AN: Thank you for the 200 + reviews. It's much appreciated! ^_^

Chapter Eleven: A Surprise

Naruto tapped his fingers on the wooden table as he stared at the piece of napkin that was torn. His frown deepened the more he thought about Tsunade's weird reaction. It was quite strange and the more he thought about it, the more he was curious to know what was in the box and why she had acted so nervously.

Ever since he had moved out, she was overprotective and overbearing, especially doing that day at the clinic. She seemed to get this way every time his birthday approached, but it was too soon for her to act strangely. He shifted his head to the side when he felt someone touched his shoulder. It was Hinata and she was staring at him, worriedly.

"Is everything okay? You've been quiet since we arrived."

"I'm fine. I was just thinking is all." He flashed his famous smile. "You look very beautiful tonight." Hinata's cheeks turned slightly red, and her lips tugged up until it turned into a cute smile. "But of course, you already know that."

"Thank you very much," Her eyes drifted to him and she spoke softly, "And you're very handsome."

Naruto smiled even brighter until his cheeks burned. "I try to look my best for you." He leaned over and gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

"I'm here."

Without glancing at the other person who had joined their booth, Naruto hummed. "I thought you got cold feet."

Sasuke frowned slightly. "Hello, Hinata. I hope this idiot isn't giving you trouble. I know how much of a handful he can be."

She glared at Naruto through the corner of her eyes and nodded her head playfully. "Actually, he is quite a handful. I have to constantly watch over him."

"Ah, all the time." He folded his arms and nodded. "She's always lurking about."

Sasuke felt his upper lip twitched and he couldn't help but smile. They were two completely opposite characters, but for some reason, they complemented one another well.

"Let me know if he acts up and I'll deal with him." Sasuke said, playing along. "So, where is Karin?" He said, looking around.

"Oh, I thought I texted you that she didn't want to go on a date with you anymore and she was better off being by herself." Naruto said, sipping on a glass of water.

"Really? That's kind of cruel." Hinata mumbled.

Sasuke raised his eyebrow slightly and was about to say something when he saw Naruto smirk. He knew how much of a practical joker the blonde could be, but there were times where it was hard to tell whether he was joking or not. Sometimes he sounded so serious and that there was no deceit. There was no way he would admit that to the dobe, but he had picked up on this when they were younger.

"I'm just messing with him. She should be here short-

Before he could finish his sentence, the red hair girl was already at the table and out of breath. "I'm sorry I'm late," She took a deep breath and sighed. "I put in the wrong address and I'm sorry. Did I have you guys waiting long?" She asked the table, but her eyes were more focus on Naruto. It wasn't that she had a crush on him, and besides, he was apparently her cousin, but she was too nervous to look at the radiant man sitting there, Sasuke Uchiha.

"It's okay. Sasuke was nervous too so he came late."

Karin's eyes widened in surprise and she glanced at Sasuke who had flashed her a small smile. The two girls were unaware of the situation happening under the table and Naruto leaned forward and rubbed his leg. That was definitely going to leave a mark.

Sasuke gave Karin another look and he carefully soaked in her entire image. She wasn't someone that would catch his eyes immediately, but she was kind of cute in a dorky way. Usually, the girl's hair stood out in different directions, but this time it was neatly pressed and straightened. Her face was slim, and she wore a cute pout on her face, unknowingly. Then his eyes travelled down to the outfit she wore. Simple, cute, dorky. A long sleeve lavender shirt that was tucked into a high-waisted plaid skirt. This was an outfit he wouldn't expect the girl to wear, but clearly, she had gone out of her way to dress cutely for the occasion.

His thoughts were interrupted when Naruto cleared his throat. "Are you going to stare or let her sit, teme?" He teased.

"Naruto!" Hinata scolded him.

"What?" He whined in response. "Teme was going to have her stand there for a very long time."

Naruto bit down on his bottom lip as he leaned over the table and rubbed his leg once more. Hinata stared worriedly at him and he reassured her that he was okay. Sasuke scooted over in the booth and Karin, who trembled, sat next to her crush of fifteen years.

"Hinata, let me introduce you to Karin. She's in some of my classes and she's also a cousin of mine. Karin, this is Hinata, my girlfriend."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Karin."

Karin nodded. "Likewise," Her voice was just as equally low as Hinata's.

Karin wasn't normally shy. In fact, she was extremely outgoing and didn't hold her tongue, but the mere thought of being surrounded by Sasuke made her go limp and it was like every common sense had flown out of the window when she thought about him. She had to thank Naruto personally for this set up.

The group quickly settled in, and the waiter, Daichi, made his way over to the group to take their order. As they were saying their orders, Naruto noticed how the waiter would take a quick glimpse at Hinata each time. How brazen to do that to somebody's woman is what Naruto thought. He knew Hinata was quite the catcher and received a lot of attention, so it's not like he could have kicked everyone's ass that looked at her.

He wouldn't say that it didn't upset him just a little because why was Daichi even looking when he sat right there. It was obvious the two were dating. Did he look weak? Did he look soft? His lips twitched violently the more he thought about it. Was this man trying him? Why was he even getting so worked up? Ah, now he knew why. He shifted uncomfortably in the chair and he straightened out his legs to control his manhood.

It was just yesterday he had fun, why did he need to do it so soon?

The waiter smiled when Hinata handed her, and Naruto's menus and he could have sworn he saw his dirty finger brushed Hinata's hand. The girl seemed oblivious to it, unless he hadn't touched her. He sighed softly then stared at Sasuke who was staring at him.

Naruto smiled cheekily at him and wrapped his arm around Hinata's shoulder.

"How are classes coming along, um Karin?" Hinata decided to take the initiative to speak first. "What are you majoring in?"

"I have straight A's so far and I'm top one in my biology class." She smiled as she found her hidden confidence. "I'm majoring in the forensic field. I'm going to be a forensic pathologist."

"Oh! Naruto's majoring in that too." Hinata responded.

Karin nodded. "He needs to stop sleeping in classes and take it seriously. Ne, Hinata you shouldn't have him up so late," She teased the blushing girl.

"It's Naruto's fault. He never goes to sleep on time."

Larin smiled solemnly at the cute girl and just maybe she was wrong about Hinata. She remembered the first day she met and vividly remembering calling her a stuck-up bitch.

As the two were talking with one another like they were old friends, Naruto and Sasuke were staring intensely into each other's eyes. Sasuke raised his eyebrow, an Uchiha trait, and Naruto wiggled his eyebrows. Sasuke glared at him, and Naruto's smiled widened. This continued on for a few more minutes and finally, Sasuke gave in.

They had known each other, and he knew exactly what Naruto meant and when he gave in, that meant Naruto was right. Karin was cute. The girl clearly had been ignoring him out of being nervous and she hadn't even attempted to talk to her actual date.

"Karin, are you ignoring me? You haven't said a word to me since you've arrived." Sasuke said, placing his elbow on the table and staring at her.

Naruto rolled his eyes, knowing that the womanizer Sasuke was coming out.

Karin became quiet and she nervously turned to him. "I wasn't," She fiddled with her fingers. "Uh, how are you Sasuke?"

Sasuke smiled faintly. "I'm fine. What about you?"

The tip of Hinata's ear turned red when Naruto leaned over and whispered in her ear. "You see how quickly he changes his personality. Right now, what you're seeing is the womanizer Sasuke." Hinata nodded at everything Naruto was whispering to her and her cheeks turned even red when Naruto gave her some dirty details of Sasuke's past relationships.

Naruto grinned madly when he saw the expression on Hinata's face, and he chuckled.

A plate of riceballs and Yakitori was placed in front of the group and they all dug in. Karin was giggling sincerely at everything Sasuke was telling her, and even Hinata was having a good time with Naruto's teasing and storytelling.

There was a light atmosphere and the group enjoyed their time with one another. That went on for some time, and then Sasuke suggested they got some sakes. This would be Hinata's first time ever tasting an alcoholic drink and when it was given to her, she stared at it oddly. Both Karin and Sasuke bumped the miniature glass cups before they drank it down in one gulp. Another was poured, then another and Hinata hadn't even consumed the alcoholic beverage. She eyed Naruto who gulped it down in one shot.

Naruto noticed she hadn't had her first set and realized that Hinata may have never had alcohol. "It's sake. You'll like it." He told her. "Just drink it down in one gulp!" He grinned as he took another shot.

Hinata placed both of her hands on the miniature cup and attempted to drink it the way Naruto showed her. Her face twisted in disgust and sake ended up squirting from Naruto's nose when he saw her face. The inside of his nose burned, but he couldn't stop himself from laughing.

Sasuke also saw the look Hinata gave, and he chuckled.

"I think I'll pass." She mumbled as she pushed the glass cup to the side.

"Maybe you would like the strawberry sake," Naruto suggested, but Hinata shook her head.

"No, thank you." She replied, sipping occasionally on the strawberry lemonade she'd ordered.

"Hai, hai!"

Karin's face was turning redder by each gulp she took, but she was a fighter. It took a lot to get her drunk and drinking alcohol was like a competition to her. Unknown to both her and Sasuke, but they were actually in a drinking competition to see who can drink the most and Naruto was the cheerleader and cheered them on.

Hinata cracked a smile. "Ne, Naruto I'm going to use the restroom. I'll be back."

He nodded and watched as she stood up and made her way to the lady's room. Once he seen she had made it in safely, he turned his direction back to Karin and Sasuke and grinned.

"I don't know Sasuke, but it looks like Karin's got you beat." He threw his head back and let the alcohol run down his throat.

Sasuke's cheeks were noticeably red, and he scoffed. "I'm just letting her win."

"Mhm, if you say so." Naruto hummed.

While Karin and Sasuke were flirting with one another, Naruto kept eyeing the restroom to ensure Hinata had come out safely. Suddenly, the color in his eyes drained and he saw their waiter approached Hinata who had just exited the bathroom.

Hinata was startled and almost collided with the man who was holding an empty tray.

"I'm sorry," He laughed nervously. "I didn't see you there."

"It's okay," She replied, lowering her head. As she was about to walk away, he stepped in front of her and she looked up at him, confused. "Do you need something," Her eyes focused on the name tag, "Daichi?"

"Um yeah, I just wanted to say that I think you're cute and I wanted to take you out," Daichi replied with confidence. "The guy you're with doesn't look like much and I figured you could use a real man."

Hinata was taken back and somewhat angry at his statement against Naruto. "Daichi, my boyfriend is very impatient when it comes to other men, so I would suggest you refrain from touching me." She did her best to put on an angry face, but it was too adorable he couldn't help but smile. Yes, she had felt when his fingers purposely graze against her hand, but she did her best to ignore it for tonight's sake. "If you value your life, don't ever do that again." And with those words, she left an even curious Daichi.

Naruto smiled meekly at her when she took her seat. "Is everything okay?"

Nodding, she adjusted herself in the chair. "I'm fine."

"Did he need something?"

"Ah, it's nothing," Hinata said, holding onto Naruto's hand. "Everything's okay."

He clenched his fist underneath the table, then unclenched it when Hinata stroke his hand gently. Not wanting to push the topic any further he nodded and gave her a quick peck on her cheek.

Hinata smiled warmly at him, and then turned her direction back to Karin and Sasuke who was practically sucking off one another's face.

"They've been like this ever since you left."

Being the innocent one, Hinata turned her head to Naruto who had taken another shot of sake. "Naruto, isn't that going to make you drunk?" She could already see how his cheeks turned pink and his eyes were glossy. The smell of alcohol left his mouth and he hiccupped.

"It takes a lot to get me drunk," Naruto said, giving her a thumbs up.

"I say we take the party back to your house." Sasuke said, helping Karin up who was also slightly tipsy.

"Sure," Naruto said, holding his hand.

Clearing his throat, Sasuke threw him his wallet and left the restaurant to follow Karin to her car.

"I guess they really like each other." Hinata commented. "Has she always like Sasuke?"

"Yup. She used to stalk him too." Naruto said, digging through Sasuke's wallet.

She was surprised, "Is stalking your crush normal?"

Naruto chuckled lightly. "Everyone has stalked their crush once or twice, but some take it too far- His eyes sparkled when he spotted the one-hundred-dollar bill in Sasuke's wallet.

"Did I take it too far?"

"Pfft," He snorted out. "Are you really going to ask me that question?" He asked, cheekily.

He had a point.

"Naruto, hurry up!" Someone shouted from across the room.

Both Hinata and Naruto looked up and saw Sasuke waving them down.

"And now he's drunk." Naruto said, shaking his head. "You can head out and I'll pay the bill." He saw the look Hinata gave him, and he smiled reassuring her, "Sasuke isn't stupid enough to touch you. You'll be fine with him around."

"Come quickly." She said, gathering the miniature backpack and making her way down the aisle in embarrassment. Sasuke was still waving and calling out for Naruto, and Karin had even joined. Kurenai got like this when she came home drunk with Asuma. It was the same, embarrassing.

Naruto eyed the waiter who had come by to hand him the receipt. Daichi's eyes weren't focused on him, but Hinata who had slipped out of the door. His eyes suddenly darted to Naruto who had gripped in by his hand and he stared deadly into his eyes.

Daichi shivered by the scare and he tried to free his left hand.

"Do you have a staring problem or what?" Naruto clicked his tongue. "Ah, you're so disrespectful." His cold voice sent a shiver down Daichi's spine but being prideful he stared intently at Naruto.

"Ah, I didn't even see you there," He smirked. "Seems that your woman needs a proper man and not a girly boy."

Naruto's upper lip twitched and Daichi's eyes widened when he felt his finger being pulled back slowly. "Ah, where's the tough guy act?" Naruto asked, playfully.

"Hey! Hey! Don't-

"Don't. Do. What?" He said between clenched teeth. "Maybe you should learn to keep your grimy fingers to yourself."

"S-she told you?" Daichi spat out.

Naruto chewed down on the bottom of his lip and reluctantly let go of Daichi's finger. He grabbed his hand back and looked around to see if anyone had seen what took place.

Without a word, he gave Daichi the one hundred dollars and stood up. The two were almost the same height, except Naruto was one inch taller. Naruto chuckled before he scoffed.

Daichi was not worth it.

He shoved his hands into his pocket and left the establishment. He mumbled a few curse words under his breath, and he smiled when he approached Hinata who was standing in front of a white car with Sasuke and Karin in the back. Hinata had her reasons for not saying anything, and it was most likely so he wouldn't throw a fit and go psycho mode.

Naruto cocked his head to the side when he saw Sasuke in the back seat with Karin.

"Uh, they said you would drive?" Hinata said. "I didn't know you knew how to drive."

He nodded. "Let's go."

Hinata stared oddly at Naruto who was unusually quiet.

"Are you okay to drive? You've been drinking and-

"I'm fine," He said, opening the passenger seat. Honestly, he was. The anger that consumed him in the restaurant had taken over the alcohol and he felt like he hadn't even had a drink at all!

"But are you sure? You seem upset. Did something happen?" She bombarded him with questions. "You were even quiet when we came and-

Her eyes widened when Naruto leaned over and kissed her gently on her lips. "You ask too many questions. I'm fine babe! Let's go."

Hinata felt her knees buckled and she nodded as she shakenly entered the car.

Naruto closed the door gently and entered the push to start car. "Karin, is this your car?"

"Mgkjsdcn."

Hinata looked back and she gasped when she saw the two having a "frenzy" in the backseat.

"They're so inconsiderate!" Naruto frowned.

She poked her index fingers together and her cheeks turned scarlet red. As Naruto was driving back to his place, she couldn't help but day dream about Naruto doing those same things to her. She knew she wasn't ready, but the noises in the background were enough to make anybody daydream.

It didn't take long to reach Naruto's apartment complex. Naruto pushed the door opened to his room, and he groaned loudly when Sasuke pulled Karin to his bedroom. This wasn't something he expected to happen, and he felt a migraine coming on. Washing clothes and sheets was one thing he truly hated.

The door slammed shut and Naruto pouted. "They're going to stink up my room," He mumbled as he sat down on the sofa. Hinata also followed him, then she sat next to him.

"I feel like you're hiding something from me," Hinata said, folding her arms. "You know you can tell me anything, right?"

Naruto wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her on top of him and laid back on the sofa. "It's nothing! My brain has been one overdrive, but I'm fine. Seriously." He said, giving her a smile to reassure her.

"Fine," She pouted as she rested her head against his chest.

The two stayed like that for quite some time, and it was almost midnight. Hinata intertwined her fingers with his and she listened to his steady heartbeat. It was peaceful with just the two of them and she felt like she was on a cloud that drifted in the sky.

She didn't know what possess her to ask, but she did, "Naruto, aren't you afraid you're going to get caught one day?"

It took a while before he responded, "I used to be, but not anymore. The only regret I'll have is leaving you behind." His words were honest and sincere, and he stroked Hinata's head for some comfort. "When I was young, Kurama-nii always told me what happened to people like us and said I had to hide it. I believed him up until I met Gaara. Gaara got away with a lot of things and they never did anything to him, so I thought it would be fine. So, naturally that fear Kurama had instilled in me had vanished. Then one day, something happened at the facility and they took Gaara away and I haven't seen him since. When that happened, that fear came back with full force, and I tried to hide this thing in me, but the more I tried to hide, the more it tried to break free." He paused momentarily before he continued. "It was really bad, and I would constantly look over my shoulders trying to figure out if anyone noticed." He chuckled softly. "I even watched a lot of tv just so I knew how to act and what to be disgusted by. It gradually became easier for me, but eventually I stopped caring. I always carried this motto with me: Wrong place, wrong time. If I was somewhere I wasn't supposed to be and got caught doing something I love, then so be it. I wouldn't fight it." His eyes lingered to the ceiling. "But it's more fun when you try to be sneaky about it."

Hinata's eyes watered, but she remained silent. Maybe, Naruto was just too far gone and there was really no saving him.

"Ah, it would be a pain in the neck if I were to get caught though. Knowing you, you may just lose your mind," He laughed as he rubbed her head. "You're such a crybaby." He said, wiping the tears away.

"I don't want to lose you." She said, holding his hand tightly.

"I know. I know."

"Aren't you afraid of what the people around you would think? They would be heartbroken."

"I really don't care. In fact, that would be fun to see the look of horror on their faces when they discovered I'm a serial killer." He smirked loudly. "I would pay to see that."

"But you can get the death penalty!"

Sensing the girl was about to become upset, he wrapped both of his arms around her and kissed her all over her face to calm her down. Hinata closed her eyes as she allowed Naruto to ravish her entire face and she calmed down.

"I love you." He whispered.

"I love you too! I really do!" Hinata said, gazing intensely into his eyes.

"I know you do."

"Are they going to be sleeping over?"

Naruto furrowed his eyebrows and nodded slowly. "I guess so." He mumbled under his breath.

"Let's watch some tv?" Naruto said, leaning over to grab the remote that sat on the edge of the coffee table.

Turning the tv on, he flicked through the channels until Hinata stopped him to watch a bake off. Naruto continued to stroke her soft hair and the two watched the two chefs create their own bizarre cake. It was interesting, but it wasn't something Naruto would watch out of the blue. In fact, he rarely watched tv and the only time he would, if it was to glimpse at the news or to have something on in the background as he studied or do other things.

"That's really nice." Hinata pointed out.

"Mhm."

Hinata hadn't realized that Naruto had fallen asleep, and she continued watching the show and would add little commentaries to it. Once noticing Naruto had not responded, she finally realized he had fallen asleep. She watched him for some time, and her eyes sparkled when he rubbed his eyes, and his arms went limp to the side. She wholeheartedly believed she had the cutest boyfriend in the entire world, and no one could tell her anything differently.

Then she couldn't help but sigh. "If you had your own television show, you would be the hero who was secretly the villain the entire time. Plotting the demise of your so called friends, and having your way and once you got caught, all hell would break loose." Then she hummed, "Or maybe you would be a powerful demon king who would roam the world and cause destruction for fun."

Hinata's eyes widened when she saw the corner of Naruto's mouth tugged up and he wrapped his arms tightly, yet gently, around her.

"Oh really?" She turned a few shades of red as she tried to conceal her face. "A hero who's secretly the villain or a demon king. I like both actually." His eyes fluttered opened and he glanced up. "If you wrote a story about it, I would read it. Will I have a tragic background story that made me an evil lord? Where does this take place? I like feudal Japan with a twist of fantasy." He chuckled lightly when Hinata was trembling in embarrassment.

"I-I thought you were asleep."

"I felt you staring at me," He smiled coolly at her. "Why are you hiding your face? It wasn't like you were wrong," Naruto laughed once more. "I would be a powerful ruler and the only one I will protect will be you, Hinata." He pushed her bangs back and kissed her on her forehead.

The two went in a more comfortable position on the sofa as seeing Sasuke and Karin had not left for today. Naruto threw his arm around Hinata to warm her up and the two drifted off to sleep.

Blackness engulfed the entire forest, and the only light that was visible came from the moon. It wasn't beautiful, no, not at all. In fact, the moon was frightening. An evil lurked about, and Hinata ran as quickly as she could through the forest. The branches cracked under her feet and she tried to calm her beating heart. She could sense several men following behind her and clenched her fist tightly.

She was tired from a long journey, and just when she thought she had found a stable to sleep in for the night the town was raided by an evil group led by a man named Danzo.

As tired as she was, she fought the men until they ended up following her to an unknown part of the forest. Hopefully, this would give the people some time to prepare themselves better and extinguish the fire.

A sharp razor brushed her cheek, and she felt her skin bleed. They were throwing kunais at her and she had no way of defending herself.

Just as she ran out of the forest into a vast field, she fell face forward and her eyes widened when she saw a pair of boots come into view.

The men who also jumped from the forest stopped not too far from them, and there was a deadly silence. Hinata felt like she was suffocating by the sting of evil and she whipped her head back when she heard a terrible scream and the men fell to the floor one by one.

She swiftly turned around when she saw a hand come in view. Her eyes travelled up the figure dressed in an orange and black robe. The man didn't seem dangerous, and she took his hand. He gently picked her up and it was like she couldn't breathe. Although the stench of blood and evilness was notably obvious, she couldn't help but gawk at the beautiful creature before her.

His deep blue eyes held a hint of amusement and playfulness in them of a young teen boy. He stepped forward, and gently placed his hand on her chin, tilting her head back.

He leaned forward and-

Hinata let out a loud gasp when she heard someone knocking on Naruto's door. The man groaned inwardly, and he rubbed his face. He grabbed his phone to check the time, and it was almost twelve in the afternoon.

There was another set of knocks and his phone rang. It was Sakura calling him.

"Ah, shit," He grumbled, and he quickly got up, causing Hinata stumbled backward. "Oh, I'm sorry!" He said, helping her sit right on the sofa. "Hold on,"

He rushed to the door and opened it slightly. Sakura stood there and she was slightly irritated. "Do you know how long I've been calling you and knocking?"

Naruto scratched his cheek. "Sorry, was fast asleep."

"You smell like alcohol." Sakura frowned. "Don't you have classes soon?"

"Yeah, why are you here?"

"Well, I wanted to stop and get some breakfast. I also wanted to talk to you." Her eyes drifted to the floor to see a few shoes there. Two of them were clearly female and the other pair were men.

Naruto noticed where she was looking and smiled. "Hinata's over, so I don't think I'll be able to join you unless you're taking two of us." He said, jokingly.

Sakura wouldn't have had any problems with it if the girl wasn't Hinata. "Maybe some other time," She mumbled. "Rest up and I'll see you later."

Once she was gone, he sighed in relief. That would have been a nightmare if Sakura discovered Sasuke and Karin here. Speaking of those two, they were still in there.

Hinata watched as Naruto marched to his bedroom and he pushed the door open. His eye twitched when he saw the two in a passionate embrace. They were oblivious to him standing there, and he uttered one word, "Sakura."

Sasuke quickly jumped off Karin and he gazed at Naruto. Karin pulled up the blanket and grabbed her black-rimmed glasses from the nightstand.

"Thanks for christening my bed," Naruto said, sarcastically.

"Is she here?" Sasuke asked, slightly annoyed. Why was she even here?

"She was, but she left. I won't be surprised if she's still out there since she saw your shoes." Naruto replied, folding his arms. "I'm going to wash up before I take Hinata home. Please wash my bedsheets before you two leave," He said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

.

.

.

Lately, there had been a lot of 'killers' who confessed to the murder of Kin and the police were at a standstill. None of their stories matched up, and they were all acquitted. They had followed multiple forms and private websites that posted explicit pictures of the young girl's lifeless body and some of these were taken before the body was even discovered.

Unknown to the police, Konoha had some interesting people who had a hobby of taking pictures of anything they can find that was disgusting and that included decease victims. Some would even hack into the police database to share raw photos taken by the forensic team.

Countless sites came up, and it was hard to track down where these pictures were coming from and who was posting it due to different servers that was just about everywhere in the country.

Fugaku was at his wits end, but he needed to get the killer off the streets. ASAP!

Hinata was sitting across from Sakura who was waiting for Ino. Kiba sat across from Naruto who was sucking on a lollipop and working on his homework. Sakura watched Kiba who kept glancing over at Naruto, and she raised his eyebrow, questionably.

Sensing someone gawking at him, Naruto lifted is head slightly to catch Kiba watching him. Kiba looked down quickly and Naruto dug into his pocket and handed him a lollipop. "I share, sometimes." He chuckled. "Here."

Kiba took the lollipop and nodded. "Thanks," He mumbled.

"Mhm. Where's Ino?" Naruto said, stretching his arms to the sky, his gray shirt lifted slightly exposing his delicate sun kissed skin.

"She should be here soon." Sakura mumbled. She didn't get a chance to talk to Naruto about her discoveries, but she wanted to tell him sooner than later.

It has been a few good days since the incident happened, and she had a hard time falling asleep. Every night she would cry until she grew fatigued and collapsed on the bed. She knew who had pushed her downstairs and she didn't expect it. Not in her entire lifetime, and she was too afraid to confront the person. Despite not checking Sasuke's hand, she had checked Kiba, and he was cleared, then one day she took a glimpse at Ino's hand when she was writing and there it was, a long scrape mark caused by a very sharp nail, her nail!

Instead of anger consuming her, it was disappointment, disgust and fear! How could Ino do that to her? She tried to think of every logical reason as to why Ino would do something that could have possibly killed her like, pushing her playfully not expecting her to fall, or accidentally shoving her thinking it was Kiba groping her. But no matter what explanation she came up with, none of it added up.

"Awe man, they found two bodies not too long ago." Kiba said, reviewing a news article. "Looks like someone killed the famous doctor who worked for Konoha's Private Hospital."

Hinata felt her heart stopped and she turned her head slowly to watch Naruto's reaction. Nothing at all! He was composed sucking on his lollipop. Feeling Hinata's menacing gaze, he turned his head shyly to avoid the side of his face burning off.

She wanted nothing more than to grab him by his ear and straighten him out.

"Another one," Sakura mumbled.

Kiba nodded as his eyes went over each word. "Oh, what a twist."

"What happened?" Sakura said, leaning over the boy's shoulder to review the article.

"Him and his wife were brutally murdered a few days ago but turns out he was a serial rapist and killer. The police found a lot of evidence and tapes of them drugging their victims before they raped them," Kiba said before his eyes widened. "Yo, there's going to be an investigation on him and his wife. Some of these victims were reported missing months ago! I guess somebody finally got to him."

"Well, serves him right if that's the case. I would have never expected that from a man in his field." Sakura said, taking a seat next to Kiba.

"How ironic." Naruto said, turning to face her with confidence. "Sounds like he had it coming. That was a good thing,"

"Naruto, can we talk in private," Hinata said, standing up.

"Sounds like you are in trouble lover boy," Kiba laughed when he saw how pissed off Hinata look.

"Shove it!" Naruto said, shoving his lollipop in Kiba's mouth.

Kiba's face twisted in horror and he quickly spit it out. He glared at Naruto's back as the man followed behind Hinata.

"Hmm… Kiba do you like Naruto?" Sakura asked, cocking her head to the side.

"What? Why the fuck would you ask me something like that? Do I look gay to you?" Kiba spat.

"How does one look gay?" She sighed, once noticing Kiba glaring at him. "I'm just asking," She said, brushing him off.

"Why would you think that though?"

"I mean you were just eye raping him while he sucked on the lollipop." She said, rolling her eyes. "Plus, you're always looking at him and Hinata, but I've counted you gawking your eyes out at Naruto more than you do Hinata."

"Well, I'm not. Don't ask that stupid question again." Kiba said, throwing the lollipop on the grass.

"Okay, fine. Want to head to my place for some fun?"

Naruto lowered his head as Hinata glared at him angrily. He was trying to contain his smile because she was just too precious and the expression, she wore just made him want to embrace her and never let her go.

"When did this happen?" She crossed her arm and tapped her foot on the soft grass, impatiently.

"The night we had the fight," He said, his eyes focusing on her foot that went up and down.

"Seriously! You could have done anything else besides that." She said, looking around to make sure no one was listening.

"But honey munchkins, in the end, I did a good thing. I got rid of some perverted bastard besides," He finally raised his head to look at her, "they were planning to rape me."

"And why were you out there?" She said, not caving into Naruto's explanation.

"Just to walk off some steam," He said, his eyes gazing up.

"Liar!" She pouted. For some reason, she couldn't be too upset with Naruto as this killing actually paid off.

"It's been a long time," He also pouted and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into a tight embrace. He leaned forward and let his forehead onto hers and he gazed lovingly into her eyes. "Don't be mad. Why don't I take you with me next time just so you can see how it is? It'll be fun!"

Hinata's shoulders trembled, and she said between clenched teeth. "No. It's wrong Naruto. You need to control these urges."

He sighed, but still held her close. "I know. I know. I'll try harder next time."

She went on her tippy toes and planted a kiss on his sticky lips. "Just don't do anything at all."

Naruto smiled and kissed her deeply. "Hai, hai!"

Naruto wobbled behind Hinata as he followed her back to the outside table they were sitting at. As they approached the group, Ino also joined with an unknown boy they had never seen before.

"Hey," Ino said, sounding, unlike her usual self. Usually, the girl was loud and boisterous with her hellos, but this one was a little soft and innocent.

Sakura glanced at the boy who hovered over Ino. She shivered slightly when he smiled at her.

"Who is this Ino?" Kiba asked, eyeing the new boy.

"This is Sai!" Ino said, a little blush noticeable on her face. "He's in one of my electives. He's new so I wanted to introduce him to some of my friends."

Naruto made his way in between Sakura and Kiba, and grinned when Kiba whispered in his ear. "He probably called her beautiful,"

"Isn't that how all of our friendship started with her?" Naruto whispered back.

Kiba snickered when he saw Ino send them a sharp glare. "Nice to meet you, Sai, was it?"

The pale skin boy nodded his head and flashed a fake smile. "Nice to meet you…

"Kiba."

"Kiba," Sai said, nodding.

"I'm Sakura Haruno." The bubble gum hair girl said.

"The name suits your hair." He complimented.

Sakura unknowingly touched her hair and smiled softly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Sai," Hinata said, observing the boy. Somehow, he reminded her of Sasuke.

"The pleasure is all mine, Miss Hinata."

"And I'm Naruto Uzumaki!" The energetic blonde flashed him a smile.

Sai turned his eyes to Naruto and cracked a smile. That made Naruto cringe because he was trying so hard to fake a smile. There was nothing sincere in it, but oh well. Who cared?

Naruto tapped his fingers against the wooden table and tried to avoid Sai's gaze. He was staring directly at him, like he was watching him. Kiba also noticed, and nudged Naruto with his leg.

"The eyes are the window to your soul; do you believe that Naruto Uzumaki? You know they never lie."

Turning his head, he stared straight into Sai's eyes and cracked a smile. "I suppose they are."

"So, tell me this, why is it that your soul is black and wicked?"

Hinata froze, and Sakura frowned at Sai's rudeness. Kiba's eyes widened, and Ino crossed her arms. "Sai does theatre right now, and they're learning about William Shakespeare."

Naruto felt his lip twitching, and laughing he said. "You're very poetic, Sai."

"I am." Sai said, turning his back on Naruto. "Ino, my other class is about to begin. I will talk to you later." He said, walking away.

"Where did you find this fellow from? Seems like a charmer." Sakura said, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, that's just Sai. Don't take it to personally, Naruto," Ino said,

"Hai, hai!" Naruto grinned.

"I guess I'll be going now." Sakura mumbled, grabbing her backpack from the table. She quickly left before anyone could say a word, and Ino was stumped. She knew she blew up at Sakura, and had every right to, but she didn't expect the girl to be so agitated. Lately, they haven't been spending time together and Sakura was putting her on the back burner as if she did something.

Naruto dug into his pocket and took out his phone when he felt it vibrated.

Sakura: Ino was the one who pushed me down the stairs. I saw the mark on her hand a few days ago.

Sakura: This is what I wanted to talk to you about.

Sakura: I can't believe she would do something like that!

Sakura: Do I confront her?

Sakura: Do I say something? I can't sleep, I can barely eat, and I've been in tears. She's my best friend Naruto. Why would she do something like that.

Sakura: And before you say anything, it was her! She shoved me. There was no accident. I'm afraid to be alone with her, but I miss her. Please help me. What should I do?

Sakura: …

Sakura: You do believe me, right?

Naruto stared at the text messages in shock, and he briefly looked at Ino before he went back to the text message. It was Ino? There was no way Ino would do something like that. He hummed softly as he reviewed the text message.

His goal was to play the devil's advocate and get Sasuke to push Sakura down the stairs for some entertainment. He wholeheartedly believed that Sasuke was the one who actually did it, but now Sakura is saying otherwise.

The corner of his lips tugged up and he couldn't help but grin. This was purely entertaining for him and he couldn't believe it. He almost sighed, however, as he did all of that Karin and Sasuke shit so he wouldn't give himself away. Find a girl to entertain him to get his mind off possibly killing Sakura and that baby who didn't exist.

He couldn't help it, and he chuckled softly catching Kiba's attention.

"What's so funny?"

Naruto placed the phone back into his pocket and shook his head. "It's nothing."

"So, what was the deal with that crazy guy talking about the window to the soul and some other shit like that?" Kiba inquired, taking quick peeks at Naruto to see his expression. Yes, he still believed Naruto was a psychopath or something! He wouldn't forget what happened, but it was better to keep your friends closer right?

Kiba's face pale as he didn't expect the answer that left his friend's mouth.

"He's right." Naruto said, staring at Kiba through the corner of his eyes. Kiba looked around to see if anyone else had heard Naruto's confession, but Ino and Hinata were too deep into their own conversation.

He broke out into a cold sweat and Naruto hummed. "Are you okay, Kiba? You look a little pale."

Reality came back, and Kiba blinked rapidly as he gawked at Naruto. "Uh, what?"

"Anyways, I'm leaving for my next class!" Naruto said, standing up. "Miss Hinata, I'll see you later." He said, mocking Sai from earlier.

"Bye-bye," She said, waving her hand at the boy.

.

.

.

Sai was a very strange character indeed. He was a spiritual (not religious) person and if he met someone for the first time, and did not take a liken to them, then he believed the heart of the person was purely wicked and evil.

That's how he judged most of the people he encountered, and so therefore he only had a few friends; very few. When he first met Ino, his soul instantly connected with hers, and you could say he admired her in such a way and plus she was a beauty to look at it. It was the first thing he blurted out when they were introduced to one another.

He could die from embarrassment just thinking about it, but he meant every word. Ino was beautiful inside and outside.

Her friends were okay, yes okay. They weren't the best, but they were her friends. Sakura was okay, although he would prefer not to talk to her. Rumors were around the school that the girl was kind of loose, and he couldn't believe that Ino could be friends with her. Kiba was okay. He didn't really have a problem with him, and Hinata was good. Innocent and adorable was the first thing he thought about when he saw her, but then there was the "golden child" who had a black heart.

One glance at Naruto, and his spirit did not connect with him. Not at all! That boy couldn't be trusted, and hell would freeze over before anyone left those two alone. It was surprising that Ino couldn't see it, or anybody for that matter. The blonde boy had evil eyes that were good for tricking others, but not him.

"Ino, why do you hang around that blonde boy?" Sai questioned one day when they were in the academic lab.

"Naruto?" She inquired. "He's a good friend."

"Doesn't he seem a little off?" Sai asked. He thought of ways to ask Ino about her friend without offending her. He would hate for her to get upset with him.

"Anybody who eats ten bowls of ramen in a span of ten minutes is entirely off." She covered her mouth to suppress her giggles. "Why do you ask? You know you didn't make a good impression with that quote you said to him." Her smile turned into something neutral. "You should probably apologize since you did offend some people, especially Naruto."

Sai cocked his head to the side. "He didn't seem offended and what I said was very true. Don't you see his eyes? Hinata should be careful of him. My father had those same eyes."

Ino was well aware of Sai's history and relationship with his parents. They were so well acquainted, that he had no problem discussing certain things, especially one that would make him uncomfortable.

"I guarantee you Naruto is nothing like your father. He's kind, empathic and a real trustworthy friend. You have nothing to fear," Ino said, reassuring him.

Not wanting to cause any further distress, he nodded.

Kiba on the other hand was thinking about what Sai mentioned and he even tried to bring it up to Sakura. Sakura just scoffed and said, "Sai is weird. Really weird. I don't like him."

But Kiba believed every word Sai said because Naruto's eyes were voided of any emotions. It was like he wasn't even there at times, and then he would smile creepily. It was the kind of smile that was pleasurable to look at at first glance, but the more you stared at him the more twisted and eerily looking that smile would become.

Kiba didn't know why he spent so much time around Naruto after that event. It was like he was drawn to the blonde-haired boy and who could blame him? They had been friends for quite some time, but he had to know… was Is Naruto really crazy?

So, that following day… he decided to test the troubling waters in front of everyone. Maybe he would have cracked and then they would have seen the same look he saw that day.

The usual gang were sitting under the cabana as they discuss Naruto's birthday events. Sakura sat next to Hinata, for obvious reasons, and Naruto sat across from them while Ino sat in between the two boys, Sai and Naruto.

"Hey Kiba!" Ino greeted when she saw the nervous boy approaching them.

He had a hard time sleeping as he thought about what could possibly happen if he did what he was going to do. Maybe this would snap everyone to their attention and maybe do an intervention for the crazed boy.

"Hi," He responded, meekly. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he wrapped his arms around Hinata and that startled the girl. Sakura's eyes widened and Ino was dumbfounded and confused. "Thank you for being a good person to Naruto!" Kiba shouted and he quickly let go of the girl.

Ino sighed under her breath as she thought the dog boy was going to confess and Sakura rolled her eyes.

Then just as expected, all eyes landed on Naruto to see the boy's initial reaction. Hinata broke out in a cold sweat as she understood how Naruto could get in regard to another male.

A soft smile graced his face, it wasn't anything Kiba was expecting, and Naruto nodded. "Thank you very much, Kiba, but next time hands-off or I may just cut you." Naruto said, jokingly.

"Naruto!" Sakura whined.

"I'm just joking," He said, in between laughs.

"I don't believe you're joking," Sai said, taking a few peeks at him.

Naruto hummed softly and smiled even brighter. "Kiba knows I won't do something like that."

There was a chill that zapped throughout his body when Naruto said those words and all he could think of was, "Kiba knows I won't cut him, I'll slam him on the bed and choke the fucking life out of him."

"Kiba isn't saying anything." Sai bit back.

Now all eyes were on Kiba who was nervous. This didn't go as planned. "Um, yeah he's joking. Naruto wouldn't do something like that."

"Yeah, strangling would be better." Naruto smiled, innocently.

Kiba felt his whole world go black, and he could hear the faint giggles of Sakura and Ino.

"Kiba, you know Naruto wouldn't do anything like that," Hinata said, turning towards him. "Don't mind him."

"Yeah," Kiba mumbled.

.

.

.

The following day, Naruto and the girls were sitting outside near the H building discussing what Naruto should do for his birthday. This also gave Sakura and opportunity to speak with Naruto alone, since Hinata and Ino was in a deep discussion.

"I read your text and again, if Ino did it then it was an accident. Maybe she was too afraid to say something. Wouldn't you?"

Sakura chewed on her bottom lip and Naruto gave her a soft smile. "Don't be like that. Ino loves you, you know this."

"B-but… I could have died that night."

"But you didn't. Let it be," Naruto replied. "Let's get back over there," He said, walking back towards the group.

Hinata eyed him, then Sakura and that made Sakura cross her arms. Unknown to Naruto and Ino, Sakura and Hinata were having a battle with the eyes. Sakura gave that look, "He's my best friend so go fuck yourself" and Hinata's gave that, "I'll have my boyfriend fuck you up if you keep on trying me."

Ino crossed her arms as she watched Kiba marched angrily towards the group. "Looks like Kiba is in a f-

Naruto stumbled back and landed on his buttocks. All attention was on Kiba who was panting heavily and staring daggers at Naruto who held his nose. Kiba had punched him, real hard. Blood seeped through his fingers and Naruto stared at Kiba shockingly.

"Kiba, what the hell!" Ino barked.

Hinata quickly went to Naruto and pulled a napkin from her bag. "Tilt your head back." She said, rolling the napkin until it was good enough to shove in his nose.

"Kiba!" Sakura cried, pulling the angered boy. "What's gotten into you?"

"Y…you!" Kiba said, pointing his trembling index finger to Naruto. "How could you do this to me? My family? What the fuck!" He spat at Naruto was still shocked.

"Kiba!" Hinata said, jumping up. "Why did-

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" Kiba shouted at her. "Are you fucking blind? He's a psychopath!" Hinata clenched her heart that pounded against her chest. Everyone who was still on campus stopped to hear the commotion. His eyes darted to Sakura and Ino who wore a dumbfounded expression. "He killed Akamaru and fed him to me! He strangled me in my own home! And now… What the fuck!" His shoulders were trembling uncontrollably, and a wave of anger stirred deep within his stomach. It was stirring around trying to find an escape.

"Naruto wouldn't do something like that!" Ino said, stomping her foot on the ground. "We already had this conversation!"

'Naruto killed Akamaru?' Hinata thought.

"What's going on Kiba?" Sakura asked, calmly.

"He- He- He's fucking crazy. He doesn't like for anyone to touch Hinata and he gets this fucking crazy look in his eyes. When you do something to her, he retaliates in the most unbelievable way!" His eyes were blurry, and he wiped them away. "I thought you were my friend, but how could you do this to me and my family?"

"What did Naruto do?" Sakura asked, glimpsing at Naruto who was quiet and Kiba was still enraged.

"He broke into our family clinic and destroyed everything! He even killed and harmed some of the animals we were nursing." Kiba said, his voice quivered.

Sakura nearly choked. "What! Naruto wouldn't do something like that!"

"Kiba you better have proof that Naruto did that! That's something serious and it's going to involve the police!"

"He did it! He did it! Who else would be so fucking crazy to harm innocent animals! Is it a coincidence our clinic was harmed after I hugged Hinata? Huh? No! Because it's him."

Hinata frowned deepened and she balled her fist. "Do you have proof, huh?" She said, approaching Kiba. "Where's the proof Kiba?" She said, jabbing him on his chest. "How dare you accuse Naruto of doing something and there's no proof! If there's anyone crazy, it's you!" She shouted at him.

Kiba stepped back with each jab and he glared at her. "Has he got you wrapped around his crazy fingers? Hinata he's dangerous! He has crazy eyes. That burger you gave me was Akamaru! Don't you see he-

"Proof or it didn't happen!" Hinata cried.

Kiba was taken back then he frowned. "The person broke in our clinic last night! Surveillance footages show it was only one-person, the same height as Naruto and he wore an orange jacket!"

Ino smacked the middle of her forehead leaving behind a red mark and Sakura sighed knowing where this was heading.

"Last night," Hinata muttered. There was deafening silence and her face turned red from anger. "How can you accuse somebody when you don't have actual footage of said person!" She threw her arms in her the air. "How many people are Naruto's height? How many people own orange jackets?" She cried. "And newsflash Naruto couldn't have possibly done this since he was with me and Sasuke last night!"

Hearing her say that, Kiba's face paled. "Y-you're just saying that so he can have an alibi."

"An alibi?" Hinata cried. "Would you like for me to call Sasuke so he can prove that he was with me and Naruto last night?"

"H-he could have done it after everyone fell asleep?" Kiba stuttered. The anger in his stomach calmed down and he broke into a cold sweat.

"Seriously?" Hinata sighed in frustration. "I can't believe you would do something like that or make these allegations against Naruto."

"B-but explain why to me why he strangled me in my house that day!" Kiba shouted.

Everyone glanced at Naruto questionably. Both Ino and Sakura did not say anything because Kiba had told them this prior. They had been meaning to ask Naruto if this was true or not, but they had their doubts… will Ino did. Sakura, on the other hand, believed Kiba 50-50. There was no way Kiba would lie about something like that and plus he would never say anything to make himself sound intentionally weak. So, when she heard that half of her honestly believed Naruto had done something Kiba. The boy was weird and wanted weird things to be done with during sex.

Naruto got up and dusted his Demin jeans pants off. "Last night, like Hinata said I was home with Sasuke. I'll call him so he can verify. Also, yes I did do that to Kiba." He said calmly.

"See!" Kiba said.

Hinata was shocked and gazed at Naruto for answers.

"Why did you do that?" Ino choked out.

Both Kiba and Naruto looked at one another, and Naruto lowered his head.

"Naruto! Seriously?" Sakura said, yanking on the boy's shirt. "What the hell?"

"I… I don't want to talk about it." Naruto muttered.

Sakura stepped back and Naruto ran his fingers through his hair. "Naruto wouldn't do something like that. Kiba you did something to provoke Naruto." Ino said, turning to face Kiba.

"Seriously? He admitted it. You heard it from his own mouth. Naruto tried to strangle me. I told you he's fucking crazy!" Kiba shouted.

"Yeah, I only did it because Hinata called me in tears because you forced a kiss on her." Naruto said, glaring at him. "I didn't tell anyone because I didn't want the world to know what you did that day! Of course, I would be angry. I wasn't thinking clearly and- He stopped talking and looked down.

"H-Hinata is that true?" Ino questioned with a surprised look on her face.

She wanted to forget that memory about Kiba that day. "Yes."

"Kiba?" Sakura raised her eyebrow slightly. "Is this true?"

All eyes were on him now, and some of the students started whispering. Sakura's eyes widened when Kiba mumbled, "Yes."

"So, in other words, you had it coming." Ino scoffed. "And what is everyone looking at!" She shouted at the spectators. "The show is over. Go on!" She said, shooing them away until they disappeared.

Kiba's mind raced with endless thoughts and one of them was questioning his own sanity.

"I can't believe you would think I did something like that?" Naruto said, sounding kind of hurt. 'Do I look like a dumbass?'

"Naruto, let's go." Hinata said, wrapping her arms around Naruto's own and leading him away from the group.

"Kiba, you didn't tell us the entire story." Sakura said, disappointed. So, it was true. Naruto did do it, but Kiba had it coming. As much as she disliked Hinata, she was a firm believer that men shouldn't force themselves on any woman.

"But you guys don't understand!" Kiba said, trying to salvage himself from the scrutiny or embarrassment. "Naruto is crazy. Please, believe me… I he's not the same. He's different or maybe he's always been this way and he was trying to hide it from us," Kiba said, pleading with the group.

"Maybe you should get your feelings for Naruto in order." Sakura said, folding her arms. "Maybe you're doing all of this to stop yourself from having feelings for him."

Kiba's mouth hanged to the floor and Ino was surprised. "Kiba has feelings for Naruto?"

"Yes, and he keeps on denying those feelings. That's probably why he's doing all of this." Sakura replied.

"I-I do not! I like women! I like Hinata! Okay! Not Naruto, but Hinata!" Kiba said, turning red in the face.

"It's always Naruto you're looking at…" Sakura's voice trailed off. "See, I told you that girl was a problem!" She faced Ino and gave her a sour look. "Ever since Hinata came in the picture all of these weird things have been happening, don't you see? I feel like this group is splitting apart because of her. I know you like her Ino and I know you're happy for Naruto, but let's be honest. Hinata is strange. I must admit, Naruto has been acting strange and he barely talks to me anymore! We all used to hang out together. Ride the trains together. Spend the night at each other's house before she came along and ruined it. I know I'm not the only one seeing it, but maybe the crazy one is Hinata." Sakura said, clapping her hands together to get everyone's attention. "This is Naruto's first girlfriend, and everyone is obsessed with how beautiful she is. Maybe she's twisting Naruto's mind and making him do all of these things. I told you on her phone there was a picture of Naruto taking from the school's website as her background picture. That's fucking crazy!"

"Maybe because that's her first boyfriend, Sakura. Hinata is honestly kind, and Naruto hasn't been acting differently. Didn't you barely hang out with us when you first started dating Sasuke? I didn't say anything because Sasuke was your first, and Naruto definitely didn't say anything even though he and Sasuke were best friends way before you two met. I wouldn't be surprised if Naruto had feelings for you that entire time." Sakura was speechless. "He was always there for you, he was your shoulder to cry on and he was always close to you. You kept turning him away every time Sasuke came back into the picture." Ino pointed out. "Sasuke has done some fucked up shit before and nobody called him out for it. Why are you doing it to Hinata? Why are you doing that to Naruto? Calling him crazy because of Hinata is unbelievable. I can't believe Kiba and you right now. Look, I'm going out with Sai tonight. I'll talk to you later," She said, scoffing at the two youngsters.

Once she was gone, Kiba stared at Sakura. "You believe Hinata is crazy, and I believe Naruto is crazy. Maybe… we're both right."

Sakura's arms fell loosely to her side. She refused to believe it, but there was a gut feeling that maybe Kiba was right. "

The two walked in silence until they made their way to the other side of the campus away from ears. "Naruto," Hinata started, "D-did you really do that to Akamaru?"

"I didn't deny it, did I?" Naruto said, tilting his head back.

"But why! Why-

"Because he deserved it," Naruto sighed under his breath as he took a seat on the wooden bench. "I guess he figured it out."

Hinata rubbed her forehead in frustration. "Was it that hamburger meat you told me to cook that day?"

His silence confirmed it and Hinata was dumbfounded. "Naruto, wh-what the hell!"

"I'm sorry, but he shouldn't have done that to you." Naruto frowned as he removed the napkin pieces from his nose.

"But…" Hinata sighed under her breath and took a seat next to him. "I'm not surprised, honestly, but why do you enjoy tormenting and killing animals and humans?"

"It's fun." Naruto said, tilting his head back to stare at the floating clouds.

"But what makes it so fun? I'm just trying to understand you and your thinking."

"There's just something about it that makes me happy. I like to see their face, how happy they look when I'm around them, then," He grinned crazily. "killing them. It feels so good hearing them scream and beg for help. It's so satisfying carving their skin and seeing all that blood drain from them. Call me sick if you want to, but it's such a turn-on."

If anyone were to hear someone they love to say something like that, they would probably lose it, but not Hinata. This wouldn't be his first nor second time, and she hadn't given up on him, but this was something she needed to get used to. Naruto wasn't going to change overnight, tomorrow, or even maybe a year. Who knows if he would ever change? Her head lowered the more she thought about it.

"Naruto, that day in the park was a huge gamble for you, huh? You knew I was there, and you still killed that man. You even called me like there was nothing wrong." She swallowed the lump in her throat. "What if I didn't return your feelings and was afraid of you? What if I was thinking about calling the cops that night?"

Naruto leaned back and smiled. "Ah, I thought about that too! And like I said I'm not afraid to get caught, but if you didn't return my feelings then I would have killed you."

Hinata's world shattered hearing Naruto say that, and she turned her head slowly to face him only to see he was already looking back at her, smiling.

"That's the only logical answer, Hinata. I'm not going to be sentimental or whatever towards the situation, but yeah."

"B-but why?"

"Because that means you weren't the woman for me and you couldn't possibly love someone like me. See, that's where Kurama fucked up when he killed Hana. He didn't give her a chance to prove she could handle it, and he treated her like shit that entire time then killed her. I won't be surprised if he had regrets, but see I gave you a chance and I was right. Therefore, I won't kill you."

Hinata was still dumbfounded at Naruto, and he cocked his head to the side. "B-but you had feelings for me, so wouldn't you want me to be happy?"

"Happy?" Naruto's upper lip twitch. "Why would I want you to be happy if I'm not a part of your life? Hinata, if I can't have you, no one can."

Hinata turned her head and she giggled. That day her father came to visit left some bad thoughts in her mind. It was hard to explain, but she questioned what would happen if Kurenai and Naruto were to go away. That made her afraid just thinking about it because she loved them so much. She already had a hard time with Kurenai seeing Asuma, but ever since she met Naruto it was like a new world had opened up for her. The more they spent time together, the more she fell in love, despite everything he has done… and now she understood that thought she had that day.

"Same for you!" She said, wrapping her arms around his. She puffed out her cheeks. "And it better not be with Sakura. Why did she feel the need to touch your shirt?"

Naruto chuckled nervously. "She's always been touchy."

"Hmph! Do I need to cut off one of your fingers for you to learn?" She said, jokingly.

Naruto also laughed. "No, no. If we're going to be together I need to be a provider, so I can't have any missing body parts."

"Hai, hai. Hopefully, Kiba will apologize to you. Saying you did something to his family's clinic was some serious accusations!"

"I know, but who could blame him? He has been acting strange… always watching me."

Hinata tilted her head to the side. "Oh, Naruto do you have anything in mind you would like for your birthday present?"

He nodded. "Yes, there are a lot of things I want but as long as I have you there, then it doesn't matter."

Hearing him say that, she cuddled her head against his arm and inhaled his scent. "Naruto, I… when you kill somebody how do you go about it?"

"It's hard to explain and it'll be better if I can show you. Maybe you can even help." He chuckled when Hinata stared mortified at him. "It's fun, Hinata! Hmm, okay how about this? You come for the ride and watch. You don't have to do anything."

"Nope," She said, shaking her head. "No more killing."

Naruto groaned loudly and pouted. "Fine but think about it."

"I'm pretty sure that answer is going to be no."

.

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Sasuke's right eye twitched when Naruto intertwined his fingers with his. Everyone in the shop stared at the two and there was a blush on some of their faces. Naruto smiled brightly at Sasuke, while Sasuke stared in disgust.

"Why must you treat me like this, Sasuke-chan?" Naruto said, pretending to sound hurt. It was loud enough for everyone to hear and some started to take pictures of the two. "After everything I've done for you." Big droplets of water gathered in the corner of Naruto's eyes, and the spectators' eyes watered too. "Gomen," He sniffled. "I promise I wouldn't cry, but why? Did I do something wrong?"

Sasuke's face turned grim when he felt some of the customers glaring at him.

"Naruto, I swear to god I'm going to whoop your ass if you don't cut it out!" Sasuke said, freeing his hand from Naruto and punching him on the top of his head.

Naruto held his head and cried. "You're so mean to me."

"If you stop your foolishness then I wouldn't have to do this. Gosh, you're more annoying than Sakura," Sasuke said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"But you love being around me more than her," He said, laying his chest on the table and swinging his legs back and forth. "You love me, don't you? Would you date me if I was a girl?"

"Where do you come up with these weird questions!" Sasuke shouted at him.

Naruto stuck his tongue out and chuckled. "My mind is on overdrive 24/7,"

Just then a waitress came over and placed two sundaes in front of the men. Sasuke felt a cold shiver and he glanced up and noticed the woman was glaring at him angrily. Then he noticed she had given Naruto a cake and patted him on his head.

"It's okay. You don't need a guy like that who isn't going to appreciate the love you have for him. You don't need to change yourself."

Sasuke's lip twitched when he saw Naruto nodding. "Thank you. That really meant a lot to me."

She covered her mouth and ran away in tears. "He's so adorable!"

"I'm definitely kicking-

"Eat!" Naruto said, shoving a piece of the vanilla bean cake into his mouth.

Sasuke chewed reluctantly and sighed under his breath. Vanilla bean cake was his favorite.

"So why did you call me out here, teme?" Naruto questioned.

"I heard what happened to Kiba." Sasuke said, scooping up some of the vanilla ice cream.

"Oh yeah, totally forgot about that. He took me by surprise." Naruto said, crossing his arms. "I can't believe he would think I did something like that."

"Yeah, he's weird. Did he apologize?"

"Nope. It's been three days now and I haven't heard a word from him. I really don't care. He can fuck himself." Naruto frowned.

"You know how hotheaded Kiba can get, but I'm sure he'll be apologizing to you. He's been texting me on and off saying how crazy you are and some shit. Ino told me you strangled him and explained why you did it. He totally had it coming."

"Mhm."

"But I do have some good news. Sakura isn't pregnant. Turns out the test was incorrect."

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that too," He smiled. "Well, that fall was for nothing."

Sasuke chuckled nervously. "Yeah," His eyes lowered.

Naruto placed his elbow on the table and rested the side of his head on the palm of his hand. Unknown to Sasuke, Naruto's right hand was slithering to his. "Between me and you, Sakura doesn't believe it was an accident how she fell that night." Sasuke's head shot up and he stared at Naruto who smiled. "Yeah, she's claiming that she was pushed down the stairs, and she knows who that person is."

"S-she does?" Sasuke cleared his throat. "How can she possibly know? It was dark, and besides, who would want to push Sakura down the stairs?"

Sasuke gazed down at his left hand that was interlocked with Naruto's. "She says Ino did it."

"Ino?"

"Mhm. Says she scratched the person, and a long mark would have been on their hand. Saw it on Ino and will you know the rest." Sasuke looked relieved and nodded. "But we're best friends, right Sasuke-kun?" Naruto said, singing the word kun. "Ne?"

"Yeah, why?"

Naruto smiled childishly, and then he got up and leaned over the table. "So, why aren't you going to tell me you were the one that pushed Sakura down the stairs." He whispered.

Sasuke smiled. "Why would you think that? Clearly, it was Ino since Sakura found proof."

Naruto sat back down, and still wore a smile on his face. "Hai, you're right, but…" He freed his hand from Sasuke and grabbed him by the wrist. "Why do you have a faded mark on your hand and don't give me any bullshit that Karin did this?"

Sasuke pulled his hand back and looked around. "So what? If I did?"

"You could have at least told me, ya know?" Naruto mumbled. "It's not like I was going to tell her."

"I didn't say I did it, but you wouldn't have?" Sasuke questioned, raising his eyebrow.

Naruto took a bite of the sundae and grinned. "Fuck no. Why the hell would I do something like that? After all, I did suggest it."

"You're so fucked up," Sasuke said, shaking his head, but he couldn't help but smile.

"Hey, at least she didn't die," Naruto said, eating another scoop of strawberry ice cream.

"Hmmm, if I had asked you to do it, would you?"

"Sure, why not? It's just a push. Everyone was dramatic that day. It's not like it was some long stairs or anything. I've fallen down the stairs multiple times. Besides, we've done some crazy things before."

"Ah, I wonder about you sometimes. I see why Kiba thinks your fucking crazy. Only a crazy person would say something like that."

"I guess we're all crazy since you listened to me," Naruto shot back.

"I thought Sakura was your friend."

"And I thought she was your first love."

"Touché." Sasuke said, sliding the plate of cake next to him. "Sucks to be Ino, huh?" He grinned before he took a bite of the cake.

"And you're going to be a police officer." Naruto cuffed his cheeks and grinned. "It suits you. Now, how are things with you and Karin?"

"She's taking me out tonight to some fancy restaurant her father owns."

"Hmm, good luck."

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(Past)

Naruto held Tsunade's hand tightly for comfort and she stared down at the young boy. "Are you okay, Naruto?" The young blonde boy stared at the brown door and then glanced up at Tsunade. "If you don't feel comfortable, we can always try again tomorrow? I'm not going to rush you. I know this is a new atmosphere and a new school. Just tell me what you want to do."

The eleven-year-old let go of Tsunade's hand and held the straps of his backpack tightly. "I'm fine, Tsunade-chan." His voice was soft and faint. "You're not going to leave me too, right?"

"No, brat. I'll be here to pick you up as soon as classes are over. I'll be by your side from now on."

That made him smile softly and he nodded. "Okay, I'll see you later," He said, before sliding the door open and entering the class.

The class was packed with children, all sitting down at their table. It was already the first period. Slowly, he looked around and glanced at the teacher. She wore a huge smile on her face. "Class, I want you to meet a new classmate of ours. He came all the way from Suna. Come on. Come introduce yourself."

He slowly made his way in front of the class, and he stared at them with confidence. "My name is Naruto. Please take care of me!" He bowed.

And they did just that.

The class was fond of the new student and he had many friends by his side. He was shorter than the rest and that made the girl adore him. Sometimes they would take him to sit with them just so they can do his hair, and other times the guys would steal him away because he was good at playing kickball.

Tsunade was proud to hear how fast Naruto adjusted to everyone and she was glad to know the therapy sessions were paying off. Soon, Naruto would be normal.

One day, there was a new seating arrangement, and that's how Naruto became best friends with Sasuke Uchiha. The raven hair boy was quiet, obedient, and quite smart… extremely smart. His grades were always 100, and Naruto would be embarrassed when his testing scores came. Tsunade was already giving him hell about it, but he wasn't academically smart.

Naruto spent two weeks next to Sasuke, and the boy never spoke to him. They had mutual friends, but he spent most of his time alone or reading. So, Naruto started following him during lunchtime and he discovered that Sasuke was quite the player. He got girls to make him certain cookies and even buy him rice balls.

That reminded him of Kurama.

While they were in class one day, Sasuke spoke to him for the first time.

"Your numbers are incorrect, baka." There was a smug look on his face and Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Who are you calling baka, teme." Naruto whispered to him.

They dared not speak loudly in their sensei's class.

Sasuke's face turned red. "Dobe."

"Teme."

"Dobe."

The two stared at one another intensely and there was a zap of electricity between the two. From there, their rivalry started and they competed against one another. There was an improvement in Naruto's grade, but it was still no match for Sasuke's.

"Just face it, Naru-chan. Sasuke is too smart. You're never going to beat the top one," Ryu, a student and friend of Naruto said. "I stopped trying two years ago."

"But I can beat him! It's just studying is so hard!" Naruto groaned loudly. "I hate it so much and it's so hard to focus."

"I get like that too. That's why I said it's no point!" He said.

As they were about to walk through the school gates, Naruto stopped.

"What's the matter?" Ryu asked.

"I forgot my textbook in class! I'll talk to you later!" He shouted while running towards the entrance of the school.

The sun was setting, and Naruto held the textbook close to his chest. Tsunade would have another fit if he had forgotten his homework again. While walking down the steps, Naruto missed a step, and he went tumbling down.

"Fuck, again." He mumbled as he rubbed the middle of his forehead. His little hand felt gooey and, sticky and he pulled it back. His heart skipped a beat and his hand trembled as he saw the red substances. Ah, he almost forgot how it felt. There was so much…

"Are you okay?"

Naruto felt his stomach turn into knots and he recalled how Tsunade acted that day when he bled without so much as crying. The look she gave him made him feel dirty and then he realized why. Kids cried over these kinds of things.

He turned his head slowly, and Sasuke was shocked when he saw the blood ran down the blonde's forehead and dropped to the floor. Naruto's chest went up and down, and he sniffled before the tears poured like a river.

Oh gosh, he could kill himself right now. The fact that it had to be Sasuke out of all people was embarrassing.

"Oi, oi!" Sasuke said, jumping from the steps and landing in front of the boy. "Did you trip down the stairs, baka! Let's get you to the nurse's room." He said, grabbing Naruto by his arm and pulling him down the stairs, carefully.

The nurse's office was empty, and Sasuke was digging through the cupboard. "It isn't that bad. Stop crying."

Naruto rolled his eyes, and then yelped when Sasuke shouted, "Hey! Stop being dramatic! Gosh, you had me worried. If it doesn't hurt then say so, baka!"

He was surprised to see a different reaction from Sasuke. "If nii-chan saw you, then he would laugh. Men don't cry." Sasuke said, grabbing a damp towel and a bandage big enough to cover the mark on Naruto's forehead.

Naruto's blue eyes watched Sasuke's face as he stood in front of him and cleaned his wound. "But Tsunade-chan is going to be worried."

"If it doesn't hurt then there's no need to cry," Sasuke said, smacking the bandage on Naruto's forehead.

"Ow!" Naruto said, glaring at Sasuke through one eye.

"Baka!" Sasuke said.

Call it cliché, but that moment formed their entire friendship, and they became inseparable. This was a good balance for Naruto, and it even helped him to have "a normal childhood", but that feeling was still there waiting to be released.

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The trees rustled outside, and Hinata tapped the pen against the table as she thought about Naruto. Lately, she had been thinking about Naruto's offer. Would it be okay if he did it once in front of her? She sighed loudly and shook her head. That was a ridiculous idea, but she wouldn't deny it and say she wasn't thinking about it.

Maybe it would give her some clue as to why Naruto was like this or help him, but yet again… that was a human whose life would be cut short just for some experiment. She almost laughed to herself when Kiba and Sakura came to mind. Naruto joked about killing Sakura before, but she wondered if he would actually do it.

Without thinking, she asked, "Naruto, would you kill Sakura if I asked you to?"

"Fuck yeah, let's do it now!" He said, sitting upon the bed.

Hinata blushed by his choice of words and she threw a balled paper at his head. What was she expecting anyway?

"Hmm, what about Kiba?"

"Double homicide, let's go!" Naruto said, eagerly.

Hinata's shoulders trembled, noticeably, by Naruto's enthusiasm about her question and she turned around swiftly to glare at him. "You're supposed to say no!"

Naruto crossed his legs and scratched his cheek. "Yeah, I know… you're right. No, Hinata! I won't do such a thing to my friends." He crossed his arms and stuck his nose in the air. "No matter how bad I want to and even though you don't like Sakura."

"I feel like you're mocking me." Hinata mumbled.

"Why do you ask?" He inquired, rocking back and forth.

"I was just thinking about what you said a few days ago."

"Oh!" He exclaimed, jumping off the bed and running towards Hinata. "So, is that a yes? You've been thinking."

Hinata could have sworn she saw a tail wag back and forth from behind Naruto, and she pinched his nose. "I was thinking, and the answer is still going to be no!"

"Why would you get me so excited?" Naruto said, pouting. "I almost got turned on."

A slight blush made its way to Hinata's face and she turned away from him. They've been dating for a while now and they still didn't… She gulped. Do that yet. She took a quick glimpse at Naruto who was digging through his closet and her tongue felt heavy.

His black t-shirt raised slightly, exposing his sun-kissed skin and when he turned around, she almost fainted when he smiled innocently at her.

"Are you okay, Hinata?"

"I-I'm fine,"

"It's been such a long time since we've been on a date. Can I take you out tomorrow? There's this place where you can eat chocolate and paint. I think you'll love it."

"That sounds nice." Hinata said in awe. "I've never done anything like that before."

"Same here. Tsunade mentioned it one day, so I checked it out. It starts at seven."

Hinata couldn't help but smile. "You're so kind to me, Naruto."

"You mean a lot to me, so why wouldn't I be kind?" He chuckled. "You're so adorable." He suddenly looked out the room when he heard a knock on his door.

"Visitors at ten?" Hinata questioned.

"It's probably Sasuke. I'll be back." Naruto said, leaving the room.

Hinata heard the front door opened and then closed. Naruto soon returned with a somewhat large box.

"A package?" She asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah, it was there." He said, placing it on the study desk. "I wonder what's inside."

"Who is it from?"

Naruto shrugged. "It didn't have a label or tag."

Hinata eyed the box suspiciously. Naruto grabbed a scissor from the table and glided it through the tape. Opening it, they both looked down and saw it was a birthday cake.

"It's not your birthday yet," Hinata mumbled when Naruto pulled it from the box and set it on the table.

"It isn't." Naruto said. He pulled the container and saw the writing:

Happy Birthday, Narutomaki.

Hinata giggled when she saw the name and she clasped her hand together by the cute nickname. "That's so cute, Nar- She glanced at Naruto who looked shocked and she grew worried at how silent the boy had become. "Naruto," She said, nudging him. "A-Are you okay?"

Snapping out of it, he nodded his head and smiled at Hinata. "Um, yeah I'm okay. I was just surprised is all."

For some reason, Hinata felt he was lying. "Naruto, who is this cake by?

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