Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters mentioned in this story.
A few weeks later.
Hinata sits in front of her vanity twiddling her thumbs. She was going to visit Neji-niisan today.
"Naruto-kun wanted to come with me to visit… what if he's busy… maybe we should schedule a day to go.." Hinata thought out loud.
Hanabi watched as her older sister struggled to make a decision.
"Hinata-neechan, You do realize that at this moment Naruto could be getting swept off his feet by those harpy fans of his?" Hanabi smirks as she watches her sister's eyes widen in realization.
" You'll be the last to get his attention if you don't make the first move." Hanabi continued, twirling her kunai.
"Hanabi's right." Hinata thought. Her resolve strengthening, she stands up and walks over to her wardrobe.
" I have to make the first move, Naruto-kun will not know of my feelings if I just hide in my room all day," Hinata said.
" Well, you sure as hell can't wear that if you're making the first move my unfashionable elder sister," Hanabi said as she grabbed Hinata's layered outfit and put it back in the wardrobe.
"Step aside," Hanabi says. Immediately she starts rejecting her sister's clothes.
" No….no…..no…. definitely not." Hanabi says tossing various items away.
"Hanabi, I understand that you are trying to help but you are making a mess," Hinata says as she tries to organize Hanabi's mess.
"Well if you had better clothes we wouldn't be having this problem….. This is perfect." Hanabi sassed back holding out an outfit.
" I do not know if that is appropriate," Hinata said as a blush crept up her face.
" Hinata. Almost everything in your wardrobe goes down to your wrists and ankles. Also, it came from YOUR closet so it is automatically appropriate. Put it on." Hanabi said flatly.
"Hanabi I am going to a grave," Hinata said, exasperated by her sister's antics.
"The skirt isn't even that short." Hanabi huffed out.
Taking the clothes offered Hinata stepped into her bathroom to change.
Hanabi was in awe of her elder sister. Watching her suffer from her own hands, their father's and the clans. She was proud to see Hinata grow so strong and determined and keep being loving and kind. Her sister deserved love as powerful as her own and if Naruto Uzumaki could not see how beautiful and kind her sister was then, well Hanabi was not considered a prodigy for shits and giggles.
A few moments later Hinata stepped out of the bathroom. Hanabi squealed.
"Hinata-neechan you look beautiful, my work here is done," Hanabi said excitedly.
" Tell neji-niisan hi, for me." She said before leaving Hinata's room.
" All right. Thank You, Hanabi." Hinata said softly. Taking a moment to appreciate the silence she then turns towards her mirror.
The woman staring back at her in the mirror was not someone Hinata recognized immediately. It took her a moment to realize that she was not the meek and frightened child, the one who was bullied over her eyes. Nor was she the shy and weak genin whose father and clan tossed aside. She was a woman. A strong and kind woman. This is the woman Neji-niisan died for. Squaring her shoulders, white eyes drifted over her frame.
Hanabi picked out a mesh undershirt knowing that her sister would be uncomfortable, on top of that a cream kimono blouse with a lavender border in front, a black skirt that stopped by her thighs, and a darker shade of purple obi.
She looked nice. Tying her hair in a low ponytail with two pieces framing her face.
Deciding she was complete she made her way through the compound towards the kitchen.
" You look lovely today Hinata-sama." a passing Hyuga complimented.
" Thank you Natsu-san" Hinata said, a smile lighting up her face.
After arriving at the kitchen she took out two bento boxes she made and two drinks, placing them in her bag and she made her way to the exit. After putting on her shoes at the door she headed over to the Yamanaka's flower shop.
Hinata heard the little bell ding as we entered the flower shop. Noticing Ino and surprisingly Sai at the counter.
Shopping silently she found her items and made her way to the register to pay.
" Hello, Ino-san. Hello Sai-san" Hinata greeted as she handed the flowers over to Ino to wrap.
" Hey, Hinata! You look great." Ino greeted and she admired her friend.
" ah, Hello doe eyes," Sai said and smiled at Hinata.
" Doe eyes?" both Ino and Hinata questioned.
" You give nicknames to form friendships… her eyes are big and wide and she always looks alarmed. Doe eyes." Sai explained.
" I see….. What is Ino-san's nickname?" Hinata asked after silently accepting the strange man's invitation of friendship.
" Beautiful," Sai answered without hesitation. Ino sputtered at the counter her face heating up
Giggling, Hinata paid for her flowers and waved goodbye.
" Sai and Ino-san. I'm happy for them." Hinata thought.
Forging on she made her way to where she knew Naruto lived.
She only knew where he lived because they had a celebratory party after the war ended…. Not because she followed him home. Yeah.
Finding his apartment number she walked towards it…. And hesitated.
What if he is not home? I should check? No, that is an invasion of his privacy. Hinata thought the nerves she had earlier showed themselves again.
"No. I have to make the first move." Hinata thought. Adrenaline bursts through her veins and she bangs on his door instead of knocking.
"Oh no," she thought.
Inside Naruto's apartment, the sudden banging on his front door makes him jump. Getting up from the card game he was playing with his shadow clones, he makes his way to the front door.
" Jeez, if Sakura-chan breaks my front door again I'm making her put the new one in this time." Naruto thought,
"She doesn't know her own strength."
Opening the door blue eyes widened in surprise.
"Hinata?" Naruto questioned not believing that the shy girl was the one to bang on his door so hard.
" What an interesting turn of events." Kurama laughed at both of their faces.
Naruto's constipated confusion and the Hyuga girl's absolute terror.
" I am so sorry Naruto-kun, I didn't mean to knock so hard," Hinata said panic still written across her face, seasoned with a bit of embarrassment.
" Hey it's okay dattebayo, you just caught me by surprise," Naruto assured.
" What are you doing here?"
Hinata's face flushed realizing that Naruto wasn't wearing a shirt.
" She's practically drooling." Kurama teased
" What are you talking about?" Naruto asked the fox
"-If you still want to, that is."
"I'm sorry Hinata, I didn't catch that," Naruto replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.
"Stupid fox." Naruto thought.
"Stupid brat." Kurama shot back.
Slightly dejected, Hinata took a deep breath and spoke again.
" When you came back to the village you asked if we could go visit Neji-nissan together, I came by to see if you wanted to join me If you still want to do that is."
" Yeah that would be awesome, wait here I'll get changed dattebayo." Naruto said as he ran back into his apartment.
He threw on his signature tracksuit and ruffled up his hair and met Hinata outside.
They smiled at each other and walked in comfortable silence.
"Hey, Hinata?"
"Yes, Naruto-kun?"
"What's with the sunflowers" naruto asked
Looking at the flowers in her bag, Hinata smiled softly and looked up at Naruto's curious blue eyes.
"Neji-niisan likes sunflowers," she said letting out a small laugh.
Naruto laughed too, he couldn't imagine stoic Neji picking sunflowers.
Once they got to the memorial flame, Hinata walked towards Neji's plaque and started her usual routine.
Naruto watched, hovering awkwardly as Hinata replaced the old flowers with the sunflowers, next she lit the incense burner, lastly she said a small prayer before motioning for Naruto to join her.
" Are you alright?" She asked
"Yeah… I just don't know what to do." He admitted softly. Kakashi-sensei and Grandma Tsudande said to open up it was always easy doing that with Hinata.
He recalled their meeting before the chunin exam.
"That's alright Naruto-kun. I'm sure Neji-niisan just appreciates you being here. I usually talk to him, I'll go first and if you want to you can talk next." she said
She told Neji how she was working hard. How she misses him. She told him Hanabi says hello and how much she's grown. Hinata didn't realize she was crying until Naruto pulled her into a hug. Her tears left a small damp spot on his shirt.
Naruto spoke next. He told Neji how he was studying for the chunin exam and how Iruka-sensei is beating so much knowledge into his brain. He told Neji that he promises to become Hokage.
The two stand in silence for a while before nodding to each other that it was time to say goodbye.
Turning to Naruto while they were walking, Hinata asks, " Naruto-kun I brought some Bentos, would you like to have a late lunch together?"
" Hell Yeah. Hinata's home-cooked food. Let's go sit by the academy." Naruto cheered.
Ichiraku Ramen was in Naruto's blood. They were the first to open their doors to him despite the nine-tails. He was always on his own, he couldn't cook and nobody would cook for him so he cherished the times he could get a home-cooked meal. When he hung out with Choji and Shikamaru in their academy years, Choji's mother had allowed him to stay for dinner and he was ecstatic. A meal cooked with a mother's love. Later, he would go home and cry himself to sleep wondering what his own mother's cooking was like. The second time Hinata had made him a bento box. While; eating his own face had been an experience he was touched that she would go so far as to cook him something.
Sitting on the bench inside the park by the academy. Hinata pulled out the Bentos, she handed Naruto his and a drink from her bag and pulled out her own. The two sat and talked about everything and nothing. They laughed till their bellies hurt and Naruto thought that Hinata's soft giggles were cute but her laughter, unrestricted, was beautiful. A blush dusted his cheeks and he needed a distraction from his thoughts.
" So why did Neji like sunflowers? Naruto asked.
Hinata took a breath to calm herself before answering, " When I was younger I would spend my time with my mother in the garden. She would name them and tell me if they could be used for medicine or makeup or if you could eat them. Sometimes Neji-niisan would see us in the garden. After my mother died, I was hurting."
Naruto listens as she looks at the clouds, her smile evident on her gentle features
" One day, I was in the garden crying. Neji came and tried to do what my mother did to make me feel better. He didn't know a lot of the names or what they were used for. But he did know sunflowers and that you could eat the seeds. I didn't believe him and to prove his point he bit into the middle of it." She explained laughing out softly.
Naruto laughed too.
" When I laughed he declared it his favorite flower because if it could make me laugh and smile despite my heart hurting it must be the best."
A piercing wail interrupted the moment and immediately Naruto and Hinata were on guard, noticing that it was only a child crying cause they fell and scraped their leg.
" Excuse me for a moment Naruto-kun." She said getting up and heading over to the child.
Curious Naruto followed her to see what she was going to do.
Bending down to reach the child's level Hinata introduced herself.
" Hello, I'm Hinata. What's your name?"
" S-sho." the crying child answered, rubbing the tears in his eyes.
" That's a very nice name Sho. I'm a medical ninja, would it be alright if I took a look at your leg? Hinata asked.
After a moment's hesitation, Sho nodded and allowed Hinata access to his leg.
"Byakugan!" Hinata said the veins around her eyes popping out, green chakra surrounding her hand, she began to heal the small scrape.
"Wow, that's cool." Sho said excitedly
" Hey it doesn't hurt anymore." the kid jumped up and down showing off his uninjured leg.
" Alright just be a bit more careful from now on Sho-kun" Hinata said as she dusted off her skirt.
" Okay, I will. Thank you, Miss Hinata." Sho said as he ran off to tell his friends
"Hinata…. You're amazing." Naruto said in awe.
White eyes widened when they met cerulean blue and all Hinata could think about was what Sakura said that day in the Tea shop.
" Does he look at you differently than he used to?" Sakura asked
Is this what she meant?
Author's Note: You asked for more Hinata and here she is. The next two chapters will be posted on the same days next week. Tell me what you guys thought of the two chapters. As always leave reviews.
If anybody is interested in the Todoroki X Deku ship from My Hero Academia go check out my first completed fic Mama Bear Inko.