Chapter 66

Naruto and Lord Hiashi face off

Hinata had left the room as her father asked but was nervous wondering what her father would say to Naruto, especially after the sight he walked in to. She paced the ground in her garden, using her buyokogon to see them inside and listening for any pieces of their conversation.

Naruto stood frozen after Hinata had left, he already had his shirt on and was holding his coat. He looked apprehensively at Lord Hiashi who stared daggers at him.

"This wasn't as bad as it looked," Naruto tried to start but stopped when Lord Hiashi raised his eyebrows, a threatening look on his face.

Her father had come to like Naruto and did expect to have him as a member of the family some day. He was also old fashioned and didn't believe Naruto should be making moves on his daughter before they made any plans for the future. It was his job to preserve her honor until marriage because of the noble bloodline that she belonged to.

"Are you sure about that, because it looked pretty bad to me," he spat.

"It was my shoulder, she used her juitsu on it and it went numb and then she put some green stuff on it and then I kissed her, that was all," Naruto spoke faster than usual due to being nervous.

"Follow me," Lord Hiashi said as he moved to another area of the house that Naruto hadn't seen before. He opened the door and ushered Naruto inside. When Naruto entered the room Lord Hiashi entered behind him. The room had wooden floors and was usually where Lord Hiashi trained his daughters.

"I spoke to you before about your intentions with my daughter, and respecting her honor. Or have you forgotten Naruto?" The look on his face hadn't softened.

"No, I remember," Naruto said in a deflated tone. 'It probably wouldn't have looked as bad if I kept my shirt on,' he thought. Still, he could understand why Lord Hiashi would be angry with him.

"I'm going to make sure you keep it at the forefront of your mind from now on," he said in a dangerous tone. "Prepare yourself for a fight." He took an aggressive stance and activated his buyokogon, once Naruto took a defensive stance as Lord Hiashi advanced.

He used gentle fist and punched Naruto in the stomach and then in the face, causing him to drop to the ground. Lord Hiashi realized that Naruto hadn't defended himself against the attack.

"I told you to ready yourself! Why didn't you defend against my attack!" He asked in an angry tone.

Naruto coughed as he picked himself up from the floor, his stomach hurting worse than his shoulder ever did. "There was no need."

"What are you talking about? No need to defend yourself when someone attacks you?" He replied with disgust.

"Not when it's deserved. You are right to be angry with me." Naruto nodded his head at Lord Hiashi and readied himself. "Let's go again."

Lord Hiashi was surprised by Naruto's reaction and the anger he felt started to ebb away. If it was as Naruto said, maybe it wasn't as bad as it looked, although he still didn't like it.

"Let's not be ridiculous, I think you've got the message," He added coolly while Naruto exhaled. He could see relief wash over Naruto's features.

The door to the room opened and Hinata came in. The training room was set up so that buyokogon couldn't penetrate or see outside of it. As a result she hadn't seen what had gone on since they entered the room. She saw her father and Naruto standing at opposite sides of the room, a stance that her father used when training or fighting. "What's going on it here?" She asked her father.

"Nothing," Naruto piped in "we were just having a conversation." Hinata eyed him suspiciously.

Lord Hiashi nodded. "And we've come to an understanding, I believe?" He asked Naruto. His respect for Naruto had grown because of the way he took responsibility for his actions, and the fact that he didn't try to make an issue out of this to his daughter.

"Yes, I believe we have." He replied.

"Good," Hinata added. "Then we're done here?"

Naruto really liked Hinata's father, but he had seen a side of him that was very 'Neji like' and that could be a little scary. Naruto thought maybe it was best if he left for the night.

They all walked out of the room and into the main area of the house when there was a knock on the door.

Naruto and Lord Hiashi hung back while Hinata answered the door and welcomed Shikamaru inside. There was still tension in the air from the last conversation and Shikamaru could sense it.

"I hope I'm not interrupting," he asked as he looked between Naruto and Lord Hiashi.

"Not at all," Lord Hiashi reassured him.

"Yeah, I was actually just leaving," Naruto mentioned as he reached for his jacket. Hinata shot an angry look at her father.

"Well, I came here to talk to both of you because I need your help. Can I come in?" He asked as Naruto set his jacket back down and glanced at Hinata. He was surprised to see her glaring at her father.

"I'll put on some tea, please have a seat," Lord Hiashi offered.

"Thanks," he said as he sat down and looked at Naruto and Hinata who were still standing. "Is it me or do things seem tense around here?"

"Hinata's father and I just got done having a talk, that's all." Naruto didn't feel like getting into it, especially in front of Hinata.

"Judging by the swelling on your cheek it must have been a short talk." Hinata stepped forward to look at Naruto's face and did see that there was slight swelling.

"Naruto…" Hinata said with concern, her eyes were wide with shock. Could her father really have done something like that to him?

"Let it go Shikamaru," Naruto said in an angry tone. "What did you come here to talk about." Naruto asked as he sat down.

Lord Hiashi came back into the room and also took a seat. Hinata continued standing while she heard what he came to request help with.

"As you know, Temari and I are kind of an item, and with the forbidden rules this complicates things. You both know how the other nations as well as Konoha feel about marriages between the villages, and this is why I've come to ask for your help." Shikamaru bowed his head at his comrades.

"Marriages, what are you talking about, you haven't started dating, have you?" Naruto asked as he sat forward in his chair.

"No, but we've asked Gaara and Kakashi and both have approved a marriage for us. We've already agreed that this is what we want." He added while his friends took a moment to let this soak in.

Hinata took a seat next to her father as she listened to Shikamaru.

"I have to convince the elders so I can get final approval which will take some time. I need someone else to approach the other 3 villages and talk to the Kages and lay the ground work for our request. That way if the elders say no but the 5 Kage summit approves then we have nothing to worry about."

"What specifically do you need from us?" Hinata asked as she gave Naruto a puzzled look which he returned.

"Well, I was hoping you two would agree to approach the villages. Naruto has a lot of influence and your feelings for him are something everyone will remember from the war. I need you two to show the other villagers why this is important. It will be hard for them to deny this when love is staring them in the face."

"I see," Naruto replied as he shifted his eyes to Lord Hiashi. He didn't think her father would have a favorable response to the mission.

Hinata didn't look at anyone but began to blush. She knew what Shikamaru had said was true but doubted her father would consent to her going on the mission after today.

Shikamaru looked at each of them and awaited a response, a response he didn't receive. He thought they would be happy to have a mission together, but judging from the tension in the house he thought other factors might not make this possible.

"Who else have you considered for this mission?" Lord Hiashi asked.

"I don't have anyone else that has the power to change people's minds like Naruto does." He replied.

"Then why have you asked that Hinata go too?" Her father started to grill him. He didn't feel that Shikamaru would put Hinata in a situation that would ruin her reputation since he himself was making plans for his marriage before even dating. He knew the effect Naruto could have on people.

"Well, because, and no offense Naruto, he can lose his focus and his emotions can cloud his judgment. Hinata is able to retain her focus even under harsh circumstances and can pull Naruto through some of the tougher interactions. This mission isn't just speaking to anyone, these are Kage's of villages."

"Understood," Lord Hiashi agreed with Shikamaru's point.

"Shikamaru," Hinata began, "I accept the mission. We are your friends and will do whatever we can to help you. Thank you for trusting us to do this." She added.

Lord Hiashi and Naruto looked at each other as Hinata got up to get the tea.

Naruto was worried about being alone with her after her father's reaction that afternoon, but Hinata didn't seem as worried. Lord Hiashi looked like he wanted to be reassured that both of them would be on their best behavior and wasn't looking forward to any alone time they may have.

"Lord Hiashi," Naruto began as he turned to face Hinata's father directly.

"Hm?" he responded.

"When we get back from the mission, I'm going to ask you if I can propose to Hinata." He said matter of factly.

Lord Hiashi looked at Naruto with wide dangerous eyes again. He had already been through his threshold for the day.

"Should I leave?" Shikamaru asked, but was ignored.

"What did you say?" He asked Naruto.

"You wanted me to get the message?" He said, exasperated that Lord Hiashi seemed angry with him.

"And that's what you thought I meant? I guess that's one way to look at it…" His angry tone faded again as he listened to Naruto's reasoning. He just wanted Naruto to slow down a little bit and not take any liberties with his daughter. While he thought they had an understanding he was realizing that this was what Naruto perceived the understanding to be. He made a big sigh as Hinata walked back into the room.

"We'll revisit this at that time, but until then, it sounds like you both have a mission to prepare for." Lord Hiashi returned.

Shikamaru still felt like third wheel after witnessing what had just happened. Naruto appeared much happier than when she had left the room, and her father seemed to have relaxed a bit. When Naruto and her father were together they seemed to run in polarized ways. It was starting to make her dizzy.

They all drank their tea in silence, which three of them appreciated until the one who found it awkward made an excuse to leave. Shikamaru thanked Hinata for the tea and headed back towards his home.