"I tire of all this violence, Danzo. When have we lost sight of ourselves so, as nin, as men, as families? When have we let ourselves become so seeped in our own tales of power as to lose sight of everything else?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi, Sandaime Hokage of Konoha

"I ain't leaving."

They are in that blasted, dreadful inner place of a cage again, the sewers deep within his mind where the beast dwells against its will. Naruto doesn't want to be here, but there is no choice. He has to weather it, to endure each and every pang of discomfort being here never fails to bring forth. He has to precisely because the fox scares him shitless. The Kyuubi has power in spades, and Naruto has always been lacking. No matter how hard he trained, always two steps behind.

The towering mass of angry red chakra-filled fox sneers and hisses viciously, as if the mere words might cut their jailer. "Get lost, you little hairless monkey. You gross me out."

Naruto scoffs. "Here I was hoping we might work out an agreement, perhaps even get you some place warmer and," A loud sniff, "dryer."

"This place won't be damp after I have feasted upon the charred remains of your pitiful body. Not that you could ever hope to feed me, mind you. It would only be for the principle."

"Yeah, yeah, we've heard it all before. Big bad Fox's gonna eat the poor little kid." Naruto steps close to the cage then, leans his head against the cold metal bars. "So what are you waiting for, furrball?"

The fox snaps and hurls itself against the cage that has been his everything for so, so long now, outside must be a distant, hopeful dream. The clanging is deafening, but when the dust settles down Naruto's forehead is still pressed against them, not a scratch upon his marred cheeks. "You never fucking learn, do you? I'm offering you your one and only way out of here. Will ya take it or not?"

"Piss off, monkey."

Another sigh, a small thing that grows to uncomfortable heights in the ever-present echoes within this place, where the slightest droplet is a cascading waterfall. "Fine. Have it your way."

He makes his way back slowly, turning away from the imposing demon, and in the water his steps make him sound like a giant, tall as the beast dwelling here, in the desolate parts of his mind, where the darkest thoughts form and spread and grow to hurt. The walls are grey and gloomy, the light coming from somewhere unknowable, barely enough to see a couple paces ahead. But he doesn't need to see. This is his own self; he knows it better than any of the homes he's had. There is still darkness around, still parts that he's yet to explore (even though he shouldn't, even though these would be best left alone) but it's always been him and the fox here, and no-one besides. Naruto hates every part of it, but this is what he's got. He just has to work with it.

It's not long until he's reached the one corridor leading out of here, shrouded in the darkness he knows, the one he's already scrutinised until he could see it clear as day. If the Kyubi keeps being stubborn he'll just have to come again sometime later. Perhaps a couple days, perhaps a couple weeks. This is a fight he's dedicated to winning, because he knows he can, and because there's no other choice. If this doesn't pan out then there's really no use for anything else. What can you do with your fucking life if you can't even get a grip on yourself?

Naruto doesn't sigh. He wants to, really, but this is a moment for self-control, and for confidence, even if he doesn't feel any. You gotta fight these things, like he had to fight as a kid; all the hatred and contempt and thousand other malevolent things even he could pick up when he was barely five and still discovering the world.

It's like Jiraiya said. You can either let it fester inside you, or you can do something about it. Both options hurt, but at least the latter one's got some hope. Naruto sure wants hope; he craves it like the last ray of sun keeping the monsters away; he'll protect it like it's the last campfire in the dead of winter. Fucking Kyubi wants to play at being a stubborn little shit, fine, he can play that game too, he's been training all his fucking life for it, he –

"Wait! Wait, Kami damn it!"

He turns around, and sure enough the fox is there, no longer snarling, his red eyes filled with a little less contempt than they were before. "Do you accept my terms?" Naruto asks. He doesn't have the time for jokes. There's a world to be conquered out there, and time is never on your side.

"I consent to negotiate," the Kyubi begins, and they press on swiftly, "Will you fucking hear me out five minutes instead of being like your arrogant kind? I will agree to most of your terms, but your knowledge is partial at best, so I might as well fill that empty head of yours."

Naruto can't contain another indignant scoff. "You fucking hate-filled, big despicable furrball of a monster; do you really have to talk to me like I'm the worst fucking thing you ever saw in your life?"

The Kyubi grins then, an horrendous thing full of sharpened teeth and deadly promises. "You're angry, that's good. Keep it, but don't waste it with words like that. Use it with your fists instead."

"Alright, mister venerable fox," Naruto is shaking his head even as he does his best to cool off. "Any other big pieces of advice from you before we get a move on with this?"

"A shit-ton of them, actually. And that's my first term. You want us to work together, fine, I can agree with that. But we need to establish some rules here, not get confused in the roles of this partnership. Until I deem you acceptable, you'll be my pupil," the fox says in a tone he'd never used before, all quiet and controlled. "I gotta warn you though, it might take a while."

"Your pupil? You're fucking kidding me here –"

"Yeah, might as well give you your first lesson. Respect isn't about titles or perceived worth, none of that shit really. You don't respect anyone until you've gauged them for yourself. Now I've grown to grudgingly respect you, Naruto, but if you can't do the same with me we better stop this right here."

Naruto closes his eyes, shakes his head almost vehemently. This is what he wanted; what he needs, really. But ever since he's learned about his kind, the Kyubi's been just another monster, one of those big reasons for why his life has been such a shit-show. But here, in this dark, damp, cruel place of a mind, he has to confront some harsh things. Because what the Kyubi says sounds horribly right. Like he's been just like the assholes who took one look at him and decided he'd be shit forever.

There's no two ways about it. Either he proves to the Kyubi and himself that he's better or he doesn't, and then nothing changes. What a shit deal. "Alright, you win. Now, got any idea how we change your cell into something suitable for my venerable teacher?"

The Kyubi's grin changes, no longer terrifying; more like the grin you'd give your comrades when everyone's brawling and you're about to jump into the fray. "You bet your little monkey ass I do."

He arrived at the training field early in the afternoon. It wasn't a done thing, exactly, arranging training sessions for the afternoon, but Naruto wasn't nearly stupid enough to question Yugao-sensei, not so soon after he'd incurred her ire. So he played the part of the obedient little disciple instead, showing up when he was expected with the full intention of going through whatever bullshit punishment the imperious amazon had in store for him. Except it wasn't her that arrived not five minutes after the time he'd been told to show up.

"Sorry I'm late, I –"

She stopped in her tracks when she saw him at last, all flushed and heaving from having sprinted here all the way from kami knew where. She was reddened and sweaty, wearing unflattering training clothes that showed none of her curves. Naruto couldn't take his eyes away. Her hair stuck to her forehead and looked like it could need a wash, but still, when he caught sight of its strangely blue undertones, he had to stop himself from gaping stupidly. And then her eyes honed in on him, two white pearls, the prettiest things he'd ever seen, and her flush turned sour, and the lines of her face tightened in a manner that screamed danger even to someone as clueless as he, but all Naruto could think of was how pretty she looked, and how much of an ass he'd been back during the forest chase.

If only he hadn't screwed things up so badly, perhaps he could have had a chance, perhaps, maybe, he'd finally get the chance to understand his late godfather's words, when he'd told him that men who fall in love are fools, but fools want for nothing.

"If I had to guess, I'd say our teacher set us up," he told her, because what kind of a person would he be if he didn't manage to say a few words to her.

He noticed when she clenched her teeth, and then of course when her eyes closed as she turned slightly away. He winced a little, and the sharp look she sent his way couldn't have been more of a glare. "She wouldn't. Yugao-sensei doesn't play games. She's not childish."

The words like you hung in the air just long enough for him to feel their burn. Naruto didn't bother concealing his wince. Hyuga eyes were supreme; there wasn't any way for him to evade them this close. "Well, you sure know her better than I," he replied after a while, before sitting down against the nearest tree-trunk and closing his eyes.

"You don't understand, something must have happened, we have to –"

There was a shuffle of wings above them then, and mere seconds later, he felt her moving deftly without taking one step. Naruto opened an eye to see her as she unfolded the parchment that had likely been dropped by the bird flying away from them. He watched as her eyebrows knitted themselves into a cute little frown and let out a quiet breath, although he wasn't sure why.

"Oh no. No, no, no," she started muttering, her eyes scanning through the paper. She turned it a couple times, but the frown didn't leave her face.

"What did she say?"

Her eyes shot up again to bore into his, and he wasn't sure what this look meant, but it certainly held nothing good. "It says 'your assignment for the day is to get to know each other as you are now pupil comrades.'"

"Well, if that's what chain of command wants, might as well be good little soldiers."

He stood up nonchalantly, taking the time to stretch before closing the few paces separating them, all under her incredulous gaze, a dangerous powder-keg of emotions jumbling behind her eyes. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki," he told her, extending a hand. "I know we haven't had the greatest of starts and I apologise for it. You'll learn this soon enough about me, but I do whatever it takes to achieve my goals, and sometimes that means doing stupid things."

For the longest time she looked at his hand, eyeing it like it held within it every and all diseases known to their time, but when he started lowering his arm she suddenly jolted awake and grabbed it with both of hers. "I – I'm Hinata… Hinata Hyuga. I – erm… that is to say… I'm just – you know… a Konoha Jounin who's been selected for ANBU and..."

She suddenly cut herself off, and her words seemed to hang in the air around her, causing her shoulders to sag under the pressure.

"Wait, isn't that supposed to be classified information?" He asked.

Her flush got worse then (He didn't think she could get any redder, but here it was) and she started sputtering nonsensical bits of phrases that sounded increasingly more like apologies. She looked panicked, as though she'd rather be anywhere than here. It reminded him of his younger self, so he grabbed her arm as gently as he could. "Hey, hey. Take a breath. Go on. In. Out," he watched carefully as she started following his advice. "That's it. Keep going."

After a while she seemed to have calmed down, and he led her to a tree stump. She looked anywhere but at him and when she spoke at last, her voice was small and broken. "I'm sorry. I thought… This has really gone the worst way it could, hasn't it? I should just stop seeing Ino," here she smiled, as if that was a funny joke, but her eyes were reddened now, and her lips were tight.

"I won't lie and tell you I'm not a little freaked out, but you could see it that way: If this was a date, I'd probably remember it for a long while."

"You'd remember it, sure," she told him dejectedly. "I'd be the silly little girl who can't even talk like a normal person."

"Not really," he smiled. "You'd be the hot lass I can get to a concerning blushing state with only my looks. Finally the one girl who can appreciate my obvious charm."

She burst out laughing and didn't bother to stop, doubling over and falling to the ground as she struggled to get a real breath in. He laughed with her, because really she wasn't sad or flustered anymore, no longer guarded, no longer shaking; just a pretty girl laughing at his jokes. "I'd forgotten how dumb you could be, Naruto. It's good to see you again," she said some minutes after, once the laughter had receded to short giggles.

"It is good to see you again as well, Hyuga Hime-sama."

Her eyes were pretty even when they were staring daggers at him. "Call me that again, and I won't bother to check if you're a clone before cutting you up."

Now it was his turn to laugh, but thankfully he managed to rein it in somewhat quickly. "This part of Yugao-sensei's training? No banter allowed?"

"I hope for your sake the question was rhetorical." A little pause there, not without tension. "Well, since we're stuck together today, do you want to go drink somewhere?"

The shift was clear as day. They were both Nin, and his training came from the best in the land. She made it look almost flawless, a natural progression of their casual conversation, but where her voice had held, the rest of her features had not. Something was making her tense, but he couldn't for the life of him figure out what, exactly.

He'd met people like her before. People who didn't do too well in social situations and preferred instead to keep to themselves. During the road with Jiraiya there had been one such man, who looked to be nearing his forties but had barely any friends and no family of his own. Jiraiya and him had been long time friends, and shortly after their business with the man had concluded, his godfather had explained that not everyone wanted to be around people, but if everyone was the same there would be little fun in living. He'd taught Naruto to be patient then, had explained that sometimes the kindest thing is to make yourself sparse, let them come to you on their own terms. One night when the booze had flowed perhaps a little too freely he'd also told him introvert ladies get wild once you get them to open up a little.

He didn't really like that he remembered that night. He didn't like that it was the main thing occupying his mind either, as he considered the tense Hyuga girl in front of him. Sure, he liked her (and sure, she was doing all kinds of things to him) but she was distressed, and angry at him, and if he were a better nin he'd only be concerned with helping an old classmate.

"Let me get this straight. You, a single lady my age, are asking out me, a single lad your age. I have to clear this out, is this a date?" He didn't try to clear the stupid grin off his face. He would have failed anyway.

Very slowly, she took a deep breath, righting herself until she stood upright, and eyed him with so much determination it seemed as though she was about to dive headfirst into a sea of fire. "Not quite. In your words, I'm the 'hot lass' asking you on a date."

He took her hand in his as he grinned deviously at her, then. "I know I have a reputation for being dumb, but even I wouldn't dream of turning the hot lass down."

They both laughed at their shared antics, before making their way out of the training field and into the busy streets of their village. And then there was no one left on the deserted field, no one to see the shadow that flickered away after them.

The journey had been an exhausting trial for them both. Avoiding patrols within Fire Country had been easy enough, what with Yugao-sensei's competent intelligence — most likely coming from ba-chan herself — and he had breezed through his country's defences, as any competent Konoha-nin should.

Trouble began once they were out of their country's borders. Ba-chan's intelligence was lacking at best when it came to patrol routes and military presence in the other strong nations, so he and Kurama had to rely on their own senses and caution for the last leg of their journey. For the most part they managed, sensing groups from miles away and using every last one of Jiraya's lessons on stealth and infiltrating enemy territory as a simple traveller. Long ago they had figured out that one of the best personas for him was that of a bumbling, joyous tradesman selling wares of various kinds to small villages. Naruto actually enjoyed the act. It was a refreshing change from the soldier routine.

He even managed to sell some simple seals to help housewives with their daily chores and farming men with their work. Kurama had been a right arse all along their stays at those villages but Naruto was used to his friend's antics by now. The grumpy old fox always liked to act like he was above anything and didn't care for anyone but himself, but of course Naruto knew better. He'd even pointed out how behaving like this made him seem like an Uchiha once and Kurama had refused to talk to him for the next entire month, shutting himself off completely.

It had taken them weeks to reach their destination, but they had expected this, and their contact knew to wait for them for a month at the very least. Naruto carefully made his way to the small unassuming house by the river, extending his senses through chakra. Nothing obvious came, which wasn't very surprising. You could trust a Uchiha to be an expert trapper.

The house was a small one-storey thing, made entirely of wood. It would look to most people as a hunter or a lumberjack's house. Dangerous enough to be avoided, unassuming enough not to raise questions. Naruto made his way to the front door. He found the first trap there, so obvious it clearly was diverting attention from something else. He took a couple steps back and threw a shuriken to trigger it.

The door burst open and not one second later a dozen explosive tags shot out towards him. He let them stick all over his body before taking out one of his seals and slapping it on his chest. One explosive tag was casually ripped off of his upper arm and studied it curiously, eyes reading the lines as a scholar would an interesting book.

"Naruto-san. Please do not mock me."

He chuckled good-naturedly. It had been a long time since he'd heard that smooth, calm voice and in many ways it reminded him of his long lost friend. When he turned to face the tired-looking man standing he found him in a combat-ready stance with a kunai in hand.

Naruto laughed openly then. Bitterly too. "Oh, come on, Itachi. If you were serious about this you'd have already tried to trick me into one of your little Genjutsu tricks."

He has, you moron. I've been covering your ass like always.

"My Genjutsu seems unable to affect you, Naruto. I wasn't aware this was possible."

"Yeah, yeah, I seem to have powerful friends rooting for me, I know."

The Uchiha's eyes widened, his gasp audible. Naruto snorted in turn, eyes rolling of their own accord. This was getting seriously ridiculous; he'd been in fights as a kid with more professionalism than this.

"You… You and the Kyubi..."

"Let's get inside, Itachi. Drink some tea maybe? I've been travelling for weeks. I could sit down for a bit."

Itachi didn't move. Not a single inch, Naruto realised. Why did it always have to end up like this? Couldn't they talk for once, before they got to the fighting for your life part? The villages should teach more diplomacy to their soldiers. He'd have to see to that, once he made it to the top.

Naruto threw a kunai at him, and Itachi deflected, beginning one-handed seals to invoke — as far as Naruto could tell — one of his giant fireballs. Itachi stopped mid-jutsu and moved out of the way just as he sensed a clone behind him, and engaged another that had also come out of his hiding spot. Naruto moved then; he knew he would have to be fast. Sure enough, when Itachi cut cleanly through the arm of a clone, expecting it to vanish entirely, he was thrown off-guard when the clone in question grabbed him with his other arm and headbutted him right on the nose.

With lightning-fast movements, Naruto came up behind him and slapped a tag on Itachi's back. The Uchiha whirled around and attempted to slice his throat open, but a second later all his strength left him.

Naruto caught Sasuke's brother before he could fall ungraciously to the ground. "You fucking Uchihas", he grumbled, "You must be descended from anthropomorphic goats, I swear..."

oOo

He woke up blearily, mind still foggy and limbs moving as though there was lead lined within his ample clothes. Itachi blinked several times to take in his surroundings, and he relaxed when he recognised the house he had used to stay undercover. But then the memories of the recent fight caught up to him, and he stood up suddenly, ready for another fight.

"Don't bother, please. You're weaponless, and we've already established your eyes won't do you much good. Plus I put a seal on you, just in case you're a stubborn lil' shit like your brother."

Itachi turned towards the voice and sure enough he was there, standing nonchalantly with his back against the wall and his arms crossed. Naruto Uzumaki, the very same Jinchuuriki assigned to Kisame and himself, just a few paces away and completely unbothered. It was deeply unnerving, like this kid thought absolutely nothing of him. As if Itachi wasn't a feared nin with a reputation across the entire land. "Naruto. Do you know who I am?"

The blonde kid scoffed. "What kind of a question is that? I'm your brother's only friend, for Kami's sake!"

"Sasuke doesn't have friends anymore. He forsook everything to accomplish his goal."

Naruto laughed at that remark, but it was a mirthless laughter. "Figures the older brother would spout the same nonsense as the younger one. Sasuke doesn't have a choice. I'm his friend whether he likes it or not."

"Are you?" Itachi began, slowly moving a hand out of Naruto's line of sight and forming quiet katas. "Then shouldn't he be back with you in Konoha? Why haven't you gotten to him yet, Naruto?"

His manoeuvring had worked seamlessly. It seemed Naruto was still the same child as always, boastful and naïve; to the point of coming alone to confront his pursuers, even stepping right into their den. In a matter of minutes, this would be over.

"Why? That's fucking rich of you, Itachi. You fucking know why! It's hard to focus on friends when family needs burying." Naruto's voice was getting louder, his control slipping away. "I have my own question for you: why'd you let us slip away? You had every fucking opportunity and you let us go."

"Did I now?"

"Stop your fucking antics. You think I didn't notice your hand behind your back? You think I don't know you're about to use a little trick to try and get the upper hand? You underestimated me outside and you've yet to learn your lesson."

Itachi stopped in his tracks. Naruto did have a point. He was acting as though he had control of the situation, as though he was the one leading the confrontation. But he had lost the initiative. He was awake and moving now only because the kid before him had decided to leave him unrestrained. He should have taken that into account; he really was getting sloppy these days.

"Fine," Itachi began, moving both hands up in a show of non aggression. "I'm not sure why I let you go. I think even after all these years, I still respected Jiraiya-senpai enough not to desecrate his body."

"That's it? No ulterior motive?"

Itachi merely shook his head in response. There was no point in lying to him. Jiraya was owed that much, at the very least.

"Then shouldn't you respect me as well? I am his legacy; the most important thing he left behind, the one in charge of passing on his teachings."

"My respect is not earned freely, Naruto."

It was now or never, he thought. With a quick snap of fingers, Itachi sent a thread of chakra towards one of the activation switches, and almost instantly Naruto was bound in a thousand chakra threads utterly impossible to break. But something didn't seem right. Itachi had not counted on this to do the trick. Naruto had had ample time to move away and avoid the obvious trap but he had remained stubbornly still, even rolling his eyes at him instead of dodging to avoid capture. Itachi crept cautiously closer to him, watching out for any sign of struggle.

"My gosh, Itachi. In some ways you truly are worse than your brother."

"You cannot break these bounds. Does this not bother you?"

"How many times do we have to play this little song and dance? Y'know what I think? I think everyone telling you how much of a genius you are has gotten to your head. You're not the brilliant dude you think you are. It's always the same with you Uchihas."

"You haven't answered my question."

"Kakashi fell for this exact same trick ya know? Maybe it's something with the sharingan itself, eats your brain cells or something..."

In a burst of red energy, the wires burned away, consumed by the angry chakra that seeped out of Naruto's entry points all at once. A snap of fingers later and Itachi found himself completely unable to move, stiff as a statue in the middle of his own hideout.

"This can go a number of ways," Naruto began. "You can fight me, perhaps even best me, and you'll be so glad to bring a clone to your Akatsuki bosses. Or maybe we could drink some tea, have a chat, and decide what to do about your brother."

Itachi's eyes widened, but even his mouth was barred from the slightest movement.

"Yeah, yeah, I guessed you had some plans concerning dear Sasuke. You're not as subtle as you think. Jiraiya's had you figured out for some time. Now, I'd really, really like you to tell me what you're planning, exactly."

She was on a date. She was on a date. With him. Naruto. She was on a date with Naruto. What was happening to her? She was on a – Hinata mentally slapped herself. Now wasn't the time for girly antics. No. She needed to act cool. She needed to be the furthest thing from her regular self. She needed to – to… Woo him, somehow. Maybe then he'd kiss her. Maybe then they'd go back to his place, or her place, or somewhere, and then they would –

"Hinata?"

"Yes!"

He was looking at her with a concerned frown. She was fucking this up. Of course she was fucking this up, how could it go any other way? "Hinata, you're doing the thing again."

"What – What thing?"

"Looking at me like I'm a hot piece of ass. It's a little uncomfortable, but thanks for the vote of confidence."

She took her drink, gulped it in one go. "You're annoying, Naruto."

"What? What did I do?"

"Being hot doesn't excuse being insufferably boastful, you know?"

He laughed loudly at that, attracting some stares from other patrons, and Hinata smiled to herself. Alright, she could work with this. She'd always been on the sassy side anyway; she'd just never had the opportunity to reveal it so openly before. He seemed to like it, too.

"Alright, alright," he told her once he'd calmed down a little. "Hold your horses."

She couldn't believe the gall of this blonde smug jerk. She couldn't believe she still had the hots for him. "Pardon me?"

"Well, this is a public place, yeah?" He began, all charm and easy smiles. "Anyway I only kiss once the date is over."

Hinata did not blush. She did not. She sputtered, sure, and she looked away and smiled vaguely at noting in particular, but she did not blush. Her stomach felt moments away from giving up on her entirely, but they were here, and so far he'd laughed at all her stupid jokes. "Tell me about your travels," she asked, because if the conversation went on about hotness and kisses he'd probably have to carry her back home. On account of her fainting.

The cheer fell out of his face, like a train-wreck in slow-motion. Soon enough there was a new smile adorning his lips. It was the saddest she'd ever seen on him; fake and horrendous and suiting him even worse than his old orange outfit. "I learned a lot on the road. I just – I wish some lessons hadn't cost what they have."

"We don't have to talk about it," she rushed ahead, trying to salvage whatever good and strange mood they'd managed to establish in between them. "You don't have to say anything, we –"

His hand had caught hers over the table, cutting her rambling away before it could really begin. Hinata felt hot, cheeks burning, awkward and sweaty. Their eyes met and her breath caught. There, under the evening light, Naruto looked otherworldly. Her long-time crush, the boy of her dreams, who was desperately trying not to cry on their first date. "I fucked this up – I'm so sorry," she blurted out.

"Please stop this." His voice was soft, low and unlike anything it had been until now. He'd cut off her thoughts before she could even find new ways to voice her never-ending apologies. "You didn't know about Jiraiya," he went on. "You couldn't, no one does yet, really. And I promise you're not fucking this up. Tonight is the loveliest thing that's happened to me since… well, since Jiraiya."

Something clicked in her head, suddenly. Her brain was going a mile a minute, and it took some moments for her to catch up, make her insights into thoughts and then words. "Back in the Forest," she began in a whisper of realisation. "You. The sword."

His eyes widened suddenly. "It's not like that. I did plenty of stupid shit long before that."

Hinata steeled herself then. This was no longer just about her silly, girly dreams. The time had come to channel her inner Ino. "You need a watcher."

He scoffed. "Excuse me, a what now?"

"No, it's perfect, don't you see? We're classmates of sorts now, or, or however Yugao-sensei put it. And I'm making ANBU soon anyway, so I'll need plenty of guarding experience and… and…" She was rambling but she couldn't help it; her latest revelation was too important for her to care. "Don't you just see how this all fits in!?"

"Hold on a minute, how does any – What do you – Wait, you want to run a surveillance job on me?!"

"Not surveillance, you silly, guarding the village asset!" She exclaimed, gesturing wildly at him. A couple of patrons sent them curious looks, which prompted her to wave awkwardly at them before lowering her voice. "We're bound to spend time together anyway so…"

Naruto blinked. He blinked again, and then began giggling childishly, which was almost as adorable as it was annoying. "This is just an elaborate way of spending even more time together."

"Someone has to cover your ass for you, Uzumaki," Hinata heard herself reply. Doing Ino was weird. Trying not to look mortified immediately after was impossible, but she managed, somehow.

"And this is in no way a means for you to spend quality time with this?" he asked, gesturing pompously at himself on the last word.

Her harsh stare was kept on him until he had the good grace to look sheepish. "It's both. And don't think we're not talking about Jiraiya at some point. Not now," she added awkwardly, "just, whenever you're ready. I know what it's… I mean I've also, you know…"

"I think I'd like that," he smiled at her. "As therapists go, I'd much rather a hot one. Especially if she's got this assertive side."

She was blushing, she knew. But she was smiling a little airily too. And he was grinning as well, so the score was even, sort of. They spent some time like that, just enjoying each other's presence, until at last Hinata brought them to the next step of their awkward, dubiously logical conversation. "Are you really gonna make me ask it?"

"I would love to see you ask." He grinned, shining once again like the beacon chasing her constant fogs away.

"Will this dumb, pompous, idiotic, reckless fool of a man go out with me, as in, being a couple?"

Naruto laughed, and to her it was everything. "When you put it like that, I'd be foolish to say no."

Her breathing turned heavy. Her lungs were getting louder and louder, overtaking the other patrons, eclipsing the sounds of the locale, met only by the intensity of Naruto's eyes, and the fullness of his lips, and the cute little whisker markings that almost seemed like they were wiggling ever so slightly under the light. Before she realised what she was doing, she had inched forward, captivated by his cheeks, his eyes, his lips, everything. Until her own lips were just a hair's breadth away and, and finally, finally she'd… They'd –

"Naruto! How many years has it been! And yet you look ever youthful, a true inspiration for our generation of shinobi!"

Her new boyfriend (!) looked as startled as she felt at the unexpected interruption. But then again, Hinata would have been more troubled had Lee-san not barged into their moment as soon as he had them spotted and recognized. Of course he would be earnestly and bombastically greeting an old friend after years spent apart with barely a rumour going about his latest whereabouts. In some very poignant ways, Hinata felt exactly the same. Well, up to the point where she wanted to kiss him to death.

Or perhaps Lee-san was just as intense in private as he was everywhere else, she mused, catching sight of the figure standing a few feet behind her friend. Sai was the pale and discreet man's name. A complete opposite to Lee-san's habitual disposition, not that she was in any position to throw stones. Nonetheless, something irked her about him. He was always quiet, always tense and making himself scarce, like someone who was constantly determining escape routes no matter the situation. But most of all, Hinata despised his smiles. She knew them well, of course, making good use of them herself, whenever she was in the presence of her father.

The feeling ran down to her very bones whenever this Sai person was around her. His ever-present terseness, his distress. Sometimes, she thought, it seemed he hated her. Her and anything else that ever crossed his path.

"You're enjoying an early evening with your boyfriend as well?" Hinata preened, pointing to Sai with a subtle movement of her chin.

She then had the pleasure of watching her new boyfriend. (Her. New. Boyfriend!) make a very long-drawn-out act of sighing loudly and shaking his head, just as Lee began a string of very loud and boisterous proclamations.

"Congratulations, Hinata-san! And to you as well, Naruto! There is no doubt in my mind your couple will thrive with the passion of young love and reach beyond the heavens themselves!"

"Yes, yes, I'm sure there's a lot of passion to be had, but we'll start with the foundation before doing any leaping," Naruto's eyes bored into hers as he spoke, his meaning quite clear: I'm blaming you for this.

For her part, Hinata offered her New Boyfriend a big, toothy smile as she answered her good friend. "Thanks for the confidence, Lee. And I do hope some heavens are reached before too long," she added as she turned her face back towards the idiotic blonde and possibly suicidal fool who had somehow and against all odds agreed to start seeing her in a way where there was no possible doubt that he was her – towards Naruto.

In response, Naruto merely stared back at Lee in a way that very much implied Help me, I think I woke up a monster I am not sure I can contain.

Obviously, Lee-san being the wonderful friend he'd always been, this subtext went completely over his head. "Ah, Young love," he began, sounding like an old man all of a sudden (and not any old man, either.) "Do you remember the early months, Sai? We were just like that."

"No," Sai replied, inserting himself in the conversation at long last, "We were much, much worse."

Lee laughed uproariously, before gesturing towards the two empty seats at their table. "Do you mind? I know you probably want nothing more than to move on quickly with your night, but I have burning questions for Naruto, and patience was never my strong suit."

Hinata turned a questioning eyebrow towards Naruto, who simply gestured towards the seats with an easy smile. "I will happily share anything. Within reason, obviously. Classified intel and all that."

"Of course." Lee hastily sat himself down by Hinata's side, having none of Sai's nimble, slow grace as he himself sat beside Naruto.

Lee did not waste a minute and started bombarding her new — Naruto — with his questions. Hinata seized the opportunity to comfortably settle herself and take a seat back, quite literally. She just watched instead, old habits and a decade worth of training rearing back at the ingrained practice. She learned a lot over the short conversation, before Sai and herself began dropping hints into it (her mentioning it was getting late and him not so subtly grabbing his boyfriend's hand to deliver a perfectly calculated smile and simply express his tiredness.)

Later, as they were making their way towards the Hyuga compound, Hinata turned her head towards boyfriend Naruto (she had grabbed his arm and was half-hugging it as they walked, refusing to let go even when he accused her of being clingy. She'd reasoned he needed the warmth just as much, and there hadn't been any retort to that.)

"You like telling stories," she began. The Eastern gate was some dozen metres away and she dreaded the parting.

"Got it from Jiraiya," he answered cheerily. "Back in the day he went on at length about the effectiveness of a good narrative. Details are boring, Naruto, he'd say. And don't let me start on facts! Facts are the worst, you'll just put your audience to sleep."

"What was it really like, the road with him?"

He stared down at her in surprise then, and she just smiled back. Naruto shook his head and swooped down to kiss her forehead, suddenly, sending her on a sputtering, blushing spree.

"You're a crafty little fox," he laughed. "Can't fool ya, can I?"

"You cannot." Hinata stomped the ground, replacing blushing and shame with annoyance. "And you can't avoid my questions, either."

"It was tougher than anything; every day more exhausting than the last. I wouldn't trade it for anything." Some seconds passed before he went on, not quite facing her, his eyes away. "He was my godfather. All my life I'd dreamed for someone like him to come and swoop me away."

She grabbed his hand, brought him back to her, to the pleasant evening they'd just shared. His eyes were shining in the moonlight, she noticed. Hers were, too. "When I lost my mom, everything felt worthless. I felt worthless, most of all. I couldn't save her, I couldn't bring her back. All I could do was just survive her, live in a world where everything just screamed her absence. I watched my dad become a zombie, I watched my sister forget the few precious memories she had with our mother. And then everyone just... moved on. It all seemed so easy, why couldn't I do the same?"

"How'd you do it?"

Someone else might have failed to hear him – his words a lost whisper under the gentle breeze. But not her, never her. She'd always heard Naruto, back from when they were little kids not fully aware of the world. And she heard him now, too, when he might not have wanted her to.

"You did it, silly. I couldn't stop wanting to be worthy of you."

In a flash his lips were against hers and Hinata felt like thunder. Swift as ever, she couldn't even tell who had moved first. Couldn't tell where she began, where he ended; couldn't tell nothing apart from touch and lips and kissing kissing kissing the blonde idiot her heart had chosen for a tormentor.

None of that mattered. In the cold and lonely night his lips were a beacon of warmth, spreading everywhere and reaching even the most shameful of places inside her. Hinata blushed. She didn't stop however, started smiling instead, hands reaching out and settling on strong, warm shoulders.

They kissed harder, not stopping, never stopping, always wanting more. Hinata held onto him as if her very life depended on it. Because it did. It did. It was obsessive and unhealthy and none of it mattered to her. He was her boyfriend. That was enough.

"This is the corniest thing anyone has ever said to me," he told her once they separated, both reddened and out of breath and standing not so far away from where her family lived.

"Shut up. You obviously loved it."

He grabbed her hand and began running his thumb over it, gently walking her towards the gate. Soon someone came out and greeted them both, before Hinata sent the guard away. She went to head forward, to disentangle her hand from his, but he turned her towards him. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me since, I think."

Too much blood had rushed up her head already, and she'd sworn to herself she'd stop fainting all the time. Hinata simply pecked him on the cheek (that cute little whisker mark!) and mumbled a quick See you tomorrow before skipping away, her gait a tad too carefree for someone just coming back home after a long day.