Here's the next chapter you guys. Sorry it took so long to get out… o.o;; WARNING!!! MAAAAJOR FLUFF ALERT!!! This chapter is dedicated to all you who told me to get moving with the pairings!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto, it belongs to Kishimoto-sensei. I'd be filthy rich and out of school if I did…
"blah" Human speech
blah Human thought'talking to demon
"blah" Demon speech
blah Demon thought
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"AAAAAAAAAUUGH!!!" Naruto yelled as he slid down the tree again, adding another bump to his already impressive collection on his head. "Aw, man… DAMMIT!!!" he shouted as he threw the kunai into the tree. It can't be this hard… I'm just climbing a tree!!!
"Hey kit, why don't you stop whining and ask Same's carrier for some advice. She seems to have the right idea. I don't want you getting any more addled than you already are." The fox laughed at his own joke.
You have no room to talk, you stupid fox!! NOBODY ASKED YOU FOR YOUR OPINION!!! Naruto sat up. Hinata walked over to her crush.
"A-A-Are you alright, N-N-Naruto-k-kun?" She kneeled by him and helped him sit up.
"Yeah! It'll take more than a little fall to hurt Uzumaki Naruto!!" he proclaimed as he thrust a hand into the air. Hinata squeaked and fell on her rear, startled by his outburst. "AH! Are you okay Hinata-chan!?" She flushed bright red and nodded. Her eyes traveled to the ground, and Naruto noticed a silvery substance in them. "Hinata-chan, are you… crying?" The girl's shoulders shook as she held in her sobs.
"G-G-Gomen ne, Naruto-k-k-un…" she sniffed and wiped her eyes.
"Hinata-chan, why are you crying!? All you did was fall over!" She drew her knees up to her chest. N-Now he p-p-p-probably thinks I-I-I'm w-worthless…
"Girl, you really need to gain some confidence… Where'd that outburst go!?" Same berated her from inside her cell in Hinata's mind.
"I-I-I'm s-sorry I'm so w-w-worthless, N-Naruto-kun…" She sniffed again, and tried to hide her face. "I-I'm sure y-y-you'd do b-better with Sasuke-k-san or S-S-Sakura-san as your t-t-training partner… I'm just h-h-holding you b-b-back-" She couldn't talk anymore because of the sobs that racked her body. Naruto was stunned.
Why is she so down on herself!? Kyuubi snorted.
"Same probably isn't helping her in that regard. That demon has one of the sharpest mouths I've seen yet." Naruto didn't know why, but seeing Hinata cry like this… made his chest hurt.
She's… like me. Naruto realized. She just wants someone to acknowledge her… Hasn't her dad done it!?
"You heard him yourself kit. He told her she was… precious… to him, but based on this, she didn't believe him." Naruto did what he would have wanted someone to do to him if he was the one crying… He knelt beside her and hugged her from behind.
"Don't cry, Hinata-chan… You're not worthless." She tensed at the contact,, but soon spun around in his arms and sobbed into his shoulder. Naruto was most definitely feeling awkward now. He had no idea what to do with a girl sobbing in his arms, but he remembered what his father had done when he had cried in his lap. He rubbed her back with his hand in a circular motion, and whispered soothing words into her ear. Soon, her shaking slowed, and then stopped. Her sobbing had subsided into sniffing, and as she pulled back, she realized just whose arms she was in. She squeaked audibly and turned a deep, rich red that made one wonder if there was any blood left in the rest of her body. Naruto noticed her blush.
She's always doing that around me. I wonder why? I mean, Sakura-chan blushes around Sasuke, but she- Realization hit him like a shovel between the eyes. Kyuubi groaned.
"NOW he gets it…" Naruto looked down at the crimson faced girl.
"Hi… Hinata-chan?" Hinata made an eep sound and stopped daydreaming.
If I'm dreaming, please don't wake me up…
"What is it, Naruto-kun?"
"Do you like me?" Hinata nearly passed out on the spot. She'd been found out. He knew. Oh lord, he knew. She blushed more, if possible, and slowly nodded.
"Y-Yes…" Naruto's eyes shot open at her quiet answer. "I-I-I have always a-admired you, N-N-Naruto-k-kun. B-Back in the academy, y-y-y-you were always s-so f-full of life and energy. Y-You never gave up. But…" She forced herself to look into his cerulean eyes. Oh, I could get lost in those if I'm not careful… "Y-Your smile… i-i-it was empty… th-there was no ha-ha-happiness behind it. Y-You just smiled to cover up the pain… y-y-you were like m-me… and… I-I-I…" She took a deep breath. "I-I think I l-l-love you, Naruto-k-kun."
"Hinata-chan…" He was shocked. He thought his smile would fool everyone… but she saw right through him. "You… love me…?" Naruto's voice broke at the end of the question. Hinata nodded nervously, and he swept her up in a crushing hug. Hinata was so close to fainting that her vision blacked out for a second or two.
PLEASE don't let this be a dream!! PLEASE!! She begged her mind. Same snickered.
"It's not a dream, girl. Your Naruto-kun is hugging you." Hinata started doing cartwheels inside her mind. Soon, Kyuubi-kun… Soon I can be with you again… Same thought wistfully. The demoness sighed, remembering how long it had been since her love had held her… She had been ecstatic to find Kyuubi's container in the same class as hers at the academy, and much to her delight, the girl fell in love with him instantly. Not a crush, but staggering, deep, endless love.
Kyuubi was having a similar train of thought. Soon, Same-chan. I can't wait to hold you in my arms again… How he missed the feeling of holding her in his arms… He'd almost done back flips he was so happy when he noticed Same's vessel in his own vessel's class. But, much to his chagrin, the boy was blissfully ignorant, and was smitten with Hane's vessel. Ew… Now, however, it looked like things were improving. If the tears of joy the kit were crying right now were any indication, then he'd be back with his love soon.
"I love you too, Hinata-chan." Naruto managed to choke out. "God, I've been so blind, so obsessed with Sakura… I didn't notice you." He looked down at the girl in her arms, and found her too shocked to blush. Her eyes were wide open, staring up at him in wonder. He slowly let her go, but kept one arm around her. He leaned back against the tree, and Hinata put her head on his shoulder. Both of them were blissfully happy. Hinata looked up at her crush, no her love, and noticed that he was asleep.
He trained himself into the ground…
"Just like Kyuubi-kun used to do." Same chuckled. Hinata sighed contentedly and snuggled closer. As she drifted into sleep, she thought she heard someone laughing.
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Sasuke ran at the tree again. He had tried before, but he still wasn't as high as Sakura was.
Her Chakra control is annoyingly perfect…Sasuke muttered at his demon. Kageryu snorted.
"What did you expect? Hane's not a slouch when it comes to that. Looks like she's picked that trait up too…" Kageryu's mind drifted again as he thought of the hawk demoness.
Hey dragon…"What do you want now, hatchling?"
How… How do you… Sasuke took a deep breath, fighting down the blush that was fighting its way onto his cheeks. How do you tell a girl you love her? The dragon laughed out loud inside his cell.
"I assume you mean Sakura, right?" The increase in the boy's blush spoke for him. "I think that's a 'Yes.' Look brat, just tell her how you feel. Believe it or not, I have been in this situation before. Just tell her. The longer you keep it inside, the harder it will be to tell her." Sasuke took a breath to calm his nerves, and walked over to her tree.
"Sakura." The dragon winced.
"Look kid, you love her don't you!? Then call her Sakura-chan for God's sake!!" Sasuke shook his head doubtfully. It looked like she hadn't heard him.
"Sakura…chan." He called her louder this time. Sakura's ears perked up.
Am I hearing things!? I thought I heard Sasuke-kun call me Sakura-CHAN!! Hane's breath caught in her throat.
Kageryu-kun must have talked to him!! She was elated and practically danced inside her cell. "No, I heard it too. He really DID call you Sakura-chan." Sakura slid down the tree, willing her blush to lessen, if not vanish. She landed, and turned to Sasuke.
"What is it, Sasuke-kun?" Is that a… SASUKE-KUN'S BLUSHING!!!! Sakura screamed inside her mind. Hane winced because of the sheer volume.
"I… There's something… I need to tell you, Sakura-chan…" Sasuke forced himself to say the words, but he couldn't make himself look into her eyes. "I think…" He swallowed nervously. Dammit, why am I so nervous!? He took a deep breath and continued. "I think… that… What I mean to say is…" He clenched his fist until he drew blood. The pain helped him focus, it drew his attention to it so he could say what he wanted. "You are… a precious person to me… And… I want to be closer to you… I'm sorry that I push you away… but I wanted to protect you…"
"I love you too, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura blurted. Sasuke's eyes widened and he blushed. "I mean, I'm not just some obsessed fangirl…I really do love you… ever since I saw you…" Sasuke drew in a breath and stepped closer to her. Hesitantly, he put an arm around her shoulders. Sakura shot all the way up to cloud nine. SASUKE-KUN IS HUGGING ME!!! HE'S GOT HIS ARM AROUND ME!!! Hane laughed.
"Hey. Look at that." Sasuke pointed with his free hand across the clearing. Sakura looked over in that direction, and squealed.
"AWWW!!! They're so kawaii like that!!" Hinata and Naruto were asleep, and Naruto had an arm around Hinata while she had nuzzled her head in the crook of his neck. Yume walked over to them.
"You kids done?" At their nods, he looked at the trees and whistled. "You made it to the top, Sakura-chan!?"
"Yeah." Sakura said nervously.
"Phenomenal! That's great! I've never seen someone make it to the top on the first day! You're getting the hang of it too, Sasuke-kun. That's pretty high up there!"
"Ano, Yume-san? How high could you get?" Yume laughed.
"I wound up just like Naruto." Sakura sweatdropped and Sasuke smirked.
"Your son is in quite the comfy position." Yume looked over.
"Ah, kid works fast!" He looked at the other Genins out of the corner of his eyes. "Kinda like someone else, ne?" Both of them blushed a furious crimson. Yume walked over to his son, and the others followed. Hinata stirred. "Hinata-chan, sorry to wake you, but you and prince charming need to get up." Hinata's eyes flew open, and saw where she was. Her face matched Sakura's dress in color, and she let out a loud eep noise again. Naruto stirred.
"… Comfy…" was all he said. At this Hinata blushed even more and squealed.
"N-Naruto-kun!!" Naruto's eyes finally opened.
"Hm? Oh, heya Hinata-chan. Sleep well?" He heard a snickering noise. "Something you wanna share, tousan?" Yume shook his head.
"Nah. But, it's getting late, and all you kids need to go home. We'll meet back here tomorrow morning, say around eight?" Hiashi stood.
"Let's go home, Hime-chan." Hinata nodded, and stood.
"Matte, Hinata-chan!" Naruto stood and pecked her on the cheek. Hinata properly flushed and started stammering. Hiashi laughed softly, and gently pulled his stunned daughter behind him.
"Will you walk me home, Sasuke-kun?"
"Aa." Sakura grabbed onto Sasuke's arm, and they walked out of the clearing.
"Ne, Tousan? Where's your house?" Naruto asked him and he helped Haku stand. Yume laughed.
"Naruto, we've been on my property for a long time now. This is one of my training fields on the edge of my property."
"NANI!?!" Yume motioned for the boys to follow him. After about three minutes of walking, they came upon a huge mansion. "SUGEEE!!! THIS IS YOUR HOUSE!?!" Naruto cried.
"Yeah, it is." His eyes narrowed. Someone's been taking care of it… the lawn's freshly cut, and there's no dust on the windows… He walked up to the door, and the boys numbly followed, still shocked at the house. Yume threw the door open, and there was a figure standing there. She gasped, and dropped the tray she was holding.
"Yume-kun… Is that you…?" she asked. Naruto's spine shivered. The woman's voice was almost musical. It made him want to go and sit in that person's lap, tell her all of his troubles. Yume's shoulders went rigid, and his eyes almost bulged out of his head.
"No… it can't be… Natsumi-chan!?"
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HA!! I bet you weren't counting on that one, were you!?
sephynarutocloud – Um, thanks…
Night-Owl123 – Many thanks!
Metanaito-chan – Too true, too true…
Kirin Kage the Shadow Girl – Yeah, I knew that would get some laughs.
Riyo Shiban – It was waaaay OOC, but who cares?
Rednal 29-sama – Yeah, I tried to make that realistic. There's Kakashi for you… Hey, it was my first one! So sue me
Dragon Man 180 – People really like Hinata like that!! I wonder why…? I think I may make her keep some of her more violent side… She's just too darn quiet in the anime/manga!!
rogue solus – I'm trying, I'm trying…
element4life – Thank you kindly
GreatMarta – I got sick of people potraying Hiashi as an insensitive, uncaring jerkwad. And Kazara Yume is MY name for the fourth, there is no official one yet.
nonengel – Thank you for your support!
Gopu-san – Domo arigato!
Skuld's Sentaro – lol Thanks!
The Shinobi – That was a compliment, right? Just kidding. Thanks!
nightmares of death – Many thanks!
X-Mirai-X – I never thought of doing that… (starts plotting) You people really like Hinata being loud, don't you!?
Magicians of the Yami – No, I'm not giving up on this story. Thank you very much for your support!
So, here's the deal. Everyone told me/asked me to keep Hinata more outspoken and violent. This will be an official vote. You people tell me what you want: Hinata like she should be (quiet, shy), or reversed like in Chapter 10. Let me know, and I shall grant the majority's request!
