Summary: He always wanted to confess to her in a star studded evening. In a night out, beneath the stars, Naruto wanders outside, only to see the Hyuuga heiress, waiting for him.

Pairings: Naruto/Hinata

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, at all. All the characters belong to Kishimoto Masashi-sensei.

As Time Passes

Beneath the Stars the Prequel

He was nineteen now, a Jounin much like his two other teammates. The male had been a Jounin two years prior, as did the female. He had only become a Jounin last year as he had gone on another lengthy training with Jiraiya. He had actually begged for it from the Toad Master and had gotten his way, to say the least.

"Kuso! I have no more instant ramen!" he muttered as he slammed the cupboard door. "Eh, I guess I'll have dinner at Ichiraku. I can only spare a couple of bowls now," he muttered as he walked out of his apartment.

He had grown from being the number one village idiot to a respectable Jounin. The Godaime mentioned something about retiring but not for the next four years at the least. She still had quite a few things to do before she stepped down.

"Heh, Kakashi-sensei has a higher likelihood of becoming Rokudaime than me," said Naruto cheerfully as he ordered a bowl of miso ramen, "I mean, Tsunade-baa-chan will likely choose a Jounin with more experience than a relatively new one to become Rokudaime Hokage."

Dinner was quiet and uneventful. Naruto had one bowl of miso ramen and another of chicken ramen. The owner of Ichiraku was about to offer Naruto another bowl but surprisingly, the blonde Jounin had declined the offer, saying he had other stuff to do that night.

Pocketing his hands, he wandered out, wondering why he had declined the offer for ramen. Usually, he'd pounce on the offer with glee and order the most expensive thing on the menu, free after all.

"Che, maybe I'm growing up," he said with a tone of nostalgia. Soon enough, he found himself in the place where he had Survival Training with Sakura, Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei seven years ago. "Ahh, bitter memories," he said to himself. Suddenly, he heard leaves rustle. "Who's there?" he said seriously, falling into stance.

"Naruto-kun," greeted a familiar voice, soft in tone but loud in Naruto's ears.

"Oh, it's you, Hinata-chan," said Naruto as he relaxed. His eyes widened slightly as he saw what Hinata was wearing. Her hair was styled in its usual manner but she was wearing a lavender yukata, amethyst colored paper cranes decorating the lower half of the skirt and the sleeves. "Whoa, Hinata-chan, why are you wearing that?" asked Naruto, slightly uncomfortable.

"Otou-sama says I am of age," began Hinata, her cheeks reddening, "So lately, suitors have been coming to the house."

"Suitors? You mean your father wants you to get married with someone you don't know!" said Naruto, his blood boiling with anger and perhaps even jealousy. Hinata nodded slowly. "You shouldn't have to go through this, Hinata-chan!"

"Otou-sama says that if I don't have someone I love, then, he will be choosing my husband for me. If I do have someone I love, the wedding can wait, for so long as there is one," spoke up Hinata. A bit of hope shone in his face. "I was planning to confess tonight," she added, her cheeks reddening even further.

"Great! Hurry and confess then to the one you love," said Naruto eagerly. Hinata shifted her weight from one foot to another, not moving. Naruto had a bewildered look on his face. "Hinata-chan, go ahead! You don't have to be worried about me or anything," he said, laughing nervously as he scratched the back of his head.

"I already have confessed, Naruto-kun," she spoke softly, tears brimming on her silver eyes. Naruto gazed at her, even more confused. "Ever since I met you, I've fallen in love with you. That was what, seven, eight years of waiting to gather courage to even say this to you, Naruto-kun," she said softly, her head bent down. A warm hand gripped her chin and forced her to look up.

"Well, you beat me to it. I was planning to confess under a starry night like this," he murmured before dipping his head and pulling her into love's first kiss. Hinata's heart soared with joy as she realized her childhood crush had felt the same way about her.

Four years later, Tsunade had indeed stepped down as Godaime and had appointed Kakashi as the Rokudaime. Naruto had a cheeky grin to his face as he teased the lazy Jounin-now-Hokage about his new duties, adding in the occasional comment about Kakashi needing to appoint him as Shichidaime when the time came for him to step down.

Hinata and Naruto were both twenty-four when they had gotten married beneath the same dark firmament with stars stitched onto the night sky. Sakura was the Maid of Honor, an energetic son in her arms, Satoshi. Her husband, Sasuke, had been the best man. They had married a year before.

"You may now kiss the bride," spoke Kakashi, the tone wry as ever. Naruto shot him a look before kissing his bride. All the guests had erupted into loud applause and even the stoic Sasuke had relaxed a little and let out a tiny, indistinct smile.

"Ladies and gentlemen, meet Uzumaki Naruto and Uzumaki Hinata."

--- Owari ---

To make you guys feel better about the last one-shot.

Naruto and Hinata got married at 24, died at 38. Mirai was 14 when they died and Hana was 13. Kakashi was 37 when he became Rokudaime, 51 when he stepped down and stepped back up. Sasuke and Sakura had married when they were 23, 38 when Naruto and Hinata had died. Satoshi was 15, Risa was 14 and Haru was 13. Hope that clears things up a bit.

Okay, some notes. I do not hate Naruto/Hinata, in fact, I think they're very realistic.

Gah!NO!Throws everything at NadyellIt's a conspiracy!Only three Naruto/Hinata fics and two are full of misery!You hate them don't you?sniffGah!It's so sad!Runs off to cry.

-DraugDae

Firstly, I don't have three Naruto/Hinata one-shots, there are four: Bringing Out the Best, Torn Apart, Over a Bowl of Ramen and Beneath the Stars. If you count this, five.

I just happen to like Sasuke/Sakura more! Plus, if I hated Naruto/Hinata, why would I write it? Also I'm sorry I write stuff like that, really. It's my option whether or not to in the end, isn't it?

If you don't like it, why do you read it? I mean, if simply because you want to find a legion of fanfics to hate, then why bother?

You don't have to read my works; I'm not forcing you to.

Oh yeah, side note. Refer to one-shot sixteen; A Single Blood Red Rose, Fuyuzuki Shuunto, Shibahara Kyouta and Kazuya Fuuko are the Genin students of Jounin Sakura. Just thought you'd like to know.

In any case, these stories aren't going to be long, since they're the type devoid of any major storyline. If these one-shots inspire you to write any more, by all means go ahead.