A couple days later…

Naruto walked along the village slowly as he was thinking to himself. He spent the last couple days after getting out of the hospital thinking about the situation at hand. He and Sakura were going to need to start traveling the land and get the spy network back up.

They would need to be mobile and ready to move at once as they got orders from Danzo. They would both need to be ready as they would be on their own.

Naruto reached up and rubbed the area that was missing something very important to him. His hiate. It was such an alien feeling to Naruto to not be able to wear it. He stopped along a bridge leading to a park and leaned over the rail looking into the water.

'Even the nukenin get to have hiate, we are identity-less. We are bound to Konoha and yet we are ghosts to them' he thought idly as he watched some fish swimming below in the water.

He looked back as the people walked by with the occasional woman looking his direction.

'This is what we need to protect, these people, these people that believe in me' he thought as he remembered to just after saving the village from Pein and their welcoming party gathered in what remained of the village as Kakashi-sensei carried him back.

'I need to see him' he thought back to Kakashi-sensei as the last time he really got to talk to his sensei was back after his major fight.

He thought back to his fight with Sasuke and when he had slashed Sasuke's hiate effectively denouncing his brother from the village.

'Did walking your path feel like this… Sasuke?' he thought to himself as the feelings of leaving his village, it's people and his friends behind seemed like a sobering, and saddening thought.

While he knew the Uchiha would never dare show it publically, Sasuke had emotions. He was not emotionless. It took emotions to drive him to leave the village in the first place. Although to what extent, Naruto could not know; that Naruto recognized as he thought about it.

"Excuse me… Uzumaki-kun" sounded from behind him in a young woman's voice.

He turned around to see a young brunette ninja with her hair parted nicely and shoulder length. She had nice brown eyes and wore a relatively modest but battle ready ninja ensemble that some kunoichi wear. Mainly with fishnets being worn around her extremities while her main attire was black and blue accentuated.

He looked down to her blouse and her knee high boots which caused images of Sakura to explode into his mind causing him to look back up immediately into the young woman's eyes.

"I'm sorry, may I help you miss…?" he asked fishing for her name.

"Ano… Kato Fumiko" she replied as she bowed which Naruto returned in response.

"I'm sorry was I in your way Fumiko-san?" he asked.

"No, I was just wondering if you were going to the Kanto Matsuri in few days?" she replied.

"Oh…" he started as he thought about it. He had overlooked the Matsuri that was coming up. He always used to go as a child to see the lanterns and the glow they created at night. But with everything that was going on, he had completely forgotten about any festivals.

For Naruto, festivals where a way to get out and see the village without running generally into issues with the villagers. It seemed to him like the few times as he grew up, when they wouldn't shun him was during the Matsuri.

"…I haven't even had a chance to even think about going, but yea, I think I'll be there" he replied as he thought more about it.

"Would you like to go with me?" Fumiko offered hopefully as she was secretly dying to get a chance to meet the village hero and spend some time with him. Her group of friends always fawned over him, and she struck gold when she noticed him as she walked alone that day doing errands in the village.

This chance encounter was something she couldn't wait to tell her friends about and she would just have to throw her name out there to him. She figured he probably had a lot of women asking him; but she would try.

"..Um, I think I may have to get back to you on that Fumiko-san" he replied as he bowed.

"I am sorry I can't give you an answer at this time" he added as he thought to Sakura and she would likely be the one he went with.

"Oh, o-okay no problem, if you'd like to here is my address" she offered a small piece of paper to him with her number as she bowed.

"Thank you for saving us Naruto-kun" she added as she bowed again and smiled at him.

"Thank you Fumiko-san" he bowed back as he wore a real big smile and shut his eyes. This particular moment hit him somewhat hard unexpectedly. He was just earlier having an internal war with his emotions, but with that one thanking from her, all of that was immediately wiped out to him.

'I like this feeling' he thought as the young ninja had showed her gratitude to him for what he had done for the village.

He watched the young ninja as she walked off as she turned around and waved one last time to which he returned the gesture.

'Thank you' it amazed him how a simple two words could make him feel. And how it could steel his feelings to think that what he was doing for the village was worthwhile.

Maybe not all things are bad with having to make sacrifices for his village.

He still glanced at the retreating ninja's boots as she walked away, and he giggle somewhat internally at the thoughts it made him recall regarding Sakura's boots and the situations it got the two into.

He walked off to the park feeling better as he thought about his random encounter with the young woman and how it made him feel.

In the Konoha park…

Naruto was lost in his thoughts as he slowly walked around with no real destination. He was just taking the time to think things over. He was thinking to try to predict how his travels would be with Sakura.

He slowly walked and stopped for a moment as he looked up into the sky admiring the clouds.

"Troublesome…" he heard come from beneath him as he angled his head to look down at the source of the familiar voice.

"Hey there pineapple" he offered to the ninja laying down beneath him.

He saw Shikamaru's forehead get a slight tick as he puffed away at a cigarette as he laid on the ground.

Naruto knew he hated the nickname he had always given him.

"…" Shikamaru just looked at Naruto from down below as he focused on his right eye patch.

"Your standing on my hand…" Shikamaru finally spoke.

Naruto looked down to see his right foot was indeed standing on Shika's fingers on his right hand down below.

"Sorry about that, I didn't see you Shika…" he said, which was true as he hadn't noticed Shikamaru laying down below as he was on his right side in Naruto's blind spot.

"I see that now… what happened to your eye?" Shikamaru asked.

"Training accident…" Naruto responded swiftly and naturally as he subtly tried to lie to his friend. It was obvious he couldn't tell him the real reason as to what happened to his eye. It would generate way too many questions of which none of them Naruto could answer to Shikamaru.

"Really now… must have been some accident" Shikamaru replied as he sharpened his eyes at Naruto.

Naruto knew that Shikamaru was onto him. He knew that stare from the pineapple head whenever he saw it used on their enemies when they fought together.

"Yea, you try taking a face full of exploding rocks when you drive a rasengan through a boulder inches from your face" he quipped smoothly.

"Tsck…" Shikamaru replied as he shuddered at the thought. That seemed like it could cause that kind of damage. But to Naruto?

"Why didn't the Kyuubi heal it?" he asked with even more interest. Shikamaru never of Naruto not recovering from wounds received in battle. He thought it was some sort of bloodline for the longest time until it was eventually revealed to them about Naruto's role as a Jinchuriki.

"He's teaching me a lesson" Naruto revealed cryptically as that wasn't a lie. It was nice for a brief moment to Naruto to not have to try to lie to Shikamaru.

"What?" the confused ninja lying below asked.

"A story for another day" the blonde shinobi promised to his friend as the two looked at each other.

"So, Cyclops, what are you doing here?" Shikamaru asked deciding to drop the questions for now as it was clear Naruto was not really up to offer any answers. That was interesting in itself to Shikamaru. Usually Naruto was very open to him.

Naruto just frowned at the nickname as he replied "just found myself here doing some thinking. Apparently it was in the clouds for me to come step on your foot".

The two ninja's continued their slight stare off until Shikamaru started to giggle and then laugh below dropping his cigarette.

"I guess, never thought I would see a day I could really irk you with a nickname Cyclops. It's my day it seems" Shikamaru mused as he smiled from laughing.

"And mine to…" said a feminine and raised voice off behind Naruto causing Shikamaru to look to the offender as he had a clear view from down below.

There stood Shikamaru's blonde Kunoichi friend. Ino was standing away from the two as she looked over in their direction, and particular at Naruto who was facing away from her.

"I've got a bone to pick with you cheeks" she added as she crossed her arms feigning being upset with Naruto.

She had been looking for Naruto as she had not seen him in roughly over a month after their erotic escapades that she knew she wanted to explore with him.

She had been ready to give Sakura a run for her money in winning Naruto's heart for him to only disappear it seemed.

"Uh oh" escaped Naruto's mouth involuntarily and loudly.

"WHAT WAS THAT!?" shouted the purple clad kunoichi who heard his involuntary slip.

"It was nice knowing you Cyclops" the ninja beneath Naruto offered to his friend as he knew what was about to come next from knowing Ino since they were little.

Ino immediately dashed in ready to plant a blonde haymaker on the target of her anger… Naruto.

"YOU SHOULD BE HAPPY TO SEE ME!" she shouted as she poured all her strength and twisting hip and momentum into the punch to try to maximize its power.

"Indeed pineapple" Naruto responded as he looked down to Shikamaru who had looked back up at Naruto the moment he heard his nickname.

'He's in sage mode, why?' Shikamaru thought as he noticed that feature about Naruto when he looked back to him.

"KAWARIMI NO JUTSU" whispered Naruto as he engaged the jutsu as he looked at his target, Shikamaru who wore a bewildered look on his face back at the sage.

'POOF!' sounded as Ino was a millimeter away from connecting her fist to the back of Naruto's head.

'SMACK' sounded as Ino proceeded to deck Shikamaru in the face who was forcefully switched with Naruto as Naruto laid beneath the blonde Kunoichi as she attacked.

The crumpled form of Shikamaru rolled away from Ino's punch as his hair broke free of its tied up form that gave Shikamaru his trademark pineapple top; as it was no thoroughly ruined with his hair all over the place messed up.

"I'm sorry Shika!" Ino shouted as she started to run towards him realizing that she had just laid out one of her best friends.

Naruto, who was lying on the ground elevated his body with his hands and spun his leg around just missing Ino's foot as she ran to Shikamaru's aide.

'WHACK' sound as Ino foot was still hit by Naruto's sage mode which extended his form due to his nature chakra and the use of that ability through his frog katas.

Ino firmly face planted after that into the grass that was below them as her leg was kicked from under her making her lose her balance.

"Oof!" she let out as she landed and immediately rolled over to get up.

"That's wasn't nice lanky" came Naruto's voice immediately as he appeared over her with his hand on her shoulder under her neck as he crouched over her.

She hadn't seen him come up, he had just appeared.

Naruto had her pinned as he lightly tapped her neck indicating that it was a pretty much a fatal position for Ino.

"Fine… you got me" offered Ino and she huffed a piece of her hair out of the way, irked that he still called her lanky.

"Can you check on him?" she asked as Naruto obliged and got off Ino and walked over to Shika who was just starting to sit up.

"Your head still all there?" Naruto joked as he looked at the expression on Shikamaru's face laughing to himself.

"Y-Yea… Cyclops, what the hell did you do that for?" Shikamaru said he tried to shake out to the stars in his vision from Ino's hit.

'Here it comes' Naruto thought as he watched in his mind's eye as Ino had got up and started to throw a kick at Naruto's back this time as it was obvious Ino was trying to be quiet about it.

'SMACK' sounded as Ino's leg went through Naruto and instead connected with Shika's face again sending him back down to the ground.

"W-What the heck!" Ino shouted as she realized what she hit, and that her leg was through Naruto's body.

"That also wasn't nice lanky…" Naruto said as he moved aside out of her 'leg' as he looked back at Ino.

"What is that you just did?" she asked dumbfounded.

"It's an ability I have been developing as I found out I could use it when I'm in my sage mode" he said as he let her in on his little bit of knowledge on it.

"I-I can't hit you?" she asked dejectedly as she also tried to slap him which went through him.

"Only if I want you to…" he replied looking at her with a stare that she noticed and got a weird feeling about.

"W-Where have you been?" she asked as she tried to clear the air between them.

"I'm sorry; I had gotten myself tied up in some stuff… It looks like I'm going to be having to leave the village pretty soon to go on missions" he said to her as he felt he needed to at least let her know what was coming up.

"W-What? You're leaving the village? For how long?" she asked now more worried as the thought of Naruto was something she never really considered about the village. He was always there and always causing trouble or at least fun things to do.

"I'm not sure lanky… It can be for a long time. I'm part of a group that has to operate abroad now…" he opened up.

"The Ni-Yurei" she whispered in understanding as it dawned on her he must have gotten in. She shuddered at the thought of what he might have gone through as she heard rumors. And that hard look he gave her just earlier was out of character for him. He seemed a little different to her she noticed as she thought about it.

Naruto just nodded to her giving her his affirmation.

"When do you have to leave?" she asked again.

"I have about half the week remaining before I have to go." he replied as he looked at her noticing her dejected form. He thought about what they did together the last time they were really with each other. Those memories played back in his mind full force as he also thought about having to leave her for the group.

"What's wrong lanky?" he asked her as he could picture where her thoughts were going.

"I don't know when I'll see you again…" she admitted which to her was a big thing; she never really talked about her interests like that. To her Naruto was different, he was someone that was very unique to her and he treated her differently and she liked it. While a tiny part of her was being competitive with Sakura for Naruto's attention, the majority of her was doing it for herself and her own interests in Naruto.

"Y-Yea… but I promise when I am in the village I'll come see you" he said gaining her attention back on him.

"You mean that?" she asked as she smiled.

"Yea, besides, someone needs to keep you in check lanky" he offered as walked over to her and put his arm around her.

"Pfft, you can't handle me" Ino demurred as she ran her hand down her side giving herself some extra kick by swinging her hip out a little.

"I recall pinning you pretty good against a tree last time…" Naruto said as he looked directly into her eyes as he held on to her.

"Why don't you finish what you started cheek's, I was left wanting that night…" she whispered to him huskily as she recalled that particular thing that she learned that turned him on immediately.

"You need to go help your partner in crime over there" he said as he looked over to Shikamaru's sleeping form.

"Why do you got to ruin the mood?" she complained as her thoughts were thoroughly derailed by Naruto.

"Just looking out for my friends is all" he quipped as he reached down behind her and lightly grabbed her butt causing her to look over at him surprised.

"Oh, what the hell ever, you are teasing me damnit!" she yelled at him irked that he could get to her like that.

"Possibly…" he said sagely as his lone eye squinted at her.

"Oh my god, what the hell happened to your eye!?" she practically screamed at him as she couldn't comprehend how she overlooked that.

"It fell out?" he offered jokingly looking at her as he kinda laughed at the question. He couldn't believe it took her that long to notice it.

"R-real… wait, no what really happened damnit!" she yelled as she slapped him on his chest and she also noticed that her hit connected with his body this time.

"I wasn't careful and I ended up sending rock bits into my face with an ill-placed rasengan" he let out hoping she would believe it.

"O-Oh…" she said as she looked over his face and placed her hand on his face thumbing over his eye patch.

"Does it hurt?" she asked.

"A little from time to time, but not much, I'm getting used to it. Sometimes when I'm in sage mode like this it does kind of hurt and it's kinda bugging me right now but I just ignore it". Which was true, Naruto had noticed that his right eye socket did hurt while he was in sage mode although he couldn't place why. He'd have to ask Sakura about that.

"You let me hit you.." she said randomly as she thought back to her playful slap.

"Yea, I deserved that one" he said as he laughed lightly.

Ino strongly poked him with a single finger as if testing to see if he was solid, or real from what it looked like to Naruto.

"Ow, what was that for?" he asked her as he rubbed the spot she just prodded.

"Just testing you cheeks" she said as she looked at him and smiled coyly.

"For wh-?" he said bewildered.

'SMACK' sounded as Shikamaru planted a haymaker on him out of nowhere.

Naruto laid on the ground laughing as he realized what had happened. Those two, he underestimated them. They were always known to have good teamwork, and they just got him back in spades.

"You deserved that one Cyclops" Shikamaru said as he rubbed his fist that connected with Naruto's head.

"True…" was all Naruto could muse as he still laughed to himself on the ground.

"What's this Cheek's and Lanky thing? Are you two dating or what?" he asked between the two ninja.

"What's it to you?" shot from Ino as she looked at him with narrow eyes.

"No…" shot from the ground with Naruto.

"WHAT WAS THAT!?" shouted Ino who looked at Naruto incredulously and pointed.

"WHY YOU!" shouted Ino as she launched down on the laying form of Naruto with another punch aimed for his gut.

'POOF!' sounded as Naruto and Shikamaru were switched with a subtle kawarimi no jutsu that Naruto had triggered.

'THUD'

"Oof!" was all Shikamaru could say as the air was forced from his lungs from the hit from Ino.

Naruto was already running off as he looked behind him seeing the form of Ino slamming her fist into Shikamaru as he bolted away from the area laughing.

Naruto had needed good laughs like that after what he had gone thru. This was definitely a welcome break to him as he smiled thinking about it as he ran.

"NARUTO!" he heard Ino screech as she had realized the switch he had made at Shika's expense.

He hastened his retreat into the woods of the park to head off to find a certain pinkette to ask about the upcoming Matsuri as he could hear the screaming Ino behind him as she remained back with her crumpled friend.

At Sakura's house…

'KNOCK KNOCK' sounded as Sakura walked over to open her door.

"Naruto…" she said as she had opened the door to the person knocking.

"Hey Sakura, hey I got a question to ask you.." he said as he looked around as he scanned the area to try to make sure Ino wasn't coming after him. He was even trying to look abroad in his sage mode and look at the signatures of the people but he couldn't make heads or tails of who was who, but none of them seemed to be bee-lining to him; so he passed it off as being safe.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" she asked as she noticed it looked like he was look out for somebody as he was slightly breathing hard from his run away from the park.

"N-No, I just kinda pissed off Ino haha" he said as he laughed.

"Why?" she asked as alarm bells were going off in her head.

'Did Ino-pig try something with him?' Sakura asked herself as she felt some competitive anger start to rile her up.

"Uh, kinda long story at the moment, but hey, do you got any plans for the Matsuri?" he said as he dismissed her questions. He was here to ask the questions and run in case Ino was still looking for him.

"Uh….maybe…" Sakura revealed as she thought of the Matsuri.

"Wait.. maybe?" Naruto said as he looked back at Sakura this time his attention completely on her as this was definitely news to him. He thought he would ask her to the Matsuri; he was originally going to ask Ino, but thought he should try her first.

"Yea… I kind of lost a bet to shishou and I have to go to the Matsuri with some politician's son" she let out slowly as she thought about it. She was really starting to get annoyed with her sensei right now for making her do this.

"Like… a date?" Naruto clarified.

"Y-Yea.. I guess.." she said as she didn't quiet want to answer that question. She didn't want to put Naruto off, but she had to be honest with him. The politician's son would most likely think of it as a date.

Naruto was getting some odd feelings in his chest. He felt a little jealous of the politician's son and upset with Sakura as he thought she would go with him. He hadn't quite planned for this.

"Were you going to ask me?" Sakura asked gaining his attention as she saw him in thought.

"Yea.. I didn't plan on you having other plans" he said as he looked back at her.

"But… there goes that plan I guess" he said somewhat dejectedly.

"I'm sorry Naruto, Shishou has me having to do this, if that wasn't the case I'd go with you…" she said as she tried to make him feel better.

"Ah, its' fine, I'll just go ask somebody else" he said as he gave in to that idea. For some reason Naruto was feeling more jealousy about whomever was taking Sakura with them to the Matsuri. They hadn't fought together and almost died together with her. It bothered him.

"Um, who are you going to ask then?" she queried as she had to know.

"Me" sounded the familiar voice of Ino as she appeared down the side away from Naruto and Sakura as she walked along the balcony area to Sakura's apartment entrance.

"W-Wait, are you going to take Ino?" Sakura said as she looked back at Naruto now herself starting to get jealous at the situation.

"Yea, you have other plans." he said as he looked over to Ino.

'Ino-pig' Sakura though menacingly as she seethed at the thought of the two of them together. She knew Ino had it out for Naruto and here she was thrown into a situation where she was practically handing Naruto to Ino on a platter. And she could do nothing about it, as saying no to her Shishou wasn't an option.

"And here I was thinking I was going to have to castrate you cheeks for what you pulled earlier" Ino said affectionately as she walked up to Naruto and put her hand on his should lightly tapping it.

"Cheeks?" Sakura said as she stared at Ino's hand like she could burn it off with her vision.

"Yea it's my little nickname I gave him, ya know to claim my property" she said as Ino put her arm around Naruto and looked at Sakura smiling.

"INO-PIG" seethed Sakura.

"Ugh- well I don't have time to be part of this, I gotta get going you two" said Naruto both of the Kunoichi that looked like they were getting ready to have an impromptu battle royale.

"It's okay Naruto, there's nothing to worry about between us" Sakura said menacingly as she looked at Ino.

"What time do I pick you up for the Matsuri Ino?" Naruto asked of which Ino noticed he hadn't called her Lanky as she looked over at him.

"Seven, any idea what we are going to do?" she asked him loving the situation as she was rubbing it in Sakura's face.

"Wear something nice" was all he offered as he waived at both of them as he departed.

The two kunoichi watched him walk off and make sure he was out of sight.

"What the hell Ino-pig?" Sakura spit venomously at her.

"What's the big deal, you have to go on a date and kiss some politician's son's ass?" she shot back in her unique Ino tone.

"I can't get out of that, and you know it!" Sakura growled out at her.

"Yea, you get to finally go on your first real date and its some pre-arranged thing. While I get to go with Naruto and give him some special attention" she said as she winked at Sakura.

"You better not even…" Sakura let out icily as her eyes narrowed at Ino.

"So suck it" Ino replied back in a sing-song fashion as she waved at Sakura and walked off clearly loving the situation.

Ino knew that she would have been in trouble if Naruto had gone with Sakura to the Matsuri as Sakura had often told Ino about her dream date. And yet it was playing out exactly how Sakura would probably never have wanted to and pretty much setup Ino nicely to spend time with Naruto.

"N-No, you…" Sakura said as her voice went lower and she got quiet.

"Oh I will" Ino shot back as she rounded the corner and disappeared behind it as she waved back at Sakura.

What she missed was Sakura's face changing to one of sadness and hurt as Sakura realized what Ino and Naruto might do on their date, her and Ino's originally friendly banter between each other going a little too far.

The next day at Ino's flower shop…

The door to Ino's shop let out its ring as a customer walked in causing Ino to look over.

"Oh hey cheeks!" replied Ino as the object of her thoughts came walking in.

"Hey lanky, how are you?" he asked.

"Better now that you're here" she said as she smiled.

"What can I help you with? Or did you just come here to see me?" she prodded.

"I actually came to pick up some flowers for someone" he revealed as this kind of surprised Ino as this was his first time really coming to her flower shop.

"Oh, what occasion are they for? I can help you get the right ones" she asked going into her customer assistance mode. Naruto was not used to this side of her as it was more proper and he smiled at it.

"It's for someone that I have to apologize to, they asked me to attend something and I have to tell them no" he added.

"Why don't you just go apologize to them in person?" she asked.

"I am, I just wanted to give her flowers as an additional apology" he said as he spoke his thoughts.

"Her?" Ino responded not really liking where this was now going.

"Someone asked me to the Matsuri, but I am going with you and I want to thank her for asking me though" he said.

"Oh, do you like this girl?" she started to prod as her warning system was going off for competition.

"Not that I know of, but it was just nice of her to ask me. I never really got asked like that before, and I want to thank her even though I have already made plans with you. It's important to me to make sure I let her know I appreciated it" he answered giving Ino a glimpse of a side she didn't expect for Naruto.

"O-Oh… And why not just apologize to her verbally?" she asked as she was really interested what would make Naruto give flowers to this person.

"She also thanked me for saving the village Ino. At the moment I was having some questions in my mind, and when this person did that, she helped me answer those questions. I am very thankful for her for that. And I would like to show her my gratitude both for helping me with that and asking me to go to the Matsuri" he replied back which really tugged at Ino's heart strings. She had seen little glimpses of this part of Naruto before that really piqued her interest here and this was her first real view into him. She was surprised to hear this side of Naruto, he never talked like this to her or her friends that she was aware of.

'When I'm with him, he makes me walk to walk with him' popped up in her mind as she thought back to what Shikamaru had talked to her about Naruto one time. Shika was talking to her about Naruto and how he would be an important ninja for the village.

Ino just smiled at how Naruto could be so altruistic, he really was a great guy. She felt lucky to be able to spend time with Naruto like she did, and she looked forward to her date with him for the Matsuri. Or at least she was thinking it was a date although they didn't really clarify that with each other.

Ino guided Naruto over to a row of flowers and pointed at a certain bouquet she had just created that morning.

"I offer you these dazzling white lilies with blue accents. The blue represents your thanks for how she helped you, and the white symbolizes how you are sorry but that you want to be friends." she said as she picked up the bouquet and looked at him.

"Wow, those looks amazing Ino, who made them?" he asked as he took them from her and looked them over.

"I did" she responded as she watched him look over them. For some reason it was important to her that he liked them, not just anybody.

"Wow, you did an amazing job lanky, I'm really impressed, I like the thoughtfulness you explained in this. It will be perfect to give her, thank you!" he said as he looked back at her causing her to blush.

She loved compliments, and Naruto about gave her probably the biggest compliment she could get. She had a super soft spot for flowers and her bouquets and to get a compliment about them both from him was like heaven to her. He had inadvertently pushed a button to her heart.

"Thanks cheeks" she said as she smiled at him and gave him a small hug.

"Maybe you can finish what you started after our date" she said slyly into his ear as she would not let Naruto get away with tugging at her heart strings without giving him something back in reward.

He just looked at her and smiled, he knew what she meant.