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"Anou...Sakura!"

The girl with pink hair stopped and turned to her blond teammate.

"What do you want?"

"Huh...I just...Can I borrow your notes?" he asked sheepishly.

"What? Again?!!"

"Yeah... Can I?"

She looked at him with an exasperated expression.

"No. I need them..."

"But, you don't need them!! You're always listening to whatever Sensei says..."

"Naruto..."

"Yeah?"

"I need them!" she snapped and walked off.

He made a face then sighed helplessly.

"Anou...Naruto-kun?"

"Hum?"

"I can lend you mine if you want..."

He abruptly turned to Hinata.

"Really?"

"Urmm...Yes..."

She had started to blush again.

Naruto beamed at her.

"That'd be great!"

She nodded, then took her bag.

"Uh... Aren't you going to give them to me?"

"They're at my house..." she said lowering her head.

"Ah..."

"We...we can stop by my house...I'll...give them to you there..."

"That's fine with me!"

He took his bag and they left the classroom.

People in the streets were staring.

Staring at the weird couple.

A good girl from the Main family of a well-known clan and a punk boy with no family and no situation.

Surely Naruto and Hinata weren't walking unnoticed by the Leaf village's inhabitants.

While the girl was shyly trying to avoid their insistent gaze, the boy looked straight in front of him.

The situation got worse when they reached the Hyuga Clan's headquarters.

The children around gasped at the sight of the blond gennin and immediately ran into their house.

Certainly to call their family, for in less than two minutes, the street was crowded with a white-eyed population. All white-eyes staring and glaring at the duo.

Naruto was used of that kind of reactions.

He knew by heart the hostile looks, the inquisitive gazes, the frowning faces.

But it didn't mean he knew how to react.

He couldn't ignore them. He was in their "territory".

Running away was out of the question.

He simply turned to Hinata.

"Have we arrived yet?"

The girl had visibly not heard him.

Looking closely, Naruto noticed her hands were shaking madly.

He hoped she wouldn't break down.

"Hinata... Are you..."

"Let's hurry up..." she resolutely said and increased her pace.

As they reached the Main family headquarters, the girl hurriedly pushed the main door and entered.

Naruto followed her blindly, lost in such a huge dwelling.

Hinata ignored the looks of the servants and dragged Naruto upstairs, heading to her room.

"Hinata, maybe I should..."

"Don't worry. Dad isn't there, so everything is fine."

Naruto blinked.

The usually shy girl was so agitated. Her behavior had changed.

He saw her rumage through several notepads on the desk, then take one of them.

"Here it is."

"Thank you..."

Naruto smiled nervously.

Hinata blushed again.

"I think I'll leave now..." he walked towards the door.

"Ah..." She nodded.

They walked down the stairs.

She pushed the main door.

White pupils slashed with red were glaring at them.

"Otou-san..."

Naruto's face wore a bewildered look.

"That boy has nothing to do in our house." came the icy voice.

He wanted to move, to run, to flee.

But he couldn't.

The angry ghostly eyes were paralyzing him.

He kept staring in awe.

"Get out of my house." Hinata's father hissed.

"Naruto-kun..."

The boy frowned, his features showing incomprehension.

"Get out!"

The yell startled him out of his immobility.

He quickly exited the place to find the whole clan outside.

Disdainful smirks, resentful looks, dreadful expressions.

These were what he caught on their faces whenever he would try to look up.

He silently entered his house.

He closed the door behind him.

He walked straight to his bedroom.

He closed the door behind him.

He let the notes fall to the floor.

He sat on the floor.

He closed his eyes.

He clenched his fists.

He gritted his teeth.

He would not cry.

Why cry anyway?

He was used to those reactions, wasn't he?

It wouldn't make any difference.

But it did pain him.

After all this time he had spent working hard to become a ninja, to become a gennin, to become a worthy shinobi...they wouldn't accept him.

The Hyuga Clan had showed that to him.

All his efforts were useless.

A wave of warmth suddenly enveloped him.

His eyes slowly opened.

Two arms were hugging him.

Gaara was hugging him.

He sighed as he felt relief rock his whole body.

He sank into the hug as tears flowed out of his tiny blue eyes, cascading onto his companion's shoulder.

He bit his lip.

He was crying.

He was crying because he had felt sad.

He was crying because he had felt lonely.

He was crying because he had someone to comfort him.

He rubbed his eyes as he realised he was falling asleep.

Gaara's hand had seized his.

The human pillow suddenly moved away to stand up.

So did the blond ninja.

He didn't utter a word as Gaara laid him on the bed.

He kept looking at him, dumbfounded.

"Have some rest." The Sand gennin said.

Naruto nodded languidly.

Gaara promptly turned away and exited the room.

Naruto couldn't notice his eyes had narrowed and he was clenching his fists.

Today is another day, had he thought when he had woken up that morning.

Indeed it was starting as a strange day.

As he stepped into the Ninja Academy's building, he could feel the stares on him.

There was a strange atmosphere in the hall.

He shook his head and kept walking.

"Naruto!"

He facevaulted.

"Ah... Iruka-sensei..." he greeted.

"I need to talk to you..." he looked around "...in private. Follow me..."

Naruto raised an interrogative eyebrow but still followed.

"Is it true you went to Miss Hyuga's place yesterday?"

"Um...yeah..." he answered shyly.

"What happened?"

"Nothing. They just threw me out of their place, but it's a habit people here have so..."

Iruka sighed and ruffled his hair.

"I'm sorry Naruto..."

"It's okay."

Iruka inhaled deeply.

"But, you didn't do anything thoughtless, did you?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean..." he gazed at the boy "... Last night, a fire was set in one of the clan members' house. Fortunately no one was harmed..."

Naruto frowned.

"You think it was me?"

"Well...It's just that...Someone said he saw blond hair under the arsonist's cloak..."

"So what? I'm not the only blond-haired guy in this village, am I?" he retorted on the defensive.

"I know...but many people from the Hyuga Clan think it was you..."

Naruto's eyes widened.

"But, I didn't do that..."

"That's what I tried to tell them."

He hugged the boy, seeing the bewilderment in his eyes.

"Don't worry. They have no proof. Besides..." he smiled good-heartedly "I know you wouldn't do that."

Naruto smiled at him.

"Thank you Iruka-sensei."

He pushed the classroom door open.

As expected, people were looking at him, if not staring.

He ignored them and walked to his desk.

"Quit staring!!" he stuck his tongue at them.

"Don't think of yourself as a star, you idiot!" Kiba yelled.

"Quiet! You dog face!" he yelled back.

"Baka!" Sakura shouted punching him on the face "Won't you shut up?"

"That hurts..."

"Keep quiet. You are always starting such a fuss..."

"He's the one who started it..." he pouted.

Kiba threw him a contemptful look. He made a rude gesture with his fingers then turned away.

Shikamaru, on his left, was looking at the ceiling with tired eyes. Right beside him was Hinata.

The girl turned her head away the moment their gazes met.

Naruto sighed and stared at the papers in front of him.

He would give them back at lunch break.

But as the bell rang and he walked toward her, she ran to the exit.

"Hinata!" he called.

The girl threw him a quick glance then turned away to leave.

He saw her give something to his pink-haired team-mate.

"She wants me to take her notes back..." Sakura said. "Instead of bothering her, shouldn't you start writing down your notes yourself?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

Naruto didn't answer, but handed her the pile of papers.

"Oh, take this too."

He hurriedly unfolded the piece of paper.

-I'm sorry, I can't talk to you. Dad forbade me to. I'm really sorry Naruto-kun.-

The characters were awkwardly written, as if the hand writing them down had been shaking.

He believed Hinata was really sorry.