7: The Miracle

Hinata and Naruto entered the store, letting in a gust of bitter cold wind as they did. The shopkeeper shivered and rubbed his arms together. "Come on, get in quickly now! Don't be letting too much more of that dreadful cold inside" he said with a shake. Hinata remembered the shopkeeper from a few weeks back when she'd bought her last chocolate bar. "What'll it be?" the shopkeeper asked as they walked up to the counter.

"Oi, let's see…we'll have a Wonka's Caramel Swirl Explosion and…what would you like Hinata?" Naruto asked. Hinata realized at last that she hadn't any money to pay for candy.

"Ano…um, I-I'm not really sure I'll-"

"Daijoubu, Hinata. It's my treat" Naruto said, grinning wide. Hinata felt relieved and quite thankful to the boy. She blushed a bit despite the cold.

"I-I'll have a Wonka's Whipple-Scrumptious Fudgemallow Delight, kudasai," she said at last. The shopkeeper turned his back and rummaged through the drawer where he kept his Wonka bars.

"I guess you won't have to hide your Wonka candies anymore, now that all of the tickets have been found, ne?" Naruto said, scratching the back of his head.

"Don't know what you're talking about…" the shopkeeper mumbled, handing over their candy bars. Naruto took both and handed Hinata hers.

"Let's open 'em now. Wouldn't want to try and eat them out there in the cold" Naruto suggested. Hinata agreed thoroughly. She watched Naruto tear off the wrapper of his and take a large bite of his bar, the creamy colour of caramel bubbling out.

Hinata held her bar in her hands. She tore the corner off of the wrapper…and suddenly…from underneath the wrapper…there came a brilliant flash of gold.

Hinata's heart stood still.

Naruto dropped his bar of candy and stared, "N-no way…" he mumbled.

"It's a golden ticket!" screamed the shopkeeper, leaping about a foot into the air. "You've got a golden ticket! You've found Wonka's last golden ticket! It's amazing! There it is, right in your hands!"

It seemed as though the shopkeeper might be going to have a fit. He was so excited. "In my shop too!" he yelled, "Right here in my little shop! Congratulations! S-somebody call the newspapers! You're right famous, little girl! Watch out now, don't tear it as you unwrap it! That thing is precious, it is!"

Naruto was dumbstruck. "H-Hinata-chan!" he yelled, looking into her eyes with a wide grin. He held her hands tight in front of him, "You did it! You found the last ticket! B-but…I thought someone in the Sunagakure found it this morning!"

"It was a fake," the shopkeeper said, "Later this afternoon they unmasked it as a clever hoax. Wow…the last golden ticket in my shop!"

Hinata couldn't even speak. Words failed her. She gibbered for a moment, but then her voice cracked from all the miraculous excitement. She tried to make sense of all that was happening.

A golden ticket? She thought.

The golden ticket! The last one?

I've found it! Me?

I've found it! I'VE FOUND IT!

"I FOUND IT!" Hinata cried at last. She stared into the luminous foil of the sparkling ticket. Naruto tapped her on the shoulder; she apparently wasn't paying attention to what was happening around her.

"Hinata-chan! I'm gonna run to the newspapers to tell them the big news! Where are you gonna go? You should tell someone!" he said quickly.

Hinata thought a moment. "I-I'll go to Kurenai-sensei's house. I can tell her! That's where I'll be," she said at last. Naruto nodded, and then seemed to shake for a moment, as if he was vibrating on the spot. The next thing Hinata knew was that she was in a very tight hug. Naruto squeezed his arms around her.

"Keeeeeehhh! I can't tell you how happy I am for you! This is fantastic!" he said breathlessly.

Naruto's hugging me!

Naruto's…HUGGING…me! Hinata thought. She suddenly felt very warm and her face felt hot. She blushed so much she thought her face would melt off.

"Oi! Let the girl go, she's got to get a move on and so do you!" the shopkeeper said at last. Naruto broke their quick embrace and headed out the door.

"I'll see you in a bit! I always knew you'd win, Hinata-chan!" he shouted, and raced off into the darkness. Hinata stood silently, watching him go. She felt unsure of what she should do next. Then she remembered going to Kurenai's house. She turned and bowed to the shopkeeper.

"Domo arigato gozaiimasu!" she shouted politely. The shopkeeper tipped his hat to her. Hinata raced out of the shop with the ticket secured in her tight fist. She ran across the deserted streets, following the light of the lampposts. While it was still freezing out, Hinata didn't notice the cold. She didn't feel weak or tired at all. In fact, she felt as if she must have been the strongest person in the world! Her face drawn tight in an enormous grin that didn't seem to want to go away.

She continued running, passing houses and closed stores on her way to where Kurenai lived. She was about a block away when-

"Oooff" she mumbled, feeling as though she'd been knocked down. She looked around to realize she had been knocked down. She was lying on her bottom in the cold, wet snow. A tall, dark man standing over her.

"Hinata Hyuuga-san…" the man said slowly. His voice was as cold as the snow around them. Only part of him was really visible, his face and arms were shrouded in the darkness of the night. The man extended an arm with an open hand. "Let me help you up" he said. Hinata reluctantly accepted his hand.

"Let me introduce myself…my name is Urami H'coro, and I'm a chocolate maker" he said quickly. Hinata barely caught a word he was saying. She took an instant dislike to the man. "Wonka-san is one of my competitors. Firstly, I'd like to congratulate you on your lucky finding of the last golden ticket. Now…I'd like to ask you for a favour, no…a mission. Consider this a shinobi mission"

Hinata wasn't sure how to respond. She trembled and remained silent, listening to the scary looking man. "Wonka is currently working on an experimental invention that will revolutionize how shinobi operate and function. If it is released, my company will be ruined! Here's my offer," the man called Urami extended his other hand…which held a large roll of money.

"Ten million ryou. Payment enough for you to leave your dismal apartment, and afford good food for a long time. I can give you this…if you steal the formula for this invention. One sample will be good enough. I'll be waiting for you with the money once you leave the factory" he retracted his hands, waving as he did. "Just remember to find and bring it to me…until then"

With those final words, he vanished. A mysterious man that Hinata barely knew had just offered her a large sum of money to steal one of Wonka-san's inventions. She swallowed hard, brushed the snow of her now wet pants, and proceeded to Kurenai's house. She gripped the ticket tightly, knowing that she had a lot to tell her.