The same day…when Konoha was attacked by the Kyuubi…

"But…but what does that have to do with Naruto?"

Out of all the genin present, Hinata was the only one not frozen in place by the mention of the ninetails.

"The kyuubi was defeated by the fourth, right?"

"Yeah, that's what we were told, wasn't it? On that day, the fourth died. The kyuubi was destroyed, and Naruto was born. And since then, people have hated him, calling him a 'monster."

"S…Shika…maru?"

"When I first met Naruto, I thought to myself, 'he can't be such a bad guy…with fangs like those.' Heh. He even looked like he had whiskers."

Kiba turned slowly, pulling himself up straight in his chair, planting his feet, ready to stand at a seconds' notice.

"But-"

"Even with the pranks he pulled, I admired his determination. He never broke a promise, he always…kept his word. That is his way of the ninja, as he likes to say."

Shino didn't more in his chair, but his jacket began to shift as large numbers of his bugs began to move around under the cloth.

"Shino? Kiba-k…what are you…"

Hinata was surrounded by her friends, looking at them and the way they were looking at Naruto in turn.

"Stop it! Just stop! You're sounding like…acting like everyone who…hurt…"

"I remember…on our first real mission together…when he has hurt really bad, when it looked like he might die, Naruto…"

"Sakura! Don't! That's-"

"He changed. He wasn't Naruto anymore. He was…something else…and his chakra…"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Hinata slammed her foot down with enough force to crack the floorboards as she went into a gentle fist stance, standing in front of Naruto protectively.

"He's Naruto! That's all! Everyone hated him, told him he was trash, hurt him, spat on him, but he beat them! He's not a monster! He became a shinobi of the hidden leaf! He-"

Hinata saw the genin tense and she shifted, bringing a hand up that was wreathed in chakra, pulling it back and mentally preparing the series of moves to defend against an attack from any direction and combination of genin – until she heard a tiny whisper behind her.

"Hinata…"

Behind her, Naruto had stood, awakened by her shouting. He stepped forward and put his arms around her. She relaxed after a moment, and he pulled her close, out of her stance.

"It's all right…"

"N…Naruto?"

He didn't say anything further, only pulling her back into her chair. The other four genin watched nervously as Naruto hugged her tightly and began gently licking her cheek.

"N-N-N-Naruto!"

On cue, Hinata's face exploded with color, and she attempted to free herself as Naruto grinned, shoving his face into her neck and purring happily. The tension in the air broke, and Kiba flopped back in his chair, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"Aw, man…what are we doing?"

The buzzing ceased as the destruction bugs returned inside their host, and Shino removed his glasses to run his hands over his face.

"This is what I was worried about…being burdened with useless information."

"Honestly, you're all idiots…"

"Hey! I didn't see you-"

"No, you didn't see me getting ready to attack Naruto. I was still trying to figure this mess out!"

"Shikamaru-kun, Kiba-kun, calm down. We're here to help N-"

"What? C'mon! You were the one who was all-"Kiba raised his hands and began wriggling his fingers at Sakura, narrowing his eyes and baring his fangs for good measure. "-on the same day as the kyuubi… oooouu whuou wouou houuouo. And started freaking out."

"Kiba…"

Sakura advanced on Kiba, and Shino quickly stood between them, calling for peace even as Sakura began rolling up her sleeves.

"How troublesome…"

With that, Shikamaru was headed for the door, bowing out before he got caught up in this any further. Back inside, Kiba and Sakura were being kept at arms' length from each other, glaring at each other from their respective side of Shino.

"S-Stop it, Naruto!"

The sound drew their attention back to the foxboy. His hands had found their way under Hinata's shirt, and he was tickling her sides relentlessly, following her to the floor as she fell. Falling on top of her, he resumed licking her neck, and Hinata began to flail her arms around aimlessly, trying to hold in her laughter.

"H-h-h-help me!"

"Hmmm…no."

Kiba crossed his arms and smirked down at her, enjoying the show.

"Kiba! Here, I'll get him."

"Oh, c'mon…"

Despite Kiba's protests, Sakura pulled Naruto off the embarrassed girl. Naruto immediately latched onto Sakura, cramming his face into her breasts and getting a lump on the head for it. He dropped, whimpering, staring up at his teammate with sad, watery eyes.

"Don't you start you little pervert…"

Naruto huffed and quickly tackled Hinata back to the floor, wrapping his arms around her once again.

"N-N-Naruto!"

It was no small blessing that Tsume and Hana had been delayed on their missions. The atmosphere in the Inuzuka complex was a morass of emotion. Curiosity. Worry. Anger directed outwards at those who hurt Naruto for whatever ridiculous reason, and anger directed inwards. Not even jumping to conclusions, erring on the side of caution or simply assuming the worst, they had nearly turned on one of their best friends for quite literally no real reason.

Kiba had nearly eaten a napkin, his mind nowhere near his food. Shino's bugs were perfectly still on his skin, not the slightest twitch of antennae or click to be heard. Hinata and Naruto were the only source of sound in the entire house for hours. She laughed and talked to Naruto without the slightest blush or stutter, and he purred and yipped his appreciation as he was scratched and rubbed and even hugged.

"Hey, Shino…"

It was late, and the team was preparing for bed. Shino stopped in the doorway to his room, turning to see Kiba with his eyes fixed on the floor.

"We…really dodged the kunai, didn't we? I mean we almost…this wasn't what I wanted."

"Kiba. There may be a terrible secret in Naruto's past. He may even have some connection to the Kyuubi. Or it may be a simple matter of pride."

"Pride?"

"The things people will do for the sake of their pride…the grudges, the endless feuds between clans and even between family members…Naruto is not unlike a kitsune of legend. No doubt the villagers saw that, and saw the Kyuubi in Naruto. Hated him simply for being a reminder of the past and what they felt at that time. The kyuubi was the stuff of nightmares, but unlike the Kyuubi, Naruto was something they could fight-no, something they could hurt."

"Do you…do you really think it's that simple?"

"It could easily be that way. We won't know for certain unless we see this through. Will we?"

Kiba lifted his head and opened the door to his room, the expression on his face enhanced by the long shadows cast by the moonlight.

"Burdened by useless information, huh?"

He turned his head to regard Hinata's and Naruto's rooms before looking over his shoulder at his teammate.

"I started this. I'll finish it. Did you see Hinata today, the way she was when she was with Naruto? If there really is some big, dark, useless secret, I'll carry it myself, and make it look like I'm the only one that was really looking for it...Goodnight, Shino."

"Goodnight, Kiba."

Hinata had gone to bed early, but she had not fallen asleep. A few minutes after her head hit the pillow, she had heard a sound in Naruto's room. Up immediately, she had bit her lip hard enough to draw blood when she opened his door. He had been smiling that day. He was playful. He had hugged her, tickled her, licked her, and she had absorbed it all so happily, confidently, wanting to hold him and talk to him like that even after the seal was gone. She had been so happy that day, and until she opened his door, she never realized how acting so happy could hurt someone so much.

Naruto was sobbing. His entire body was shaking under the blankets, his face buried in his pillow. She could hear the names of her teammates and other genin whimpered between breaths and tiny screams of pain, every word accompanied by a shift as Naruto tried to curl up into a smaller and smaller ball.

The movements had stopped as a hand rested on his shoulder. A kiss on a tear-stained cheek slowed his breath, and his body relaxed as two slim arms wrapped around him. A small body joined him under the blankets and whispered a lullaby in his ear, to pull him from his worries and into a peaceful sleep

"I love you,.Naruto."