Part 4: The Forest
They were darting through trees, dodging branches and leaves for what seemed like hours. They stopped briefly eat and plan out where they would set up camp for the evening and settled on a part of the forest near the border of the Leaf Village. Most of their journey was silent as it was evident that Hinata was still processing the events that just unfurled with her father. While this proved difficult for the overly-chatty Naruto, he respected her need to gather herself and focus on the mission and chose not to provoke any emotionally-charged conversations unnecessarily. As the sun was inches above the horizon, Naruto and Hinata stopped running and prepared to set up camp.
"Granny Tsunadae gave us one of those tree-top tents right?" Naruto asked .
"Y-Yes… here!"
Hinata handed him what looked like a large, dark green tarp with ties on each corner.
"Perfect!"
Naruto gazed upward at the trees around him and selected one that looked taller and sturdier than all the rest to ensure they had the best chances of remaining hidden while they slept. He activated his shadow clone jutsu and made quick work of adhering the corners of the tarp across the branches of the tree until it was taught and secure.
He let out a heavy sigh and his clones vanished.
"All done!"
He gave Hinata a thumbs up and motioned for her to join him up in the tree. She smiled and climbed the base of the tree by channeling her chakra into the base of her feet. She began ruffling through her bag and pulling out various items.
"I-I think Tsunade only provided us with one blanket…"
She said with a furrowed brow and a slight blush.
"That's okay. The Nine-tails keeps me pretty warm so I don't need one!"
He gave her a small smile as he began pulling out a few snacks. He handed her a small cake from his bag while he munched on a bag of barbecue chips.
"Thank you" She said sweetly as she took a bite.
The sound of birds and rustling leaves created a calming and peaceful atmosphere.
"I never realized how beautiful it was out here by the border…" Naruto said as he gazed out into the sunset.
Hinata gazed with him and nodded in agreement.
He chuckled. "It's kind of a shame we only get to see it for one night."
"I-I"m sure the Land of Rice Patties is nice too." Hinata squeaked.
"Nah… it's nothing special. I've been there a few times on missions… probably why Grandma Tsunade was so picky about changing our appearances. It's hard to believe there's even enough people living there to attract something like a major drug operation…"
His train of thought drifted off with the sun.
It was now dark and the temperature was starting to drop. Hinata was curled up in the blanket and laying down on one end of the tent, her eyelids heavy with sleep.
"Guess we should get some sleep so we can get an early start tomorrow, huh?"
He laid down beside her, leaving a wide enough space between them, so as not to make her uncomfortable, and stretched his arms out under his head.
"Goodnight Hinata."
"Goodnight… Naruto".
Naruto was quick to enter a state of sound sleep. Hinata was kept awake by the constant thoughts of Neji and her father. She tried to keep the tears at bay, but couldn't help but let out a few gentle sobs. She could hear the sound of Naruto's breath on the other side of the tent, it was slow and steady and managed to calm her down. She could feel his body roll towards her and with it, the momentum carried his arm up and around her torso. She blushed and let out a small shriek. He was still fast asleep but Hinata could make out what sounded like a few muffled words.
'He's.. sleep talking?' She leaned in and listened closer.
"… please… don't… cry…" He mumbled, his grip on her torso tightened.
A red hot blush burned her cheeks where the tears had just finished drying and Hinata melted into his hold. He was right… his body was extremely warm, despite the exposure to the midnight air. Within moments, Hinata drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, Hinata stirred and as she opened her eyes she noticed that Naruto was already awake and packing up various items around the tent— including the food wrappers to avoid leaving a trail behind them.
"Morning!" He called over to her, noticing that her eyes were now open.
"Good morning, Naruto." She said, blushing slightly at the thought of him holding her in his sleep last night.
"Want some breakfast?"
Naruto handed her another cake-like pastry and Hinata graciously accepted.
"Once you're done eating we can pack up and get going. It should take us around 5 hours to get to the border of the Land of Rice Patties…"
He was unfolding a map to show her.
"Right about here, I think we should switch to ground travel, since we don't want to give away the fact that we're Shinobi"
"Right."
Hinata nodded, swallowing a bite of her cake.
He folded the map back up and put it in his bag. Once Hinata finished eating, she helped Naruto untie the tent and folded it neatly back up in her bag. As they set out, the mood was lighter and the two Shinobi engaged in more casual conversation on their journey. Naruto asked more questions about Hinata's byakugan and her other various ninjutsu. He asked about what it was like to train with Shino and Kiba all the time and if Kurenai sensei made them practice ridiculous tasks like Kakashi's bell training exercise. Hinata happily answered Naruto's questions and enjoyed the opportunity for the two of them to get to know each other. Perhaps it was their newly altered appearances, or the events of the last few days, but Hinata could feel herself slowly becoming more comfortable around Naruto, something she never thought possible.
