AN: Awww, and yes, I've been quite surprise that I've been updating this quite regularly. Starting this story actually made me wonder will it be eventually abandon, but I'm glad the fire is still going hahah. Hope you guys enjoy this chapter too! And yes, I do love ending things in a cliffhanger manner, hehe.

Do review!

.::.

"Can I kiss you again?"

Those words rang in her head like an impatient customer hitting the call bell. Her mouth opened but nothing came out other than short huffs of breath when she could not properly formulate the words she wanted to say. She was dumbstruck by his sudden bold request and his courage.

"W-What?"

"You told me to ask for permission. I did." He said blandly.

"W-Why would I say yes?" She stammered, trying her best to suppress the urge to kick him out of the room. "Y-You are not providing m-me any form of e-explanation and you're r-requesting for more?"

She thought she was able to have her questions somewhat answered when she decided to let the Uchiha into her room. She placed her hand over her pounding chest, full of hope to calm herself down from anger, surprise, embarrassment and anything she could possibly name.

"You c-came here, confusing me and m-making me so lost in everything. I don't even k-know what I am supposed to do with you." She continued.

Sasuke had to admit he was feeling a surge of adrenaline rush through this body when he decided to admit how he wanted another kiss from the female Hyuga. He did enjoy the softness of her lips, something he hadn't exactly felt for a long time.

"Gomen, Hinata." He said, genuinely in hope she could accept it. He knew she would, judging by her character. So when she nodded her head, he took the chance to grab her wrist. "It's hard to figure things out."

She peeked out from her bangs, still keeping silent as she waited for him to continue. But he didn't, causing them to be sitting there quietly as the footsteps from hallway filled the air. Hinata had seen him at his worst, when he betrayed the entire of Konoha and even at his best, when he fought with Naruto to defeat Kaguya. And there was a sight where she felt as if she was the only one to witness it. A sight where he was opening himself up to her, at his most vulnerable state.

"It's okay." She finally spoke, her eyes landing upon his hand that was grasping onto her wrist. She took notice of the missing bracelet he was once wearing and assuming it could have dropped when he was engaged in a fight or something similar.

She pulled her hand away slowly and brought it up to his cheeks. Life had broken him on so many levels and at that moment, all Hinata wished was for him to not have the pressure of giving her the answer she wanted because she knew. She knew how hard it was to come to terms, or to even comprehend what exactly were the human emotions doing to them. So she pressed her palm against his cheeks instead and smiled.

"It's okay." She repeated in the most calming voice. "You have a-all the time in the world."

For the first time, she noticed the little smile that had found its way to his face. She then felt his arm reached out for her waist and rested lightly on her hip. Within seconds and despite not even granting him any permission for his request, he had once again leaned in to capture her lips, just like how he had done previously but this time round with a little more passion.

The kiss came without a surprise this time, as Hinata felt her eyes slowly closing. She could hear him breathing in, allowing her to ascertain that the male in front of her was getting nervous. The feeling was mutual. She still hadn't fully comprehended the previous incident and now they were onto another round of lips interlocking.

His hand slowly glided up to her shoulder as he deepened the kiss before licking the bottom of her lip for permission. Hinata could feel herself heating up as she squinted her eyes in shock. Yet she abided, opening her mouth and feeling his tongue within her wet caverns. She could taste the mild sweetness from the food they had shared back at the cafeteria.

She felt his arm dropping to her waist, tightening it pulling her closer as he adjusted himself onto the tatami mattress fully before grabbing her to sit on his lap. She softly yelped and pulled away, regretting in an instant when she made direct eye contact after such an intimate exchange.

"S-S-Sasuke-san, stop. I don't t-think we should… " She paused midsentence.

He leaned back slowly, his hand still wrapped around her waist. "Sorry, I didn't wait for your permission."

She felt the urge to retaliate gone completely when his lips came crashing down on hers again. She could tell he was enjoying it, and Hinata could not deny the same too. Was she missing the intimate touches? He pulled away to observe the expression on her face which she had been trying very hard to hide. She wasn't denying his actions, so he continued.

He leaned in closer and noticed how she was leaning forward so slightly too, trying to capture his lips with yearn but he swiftly avoided her lips and moved towards her neck, earning a gasp in return. He risked being pushed away, but he had come the furthest he had tried and everything he had done with her felt something that was beyond just sexual pleasure.

He continued attacking her neck softly yet fierce enough to leave light bruises around the area where he knew her kimono styled top was able to cover. Her soft whimpers and moans were causing his groin area to heat up and having her sitting directly on his lap weren't exactly helping.

Pulling away, he flashed her a wisp of a smile and carried her off of his lap. He shifted himself to the other end of the mattress, ensuring that she had enough for herself. He laid down, dragging her with him with the arm that was still wrapped around her waist so that her back was against his chest. He could hear the surprise in the noises she had subconsciously released but he did not care. He laid there quietly, taking in the smell of her shampoo.

"S-Sasuke-san…"

He ignored her calling and pulled the blanket to cover them both, with full intention to spend the night like this with her. He thought he could just enjoy her presence first before having the trouble to sort out what exactly his feelings were.

"Go to sleep." He ordered softly, voice muffled into her hair.

She struggled to turn herself around slowly, allowing her bosom to meet his and causing Sasuke's mind to start running again. She brought her hand up, creating a barrier between them as she laid there quietly. He lowered his head a little and caught the sight of her long lashes and the hand he had been wanting to hold again.

"Are you s-staying here?"

"Can I?" He wondered. Her scent was causing him to start drifting off slowly.

"Gomen." She said, confusing the Uchiha. Hinata brought her fingers to poke him at his deltoids and forearm.

He could feel a different sensation when her fingers touched him. Then he felt numbness around his entire arm. For some reason, he allowed her to continue.

"It will go off by morning." She said, poking his chest. "G-Gomen." Her voice was shaking and by now, Sasuke could fully decipher that she was partially paralyzing him with her sealing technique. His eyes felt rather heavy and as much as he wanted to stop her, his arm was frozen by now.

"It w-will go off by morning." She assured again as she pushed herself away.

Sasuke watched as she stood up and grabbed onto her backpack, hands fumbling with the clip of the bag before sliding an arm under the straps. "Where are you going?" His quizzed, trying to fight the frozen arm.

He could sit up, he could stand up and run towards the Hyuga but he did not.

"For a walk." She replied, smiling a little with her hand turning the doorknob and opening the door.

Sasuke softly cursed as he watched her image disappeared. And with that, she went on a really long walk, leaving him alone in the room. For the first time, in a long time, he felt a certain amount of loneliness hitting him as he tried his best to sleep through the night.

.::.

Sasuke found himself hanging around Jugo the next morning when the male had returned to the inn to look for Hinata, mentioning something about breakfast. He always thought that Jugo was a non-nosy type of person but decided to take it back when the orange haired male decided to pop him a question he wasn't liking, early in the morning.

"I can tell." Jugo said softly, walking beside the Uchiha as they made their way towards the inn where Karin and Suigetsu was waiting. "It's… obvious?" He subconsciously changed his statement into a question.

"There's nothing obvious, Jugo." If Sasuke could hide, he would hide. The night before he knew Jugo was the one who walked Hinata back to her room but Sasuke made sure that he was completely out of the sight before approaching her room. Did Jugo return and saw something? "Why are you asking me that?"

"You treat her nicely." He spoke and darted his eyes towards the ceiling, in hope to search for the right words. "You held her hand."

"That's because she was lost in the crowd." Sasuke argued. If that was all Jugo saw, he could properly cover up his tracks.

"I saw you holding her hand in the cafeteria too."

The Uchiha exhaled.

"I don't think the other two noticed. You like Hinata. It's obvious."

"Jugo, let me repeat." His voice took a stern tone. "There's nothing obvious and I do not like her."

The male beside him merely nodded. Sasuke frowned, not satisfied with the reply he had gotten. Since when did Jugo became so observant? Or was it only directing for their Hinata? "Do you like her?" The Uchiha quizzed.

Jugo rarely laughed, he mostly smiled. So when he heard a soft one coming from him, Sasuke raised his brows and turned his head slightly to face him. "You like Hinata. It's obvious."

Sasuke felt defeated at his words, as if not having enough energy to go about an argument that wasn't exactly valid either. He simply clicked his tongue in annoyance. "The two of them are going to make a ruckus if they know."

"I agree."

.::.

Hinata strolled her way into Konoha's Hospital. Deciding to take a break from travelling in hope to avoid that one particular person, she had decided to return back home for the time being. Maybe for a couple of weeks. She had made plans with Sakura today, just the two of them together since Ino and Ten-ten couldn't make it. The strong whiff of antiseptic hit her, causing her to wrinkle her nose as she searched for the kunoichi's room.

It hadn't been exactly long ever since the second series of intimate interaction with the Uchiha. And she wasn't surprise when she found herself constantly feeling a sense of guilt whenever she thought about this particular get together. How was she going break it to Sakura, or should she even be doing that?

The image of her former boyfriend appeared in her head, enhancing the confusion and exasperation within her. She needed to sort things out, with or without the other hero. Inhaling in a huge breath, she pulled her hand up to knock on the door.

"Sakura-san? Are you in?"

The door swung opened with a beaming medic kunoichi greeting her. "You're early, Hinata!" She cheered and guided her in. "Will you give me a couple of minutes more? I've just a little more document to settle."

Hinata nodded and settled herself on the chair where Sakura's patient usually sat. She studied the cold interior of the room, realizing that it was indeed the first time she had been into the pink head's personal clinic. Had Sasuke been here before?

He should have been, for all the time that he had returned. Or maybe picking Sakura up like how she was doing now for a trip down to a teahouse or restaurant. She mentally sighed, feeling the feeling of lost emerging once again. She had been in love with Naruto, and she still had been, right? She was still waiting for him, for an answer at the fireworks festival.

"Hinata, don't mind me asking." The emerald eyes still locked onto the documents. "How have you been doing lately?"

It was obvious where that question was directing to. Hinata did not want to avoid either, knowing how almost everyone else in the village had already known. She returned home to Hanabi panicking and for once, having to share a tea session with her father just so they could talk it out.

"I am fine. How did you know, anyways?"

"Ino told me." She lifted her gaze to meet hers. "Naruto hasn't been great either. But he's getting better nowadays."

"Has he been okay?" Worry started consuming her voice.

"Yea." Sakura chuckled softly and leaned against the back rest of her chair. "Kakashi found out and gave him some mission to clear his head. He was also given quite a few rest days."

Even the Hokage knew? This must had meant that everyone else in the village was aware of it. "A-Ah. Has he been going out?"

"He was avoiding me in the beginning, probably not ready to talk about you two. He's getting fine now. He has been hanging around Sai and Kiba." Sakura reached her hand out and placed it on top of Hinata's. "Will everything be okay with you two?"

She shrugged. "I hope it… I don't know." Hinata corrected herself. A month ago, she would be confidently saying that she hoped for the best, and that Naruto's answer at the festival would be stating that he chose her. But ever since the incident with Sasuke back at the inn, she was hesitating with confusion.

"Are you afraid that Naruto's answer would disappoint you?" Sakura probed.

That was a contributing factor, but the other half of it fell on Sasuke Uchiha's words. "Sakura-san, do you think I am taking comfort in liking Naruto-kun?"

"Comfort?" She tilted her head and folded her arms. "Are you afraid of liking someone else?"

Hinata whined softly, feeling annoyed by herself. "I've loved Naruto-kun for so long. I don't know who else to love."

Sakura sighed, smiling slightly as she shrugged. "Guess we are on the same page, huh?"

The pale orbs lit up upon her words. Hinata blinked, confused but at the same time slightly happy about the fact that perhaps Sakura was also doubting her love for the person whom she had been chasing for over a decade. "About Sasuke-san?"

"Eh? You're calling him by his name." Sakura said, causing the blue head to panic.

"Y-Yea! I thought we a-are getting comfortable from the coincidences and Uchiha-san just sounds too formal, don't you t-think so too?"

"True." She agreed. Hinata heaved silently. "I've like Sasuke-kun for so long. I don't think anyone else can replace him."

No, it was different from her.

"I can tell you still like Naruto, Hinata." She raised her hand to rest on Hinata's shoulder. "I'm sure he will figure out what is true to him." A smile adorned her pretty face, causing Hinata to feel a sense of assurance.

She shifted her hand, wanting to touch Sakura's that was on her shoulder as a form of acknowledgement and appreciation but instead, felt a ropey texture around her wrist. Her eyes darted towards the kunoichi's wrist, eyes almost widened when she noticed a very familiar accessory.

"Sakura-san believes in chakra bracelets too?" She queried, trying her best not to leak any form of shock emotion.

"Ah, this?" She chuckled and retreated her hand. "It's Sasuke-kun's."

"O-Oh!"

For some reason, even though it was ridiculous to Hinata, she felt as if she had been betrayed. There was no reason why Sasuke would not give the bracelet to Sakura, someone whom he liked after all but why did he have to go through all the words and actions that confused her. It was unnecessary and was he really just toying around with her from the boredom of peace that the shinobi world had acquired?

She knew she had no rights to be mad, but she was. She thought she could send him just a few yards with her air palm even though she knew she stood no chance in doing that. Instead of troubling with ideas on how to express her anger towards the Uchiha, Hinata decided that the best would be completely out of his sight.

"S-Shall we go now?" Hinata quizzed, mind in a haze.

"Yea!" Sakura chimed. "Anyways, are you going to celebrate Naruto's birthday?"