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Thanks for reading and doubly so for those who have left reviews. Special props to sumtyms for being 1st and MariSkep; I rather appreciated your thoughts on the ending. I should have finished fine tuning this thing already, but alas times are busy. I will say that I have nearly completed the first chapter in another Naruto fan fiction that I have been cooking up and story mapping for the past few months. It will be a significantly longer AU kind of deal. As I get further along I'll release a teaser here as a chapter 9 in this story. To answer an anon review I grouped this story's character filter based on the characters whose perspectives tell the story not by "pairings." Sorry if that throws you off or gets your hopes for the story squashed. I don't really know all of the appropriate procedures for posting. Kind of new. So if that is a serious issue let me know and I'll change it up. Didn't mean to ramble, enjoy.


Hinata stared out at the night sky. As always it was a wonder to behold. The moon was bright and full, and its light radiating. The silver gleam was bright enough to bring light to the entire village, but it was not a harsh light as was the sun's. On this particular night, the sky was clear and free. There were dozens of stars that were dancing in the black of the night sky. While not as many were as visible as there were out in the wilderness, there were plenty of constellations to admire.

"Naruto," she breathed out softly, "stay safe, and come home soon."

She had spent the past ten months trying to busy herself so she was not constantly thinking about the love of her life wandering across the world. She helped her father in the work of the clan, but understood her role was never one of an heiress. That job would be her sister's. Frankly, after the death of Neji and the banishment of the Cage Bird Seal her desire to lead the clan disappeared. So she entrusted the clan's future to her sister's leadership. Still, in spite of all that she did to occupy herself, she would stare out at the moon nightly and offer up a simple prayer that Naruto would be safe and his quest would end soon. It was the night sky that made that connection possible. No matter where she was and no matter where he was, both would be under the same moon, and the same stars. Being beneath the same canopy of the heavens allowed her the simple pleasure of still feeling close to the man even though they had not set eyes on each other for the better part of a year.

Much had changed during the ten months since Sakura died. In fact, Hinata was quite certain that the village might never be the same place in her absence. Tsunade had been affected greatly. Her prized student and her only true successor had fallen long before her time should have come. Hinata saw the change that it caused both her leader, and Shizune, and was worried that the two of them might be emotionally lost forever if Naruto did not come home soon.

Ino had been dealing with the issue differently than Hinata would have suspected. Where her Hokage had seemingly lost the sparkle in her eyes, Ino had developed an iron clad resolve to pick up where her friend had left off. Ino threw herself into her training both in her clan's techniques and in her training in the medical field. It was no real secret that Ino did not have the same degree of chakra control that is required of medical ninja of Sakura's caliber, but it did not deter her from developing the skills to rival Shizune's medical prowess. What startled everyone was when Ino began to do case studies of debilitating mental illnesses, and through techniques she developed from her clan and her medical training she was healing mental conditions long thought untreatable.

Ino had also been spending plenty of time rebuilding a friendship with Hinata, and Hinata was beginning to feel quite comfortable calling the blonde a dear friend. They spent many days together talking about life, work, their families, struggles, and love. The results were interesting, and Hinata had been left with a greater confidence that Naruto indeed loved her. On the flip side she also felt greater remorse for the notion that she had let her own insecurities about the relationship between Naruto and Sakura drive her to breaking up with him. She could remember the night when she had made that decision.

Stepping through the gates after a long and uneventful patrol mission, Hinata's pale eyes looked toward her teammates to see what they might do.

"The hour is getting late," Shino said breaking the silence, "We will make our report to the Hokage in the morning. I will see you then. Good job, and get some rest." His brief and monotone words would sound curt and uncaring to those who did not know the silent, but thoughtful man that Shino was. With a nod of his head he was off.

Turning to Kiba, and his faithful hound, Hinata squeaked "What are you and Akamaru going to do Kiba?" Normal people would go to bed at this hour, but Hinata knew better 'He loves the feelings of freedom and purpose that long patrol missions give, and he won't want to go home to the responsibilities of his clan just yet,' she thought knowing her teammate and brother-in-arms.

"Eh, did you say something Hinata? I figured being with a guy like Naruto you would have had to start speaking up a little for him to hear you talk over the sound of his brain rattling around in his skull."

Hinata knew what his words meant also. Though it sounded as if he had been ignoring her, and then teasing both her and her boyfriend, she knew this was his way of having some fun with a good friend. With a smile at the man she waited for his answer.

"I dunno, I might go see if I can get some food. Or maybe go drop by Ayame's place and see what she is up to. What do ya think Akamaru?"

A bark of affirmation came from the large dog. The idea of visiting the ramen mistress seemed to appeal to him, but only Kiba really knew. As she recalled, Hinata and Naruto had been somewhat responsible for fostering the relationship between the two. The initial idea was presented by chance, but the ongoing prodding and urging Kiba to move toward a deeper relationship was very much a game of meddling.

Naruto, Kiba, Shikamaru and Lee had been selected to escort the Daimyo and his convoy throughout the Land of Fire partly to help give relief to some of the villages damaged in the war, partly to show off the best and the brightest of shinobi the Leaf had, and also to reassure the people of their safety and security. By chance Ayame had met up with the group while she was out gathering new ingredients and recipes to put to use, as well as rounding out her training in the culinary arts. It was because she knew Naruto on a first name basis, and had impressed the Daimyo with one of the finest meals he had outside of the capital, she was allowed to join the convoy for the rest of their trip. This greatly pleased Ayame because she was frequently fixing meals for the Daimyo himself, and was learning first hand from the greatest chefs in the land. It also greatly pleased Naruto because it meant he could get his favorite ramen while on a mission.

While they were returning home there was a small mishap with bandits attacking. Hinata never really knew how serious it was because Ayame talked about it as if the bandits numbered in the thousands, and were all as skilled as samurai. Lee stated that it was a most youthful exercise to begin the day. Shikamaru simply said it was troublesome. Naruto and Kiba said it was no big deal, and talked about it like they had fun during the experience. Nevertheless from the details she gathered, Ayame panicked and ran away from the overall protection of the convoy. Bandits chased her and cornered her, and just when all seemed like she was doomed, Kiba rescued her. Kiba never shared the intimate details of what happened between the young man and slightly older chef. However, whatever Kiba did left Ayame swooning over her hero.

'You really do love her don't you Kiba,' Hinata thought warmly as she shared a smile with her friend as he and his companion walked away. 'Perhaps I too will go visit the one I love.'

With that Hinata began to move her way toward Naruto's home. After the village had been rebuilt, Tsunade insisted upon rebuilding the home of the Fourth Hokage to its original specifications. When he returned home from the war, Naruto was simply handed the keys. In spite of the fact that his father and mother's house was a modest home considering their fame and importance within the village, Naruto complained that it was too much and he didn't need a place as big as that. Tsunade, of course, insisted that the hero of the war would not live in the tiny apartment that he had lived in since the days of his youth. She continued by convincing him that as he got older he would need the space for the day he had his own kids to look after. Naruto, being obsessed with all aspects of ninja life, misunderstood Tsunade entirely and was thrilled by the prospect of having a genin team of his own.

As she approached the house she saw the lights on. 'I hope he isn't overworking himself again. I told him that the branch families are more than willing to wait for him to finish in his own time. I guess not even sleep will stop him from accomplishing something he has set his mind to.'

She heard voices as she walked up toward the door. One voice was male, rough yet warm and comforting, clearly Naruto's. The other was softer, more feminine sounding, curiosity got the better of Hinata as she tried to identify the second owner of the second voice. She spotted an open window and her heart was overflowing with worry as she saw the pink haired woman standing behind the couch with her hands rubbing Naruto's shoulders as he poured himself into the scrolls splayed out on the table in front of him.

'No need to panic. It's not like I caught them doing anything I would consider to be beyond the scope of their friendship. I have helped Kiba and Shino relax sore muscles the same way once or twice,' Hinata reasoned to herself.

"I just don't understand it," Naruto growled his frustration quite clear. "My dad was clearly a freaking genius, 'cause I just don't understand how I am messing this up."

"Still working on the Cage Seal Reversal?" Sakura asked the obvious question teasingly.

"Yeah. I know how it works in theory, but everything I have tried so far has not been working. Either my counter formula destroys the seal and takes what has been sealed away with it, or the seal remains intact. In theory, the formula I have done should work."

"You are just testing on scrolls and chakra that has been sealed away, the conditions aren't the same," Sakura pointed out trying a bit more seriously to be helpful. She had a working knowledge of the Sealing Arts, but her own Yin Seal was not a complicated seal in and of itself.

"It shouldn't matter with sealing though. I know with medicine you have to try and duplicate the live conditions to get accurate predictions with your testing, but for sealing the only things that really matter is the way the sealing matrix is designed, and how chakra is applied to the construction of the seal. For any one formula there are countless wrong combinations, and only one that will give me the result that I want. It's like looking for a specific needle in a stack of needles," Naruto pouted. He was never the kind of guy with book smarts, and had really pushed himself beyond what even he thought his limits were in his study of sealing techniques.

"I was really hoping for a breakthrough tonight," Naruto continued as he relaxed into the couch. "I seriously thought I was on to something this time." He held his head in his hands, looking like he was trying to keep a headache at bay.

Sakura continued to work over his shoulders, "Maybe you should just turn in for the night. Get some sleep and maybe the answer will just come to you later," the woman said offering advice, "That's what I do when I'm stuck with some of my research in the lab."

"I can't just yet. I can't keep Hinata and her clan waiting. They are counting on me to do this, and it means so much to her. I just can't let her down," Naruto said with his fiery resolve giving him strength as he dug back into his work. Hinata could feel its warmth as she looked on in wonder as she thought 'That is just one of the many reasons why I love you Uzumaki Naruto.'

"Hinata should consider herself lucky that she has a guy who would so selflessly do anything for her," the medic said in a seemingly nonchalant manner.

'I do Sakura. I am the luckiest girl in the world because I have him with me,' Hinata thought as if addressing the comment directly. She was still debating whether to actually make her presence known at this point. It was a bit surprising that two experienced ninja hadn't already noticed that she was there. Hinata decided that she may have to work with Naruto on his situational awareness. This study of his seemed to give him a sort of tunnel vision.

"What do you mean by tha, Ow! Hey watch it that really hurt." Naruto whined pitifully. Hinata had to stifle a laugh as she knew he was not hurt in the least, but giving Sakura a hard time.

"Sit still! You are the one who decided to have the Nine Tails hold back on using his healing powers for anything non-critical. So you either have to learn to deal with some pain or quite trying to spar with Tsunade and me at the same time," retorting with an ultimatum Sakura continued her own task ignoring her teammate's complaints.

"That's not fair! I have to practice Sage Mode sometime or I'll start getting rusty. Its not like I can do that with just anyone, and Kakashi-sensei was on a mission. Besides, the only reason I did was because you kept bugging about how the ability is shortening my lifespan. So you could at least try to be gentle," Naruto grumbled under his breath probably hoping Sakura wouldn't use his response as a reason to be a bit more rough in her handiwork. "What did you mean by what you said a minute ago?"

"I just meant that Hinata is lucky to have you." Naruto was still studying and focused on the task at hand, but Hinata could see the look in Sakura's eyes. She did not need to use her all seeing eyes to know that the look on Sakura's face was one of longing, and restrained desire. "There is so much about you to love Naruto, and you would bring any girl you choose to be with a lifetime of happiness."

Heart rate increased, breathing irregular, Hinata's thoughts were drowning her mind in every worst case scenario that could happen right now. It was so obvious, so blunt, so abundantly clear that Sakura was deeply in love with Naruto. Ino had warned her, this was coming. Ino had told her that she needed to sit down with Sakura and talk to the pink haired medic about her long term desires for her relationship with Naruto, but she wrote it off because both had known how long she had feelings for the man.

'Surely Naruto knows what she is hinting at, he has to know. He wouldn't just go for this. Would he?'

"Hey, I thought I already explained all of this to you just a second ago," Naruto began.

Breathlessly Hinata awaited the response of her life long crush. The angle was not one where she could see the exchange, but she knew that his cerulean orbs bore deeply into her emerald ones. She couldn't see his expression, but she knew this was serious.

"It doesn't matter what happens. My feelings will never change. I may wind up with Hinata and you could end up with Sasuke, but nothing will change between us as far as I am concerned. I will never forget you, I will never leave you behind, and I will always fight to keep you in my life. I love you far too much to just let you go now," Naruto said firmly.

It was at that moment Hinata's world silently shattered. She didn't remember leaving the front porch, the walk home, and she certainly could not remember how she had found herself laying crumpled up on top of her bed the next morning. The how's, the why's, and the various other questions she may have had about the conversation she overheard did not matter anymore. She had heard the worst of it in her mind. Naruto loved Sakura, and that would never change.

'I am only standing in the way of his happiness.' Hinata, convinced of this though, mustered up the resolve to say something she would have never dreamed of.

Hinata had made what she could only consider to be a mistake the next day, but it felt necessary at the time. Her love for Naruto was not so shallow that she was not willing to give him up if it meant he would be happy. It was never an issue of trust, Hinata knew well that Naruto was loyal to his dying breath. She had just felt that the emerald eyed woman was someone she could not be compared to in Naruto's eyes. It was, after all, common knowledge that Naruto had fawned over the pink haired girl since the time they were in the Academy much like how she had her eyes set on him.

The break up with Naruto was difficult, and awkward. It killed her to utter those words, and it broke her further to see him stand there and take them so coldly, showing no emotion at all. He offered little resistance, and only asked for a reason why. Hinata had been hesitant to offer one, and simply stated that it was for the best. The awkwardness set in after that and lasted for months. He was more quiet and reserved around her than he had ever been. It was the silence that she received when he was around that hurt her the most.

Sakura tried to explain the situation. On several occasions she came to the defense of the relationship between her lifelong friend and the blue haired beauty. She had tried to tell Hinata that Naruto said what he did because Sakura had admitted, just moments earlier, to actively distancing herself from her teammate and their friendship. She tried to point out that she and Naruto could never be so long as the Sasuke affair was left unsettled. She argued that even if she wanted to pursue a relationship with him, the undeniable fact Naruto loved Hinata would make that impossible. Sakura desperately tried to explain that the love Naruto held for her was of a purely platonic nature. Hinata had already convinced herself that it didn't matter what they thought, their emotions betrayed their words, and she stood in their way. Even though Hinata had broken up with Naruto so he could pursue his childhood crush, she had held out hope that Naruto would be running back to her.

This never happened, the nature of the break up and Naruto's long standing abandonment issues ensured that it would not occur. Many people would try to talk both halves of the former pair to working things out. Ino, on the other hand, was not as noble in her approach toward the situation as Sakura had been. The meddling blonde only exacerbated the matter by going behind the scenes to try and work the two teammates into situations where some romance could blossom. While Hinata was far too cordial to ever confront the woman, it still infuriated Hinata that Ino would go to such lengths to extinguish all hopes of a future with Naruto. Much to Ino's own frustration nothing came of her efforts.

Guided only by the light of the moon Hinata sank into the warmth of her bed. She reached over to the night stand next to her bed and grabbed the note that rested upon it. The note had been discovered the night Naruto had left the village soon after returning home from dinner with Ino. The note was unsigned, but Hinata knew who it was from. Naruto's handwriting was easily identifiable to her now. The note itself was simple and straight forward, but the words expressed such hope and promise that it warmed the soul, much like the man who wrote it.

She thumbed over the edge of the folded paper once or twice before finally opening it. She closed her eyes briefly, and read the contents once more. She smiled as she thought about what he had said.

'Hinata, I know this will be difficult for you, but I must fulfill my promises. You know me and my nindo, I always keep my word. I promise I will return. I do love you, and nothing will change that. I will come back for you, and when I do I promise I will spend the rest of my life showing you just how much.'

With that as the last though in her mind she folded the note and returned it to its original place. Her last thoughts dwelt on her beloved as she began to blissfully slip out of conscious. Her final thoughts of the evening became dreams. Dreams of her holding Naruto close, clinging to the one she loved most, just as she had years ago.