Update: Plot changed, each chapters revised.
Thud!
'Ow… Damn you morning headaches…'
Naruto grumbled as he sluggishly got up from the floor with his penguin PJs on. It was already the morning of the main 3rd exam. The tragic news of Rock Lee's injury affected all of the 'rookie 9's, for Lee's injuries may never heal. Most grew extreme fear, while others, namely Naruto, craved vengeance with a passion towards the red haired sand genin
Naruto's encounter with him had been interesting, to say the least.
Shikamaru and Naruto had been visiting the Konoha's Proud Green Beast, while they were in hospital themselves. When the boys had come in, Gaara had been clutching his head in pain, while his sand had spilled all over the room with Lee in the bed oblivious to his surroundings.
It was quite apparent what the tanuki boy had been trying to do.
He had been confronted, and Gaara unnecessarily revealed his past to them, while confirming Naruto's suspicions about the images he saw at the arena. They have matched word to word completely.
Afterwards, Gaara and Naruto had shared a deep, meaningful look with each other, but Gaara broke off the unintentional glaring contest, and walked out of the room promising Naruto and Shikamaru's demise when Gai introduced himself into the scene.
Though Gaara could not see Naruto, Naruto had been glaring steadily into his back while he exited. The albino boy was begging for a beating.
But first, there was an obstacle he must overcome first.
'Hyuga Neji… Last year's number one rookie and a master of Gentle Fist Style…
And… the one who harmed Hinata.'
Naruto's blood boiled at the thought. He had trained to his extremes with the Pervert-Senin to triumph over the Hyuga genius and the tanuki boy, while his mind was solely set on kicking the living daylight out of the Hyuga. Naruto just couldn't forgive him for injuring Hinata like that.
'Even I don't understand why I'm so angry…'
The one possible reason might be the Kitsune inside of him… When that bastard-of-a-sensei pushed him off the cliff, he had met the deity of destruction inside his own mind. It was for the first time, Naruto and the Kitsune had encountered each other face to face. Both individual scowled at one another, one in malice, one in even greater malice, and a little of amusement.
'Well, well… if it isn't my hateful little vessel… come closer so I can crush you.' The nine-tailed being spat out the sentence in disgust, while his huge threatening claws swiftly charged at Naruto until it was stopped due the small size of gaps between the bars in Naruto's mental prison. It was fortunately too narrow for Kyuubi's giant claws to get by. Ignoring the fact that his claws could not reach the blond boy, Kyuubi struck the cage blow after blow, until he noticed that the boy was still there, and had not run for his pathetic human life.
To Naruto's credit, he had not even flinched, though the little display of raw strength had shook him inside to some extent.
Somewhat impressed, Kyuubi stopped his barrage of anger, and silenced, intending to hear what this little human had to say.
'…Finally, you goddamned fur ball. I thought you would never shut up.' Kyuubi scowled once again. 'Shut your trap, little human. If it wasn't for this pathetic seal your cursed father placed upon me, you wouldn't even be a decent snack!'
'That's funny. If it's so pathetic, then why can't you break it, huh? Che, your all talk. Anyhow, I didn't come here to trade insults, as much as I hate to admit." Naruto said with a grimace.
'Thought as much, human. What, are you ready to beg for me to save your pathetic life? Hahahahaha…' Kyuubi's laughter echoed through out the prison, while the blond genin stood still, giving no sign of agitation or anger.
'Talk all you want, you homicidal hairball. This is MY mind. Here in MY MIND, it's MY RULES, or the bottom of the stinkin' cliff.' Kyuubi stopped his laughter.
'You humans are so amusing; bluffing and talking all big while all they do is talk.' Sneering, Kyuubi barked.
'Do you think I'm bluffing? You're dumber than I thought, demon. You should know; Uzumaki Naruto never goes back on his words.' Naruto stated, also sneering right back at the beast. Another thundering laughter filled Naruto's mindscape.
'Hahahahar… Alright, human. You amuse me… I guess I'll let you live this time.' As soon as Kyuubi finished his sentence, crimson, blood red chakra seeped out of Kyuubi's prison, and soon wrapped itself around Naruto's figure.
All Naruto heard after the crimson chakra covered his mind, was a flash of immeasurable power, and this soft-spoken statement: 'By the way… You should know this too, human. We are already merging…'
After that little encounter with his inner demon, he started feeling more-than-normal. Naruto could now smelled Ichikaru Ramen's delicious aroma all the way from his apartment, while he accidentally ripped apart his punching Kakashi sensei doll with utmost ease. His own strength now surprised him to no end, for Naruto now broke chopsticks and dishes into tiny little pieces even if he tried to be ever so careful. Obviously, his 5 main senses have drastically increased, while his physical strength had also dramatically increased to incredible levels. Seriously, now he couldn't even throw a kunai without busting his apartment walls through and destroying the next wall!
Another disturbing fact was that…
His pupils have been turned into two menacing slits.
Naruto looked at himself in the mirror; gazing back at his now deep, blue eyes. Not like once bright sky-blue with a tint of faked happiness, but now a deep blue hue that which belonged to the deepest parts of the ocean, containing immeasurable secrets. So deep, it almost coincided with black.
'Damn… Is this what they call puberty?'
Naruto thought feeling ridiculous, as he prepared himself for one of the greatest challenge of his life.
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Hyuga Hinata strolled down the woods, walking along the training grounds that eventually lead to the arena. Kiba had came with her, but he had disappeared somewhere while grumbling about 'finishing businesses in bushes', whatever that meant.
'Neji-ni-san… against… Naruto-kun…' The more she thought of it, more depressed she came to be. This was a grim match between people who she cared more than life itself… both competing against each other, until a winner is chosen. Hinata cared deeply for her cousin – for she understood the ordeals he went through. Though Neji have not accepted her indirect apology during the prelims, Hinata just hoped that everything would turn out fine in the end.
After all, Neji-ni-san is her cousin.
Her Naruto-kun… Hinata had noticed that he had become different, recently. During the one month break the participants of the Chuunin exam were given, she had encountered her secret love once. She engraved every single moment with him into her heart, and forbade herself from ever forgetting. Though, the changes she had noticed were not quite clear; very subtle, but it was there.
-!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!-
The encounter with the object of her affection occurred at the Ichikaru Ramen during lunch, where her teammates (well, actually it was all Kiba, but Shino followed nonetheless) dragged her down to eat there, since it was famous for the delicious taste of the soup. Hinata of course refused at first, but Kiba had insisted in such a way (the puppy dog eyes) that she just couldn't say no.
And there he was – sitting at a table, all alone. To her surprise, Naruto was barely even touching his bowl; while his face was in a serious, lonely manner Hinata knew all too well. It wasn't like Naruto-kun to be sulking like that, Hinata decided. She was quite certain that this was the chance to act, but she just couldn't seem to find that tiny little courage needed for the push.
But oh, he was so sad. It was practically breaking her heart to see him like this. The indestructible spirit insider him – but that didn't mean the boy didn't have feelings. For whatever reason he was upset, it must have been pretty serious, she concluded. Now, she just needed that little spark to act –
"Ne, Hinata-chan, are y'k? You don' look so good." Kiba asked her with a concerned expression, while his pet Akamaru mirrored his expression.
"Y, yes, Kiba-kun. I am fine." Hinata replied in the calmest tone she could possibly muster, and then she casually added, "I, I'll be right back."
With that, Hinata started walking towards the table where the blond boy sat alone, ignoring Kiba's message saying he'll save a seat for her.
Hinata walked towards the table in firm motion, while repeating her prayers of courage inside over and over again, hoping she won't lose her composure and melt to the ground. Surely, it could not be that hard, just talking to her crush?
'Who am I kidding? Oh, just walk up to him and say 'Hi Naruto. Care to tell me why you saved me from evil Neji-ni-san's finishing blow?' Great, Hinata.''
Before she could even prepare herself, she was already there at his table; her timid figure towering over his unusual depressed demeanor with firmness of a rubber. The instant she stood at his table, the boy had noticed her apparently.
"Oh, hi Hinata. What brings you here? I've been a customer of this little stand for over 8 years and I don't ever remember you coming here before." Naruto greeted with a smile, his far-away look and pain all gone like smoke, so unrealistically gone that it made Hinata wonder if she was hallucinating in the first place.
"H, Hi Naruto-kun. This is m, my first time, v, visiting here. My teammates said that this place was, g, good so I came to try it." Hinata replied trying to suppress her constant stuttering due to her extreme nervousness rising over critical levels, while her heart pumped her blood million miles per second.
"M… may… I…?" Hinata asked timidly, gesturing towards the chair next to him.
"Hm? Oh, sure! C'mon! The more the merrier!" Naruto exclaimed with excitement, as Hinata sat down next to him. Naruto then continued on to babble about how she came to the right place, how delicious the ramen smells and how to enjoy the ramen to the fullest, and just about anything else about ramen known to humanity. Hinata sat there, listening tentatively to every word he said. While she did so, she memorized every single detail of his face, down to the every last hair and kept it in her heart while promising to cherish it forever. How his rich, sunny hair waved back and forth when he laughed, how his flexible arms moved, how his blinding cerulean eyes sparkling every moment-
Huh?
'Since when did he have such deep, blue eyes? That's strange…' Hinata thought as she stared into his enticing eyes – which were very deep blue hue – and observed his pupils which have become sort of slit like.
Though, thanks to her obvious scrutiny, it took her a quite a while to realize that Naruto had stopped talking and was also looking straight into her eyes.
Hinata immediately flushed into an indescribable crimson color, and she thought that she wouldn't be surprised if her heart would pop out now. Hinata looked away, trying desperately to cover her blushes.
"You know, I never really realized how shiny your eyes are. Actually, come to think of it, I never really noticed you, either." Hinata immediately almost face faulted, and she shook her head disappointedly. 'Naruto-kun… am I really that invisible?'
"But you know," Naruto continued, not really aware of Hinata's mental ponderings as he continued. "Your eyes really do look cool. Kinda like a pair of… those… what do you call them? Those round, expensive thingies…."
There was never a moment in her life until now when she had thanked the Kami-sama for giving her these eyes she hated so much.
"Pearls, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered for Naruto, as Naruto smiled innocently. Hinata could have sworn her heart skipped a few beats. "Yeah… Pearls."
Suddenly, Naruto almost bolted from his seat after he glanced at the clock. "Oh, man! Gotta go! It's time to train already, and if I'm late… that perverted bastard would do something horrible like feeding me to the frogs or something!" Naruto shuddered, imagining all these not-really-pretty scenes. He hurriedly finished his 5th bowl of ramen and stood up to leave.
"U, um… It was nice eating with you… Naruto-kun…" Hinata softly spoke, still feeling dizzy from mental Cloud 9. Naruto, who didn't even have a slightest idea what was going through her head, waved at her as he paid for his ramen. "Bye, Hinata-chan!" As soon as Naruto spoke his goodbye, Hinata then finally remembered her exactly why she had approached him in the first place. Though, by the time Hinata called out to him, he had already disappeared.
'Aw… That was the perfect chance…'
Sighing to herself, Hinata slowly stood up from her quarter-unfinished ramen. "Excuse me, sir. How much do I owe you?" She asked the kind looking old man who had served her.
"Oh, you don't have to pay. That idiot Naruto had already paid for you." He then checked the tab, and confirmed. "Yup, exact prices for 5 beef ramen and one vegetarian ramen." He sent her a suggestive wink. "He's such a nice boy-friend, isn't he?" Hinata almost went into state of shock.
"N, n, no… We're not like that! We're just… acquaintances… um… but did he really pay for me?" The old man nodded once again, before he was called by another customer. "I'll be right there!" And he was gone.
'I, it… can't be… If he DID pay… then… this was kind of like… a date!?' Hinata flushed at the thought, before she hurriedly left the restaurant in oblivious bliss.
----------------
Meanwhile, in the near by bushes…
"See, Shino! I told you Hinata was going to eat with Naruto!" Kiba angrily stated as he glared at the table where his pale eyed teammate and the blond freak was eating ramen together. "Sure, 'I'll be right back' my ass." Akamaru lay on top of his head, observing the situation along with Kiba.
Shino remained silent.
"I mean, how could she just ditch us like that?" Kiba grumbled angrily, as Akamaru scratched his ears. 'And for that blonde freak, too.'The mere thought of it felt insulting to the dog tamer. 'I knew she liked him since back in the academy days, but still!'
Shino abruptly stood up, his bugs sensing his teammate's uneasiness and decided to calmly walk off. He obviously did not want to get involved in this 'fiasco'.
"Oy Shino! Where're you goin?" Kiba called out to him, but Shino did not even glance back. "We should not be spying on her. It is her decision." That said, Shino silently kept walking.
"Che, uptight leader-wannabe." Grumbling, Kiba set his beloved Akamaru inside his hood, and also decided to leave the scene.
-!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!-
Hinata frowned when she noticed the sun's position was almost at noon already. The main matches were being held at 1:30, but she had spent almost 2 hours reminiscing about he crush. Hinata blushed once again.
'I'm being weird…'
She stood near the training grounds of team 7, slightly looking around the forest while marveling at the beauty of this afternoon. Sun's sunny rays were shining down upon the trees and the training ground, creating a beautiful serene scene. Only a few cloud invading the skies, it was a truly a breathtaking afternoon. 'Wow…'
"Hinata? What are you doing here?"
Sudden familiar voice made Hinata nearly jump up in the air screaming, but she had restrained herself fortunately. Hinata turned around slowly, fearing while also hopping that it would be the one who she seeks.
"N, Naruto-kun… You scared me…" Hinata clutched her hands together above her chest, while she bashfully blushed as always as she gazed upon his handsome face.
"Oh, sorry Hinata…" Naruto scratched the back of his head, portraying an air of clumsiness… though something seemed… off.
'He's quiet today… I wonder why…' Hinata slowly walked towards her crush, who stood still while looking down at the ground. Finally, Hinata spoke up. "Is… something wrong?"
Naruto suddenly looked up with a shocked expression betrayed upon his face, his slit-like eyes widening… then he looked down again.
"U, um… no… nothing's wrong…" Hinata wasn't convinced, but she decided to respect his words. Instead, she decided to encourage the fox boy.
"Well… ok… u, um… I, I wish you… good luck, Naruto-kun." Mentally scolding herself for stuttering again in front him once more, Hinata twirled her fingers unconsciously. The habit seemed to have a nasty way of dying hard.
"Yeah! I'll definitely win! I'll kick his butt, Hinata!" Naruto exclaimed like he always had, in his cheerful and energetic voice, though this time… there was a definite undertone of hollowness. Hinata have heard, and now she was even more concerned.
Then Naruto sighed then shook his head. "Who am I trying to kid… heh, I'm not even sure if I'm confident enough… Hinata… do you think I'm strong? Of course you don't… I'm just a failure."
Hinata was startled, her heart felt like being squeezed lifeless as she heard him talk about himself like that for the first time since the academy days. 'N, Naruto-kun…'
She forced a smile. "O, of course not, Naruto-kun. I think you are strong." Naruto shook his head at that.
"Nope, you're wrong…" Naruto then took a deep breath, and continued. "You see, Hinata… I'm just a worthless fool. Everything I do, I mess up. Horribly. Everything I try, I never succeed. Every time I try, I always fail... Do you see now? I'm nothing but all talk. I always talk big and do meaningless pranks to get everyone's attention, but I…" Naruto did not say anymore as he looked down at his feet in silence.
Suddenly, Hinata felt her eyes widen in a realization. 'I, I understand now… Naruto-kun… I, I have never even been brave enough to be there for him even when he was bullied… but…'
Hinata willed herself to steel her resolve.
'I will not back down any longer.'
----------------
Naruto looked at his feet, afraid to look up and see disgust or hate in Hinata's eyes, just like everyone else in the whole village. This was the first time he had ever shared his inner pains with anyone. Just now… he had just admitted that he was a failure… One thing he had most feared to admit… Was this a nightmare? Naruto didn't even know why he told her in the first place. It was like he was a different person in front of her. 'I wonder why… wait, does it even matter?'
A few tense moments have passed, while two ninjas stood frozen as if they were statues.
"You are not a failure, Naruto-kun." Startled by her sudden soft, understanding tone, Naruto whipped his head up only to be embraced by her soft arms. She held him gently, despite the fact that she was a few inch shorter than him.
"Hi, Hinata…"
"Don't ever think low of yourself, Naruto-kun… Your indomitable spirit… It is something to be greatly admired… For a long time, I have watched you from afar, watching you train harder than anyone else, to obtain your dream, Naruto-kun. Don't ever say that you're a failure…" Hinata's voice had somehow soothed the boy's raging emotions, calming them almost magically.
"There are people who are counting on you…" Hinata then added mentally, 'Someone… like me.'
Hinata then battled between her emotional dilemmas, either to let go of this precious hug now, or just hold him and hope he wouldn't mind too much … and her rational side won, so she slowly pulled back. She then smiled, her hands behind her back, and blushed brightly.
"Ah, N, Naruto-kun…"
Then awkward silence ruled the atmosphere.
'I shouldn't have hugged him… now he'll probably think I'm indecent or something!' Hinata thought frantically, trying to come up with excuses to the question that was sure to surface soon to greet her doom. Naruto opened his mouth to finally speak, and Hinata closed her eyes tightly, expecting the worst.
"I…"
He paused again, so the silence swiftly returned to fill the gap between them. Hinata now squinted an eye open to survey the situation, and was fortunately greeted with a re-energized Naruto. He scratched his head bashfully, a slight blush overriding his whisker marks faintly.
" Heh… umm…" Naruto seemed to have some trouble connecting his words, as he stumbled on whatever he was trying to express. Thankfully, loud booms of firework of the arena caught their attention, serving as a god-sent interruption.
Both simultaneously thought 'Thank god…'
"Errm, Hinata… I guess I should be going now… heheh." Naruto laughed nervously, then put on his cheerful smile and started to run towards the general direction of the arena. "Bye Hinata"
Hinata could only watch as he ran further away from her to a fight she dreaded, but she replied anyway. "Good bye Naruto-kun…" Hinata said timidly, still flushed from head to toe. She slightly waved back to him when she noticed that he had stopped.
"Oh yeah…" Naruto started, his back facing her. "I never really thought about this until now, but…" Hinata gasped and sucked in a breath, and held it in anticipation.
"People like you…" Hinata clenched her hands which were starting to slightly sweat.
"I like."
Even after he was long gone, Hinata's pearly gaze stayed on the same spot where her secret love shook her heart up like an earthquake.
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Hello fellow readers! Sorry about a very very late update. You see, sometimes life doesn't go the way you want to, and it has a tendency to keep people very busy. School transferring and all, is a very big deal for me, so I just kinda took my time. Once again, I apologize for a late update! By the way, this was sort of a filler chap, thought next one will be Neji vs Naruto!
Responses: Gosh, so many reviews! Thank you ALL for such heartwarming encouragements. I'll try to update a little faster, but my school work wont really let me. T . T
Anyhow, thank you for everything.
