One Day, I Might Tell You

…

"So," Naruto's mind lagged for a moment as Neji stared at him from the other side of his desk with his palms tightly clamped in a fist. His body was leaning assertively, obviously craving justification for the chaos that had just happened in the town which, in his own words, was escalated by an impulsive, immature, and untrained trouble maker. Yet, when blue eyes just continued to blink back in bewilderment, Neji clenched his jaw and slammed his fist down with a great thud finally causing Naruto to pop out of his bubble.

"So what?! Aren't you going to do something about this!"

Naruto sighed disappointingly. His creative plan to bring the pair together had obviously gone wrong - very wrong. He wondered how best to word the question he had on his lips without making things worse. "You're mad at Tenten because she…saved you?" A sharp thud sounded once more. 'Guess that was not the best way to say it.'

"Didn't you hear anything I just told you? She carelessly put herself and the rest of us in danger. How are we meant to know what else she's capable of?"

"But she said that she made her shot, right?" A strong Tch interjected the room.

"You're missing the point. Whether she made her shot or not, we don't know her. She's meant to be on light duties and yet she disobeyed direct orders without giving it a second thought. Think about it. For all we know she could be part of The Famous 10 and that entire display was just for show to win our trust."

Another sigh escaped as Naruto pushed his fingers deeply into his hair. His brain felt like it was itching. Neji had a fair point. She was a complete stranger, and she did go against orders. The Famous 10 accusation also aligned. They knew of at least one female member and from the vague details that they knew of, she matched the height as well as the fierce temperament. But, there was one thing that didn't add up.

"If she was a member of The Famous 10, why didn't she take advantage of what happened in town and why would she injure her comrade?"

Neji's lips thinned as he pursed them together. Naruto took the chance and leaned in, hoping to match the intensity of Neji's aura with his own. "The way I see it, Neji, right now it's your word against hers. Until she's had her say in what happened, how could I make any decision?"

Sunset glows streamed in through the window of the Sheriff's office, highlighting the hostile glare that Neji's lavender eyes shot back. "Besides," Neji's brow quipped as he watched sombre eyes soften back to Naruto's usual lively gaze. "What would you have done in that situation? Do nothing?"

Neji went to retort but his thoughts got caught in his throat. He tried again to no avail. Sensing the battle won, the blonde gracefully took his victory in stride as he stood and rounded the desk towards the door. "She might have just saved your life. Seems like you're even now." As Naruto opened the door, inviting the end to the conversation, he made sure to look Neji square in the eye before he cautioned his deputy. "But that's up to you, isn't it?"

…

Nobody would have known the tension that lingered within the infamous golden Sheriff's mind thanks to his prior conversation. He had that character that tended to shove negativity deep down for them to bubble up only in solitude. It was a talent he both cherished in the heat of the moment but loathed in the dead of night.

What Neji had described had troubled things. She was his responsibility and anything she did would reflect directly on him. If she posed any threat to the people of his town, it would be his conscience on the line and his soul damned.

He paused to eye the pub he knew that his night was far from over. Glazed blue eyes fell to a lone pot of flowers and without thinking he plucked a single red carnation that had begun to droop. It would simply have to do. He took a breath, crafted a beaming smile, and walked round the back of the pub to complete the first half of his mission.

…

The blaze of the setting sun seemed to flip a switch in the minds of the townsfolk as regulars began to scurry to the pub to quench their thirst after a long day's work. It marked the beginning of the rush that Hinata knew to expect like clockwork, and busy hands had no time to rest as she worked to get the last of the glasses clean. She was completely in her element and Naruto knew better than to disturb her - not that he really wanted to anyway.

He watched in silence by the backdoor he had entered minutes ago as he waited for any opportunity to approach. The silhouette worked gracefully as she practised the rhythm of her trade like she had been born to do it. It may have been one of the first times he had really seen her by herself without another to disturb her, and he was absolutely captivated by how even in a mundane situation she was so fascinatingly breathtaking. Not just focused on her appearance however as he thought about how she had welcomed him, as well as any who entered the ale house, without question with an open heart and mind…but he felt as though he barely knew her. He craved to know more of who she was behind her work - but even then his heart seemed set.

Without warning, his unassuming target turned suddenly to reach for a cloth to dry her hands, lavender clashed with blue and Hinata nearly jumped out of her skin. She squeaked in surprise and immediately flushed red as a mix of excitement, surprise, and embarrassment. She was too busy in her own head that she didn't notice his own cheeks flash a bright red, or the flower that he held carefully in his hand.

"S…Sorry! I didn't mean to startle you! I guess I shouldn't have come in through the back, right…?"

"No, that's alright! I just…How long have you been there?"

"Only a couple of seconds." He hoped his white lie was passable. Afterall, how was he meant to explain that he had been watching her for a good count longer than a few seconds? "I just came to…well…listen, Hinata. I wanted to..." As the silence devoured the room, confusion overtook embarrassment as she finally met his gaze and willed him to continue. Under her stare, it was his turn to look away. "I mean, that flower from this morning. It wasn't nothing. It was for you."

Hinata's already stunned eyes somehow widened further. She felt like a deer in headlights - both at the suddenness of the encounter as well as not quite knowing how to process what he was telling her. With the quiet slowly becoming awkward with each passing second, Naruto continued. "I wanted to say thank you, Hinata. You took on a wounded stranger and let her into your own home without even thinking about it. I don't know many people who would do that. I think everyone appreciates you. So, I wanted to do something to show you that…we all admire you." As the last of his words trailed off, he mentally slapped himself for backing out at the most crucial part. Nevertheless, what he said was ultimately true. As hands subtly trembled, he hoped that his feelings would translate.

Her heart dropped. She valued the unexpected expression of gratitude, especially from him, but all the while she couldn't help but sink under the disappointment it wasn't something more. His gesture wasn't solely from his heart, but from the entire town as a token of her hospitality. Given she appreciated a flower much more than a drunken slur of thanks as her customers left to sleep away the alcohol yet she felt gutted all the same.

"Oh…" She caught the sound of her cheerless voice and looked away to clear her throat. "T-Thank you, Naruto. That's very kind." Her words trailed off. Willing to say a whole lot more but her heart had simply closed off as she struggled to find the words to compromise the situation. Instead, she fell silent and rubbed her already dry hands awkwardly on the tea towel.

Naruto stood perplexed, watching as she fell disconnected from the situation in a way that alluded to her uncomfortableness. Could it possibly be that she had misheard him? Perhaps she was even annoyed that he had disturbed her during work hours. Though his mind raced with excuses, there was only one that spoke truth to him - she was rejecting him. Always so mild mannered and soft spoken, it wouldn't be a surprise that she would be the same when turning down a man.

Believing his ill fate, Naruto placed the flower down on the nearest counter as his hand gingerly pressed on the doorknob of the backdoor. "You're busy. I'll see you out there." And with that he threw himself back out into the dark alleyway, pressing his hat into his golden locks to mask any sadness to potential passersby. All he wanted in the world was to escape and make sense of what had happened, but there was one last loose tie that had to be fixed before he could let his demons take over that night. Sucking in a breath, he slipped on a friendly smile before breaking out into the street and into the true entrance of the pub.

…

Left alone once more, Hinata let the heartache take over for just a moment, the noise of the bar drowning out the slow sob that escaped deep in her chest. She felt so foolish for letting her mind escape reality and for her heart to grow so attached. Feeling helpless to her own selfish craving, her palms lifted to catch the tears that flowed, and for a moment more she let herself just emote.

After a few seconds passed she came back up for air, collecting herself in a split second, and wiped away her eyes once more. 'I will not cry again tonight'. Spying the solitary flower he had left in his wake, she turned to leave the kitchen and put on a show for her loyal customers.

…

Tenten was not the least bit surprised when her newly appointed boss showed up at her door that night with a heavy smile and tired eyes. She had been waiting and wondering what her fate would be after she had fled the scene that afternoon - silently wishing she had turned back to see the look on Neji's face as she did. In her defence, if she hadn't left at that moment, she couldn't promise that the pretty face of the deputy would have been intact.

What did surprise her however was how even after she had given her side of the story, Naruto had sat with absolutely no reaction on his face - leaving it up to her wild imagination to fill in the blanks. After what seemed like an eternity, he let his folded arms go and his palms cupped his knees as he leant in closer. "So, you can shoot?"

After her surprise at his question passed she nodded, wondering where this was going.

"May I see your gun?" His palm extended in the space between them as Tenten met him in the middle and handed over her most prized possession. She watched him peer over it, no words, no sounds, just a careful eye and a nod of approval.

He acknowledged the fine craftsmanship that had gone into her gun. The usual brown grip was replaced with a magnificent polished silver and handcrafted engravings of wild foliage growing up towards the trigger. "Impressive." He remarked, spotting one last noteworthy detail before he handed it back - the initials N.U. Not sensing his gaze linger over the initials, she played with the gun in her hands as she awaited her judgement.

"I'm still not going to arrest you, and you're still on my service." She snapped a curious look at him, provoking him to finally break his character. Great pearly white teeth shone back. "Not expecting that answer, I take it?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"You weren't completely out of line, but," he emphasised the last word as he pointed a daring finger in her direction. "You aren't to be shooting anything else, or anyone else, until you've proven to me and Neji that you can shoot - and shoot well." Tenten nodded. Feeling like a cat with nine lives but by now she probably only had one left to spare.

"I do have one question." She started. Naruto nodded in approval. "Who was that guy anyway?"

"I'll tell you once you've passed the test. If you're as good a shooter as you claimed to be, then that should be easy."

…

Though they were set to meet at the crack of dawn before the passover between the nightshift and the dayshift staff, Tenten couldn't pass at the opportunity to visit her trusted companion. As she headed to the stables she took in how chilling and calming the dead of night seemed to her. It was as though she had been swallowed up into a blackhole with absolutely nothing surrounding her, yet at the same time she felt the vast space growing into unfathomable depths of the universe. It was both sickening and mesmerising to experience.

The stables lights cleared her path back to existence. Thinking how odd that was, she wondered if Sai boarded here also and was tending to the horses one last time before he too tucked himself in for the night. Regardless, she headed inside without much second thought.

It seemed like no'one was inside when she entered, and she excitedly hurried over to Thunder who arose from a seated position as soon as he saw her. She let herself inside and gave him several minutes of hushed attention, hoping to not rile up his housemates more than she already had. They played for a couple more minutes before she cooed him back down into a settle and began to brush his untidy mane as she always did.

Just as she was starting to forget the craziness these 24 hours, she met with the very person who started it all. "I'm not following you." She spoke in defence as she eyed him over the stable door. He swung it open more, not inviting himself into the space but also invading her just the same.

"I didn't come over here to start anything." He spoke in hushed but harsh tones. She wanted nothing more than to vex him and get a taste of the expression she had missed when she left abruptly that afternoon. Somehow she found some good sense not to. "I came here to…" His hesitation brought novelty to the situation. Was he trying to apologise? For the first time since they had met, the bricks of his tall walls seemed to be coming down bit by bit.

Sighing, he started again. "I came here to say that whilst I still think your actions were idiotic,"

"Wow." He ignored her input.

"Immature."

"Ok now-"

"And poorly executed."

"Excuse me-"

"I think I would have done the same." She caught her tongue before she said something to ruin the moment, relishing in what was probably the closest she was going to get an apology from him. She returned to brushing her horses mane as he continued to rest in her lap. "You really meant to shoot him in the ear?"

She chuckled lightly at his disbelief in her abilities. How she loved what she considered to be a basic skill in the West made the simplest of men bewildered. Though she gave herself some additional credit for being extremely talented at the trade. "Like I said, it's common courtesy to give a warning shot first. Given that he was on the verge of shooting you and your friend up into tomorrow, I figured that he needed a little bit of a stronger warning than most would." She finally raised her head as she took in his appearance under this calmer presence.

Poised in presented perfection as he stood under an exposed lightbulb, his eyes became terrifyingly remarkable. It didn't seem like he had any pupils at all. They were so deep and enigmatic it were as though they had the power to detect the faintest fault. Yet at this moment she couldn't peel away. In the brief moment she was able to watch him without interruption, she could also sense a darker side of his being like he was plagued by inner demons. Then again, weren't they all?

Before she had the chance to devour him more, he dragged her attention back to the present. "How did you learn to shoot like that?"

"Because I'm a woman?"

An exacerbated sigh almost retracted the work that they had put in that night, but he continued to play her games. "You know what I mean!"

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" She waved her hands, loving how easy it was to irk him. "My father raised me to shoot before he passed. At least that's what they say happened - he just never came back one day. Part of me feels like he's still out there, so I've kept his gun to maybe one day return it to him."

Neji only nodded, watching closely as she escaped into memories. He watched as a happy kind of sad expression came and went before she moved on. It was a trauma he understood - regrettably - all too well. "If you need more convincing, Naruto's asked me to show him what I can do tomorrow. I don't mind an audience."

"Then, can I ask you one more question?" He leaned in over the stables doors as though about to ask her something deep. "What did you do to be called something worse than a bitch?"

She smiled devilishly as though reliving the fond memory all over again in her mindseye. "I'm sure you can imagine." A wink flashed across her face. "One day, I might tell you."

...

Helped by his raven hair and cloaked attire, Sasuke stood near invisible waiting at the shadowed corner of the stablehouse. His eyes darted at every hoot, creek and twitch as he had nothing but the moon to clear his vision. Minutes ticked by there was no sign of life, until in the distance a hooded figure dashed into sight. As the mysterious man neared his target he slowed until only the faint clips of his horses hoofs hitting the soft desert sand could be heard.

Sasuke checked his surroundings once more, making sure the coast was clear, before he removed himself from his hiding place and approached the man. "You're late."

"You know how Deidara is when it comes to his art." He explained in hushed tones as he reached into his satchel, handing the delicate package over to Sasuke. "You sure you're good to do this?"

"Don't trust me, brother?"

The hooded figure raised his head and the family resemblance could not be denied, only the other had a few more details to his face as though the years had not been kind to him. "You know you're the only one I do trust."

They nodded at each other in confidence before the man clipped his horse once more and rode away back into the shadows as quickly as he had come.

Sweeping back out of sight, Sasuke delicately unwrapped the bundle given to him to reveal the promised sticks of dynamite. Their red exterior matched the chaos they resembled and the blood they vowed to spill. Content with their look he hurriedly tucked them into his own bag and began creeping back to safety and to the warmth of a woman in waiting.

'Sakura, forgive me.'

…