always do my best. He's a great person, and a nice boy, and I don't want you or Ryuuken, or anyone else bothering him. Got that?" Mayuki heatedly breathed in and out as she steadily calmed herself from that brief moment of agitation.

It wasn't like her to get so worked up.

Knowing this, Hitori wondered if perhaps the boy meant more to her than even she realized. Mayuki had always been innocently naïve (one of the reasons the three males in her family were overprotective of the girl). Perhaps, Hitori wondered, she did like the boy, but because her experience with boys was limited to those few Hitori and Ryuuken permitted to speak with her and fawning fanboys who gawked at her from a distance, maybe the girl didn't realize what it was like to like a boy.

"…" Hitori quietly observed the girl; wondering if his deductions were accurate or not. "So…" He began. "This isn't the first time you've kissed him?" He asked; picking up on the one part of his little sister's rant that his overprotective big-brother mind had instantly zeroed in on.

"Yeah, so what?" Mayuki snarled. "To thank him for being such a good friend." She added.

"Is that right?" Hitori asked. He was beginning to feel sorry for Nao. "Poor kid." He mumbled under his breath. It had to take someone strongly in love, or incredibly foolish, to be able to withstand such a cruel act of kindness. (2)

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"Nao-kun." Minato called out to the younger boy as the two hiked up the tall cliff at the other end of the resort from where Hitori and Mayuki were surveying the premises.

"Yes?!" Nao nervously shouted as he replied to the older shinobi's call.

"Relax." Minato calmly replied; observing the younger man's agitated reaction. "It is a routine surveillance. Nothing you have not done before."

"Hai." Nao agreed; at a still slightly louder volume than was necessary.

"Very well." Minato sighed. "Let us continue." He added, before making his way up to the top of the steep rocky cliff.

"It-" Nao tried to make casual conversation, but had some difficulty attempting it because he was so nervous; it wasn't often one was left alone with their rival (even if it was a one-sided rivalry). "It is a very long way down." Nao attempted to sound calm as his made his observation.

"Yes." Minato agreed; following the rocky cliffside to the bottom, with his eyes. "There seems to be a small shoreline there." The Uzumaki observed; looking down at the other team currently surveying the bottom of the ocean cliffs, where the shoreline curved into the mountain so as to provide more room to walk in the center, while the ends were much narrower in width.

"That does no appear very safe." Nao continued the idle chatter as the two observed Jiraiya and Shinemuri walk across the quickly vanishing rocky shorefront at the narrower ends of the small cove.

"No, it does not." Minato agreed. "But the tide is rising. Perhaps at low tide it is not as dangerous." He remarked; observing the young man's nervousness lessen.

"Hai." Nao agreed; at bit more at easy then he had been when the pair had first set off together. "When the ocean reaches high tide, I believe that it will cover the entire shore below."

"Most likely." Minato agreed. "And then the crashing waves would certainly make that part of the beach very dangerous."

"…" Nao nodded.

No longer having anything left to add to their conversation, a still silence fell upon the pair. Minato observed the young boy out of the corner of his eye; hoping Nao had calmed down sufficiently for him to ask the boy something that had been nagging at him for some time.

"Are you in love with Mayuki-chan?" Minato asked directly.

He already knew the boy liked her; that much was clear just from observing them moments ago. What Minato did not know, however, was how much the boy liked her.

"…" Caught completely by surprise, Nao came falling into the rocking cliff floor; too shocked to even have time to catch himself as he fell, face first, into the jagged rocks.

"Should I take that as a yes?" Minato calmly asked; not in the least bit affected by the boys ungraceful reaction.

"Aah…" Nao's nervousness replied as he returned to his feet; a rising blush serving to answer Minato's inquiry.

"I am not asking you this because I intent to fight you for her." Minato calmly informed the boy; noticing the agitation in Nao slightly lessen, though not entirely so. "I am merely interested in knowing your intentions toward the kunoichi."

To anyone else, it might seem odd that someone who was not related to the girl in question would ask whether a boy who was interested in the same girl as him, had true feelings and pure intentions for said girl; but to Minato, it seemed perfectly logical. It was not as if any other boy going after Mayuki would ever had that opportunity with Ryuuken or Hitori; much less, with the ANBU head, Hyuga Neji, himself. Thus, Minato had decided, after witnessing the earlier signs that Mayuki might have feelings for the boy as well, that he would support Nao if his intentions and feelings were in fact true.

"It is no secret that I care for Mayuki-chan." Minato continued; noting the uneasy in the boy's eyes.

There was something else there as well, however.

Anger? A sliver of rage hidden behind the anxiety.

"However," He continued. "As much as I dislike having to admit it… I do not believe she will ever reciprocate." Minato begrudgingly informed the agitated boy; though outwardly he remained as calm and collected as ever. "So… Do you love her?" Minato repeated his earlier question.

"…" Nao wasn't sure what to say. On the one hand, the man whom he had always seen as his greatest rival for the violet eyed kunoichi's affections, was all but giving him a green light; but on the other hand, he had never admitted his feelings to anyone before, and considering up until a few seconds earlier, Nao had seen Minato as a threat, it seemed odd to have his first confession admitted to the man whom he had held such animosity and jealousy toward.

"You do not have to answer." Minato broke the uneasy silence that had fallen between the two as Nao contemplated whether to reply to him or not. "I can already tell that I am not mistaken." He confidently added. "But allow me to give you one piece of advice, Nao-kun." His name on the lips of his now, former, rival seemed foreign and hateful; but at the same time sincere and warm-hearted. "If you do indeed love Mayuki-chan… fight for her." The blond shinobi sternly advise.

"…" Nao stared at the older man in utter surprise.

"It will not be an easy task to win over her brothers and father…" Minato paused. It really wasn't something that he needed to tell the boy; everyone knew it was impossibly difficult to get near Mayuki because of her two brothers. "But you will never win her over, unless you try." Minato added.

"Why are you helping me?" Nao finally spoke; asking the question that had been bugging him since their conversation had started.

"I am not doing this for you." Minato bluntly replied.

Without saying it directly, Nao had understood Minato's meaning. He was not helping Nao at all; the blond was doing it because he genuinely loved Mayuki and wanted nothing more than her happiness.

For the third time since their conversation had commenced, Nao was left dumbstruck; unable to speak due to the shock of such straightforward honesty. Minato truly was as great a man as Nao had always believed him to be. And, if in fact Minato was correct in his assessment of the violet-eyed kunoichi's feelings, Nao was a very lucky man… under different circumstances, he was certain he would never have been a match for the blond shinobi.

"I understand." Nao gratefully replied.

Moved by the sincerity of the older man, Nao decided he would at least try to be as honest with Minato as the older man had been with him.

"I…" Nao began; unsure of what to say. "…" Taking a deep breath, he decided he might as well just start. "From the minute I awake every morning, to the minute I go to sleep at night, and every moment in between, I think of her. Every hour that I am separated from her, I miss her; and every moment I am fortunate enough to be by her side, I wish I were holding her. I want to tell her how amazing I think she is, and encourage her to believe in herself like I believe in her. I want her to know that she means the world to me, and I would die if I thought that, even for a moment I had lost her from my life. I'm terrified of the prospects that one day she might tell me she's meant someone, but too cowardly to admit to her that I wish I could be that someone. I want to be forever at her side, but I can not bare the possibility that if I should confess to her, I may lose her as my friend completely."

The words he had been having difficulty finding seemed to pour out of Nao as if they had been waiting for the opportunity to escape for a very long time, and in fact they had; he only wish they had not been to the very uncharacteristically startled blond standing in front of him.

"Haah." Nao sighed; reflecting on the cruel act of kindness of having been forced to face the fear that had been hidden in his heart for some many years. Slowly, he turned upward to face the older shinobi square in the eye; painful as the truth may have been for both men, Nao was determined to say it clearly and sincerely. "I love her… so much…" His voice broke, as a tiny tear rolled down his dirt-covered face.

Relief and dread washing over him as he realized Minato was right; he needed to tell her…

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TBC…
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FOOTNOTES:
(1) That's referring to the search for any suspicious dangerous around the resort…
(2) I loved the line "A cruel act of kindness" so much, I titled the chapter after this one line (the original title was going to be "DO YOU?" like the first chapter of WIND AND DRAGON, but I decided I don't much like repeating myself, so no…), and then of course, I repeated this same later in the scene with Nao and Minato… to keep the theme going, but also because I just really liked this line; kind of poetic…