Chapter 5 - Day 3 Night
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Author's Notes: Here's another update for you all. I won't keep apologizing for the time it takes to get them up. I'm sure you are growing tired of hearing my excuses. Life is life, I'll do my best to update when I can. I really appreciate all of you who have commented, and are hanging in with me! I love getting your reviews and reading what you have to say. It honestly makes me smile every time even if it's a critique. I like those as well, they help me to see where I'm lacking in my writing and my story so keep them coming! On to the main event, the story!
~Luna
Hinata could feel the Naruto's heat against the bare skin of her back. Sakura had reached the bar and was ordering her drink and neither Naruto or herself had spoken. She let the tension filter around her, let it sink into her skin with his heat. She wanted to prolong the moment as long as possible. The implications, the fact that Naruto had reacted in some way to her bare back had been welcome news to her but she did not want to get ahead of herself. She tried to school her features, and let her eyes slide along the rest of the crowd.
Naruto moved first, breaking the silence between them not with words but actions. His fingers ghosted along the bare skin just under the cord at the base of her neck. She shivered, but didn't pull away. Training was training and no matter the emotions she was feeling she knew they needed to do this. When the graze of his fingers turned into the pressure of his hands on her shoulders she relaxed into the touch. His hands slid down her arms and then he leaned in and asked her one word, "Dance?"
Hinata nodded and when he moved around her taking her hand to lead her to the floor she let herself go. Her eyes settled on his hand gripping her's and then moved up his arm to rest on his face. She could just see his profile as he passed her. There was no hint of the reaction that Sakura had hinted at. In fact his face was just a touch too blank, and Hinata felt a flutter in her stomach as she registered that Naruto was controlling his face. Either he was very shocked and didn't want her to see or...maybe the shirt had had more of an effect on him than she had anticipated. It was the first time in all of this that Hinata allowed herself to believe there might be a spark of attraction between them, flickering back from him to her.
The dance floor was warmer than the rest of the room, people moving and their energy heating the air around them. Hinata followed Naruto onto the floor keeping her eyes on him and ignoring as best she could the stares and looks they were receiving.
As the song shifted to a more upbeat tempo she let her body begin to sway wanting to get lost in the music before he turned back to her, before she had to really think. Naruto led them all the way to the back corner into flickering light and writhing bodies. When he turned to her she was moving with the beat. She kept her eyes on his face to catch any reaction, deciding that to look away would be cowardly. His face remained controlled and she felt just a brush of disappointment before he drew her close, sliding his arms around her hips and moving with her. Hinata watched the flush that rose across his cheekbones and told herself that maybe this time it wasn't just the heat of the room and people that surrounded them.
Their bodies brushed over and over again, the music letting them sway and move together with a fluid motion that began to take her body into a heightened awareness of his. When he shifted to slide his leg between her's and brought their bodies closer she moved to accommodate him. His left hand moved from her lower back up to press between her shoulder blades and the music carried them through the moment and for a second she forgot about training, forgot about the mission and just let herself move and feel. Her other training, her natural sensuality had her moving to touch him too. She slid her arms around his neck, one hand sinking into the hair at the base of his neck and the other resting on his waist gripping and pulling just enough for him to feel it. It was a silent signal of her interest and she felt the muscles of his side and back twitch in reaction. They moved like that settling into the music until it started to fade and change. Without speaking they adjusted and with a subtle pressure Naruto turned her and pulled her back to him. His hands settled on her hips, her hands settling over his. Hinata felt the heat in her rising up and she let it go farther than ever before, could feel an answering tension slip through Naruto's body behind her. In the back of her mind the ever present kunoichi noted the reaction and noted it as a positive forward movement in their training.
Hinata noted it as a woman and knew that this new knowledge would affect them in so many ways that had nothing to do with the mission. For perhaps the first time, Naruto was aware of her as a woman and felt at least some attraction to her. Awareness and burgeoning attraction aside Hinata knew that this didn't mean he would develop feelings for her. She could feel her heart constricting, knew that this was going to end up hurting her in ways she couldn't even imagine. This was going to be worse in the end, for her. The mission would most likely succeed but she would have to guard herself even more now that she could feel that attraction on his part.
As the music changed again she pulled away keeping his left hand in her's and moving through the crowd. He followed without protest and when they were free of the dancing throng she moved straight to the bar. She was thirsty and she needed some space between the two of them for just a minute. Naruto gripped her hand tightly when she began to drop his and followed close behind her however so she had little space. Sakura was still at the bar chatting with a dark haired kunoichi that Hinata had seen around Hokage tower but never formally met. Sakura broke out of the conversation but didn't make any introductions as the other woman's attention was taken by someone else.
Naruto dropped Hinata's hand only when she slid onto a stool next to Sakura. He leaned on the bar next to her and slid his arm along the bar so that his hand could settle on her hip. Hinata watched Sakura note this and watched her head tilt just slightly, a small smile teasing at the corners of her mouth. "You looked like you were having fun! I did not know you were just a good dancer Hinata-chan, I don't think I have ever seen you dance in fact." Sakura's voice was light and happy and Hinata smiled back. "Arigato Sakura-san."
The conversation flowed easily between the three of them, no awkward silences or strained comments. They enjoyed a few more drinks and then Hinata stood to leave. She was acutely aware of the glances that continued to rest on them while they chatted with Sakura. Mission training aside she was ready to retire to the privacy of her rooms in the compound and regroup. She was a little startled when Naruto shadowed her movement and placed his hand on her lower back. She looked up and around at his smiling face trying to gauge his intention and waited for him to finish his comment to Sakura about "Kakashi-sensei getting even worse about being on time as he gets older". She hadn't expected him to leave with her, had thought he would stay with Sakura. Turning back to Sakura and saying "It's been wonderful seeing you Sakura-san but I need to excuse myself. I have a few things to take care of tomorrow for the clan." She bowed slightly at the waist and felt Naruto's hand shift on her skin. "I'll head out too, I have training tomorrow" Naruto spoke directly after her and then turning to her said "I'll get your jacket, wait here okay?" Hinata nodded a bit shallowly but he was already gone.
"Is it only for the mission?" Sakura asked just loudly enough to be heard over the music which had quieted. Hinata kept her eyes down and nodded. "Good luck with it, I don't know all of the details obviously but I hope it goes well. Be safe Hinata-chan" Sakura's green eyes didn't match her smiling face and Hinata felt goosebumps rise on her skin. "Arigato Sakura-san" Hinata said just as quietly and bent at the waist again. When she straightened Naruto was there and holding her jacket out for her to slide her arms in. Despite felling a little warm Hinata smiled up at him in thanks and slid the jacket on. His hand settled on her lower back again and with gentle pressure he turned her and walked with her to the door.
The night air outside of the bar was cool and Hinata was grateful for her jacket, especially as Naruto removed his hand from her lower back just outside the door. She felt the separation much more sharply than she would have before the new awareness that had risen within her. She did not say anything as they moved silently through the village, the easy of the prior conversation with Sakura gone. As the tension rose in her, she felt her shoulders begin to hunch and had to force them to straighten. When they reached the street that would usually have separated them, each going their own way, Naruto instead turned with her and kept walking. She stumbled a bit, having planned to turn and speak with him. She righted herself and moved with him. It wasn't until they were about a street away from the compound that Naruto slowed his pace, eventually stopping and she followed him. They were off to the side of the pathway, and when Naruto took several steps back into the shadows she again followed him. When they were both fairly concealed his hands came up. They hung in the air, hesitating just before closing around her shoulders and pulling her closer. He moved their bodies until she was standing looking up at him her back almost touching the wall of the building behind her. She could easily see the passersby that moved through the lights over the pathway behind him. Her eyes followed their movements, watched their conversations and interactions. She was beginning to tremble and there was a barely there trace of annoyance at herself rising. The tension was so dense between Naruto and herself now that she was more than uncomfortable. She wanted nothing more than to push past him and move away. "Hinata-chan" his voice was low, and but sounded normal.
"Did I make you uncomfortable back at the bar?" he asked and her eyes moved immediately to his shadowed face. She could see better in the dark than more shinobi but his features still looked murky to her. "No Naruto-kun" she hadn't meant to whisper it but it came out that quietly and like that the tension on his side slid away. She blinked, completely off balance. A long sigh later and the hands that rested on her shoulders began to massage lightly, sliding along the curves of her arms and shoulders to rest on the base of her neck and back again. She began to relax under the touch. "You were worried?" she couldn't help asking, clarifying. Naruto nodded, "We hadn't talked about touching like that, getting that close at least. Not yet anyway and I was worried I pushed too far too fast. You seemed tense when we left the dance floor." "Oh" was she could manage in response. Shaking her head she smiled a small smile at him. "I was fine, really." Naruto nodded and then his hands left her shoulders and he turned beginning to pull her from the shadows. She went with him, her hand caught in his but felt a pang in her chest that the night was about to end. Another street and she would be at the compound and all of this would fade to memory. The awareness would likely be there tomorrow during their training, it wasn't going to go away now that it had risen but it wouldn't be quite the same. Hinata would never forget the moment she'd realized that the man she'd loved most of her life actually could feel attraction for her. Caught in her musings she didn't notice him stopping until she'd bumped into his back. They had only taken a few steps, were still mostly in shadow. She looked up at blue eyes just lit by the street lights as he turned to her and then his hand was gripping her chin, tipping it up even higher. He leaned down, brushed a kiss on the corner of her mouth, waited. She exhaled in a rush and flushed. She held still though and waited to see what he would do next. When he didn't move, eyes searching her face she took the next step, bringing her lips up to meet his directly. It was a light warm, smooth brush of skin on skin.
Her body warmed from the inside out. It was over in less than a second but it was enough. It was an answer to a question she hadn't wanted to know the answer too. She was going to be broken hearted at the end of this. There was never going to be anyone else for her. And the worst was looking at his face as he drew back. There was a small grin there, a happy relief. He'd taken it as forgiveness for an imagined slight, but he hadn't felt anything else. His eyes were warm with friendship and caring but not love. She blinked and lowered her head as steadily as she could, trying to hide the hurt again. How many more times would she have to do this?