A/N: Thank you all for the reviews of last chapter, some of them really made me laugh. Sorry for the cliffhanger though, but it felt right to put in a pause to give you a chance to catch your breath.
Not much else to say this time around, so let's get back to: "What happens in the ladies changing room, hopefully stays in the ladies changing room."
Naruto nervously juggles the hitai-ate a few times before Hinata leans forward and deftly snatches it out of the air and hands it to a grateful Naruto.
Just outside the changing room Ino responds to Tenten's compliment of her outfit selection with a squeal of excitement. "Thanks, I really hope I like how it fits. I want to wear it to the Sakura festival next week."
"I have been meaning to ask if the two of you are still going to join me and Shino, but after seeing what you are planning on wearing I think Kiba may not want anybody else around." Tenten's laughter echoes down the hall.
Ino's voice is so filled with mischievous glee that Hinata and Naruto can easily imagine the look on the kunoichi's face. "It's more fun when there is an audience around when I tease Kiba, plus Shino always seems to know the perfect thing to say to twist the kunai just a little more. We should …"
The clerk's voice drowns out the rest of Ino's sentence as she knocks lightly on the door of Hinata's dressing room. "Hyuga-sama, I found the intimate apparel in the size and color you asked for, I am hanging them on the hook outside the door." There is a momentary pause and a clicking sound outside the room before the clerk speaks again. "Ladies, these two rooms are available for you to try on your clothing selections."
Hinata looks down at Naruto, and the redness of her face as well as the wide-eyed look of shock matches Naruto's perfectly. She had forgotten about the other things that she had asked the clerk about. What is she going to do now? Hinata covers her mouth to stifle the loud 'eep' that is trying to escape. 'Don't faint, don't faint, oh kami please help me not to faint.'
Naruto can see the struggle in her eyes as she tries to get her shock under control, but staring into her eyes seems to only cause her blush to deepen. He diverts his gaze, but when he does his eyes start to roam down her body and he finds himself struggling to breathe as he tries to fight the image of what sort of 'intimate apparel' Hinata might have asked the clerk to find. Is she buying something to surprise him with on the trip? As the image of Hinata's face on the mannequin he was looking at early begins coalesce in his mind, the feeling of his brain trying to explode and ooze out his nose suddenly returns. So he closes his eyes and pinches his nose, just in case. 'Dammit, I need to think of something else before I explode. Dead puppies, an empty ramen bowl, Rock Lee in a speedo, okay that was too much, but it did work.' He opens his eyes just in time to hear Tenten speak.
"Hinata, is that you in there?" The sound of Tenten knocking on the changing room door dramatically raises the level of panic in the tiny room.
"That would be my first guess." Ino says matter-of-factly. "Do you know of any other Hyuga with a cup size that big?"
"It's definitely not Hanabi, poor thing." Tenten lets out a little snort. "I really hope that she is not here with Hinata or I am going to get an earful later."
Hinata's wraps her arms across her chest in complete humiliation as the conversation outside seems to reverberate loudly inside the changing room. 'Oh why did they have to say that in front of Naruto-kun.' Hinata's eyes can only flicker towards where her boyfriend is sitting. 'My face feels so hot right now I think it could fry an egg.' She begins to fan her face with one hand to try and cool her burning cheeks while the other arm is still stretched across her chest protectively.
Naruto looks in the direction of Hinata to make sure that she is alright, but his eyes cannot help lingering for a moment upon Hinata's chest. He quickly averts his gaze when he notices Hinata's head turning in his direction. 'Dammit, I bet she saw me staring at her chest. I have worked so hard to not come across like the pervert everyone seems to think that I am, and now that has probably been flushed down the toilet.' Naruto bows his head in utter defeat, his face beginning to redden in shame.
Tenten leans closer to the door and speaks a little lower to the girl inside the changing room. "Naruto will totally freak out if he gets to see you in this Hinata. The only thing is that you might not be wearing it for long once he does." Tenten's laughter after her little joke only helps to deepen the embarrassment for Naruto and Hinata, so much so that the very atmosphere in the room now feels stifling hot.
"Actually, I want to see her try it…" The door to the changing room opens and slams into Naruto's face as he looks up with realization that he forgot to lock the door earlier. "What the… ohhhh…" Ino's face splits into an evil grin as she looks down to see a familiar blonde shinobi kneeling on the floor rubbing his nose, and then over at his obviously mortified girlfriend.
Hinata bows her head in shame trying to figure out how everything has suddenly gone wrong with this simple shopping trip. It was supposed to be really easy, come in and get something for tonight and then leave. It is all her fault this fell apart. If she hadn't found that outfit and ask Naruto for his opinion, then he wouldn't be in here for them to get caught by the queen of gossip, and potentially even worse, Hanabi's sensei. 'Somebody just kill me now.'
"What?" Tenten sticks her head into the room and her jaw immediately drops. "Oh my!" Her voice seemingly drips with amusement; she then looks over at Hinata and silently mouths when the young woman looks up in shame, 'Way to go.' She punctuates her delight by giving a big thumbs up, not unlike how her former sensei is known for doing when excited.
Ino begins to dangle the hanger the clerk had left in a teasing manner as she looks at Hinata with an impressed look on her face. "So, planning on putting on a little show for the boyfriend?" She glances down at the tag showing the size of the garment and then gives Hinata a jealous smirk.
Hinata is grateful at least that Ino is dangling the hanger at an angle behind the door where Naruto cannot see what it looks like. "N-N-No, it's not like that at all?" Hinata begins tugging at the hem of her kimono in some vain attempt to hide the black shorts she is wearing. "W-W-We were shopping and I found this outfit to wear on my upcoming mission. So after I put it on, I asked Naruto-kun to come back here for just a moment and tell me what he thought."
Naruto just keeps silent and nods in agreement while he is checking to see if his nose is now bleeding from where the door just hit him in the face. It is possible that any blood he finds could be from the mental image of Hinata in nothing but… 'Dammit, stop that. If I get an erection and either of those two see it then we are doomed, doooooommmmed.'
Ino looks at Hinata with a disbelieving smirk. "Oh really, so what is Naruto doing on the floor?" Ino's eyebrows rise up accusingly as if asking Hinata if she was just on the floor with Naruto not too long ago.
Tenten starts looking about the small changing room. It is obvious that she is checking to see if there is room on the floor for some intimate action. After a moment she smirks and nods as if to say that two people could get it on in the room if they wanted too.
Hinata fights against her old habit to back down and blush, instead she gives the two girls an intense look of defiance. "If you must know, Naruto-kun was helping me with these boots." She lifts up her legs to show the boot on her left leg, but as she looks down at her legs she also notices the light spiraling red marks down her right leg and quickly tucks it back under the bench. "I-I-I thought they would go well with my new outfit, but they are brand new and are a tight fit."
Tenten covers her mouth, but a little snort of laughter still escapes.
"New boots huh?" Ino struggles to not laugh as she speaks. "I am sure it is a tight fit, but it will loosen up with use." Her blues eyes stray over to Naruto and she gives him a crooked smirk along with a wink.
Tenten places her forehead on Ino's back and shudders a little in silent laughter. "You are so bad."
Hinata and Naruto can only stare at Ino in shock for a moment until Naruto lets out an angry growl and stands up between Hinata and the other girls, holding up his right fist. "Now wait a damn minute. If you want to make jokes about me to my face, or even behind my back, that's fine. I've dealt with that crap my whole life, but I won't let somebody, friend or not, say something untrue or mean about my girlfriend, got it." Naruto ends his statement with a slashing motion of his right hand.
Ino and Tenten both take a step back in surprise. Ino, who as Naruto stood up, had reached the hanger with the lingerie behind her back to Tenten before holding up both of her hands in surrender.
Tenten glances around to make sure that nobody heard the angry voice of a man coming from the women's changing room and is coming to investigate. When she sees a clerk heading their way she smiles and waves that everything is fine. Once the woman walks away she hangs the lingerie on the inside doorknob of her own changing room next door, and pushes it nearly closed.
Ino meanwhile bows deeply to Naruto and Hinata. "My apologies to you Uzumaki-san, and especially to you Hyuga-sama. I promise that I meant no real harm." She rises up and gives them both a warm friendly smile. "It was meant to be some innocent teasing, but I see that I took the joke a little too far. I hope that you both will forgive me for what I said." She holds out a fist to Naruto in his nearly signature gesture of friendship. Tenten nods in agreement to Ino's plea for forgiveness.
Hinata, her face beaming with pride at how Naruto had said that she is her girlfriend, wraps her arms around Naruto's waist and lays her cheek upon his back. "It's okay Naruto-kun, I know that they really did not mean any harm by their teasing." Hinata let's herself enjoy the moment of contact for just a moment longer. 'I know that I have worked hard all my life to be able to walk beside him, but having him step up and protect me so forcefully was amazing. It makes me feel so safe all of a sudden, as if there is nothing in the entire world that could cause me any harm.'
Hinata gives Naruto one more joyful hug before she steps out from behind her protector. "I accept both of your apologies." She gives them both a friendly smile of acceptance as she crosses her hands across her middle and shrugs happily.
With one simple touch the irritation he was feeling is gone, not drained away like water from a bathtub, but gone as if were nothing but a bubble that had been popped. Naruto reaches out and presses his fist to Ino's, and gives both of the girls a big smile to show that all is forgiven.
After Ino and Tenten say their thanks, Hinata reaches over and takes Naruto's hand. She gives it a little tug to bring his face a little lower so that she can kiss him on the cheek, a rare public display of affection in front of her friends by the usually shy heiress. "Naruto-kun, would you mind going back to the waiting area for a little while longer? I need to change back into my old clothes before we can leave."
Naruto smiles down at Hinata and gives her cheek a loving brush. "Sure tenshi, I don't mind waiting at all. I should probably try to finish reading that scroll anyways." As he walks out of the changing room he raises an eyebrow at Ino and Tenten as a warning that he won't be that far away if they are thinking about teasing Hinata anymore. The nod of assurance that he gets from both of them eases any concern that he is feeling and he quietly makes his way back to his napping chair.
Once Naruto is completely gone, Ino turns back to regard Hinata with a look of disbelief on her face. "I don't know if I should be shocked, impressed, both or neither." She gestures with her thumb back towards where Naruto can just barely be seen sitting in a chair quietly reading from a scroll. "In all of the years I have known Naruto I have rarely seen him just stop being mad all of a sudden like that." She snaps her fingers to illustrate her point. "It usually takes hours, sometimes days, or a hell of a lot of ramen to get him to settle down. I should know, I have heard Sakura complain enough about his temper and how he can pout for days over the smallest thing."
Ino points back down the hall at Naruto before Hinata can react to Sakura's name. "Let's not forget that Uzumaki Naruto, the number one knucklehead ninja is sitting quietly, reading." She holds out her hands in complete amazement. "Like hello, Naruto reading, sitting quietly and reading from a scroll. Am I the only person here who feels like that they might still be stuck in that weird dream?" She pinches her arm to illustrate her point about the un-Naruto-like Uzumaki Naruto sitting quietly in a chair and seriously reading from a scroll.
Tenten looks over Ino's shoulder at Hinata and gives the young woman a smile. She had been there when Naruto's past had caught up with him and nearly derailed everything, and had watched him on the trip home. He had looked deep within himself, probably harder than he had ever done before and quietly examined his life. When at last the gates of the Leaf Village had come into view he had looked upon them with nervous determination. As if unsure that what was behind those gates was going to lead to damnation or heaven, but either way he was going to find that truth.
She had been relieved beyond words when Hanabi had called an emergency meeting of the team and told them what Naruto had revealed to her and Hiashi. That he was only guilty of using his shadow clones to falsely represent himself so that he would not have to personally deal with some of his more aggressive fans, and nothing more. A minor offense if anything, but a close enough call to bring about changes in one young shinobi's life. It seemed as if Hanabi knew more than she was telling, but clammed up the moment she was pressed for any more information. 'If I find out that girl now knows the truth about Naruto and Sakura, and she is not sharing then I am going to make her pay big time.'
That is for later, because right now is a time to be happy for her two friends. "I don't see what the big deal is, Ino." Tenten places a firm hand on her friend's shoulder. "I mean we all grow up one day. He wants to be Hokage, and it looks to me like he is dedicating himself to getting everything he wants." Tenten gives Hinata a little wink. "What I find really interesting is what he said, not what he is doing. Did I hear him call you tenshi, Hinata?"
Ino's eyes brighten as she focuses her attention back on Hinata. "Yeah, I was going to ask about that too." Ino is mentally rubbing her hands together at this bit of juicy gossip. Naruto has a pet name for Hinata. This will absolutely destroy those last few fangirls out there hoping that they somehow still might have a chance with Naruto. More fun than seeing those girls crushed by this news will be the look on Kiba's face. He will act like he is shocked that Hinata's relationship is progressing so quickly with Naruto, but inside he will be jumping about like a puppy to hear that things are going so well for his old teammate.
Hinata nervously touches her fingers together as she blushes a little. "Well… you see… Naruto-kun said that I have been like his own personal angel, since I have been there to help him out at times when he was feeling…" She looks up with a shrug as if she thinks that he is giving her too much credit.
Tenten steps past Ino and takes hold of Hinata's hands. "I think that is the sweetest thing that I have ever heard in my life." Tenten blinks happily at the tears forming in her eyes and lets them free to stain her cheeks.
"Yeah, and he's right too." Ino smiles, just a little sadly before she blinks and a happier look replaces the sad smile. "Hey, why don't you and Naruto join us at the Sakura festival? We had such a great time together during the New Year's Festival." She had been planning on inviting them anyways and with this news maybe Hinata will feel confident enough in her relationship that she might not interfere with a Team Seven reunion. With a little coaxing maybe Hinata might even be willing to help get this whole thing finally resolved and help to seal the rift between Naruto and Sakura.
Hinata smiles as she shakes her head. "Sorry, we will be on a mission during the festival." Hinata searches her memory from their meeting with the Hokage about what the cover is for their semi-secret mission. "The Hokage has asked Naruto-kun to represent the Leaf Village at the upcoming Sand Village foundation celebration. As a member of the Diplomatic Division I have been asked to go with him, along with Shikamaru and Choji, to act as advisors if any sort of negotiations were to be initiated."
Ino nods sadly at the news. "Choji and Shikamaru are going to be gone too huh?" There goes her plan to have everyone together for the celebration. If they are not careful they may all go their separate ways and rarely see everyone together as a group anymore.
Tenten steps in when she sees the atmosphere of the room has become a little glum. "All this talk about missions is kind of boring. What I would really like to talk about is the stuff on that hanger the clerk brought." She points outside the room offering to go fetch it for Hinata.
Hinata covers her mouth with both hands as her face goes bright red and she has to divert her gaze. 'Before now I would never have dared gotten something like that, I feel embarrassed just thinking about it, but the clerk said she saw Naruto-kun looking towards the lingerie section when I wasn't looking. She said that she had a couple of items that might fit me perfectly if I wanted to spice things up a little. I thought I would at least take a look and see for myself before making a decision on something so bold.' Her head snaps up when she hears the sound of a lock being engaged.
Ino turns around now that the door is securely locked and rubs her hands together conspiratorially. "Tenten, I do believe it is time for some… girl talk with Hinata."
Tenten puts the hanger she just retrieved on a hook and then leans against the wall with her arms crossed. "Yeah, they do grow up so fast."
A little while later, while sitting in his comfy chair, Naruto jumps out of his seat when he hears Hinata's voice let out a surprised squeal. A moment later he is just outside the changing room, ready to rip the door right off its hinges when he hears the sweet sound of Hinata's laughter.
"Seriously, Kiba tried to do what?" Hinata's voice comes out in gasp.
"Yes, and that was just our second date, wait till I tell you what happened on our third date, he…" Ino's voice pauses for a moment. "What is it Hinata?"
"Naruto-kun, is that you? Is everything okay?" Hinata asks with concern evident in her voice, as she senses motion outside the changing room and her heart seems to know who that presence is without even guessing.
Realizing that he has been caught eavesdropping, Naruto cringes in shame. "Uh… I guess I fell asleep reading and woke up when I heard your voice raised, so I came over to check on you, Hinata." A small lie, he hadn't completely fallen asleep yet but his eyelids had become heavy and he was struggling to keep his eyes focused on the text.
"Well don't you dare open that door, we are all naked in here, Uzumaki." Ino's declaration is followed by the sound of Hinata gasping and Tenten's giggling.
He reaches up and nervously scratches the back of his head as a bead of sweat rolls down the side of his face. "O-O-Okay, I'll… I'll go just back to my seat. I'm sorry for disturbing you Hinata... and the rest of you as well. I…" Naruto's head becomes a liitle foggy as he tries tokeep the image of the three girls standing around naked from forming in his mind. This is the same kind of crap Pervy Sage would go on and on about when he would talk about research, and Naruto will be damned if he is going to start acting like that crazy old man. He shakes his head from side to side to try and dispel any lewd thoughts trying to crawl into his brain.
"Uzumaki-sama." When he turns his head, Naruto sees the clerk standing at the entrance of the dressing room area looking at him disapprovingly. "These are the ladies changing rooms, you need to wait for Hyuga-sama over there in one of those chairs please." She points back to the chairs he had been sitting in earlier.
Naruto is about to try and explain himself when he hears Tenten's voice call out in mock panic. "Oh no, is there a man in the ladies dressing area?" She follows up her question with the fakest light squeal of panic that Naruto has ever heard, and thanks to his time running around with Master Jiraiya he knows very well what the unhappy squeal of panic sounds like coming from a girl.
"Oh my, and we just took ALL of our clothes off. What will we do?" Ino says between giggling fits.
"I heard raised voices and got concerned, so I…" Naruto closes his eyes in frustration as the giggling from behind the door only gets worse, so he just turns around to retreat back to his chair. As he walks past the clerk he can see that she is struggling hard to not start laughing as she looks down respectfully at her feet. 'Some days I could almost hate my friends.' He sits back down in his chair and buries his face in the scroll, hoping that no one else he knows will be coming into the shop before Hinata is ready to leave. 'You know, I wish I had not panicked earlier. I could have used the Flying Thunder God jutsu and vanished back to my place and then run back here real quick before anyone knew I was even in that room. I guess deep down I just didn't want to abandon Hinata like a coward.'
A few moments later the clerk comes by and offers Naruto a drink and bows when he accepts the offered beverage. "Some of the ladies, when they come with their friends can be quite boisterous at times. You are not the first boyfriend to get caught in the middle of some friendly teasing." After Naruto gives her a nod that he appreciates her understanding, she walks back to the checkout counter.
Inside the changing room the three fully clothed kunoichi are struggling hard not to laugh out loud. "You two…giggle… are so mean… giggle… poor Naruto-kun, he must… giggle… be a complete mess right now." Hinata has to cover her mouth each time she starts giggling before she can continue to speak. To distract herself she looks down and busies herself with folding up the stuff she brought into the changing room. "You both need to apologize to Naruto-kun for your behavior."
Ino just waves away the comment. "Heck, he was always playing pranks on us when we were kids, besides once he becomes the Hokage I won't be able to do something like that anymore. So I am going to have my fun while I can, right Tenten." After a very stern look from Hinata she lets out a little sigh. "Okay, you win Hinata. I'll apologize before he leaves."
Tenten nods in agreement as she reaches out and places her hands on Hinata's shoulders. "I just want to wish you good luck on the mission and to remind you to not stress out too much, he's a great guy. You told me that he said he was willing to wait till you felt the time is right, and we all know he only says what he means." Tenten gives Hinata a reassuring hug to help bolster her friend's confidence.
Ino helps Hinata arrange the stuff she has decided to purchase and the stuff she has decided to put back. "Exactly, don't get stressed out if things look like they may be getting intimate. If the time is right for you two, then it is right." She leans over and gives Hinata a hug as well. "If not, I don't think that Uzumaki Naruto is going to go anywhere except to be right by your side."
Ino reaches down and tugs at the lingerie hanger that Hinata is trying to hide between two other pieces of clothing that she is folding. When Hinata slaps her hand down on the stack Ino gives the blushing girl a mischievous smile. "I notice that is going on the, to buy pile. Is this for just in case, or are you wanting it to help turn a maybe into a sure thing while you are away?'
Hinata's only answer is to cock her head to the side and give a guilty shrug.
Ino gestures up and down at Hinata's body. "So, you are not going to try it on first?"
Hinata clears her throat as she prepares to answer Ino's question. "I was, but the only person who will ever see me in something like that will be…" Hinata averts her gaze with a guilty smile on her face. "Since the privacy in this place is so lacking, I think I will just buy it and try it at home where people knock before entering.
As Ino throws up her hand to admit her guilt, Tenten bumps her shoulder into Hinata to get her attention. "You might want to go by Ino's place before you leave for your mission." When both kunoichi look at her with a mixture of curiosity and unease Tenten folds both arms behind her head and sits down on the bench. "I was just thinking that you might need some extra ammonia tabs for your personal medical kit. You know, to wake Naruto up after HE faints." The changing room is again filled with the sounds of young women giggling.
A little while later Naruto looks up thankfully when he hears the sound of Hinata's voice happily talking to Ino and Tenten as they are leaving the changing area. He feels his pulse quicken as they lock eyes with each other and he nods when Hinata gestures that she is going to go pay for her items. Before he can stand up and join Hinata his way is blocked by two kunoichi who are giving him curious stares. "What, do I have something on my face?" Naruto reaches up and touches his face to see if there is anything there, maybe from the tea he just drank, or blood from where Ino hit him with the door.
Ino gestures in the direction of Hinata, who is getting some of the items she purchased wrapped up in gift boxes. "I just wanted to say that I am really happy for you and Hinata. She is happier now than I have ever seen her before, and you too to be honest. Take care of each other okay, keep an eye on Shikamaru and Choji for me while you are away, okay. Those boys tend to slack off if there isn't somebody there to keep them motivated." Ino pauses as if she is debating with herself to say something else, but her brow unfurrows and she smiles again. "I apologize for the teasing, and I promise that I won't say anything about finding the two of you in the changing room. Besides, nothing happened. Right?" Before Naruto can answer she walks away towards the checkout counter.
Tenten gives him a hug and tells him to have fun at the Hidden Sand Village festival. She gives his shoulder a little punch and waves a finger back and forth. "Neji's spirit would come back and haunt me if I did not remind you to take care of Hinata, and to be gentle with her, okay?" Once Naruto smirks and gives her a nod she walks off after Ino.
As Hinata approaches with a few bags in one hand and a couple of boxes in her other Naruto quickly gets up from his chair and reaches out to ease Hinata's burden. She gives him a grateful smile as he takes all of the items, and holds the door open with one foot as they leave. "Naruto-kun, I am sorry it took me so long. I really appreciate you being so patient." She leans over and rewards him with a kiss on the cheek.
Naruto gives her a goofy smile. "Well, if all I got to do to get a kiss on the cheek is take a nap in a comfy chair while you shop, then I don't mind if we go shopping more often." He then gives her a playful bump. "Besides, from all of the giggling I heard coming from the changing rooms I would guess you had a good time in there talking with the others."
Hinata wraps her arms around one of Naruto's and lays her head on his shoulder. "It was so nice to hang out with them for a little while and just be a normal girl for a change. We have all gotten so busy with our new responsibilities that we rarely get to see each other and just spend some time talking together."
"So, what were the three of you talking about? I can guess what at least one topic was since Ino did barge into the changing room." He is pretty sure that he is on target when she buries her face into his shoulder. "Did I happen to come up in any other conversations?"
Hinata looks up and gives him a sly smile. "Of course, I had some fun and made them a little jealous about how sweet you always are when we are together."
Naruto sticks out his lower lip in a little pout. "Just a little jealous?"
Hinata squeezes his arm possessively. "I am not about to make them totally jealous that you are my boyfriend. They might decide to dump their boyfriends and try to give me some competition. First, Kiba and Shino are my old teammates and I would never want to see them hurt."
Hinata looks up into Naruto's eyes with that scary smirk that she has when Naruto and other girls are mentioned in the same conversation. "Secondly, Ino and Tenten are my friends and I would hate to send them to the hospital." When Naruto's mouth drops open in surprise Hinata cannot hold back anymore, she buries her face into his shoulder and starts giggling. It had felt good to open up and talk with her friends, and to hear that their relationships with her old teammates were going so well. It seems like all of their friends are happy these days, except when Sasuke and Sakura's names happened to be mentioned. Ino's mood had darkened when Tenten had mentioned how Sakura finally got her man as well. Instead of opening up, the normally chatting kunoichi had let out a sigh and changed the subject. That worries Hinata, but at least she and Naruto are leaving soon, so maybe whatever is going on will be resolved by the time they return from the mission.
Naruto lets out a mental sigh of relief. 'Man, for a moment there I really thought she wasn't joking.' He leans down and kisses the top of her head. "Well, Hinata-tenshi, their physical health and their relationship status is in no danger. I can't imagine being any happier than I am when we are together, believe it." From the very depths of his heart he knows that what he just said is no idle boast, that he has never felt so happy, or so complete, his entire life. It is like Hinata just stepped in and completely filled that vacant spot in his soul that he has been trying to fill most of his life with missions, discovering new jutsus, and hell of a lot of ramen. To think, the missing piece of this puzzle was hiding behind a tree, watching him and waiting for him all these years.
Hinata pulls Naruto over to the entrance of an alley for a little more privacy and wraps her arms around Naruto's waist while he wraps one arm around her shoulder in response. "I wish you knew just how happy hearing you say that makes me feel."
"Well, it's the truth Hinata." Naruto rests his cheek on the top of her head and enjoys the warmth of her presence as she presses against his body.
Hinata squeezes him so tight that she can hear some air escape his lungs. "I know, and that is what makes hearing it so special." She releases her grip and takes a step back, a happy blush coloring her cheeks. "So, I'll see you later at the restaurant?"
Naruto nods as he hands over the bags to Hinata. "Absolutely, I am going by there on the way home to confirm our reservation time. If anything has changed I will let you know immediately." He then holds up the boxes. "Are you sure that you don't want me to help you carry these back home?"
Hinata places a single finger on his chest and draws a little circle over his heart. "Actually, the one with the orange bow is something that I picked out for you while you were doing that amazing trick of reading a scroll with your eyes closed." She jumps out of his reach with a happy squeal as he makes a grab for the ticklish spot on her side. "Please don't." She bites her lower lip and holds the bags she is carrying protectively over her stomach.
Naruto gives her a smug look as he gestures with his hand for her to come closer. "I think you owe me an apology kiss."
Hinata shakes her head from side-to-side and wags a single finger. "I am not falling for that trick again Uzumaki Naruto. If you want an apology kiss from me, then you are to put your hands behind your back and leave them there until I say so." She holds up her chin to show that she is determined not to let him trick her into coming close and get tickled right here in public. 'People are already staring at us as they walk past and I am starting to feel a little self-conscious, even if most of them are smiling.'
"Well, if the choice is whether or not I get a kiss from the prettiest girl in the village, then I guess it is no choice at all." He places his hands behind his back and stands up straight with a smirk.
'Well played Naruto-kun, that's a cruel touch standing up straight and forcing me to get on my tip toes.' In response she goes up to him and stands on the tips of her toes, but stops just out of reach of his lips and hangs there ever so close. She can almost see a drop of sweat run down the side of his face as he struggles to not be the one to give in and be the kisser, instead of the receiver of the kiss.
Naruto feels his resolve begin to weaken against the sensory onslaught that he is feeling from the combination of the scent of her perfume, and the sight of her eyes looking almost pleadingly up into his own, which is driving his need to taste her lips again. He looks quickly to his left and right to see if anyone is watching and is disappointed when he sees that people have begun to slow down and linger a little to witness a rare public display of Hyuga affection. Fearful that kissing Hinata's lips, with the intensity they so richly deserve, right here in public would ultimately get back to her father and potentially complicate the news they must soon deliver to him about their mission, he reconsiders. 'Hiashi might go to the Hokage and demand that we not be allowed to spend so long a time together without a chaperone, and that she assign a different member of the Diplomatic Division to go along with me to the Sand Village.' He suddenly winces as an even worse thought crossed his mind. 'Or worse, he could suggest that we take a chaperone with us, like Ko or even Hanabi. I am not sure what would be worse, Ko's glaring or Hanabi's needy interruptions.'
So, to better safeguard their hopefully enjoyable time together, Naruto leans down and gives Hinata a gentle, chaste kiss upon the cheek like two school-aged children might do rather than something more attune to their real age. The two of them cannot help but smirk as an almost auditable groan of disappointment goes through some of the onlookers who seemed to be hoping for something to gossip about.
Hinata strokes the side of his head and steps back, her eyes telling him that she understands why he kissed her so chastely, and she rewards him with an appreciative smile. "Actually, I still have a little bit of time before I need to go get ready for tonight." Her hand slides down and takes ahold of Naruto's free hand. "I have an idea for something that will go along with the gift in that box." Her eyes roam down to the gift box and then back up to Naruto's face before she gestures down the street with her other hand. "How about it, are you up to adding one more surprise to your plan?"
Naruto, happy to have an excuse to spend some more time with Hinata, just nods and lets himself be lead along by his excited girlfriend. As they quickly move down the street, people pause what they are doing to watch the curious sight of Uzumaki Naruto being pulled down the street by the normally reserved Hyuga heiress. What they will remark on later when they retell what they saw today is that they were not sure who had the bigger smile on their face, Hinata or Naruto.