As soon as the class was dismissed for their lunch break, Naruto bounded over to Hinata, side-eying Sasuke briefly- an unfamiliar nervous energy thrumming through him. She turned to him, pale eyes making direct eye contact with his own and flushing slightly before smiling at him again. Friend. He sat on the edge of her desk, body turned forward towards her while also grinning back. Hinata struggled not to look down in habit but the book in his hand captured her attention.
"What a-are you reading, Naruto-kun?" Hinata managed to barely stutter and she brightened a bit in pride just at the small action. He smiled, encouragingly at her pulling out his lunch. Naruto maneuvered so his legs were crossed whilst sitting on her desk, lunch in his lap, and attention still on her.
"Hmm, a book about seals. Just starting through the basics, but it's actually really interesting. Well, at least the parts I can understand. Feels like I need a damn dictionary to read some of it." He said, frustration apparent in his tone, blue eyes lost in thought. Naruto couldn't help it though, he was more of a hands-on kind of guy. Not read book, do action- it just didn't connect as easily like it did for others. He liked to fiddle around, use his hands, and he made strategies on the fly- which is why he was so good at the countless pranks he had performed. All his ideas were original, something he had wrestled around in his mind before actually putting them into use. And being trapped in a classroom and not being to put the ideas in his head to use was torture.
He'd have skipped if he knew his sister wouldn't throw a pan at his head. Well, he didn't really think she would do that but if she could threaten to do that to a Jonin Commander then what the hell would she do to him? Shivers traveled down his spine.
But Hinata could only focus on what Naruto had said the book was about. Sealing. Neiji's face flashed through her head, a disgusted look in his icy eyes, a mark forced upon his head. Her stomach twisted, imagining her head becoming marked for a tradition, a slave to her clan and eyes filled with hatred shared amongst those that made up the branch. Her stomach dropped even further when she thought of her sister taking her place. Naruto mistook her eyes glazing over for something else.
"Oops, sorry Hime. Didn't mean to swear. Please don't tell nee-chan." Naruto said, grimacing at the thought of his sister's anger. The Hyuuga girl couldn't help but to giggle at the misunderstanding and she didn't bother to correct it either, continuing to keep the light atmosphere and dissuading the dark turn her thoughts had taken without permission .
The tips of her fingers came together, nervously twisting in a habit painfully familiar to her. "I won't. I think I like the idea of having m-my friend alive." Naruto tried not to beam at her and was kind of failing. Hinata wondered if it was weird to want to pump her fist in the air for actually being able to accomplish a task so simple as teasing a friend. It probably was. A thought passed through her mind and she leaned forward as if to share a secret.
Naruto stopped munching on the rice ball that he had been practically inhaling, mid-chew st the impromptu closeness. "What?" He croaked out. A piece of rice flew from his mouth and he covered it hastily, unconsciously ducking to the side. Hinata realized that his sister must usually lunge at him for bad manners and she laughed quietly again, barely audible. Naruto scrunched his face at her in response, somehow knowing her thoughts while swallowing his food.
"What? You looked like you wanted to ask me something, Hina-hime?" She nodded, still close. She licked her lips nervously, fingers still twisting, and then she asked.
"How d-did you know that I like cinnamon rolls?" Her voice came out as a whisper, even smaller then how she usually spoke. Hinata had never really shared it with anyone and it wasn't like she and Naruto had been friends. It was more of her being his kind of stalker and him just being oblivious. Her mind flashed to the alley, of his hands on her throat with friendly blue eyes nowhere to be seen- okay, kind of oblivious. And like the other clan kids in her class, though hers were apparently more serious, she didn't make those likes known to anyone. To know of your likes and dislikes, even if seemingly useless, should not be knowledge for others to know. That had to be the one thing she hadn't failed at. Clearly.
"Oh!" Naruto tapped at the side of his nose as an answer, a corner of his mouth pulling up. Naruto couldn't help but find it amusing that she had asked the question in such a way.
(Though it wasn't like it needed to be shouted among the rooftops either, he admonished himself thinking of where he ignored the concept of 'whispering' in general in the past.)
"I could smell it. Simple as that." His chest puffed up a bit in pride, just slightly. Hinata blinked at the statement he had claimed and tilted her head a bit in confusion.
She knew of clans like the Inuzuka clan who had a strong sense of smell, important in detecting poison or in scent-tracking. Naruto's ability to detect and analyze scent must have been amazing. Not only that really, he picked the scent apart well enough to tell that it was my favorite to eat and if he could detect it down to such a small thing like that with enough training…well he would just be an even greater asset on missions.
She opened her mouth to share it with him, before closing it as she realized Naruto's attention wasn't on her anymore but on the person heading their way. Kiba Inuzuka came over as if he was summoned by her thoughts, hood up.
He sidled over to Naruto's side. "Huh, you can smell stuff like that too, Naruto? Bet yours isn't as good as mine." Kiba said tauntingly, grinning wildly. Hinata shook her head as she realized that the boy had been nosy but she glanced at him again. I'm sure he couldn't help but be privy to the conversation anyway. Akamura, his partner, yapped in agreement, from the top of his head before huffing excitedly, paws digging into Kiba's head. The Inuzuka didn't flinch. Naruto leaned forward at the challenge, placing a hand on his knee.
"You want to bet, Inuzuka?" Hinata straightened in her seat, interested in how this was turning out. In her peripherals, she noticed that the others with the class were becoming just as she, at the prospect of an impromptu competition.
"Nah, why bet? I know who will win. Let's just have a friendly competition. Hinata, help us out, yeah?" The boy asked, a smile still stretched wide on his face, the idea of competing making a light in his eyes burn brighter. Naruto's eyes shared the same look and he eagerly turned his attention back at her with Kiba's sudden suggestion.
"H-how can I help, Kiba-kun?" Stupid stutter, she lamented. He ignored it which she was grateful for and Naruto didn't seem bothered by it either. She steadied her breathing and laid her anxious curled hands into a lax position. Calm down. Though Hinata couldn't erase the unease about being involved as she waited on his answer.
"These are the rules." He put his arm on the desk near Naruto, putting his weight on it as he leaned in closer to him, probably as a show of intimidation even though he knew Naruto wouldn't be phased by such things. Naruto rolled his eyes but didn't move from his still crossed legged position atop of her desk.
"And just so we don't take too long, we'll make it short too. Name one person to Naruto, he'll give his answer, then name another one when you switch to me. The limit's for three people each for the both of us, to name their either favorite or liked food. At the end, ask each person what their favorite was. Whoever gets them all right is the winner. If we both do, it's a draw. Ya mind doing that, Hinata?" The class broke out in murmurs, somehow already engrossed in how this would turn out. That sounded like a very rough outline for a game…but it sounds kind of fun.
"Y-yeah, I can do that, sounds like fun. Naruto-kun?" She turned to him for his opinion. The blonde boy gave a teasing smile along with a nod of his head. She visibly brightened at his agreement.
Hinata stood up from her chair. "O-okay then, you heard the rules! Let's start!" She was a bit nervous trying to capture the focus of the class, but continued mostly due to her own curiosity. " N-Naruto-kun, your first is-" Her eyes roamed quickly through the classroom before landing on her target.
" Ino-chan." The blonde preened, which was a bit odd, at being picked first for the odd competition. Ino stuck her tongue out at Sakura whilst the latter audibly gritted her teeth. Do they even know what they're fighting over anymore?
"Ha! Easy. Ino's favorite foods are pudding and cherry tomatoes, though she's been forcing those diet bars down more lately." Ino flushed and deflated, already alerting the class that he had been right while Hinata grimaced at how Naruto bluntly delivered the second half of his sentence before continuing.
"Kiba, you g-get Shikamaru-kun." Shikamaru lazily opened his eyes and sat up, elbows on his desk, his face heavy on his hands already ready to go back to dozing. Kiba laughed at the name, "Even easier, Shikamaru likes mackerel. My guess because it's simple to make for that kind of lazy guy." Shikamaru shrugged as if to say fair enough, before laying his head down, eyes already closed and interest apparently gone. Hinata moved on as she figured that that meant Kiba had been right.
Looks like I don't have to wait until the end to ask, everyone's apparent when either of them are right. Now that I think about it- that's kind of bad that it is so easy to detect although I'm sure it's easier for me with eyes such as mine.
"Naruto, next o-one's Sakura-chan." The pink-haired girl straightened automatically, green eyes wide and inadvertently focusing on Naruto. Naruto squinted his eyes a little at the name. Not in displeasure, but it was something Hinata couldn't read. Before she could analyze it further, the look had disappeared and a wide grin had taken place.
"Also, easy! Anko dumplings and umeboshi are her favorites when she is also not forcing diet bars down her throat like Ino." Sakura grit her teeth at the comparison to Ino, aggravated that she couldn't protest what he said even as her face flushed a pretty pink matching her friend/rival. Hinata frowned at the mention of those diet bars again, worriedly.
"Pretty sure they're competing to see who can lose more weight." He whispered to Hinata, quietly. Kiba nodded slightly, showing that he believed the same.
"Kiba, your second is I-Iruka-sensei." Kiba whistled at the mention of their sensei's name, surprised she had bothered to include him. "Surprisingly, Iruka-sensei eats ramen a lot. Ya know, not like Naruto's special brand of unhealthy, but close enough for it to be concerning for the average person." He said, while looking at Naruto. Naruto brandished his middle finger, which Kiba merely winked at him playfully. A few snickers went around the classroom. Hinata cleared her throat.
"O-okay, Naruto your last is-". Her pale eyes traveled around the room, before settling on one particular person who seemed uninterested in the whole affair. "Sasuke-kun." At the mention of his name, he turned to the side, one of his dark eyes landing on her briefly before waiting on Naruto's answer, attention captured by him.
"Huh, surprisingly his absolute favorite is tomatoes. Couldn't be me. But to each his own I guess." Naruto answered without hesitation. The only change to Sasuke's face was the brief widening of his eyes, but she had a feeling that Naruto was right as there was no protest from the raven haired boy. Sasuke turned to face the front once again, ignoring the competition that was still taking place.
"Kiba, your last one is… Choji-kun." Choji looked up, cheeks stuffed full of chips making direct eye contact with Kiba. He swallowed roughly at his name being included. Kiba rolled his shoulders at the last name.
"Ooh, a tricky one. Contrary to him eating chips all the time, his favorite food is barbecued chicken. The guy loves the stuff. Don't blame him either." He said, good-heartedly. Choji brightened, stuffing more chips into his face, satisfied that no one had taken the opportunity to pick on him.
"Oh, yeah." Naruto chimed in. "He goes to that good place downtown, ugh I forget the name." His brows furrowed in thought, face twisted. Kiba shrugged.
"Yeah I always forget the name too, it's down a little from where you eat ramen though, Naruto." He tapped the side of his nose again. "That Ichiraku place. Any good?" He asked, genuinely wondering, black eyes, wide and curious.
"Hell yeah. The best! You ought to go there sometime. Definitely worth it." Naruto said, ready to force the greatness of ramen on somebody else. Hinata clapped her hands, gathering the attention of the both of them. She unconsciously tensed at the sight before relaxing again.
"I-it looks like you came to a draw, y-you two." The both of them grinned, somehow pleasantly surprised at the turnout of the competition.
"I'm j-just a bit curious. W-who has the best scent in general to the both of you?" Hinata couldn't help but ask. Naruto and Kiba locked eyes before turning back to her simultaneously. "Choji." The two spoke at the same time. The boy in question looked back up at the sound of his name.
"Yeah, it's definitely Choji. Man, he always smells like a damn buffet." Kiba said, almost salivating. Hinata wasn't sure she felt comfortable when they were discussing scents like that. Makes me feel as if I may be someone's dinner, though I know what they meant- I was kind of thinking of natural scent. But boys and food aren't so easy to break apart I guess.
The last thought filled her with mirth as she struggled to keep her face from showing it lest Choiji could maybe get the wrong idea about the path her thoughts had taken. Choij tensed, unsure if that was a compliment or a diss towards him and his weight. Shikamaru scooted away from him cautiously.
"Seriously, in the best way possible. He definitely has the best scent compared to everybody." Naruto said, unknowingly causing the bigger boy to relax.
Shikamaru shook his head at the two idiots. You barely avoided death, you two. Kami, help us if you had actually set him off. He let out a breath of relief. Especially since we're inside in a confined building, instead of a wide open spa-
"I bet you're just saying that to make the fat kid feel better. What a joke." A voice suddenly chimed in.
What did he literally just think? The world seemed to love to throw curveballs at him sometimes. Shikamaru looked in annoyance to see some no-name kid decide to include himself in the conversation.
Well, not no-named, but to be honest he had to be the most plain-looking forgettable kid he knew. Plain brown hair, classic dark eyes, and pale faced with a scowl always present on. The kid always seemed to be in a bad mood and Shikamaru wasn't into letting anyone ruin his vibes of being a lazy bum besides his mother. No thanks.
"I'm sorry, Shinji, did you say something?" Naruto turned to him, face carefully blank. Ah, Shinji, that was that asshole kid's name. Eh, he'd probably still forget him in a few minutes.
"Because I could have sworn you didn't hear me say anything about you so I'm failing to really see why you're including yourself without permission."
Sasuke's eyes drifted between the two, unused to the utter seriousness on Naruto's face, others around him having the same line of thought. Sakura started twirling a piece of hair at the sudden confrontation nervously, unsure why Naruto was really making it his business and debating on fetching Iruka-sensei. Ino looked as if she was vibrating in her seat at just the prospect of a fight and Sakura rolled her eyes realizing she was eager for the fallout and to spread the word of it. Shino faced forward, but his body was leaning towards Kiba and Naruto, contemplating joining the two in the event that something happened. He glanced at Choiji and his mind darkened at the sight of the former's posture, hated that he could relate at being the outlier just as he must have been feeling at the moment.
Shit, now that kid's setting Naruto off too. Just what he needed, all he wanted was a peaceful day. Hell, this was his lunch break, dammit Uzumaki. Shikamaru sighed, turning his attention to Choji. The boy's face was dark, hands curled around his bag of chips, full-attention on that Shin-something kid.
"And what, you think we would lie about that? Me and Kiba just happened to say it at the same time from an unplanned question from Hinata-hime? Or hell, maybe it was a planned question- since you're convinced we're sitting here trying to make someone feel better when they have no damn reason to feel bad in the first place." Naruto continued, voice growing husky with a venomous anger that surprised the ones around him. Kiba leant forward, hands in the front of his pockets whilst beside him. And Hinata's eyes had become eerie as they fell on the boy with unhindered focus, shyness apparently gone.
"So tell me, do you have something to say?" It was definitely a clear promise of pain from the tone of his voice should he bother to utter a sound. It was more intimidating with the Inuzuka beside him, looking at him like he was going to eat him alive, a dark grin on his face twisting the markings into something wilder and the Hyuuga staring at him with her ghostly eyes. Shinji swallowed roughly, before doing a double take. So what, that failure Naruto thought he could kick his ass or something, now? Because people decided to like him for once?
"Yeah, I d-". He started to say, standing.
"Sit down, Shin-something." Shikamaru said, standing with his palms laid flat on his desk, narrowed eyes bored. Probably would've sounded cooler if he remembered the kid's name.
Kiba cackled- Akamaru jostled intensely from the force of it whilst atop of his head, grasping the sides of his abdomen, at Shikamaru's absolute failed use of the kid's name and like a bomb the rest of the class blew up with laughter as well, except for Shinji who sat down with a red face, fists clenched with anger with his embarrassment. Shikamaru noticed that Naruto's focus hadn't moved from the back of the kid's head. He leaned forward, grasping his shoulder tightly to gain it.
Naruto hummed absently. "Hmm, yeah Shika?" Hands tensing and flexing, curling and going lax on a repeated cycle. Shikamaru's eyes drifted to them, recognizing the habit that was behind the motion.
Shikamaru smirked sharply, "Make sure to get him good." His eyes kept on Naruto's form so as not to make it obvious that they were talking about him. But he glanced away briefly to see the grinning Inuzuka as he tapped his ear and winked before walking back towards his own seat. Shikamaru knew that that wouldn't be anything to worry about.
The blonde boy grinned. "Heh, you know it. Already working on it. Wanna join?"
Shikamaru looked back towards his friend, noticing the tenseness of his hands and a bitten lip- a trait that showed how his anxiety had swelled, and turned back towards Naruto.
"Maybe something with seals?" He said, strategy already in place, thoughts churning. Hands coming together in habit whilst forming a plan.
"Definitely something with seals." Naruto said, beaming brightly. They grasped each other's arms, already comrades. Hinata leaned between the two of them. "C-can I help?"
Kami, Naruto already managed to corrupt a Hyuuga. Oddly, Shikamaru's face brightened, you know, for being him. Heh, he could use that to his advantage.
Seeing the look that crossed Shikamaru's face, he laughed as well. He punched her shoulder softly and said, "Oh, you're in."