Chapter 15 - Festival
Hinata, Izumi, and Hanabi were currently in Hinata's new room, getting ready for the festival that was to start in about an hour. Hanabi was going to the festival with Hiashi while Hinata and Izumi were going to meet up with Kō and Sasuke before heading over.
"Hanabi-chan you look so cute!" Izumi squealed, having just finished tying the obi around her. "She looks like a doll!"
Hanabi spun around with a big smile, looking at herself in the floor length mirror. "Thanks, Izumi-oneesan!" Hanabi giggled. She was wearing a purple yukata with a pink cherry blossom design on it.
Hinata just smiled at her little sister. It was nice seeing her so happy for the first time since their mother passed. This was going to be Hanabi's first festival and she was glad that the girl was enjoying herself.
"Alright Izumi-chan, it's your turn! We're gonna make sure you floor Kō with your beauty!" Hinata teased, pushing Izumi in front of the mirror.
"Hinata-chan, shush! Kō is just a friend, and we barely know each other." Izumi said, turning a slight shade of pink.
"Oh? I guess I'll have to let Kō down then and tell him you're not interested in him." Hinata said with a grin. Teasing Izumi had become a favorite pastime for her, ever since she saw the two of them in the village at a café talking and laughing with each other.
"You wouldn't!" Izumi rounded on her.
"Hmmm, I don't know~" Smirked Hinata, turning Izumi back around and stripping her of her bathrobe. "Now hold still and let me put this yukata on you. Hanabi, can you go get her obi? Thank you."
Hinata was just glad that Izumi's mind had been taken off of Itachi. Izumi was about to turn 14 and Kō was only 16, so the age difference wasn't much in Hinata's opinion. She was determined to see things work out between them. Izumi needed a win, but Kō could be pretty dense at times.
They had picked out a beautiful blue yukata with white lilies, and a dark blue obi. Hinata had thought it was perfect for her as soon as she saw it. She had learned in her kunoichi tactics class that white lilies symbolize purity, commitment, rebirth, and a rejuvenation of the soul. Hinata thought it was appropriate for the girl, who was trying to move past Itachi and the tragedy of her clan.
Hinata helped her into the yukata and began wrapping it around her, before moving on to her obi.
"Quit squirming!" Hinata chastised. "You're making me tie it on crooked!"
"Don't you think it's a bit tight?" Izumi said. While trying to loosen the front of it a bit.
"Pain is beauty and beauty is pain. Suck it up." Hinata said, tying it tighter and undoing Izumi's efforts. "How else are we going to emphasize your curves. We're not working with much here."
"Rude!" Izumi said in distress, looking down at her small bust. "I'm still young!"
"Yeah, yeah. Well when you're older you can loosen it then. But for now, put up with it."
"Yours wasn't this tight!" Izumi said, looking with jealousy at Hinata's yukata that was tied more loosely..
Hinata was wearing a black yukata with a pink floral pattern with butterflies of different colors. Her obi was black as well with a pink ribbon around the middle of it.
"Well I'm 8, and not trying to impress anyone. That's different." Hinata explained, finishing the bow on the back of Izumi's yukata. "Annndddd, there. Perfect." Hinata backed off to admire her work.
"What about Sasuke?" Izumi asked, with a smirk.
"What about 8 don't you understand? And I'm not interested in Sasuke, we're just friends and training partners." Hinata wasn't going to explain to Izumi that she wasn't interested in boys in general, she honestly didn't know what would happen if her father found out. Could she still be the heiress if there wasn't a chance of her having children in the future? She didn't know and didn't want to risk it yet.
"Uh huh." Izumi said, clearly not buying it.
Hinata just sighed, and didn't bother arguing anymore.
"Alright sit down, let me finish your braid." Hinata brought a chair over for her. "Back straight, I don't want you to ruin everything."
"You're a slave driver, Hinata-chan." Izumi pouted.
"And you're being melodramatic." Hinata laughed, pulling Izumi's hair back to braid it up into a bun. After she finished the bun, she walked over to her drawer to get something wrapped in a silk cloth.
"Also, I picked out the perfect hair pin for you." Hinata said with a smile. "I think it really sends the right message."
"Hinata you didn't." Izumi said, looking at the hairpin adorned with a pink primrose, and blushing.
"Look, I'm just putting that damn class to good use." Hinata said, working it onto the side of her head. Pink primrose represented young love apparently. Hinata had cackled when she saw it and bought it instantly.
Izumi was going to complain again, but the pin really was beautiful. 'Fine. I'll let her have this one, but I'm definitely going to get her back for this one day.' Izumi thought to herself as Hinata finished up.
"Wow! You're so pretty oneesan!" Hanabi said, looking at her with big eyes.
"Anyone will look beautiful after I work my magic! But Izumi was already really pretty, so I didn't have to put much work into this." Hinata said triumphantly.
"The boys will be here soon, so get your game face on girl." Said Hinata. She had worked all morning on brushing Izumi's hair, working scented oil into Izumi's hair to make it look lustrous. She was just glad the Izumi's complexion was already perfect, so she didn't need to worry about makeup. That would have been a whole other ordeal.
They heard a knock on the bedroom door. "Hinata-chan it's me, can I come in?" She heard her dad's voice outside her room.
"Yeah, we're all done!"
Hiashi opened the door. "You ladies look lovely!" He said, smiling at his daughters.
"Otousan!" Hanabi shouted and jumped into his arms. "Can we go now? Can we?"
Hinata looked at her father, noting the dark circles under his eyes. He hadn't been sleeping well since everything happened, but he was hiding it well beneath a smile as he held Hanabi.
"Alright, Hanabi-chan, alright." He laughed. "We'll get going now. I think Kō and Sasuke are outside waiting. You girls have a good time ok? Don't stay out too late Hinata."
"Okay, okay. Got it." Hinata said, rolling her eyes.
"Remember to meet me in the town center around sunset to pick up Hanabi for a little. I have to be on stage for the speech and the ceremony of announcing the new Hokage." Hiashi reminded her.
"I'll make sure she's there on time, Hyūga-san. Don't worry." Izumi said.
"Thank you, Izumi-chan. I'll leave it to you then."
"Quit talking about me like I'm not here!" Pouted Hinata. "I know how to tell time."
"Oh really? So you purposefully come home after curfew half the time when you've been out training in the evening?" Hiashi said, half joking.
"Err…" Hinata looked away, scratching her cheek.
'Dad - 1, Hinata - 0' Izumi thought to herself, smirking.
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
"Ahhh, festivals. So many beautiful ladies to appreciate." Jiraiya said to himself, sitting on top of a building watching the crowds of people starting to gather. He had a pair of binoculars in his hands that he was looking through, giggling to himself.
"Disgusting." Jiraiya heard a voice from behind him.
"You just don't understand me, Tsume-chan." Jiraiya said, not looking away from his sightseeing. "Besides, this is all for my research. It really is a full time job, you know?"
"Pervert." Tsume said, with a disgusted look on her face.
"You don't have to resort to name calling. "Jiraiya said, pretending to be hurt. "You all won't let me enjoy the festival until after your announcement, so I have to do something to pass the time."
"What about acting like a respectable Hokage, instead of creeping on girls?" Tsume bit back.
Jiraiya put down his binoculars and turned his head to look at her. "You know…" He put a hand up to his chin and looked at her thoughtfully. "Now that I'm looking, you're a real beauty as well. If you changed your attitude a bit, you might be able to meet a man and hold onto him this time."
Tsume looked like she was going to rip his head off. "Huh!? I dare you to say that again!"
Kuromaru let out a low girl, warning Jiraiya. This was a sore spot for his partner and he knew it.
"Okay, okay. I was just teasing you, I apologize." Jiraiya said, backing down. "Did you need something from me, or were you just here because you missed me?" He said, grinning.
Tsume snorted. "Your Hokage robes are ready and Shikaku wants you to start preparing. You also have a speech to memorize. We don't want you embarrassing all of us on the first day."
Jiraiya sighed. "You all really look down on me don't you…"
"I wonder why that is." She glared at the binoculars in his hands.
"Fine, let's go." Jiraiya gave in, standing up to follow Tsume back to the Hokage tower.
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
Hinata and Izumi walked out through the front door. Kō and Sasuke were standing out front waiting. Each of them were wearing yukatas representing their clans, and Hinata couldn't help but shake her head at the lack of creativity. 'Whatever.' She thought. 'At least they're handsome.'
Hinata saw the look on Kō's face when she and Izumi walked outside and couldn't help but giggle. Sasuke looked at her a bit confused and asked: "What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing, nothing." Hinata waved away the question and stifled her laughter.
"You, uh.. You both look very nice." Kō said, blushing a bit, and rubbing the back of his head as he saw Izumi.
Hinata turned to give Izumi a smug look, while Izumi had also turned a shade of pink
"You look very nice as well, Kō-san." She said in a quiet voice.
Hinata tried her best to hide her grin, but apparently not well enough as Izumi stepped on her foot.
"Shall we go then?" Izumi asked.
"Yeahh, I guess…" Sasuke sighed, taking the lead.
"Don't be a spoil-sport, Sasuke." Hinata said, catching up to him and elbowing him softly in the ribs. "Today is time to have fun!"
Sasuke gave her a look that said he really didn't want to be here.
Hinata and Sasuke took the front, leaving Kō and Izumi to trail behind them as they left the compound and headed into the village proper.
The village had been decorated with ribbons, silks, banners, and lanterns. It was a sight to behold. The lanterns were going to be lit later that night after the sun started to set, but they were pretty even without being lit, as they were in bright vibrant colors.
Throngs of people had started to gather on the streets to explore the various stalls that had food, games, and other attractions. Music played through the air with various street musicians and wherever you went you could hear the laughter and happy chatting of people.
Weaving their way through the crowd, Hinata led them to stall after stall.
"Ah! Look over there!" Hinata shouted, pulling Sasuke by the arm heading to another stall that was running a game. The festival had different games that were tailored to both shinobi and regular citizens, so that everyone could have fun and enjoy themselves.
"Scoop a fish, win a prize!" The man running the stall called out as they approached.
Hinata saw a large stuffed rabbit wearing a Konoha shinobi headband, and carrots in a pouch strapped to his side like kunai. 'I need it.' She thought to herself.
"Win it for me Sasuke!" She said, pulling him to the stand, and pointing at the rabbit.
"You have really weird taste don't you?" Sasuke looked at her like he was seeing her for the first time.
"Shush!" Hinata said, pushing him forward. "Ojisan! We want to play!"
"20 Ryō per try!" The man said happily, taking her money and handing Sasuke a thin paper scoop. "Send chakra into the paper to protect it from the water! Use too little and it will dissolve, use too much and you'll break it. Good luck!"
Sasuke sighed and took the scoop, getting ready to try his hand.
Izumi and Kō finally caught up, standing off to the side to watch the show. Kō smirked to himself, knowing it wasn't going to be as easy as Sasuke thought.
"Watch this, it will be an interesting show." He whispered to Izumi.
Sasuke spread chakra carefully into the paper and dunked it into the water, getting it beneath one of the goldfish swimming around in the tank. He brought the scoop up and it immediately broke when it hit the fish, dissolving into the water.
"Ohhh, nice try son!" The man said, grinning. "Want to try again?"
"Of course!" Hinata said, handing over another 20 Ryō.
Sasuke took another scoop, threading chakra into it again, instantly breaking the paper again. He looked at it in shock.
Kō and Izumi laughed at the look of disbelief on his face, and Hinata handed over more money, trying hard not to laugh herself. "Almost Sasuke! I believe in you!"
Sasuke took the third scoop and stared at it. 'I see… 'He thought to himself. 'This is just another form of training. I underestimated Hinata, she clearly knew this before bringing me here.'
"You're not going to scoop a fish just glaring at it Sasuke." Hinata said, hiding a grin with her sleeve.
Sasuke gave her a look, before turning his attention back to the scoop. He had a serious look on his face now as he funneled chakra into the scoop once more. He plunged it into the tank, and the paper broke as soon as it hit the water.
Kō and Izumi were doubled over laughing at this point, and Sasuke turned to glare at them for a second before turning back around. "One more!" He shouted.
Time after time, Sasuke tried to scoop a fish. Sometimes the scoop instantly broke, other times the water got it. One time he almost had a fish but got too excited and broke the scoop right before he brought it out of the water.
The other three had tears in their eyes from laughing so much at the look of concentration on Sasuke's face. He had completely forgotten about them, focused entirely on scooping one of the damnable fish.
"I'll try once." Kō said, walking forward and handing over 20 Ryō.
The man handed him a scoop and Kō looked at it for a second before channeling chakra into it.
Kō put the scoop in the water and instantly scooped a fish on the first try. The look on Sasuke's face was priceless and Hinata pat him on the shoulder consoling him.
"Congratulations!" The man said, handing over a stuffed bear that Kō had pointed to. Kō gave the bear to Izumi, who hugged it happily to her chest.
"Thank you Kō-san." She said, smiling.
"Ahh, it was nothing much." Kō said, blushing.
"It's ok if you can't do it Sasuke, I'll just give up on the rabbit." Hinata said in mock sympathy. "Maybe next time."
"Who says I can't do it?" Sasuke said. "I was just warming up."
"Yes, yes. Of course. But I don't want to spend all day at one stall." Hinata said, pulling him along with her. Sasuke looked back at the stall as they walked away, glaring at it.
They went to many different stalls and vendors, sampling the different food and candies that were being sold. Several stalls were featuring food from different countries and far away places. Merchants that had arrived during the week were ecstatic to find out an impromptu festival was being held just as they arrived in the village. Festivals meant crowds, and crowds meant money.
Eventually they arrived outside of a stall that had delicious smells coming from it. Hinata saw someone familiar running the stall and called out to him.
"Chōza-san!"
"Ahh, if it isn't Hinata-chan!" Chōza said jovially. "Want to try some ikayaki? Oh? Well if it isn't Sasuke-kun, Izumi-chan, and Kō-kun as well!"
"Ikayaki sounds great! And yeah, we're walking around together!" Hinata said, getting the food to pass around the group and handing over money.
"I see, I see." He said, looking over at Kō and Izumi. "Well I won't hold you too long then! Chōji should be somewhere, he's with Shikamaru, Ino, and that Sakura girl."
"We'll probably run into them eventually. Thanks Chōza-san!" Hinata said, waving goodbye.
"Have fun!" Chōza said, calling after them.
The group continued onward, eating the ikayaki as they went. Sasuke looked at Hinata who had two of them, taking a bite from one before taking a bite from the other, switching back and forth as she ate.
"How much are you planning to eat? This is like the 6th time we've stopped to get you food." Sasuke told her.
"What? You're keeping track?" Hinata looked at him in shock.
"He's right Hinata-chan." Izumi laughed. "I've never seen someone so small eat so much. Now I know why you're always going on runs."
"That is that and this is this." Hinata puffed out her cheeks. "I'm allowed to enjoy myself today! So I'm going all out!"
"Yeah well, if you go all out anymore you'll end up looking like Chōji.." Sasuke muttered under his breath.
"Excuse me?" Hinata said with a smile. "You want to say that again?"
Kō just shook his head at the boy. 'There's no saving him now.' Kō wrote Sasuke off in his head as a dead man. 'May god have mercy on him.'
"Sasuke! You can't say something like that to a girl!" Izumi chastised him. "Ahh.. I apparently still have so much I need to teach you…" She sighed, shaking her head in disappointment.
"I'll forgive you for now Sasuke, but I'll remember this." Hinata said with a scary tone in her voice. "Our training resumes on Monday after the academy." She politely reminded him before walking off into the crowd.
Kō gave him a sympathetic look and clapped his shoulder as they followed behind her. Sasuke grimaced before moving onward, clearly catching the thinly veiled threat in her words.
The group walked around for a while before they saw the group Chōza mention in the distance. It looked like Ino was nagging Chōji again, as the boy completely ignored her in favor of the street food he was currently ordering.
"Ino-chan!" Hinata called out, walking towards the group.
"Hinata-chan?" Ino turned to look at the group, eyes going wide after seeing who Hinata was with. "Sasuke-kun!?"
Sasuke just nodded to the group in greeting before turning away, to look at some of the stalls.
Ino and Sakura quickly moved to Hinata to pull her off to the side.
"Why didn't you tell us you were going to the festival with Sasuke? Ino hissed in a whisper. "We could've gone togetherrrr…" She said in a whining tone of voice. "Instead I'm stuck with those three!"
"How did this even happen?" Sakura asked. "I thought you weren't interested in him at all?"
"I'm not." Hinata snapped back. "I'm friends with Uchiha Izumi and Sasuke and I are just friends and training partners. That's all."
"Friends!?" Ino practically shouted. "Wait, wait. Training partners!?"
"When did that happen!?" Sakura said, equally shocked.
"Shortly after we started at the academy. Sasuke's about the only one in our class that can put up something of a fight." Hinata said simply.
"You! You!" Ino stuttered.
"You've been holding out on us!" Sakura finished, while Ino just nodded.
"Guys, it's not that big of a deal." Hinata said, flabbergasted. 'Holy shit their infatuation started a lot earlier than I thought.'
"You know he's really not that scary. If you two actually talked to him normally instead of panicking every time he looked in your direction, you might actually make progress." Hinata said with a small smile.
"But it's Sasuke!" Sakura whispered.
Hinata snorted, walking away, leaving the girls to look at each other thoughtfully.
"Yo guys." Hinata greeted the other two, walking over to them.
"Hey Hinata." Shikamaru said. "You look nice."
"Aww, thanks!" Hinata said, turning around in a circle, showing off. "I worked hard! You boys don't half bad yourselves." She noted, looking over their yukatas.
"Dad, made me dress up.. What a drag…" Shikamaru said, sighing, as if remembering the horrible process and lamenting the fact.
Hinata talked to them for a few minutes before saying goodbye and going back to find Sasuke, dragging him by the arm off into the crowd. Sakura and Ino watched the process dumbfounded.
"She touched him." Ino stated, shocked.
"He let her touch him." Sakura added in a disbelieving voice. "Are we doing something wrong Ino-chan?"
"Maybe Hinata had a point…" Ino responded.
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
Hinata and the others made their way through the growing crowd of people as everyone migrated towards the village center. The announcement was happening soon and everyone was beginning to gather for it.
"Otousan!" Hinata called out when she saw her father and Hanabi waiting for them.
"Hinata-oneesan! You're here!" Hanabi ran over and gave her older sister a hug.
"Hey Hanabi. You have fun walking around?"
"Mm! We went to all sorts of different stalls! Look what otousan won for me!" Hanabi held up a stuffed rabbit and showed Hinata.
Hinata looked at it, before turning to look at Sasuke, who had a devastated look on his face. That damned rabbit and fish game was going to be haunting his dreams for a while. 'I'm going back to that damn stall after this speech.' He thought.
"Thanks for coming on time Hinata-chan." Hiashi walked over. "And thanks for looking after her, you two." He turned to give Kō and Izumi a grateful look.
"No problem Hyūga-san. We had fun!" Izumi said with a smile, she had her arm hooked through Kō's.
Hinata turned around and saw them. 'When did that happen? You go girl!'
"Apparently Jiraiya wants to have a special introduction, as well, so we have to time the speech to end right as the sun goes down." Hiashi then sighed. "Alright, I'll leave Hanabi to you for now. I'll pick her up after the speech. I have to get going."
"Sure thing! See you in a little bit!"
Hiashi walked off, heading towards the stage and the little room in the back of it where he was meeting the others.
Hinata talked to the others, holding Hanabi's hand as they waited for the event to start. The crowd of people had grown to a massive size and all they could see was an ocean of people.
"I can't really see the stage…" Hinata said, trying to stand on her tiptoes. "Come on, over here!"
She pulled the others through the crowd as she made her way to building on the edge of the village square. She channeled chakra into her feet like Hayate had taught her and walked up the side of the building, holding a cheering Hanabi. She got to the roof and sat down with Hanabi in her lap, overlooking the area below. She could see several other shinobi also making use of the roofs, seemingly having the same idea as her.
Sasuke just watched her with a shocked look on his face. "When did you learn how to do that?
"Hm? Oh walking up walls?" Hinata gave him a smirk. "What don't tell me you can't? Oh-ho-ho-ho~." She laughed in an obnoxious voice into her sleeve, teasing him.
Izumi jumped up to join her and Kō grabbed an indignant Sasuke to bring him up as well.
"You're teaching me that Monday." Sasuke said simply, sitting down.
"I don't know Sasuke~." She said teasingly. "I might have eaten too much food by then and will be too fat to show you how it's done."
"Shhh, it's starting!" Izumi said, quieting them.
Indeed, the crowd all started to quiet down as well as Shikaku walked out onto the stage next to Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Shikaku was currently dressed in formal Hokage attire, wearing the traditional hat as well.
He cleared his throat before speaking. "First off, I want to thank everyone here for joining us in this festival. I hope everyone is enjoying themselves?"
The crowd erupted in cheers and clapping, before quieting down once more.
"Good! Now I know most of you are aware of what the occasion is, but in case there are those here that aren't, I'll fill you in." Shikaku said, speaking in a calm voice. "Earlier this week, the Sandaime Hokage and the council decided to retire from their positions. This had been planned for a while, but councilman Shimura Danzō's sudden passing spurred on this change a little ahead of time."
The crowd was silent, listening to what he had to say. Some shinobi had wry smiles on their faces, clearly understanding what was being said between the lines.
'So that's the story they decided on huh?' Hinata thought to herself.
"This festival serves three purposes!" Shikaku spoke up. "First, we plan on celebrating the years of great service that the Sandaime Hokage and council members Shimura Danzō, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu provided to our great Konohagakure!"
The crowd cheered again, causing Shikaku to pause his speech while he waited for them to finish.
After the cheers had died down, he continued. "Secondly, we want to introduce to you the new council of Konohagakure, and explain a bit about what their duties will be and what this means for our village."
"As you all know, I took the position of Hokage temporarily, while we decided on a permanent Godaime Hokage. Well that brings us to the third reason for this festival! Shortly, we will be introducing the official Godaime Hokage!"
Shock and happiness spread through the crowd of people. Mainly it was the regular citizens that were unaware of what was happening behind the scenes, that were shocked at the news. Everyone was excited though, it was always a special occasion when a new Hokage was chosen.
Shikaku passed the stage off to Sarutobi Hiruzen and the previous two council members who each had a speech saying what an honor it was to serve and that they were getting old and looking forward to passing the torch onto the younger generation.
The crowd was eating it up, even if the speeches were a bit long winded. Hinata and the other three had bitter smiles on their faces however as they listened to the hypocrisy that was being spewed forth.
After the Sandaime Hokage finished his speech, Sasuke was glaring at him hatefully. He knew this was for the best, but it left an extremely bitter taste in his mouth. There wasn't a single mention of the Uchiha massacre in any of their speeches, as if they were pretending his clan hadn't been slaughtered in the streets like dogs.
The old council members and Hokage left the stage to cheers as Shikaku introduced the new council members when they stepped up onto the stage. He explained that after he passed the torch to the new Hokage, he too was going to be joining the council.
Several shinobi saw this for what it was, but held their tongues. The clans were taking a position of authority, asserting their control over the village in the background.
Hinata couldn't help but laugh however when Shikaku referred to himself as the 4.5th Hokage.
By the time the speeches were nearing their end, the sun was almost set and it was getting dark. Shikaku finished speaking and took a second to pinch the bridge of his nose, as if not believing what was about to happen.
"Introducing, your new Godaime Hokage!" He called out, motioning towards the curtain on the stage.
Two spotlights lit up the curtain and Hinata just blanked out with eyes wide, as they heard a traditional kabuki intro of wooden blocks hitting each other, getting faster before tapering off into drums. The curtain opened right as the last note finished and Jiraiya appeared in a puff of smoke, taking a kabuki pose. "YoooOOooOOoo" Hinata heard, as he appeared.
Hinata was silent. The various shinobi were quiet. Even the crowd was silent. Everyone was just stunned at what they just witnessed.
'Maybe this was a mistake?' Hinata thought to herself.
"*Ahem*" Jiraiya cleared his voice, clearly disappointed at the lack of reaction from the crowd. He walked forward and stood front and center on the stage. "Good evening Konoha! It is I, Jiraiya, one of your beloved Sannin, Gama Sennin, and the new Godaime Hokage!"
After the crowd had gotten over their initial shock, cheers and clapping erupted and Jiraiya look smugly over at Shikaku, who was facepalming.
Hinata just shook her head with a wry smile and clapped along with everyone else.
"He's our new Hokage?" Sasuke asked, as if this was the most disturbing joke he's ever heard.
"Don't look down on him!" Hinata shouted over the applause. "He's an idiot at times, but they call him Sannin for a reason!"
Jiraiya spent some time talking after the noise died off, and he let everyone know he was going to lead Konohagakure into a new era. He promised many things, and explained some specifics of what was going to happen going forward. Honestly, Hinata stopped listening halfway through.
Eventually the speech ended and Shikaku passed the Hokage's hat over to Jiraiya, symbolizing his new official position, and bringing an end to the ceremony.
"Now then!" Jiraiya shouted, with a grin. "Let the second half of the festival begin!"
He waved his hand and the lanterns lit up in the city one by one in a chain reaction starting with those around the stage.
"Enjoy the rest of your night! I know there are many new stands that have been setting up during this ceremony so please, go have fun and enjoy exploring all Konohagakure has to offer!" Jiraiya ended, disappearing suddenly in a second puff of smoke, leaving the crowds to disperse and talk amongst themselves.
"Alright!" Hinata said, standing up and clapping her hands. "Let's go get dinner then see what's changed with the stalls!"
"You guys go get dinner, I have somewhere I need to go." Sasuke said, speaking up. "If we don't find each other again, I'll see you Monday."
"What do you have to do?"
"Doesn't matter. It's important though." Saying that, Sasuke jumped off the roof and worked his way through the crowd, soon leaving their sight.
"The hell was that about?" Hinata asked the other two.
"No idea." Kō said. "But let's go, I'm getting hungry. Dinner sounds good."
The three of them worked their way through the ocean of people, eventually passing by a small ramen stand in a slightly more quiet place.
"Boss! Seconds!" Hinata heard a familiar voice coming from inside as they were walking past.
"Naruto?" Hinata asked, stepping inside.
"Oh! Hinata-chan!" Naruto turned to greet her.
"I should have figured I'd meet you at a ramen stand." Hinata laughed. "Let me introduce you. This is Hyūga Kō and the lovely lady on his arm is Uchiha Izumi!" She then motioned towards Naruto. "This is Uzumaki Naruto! A friend from my class at the academy!"
Kō had a strange look on his face when he saw Naruto. 'Him? Hiashi-sama wouldn't like this.'
"It's a pleasure Naruto-kun." Izumi said politely.
"What's up Hinata-chan? You guys here to eat ramen?" Naruto asked, accepting his second bowl.
"Dressed like this? No thanks, that's a disaster waiting to happen!" Hinata laughed. "We were just passing by to find somewhere to eat and I Heard your voice. I just wanted to say hi."
"Suit yourself." Naruto shrugged.
"Where's your yukata?" Hinata asked, looking him over. He was dressed in his normal shirt and pants.
"Don't have one. Never had the need to wear one." He said between mouthfuls.
"Ok, next time there's a festival or something, I'm definitely taking you shopping for one." Hinata said. "Anyways, we're gonna head out. Good seeing you!"
"You too! See ya Monday." Naruto said, waving them goodbye before returning to his meal.
Eventually the group found a nice sit down restaurant that was open and enjoyed a good meal, filled with laughter and friendly banter.
As they finished and were getting ready to pay and leave, Hinata's mouth dropped open as she looked over at a table on the far side of the restaurant.
"What's wrong Hinata-chan?" Izumi asked.
"Shhhh!" Hinata put a finger to her mouth. "It's my shishou!"
Sure enough, Hayate was at a table dressed in a good looking black and silver yukata, sitting across from a beautiful young woman that seemed about a year younger than him. She had long, silky purple hair and a beautiful yukata filled with different flowers and birds.
"Hayate-san?" Kō looked with interest at where Hinata was pointing. "Who's the woman he's with?"
"Obviously his girlfriend!" Izumi said, rolling her eyes.
"Well I know that." Kō said. "I meant what's her name. You should know right, Hinata-hime?"
"Her name's Yūgao Uzuki. She was his previous student of kenjutsu!" Hinata sighed. "A forbidden love between student and sensei."
Kō gave her a strange look. "Is that really appropriate?"
"Love comes in all forms Kō! As long as they're happy! I think it's wonderful." Hinata said with a dreamy look on her face. She suddenly gave a smirk though. "I'm definitely gonna tease him about this later though. Come on, I don't want to interrupt them. They look so happy!"
The group left the establishment to continue exploring everything the festival had to offer. After walking around for a few more hours, it had started getting late and they decided to go home for the night. Hinata was stuffed from street food. and tired from walking around all day in a yukata.
Kō dropped Hinata off at her house, before leaving to walk Izumi home.
"Bye! Thanks for hanging out with me all day!" Hinata said to the two of them.
"It was really fun!" Izumi said with a smile. "I'll see you later, I just want a bath and to go to bed."
"Sameeee." Hinata drawled out. "See you later!"
Hinata walked into her house, to find her dad sitting on a couch reading a book.
"Back? You guys have fun?"
"Mm! Where's Hanabi?" Hinata asked, kicking off her shoes at the door.
"She's asleep. She crashed a couple hours ago so I brought her home." Hiashi said, smiling. "Go get a bath and go to bed, I'm sure you're tired too."
"That's the plan." Hinata walked over and gave him a hug. "G'night, otousan."
"Goodnight Hinata-chan." He returned the hug before going back to his book.
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A/N: Longest chapter yet! I really enjoyed writing this chapter as it was just a lot of fun and a nice change of pace from the previous few chapters that were more heavy. I also didn't want the festival to spill over into the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it!