Hello. It took some times but I am back with another chapter. Hope you'll like it.

Olive

Naruto had been extremely silent for the first few hours of their trip and it had been unnerving, to say the least. Looking at him in the corner of her eyes as they jumped from branch to branch, Hinata was trying to put words to describe the unfamiliar expression he had on his face since they had left the village. His normally smiling features were set in a confusing neutral state, his lips pressed slightly in a thin line, the crease on his forehead deepening from time to time as his eyes were going in and out of focus as they traveled avoiding branches and other obstacles almost by reflexes more than attention.

Something was bothering him.

They had left early the same morning, the night still fresh and lingering as they crossed the gates under the boring looks of the Shinobi guarding the door. They hadn't really talked that much upon arriving, exchanging pleasant greetings, mentally checking their gears, and agreeing on the fastest road to join the Capital.

They had established around three to four days upon arriving at the Capital which gave them, especially Hinata, plenty of time to planned out a strategy to aboard the negotiation with enough room for maneuver to ploy the Economist in their favor. She already had done some research, the scroll that Shikamaru had given her putting enough in perspective for her to have been able to make some complementary research about the current state of the trade of essential supplies such as rice, construction materials, fabrics, and medicines as well as the impact of Konoha and the Forth Grand War.

It was a tricky subject but she hadn't been totally ignorant as the get-go. Quite the opposite as a matter of fact, she had been the one who originally had overview the original signed contract for her father when the peace had first been established two years ago. She hated to admit it but Kakashi was right when he had told her she was perfect for the job, it was practically her job that she was reviewing. The Hyuga clan had always been in charge of being one of the major intermediates with the Capital. As her Hokage never ceased to mention: Hinata was from a clan that was part noble. A large proportion of the Branch side residing outside of Konoha were noblemen and women serving at the Daimyo's court. When the war had ended, it was Hiashi that had been charged to ask for economic help from the Economist. Hinata had accompanied him to this first trip being kept in the shadow of her father but keeping a close eye on the negotiations. It had been the first affair her father had ever inquired her to get involved in: as his daughter yes but also as a war veteran and a fellow Shinobi of the leaf who had just lost her home, her friends, and family. If she hadn't spoken to anyone with great importance directly, her story had touched a lot and her father had used that emotion to leverage a better financial deal for their village. But now she was alone without the older man's presence to assert this confidence and this assurance that she felt was cruelly missing from her. The Economist wasn't someone easy to work with. She just hoped she wouldn't mess everything up and do some good for her people.

She had packed some scroll she hadn't had time, in her already busy afternoon, to read but that wasn't really what had been on her mind as they traveled. It had been Naruto's strange silence. He wasn't with her, in the present and she just wanted to snap him out of his daze. She rarely remembers him being so quiet and not embarking her in some incredible stories of prank or travel or missions. He was just quiet, his body jumping and running from branch to branch in a mechanical fashion. She didn't comment on it as they had left the village thinking he had probably been exceptionally tired. He wasn't exactly what you could have called a morning person. However, this moodiness in his action wasn't leaving and it started to bother the young heiress.

Looking at the sky, the sun was pretty high above their head, and from what she could have count they were running none stop for at least six hours. They could stop for a short break to eat something.

Slowing down, she mentioned to her partner to stop as well. Landing next to her in a thick branch, he looked at her expectedly.

"It is almost 1 pm." She mentioned him pointing to the clear sky and the pale autumn sun. "We should eat something before continuing." She shrugged her backpack off and sat down on the branch. Naruto nodded imitating her.

Taking out her bento, she saw next to it the one she had packed for her partner. Looking at him from the corner of her eyes, she watched him taking out a cup of instant ramen. She felt suddenly very self-conscious about the extra lunch she had prepared for him. She had cooked for them to enjoy a home-cooked meal. With her new responsibilities, she had less and less time to cook or bake anything but exceptionally, she had to wake up an hour extra early. She had just wanted to do that for him but now that it was time to give it to him she had some doubt. It felt weird to give him lunch and she didn't understand why. It wasn't the first time she had prepared a meal for him or they had shared a bento on a mission. It was something she often did for her team. She liked to do that for them and she had moved past being a stuttering mess next to the blond ninja to offer him a dish.

" Hinata, is there something wrong with your food ?" His voice took her out of her train of thought as she turned her head in his direction. She looked at him confused. " You've been staring at your bag. If there is a problem with your food, I can share mine. I packed plenty of cups of ramen for the trip." To emphasize his words, he opened to her his bag almost exclusively filled with a different flavor of instant ramen noodles. A wave of embarrassment washed through her body as an inexplicable blush colored her cheeks for the first time in months. She felt ridiculous. Shaking her head, she took out the second bento, extending it to him.

"N-no… I… (she took a deep breath trying to calm the embarrassment and the red on her cheeks) I am just being silly. I packed this for you. Only if you want of course." She tried to smile off her discomfort but the shame she felt for the way she behaved didn't help. She acted like a teenager again and not in the best way. For gods sake, she was a war veteran. They were friends. She was not a lovesick girl trying to found the courage to talk to her crush. She had found the courage, long time ago. They were close now. 'Hinata stop acting like a mess. He isn't some kind of idolize far away figure anymore. He is a comrade. He is at your side.' She chastised herself.

She watched him take the box from her hand, looking perplexed and in awe. She wasn't exactly ready for this reaction ether. He always was excited whenever she had presented him with a home-cooked meal. Boisterous gratefulness for her and the thing she provided for him, from a simple snack to her support in battle. It was touching and at the same time a bit sad to see him so eager and overjoy for a simple bento. Nevertheless, Hinata was always happy to see him genuinely happy and experiencing those very normal things. She loved the warmth she felt when she saw him smile that radiant grin and see his blue eyes twinkle this appreciation for his friendship and what it brought to him.

That said, she never saw THAT expression on his face before. An extension to the one he had arbored from the one he got when they left the Hokage office the day before. He looked grateful, yes but it wasn't full of energy and as lively as she was used to. The alarm in her head went off. Something was wrong with him.

"Thank you, Hinata." He smiled at her before lifting the lid off the box. The aroma of the meal hit his nostril, awakening his appetite. Unconsciously he licked his lips, watering his mouth from sheer excitement knowing very well that her talent of a cook had little to no compare. Watching her, as she revealed the same content in her bento, he watched her eyes frantically dart back in forth between his face and her meal. She didn't look very pleased, almost worried but said nothing.

Thanking the food, they both began to eat. Hinata hadn't lost her touch when it came to cooking as Naruto noted. The meal was excellent. Simple but very subtle in the flavors hitting the right spot with every bite. He silently moaned in the back of his throat. He missed those bentos. He remembered a time when he had been jealous of team 8. He figured that Kiba and Shino had regularly the privilege to eat Hinata's cooking and that alone was in his mind the greatest injustice in the world. Sakura could barely cook and he was sure she wouldn't make anything for them for the life of them. Rarely were teammates as sweet as Hinata.

"Naruto, is everything alright?" She suddenly asks. He snapped his head toward the young woman. She looked too worried to be embarrassed to ask.

"Why ?" He countered flushing. She looked on the side her cheeks slightly changing to a dusty pink color.

"You've been really quiet since we've left Konoha and it looks like something is on your mind." She explained still looking at the side. Naruto let out a groan rubbing the back of his head.

"Why is it always so easy for you to read me ?" He mumbled under his breath. The ever-present frown on her face deepened.

" I am sorry." She whispered alarmed still not looking in his direction.

" Nothing to apologize for. You've always been so observant. It's like you don't need the Byakugan to see through me or something." He truthfully said to her. She finally turned her gaze toward him awe so distinct in her feature. He looked right back at her, his seriousness marking every word he stated. The pink on her cheeks reddened taking a crimson carnation.

"W…what are you saying ?" She stuttered her hand fisting furiously her chopstick. She felt her heart on the verge of exploding in her chest.

"Because it is true. You don't just look at me. You see me." He added. She felt like fainting. Taking a sharp breath she felt her heart in her chest give out. For a moment, her vision became white as stars danced in her vision, and… she didn't faint. Taking a deep new breath, she blinked out her emotion, turning her head away not being sure to be able to stand up straight for the next five to ten minutes. A cough escaped her throat as she was trying to regain some kind of composure.

Why was he saying that kind of stuff? Why hadn't he realized it until now? Was he trying to kill her with his blue eyes? They were so deep and so full of meaning! And she was supposed to negotiate anything and being a ruthless shark when her legs felt like jelly by the simple feel of his warmth close to her? For Kami's sake, this mission was going to be the death of her. Damn Shikamaru for making her endure this kind of torture.

"I...I don't know what to say. I am glad you think so highly of me." She politely phrased it, keeping a hand close to her chest to calm her erratic pumping organ. She was conscious that she was being overly formal but her manners were the last thread that kept her from reverting to a fainting damsel.

Naruto didn't instantly reply. His eyes focused solely on her face seemingly confused by her sudden stiffness and ceremonious way of speaking. He was flabbergasted by her being overtly uncomfortable with his praising.

"Sure." He just voiced rubbing his back off the neck a bit more thoughtfully, unrolling his finger in his short blond locks. "I mean you are pretty much like that with everyone. You are good at seeing people. What I want to say is that you are really kind." She didn't make a sound digesting his words. Her eyes lost their focus as her emotions unfurled in her chest.

As if she needed a reminder, she felt like falling in love once again with this man, relieving almost every time he had succeeding in making her head explode with passion and life as well as the million times her heart broke over and over from thousand of instances. All those instances where she just loved him most purely way. This warmth and kindness she yearned for, craved for and he was so willing to hand out. She had wished to be less shy, to have more courage a thousand times. To be more visible, for him to see her and to see this hand she so desperately wanted to extend. He saw and took this hand years too late in her mind, after way too many hardships. But to hear him say those words. It felt like a new realm of vision had just open. She felt so grateful for him and for everything he was. She just loved him.

Founding her voice, she finally looked back and truly smiled this time.

"Thank you, Naruto." She whispered, her voice wavering. His hand paused his movement at the back of his neck as he looked at her in awe. Her smile was so genuine he almost choked on his saliva. What was with those reactions? Why did she look so relieved and grateful for something as trivia as him stating a simple fact? He shook his head. Why was he flushing this hard?

"Although I mean it. If something is bothering you, you can always tell me. I'll try to help you as much as I can." She reverted to the original topic. He couldn't avoid her all-seeing eyes as he found himself unable to look away.

"I... I'll try to figure it out on my own." He shook his head. She looked a bit taken aback by his refusal to confide but smiled and nodded before returning to her bento.

She was kind.

That was one of the first things that came to anyone's mind when listing her character. Naruto didn't understand such a shocked reaction when he had told her that. Didn't she already know that he sincerely appreciated her? They were a friend for a long time now and he complimented her a handful of occasions like that time he said he liked people like her... just after calling her a dark weirdo. Okay, maybe that instance wasn't the best example. But he did often tell her she was super strong which was true and he never ceased to reaffirm that she is awesome.

'But this is different.' He realized. He never said those compliments directly to her. He never really voiced his gratefulness out loud for this bond they shared. But still, she should know by now. He was sure she had tones of compliments say to her all the time.

"Are you ready to go ?" He asked her, still focusing on his line of thoughts. He watched her getting up nodding adjusting back in place the straps off her bag on her shoulder. Without much words, they took off once again.

Naruto was still lost deep in his contemplation. His conversation with Shikamaru still ringing in his ears. They had been since they had left the Hokage office earlier the day before.

"Keep an eye out for Hinata." Those had been his words. He hadn't understood right away. Why did he need to keep his eyes on her? She was a very capable kunoichi able to defend herself on her own. "I don't mean in that sense." Had groaned the assistant rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Gods this is such a drag. I meant to make sure she is alright, okay ?"

"Why wouldn't she be alright? Is something happening to her? Is she sick ?" Frantic panic rose on his chest. He had guessed something was bothering her but if she was harmed this was more serious than he thought.

"Would you calm down! Look it is not my place to say any of this to you but I am worried okay. She might need help soon. So while you are with her please keep an eye on how she is doing." Looking at the closed door of the Hokage office, the blond ninja had started to process this. He was irritated. Even when he was let in the confidence, they left him in the dark not giving him every piece of information.

"Did she told you everything that is bothering her ?" He had asked barely hiding his petty feelings.

"Yes, she did." The black-haired boy answered not liking where this conversation was going.

"Then why did she need my help and not yours since she confided in you." He finally snapped crossing his arm over his chest.

"Could you cut the crap and stop pouting. Why are you so jealous anyway ?" Shikamaru fired back.

"I don't see why she couldn't come to me for this. We are closer." He muttered under his breath. The Nara sighed loudly. He hadn't smoked enough to endure an oblivious boy right now. The situation was bad enough for him to request an indefinite leave of absence.

"Look she might think that I can find solutions but I know she needs you right now. Just be sure she is okay while she works outside the village. Be present for her." Shikamaru pleaded. His friend assessed him with a critical look.

"Of course I would. She is one of my precious people." He scoffed slightly offended that his friend thought he needed a reminder to paid attention to the girl.

"Oh and while you're at it. Try to learn a thing or two about proper etiquette and negotiations. Hinata is one of the best at those two things. You might want to pick up a few tricks." The Nara had added before being called back in the office.

While it hadn't been the most pleasant conversation he had with his best friend, Naruto had to admit, he had needed it. Hinata was not well and it bothered him that it took him so long to be sure it was the case when the proof was so damn evident and his claim that he was closer to the heiress than most of his friends were not true anymore. He seemed to be the one to know less about the girl than anyone else. That hurt his feeling. The inadequacy he felt growing more and more in his chest. When did she get so far from him?

He remembered a time when she had been constantly in his proximity and in a blink of an eye she was so far away he wasn't sure he knew her anymore. She was so different from the gentle and serene girl that had helped him after the war. This kindness had anchored him back when he had to learn to define himself as something else than just a Shinobi but also as a man. The woman in front of him leading the way was so cold, so stiff. Her smile was less radiant, her eyes duller. She was taking so much step away from what he knew and he didn't know what to think of it.

'I am worried okay.'

She wasn't happy but about what ? Was she in danger? Was it her clan? She hadn't left them and seemed very preoccupied. More than that even, she was panicking. From what Kiba had described as she had assault Shino, she seemed frantic and not in the right state of mind. She seemed relatively normal now if the cold woman could be considered the standard now.

'She could have said something sooner.' The young man groaned in his head. What had changed between them for her not to trust him?

Sighting out loud, he cursed slightly under his breath. This mission was supposed to be a break from all this mess but he was now deep in it and his mind couldn't get around the situation.

Settling to just moving, he diverted his attention to the road staying alert to his environment. Unfortunately for him, since the peace, not a lot of bandit or other threat was present on the main roads leaving the travel quite boring.

They ran until the sun started to set above the threes. Setting the tent and starting a fire, both stayed silent as they bothered themselves with their respective camp chores. Still both deep in their thought they shared their meal in a weird tension that was so uncommon between the two that the blond suddenly felt choked up. He couldn't found in him to tell her anything. It was as if his brain had emptied himself from anything regarding her or any kind of subject.

He watched her openly, as she was reading her scroll, barely eating her food her focus entirely turned on her piece of paper. Her lips were pressed into a thin line and her eyebrows scrunched down in a deep frown. Her hand was slowly stroking a stray of hair that fell right on her naked shoulders. She looked so far in deep in her reading that she didn't even realize he was staring.

A heavyweight fell in the bottom of his stomach as he finished slurping the broth of his instant ramen. He was worried too. Never before he had felt so... alienated from his friend. She was always the sweetest and the kindest to him. It was like he didn't know her at all. Like years of friendship never happened.

He assessed this new person that left him puzzled. She looked the same and at the same time, she was so different. Under the warm light of the fire, he noted the small details he didn't pay attention to before. Like the way, her hand was fidgeting, squeezing on a rhythmical beat anything that came in her palm. Or the constant back and forth her eyes would do as she read her paper, sometimes stopping and going out of focus before returning to the task. She didn't have dark circles but the skin around her pupils was thinning, letting see almost too clearly the network of blue veins under a translucent complexion. And she was so pale, unearthly white, almost like light radiate from her skin. The warm light of the fire didn't diminish the coldness of her light. For a moment, he nearly forgot she was human like him. She didn't seem to belong to the same realm…

" Naruto ?" Her voice snapped him out of his trance. Her eyes full of concern looked at him with worry.

" Sorry I spaced out." He mumbled embarrassed looking elsewhere. He heard her standing up and walking next to him.

"Are you sure you are okay? You've been really quiet since we left." Her voice was filled with worry. That hadn't changed, she still was so selfless.

"Look who's talking." He snapped harshly.

Both froze. That was mean. Plain and simple. He looked up at her alarmed ready to see hurt and tears gathering in her perfect pearly eyes or hearing her scream at him, chastising him for his harsh words but nothing of this manifested in her. Dread filled him as he watched her trait sharpening and the life in her eyes slowly dying out. No hurt, no tears, no emotions grace her features.

" I am sorry. I overstepped my boundaries." She mechanically spoke before taking a step back and returning to her spot, the farthest away from him. No venom in her voice, no sign of any hurt or grudge held against him. Nevertheless, she could have ripped him open with her sharpest kunai, it wouldn't have hurt as much as it did.

Her expression closed off totally after that. No trace of the Hinata he knew or even the one that had prepared him a bento.

Guilt and regret.

The inadequacy of his presence filled him like a poison in his blood. Damn. He needed to get a grip. Shikamaru had asked him to keep an eye on her and until now, he had done everything to push her farthest from him.

Standing up, he shrugged off his jacket before walking to her and enveloping her in it. He didn't wait for her protest as he walked away to found a good spot to look out for potential threats.

" Your nails are turning blues from the cold. You should get some rest while I take the first watch." He threw off as he jumped on a branch. He watched her eyes lingering to the spot he left before her small hand clutched the garment on her shoulder. She didn't deny him as he saw her standing and laying down in the tent.

Letting a long sight escape him, he let himself slumped on his branch. It was going to be a long trip.

A few hours later, as the night sky grazed the forest in a deep blue light, both ninjas were readied to go. The tension had died down with sleep but there was this lingering feeling of guilt present in the blond's heart. He approached her as she was packing the tent and her sleeping bag. As he arrived a few feet from her she lifted her gentle gaze on him smiling.

"Is there something wrong ?" She asked noticing the deepening of his frown as he looked down at her. Taking her hand and squeezing it, he fell into her alarming dull and tired pearl eyes.

"I just wanted to apologize for being so weird since we left and from snapping at you. I don't have any excuses for the way I acted toward you and I know it worries you but I swear everything is fine." Her eyes widened as she looked at their linked hand.

"It's okay Naruto. We all have our days." She shook her head before smiling back at him with a lifeless but still warm smile. "As long as everything is fine at the end of the day then we are good."

He wanted to deny her statement but her eyes silenced him. He was really sorry and he really wanted her to stop worrying about him so much. But he knew she would never stop. She already gave him an explanation as to why.

'Because I love you.'